How much do triathlete need to learn about swimming?
Former Member
I do not mean this as a heartless criticism of triathletes. I actually enjoy the sport. But many of them start doing triathlons with almost no knowledge or experience in swimming. Here are a couple of choice comments to the thread I linked below. Thank goodness I knew how to ride a bike and run before I started doing tris - but not well. Give them credit for taking it on, but I do think they should learn to swim before entering one.
"The swim is short ( 150 yards ), and I can make it..not without stopping a couple of times at the end of the pool."
"A lot of pool sprints are so newbie friendly that they let you get through the water any way you can. I have seen people water walk the 300 meters in a pool swim in my area."
"My wife did an indoor tri a few months ago and I think 1/4 of the people walked the swim."
I recommended that the person do breaststroke.
www.beginnertriathlete.com/.../thread-view.asp
Parents
Former Member
Athough I swore off this thread, it's getting interesting.
Just trying to clarify, I don't think winning (being competitive) is a requirement to be a serious triathlete, or take swimming seriously. That's sort of a jaded viewpoint. One could, without thinking about it, say the exact same thing about OW swimmers that go do an alcatraz crossing, or a pier to pier, then check it off the list. My impression is that there are many more serious people in both tris and OW swimming, by an order of magnitude, than a 2% that wants to cross off a bucket list (there are those as well, as there are in every sport).
If having to be competitive were true, it wouldn't explain my story very well. But maybe I can just go home after work and eat chips rather than driving to masters workout.....:banana:
I am one of those that is one of the first out of the water, then spend the rest of the race trying to hold off those weaker swimmers that can bike and run faster than me. I'm getting better at it, this year I was 11th out of the water (AG), then 54 and 72 after bike and run at Oceanside 70.3. Last year I was 16th out of the water, and then 100-something after the bike and 150-something after the run. I am "competitive" on the swim, but it's not an open water swim. It's a swim/bike/run.
I swim 300K plus yards a year, and it's just enough to keep me out front for a little while (and nets me a top 30% or so at swim only events). I know folks that swim faster on less. But it's a helluva lot more than most people I see on BT and other boards, so that part of the point is fairly valid. Personally, I am just of the training opinion that being in good swim shape doesn't just get you a good swim time, it sets up a good day. If you get to the bike and/or run totally gassed, a fast swim is irrelevant. But I have worked my a$$ off the last year to get better at biking and running while trying to maintain a semblance of swim fitness.
There are only 3 (sometimes 5) podium slots. I'd have to go at least an hour faster overall to smell the podium at a 70.3 (and every year seems to get faster). That does not mean I don't take the swim (very) seriously, and enter every race trying to go as fast as I can, which in every case is not as fast as others. I really want to win, I am just not fast enough to actually do so
Athough I swore off this thread, it's getting interesting.
Just trying to clarify, I don't think winning (being competitive) is a requirement to be a serious triathlete, or take swimming seriously. That's sort of a jaded viewpoint. One could, without thinking about it, say the exact same thing about OW swimmers that go do an alcatraz crossing, or a pier to pier, then check it off the list. My impression is that there are many more serious people in both tris and OW swimming, by an order of magnitude, than a 2% that wants to cross off a bucket list (there are those as well, as there are in every sport).
If having to be competitive were true, it wouldn't explain my story very well. But maybe I can just go home after work and eat chips rather than driving to masters workout.....:banana:
I am one of those that is one of the first out of the water, then spend the rest of the race trying to hold off those weaker swimmers that can bike and run faster than me. I'm getting better at it, this year I was 11th out of the water (AG), then 54 and 72 after bike and run at Oceanside 70.3. Last year I was 16th out of the water, and then 100-something after the bike and 150-something after the run. I am "competitive" on the swim, but it's not an open water swim. It's a swim/bike/run.
I swim 300K plus yards a year, and it's just enough to keep me out front for a little while (and nets me a top 30% or so at swim only events). I know folks that swim faster on less. But it's a helluva lot more than most people I see on BT and other boards, so that part of the point is fairly valid. Personally, I am just of the training opinion that being in good swim shape doesn't just get you a good swim time, it sets up a good day. If you get to the bike and/or run totally gassed, a fast swim is irrelevant. But I have worked my a$$ off the last year to get better at biking and running while trying to maintain a semblance of swim fitness.
There are only 3 (sometimes 5) podium slots. I'd have to go at least an hour faster overall to smell the podium at a 70.3 (and every year seems to get faster). That does not mean I don't take the swim (very) seriously, and enter every race trying to go as fast as I can, which in every case is not as fast as others. I really want to win, I am just not fast enough to actually do so
