Tips for racing an open water triathlon swim in Covid-Safe races
With open water swim venues in the UK gearing up to open, shortly followed by indoor swimming pools, it’s finally time to think about getting back in the water! With races planning to run only a few weeks later, how can we prepare ourselves to race in the open water with such a short lead-in? Coach Jon gives us his top race day tips.
According to the latest BTF guidelines, any triathlon swim taking place between 29th March and 12th May 2021 will be ‘non-competitive’. After that, swims will be competitive but will be socially distanced; therefore, run as a time trial format until at least the 21st of June 2021. How will these rule changes affect our preparation for open water racing, and what can we expect on race day?
Warming-up
Trying to keep athletes socially distanced whilst registering, racking and making their way to the start line is a difficult task for race organisers. From our coaches and athletes experiences of racing in 2020, we noted that there might be very limited time to rack your bike and perform any sort of warm-up in the transition area. Athletes are asked to keep time in transition to an absolute minimum. Athletes are ushered into their wetsuits and into a holding area where social distancing can take place. Depending on your actual swim start time, you may have a long wait in the holding area. The weather on race day can make a big difference here. If it's hot (rare in the UK, I know!), overheating in a wetsuit can be a real issue; an icy bottle of water to pour over your head and into your wetsuit could be useful. On the other hand, if it is cold (more likely), wearing some flip flops to keep your feet warm and taking an extra layer may help. Once in the holding area, you should have time to perform a dryland pre-race warm-up.
Depending on the venue, it may not be possible to enter the water to acclimate to the water temperature. As a substitute, you might be able to dip your hands and feet in. If so, make sure you splash some water on your face to illicit the cold shock response.
Before you make your way to the start, make sure both your tri-suit and wetsuit are on correctly. If you can access the water, this process will be more straightforward as you can get the wetsuit wet, which will make it easier to adjust. As always, make sure you have had plenty of practice swimming in your race kit before race day, including the tri-suit. For tips on how to put on your wetsuit properly, watch this helpful video.
Rolling-starts
With the current COVID rules, mass-starts will not be happening in any age-group triathlons until at least 21st June. Athletes will be entering the water via a rolling-start. This means you will no longer be able to pick your position within the pack or pick the side of the start area that you feel is going to give an advantage. Athletes will all start from the same spot. Most races will ask you for a predicted swim time and set the fastest swimmers off first. Some events let you self-seed.
If it is self-seeding, setting off with swimmers, you know to be faster than you may push you into swimming quicker yourself. You might also gain more self-confidence from swimming closer to the front of the field, and that often delivers faster swim times.
Whereas seeding yourself slightly further back means you can use the swimmers ahead to identify any currents or wind impacts. You can tell this by any curve in the swimming line. Starting further back also allows you to be the chaser, picking off swimmers and catching a small draft as you swim passed.
Weaker or less experienced open water swimmers may prefer the rolling swim start as it allows for a much calmer starting experience, with plenty of space, rather than the usual intimidating ‘washing machine effect’.
Race venues that do not allow a pre-swim warm-up in the water may also expect you to jump straight into the water and begin your swim (CTS Hever Castle 2020 had this set-up). This means the first time your face hits the water is the same moment you are trying to get up to race speed. Cue - cold water shock response: don’t panic, remain calm and breathe. Practising jumping straight in to open water and building up to race pace in your open water sessions before race day could prove useful. Other race venues may allow you to enter the water a few minutes before your start time to tread water and get used to the temperature before being released in sequential order. Use this time to acclimate, perform some warming swim strokes and mentally prepare.
Pacing
Mass-start swims are all about hard starts to make sure you get into a fast group of swimmers. With the rolling-start, it is effectively a time trial. Treat it like one. Spend a few seconds accelerating up to your race speed, then settle in; there is no pack to chase. If you were aiming to swim your fastest possible race on your own, in time trial format, the best advice for most swimmers would be to start steady and build your pace and effort through the swim. If you do happen to arrive on the feet of a swimmer at a suitable pace for you, should you stay there? I’ll leave that to your judgement and interpretation of the rules.
Sighting
Swimming straight in open water races is critical as it can make a huge difference to your overall time. Unless you have started first and you are leading the race, with the rolling start format, you should have a beautiful line of swimmers to follow in theory. In reality, sighting will still be key; you can’t always trust those in front to hold the most efficient line. Before your open water race, practice sighting both in open water sessions and in the swimming pool. Come up with a system that suits your stroke, such as sighting every 6 strokes, and make sure you practice this during race pace intervals.
A quality pair of goggles is also essential to ensure that your vision is not restricted during your race. Also, think about your goggle lens colour for different weather conditions; it is a good idea to have options with you in your race kit.
Sea swims
If you can, before the race, train in the environment you expect to race in. Sea-based triathlon swims require a little more preparation than lake-based races. Spend some time thinking about the currents, wind and wave direction and what effect this will have on your swim. If you can, travel to the coast and practice sea swimming skills: beach starts, dolphin diving under and accelerating through waves, sighting in the swell, and body surfing back into the beach will all help you come race day.
Exiting the water
The best way to sight a swim exit is to spot a significant fixed landmark on the horizon in line with the final buoy and the exit point if approaching the exit head-on. If it becomes too shallow to swim but too deep to run, think about what else you could do to progress quickly. Dolphin diving can be very effective.
One COVID difference to be mindful of is that there will more than likely be no race marshalls at the water's edge to help you get to your feet, something you may be used to in pre-COVID racing. Take your time and ensure you have a stable footing before transitioning from swimming to running.
The final part of an open water swim is the run to transition. How often have you practised going from a horizontal swimming position to an upright running position? This skill can be practised both in the open water environment and on the poolside; simply running on the spot after a hard swim set will have the desired effect.
We are all looking forward to getting back out there and racing again, especially in the open water. When the time comes, race hard, but most of all, enjoy it!
Jon has been coaching with his local triathlon club in Hertfordshire around his full-time job as an airline pilot for several years. Unfortunately, Jon lost his pilot’s licence for 11 months in 2019 due to being diagnosed with testicular cancer (read his story here). He used the time off from flying to complete his Level 2 and Level 2 BTF diploma qualifications as well as a L3 Personal Trainer qualification. With his new coaching qualifications under his belt, Jon was able to join Tri Training Harder as a coach in 2019. He has now recovered from cancer, started flying again and is training hard for the coming triathlon season.
Jon has a flexible approach to coaching and training, from his own busy lifestyle he knows how to balance training around family, friends and social commitments. Jon loves to utilise the knowledge gained on his Personal Trainer course and finds incorporating well-structured strength and conditioning sessions vital to triathlon performance.
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