Talk to me about Sam Long’s trash bag-under the trisuit technique (cold?). Was planning to wear an actual wind vest on the bike leg of a potentially cold Oly bike but am intrigued by what looks like a cutout trash bag under Sam Long’s trisuit in his latest video.
3:46 is the timestamp of where he is wearing it. For some reason my link with the seconds on it isn’t working at the seconds mark despite multiple tries of using the actual link to the spot in the video (works when I paste the link but for some reason the link below ignores the seconds indicator.)
LINK
Do you leave it there the whole ride/run, or do you rip it out at some point?
I did it last weekend. It cuts the wind out incredibly well. It was 45 when I got on the bike and felt great in my tri suit. Plus I dumped it at the first aid station (instead of worrying about a jacket when it gets hotter).
I’ll absolutely be doing this with any cold races in the future.
I did it last weekend. It cuts the wind out incredibly well. It was 45 when I got on the bike and felt great in my tri suit. Plus I dumped it at the first aid station (instead of worrying about a jacket when it gets hotter).
I’ll absolutely be doing this with any cold races in the future.
Did you wear it like a bag covering your whole torso with holes for the arms, or did you just use it as a one-piece chest blocker?
Also, was it a problem at all in the swim?
Any problems ripping it off under an already-tight fitting sleeved trisuit?
Should I ‘practice’ how this feels before race day?
Firstly this is not a Sam Long technique. Riders have been using it in the Tour de France down mountain passes since the dawn of time. Fans give riders newspapers and they stuff them inside front of jersey to bottom of descent and then throw it out. The transition bags they give for Ironman events are great. Grocery plastic bags not so good. Those silver blankets they give out at marathon finshes are good.
No need to form fit anything. Just stuff it inside your top and once you are riding you can stick your hand inside and spread i it out quickly.
Firstly this is not a Sam Long technique. Riders have been using it in the Tour de France down mountain passes since the dawn of time. Fans give riders newspapers and they stuff them inside front of jersey to bottom of descent and then throw it out. The transition bags they give for Ironman events are great. Grocery plastic bags not so good. Those silver blankets they give out at marathon finshes are good.
No need to form fit anything. Just stuff it inside your top and once you are riding you can stick your hand inside and spread i it out quickly.
Sam looks like he was wearing it for the swim, I think. Different than shoving it down your jersey mid-ride. I’d prefer this method, seems less risky.
I stuffed it only in the front (i.e., not as a poncho) on my chest. It was very simple to pull out of my trisuit. I didn’t wear it in the swim, but I will next time. All the pros did and I wasted way too much time stuffing it in my suit.
I kept refreshing the Weather Channel app and looking at the radar while repeating the mantra “It’s just foggy. It will blow over. No need for rain gear” “It’s just foggy. It will blow over. No need for rain gear” “It’s just foggy. It will blow over. No need for rain gear”
It wasn’t just foggy
It didn’t blow over
I needed the rain gear
I was so desperate in the downpour that I went into the Dunkin’ Donuts and asked for a trash bag - nope, not happening
I was soaked and shivering by the time my corral started; in spite of this, when it was all done, I just missed a PR on that course by 10 seconds or so
Now, whenever there might be a cold rain to stand in for a while, I bring a whole box of trash bags, and offer to whoever might need one
and I believe Heather Wurtele was the first Pro I’d read do something like this with a garbage bag.
It works really well, BTW.
I used this method in 2019, and believe I actually private messaged @dtoce to see how it went before doing so. I’ve got raynauds and getting out of a wetsuit and riding in the 40s/low 50s is a big problem for me. This trick worked very well for me.
Sam looks like he was wearing it for the swim, I think. Different than shoving it down your jersey mid-ride. I’d prefer this method, seems less risky.
You don’t need to put it on while you’re moving on the bike either. You can equally just shove it down the front of your tri-suit in T1 Out of all the pieces of gear that I put on in T1, this one was probably the quickest. In the photo above, Sam is wearing it like an undershirt, but you can equally just shove it down your trisuit in the front (which is what I did). So long as its covering most of your torso, its all good. The advantage to just shoving it down your trisuit in the front is that its easier to take out when you don’t need it anymore (either in T2, or at an aid station).
Trash bags IMO are the ultimate cold weather solution. I bring 2 of those large black trash bags meant for leaf collection or whatever to every potential cold weather race I do. They’re particularly great for races like IMAZ where it might be quite chilly when you first get on the bike but it warms up as soon as the sun comes out. If you wear a jacket or wind vest at a race and get too hot, you’re either stuck with being hot or you wind up having to throw away a nice piece of gear. Even if you bring a cheap jacket or vest that you’re willing to lose, you still may have to physically stop in order to take it off.
With a trash bag though, just shove the bags down the front of your suit in T1 to keep your core warm. And then, when it warms up outside, pull them out and ditch them at an aid station. Highly recommend that you try them.
Hi, I know this post is quite old, but looking for some advice. I am doing Indian Wells 70.3 in a few weeks. Also have Reynauds - water temp likely 57 or colder. Air temp will be cool at start of the bike. What worked best for you? Any specific gloves your reco for the bike? I imagine my hands and feet will be very sore when I get out of the water.
Things to consider
Double cap
Ear plugs
Vaseline on exposed face
Prime your wetsuit with a bottle of hot water just before getting in the swim.
Out of the water
Make sure you have a towel to dry as well as you can.
Consider a thin cycling skull cap under the helmet.
Shoe covers over bike shoes.
Hand warmers inside shoe covers on outside of shoe.
You can no longer stuff a metallic emergency blanket down jersey per aero rules, so either put on a long sleeve cycling jersey or have long arm sleeves under your wetsuit and put on knee high socks in T1.
You can also put the arm sleeves on out of the water if you don’t want them wet. Do it will running to your bike (gloves too while running).
Here’s a video that might be of interest. You can see different cold weather approaches from the female pros at 70.3 worlds.
I offer a couple of comments/considerations on the list above.
The chances of any problem with people saying ‘you’ve got a plastic bag down your front and that’s illegal’ is zero (and offers zero (aero) advantage). It’s cold.
Worth trying to get your hands a bit cold in tap water at home and then trying to pull the gloves on, just to make sure this is going to be doable. I have a pair of Castellis which are lovely and thin and grippy (warm enough in cool air and not too warm as the day heats up) but they’re hard to get on with dry cold hands let alone wet ones (so towel = tick). https://hothands.com/
