Best use... that's a loaded question, my friend. You mention that you're a poor swimmer, but how's your run? Bike? What distance(s) do you race? How much time do you have to dedicate to training? You've got some nice gear already, but until you specify which area needs the most work, recommendations are hard to make. I can tell you one thing though: The ~$300 you'd spend on a new wetsuit won't make you as fast as if you invested it in a good (swim) coach, or perhaps a TI seminar. Same for fast wheels, only now you're looking at even more dough. I'd hazard that race gear isn't where you want to be spending your money for maximum benefit. It could be coaching, training tools, or even getting a dietician to look at your nutrition - but race day toys are rarely the answer for us mid to back of the pack-ers.

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<If you're gonna be dumb, you gotta be tough>
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Proud member of the Smartasscrew, MONSTER CLUB
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khai said,

race day toys are rarely the answer for us mid to back of the pack-ers.


...yea, but ya look sooo cool.

After I finsish, ...if they are still on the course then they must be bodies.

Joe Moya

Khai is right on with this. The biggest question is how much do those different things cost and then how much time gain do you see coming from them. An upgrade to aero wheels might give you 2 min in an olympic dist race and cost anywhere from $600-$1200. A good swim coach or T1 seminar might gain you 3-6 min and cost you $200-$300. Obviously then, the money would best be spent on the swim coach in that case. I'd definetly recommend a swim seminar of some sort if swimming is your weakness. Cause whats worse is coming out of the water nearly last and running up to your bike (its easy to spot cause its the only one left) and it looks like it belongs to Steve Larsen and can avg 25mph by itself, but actually you only pedal it at 17.5 mph. Trust me, i know that was my first few yrs in triathlon.

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Want: 58cm Cervelo Soloist. PM me if you have one to sell

Vintage Cervelo: A Resource

Yep........the swim coach.

Best bang for buck? I am also a MOP or BOP guy. I dropped about 15 minutes from my Olympic distance time by going to the Total Immmersion weekend seminar.

I had already had the video and book for 6-7 months. They did not help me the same way the weekend seminar did. There were something like 12 coaches for 30 people. It was awesome.

The swim leg went from my weakest link to my best event. I averaged about 30% percentile in the swm leg, meaning 30% of swimmers beat me and I beat 70%. My bike and run splits are above the 50 percentile.

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~~Bob

Put it this way, I sell go-fast stuff for a living (I own a triathlon bike store). I can only sell you so much speed. In order of what I have to offer that makes you go the fastest:
1. Good bike fit and position.
2. A wetsuit.
3. Race wheels.

That's about it that I have to make you faster. The rest you anf your coach have to do. That's as honest as I can get.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

[reply] Cause whats worse is coming out of the water nearly last and running up to your bike (its easy to spot cause its the only one left) and it looks like it belongs to Steve Larsen [/reply]

That's me to a T. Although I still maintain Steve's bike looks like mine, not the other way round. :-)

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Gerard Vroomen
3T.bike
OPEN cycle

I posted something similar to your inquiry on gordos forum.

The most cost -effective thing you can do is work on the engine. Everyone says get a coach. Well PC's are a coach, a hard a$$ pedaling coach that won't let you pedal improperly and makes you use muscles important for the run. For your $800 ($3-400 on Ebay used) you will get a coach that will help you gain 2-3 mph on the bike and 1 min/mile on the run in the first year (on average) and 4-5 mph and 2 minute per mile (on average) the second year and continued improvements for the next 5-10 years.

It takes time though and the sooner you start the better off you will be next season or 5 years from now.

From a personal point of view (as someone who stands no chance whatsoever of ever winning any race) I would have more fun coming out of the water at the back of the pack then spend the rest of the day passing people than coming out of the water first and spend the rest of the day being passed by people. the swim is the least important part of the race (just look at Steve Larsen in 2001) and while it may be possible to take 20 minutes off your swim, that isn't much if you are at 14 hours and trying to get under 12 but it is a lot if you are at 10 hours and trying to get under 9.

Frank (I invented and sell PC's in case you were wondering) Day

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Frank,
An original Ironman and the Inventor of PowerCranks

I'm with Khai on this one. You've got some pretty sweet gear already. You could win on that set-up if it fits. Go for the TI swim clinic or a good swim coach. This dividends will be greater and last a lot longer than anything aero you can acquire. Not to mention the confidence boost you get from toeing the line with a strong swim. ;-)

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Adam Duncan
New York, NY

 
I think that there are honest issues with BASIC equipment. These questions should not be derided ;/

I have always been, and will forever be "cheaptri," but I need shoes/bike/wetsuit... Nothing will cost more than ~$1k: have you added all the costs lately?

My kids/wife need toys too!

Thierry,
Tris will be more interesting when entry-level costs will be lower.

Entry costs do not have to be high to participate in triathlon. A good bike with toe clips can cost less than $500 and one can do just fine. A helmet and a wet suit and running shoes (and a mimimum set of clothes) and one is set. I did my first IM without a wet suit on a bike with toe clips and no aerobars riding in my running shoes (and running shorts) and finished in less than 17 hours.

The issue of cost only starts to come into play when people look to equipment to help them improve their performance. It is egos that make this sport expensive, nothing else.

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Frank,
An original Ironman and the Inventor of PowerCranks

Aero wheels are probably the last thing you will want to upgrade, if you are actually looking to improve your results. I'd recommend getting in touch with Mike Plumb of www.tripower.org which will definately help you train better.

I would wait on items such as aero wheels and Powercranks until you have done some research and found items that will work best for you. I have bought items in the past only to find out that they were not in my best interest, off to Ebay they went.

For aero wheels take a look at www.amclassic.com, great wheels.

I'm using Spinergy Rev-X's for training and HED3/Corima disc for races, but my (hopeful) 40k speed will be over 26 MPH by this summer. Aero wheels give a couple of minutes benefit over 40k.

The #1 way to get faster on the bike is simple enough:

1. Develop leg strength by drills: pushing a big gear at a low cadence.

2. Intervals: ride at just below LT for extended periods.

3. Build endurance: be able to ride for extende periods at a high pace.

4. Efficiency: pedal in circles and pull up lightly on the recovery leg to eliminate negative pressure on the propulsion stroke, this will give 50% more power to your stroke and is relatively simple to do but you must remain aware of the recovery leg and pull up lightly on every stroke. I am developing this now and hope for it to feel natural in a few months.

 
I guess I am even cheaper (and Fred-er) than I thought!

Ah yes, PowerCranks... There should be a banner at the top of this forum:

" Question: What should I do with $800?"

" Answer: Don't bother posting. You're wasting bandwidth. Just buy PowerCranks."

Dear Sir,

For all the heavy marketing of your product that you do on this forum, one would think that we were missing out on some mass-market gizmo that would make us all better triathletes. And it was simply our blindness to the brilliance of your idea that is keeping us from getting it.

(This, in my humble opinion, is the real "PC soap opera" on this forum.)

But the fact of the matter is that PowerCranks are not a "mass-market" anything. They are an eight hundred dollars bike part. PowerCranks are not the answer for every question of the type "how can I spend my $$ to become a better triathlete".

I have no problem with your claims that PowerCranks help. I am a competitive 39 year old who would love nothing better than to add another x.xx mph to last years' 40k average. I think it's great you offer the "60 days money back" option. I would love to have the money to try them out. But I can't afford them. And guessing from the heavy marketing you are doing here, neither can many others.

It would be great if some of the energy spent on marketing $800 PowerCranks was channeled into engineering $400 PowerCranks. Those might require less marketing effort.

Horia Neamtu

I don't see that anyone needs to buy anything besides a basic bike and shoes to do this sport (retroman did IM LP last year on a banana bike, cutoffs (including the swim) and Chuck converse shoes). However, the question was posed by someone who had some money to spend and was asking for what is the most bang for the buck. By bang I assume he was looking for something to make him better and faster. I offered my opinion without trying to hide my association with the product. I simply report our experience and expectations. Few who have had the product (and used them as directed) have indicated my claims were all "hype" or "marketing".

I am sorry you are offended.

Frank

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Frank,
An original Ironman and the Inventor of PowerCranks

Personally, I think Frank would be a jackass if he didn't believe in his product 110%. He gave his honest opinion to a legitamite question. I'd do the same thing if I were in his shoes. Plus, he prefaced his post so that we would know it was another PC endorsement, if you don't like it, just skip it, it's that easy.

I agree they're out of my price range, but I also ride an entry level bike, with stock wheels (in racing and training), and have the bear minimum in equipment. If I were going to upgrade, I'd work on myself, before I tried to shave time with toys.

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"What the mind can conceive and believe, the mind and body can achieve; and those who stay will be champions."

The question was about Honest opinions. If Dr. Day's honest opinion is that PC's are the best bang for the buck, it's his opinion. I dare say his credentials are better than many people that are posting answers to the question.

I've only had two weeks now on PC's. I have a great bike, aero wheels, and a good motor; I used to have none of those things. So, I'm in a pretty good position to evaluate all these different parts of the picture. If I look at dollars spent and time saved on the item that was purchased, I'll honestly say that I think PC's will be the best bang for the buck of all MY equipment. Swim coaching could be in this particular fellow's best interest, but it depends upon his swim times, his bike times, and his run times.

The thing about PC's is that although they should help most anyone's bike split (given that you TRAIN on the PC's...they aren't majic dust, they are an unforgiving no-cheating-allowed ALWAYS on your case pedalling stroke coach), they seem to help the run split even more! I'm seeing benefits to my runs at this early stage. I'm just now able to ride at my normal mid-winter training speed, it takes time...it's still early for me to give you firm numbers on how much faster I will get by training on PC's.

And I think they are worth it because they constantly remind me when my stroke isn't as efficient as it could be...even though I THOUGHT my stroke must be good because I outsplit 90% of the field on the bike. WRONG. I expect to outsplit 95% of the field next year, while running better, too.

That's my honest opinion. And, I payed full price...PC's are the only thing I think I ever paid full price for.

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Quid quid latine dictum sit altum videtur
(That which is said in Latin sounds profound)

I got a couple of beefs with this statement. From my experience as a slow swimmer and decent biker/runner who used to come out the water behind 70% of the competitors and pass a lot of them on the bike, this is not fun at all. The reason its not fun is that the race starts poorly, its thrown in your face how much you suck. And if you have dreams of getting to the podium, you cant come out of the water 9 mins back in an olympic dist race and catch the leaders unless maybe youre are an uber cyclist. The guys that win age groups at major races are all arounders for the most part---they are very good at each event.

And "least important" thats an ignorant perception about triathlon. Nothing is unimportant---its all very important (again if you want to be competitive) Why does McCormack swim like 10 miles a week if its the least important event?

I have no problem with powercranks, so Frank this isnt an attack on your product (its an attack on your above comments). I tried them out at a race and i can definetly see the value of them---to me though I cant rationalize the cost, thats why i dont have any. Perhaps when im not living hand to mouth, I can purchase a pair.

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Want: 58cm Cervelo Soloist. PM me if you have one to sell

Vintage Cervelo: A Resource

if you have dreams of podium. those who have no dreams of such need something to make us feel superior.

Frank

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Frank,
An original Ironman and the Inventor of PowerCranks

You already have a sleeveless Orca which is a good wetsuit so I'd go with the race wheels before getting a full suit (unless you swim in really cold water). I'd look for a decent set of used wheels or maybe even a front only since I've read that is where you get the most benefit. I started the sport a a pretty weak swimmer (around 31-32 minutes for 1500m) and joined a masters swim club for a couple of years which cost me around $500/year (but you have to pay for pool time anyway so it wasn't that much over what I had been paying for uncoached pool time) but I can now swim a little under 22 minutes so I agree with the other recommendations that bigger gains can be made spending the money in a variety of areas...... although a good swim stroke doesn't look as cool in transition as some slick Hed/Zipp/Corima/Renn etc. wheels :)