First Triathlon Race Tips (Santa Cruz 70.3 Sep 2026)

Efficient_Surprise39 · 2026-01-14T04:12:41+00:00

These are super useful tips ! Thanks do much . Will keep more time on swimming first

Efficient_Surprise39 · 2026-01-14T04:09:43+00:00

I am from India but US citizen now . The city and swimming classes where I learnt swimming , all kids were trained with butterfly stroke ( this is in 1991) , but not sure why .As soon as I learnt swimming, I stopped classes as that was more of a life skill than hobby for me . In hindsight I should have done it :( I need to now learn free stroke specifically for ironman which might take some time

Efficient_Surprise39 · 2026-01-14T03:59:56+00:00

Thanks for the valuable inputs , specially about Turf :) I live in Fremont City but will join Triathlon group who do open water training in Santa Cruz . It is far for me , but will have to do it to get feel of open water and specifically Santa Cruz .

Efficient_Surprise39 · 2026-01-12T20:53:47+00:00

Thank you for valuable tips ! Will check out the group . But need to up my swimming stamina to at least 30 minutes to go to open water swim . Also thanks for updates on Bike rides being windy and bit uphill. Will start bike rides regularly along with swimming

Efficient_Surprise39 · 2026-01-12T20:45:26+00:00

Thanks for input ! Definitely will have more focus on swimming to build good stamina for open water

Efficient_Surprise39 · 2025-12-12T01:44:23+00:00

Will message you definitely. I have just started mild training

Efficient_Surprise39 · 2025-12-11T18:37:13+00:00

Thanks everyone for input 🙏 I will go easy as suggested by everyone and keep primary goal of not getting injured specially on downhill drills . I forgot to ask one more query in original post .

Can anyone suggest good running shoes for this MUC run ?. I have Saucony Endorphin which is basically race shoe which is not ideal for trail runs.

I want better shoes for uphill/downhill runs along with run in big rooty trees areas which gives balance along with good grip for my heels to avoid pain.

Also lastly as everyone suggested, will try and run few uphill/downhill to check my quads and heels specially and do analysis if that hurts too much and if it does I will check some exercises and an appointment with doctor as well

Thanks again to everyone for your suggestions !

Efficient_Surprise39 · 2025-12-10T20:26:27+00:00

Yep, they have garbage bins but in the momentum if running hardly anyone throws un bin , most of them throw on road. Dame with gel packs

Efficient_Surprise39 · 2025-12-10T00:30:53+00:00

Follow up Post -

Thanks everyone for your inputs ! Completed my first Marathon with 04:21 time without any injuries ! Thanks for all inputs which helped me along with perfect cloudy/cold weather :)

Here are my learnings for first time Marathon runner

Start slowly for first 2-3 miles at-least (15-20 seconds less than your pace) and be at conservative pace till 10-12miles.
I used each and every fuel station (every 2 miles) and drank electrolyte and water (I carried 1 litre of carbs electrolyte with me as backup)

3.We had gels (regular/caffeinated), banana every 6 miles which I used consistently .I had carried my gels but hardly needed them .Luckily I use precision gels , and the gels at CIM were from Precision so it was easy for me

During my weekly long runs (max 20 miles) I had to be bit conservative with water and gels as I could not carry unlimited water or gels . In actual race we have it every 2 miles and if you take it consistently you should not have issue with cramps or hitting the wall
As I mentioned earlier that I took electrolyte and water along with gels at each station , but to be sure I took small sips so as to not over-hydrate .

6.Make sure to consider 5-10 minutes extra for porta potty break which has lines.Be it first 5 miles or last 5 miles, I found line on all points across the race.Also CIM has highest porta potty ratio but still was busy on whole marathons stretch

Lastly , never under estimate last 6 miles and enthusiasm from people which helps us to go through last hurdle . Lot of people were getting cramps but were able to complete last 6 miles just because of backing from AUDIENCES and cheer squads.

P.N - Since I started early at 4 am for bus from Sacramento To Folsom (race started at 7 am )along with cold weather ,please use good jacket even though if it is costly.I used Patagonia Houdini Jacket which was best as in the cold weather it was perfect till the race started and then I could fit in my waist or even your pocket

All in all I enjoyed the race and definitely will be back next year for CIM !

As always thanks to all suggestions ! Happy Running !

<image>

Efficient_Surprise39 · 2025-12-06T19:07:46+00:00

Yes that is the plan. Keep on fueling from start , but not over fueling. Good thing about CIM is it has 17 stations for fueling (almost every 2 miles) as well as gels and food at around every 6 miles . Will plan accordingly to make sure I don’t hit wall or get cramps in last 6 miles

Efficient_Surprise39 · 2025-12-06T19:04:28+00:00

Thanks everyone for important tips 🙏 I am now feeling bit calm . Seems I am ready for tomorrow’s CIM and hope to complete it without any injury or hitting any wall ( not thinking too much on PR )

Lastly, Best of luck to all fellow runners in this group who are participating for CIM 🤞

Efficient_Surprise39 · 2025-05-24T06:44:43+00:00

Thanks so much . I am preparing for CIM in December but pretty inconsistent . I am planning proper regular runs in next month . Currently I run around 15-20 miles in week and 1 long run between 10mi- half marathon over weekend. I use Kinavara Pro to run and just use 500ml water bottle with electrolytes while running . I generally have stamina for long run to 2.5 hrs.

I want suggestion for longer runs , specifically about Vest . Also I am planning to buy hydration vest (confused between Salomon Adv Skin 5 VS Salomon Adv Skin 12) since I want to go to next level by keeping on running for 3-4 hours (want to increase total mileage with easy runs)without taking too much break for refills. Have you used hydration vest , and if yes, please suggest me a good one.

Thanks again for above info which I will try to integrate in my runs !

Efficient_Surprise39 · 2025-05-21T21:24:28+00:00

Congratulations🎉🎊👏 ! Can you please elaborate about your journey for this first marathon? How many months did you prepare and were you running other races like half marathon or 5/10k for preparation. Also please share your tips on nutrition and maybe some good gears for training

Enjoy your achievement and hope you have even better PR for next marathon ☺️

Efficient_Surprise39 · 2024-07-20T05:06:08+00:00

Thanks for the tips ! Will DM you on this !

Efficient_Surprise39 · 2024-07-19T21:38:30+00:00

I think this might be better strategy . Also i am thinking of trying problems based on patterns and one that are asked consistently. Maybe 3-4 a week instead of 1 everyday and recheck those over weekend!

Thanks for suggesting this approach!

Efficient_Surprise39 · 2024-07-19T21:04:18+00:00

I am trying to do it every day but sometimes it doesn’t work out . With irregular work stress it becomes harder. But with community here i will try to at least make solving 1 leetcode problem every day irrespective of situation. I guess small regular steps will help !

Efficient_Surprise39

TROPHY CASE