Triathlon - Aquabike... or just ditching the run?

So I'm 23 years old and was told 10 years ago not to run by my doctor (I have a bad hip and will need a hip replacement very soon). Of course, I disobeyed. Last year my new doctor tells me "DON'T RUN!" -- but I kept on. Now, whenever I run, my hip can't take more than a mile or two, so this has interfered with my new plans of a triathlon. I'm getting better and swimming and biking, so I want a rice with a longer distance than the Sprint Tri, though of course the sprint would be ideal for my bad hip.

It seems aquabike races are pretty tough to find! I did happen to find one next month up in MA, and they were nice enough to adjust the pricing accordingly. I can't believe out of the 3 or 4 aquabike races I checked up on last night charge the same amount for a half or IM for a tri.

Anyway, I was thinking of doing an olympic or half tri... but then just bailing on the run. How does that work? I know I'll get a DNF, which kinda sucks, but it's a little different going in you're not going to completely finish as opposed to not being able to finish... I guess.

Nobody really cares why you DNF... just make sure that you go through whatever process the organizers have (if any) so they don't go searching for your body at the bottom of a lake or something. :)

Another alternative is to walk the run leg if your doc is OK with that.

I have had the same issue. What has bugged me is that races charge the same amount for two or three person teams. That doesn't make sense. It would be much cheaper to ditch the run. I am doing an aquabike race in Muncie, Indiana in July. They are hard to find. I suspect that as baby boomers continue to age more and more (like me) will not be running anymore and will still want to be around the tri scene. In the past I have asked race directors to consider changing the amount of money they charge for two person teams. They have agreed and have said that the pricing policy didn't make much sense. It's one thing for three people to pay 200 for a race. It's very different for two to pay the same amount. We end up being punished for racing less of the race.

I did this on my last half ironman.
The only funny looks I got were from the bike park volunteers as I wheeled all my kit out without running. They checked I wasn't just walking out with someone else's bike!
It's your race, you set the goals and limits, if you want to go home after the bike leg, that's fine!

Have you though about finding a runner and doing a relay? You can do the swim & bike and let him/her do the run.

yes, you can, and I have done that several times. But note what I say about 2 member team relays. Often the same price as the three member team relays.