Hey all,

Well I finally registered for my first sprint tri. Its on May 31 in Panama City, Fl.
http://www.emeraldcoastevents.org/triathlon.html
I have a large running background and a decent biking. Swimming is def. my weakest point.

I'm still trying to decide a couple things gear wise what to do:
1) I was thinking a trisuit is the way to go especially cause it will not be cold and its a sprint. Which ones do you all like? If not that I was going to just go plain desoto tri shorts. Im all about the KISS method.(Keep It Simple Stupid)
2) For my first tri do you all recommend using aero bars. I ride on a trek road bike but have been trying to training with aero bars. Should I use them on the tri or is it best for your first time to go without?

thanks

Josh

Okay here are my recommendations. DeSoto tri gear, awesome. You might think about your first investment being tri shorts though rather than a trisuit. Tri shorts are a little more versitile. You can use them in training, which will help on race day, and you can use them in the race. Then after you get a couple races under your belt you can decide what you like the most to race in. Well if you have been training with your aerobars and they are on your bike then I would say it is absolutely an option. If you feel comfortalbe in the, your positioning is good then go ahead. Now if the course is real hilly....then I wouldn't stay down in my aerobars. No reason you have to stay in your aerobars the whole time either.

My two cents: I just did my first spring also and this is what I cam away with. The swim, at least for me, was miserable. I had never done an open water swim and my tri was a mass start out of a boat launch, so everyone was tightly packed. This meant, lots of gettin kicked in the head, which drained my energy very quickly. If I could give any advice, try to get a couple of open water swims in if you havent already. It is VERY differene than swimming in a pool and caused me some anxiety while in the water. I have a descent tri suit and love it. I couldnt imagine using seperate shorts and a top. probikekit.com has some pretty good deals on descent tri suites so you might want to check them out. I used my road bike with aero bars attached, and was very glad that I did. I found that coming out of the water, my back and shoulders were very fatigued, so getting into the aero position took some stress off of them, not to mention the fact that I find the aero position to be faster. Hope this helps some.

I think tri suits are great for Sprints and Olympic distance races (any race short enough where you won't need to worry about going to the bathroom).

If you are training in aero bars, race in them.

Above all, have fun and remember to write race report for us :)