In events like Ironman we see a small 3.8km swim compared with a 180km bike and a 42.2km run.

The swim is only 1.6% of the total distance! Even in an Olympic distance race the swim is only 3% of the total distance. If we look at the times for the Ironman, a good triathlete may spend 1hr in the water, 6 hours on the bike and 4 hours on the run. The time spent in the water is less than 10% of the time on the day.

With all these numbers stacking up it is easy to see how we focus on times and distances to make our decisions about where to invest our valuable training time (and money!).

It’s time to shake things up with a new concept: First, you need to stop looking at the clock. Second, you need to start looking at your place in the race.

Break Your Addiction to the Clock
Triathletes are too often focused on times when deciding where they need to improve. “But what else are we supposed to focus on?!” I hear you cry. One important consideration is your place in the group.
It’s important to recognize that a change in time in the swim will change your placing in the race and this can affect the rest of your day. This is important to everyone, not just the top age groupers and elites out there.

Valuing Your Place in the Race
Let’s look at Ironman NZ 2009 as an example of how focusing on place can help us. Over 1000 athletes participated in the event, but I’m going to look at the middle 900 as a reasonable representation of the athletes. In the swim, the middle 900 athletes finished within 25mins of each other (between 1hr and 1hr 25min). That means for every 1min faster you are in the swim, you will have passed, on average, 36 of your fellow competitors.

This means that if your swimming is weaker than your cycling, a small 1min change means 36 more obstacles in front of you will need to pass!

At the very least these cyclists will be small distractions, requiring you to look over your shoulder every once in a while and break your rhythm to pass. At the very worst these cyclists could mean a drafting penalty down the road as you are trying to get around them! Many honest age groupers have found themselves in groups of riders they are faster than, but can’t get rid of as they hold on to the draft. A frustrating ride can drain you mentally, and if you change your strategy and try and burst from the pack, the legs will almost certainly suffer on the run.

In a non-drafting Olympic race the results are very similar. While the numbers in the race are usually smaller, the courses are shorter too and people end up closer together.

The moral of the story is that 1min in the swim does not necessarily equal 1min to the overall result. It is important to recognize the effects this will have on your race. You can’t win a triathlon in the swim, but you can lose it. A strong, confident start to the day leaving you fresh on the bike with more open roads, and this will lead you to better results on the run also.

Over the summer Spencer coaches the Parnell Swim Squads, training triathletes and ocean swimmers. You can contact Spencer at: www.futuredreams.co.nz / spencer@futuredreams.co.nz / 021 993 577