Doing Westchester tomorrow (Oly), never had to race in an absolute downpour before. Any tips? It will be in the high 50s. Suppossed to rain all through the night and then even harder at the start well through the finish. I know that’s a vague question but for anyone who has raced in heavy rain, did you come away saying, “I wish I had…”?
Thanks,
Mike
#1: Glasses for everything. Hat for the run even if you don’t normally. (Just to
keep the rain out of your face)
#2: Whatever you do on the bike, STAY OFF THE WHITE LINE. Rain and
the white line yields the slipperiest surface known to man.
-Jot
Approach the corners caution. Bring a plastic bag to put your running shoes in. It is a great feeling to know that you at least start the run with dry shoes on.
Second approaching corners with caution. Raced in the rain last weekend and had a guy go down hard in a corner. Dont brake through the corner, brake leading up to it.
Definitely hat or visor for the run. I’d skip glasses for the bike as it can impair your vision. If you want to try it, have clear lenses at least - or yellow. But I’d skip the glasses. Most people ride heads down enough that the rain won’t hit your face / eyes enough to worry about.
I still like the glasses in the rain, however with clear or some orange lenses. There is still going to be plenty of grit flying off the road and water spray in the eyes can get pretty annoying. You do have to worry about them fogging up though.
If your are riding tube tires lower the pressure, you can do this with clinchers as well. Stay well away from any road paint!
#2: Whatever you do on the bike, STAY OFF THE WHITE LINE. Rain and
the white line yields the slipperiest surface known to man.
X2. My one triathlon bike crash involved pouring rain and white paint on the road.
You can go surprisingly fast in the rain. At one of our club races 2 years ago, it monsooned and almost everybody set new PB’s that evening.
little lower PSI in the tires is a good thing. I’d go 5-10 less than whatever you’d normally run.
x-infinity for paint + wet = crash. Avoid paint (white or yellow) like the plague.
Glasses can go either way. I usually go w/o when it’s raining. Yes, it can be annoying to have rain in your eyes, but fogging glasses are even more annoying.
Try some swim goggle anti-fog on your glasses if you choose to wear them.
I wear a headsweats cap for training runs when it’s raining, to keep it out of my eyes. Not sure I’d bother for an Oly.
If you have time tonight wash those pads in your helmet. If you have been riding all summer with that helmet on then the sweat has accumulated in the pads and the first rain will wash all that salty sweat out of the pads and into your eyes. It is hard enough to ride in the rain with both eyes open having sweat in your eyes will cause you to close or semi close one till the stinging stops.
not meaning to hijack the tread, but what suggestions would everyone recommend for clothing.
I am doing a race next weekend (Brierman half lite in western MD)- weather expected to be showers, 48-52 at the start, warming to 68 late in the day. Lot of hills on the bike so wind chill going down them. I wear glasses, so no option there.
Thanks
The advice no one has given you, which is very important is get your nutrition in. More people under-perform in inclement weather because they forget to drink and eat. Manage accordingly.
For a rainy bike leg, I like to wear a breathable long sleeve and then ditch it for the run. The key is you don’t want to be cold on the bike, but you have to avoid overheating. Beyond that bring multiple layers so you can adapt accordingly. Put a long sleeve change in your run bag and a change of socks, in case things deteriorate.
I usually skip wearing glasses when it is raining hard, but a friend of mine uses a ton of Rain-X on his lenses and swears it works like a charm. I’ve been wanting to try it, but I keep forgetting. To bad too, my last was was Redman and it was absolutely pouring out there. Clear lenses that were hydrophobic would have been a HUGE help. Drafting wasn’t much of a problem, but there was a lot of spray.
Rain-X on yellow lenses is the ticket. I never ride without glasses, especially in the rain. I’ve been through one scratched cornea from a rock chip thrown up by a bike tire (on a fast 20 mi ride no less). It’s not fun at all (but you get to look like a Pirate for a while).
For clothes, since it is going to be cold, cover up, but try and stick to tight fitting, breathable stuff. If you try and use a jacket or some other ‘over layer’ you will over heat. I have a long sleeve under-armor heat-gear compression top that is amazing for this sort of thing. It is surprisingly warm in cool weather yet stays cool in hot weather, and it sheds water like a second skin. Even when I’m saturated, I don’t feel like the top gets bulky on me
I also like to wear glasses in the rain, either yellow or clear lenses. When it rains, I wear them low on my nose (I have a big nose). That allows me to peak out over the top, but the glasses block most of the grime getting kicked up off the road.
Victor
“did you come away saying, “I wish I had…””
Most triathletes if they were smart would say “I wish I had ridden outside in the rain in training once in a while instead of riding the trainer or bailing every time the roads were a bit moist.”
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Along with anything painted also make sure that you keep off of manhole covers and sewer grates as they are like ice as well. Watch for them as you turn from one road to another.
As mentioned yes brake a little early so that you can clean the water off the rim the first few revolutions braking will be weak but then they will perform normally.
Another note about braking in the rain, do you ride much in the rain? If you are a heavy front braker, you want to lighten up on the touch a bit, helps wipe the wetness away from the brake surface. Also VERY light application of the rear brakes, or you WILL go down. I rarely use my rear brakes as is, I’m not sure if you are much of a rear braker but if you are, make sure you use a gentle light touch and never more than half of the force you are using on your fronts.
Leave the umbrella at home
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