Triathlon is expensive. There is
no way to deny or to sugar coat this. To take part in any triathlon the
financial expense can be daunting. First there is the gear. You need to buy a wetsuit,
a bike and a pair of runners. You’ll also need gear to cycle in and run in. How
much you spend will depend on how much you want to spend (top end gear is
eye-wateringly expensive). Some will spend hundreds and others thousands. Then
you will need to pay for a race entry and, for most races, a one day licence
from Triathlon Ireland. Finally, depending on the race, there will be some cost
associated with getting there and back.
After this first triathlon
race, you may, like thousands before you, become hooked on the sport. At this
point you start thinking: “how can I get faster?” All of the answers to this
question cost money:
1. Train with a club – you will need to pay a membership
fee and, for insurance reasons, join Triathlon Ireland. This will normally cost
over e100 per year.
2. Start lane training in a swimming pool –
although many clubs subsidise weekly swimming sessions, you will still need to
pay in the region of e50 to e100 for a 10 week x 1 hour training block.
Multiply this by the number of blocks you wish to do each year and it starts to
add up.
3. Get a better road (racing) bike – you may own a
bike, but unless you come from a cycling background, it is likely to be shit.
You need a decent racing bike. These are not cheap, but the more you spend the
better will be the bike. You can take some of the financial hit out of the
purchase by using the Bike to Work Scheme, but even if you spend e1,000, you
will still be riding a semi-shit entry level bike. Spend what you can afford,
but remember it is an investment.
4.
Get better wheels – if you went for an entry
level bike the wheels will be more suited to a commute than a race. You need a
set of race wheels. You can get a decent set of race wheels in a sale or you
can lose a kidney and buy top end Zipps. The difference between basic and top
end aero race wheels is worth the investment.
5.
Get a time trial bike – to be competitive overall
in a triathlon or within your age group (within any given race), you need a
time trial bike. Most experienced triathletes have a road bike and a time trial
bike. The price of time trial bikes varies, but again, you get what you pay for
… If you are investing, buy the best you can afford; don’t buy something that
you will end up upgrading within a year or two. Try to make the investment up
front. Expect your partner to need resuscitating when you tell him/her the
price.
6. Get a better wetsuit – while the lidl or Aldi
wetsuit got you through your first race, you will want to get something
designed to swim in and race in regularly. Entry level wetsuits are widely
available and are not especially expensive. Get the wetsuit which fits your
body shape and comes within budget. Wetsuits are easier to upgrade over time
and they are regularly available in sales.
7. Get a disc wheel – as you progress in triathlon
and every second starts to count, you might want to cancel the family holiday
and purchase a disc wheel. To be honest though, unless you are an incredibly
strong biker, you may not see the benefit. If you are at this stage in your
triathlon gear purchasing career, you should already own every other piece of
kit imaginable before ever thinking of a disc. If you are good enough to be
Category 1, you don’t need a disc as they are not allowed.
8. Pay a coach – If you are wondering why your bank
account has so much money in it and you are used to having household staff in
your mansion, then you should think seriously of employing a coach and becoming
part of one of the burgeoning teams of privately coached triathletes. Coaching
has become a sustainable business for a number of coaching firms around the
country and they need you to believe you can be better by paying them.
Personally I am not convinced. I do not understand why triathletes who can
afford coaches do not invest in their own triathlon club to make it better for
all. But coaching is working for some and if you can afford it, you will
benefit from training in a team environment.
Once you have reached your
credit card limits and the credit union will no longer return your calls, you
probably have enough gear and are spending sufficiently on your training
Now you need to try to fit in with
your fellow triathletes. This means buying club gear such as tri suit, cycle
socks, jerseys, shorts, tights, hats, gloves, etc. and other necessities such
as cycle shoes (and tri shoes - you needed to ask?), runners, swim technique aids, etc. You need
whatever they have. You deserve it. You will also want to make real friends and
the only way to make real friends in triathlon is to join the Strava community
where you can share every training session and race with your real friends
(real friends are not bored by such things). This means making a sneaky Garmin
purchase. These little swim, run and bike computers can be bought for as little
as e350 to 500: a drop in the ocean baby.
Now you need to start to think
seriously about finding some extra cash to spend on races. You should do as
many as you can afford in locations all across the country and, if possible,
travel to an event outside of Ireland. What sort of money are we talking here?
A local triathlon – will probably
cost you e50 and there will be some subsistence costs involved.
A Triathlon Ireland event –
each year races seem to get further and further away from each other. This
means that in addition to paying for the race – normally between e50 and e100
(the longer the race, the more you pay) - you will often have to pay the fuel
cost to travel across the country and, in many cases, stay the night. This
quickly takes the per race cost into the hundreds of euro. To take part in the
National Series or Super Series, you will need to take part in at least four
races. This year’s National Series included races in Kilkee, Sligo, Derry,
Dublin, Louth and Kildare. Attending any four of these involves a costly year.
But as all triathletes know,
what is the point in a season without an Ironman event. In fact, why not do
two? The cost of taking part in these events makes non-triathletes assume
triathletes are all lottery winners. The entry fee alone for an Ironman is
around e550 (some less, some more). You then need to transport your bike. Many
pay a firm called Shipmytribike to do it for them. They charge e200.85 all in (http://www.shipmytribike.ie/index.php/main/prices).
Then you have to get there by plane and also pay for accommodation and food.
You will also buy merchandise to prove you did the thing. Most Ironmen and
women will pay approximately e1500 in total to earn the title. Hats off to those
who can afford to do more than one a year (especially to those whose partner
doesn’t do triathlon).
After a hard year racing,
every triathlete needs some sun. This means it is time for the winter training trip
with your coach or club. These week or fortnight long trips give some an opportunity
to spend the money you should have spent on your mortgage or those others, who
can afford a coach, to reward their coach with an all expenses paid trip to
continue to serve as their mentor and money pit.
The bottom line is triathletes
spend all their money on triathlon. If you don’t want to do this, you are in
the wrong sport. You are probably the sort of person who can’t accept getting
triathlon gear for birthdays and Christmas for the rest of your life.
Once you have accepted your
financial fate and gotten used to buying your own presents, you need to get
used to telling white lies to your loved ones. When you are asked how much your
e2,400 disc wheel cost, you say: “I got it in the mid-season sales for e500”.
Or, if you happen to be seek sporting a Garmin 920xt watch you say: “I won it in
a raffle”. And, it goes without saying that all of your bikes (and you will eventually own many as the old one is never sold), were all purchased for at least half of their original cost. This may however backfire if you die and she sells them. This folks is the only way to avoid annoying questions from people
who do not understand. So what if you become homeless.
Finally, you should really
encourage your children into triathlon …
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