INSIDE THIS ISSUE
AUGUST 2019
Bike For Optimal Success TCSD Contacts/Events Welcome New Members Board Members
1 3 4 4
TRIATHLON CLUB OF SAN DIEGO
2019 Race Schedule 4 Weekly Calendar 5 Congratulations IM Finishers 6
TCSD Conversation Be Smart: 4 Tips
7 19
Tri News
The basics: How to Set Up Your
JUL/AUG TCSD EVENTS
CLUB AQUATHLON Thursday, August 22nd Location: La Jolla Shores Park Check-in 5pm Start at 6pm Format: 1000m swim/5k run
SWIM & CLUB POTLUCK Friday, August 16th 5 to 8pm Theme: Tropical/Hawaiian Location: La Jolla Shores Park Check TCSD website/facebook for latest details
Bike for Optimal
Gearing
Proper gearing is important because your fitness and the conditions of the day overlaid on the course, give you a predetermined range of speeds. It’s also important to remember some baseline facts: ■ We can’t change the course. ■ We can’t change the conditions. ■ It’s too late to change your fitness. ■ But we can — through your gearing — improve the mechanical advantage you have on the course relative to your competition.
Part One: Gearing 101 The first step is to get to know the gears you currently have on your bike. The second step is to make sure those gears match your cycling ability level. Then the third step is to get out and practice on those gears given your body type and goals for race day.
How To Find Out Your Current Gearing The easiest way to do this is to determine the
Courtesy of Mariah Bridges/Endurance Nation
chainrings you currently have on your bicycle. Don’t ignore this step! Most “stock” triathlon bikes come with fairly primitive gears that won’t be used other than on the flat and open road. Using two fingers, place one on top of a tooth on the chain ring and start counting there at “one.” Then you take the other finger and count the remaining teeth all the way around in a circle until you get back up to the placeholder finger. Front and small chainrings have a large amount of teeth, so take your time. The next step is to repeat this for the largest and the smallest cogs on your rear cassette. This will tell you the top of the low end of your range continued on page 12