Tips for a Successful Open Water Triathlon Swim

There have been a few deaths recently during triathlon swims. This post in no way purports to prevent such deaths, makes no assumptions about the fitness level of the deceased, and is not in any way a criticism of race directors in terms of safety measures. This post is more a reaction to having seen a video of people floating down the Hudson with swim noodles in the recent NYC triathlon and thinking maybe some of those people really weren't prepared.

If you do a lot of triathlons, many or most of these things become routine and you don't even think about them, but I've never seen all of this information in one place, and since I think I know a little about triathlon, I figured I'd just write it down for the benefit of others. As always, feel free to pass this along to anyone you think it might benefit.

So, in no particular order, here are my tips, some of which I was reminded of today when I donned my wetsuit for the first time in many, many months, since I have a race on Sunday:

1. Know that you can cover the race distance comfortably. You will know this because you've practiced it and timed it at least once (preferably 2-3 times) during training. The cutoff for an Ironman swim is 2 hours 20 minutes, which comes out to 3:19/100 yards. Using that standard against some shorter race distances, at that pace it would take you 54:13 to complete an Olympic distance swim (1.5k), 58:26 for 1 mile, and 1:10:06 for a 1/2 Ironman. You can extrapolate to a sprint. If you can't complete a training swim equal to race distance at slightly faster than that pace within 2-3 weeks of your race (without wetsuit--because if you are counting on the wetsuit alone bringing you in under the cutoff then you are delusional), then you have no business doing the race. Period. Go get some swim lessons, swim more, keep timing yourself, repeat. If you are chasing the swim cutoff in any race, you are setting yourself up for problems on the bike and run since you will come out of the water pretty wiped. Why some triathlon coaches aren't up front with their athletes on this, I have no clue. Now, this does not mean every time you swim you should do a long continuous swim. Just the opposite. You should be doing intervals most of the time. I won't get into swim training--that is best left to a swim coach, which I am not! But suffice it to say, that doing at least one continuous swim of race distance or greater goes a long way towards instilling confidence that you will be fine on race day. You will build superior endurance if you complete a cycle of about 8 weeks where once a week you do a swim with total yardage greater than race distance, especially for Ironman. If I can swim 5,000 yards, for example, it makes 4,200 not too bad. I won't get into what this means for races longer than Ironman!
2. If you are going to race in a wetsuit, then you must wear it for at least one practice swim of equal or greater distance than your race. Why? It will feel different swimming in it, you want to make sure the darn thing fits (especially if you borrowed or rented one), you want to work out the kinks of lubrication and positioning, and you want to check for and repair any tears and practice taking it off quickly. I have known people to not wear their suit for months only to put it on race day and have it rip nearly to shreds! Finally, if you have the opportunity to wear it several times, note what the water temperature was and how cool/warm you felt. Different people feel different at different water temperatures. For example, I am just fine in a wetsuit in 83 degree water. Some people will overheat so badly that it's just not worth the buoyancy advantage to wear the wetsuit at that temperature. Please note that the lubrication isn't to get the suit ON--it's to help get it OFF quickly and to prevent chafing. I do a stripe of Bodyglide on outside and inside of forearm, upper arm, upper leg and lower leg, and I lube my neck (starting right at the hairline) and under armpits/straps liberally.
   
3. One or two days before your race, cut and/or file your fingernails and toenails. Women might want to also put a coat of clear nail polish on them. This lessens the chance of tearing your wetsuit, and is also a nice thing to do so that if you contact another athlete during the swim that you don't scratch them. I dislike it when I get scratched by another athlete during the swim, and I wish everyone tidied up their nails pre-race!
   
4. Be aware of the race's water temperature cutoff for the use of a wetsuit. This can vary from race to race, so know what it is and be prepared accordingly. This is another reason to ensure that your practice swims can be completed a few minutes faster than cutoffs without wetsuit.
   
5. Your wetsuit must get wet 1-2 days before your race. Either you wear it for a swim and let it hang dry, or you soak it in a sink/tub for a few hours and then let it hang dry. Why? A wetsuit is meant to be wet, and the neoprene expands and becomes more pliable when wet. This is why it is difficult to put on a dry wetsuit. It is just not pliant. When the wet wetsuit dries, it retains some water like a sponge, only it won't feel wet.
6. You will do one of your practice swims in whatever clothes you plan to wear on race day. Your clothing selection may differ depending on whether you will be wearing a wetsuit or not, so plan for either. A tri top with pockets or a bike jersey, for example, is not good to swim in if you aren't wearing a wetsuit. Those pockets will fill up with water. Same thing with anything loose. You want to be sure you are comfortable with all the pressure points of sleeves, straps, zippers, ties, etc. If you are going to wear arm warmers under your wetsuit, it's a good idea to make sure that the suit doesn't become overly tight by the addition of a few millimeters of fabric. If you plan on wearing your number belt under your wetsuit (I wouldn't wear it during the swim if not using a wetsuit!), you might want to test that out, too.
7. You will try and do one or more practice swims in open water. This isn't possible for everyone, but if you can do it, do it. Obviously, best case scenario is you do it in the body of water you will be racing in. Become one with the weeds and fishies! Even better swim with a bunch of friends and kick and smack one another as you go! Like this.
   
8. You will practice wearing a race-type swim cap and whatever goggles you plan on racing in, both placed on your head as if it were race day. Preferably you do this when you complete your race distance plus time trial. If you are used to removing your goggles after your 500 yard warmup, then again another 1,000 yards later, and so on, it is good to get used to what those same goggles feel like when they are plastered on your face for a solid hour. If you are going to put your goggle strap under your cap on race day, try that out in training. This is a recommended race day strategy since if your goggles get dislodged due to contact, they won't come off all the way.
9. If you wear contact lenses most of the time but don't usually wear them in the pool, again, you need to wear them for a few practice swims since you are going to wear them on race day, right? I wear contacts, and my experience is that I cannot tolerate chlorinated water getting into my goggles, but if I am in fresh water and a bit gets in, it won't irritate my eyes. I wear my contacts every time I swim. I am blind without them!
   
10. Swim with your watch/Garmin/timing device and chest strap, if you use one. If you are going to wear it on race day, swim with the damn thing on. I don't wear my watch in the pool any more, and I didn't wear it in the Ultraman swim, so I'm covered. Decide whether your wetsuit is going to go over the watch or not. You might want to loosen the strap slightly. Or not. The heart rate monitor's chest strap will feel different under a wetsuit, too.
    
11. If you will be wearing a timing chip on an ankle strap, it's best if it can go under the wetsuit leg so nobody can grab it and pull it off you. If your wetsuit legs need to go higher than would allow this, then when you put the chip strap on, have the end be on the medial side of your leg, again to prevent it being ripped off your leg. I'm guessing some folks duct tape over the strap which pretty much prevents the thing from coming off!
12. Know where the sun will be during your race to guide you in your choice of goggles.
13. Know the layout of the swim course, including where (on your left or right) and how frequent the buoys will be placed and where you will position yourself at the start. In a mass start, really fast swimmers start at the front. In an Ironman swim if you are back of MOP or BOP, you might want to let the front pack go for a minute or more, but definitely ask about positioning from others who have done the race.
14. Practice your race day nutrition in training. Which means that, yes, at least once you are going to get up at O-dark-thirty to eat and drink prior to your swim. Why? So you have some clue of how your stomach is going to feel when you load it up and then stuff yourself into a wetsuit. Or even if you aren't wearing a wetsuit, you jump into a cold pool and take off at your race pace with whatever you had for breakfast in you. My rules of thumb for intake prior to races: Sprint: 300 calories 2+ hours before race start. Sip Gatorade or water until race begins. Olympic: 400 calories. 1/2 Ironman: 600 calories. Ironman: 700-800 calories. For Olympic plus, I try and get the calories in 3+ hours prior to race start. You might want to go so far as to practice your day before nutrition as well. I highly recommend this, as, for example, tacos with hot sauce and beers the night before a race might not sit too well the next day during the swim. I steer clear of fiber for dinner the night before and always the morning of a race. This also goes for your caffeine consumption. I don't taper off caffeine, so I don't do anything different on race day than any other day, but if you are going to supplement with caffeine on race day, practice it in training for sure. I also will eat 2 salt tablets (Lava Salts or Succeed! caps) right after dinner the night before a 1/2 or full Ironman. If you are going to do this on race day, and you haven't raced as much as I have, try it out in training.
    
15. Learn how to breathe on either side. Even if one side feels "better" than the other (which is true for most of us), there may come a time when you have to use the "worse" side, for example, if you are getting smacked by waves on the one side. Even if your race is in calm water and you intend to breathe on your good side the entire time, it helps to breathe bilaterally in training to develop a balanced stroke.
16. Know how the swim exit works. If you will be forced to run over sharp rocks or gravel, you should be prepared to have a pair of flip flops at the swim exit.
17. Do at least one swim-bike workout. You can combine this with one of your race distance plus practice swims. Why? So you know how hard you can go on the swim and not feel like ass on the bike, particularly since you should be dropping right into aero position right away. I would do at least 1/3 of the race bike distance in this workout. This helps you learn how to transition from swimming to biking as well. Rule of thumb is no intake on the bike for 15 minutes for anything shorter than 1/2 Ironman, and then I wait 30 minutes for Ironman.
    
18. Know how to sight and swim in a straight line. There are many ways to practice this in a pool, so do it! If you don't practice sighting and get to a race and find yourself lifting your head a lot, it will stress you out and tire you out.
19. Do a warmup swim on race morning if at all possible. Even 100 yards can be helpful. A warmup can prepare your body for the water temperature (good or bad) and help work off some of the unnecessary pre-race adrenaline. If you absolutely can't get in the water to warm up, do some kind of warmup--running, biking, jumping jacks, some pushups (pushups are actually good because they will warm up your lats a bit) to help get rid of jitters and, well, warm up. Just like you are supposed to warm up in every training workout that you do. If there is no room for a swim warmup, it still helps to get into the water and get used to it. If you are wearing a wetsuit, let some water in through the neck. If the water is cold, this will help the suit do what it's intended to, which is to keep you warm by letting your body heat up that little bit of water that's inside the suit. If the water is really cold (under 65F), I find this is crucial.
20. Get comfortable peeing while wearing the wetsuit. Sounds silly, right? Well, most of us do pee in the suit before we start, but for longer than a sprint, it helps to be able to pee while you swim, too. It's relaxing, will warm you up if the water is cold, and then you avoid having to take a porta-potty stop in transition or during the bike leg. Yes, you can pee in it while standing around waiting for the race to start. It will just come out the leg.
    

Wow, the list is longer than I thought it would be! Feel free to comment with any additional tips you might have. Considering the swim is the first event of a triathlon, making it successful can set you up for a great day!