The majority of long-course triathletes sepend an inordinate amount of time and money over-managing the minor details of aero-helmets, fabric selection, and component weight (for example) only to blow up on race day and spend the last 13.1 miles seriously underperforming. How can you avoid the common trap of looking fast but racing slower than your ability dictates?
Ed. Note: What follows is the “Endurance Nation way” of looking at your race preparation. In many ways this is an extension of our FourKeys DVD (EN Store, Amazon) where we focus on proper race execution, but it’s also outlined in our FREE Triathlon Training Manual in the Tapering, FourKeys, and Race Prep sections.
Tyranny of Marketing
A lot of companies have invested mega dollars into our sport. It is in _their_ best interests that their products are placed front and center, and are directly linked to elite performance…so you consider buying them. Case in point would be hydration belts on race day. With aid stations every mile, there is really a minimal need to carry fluids unless you have a special nutritional strategy. This is reflected in the fact that — über hot races aside– very few racers use them on the big day; yet a review of PRO athlete pics shows almost every top contender sporting some kind of system! Why? Well, I can think of 5,000 pretty good reasons why a PRO might wear one. 
This is also true for wheels, tires, frames, water bottle holders (is carbon really needed here?), etc. Hit with magazine images and bike shop sales pitches and the keep-up-with-the-Jones’ mentality…few Tri-geeks can resist the urge to obsess. No surprise then that Chrissy Wellington’s decision to race a P2 (not a P3!) and to not wear an aerohelmet generated so much attention…and it didn’t matter. She’s just stronger and faster, period. In fact the only equipment she might consider is another CO2 holder “just in case.” .
All marketing aside, what do you _need_ to reach your potential in 2009? Is it a product…or will a new training approach, a restructuring of priorities or a training g weekend make the difference?
Misplaced Attention
These highly refined marketing messages have directed the triathlon dialogue of performance towards things/products instead of towards the individual. The conversation is played out online in countless forums where people debate component groups or wheelsets based on weight (in grams!) or argue around wind tunnel test results that don’t factor eating, drinking, position changes or the fact that most of us will be riding for 6 hours.
In a way this attention to products takes the responsibility for performance off of the athlete. I would have been faster with better wheels; I’d swim faster with a high tech suit; I’d've won Kona if my front dérailleur cable hadn’t snapped, etc.
Inside EN we advocate that athletes take charge of their raceday performance. We help develop this set of skills through specific race simulation events as well as via our broader, athlete-centric approach that puts the individual in a position to manage their day-to-day training. Over time their confidence develops to the point where dealing with the variables of race day is a very simple exercise. IOW, it doesn’t matter if you have the fastest wheelset on the planet if you don’t know how to pace your effort, how to change a flat, or how to eat properly.
Ability To Sort and Focus
The extra “noise” that I am talking about isn’t limited to triathlon. It has permeated other sports and, some would argue, practically every aspect of our daily lives. What makes people successful isn’t that they can handle more than the next person — that time has long since come and gone in the professional workplace — it’s their ability to do the work that matters. Sure, on some level being the last person to leave the office every night might seem like an important element of your work character, but at the end of the day your boss would much rather you hit it out of the park on the Murphy account. If that takes you 2 hours or 42, well, that’s up to you.
Triathlon isn’t that much different. Race day doesn’t care what you bring, what you wear, what you eat. The clock doesn’t stop for you to tie your shoes or for your 8th pit stop. It’s not what you have, it’s what you do. Being able to identify and execute upon the critical factors that will affect your race day is what we are all about here inside EN. Sure, we can get into the scientific analysis as to which flavor of periodization will yield a 4% higher return on your training volume…but that assumes you: (A) already know how to race (period) and that (B) you know how to race this event (in particular) and that you will execute properly given the conditions and competition (50/50 chance if A and B are in place).
As you head into 2009, don’t fill your head with more problems to solve or worse yet, more convoluted ways to solve the problems you already have. Instead, do your best to filter through the noise and identify the critical elements that will make your next race a success. Feel free to fire up a FREE trial membership at EN and ask us directly…we’re happy to help!
Popularity: 11% [?]
