Off Season and Race Plans

Dirtbag

Barefooters
Oct 17, 2010
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No matter where you are in the States, we are deep into triathlon off season. Some of you are also deep into a snow bank and won't be seeing this until mid-March or April. For those of you who aren't trying to use your cell phone glow for warmth, what are you doing in the off season to prepare for the upcoming season and what do you have planned as far as races go?

I'm starting a heavy-for-me 18 week Olympic tri training cycle to prepare for the Honolulu Triathlon May 15th on Monday. During that cycle I'll be doing the Great Aloha Run, and eight mile race from Aloha Tower to Aloha Stadium, next month. I also have planned to do but haven't yet registered for the Lanikai Sprint Tri in April as a tune-up race for my big one.

Of course, right now its raining so hard I can't hear my TV and I might as well live in a canoe, so unless I get a trainer or the rain quits riding is going to a wet or non-existant affair. Swimming is fine, your wet anyway, and I can run on a mill if I absolutely have too. Can ride at the gym too but that suuuuuuuuuuuucks.

Anyone else got tri plans for 2011?
 
Hello Doug, I'm new to the

Hello Doug,



I'm new to the BRS, but have been running minimalist for about two years now. I've been reading some of your other posts re: tri. While I didn't do any tri's with VFF last year(mainly because I was deployed to Iraq), I have a full off-road tri season planned for this year and I had done two races (one road, one off-road) with the VFF the previous year. My biggest hurdle for barefoot running in triathlon is the loss in transition time in getting the VFF on wet, sweaty, and/or muddy feet. However, I may have recently found a solution to that. Merrell just came out with a shoe called the trail glove, that has about the same sole as the VFF without the toe seperation. So my plan this year is to go as barefoot as possible for my triathlon racing. Completely barefoot would be a difficulty with the terrain that much of my off-road triathlon is on. I'm looking forward to more discussions re: triathlon and barefoot running.
 
DirtB & Derek My plans are

DirtB & Derek



My plans are for two TRIs in 2011, a 1/2 IM in June and one in Aug

The run training has been going well and I have been able to avoid the mill. Today should be 46'f 8'c today and if dry I will try to get some BFR in.

On the bike I am averaging ~100k /week on my commute in water shoes. Two weeks ago I setup the road bike on the trainer and started with hour sessions ~once a week. I keep the chain in the big ring for safety and peddle barefoot.

I have not swam since my IM in Aug. The plan is to start up again in March. This is what I did last year and I saw no change in my swim times by taking the winter off.

The plan is to BFR in as many of my races this as possible. All my races are on ashphalt



Pb
 
Derek- The other option I've

Derek- The other option I've seen people do to avoid muddy foot transitions is keeping a small water tub in your transition area. My tris are at the beach so I get mud (if the transition area is in a park) of just beach sand from the run up to T1. Mud during a ride is uncomfortable, sand would run my day. So I've kept a bottle of water specifically for pouring on my feet. First tri actually had tubs lined up on the way in to T1, and I was't going to use them but I was early in and there was no traffic so I stepped in and out quick and got the sand off.

I've seen the trail gloves though, they look nice. My wife wants a pair but they haven't hit the island yet as far as we can tell. VFFs and barefooting have ruined me for being any help running shoe shopping now. "I dunno, babe. They have a lot of padding. And a huge drop." She wants VFFs bot her feet are different sizes and they won't sell one of one size and one of another. Heard this is a problem for a lot of people since the VFFs are so exactly fitted. We're hoping the Merrels help with that once we find them.



Pb- Totally respect the plan to bike in water shoes or barefoot. Think that might be the line for me though. The Barefoot Riders Society is a much more select club! What is your pedal set up? I'm assuming platforms with straps. How's the weather been holding up? From your post it sounds like your part of Canada isn't getting nailed as hard as the news makes it sound your neighbor to the south is getting it.



For me, training has been going well. I hurt my foot last time I trained for a tri (was still working on proper form and overran) so now even though I'm healthy I still have the small paranoia in the back of my mind. Thinking about picking up a sprint in March along with a sprint in April to go with my Olympic in May. After a few weeks doing Olympic distance training, looking at the sprint distances is much less intimidating than it was six months ago. Also have the Great Aloha Run coming up later this month. Eight miles, gonna cruise it out. LSD.
 
Addendum: Just registered for

Addendum: Just registered for the Lanikai Sprint in April. This is the race I mentioned in the above post which I'll be using as a tune up.
 
DougIt was suprizing to me

Doug

It was suprizing to me how easy it was to switch to flat peddles without straps. The weather here today was 50' but that can change on a dime back to bitter cold.

Hope your foot injury comes around. Good luck with your run.
 
I just started my Tri

I just started my Tri training up again...I'm planning on doing 3 Oly's this summer after doing only Sprints the last two summers. Man I'm out of shape on Swim/Bike since no training since last Aug race. Barefoot is doable for me...5 Sprints ran barefoot so far.

I have the Merrell Trail Gloves for trail running in the winter and wouldn't use them for Tri races...they are very slow to put on due to the snug fit aroud the middle of the foot, almost as slow as Vibrams. I also have trouble running sockless with them I get rubbing on the achilles tendon area.

I only used mountain bike shoes even on my road bike but have been thinking of switchig to clip-in biking sandals or actual Tri biking shoes.
 
Welcome back, Mokie!  Man, I

Welcome back, Mokie! Man, I missed you! Let's run together again sometime soon. Call me!
 
I ran a sprint tri in my vff

I ran a sprint tri in my vff sprints. T2 was fine as the sprints have an open top and I can get them on quickly. I also have vff bikilas but they are much harder to get on. I won't use them for any tri's.
 
Both of my sprint tri's have

Both of my sprint tri's have been in my KSOs and I plan on using them in my races coming up this season too. I had a lot of brick workouts leading up to those races to practice getting in the shoes as quick as possible and didn't feel like I was spending too much time in T2 struggling. I have that ever-present fear of my toes getting lost in the toe sockets, as they sometimes do when you're slipping them in fast, but with practice I had no issues. Also spent those bricks sockless on both the bike and the run to prepare my feet for all that newness so I was over rubbing raw spots because they's rubbed, healed, and so on.

Bet the open-topped Sprints make that even easier though. I dunno, I'm at the point in my triathlon-ing that a few extra seconds in transition aren't going to be the deciding factor in anything. Getting Work As Hard As I Can to mesh with Have Fun is enough for me right now.
 

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