Fair play

I always considered them to be a pacing device. I've seen others use them and even mention using them in widely circulated blog posts without repercussions so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Just out of curiosity, how do you view the bike computer/watch showing mph/power/cadence vs tempo trainer beeping? Seems to be a bit of gray area since the tempo trainer is providing a sensory feedback rather than visual.

I recall reading somewhere that a USAT Official had interpreted it as an audio device and so ruled that it couldn't be worn in a swim cap, but it would be OK if elsewhere on the body - i.e. around the neck.

Makes absolutely no sense to me. I personally think its fair game and no different than the other devices that provide you with run or bike cadence.

saw a bloke at IM Frankfurt using one (or a metronome thing) clipped to his running cap during the run last year: IMHO shouldn't use it as it's audible to others and could be a distraction.

this is different to a bike/running computer used for pacing as this can only be seen by the user and may occasionally make noises etc.

That's a totally legitimate point and I don't have a good response. I personally use a Garmin to display my power on the bike and I know that's a wide-spread practice. One has to wonder what USAT means when they refer to "pacing devices"

I used one when I first started tri in 2013 under my swim cap at a USAT Olympic distance event. I talked to the race director beforehand and he said using it would be no problem. I'd imagine it would be good practice to ask before each event, but I ended up swimming 38 minutes so it didn't have much of an advantageous impact for me.

I probably would have continued to use it in races but I lost it about a week later in a pool drain and couldn't justify buying another one.

Perhaps the difference is that one device provides a view of what an athlete is doing (Garmin showing the output of power or current speed etc) and the athlete must then decide if output is acceptable or not and adjust accordingly on his or her own...
whereas the other device provides an 'external' audible beep of a predetermined tempo to assist an athlete in maintaining a desired pre-determined swim stroke (sort of a coaching input... ??)

have you ever actually used one?

you can barely hear the tempo trainer yourself when it's under your own swim cap...

Illegal. ITU has a generic rule that says anything not covered by Tri rules default to FINA, UCI or IAAF. FINA says no to pacing devices. I watched a race official tell a kid they couldn't use in a youth race.

---

___________________________________________
http://en.wikipedia.org/...eoesophageal_fistula
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerebral_palsy
2020 National Masters Champion - M40-44 - 400m IM
Canadian Record Holder 35-39M & 40-44M - 200 m Butterfly (LCM)

I use it every race to keep on pace. I'm just a Age grouper trying to PR!

not for ironman races

If you go back and watch the television coverage for Ironman Canada in 2015 they show Melanie McQuaid talking about using a Tempo Trainer on the run to try to keep her cadence up.