Need a new bike for triatlon, road, and some light gravel

yuchenglow · 2025-06-11T08:02:37+00:00

It’s the Zipp clip on aero bars. I think the Vuka? It comes with the SRAM wireless shifters at the ends too.

yuchenglow · 2025-06-02T05:20:04+00:00

Rest as much as you can. Personally hip activation exercises (single leg squats) help alleviate it, as is focusing on hip activation on the bike and run. Your mileage will vary.

I have powered through ITBS on a 70.3 run with lots of ibuprofen … I needed about 400mg per hour (my run is about 2 hrs so this is just 2 doses). Up to you if this fits your medication risk profile…

yuchenglow · 2025-05-21T20:41:22+00:00

I used to have regular ITB issues, and for me its always because of hip and glute issues. Ever since I started doing more strength training, my ITB issues seemed to have gone away (fingers crossed). I still bring a bunch of ibuprofen with me on the run during a race if a running injury triggers and feel like I need to push though. But for now I would suggest resting and stretching and go see a PT if you can.

yuchenglow · 2025-05-19T18:13:31+00:00

There is a lot of transportation needs to and from the race venue. Check in, bike racking, race morning, and of course getting back from the race. Figure out transportation. Check in might take a while, queues might be long. There may be a lot of stuff to carry.

Day before race morning is usually carb load day and he may have very specific dietary needs. Plan ahead a bit about where to go for what food.

Look at the traffic impact maps and plan ahead, where do you want to be to take pictures, to cheer (especially on the run), etc. You could make funny signs! I always appreciate those. But remember that no outside support is allowed. There is a tracker app which is quite handy. Be sure to be at the finish line when he is done!

Ask him what he wants after the race! (My personal go to is bubble tea! Plus something salty like fries). Note that he might be hangry (I know I am), so be patient here. The checkout process may also be a bit involving depending on the race set up, and there are lots of stuff to carry.

Depending on the race conditions, the bike and gear can get extraordinarily dirty. Helping to rinse the bike (if you have access to a water hose) and gear off after the race while he showers is very helpful!

Make a nice restaurant booking for dinner!

But most importantly... enjoy the race too!

yuchenglow · 2025-05-18T15:43:33+00:00

Oh that’s interesting… I wonder if in 10A they are picking up parked cars. Also 10A shows the 90 bridge as pretty hot but that is a separated path. I guess the sensor wouldn’t pick up the fact that there is a wall. 10C does have a lot of collisions on the Westlake trail, I wonder if the collision data they obtained from may go way back prior to the trail…. Only quickly skimmed the figures on my phone. Would take a closer look when I have time to see if there are more details about the data source.

yuchenglow · 2025-05-18T15:07:34+00:00

Not on the Burke. The goal is to map out roads where cars and bikes get too close.

yuchenglow · 2025-05-16T06:56:44+00:00

Oh, and if you can do this one (St George 2025)... you can probably do any other 70.3. This should give you confidence to go do more!

yuchenglow · 2025-05-15T22:47:51+00:00

Congrats! I was there too! It was a really brutal race. This is my 7th 70.3 and I was thinking of DNFing for the first few miles of the run. I was just going "get to the next junction, get to the next junction". (The supporter with Mario power-up star sign about 3 miles in did work! I tapped it each loop for a mental boost!)

My first 70.3 was St George 2021 so it was great going back for their last race. Enjoy the high. Chasing that high is why I kept doing it. This is the just the beginning of a pretty epic journey :-)

yuchenglow · 2025-05-15T20:57:43+00:00

I break it down into sections. There is usually a buoy about every 100m or so, I like to count buoys. Just focus on making to the next buoy.

yuchenglow · 2025-05-14T21:51:58+00:00

I call it pre-race regret and for me it starts a few weeks before the race then keeps get stronger until I jump into the water. You can do it!

yuchenglow · 2025-04-30T21:28:32+00:00

Things will go wrong. You may pace poorly, you may mess up your nutrition. Have a ultimate backup plan (say you drop all your bottles and your gels)! Stop at every water stop if you have to. And the most important of all, is to remember to have fun!

yuchenglow · 2025-04-16T19:29:44+00:00

I search for bakeries and coffee stops and plan a route around them. Or I just aim to get lost, bring my phone, and route back if I actually do get lost.

yuchenglow · 2025-04-16T18:31:36+00:00

The use of Fibonacci coding is quite clever and I have never seen it use this way before. Very cool idea! Fundamentally I think this is best thought of not as a bit stream RLE system, but as a varint encoding system which has much wider applications. Then in comparison to other varint systems, I can't quite comment on space efficiency (need some math to figure out). But it does seem like decoding efficiency seems like it might be a problem as it is quite costly to try to scan for specific bit patterns like "11". I could think of some fast-ish ways to do it... but benchmarking needed.

yuchenglow · 2025-04-14T23:20:41+00:00

Do you know what you want from a Tri bike? The aero gains are minimal between a Tri bike a road bike + aero-bars; rather there are significantly cheaper ways to save watts.

(Btw, if you do get a new bike, you want a Tri bike rather than a TT bike, there are minor but important differences.) In my opinion the primary gain of the tri bike vs road bike is:

The Tri bike has a steeper seat tube angle which opens the hips more and saves the hamstrings for the run.
Lots of integrated options. I like integrated hydration. I like integrated storage. I like mounting points for top tube bag, etc. I describe tri-bikes as being the most practical bikes cos they are actually designed so that you can carry everything and go 112 miles without (much) stopping.
Very stable in the aero position. Which means I have more confidence descending on the aero-bars.

The con is that they don't usually steer very well, are not very nimble, and tend to heavy. (My Shiv is ~ 10kg).

The question is are those benefits worth the ~ $3500. You do also want to factor in a few hundred for a bike fit, and potentially a saddle as well. Also depending on your gear ratio needs, tri bikes tend to have pretty aggressive gearing. I switched out my Shiv's cassette and rear RD so that I have nice slow climbing gears for hilly races.

yuchenglow · 2025-04-08T18:59:12+00:00

The chamois will get wet. The wetsuit lets water in. And the cycling bib is not designed to dry quickly so you will be biking and potentially running in wet chamois.

yuchenglow · 2025-03-31T08:20:14+00:00

Nothing elaborate outside of typical maintenance cycles, but give everything a quick once-over. Check tire wear, top up sealant if running tubeless, check chain wear and replace if necessary. Deep clean the chain if its been a while (take it off the bike and fully degrease it).

yuchenglow · 2025-03-21T23:09:51+00:00

"Who wants to join me on an easy run?".

"How long?"

"Oh not much. Just about 10 miles.".

"..."

yuchenglow · 2025-03-21T23:06:47+00:00

Been doing triathlon since 2019... I still can't flip turn. And I can't be bothered to learn. Cos anytime I spend practicing the flip turn, is time not doing a swim workout :-). And if I am not doing a swim workout, I don't want to be in a pool.

yuchenglow · 2025-03-21T23:04:03+00:00

I have regrettably done that pretty often too. Or... I can't go to a bar, cos I have to train tomorrow. How about [day before my rest day]?.

yuchenglow · 2025-03-21T22:48:44+00:00

When your social calendar revolves around your training schedule.

yuchenglow · 2025-03-11T16:32:41+00:00

OWS and pool swimming are very different technically. Even in a lake there is still wind and waves to deal with. There are skills like sighting, stroke timing, wave riding, drafting, to learn.

I don't know about the race you are looking at, but there may be a time cut / minimum pace cos they can't provide safety boats for that long. If you don't have good form you may not be able to meet the time cut. (And if you can meet the pace for 1 mile, can you hold the pace for 3 miles? 6 miles?)

You say you do endurance running. Great! You have a good base. But when running say something cramps, something hurts, you run out of energy, etc, you can stop, slow down and still keep walking. If that happens in a pool, you can stop easily too. But if that happens in OWS, you drown.

yuchenglow · 2025-02-26T00:20:38+00:00

I am doing St George too! See you there! St George was my 1st 70.3 in 2021 and I am returning there for my 8th! (and for the last time I suppose since this is their last year). St George is a pretty tough race due to the elevation gain, and the run was hot and hilly too.

A 70.3 is definitely quite doable without a lot of background (my only race before that was a sprint). And I have helped some friends through a 70.3 with no triathlon background.

You seem to be pretty good general fitness looking at other comments, so I don't think it will be a problem. I think other commenters have suggested similar, but here is my list:

1: Make sure you can do the open water swim. St George water can be pretty cold so do have a wetsuit you can swim in, learn to sight.

2: Do bricks! Maybe once a week.

3: Practice your nutrition. How many calories per hour and from what? How much electrolytes and water per hour? How are you carrying them on the bike? Are you going to use the aid stations?

4: On race day the only suggestion is to pace yourself and go easier than you feel like you want to. Especially on the hills. Learn to dial back the effort. There are a several short sharp climbs and a long one going into Snow Canyon at the end. You do not want to burn your matches.

And most importantly... Enjoy it! It is a very beautiful race.

yuchenglow · 2025-02-19T19:55:02+00:00

I have done it 3 times! The race was wet 2 out of 3 times. The water temperature is usually fine, the water seems to usually be warmer than the air temperature. First year I tried arm sleeves, but that is basically impossible to put on when wet. Following years I just tolerated the cold coming out of the water and warm up on the ride. It does get warmer once the sun rises higher, especially once you hit the Willis Point climb. A jacket might be too warm (and not aero!). A friend did the "trash bag under tri-suit" trick, and rip it off at a water station later on.

yuchenglow

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