Triathlon - Nudity in Transiton

OK Now that I have your attention. Ok so the new beau wants me to come watch him in his half Ironman May 8th. So I say watch me ya mean...and now of course I think I am a triathlete. So I have been working up to fixing to get ready to train. I have been running for a month or so and am finally up to 4 miles. (I already bike - maybe only on weekends but have done about 5 -7 Centuries this year and will be doing Winter Base riding soon too) So I figure each month I will increase my run until the end of April and I should hopefully be able to do the run (which to me seems like the hard part). So if I can do that - then I am on for this race. My goal would be to finish -not actually race.

So my concerns here are about outfits and transitions....

My thought is to do this in comfort. So if I do swim in a pair of tri shorts (Do they make them for XL women???) and a tri shirt or tankini....- I think I would like to wear a biking shirt for the bike -and a sports bra. Is it possible just to change in the Transition area- do women do this??? I imagine the last thing I want to worry about is exposing myself..so just wondered what people do?? Is it comfortable to wear the same top in the water as on the bike??It will be 85ish (Panama City Beach May 8th) so I suppose that would work... I absolutely need a heavy duty running bra - but just wondered if it would be wise to swim with it or somehow put it on in the Transition area...how do women do that??

OK - so thoughts on transition..changing shirts....tri shorts/shirts for XL gals....etc.

I have been to 3 Tri's with some friends and took pics.
The women just change shoes.

Pics:
http://s256.photobucket.com/albums/hh187/10wheels/Freeport%20Tx%20Tri/?albumview=slideshow

Very cool to seee the pics. Looks doable. I like it tri shorts and top as the way to go. Some people will wear wet suits..but I can not imagine that is a necessity for me since it isFLA in May. Now all I need to do is be able to run 13 miles.....and that seems hiuge...and run it after a swim and a ride. Somehow I am only worried though about running. OK . Thanks 10 wheels for the advice.

Er, this thread is useless without pictures.

Er, this thread is useless without pictures.

It has pictures....

MissBumble- I did a half ironman over the summer in my bathing suit and lightly padded bike shorts. I have several tri suits that I don't wear anymore because they are a bit difficult to remove. If I still had larger breasts, I would have worn a sport bra for extra support but I don't so my swimsuit worked fine. Yes, they do come in size XL but always get a size larger so that you will be 100% comfortable. Danskin makes a good line of tri clothing and some of the tri swimsuits have a shelf bra for more support.

BTW in case you were considering it, in most triathlons nudity in the transition area is grounds for disqualification.

Good to know. I can not imagine though wearing danskin - as they typically make clothes for thin people...and I am not kidding. Not asmall woman (yet) but who knows by May 8th I may lose a bunch with all the training. Yes- I was considering just taking off a wet top and putting on a bra- the men do I imagine...but I guess based on comments above that is not an option. After watching some You Tubes of transitions I so do not want to get caught like that. So I think it will be tri shorts and a top with SportsBra underneath.

Thank you!

ironman branded events will have a changing tent where you will be able to change, but generally all of the women triathletes i know do not change anything at all during transition besides shoes and (possibly) socks. Changing your shirt, even for a guy, is generally a very bad idea because you will find that pulling a shirt over a wet body takes forever. I learned that the hard way, and now i wear a trisuit.

in some kinds of racing, men have to keep their torso covered at all times (or they're disqualified), so same as women.

Best not to change, just wear one suit or pants/top combo for the whole race if you can. If its really cold then wear a wetsuit for the swim with your other gear on underneath so you just remove the wetsuit. Saves time and energy. Tri-pants usually have a lightweight cloth pad in them which, although not as comfortable as proper cycling knicks with a chamois, is enough for the duration of a race and doesn't get in the way during the run. If you're really worried about it, go to watch a race before you participate in one. You'll learn a lot from just watching what others do.

. Somehow I am only worried though about running. OK . Thanks 10 wheels for the advice.

Missbumble....more power to you for going for it......how is your swimming.....from what i remember doing tri's a million years ago, it seemed that more people problems with the swim (unless they had been comp swimmers)

Seeing as we are on the topic of clothing and transitions.

I'm a medium size guy, will not be using a wetsuit any time soon. What do I do? Tri shorts in the swim, then add tri shirt for the bike and run.
No difference in clothing (except for shoes) between bike and run??

Chris

Thanks to the stretchiness of lycra, many triathlon clothes may fit better than you'd think.
However, here's a site that you may find useful:
http://www.junonia.com/thumb.htm?tl=2&ldid=18&sdid=328

Seeing as we are on the topic of clothing and transitions.

I'm a medium size guy, will not be using a wetsuit any time soon. What do I do? Tri shorts in the swim, then add tri shirt for the bike and run.
No difference in clothing (except for shoes) between bike and run??

Chris

Yup - you've got it. Have fun!!

Seeing as we are on the topic of clothing and transitions.

I'm a medium size guy, will not be using a wetsuit any time soon. What do I do? Tri shorts in the swim, then add tri shirt for the bike and run.
No difference in clothing (except for shoes) between bike and run??

Chris

I know in Hawaii most people don't even put a shirt on to do the bike or run in the couple of sprint tri's I have done. They get out of the water, throw on a helmet and get to riding!

Tim

I know in Hawaii most people don't even put a shirt on to do the bike or run in the couple of sprint tri's I have done. They get out of the water, throw on a helmet and get to riding!

Tim

Yeah, I do it that way, too. Just remember to put on good waterproof sunscreen before the swim. Also, get a run belt for the number since you won't have the shirt with number on it.

BTW in case you were considering it, in most triathlons nudity in the transition area is grounds for disqualification.

At Silverman we had dedicated male and female transition areas in t1 and t2 for that specific reason.

For the longer races I would suggest sending an email to the race director and asking if they will have changing tents.