billyymc

My wife and I are entered to do our first tri this August. She will leave the water before me, but I will probably pass her on the bike stage.

So out of curiosity, if I saw her with a flat, can I stop and help her fix it? I do not expect to be competitive, and I"ll teach her ahead of time how to take care of her own flat -- just wondering.

knobster

I've never seen any rules regarding helping someone before. Just can't draft them.

Oysterboy

+1 My bet, if you guys don't plan to stick together you may pass her but unlikely at THAT time she will need help. There are always folks around to help if you want to stay in the race.

sirious94

that's ok, in fact it's the only way you can get help. A couple of years ago Chrissie Wellington flatted in Kona, and had to wait for another pro to give her a CO2 cartridge. Then she proved how much of a beast she was by passing everybody and winning the race...

travelmama

Ask the race director as I have heard it is a "gray" issue to discuss.

billyymc

Thanks for the input - will do. I'd hate to ride past my wife if she needed help, but if it DQ's her she'd rather fix the flat on her own.

Anyone here read the beginnertriathlete site? Anything useful there? I only found the site via a link from a skiing site I read -- and the link was to this thread which sort of turned me off (imagine!): https://www.beginnertriathlete.com/di...150441&start=1

travelmama

You are funny. Beginnertriathlete.com is a good site and has a lot of information but most redundant, in my opinion. There is also slowtwitch.com and runnersworld.com (with a small triathlon forum). I don't necessarily find one site to dominate over the others however, some have posters with a bit more knowledge than others. I suggest you gather bits and pieces from each site and do what works best for you.

Daniel Frost

From my experience, if its a showing of sportsmanship, race directors/officials are happy with it.

Keith99

Any gray area or even reasonably obscure (or new) rule is worth discussing with the event officials. In my main sprot (Rugby) there are a few that it is advisable to know exactly how an official interperets exactly where the line is drawn and it is worht discussing even though I know the rule by verbatium.

Gonzo Bob

Is this a USAT (USA Triathlon) sanctioned race? Technically it is against USAT rule 3.4.d. The penalty is not a DQ,though, just a time penalty.

https://assets.teamusa.org/assets/doc...818/usatcr.pdf

3.4.d. Unauthorized Assistance. No participant shall accept from any person (other than a race official) physical assistance in any form, including food, drink, equipment, support, pacing, a replacement bicycle or bicycle parts, unless an express exception has been granted and approved, in writing, by USA Triathlon. The receipt of information regarding the progress, split times, or location of other competitors on the race course shall not be
considered the acceptance of unauthorized assistance. Any violation of this Section shall result in a variable time penalty.

electusunus

CWELL got a CO2 from a competitor at the IM WC in 08. There must be some flexibility in this rule.

edbikebabe

I believe that she did not get the cartridge from a competitor - rather the competitor dropped it & she happened to find it & pick it up... This also happens in MTB races.

back4more

Gonzo Bob is correct - no assistance can be given or received.

spinalrx

Thats not how I saw it....Al trautwig said "luckily for the Bud Light Truck a minikeg C02 cartridge was ejected from the rear and it was being returned by a triathlete until they while reaching for their nutrition dropped it"...luckily for chrissy

Blanchje

If I blew by my wife when she was stranded with a flat I'd be concerned about being DQ'd when I got home. Just sayin.

LoCPC

I'm not sure on this one. At IM Branson last year, I was under the impression that each participant was to be self-sufficient for any mechanical mishaps on their bikes.

It sure would help to practice changing a flat a few times before your event.