Las Vegas Tri and what not to do at a triathlon!

Today was the Las Vegas Triathlon. There were several athletes that I coach that did great! I don't have the final numbers in but I want to congratulate Earl and Tracey for both completing their first triathlon. Denny, Adan and Toshie also finished the race and looked great at the end. Once again good job to everyone. It was a lot of fun being a spectator and cheering everyone on. While watching everyone I noticed a lot of things that you should NOT do in a triathlon. Some of these were done by my clients and some were random people I don't know.

1. Getting to the race on time, leaving yourself plenty of time to get settled BUT not getting there too early. Some of you know Denny (he is a Real Results Trainer). He is also a really great triathlete. I think he was like 6 or 7th overall today. He had to be the first person setting up in transition this morning. He must have gotten there like at 5am (too early). Earl on the other hand, the client I mentioned that finished his first triathlon today was on the opposite end of the spectrum. He got there so late he had to set up outside of transition because there was not enough room. Keep in mind I sent him a text last night telling him to get there early and not rush! I picked up a client named Adan and took him to the race and he got there at JUST THE RIGHT TIME! We arrived about 6:30am. His wave was going off at 7:40. The Half just started as we got there. Olympic was starting at 7am. This gave him plenty of time to set up, relax, and check out the transition in and out.
2. Swimming straight is very important because if you don't swim straight you could end of swimming an extra 200 or so meters. I coached Tracey a month or so for this event and she is not a great swimmer. She did kick butt on the bike and run. I saw her swimming in a completely wrong direction. Sighting drills in the pool help with this and getting to the lake and practicing sighting on the buoys help. Tracey did a great job just finishing the swim being that she did not give herself a lot of time to prepare for this event. Great job Tracey next time I know you will only swim the designated distance!
3. Take off your bike helmet when you go to the run! OK this was not one of my clients. It was pretty funny. I wish I would have gotten a picture of this. This guy came out of transition heading to the run with his bike helmet on! NOTE TO SELF TAKE OFF BIKE HELMET WHEN RUNNING!
4. If you change your shirt for the run (which I don't recommend) put it on the right way. This also was not one of my clients. Some guy came out of transition with hands up in the air yelling yeah! He was so excited to be on the run. The tag from his shirt was in the front. His shirt was inside out and on backwards!
5. Make sure you are in a small gear when you rack your bike! I must have seen at least 5 people that tipped over when getting on their bike going up the hill. None of these were my clients thankfully. Always rack your bike and put it in an easy gear. Also check to make sure your brakes are not rubbing against your wheel.
6. Don't suddenly sprint across the finish line unless it is for the win! There are some people that suddenly feel the need to act like idiots and run so fast across the finish line rushing in front of other people. First of all most of these people are not winning anything and probably ran a 12 minute mile for the race. Then suddenly they need to knock everyone over by sprinting at the end. It is really stupid unless your going to WIN!
7. The last thing I will talk about is your race packet. Don't lose it - ADAN! Yes, Adan lost his packet with race number and swim cap. He most likely left it at the restaurant he ate at the night before the race. Adan also lost ONE of his new running shoes last month. He thinks he threw it away on accident. How does someone do that? I told him he needs to get organized!