The final results are now ready, please click on the following links:

Braintree Triathlon 2013-Overall Results

Braintree Triathlon 2013-By Gender

Braintree Triathlon 2013-Age Group

We look forward to seeing you all next year!

 Learn more about our coaches and read some of their invaluable training advice

Cycling is a key part of all triathlon and duathlon events.  Not only is the speed of the cycle leg itself important, the rider needs to be able to run effectively immediately afterwards. 

Cycles and their associated equipment have dramatically changed in recent years, gone are the steel frames, drop handlebars and shallow rimmed spoked wheels, replaced by acres of expensive, aerodynamic, carbon.  These bikes look fast just standing in transition.

It is not so simple though, a quick look at the Hawaii Ironman bike split times shows in 1986 Dave Scott covered the course on his steel framed road bike in 4hr 48m, yet twenty six years later the winners bike split on his state of the art carbon steed was 4hr 35m.  The majority of this surprisingly small improvement has come from an improved understanding of the importance of body position on the bike, striking the balance between power, aerodynamics and the ability to run off the bike.

If like most age group triathletes you have a limited budget where should you spend your hard earned cash to race faster?  If you already have a reliable road bike the data shows optimising the rider position is key, so why invest many thousands on a new bike when there may be significant gains to be had from your current equipment. 

For many years bike set up has been a bit of a black art, bike mechanics setting bikes up by eye or using various complex formulae.  Technology has been developed to make this more reliable, fully adjustable bike rigs and more recently video capture has helped.  We now have access to the ‘Retul’ type of computer linked systems which can trace the body’s movement on the bike and also capture video.  The data it records is used to automatically measure the angles through which the body is working at various power levels, allowing the operator to adjust the bike fit to optimise the riders effectiveness.  The system will then record the bikes’ essential measurements so the set up can be repeated on that bike after major works or any other bike the rider may use.

This system will, for the price of an aero helmet, ensure your bike position is optimised for the type of riding you plan to do, making the best of you and your bike.  There is always the danger that your very expensive new race bike may actually be slower if the set up does not suit your body, resulting in many thousands of pounds being wasted.

I have been riding my race bike for a couple of years now, I am very pleased with it and it seemed comfortable, even over long distances although I have suffered some saddle soreness and a little knee pain.  It is a road bike rather than a tri bike but it suits my riding style and the type of racing I plan to do. I would have happily continued riding it with the old set up but as part of my preparation for   decided to get my bike set up checked.  There are a number of local suppliers of the ‘Retul’ service, I chose to go to theUniversityof Essex Human Performance Unit.  I took my bike, shoes and normal cycling kit along to the session.  My bike was clamped into a computer controlled turbo trainer and I warmed up on the bike.  This ensured I was warm and the bike working correctly.  During this time I discussed with James my cycling history, aims for the coming season, riding style and any problems I suffered.  I was then tested for my flexibility, particularly in my shoulders, back and hips.  This testing informs the range of angles which will be acceptable and unlikely to cause injury or discomfort.

The Retul system works by attaching sensors at key points on the feet, legs, hips, shoulders arms and hands.  These sensors work alongside the capture system to produce a trace of all the joint movements at both low and high power, testing both sides of the body.  The main advantage of the system is you are riding your bike during the test in as close to real life circumstances as possible.  I was tested riding in the aero position on the tri bars and on the hoods.  Having ridden the bike for about five minutes all the data was captured on the computer; this was repeated for both sides. As I rode a stick man version of me was displayed on the laptop showing how my body moved.  The data was then analysed and a plan devised to optimise all the angles, putting me in the best position for my event.  My riding position was moved forward 25mm and handlebars lowered 23mm to lower my stance on the bike, reducing frontal area and aerodynamic drag.  My tri bars were moved forward 15mm to accommodate my new riding position.  The biggest change came from raising my saddle 20mm, a massive increase which totally altered my leg movement, this change will have to be introduced over time to prevent such a dramatic change causing injury.  This change should make my riding more efficient and help me running off the bike.  There was also a small change to my cleats, moving my feet out to widen my stance and improve my knee travel.

Once the bike adjustments were made I rode again, capturing the new angles and position to ensure everything was now as it should be.  The video capture clearly showed my lower position which should make my riding more efficient.  My bike did not need any new components just subtle changes to the set up to provide a genuine improvement over how I had it before.  I will have to wait to see how this relates to race performance, but having copied the position to my winter bike I have found the raised saddle height more comfortable with no knee pain.  The cost of a Retul fit is significant and took about two hours to complete, but when compared to a new bike or expensive components it is much cheaper and the performance gains per pound much greater.

In the past it has been quite reasonable to plan your next year’s events during the closed season, spending your winter base training plotting the next summer’s activity.  This is changing, driven to a large extent by the popularity of the sport and the fact many of the major high profile races fill their entry list within days of opening.  Even the smaller novice friendly events fill up long before the closing dates, so now is when you need to plan for next year.

 What to Consider?

Triathlon is a diverse sport, every race is different, some short, some long (some very long), some hot, some cold, some flat, some hilly, pool based, open water, home or abroad.  Generally these events are open to you just by submitting an entry form, but some require qualification to get your place so this must be considered in your plan.

You must first review your sporting background, along with the results of this years training and races.  Consider your strengths and weaknesses, for example if swimming is a challenge you may prefer to stay away from long sea swims until your skills and confidence improves.  If you are a strong biker, consider races with tough bike courses so you can gain time on the other racers in the tough sections.  What do you enjoy?  If you like short fast events seek them out, if you fancy the challenge of longer distance and even ultra events you can consider those.  How much training have you done this year?  This will give you an indication of the time you will have next year, consider family and work commitments, a new baby or more stressful work will not fit well with a decision to train for a long distance event.  What do you want from the sport, are you able to compete for wins and places or just to complete the event to the best of your ability?  What are your longer term ambitions?  It may be to keep fit, complete an Ironman, race for GB or just tour the world racing in exotic places.  If you have high ambitions you may need a two or three year plan to get yourself to the level you need to be at.  Racing can be expensive, the cost of events is steadily increasing, ensure you add the travel and accommodation to get the true cost.  Finance may well be a limiting factor, do you decide to compete in one major race or two or three local club events for the same cost?  Staying injury free is key to improvement, you may have the time and finance to race every weekend, but will your body take the strain, will you be nursing injuries through each race never achieving your potential.  You may have a holiday planned or friends and family in other parts of theUK, or even other countries.  Consider combining your racing with a trip, it gets you racing in other interesting places and even the most jaded triathlon widow/widower will be enthused by a week on the beach in return for a few hours standing at your race.

What races are out there?

There are many ways to find out what races are available to you.  In general without internet access you are unlikely to find many races, but as you are reading this you should be ok.  I encourage our members to write race reports for the Born2Tri website, have a read of those to get a competitors view of the event.  Speak to other athletes within and outside the club, see where they raced and what they liked and disliked about the events.  Read the specialist magazines such as 220 and Triathlete Europe which contain race reports and race calendars, as do many specialist triathlon websites such as Tri247.  Use the British Triathlon website to access their event calendar or look at the members’ handbook.  It may not have next years races listed, but look at the equivalent period this year to see what races are likely to run next.  It should also have links to the clubs and major events stand alone websites where more information can be found.  The smaller events can be found on event management websites such as EntryCentral giving you details of the race and an easy application process.

Keep it real

As you look through the mass of racing opportunities it is easy to get carried away with the thought of finishing a really cool event.  Many events are promoted for first time or novice racers, even major televised events such as the London Triathlon are accessible to first timers.  Some are not really suitable. This does not mean you couldn’t finish a very long distance race having never done a triathlon before, but you won’t race to your potential or enjoy the experience as you should.  Don’t get carried away by the success of your friends and club mates, most will admit they were a bit naive on their first races and suffered as a result.  If that race is local and an hour or two long no harm done, its part of the process, if it’s hundreds of pounds and many hours of pain and suffering it’s less clever.  Even if you have the fitness and experience to race over the very long distances, only consider including ‘one’ of these races in your plan for each year.  A pro or semi pro may be able to do more, but if you need to read this advice you can’t. Be realistic about your goals but challenge yourself. 

What’s an ‘A’ race

When you have decided on the races you really want to do these are your ‘A’ races.  They may be your GB qualification event, your Ironman, part of a race series, a target for a personal best or just your first ever open water standard distance.  They are the races which are really important to you, where you want to go fast and enjoy the experience.  Where possible they should be spread evenly through your season, four weeks or more between each so you can properly recover and phase your training to maximise your performance.  You may only have one ‘A’ race in a season so all your training and other races will be intended to maximise your performance that day.  Once you have set these dates there may be other events you want to do with friends, as part of the club, or as race specific preparation for your ‘A’ events.  Fit these around your ‘A’ events but be aware you may not be able to race to your maximum if you are recovering or training hard for your most important races.  These races should really be considered as part of your training, if you do well it’s just a bonus.

Now you have decided

Once your season is planned out you need to make sure you submit your entries in good time.  Check web sites regularly for information about when entries will be accepted, if funds are limited focus on your ‘A’ races and take a risk with delaying the others.  Tell your husband/wife or partner about your plans so holidays, late parties, family celebrations and other domestic arrangements can avoid your key races.  You may also need to book leave from work if you work weekends or your event involves travel.  Book any accommodation you need in good time, the longer you leave it the more expensive and further from the start it will be.  With all these things in place and all the money spent you will also have a great incentive to train through the cold winter.  With your season planned so carefully and well in advance you can concentrate on staying fit, healthy and injury free.  To help this you build your training plan around your race calendar but that’s a whole new subject……………

Mark Harman

Born2tri

After the wind and scorching heat of Lanzarote Melissa Dowell came back home to race IM 70.3 at Wimbleball.  She produced another great performance taking the age group win in the cold and rain.  Well done Melissa.

Thank you to all those who offered to marshal the time trial early next Sunday.  It shows the spirit in the club but a specially big thank you to Glyn Williams who is going to get up early. 

Club BBQ. Our annual club summer social gathering is coming up soon. This year it will hosted by Martin and Kelly Fetherstone in Great Leighs after the Culford Triathlon on 28^th July.  The BBQ will start about 4.00 p.m. the club supplies the usual BBQ food with members bringing the drink and deserts.  We need to get an idea of numbers attending so it you are likely to come along please let Mark know so we can work out the amount of food to get in.

David Wilkin was planning to race the Ely Middle Distance Race but is now unable to do so.  He had booked a hotel room nearby and is happy to sell it on at a good price if you are racing there; see David at swimming or the track session if you’re interested. 

Gosfield Lake Standard Distance Triathlon on 14th July with entries closing on 5th July.

Great Notley Autumn Duathlon rounding off the season on 6th October and entries close on 27th September.

Whilst we have provided the closing date for each race, historically our events sell out well in advance of the published dates so if you’re thinking of entering our advice is, don’t delay!

If you have any enquiries about these races please use the ‘contact the organiser’ link on the EntryCentral page or use the ‘contact us’ form on the join us page.