As if the whole running thing wasn't enough:
Study: Triathlons can pose deadly heart risks
March 28th, 2009 By MARILYNN MARCHIONE , AP Medical Writer (AP) -- Warning to weekend warriors: Swim-bike-run triathlons pose at least twice the risk of sudden death as marathons do, the first study of these competitions has found.
www.physorg.com/news157482153.html
(posted earlier this evening in the OW area)
I wonder what USMS' Open Water Participant Mortality Rate is...
The article referenced clearly points to an issue with people swimming that shouldn't be swimming. If these tri first timers were smarter about their training, they'd try a longer, possibly OW, swim-only event before taking the deeper plunge and adding a bike and run to it. That may open their eyes (and constricted blood vessels) to a need to work at swimming more so that USAT didn't have to haul their carcasses out of lakes later on.
Unfortunately, this is a good example of survival of the fittest (and fittest in the fitness sense can also apply here). I don't think anyone has died in 25+ years of the bay swim (not a USMS race). They have some controls in place to limit this situation so that if you're not fit to swim the race, you aren't going to be allowed to swim.
The article did not point out the length of the races where the deaths occurred, but perhaps USAT could take a page from Lin-Mark's Bay Swim book and for events of Olympic distance or greater (assuming that is where the majority of deaths occur) require proof of completion of a swim-only event of 1 mile or greater. Perhaps this is where USMS can lend a hand.
(posted earlier this evening in the OW area)
I wonder what USMS' Open Water Participant Mortality Rate is...
The article referenced clearly points to an issue with people swimming that shouldn't be swimming. If these tri first timers were smarter about their training, they'd try a longer, possibly OW, swim-only event before taking the deeper plunge and adding a bike and run to it. That may open their eyes (and constricted blood vessels) to a need to work at swimming more so that USAT didn't have to haul their carcasses out of lakes later on.
Unfortunately, this is a good example of survival of the fittest (and fittest in the fitness sense can also apply here). I don't think anyone has died in 25+ years of the bay swim (not a USMS race). They have some controls in place to limit this situation so that if you're not fit to swim the race, you aren't going to be allowed to swim.
The article did not point out the length of the races where the deaths occurred, but perhaps USAT could take a page from Lin-Mark's Bay Swim book and for events of Olympic distance or greater (assuming that is where the majority of deaths occur) require proof of completion of a swim-only event of 1 mile or greater. Perhaps this is where USMS can lend a hand.
