All in the details

Advice is going to vary from person to person but what works for you is what works for you. Sounds
kind of stupid I know but what another athlete does for his or her taper the week before a race
might not be right for you. If you do anything don't do it hard and don't do it for very long
(setting myself up with that comment I know). Now is not the time to blow out a joint seeing how
fast you think you can go. If you're looking to do something that will save you a lot of time on
race day and not have to work too hard for it..try going through your transition set up. And do it
over and over until you can do it blind. I watched a lot of first timers struggle through the
transition this past weekend because I'm sure it's something they didn't think was important. I
raced a very good friend in a duathlon a while ago and the only reason I beat him was because I had
transitions down to an art. If you took the time we spent actually racing he would have beaten me by
18 seconds..but I won by 48. And it was all won in transition. Trying something as simple as putting
on your cycling shoes when you heart rate it through the roof and your balance is still horizontal
in the water is not as easy as the pros making it look. So my advice (and a dollar will get you a
coffee..in Canada anyway) is to just take it easy and work on the details. Lay out your gear and go
through it until you're sure you have it aced. It will save you more time than a set of aero wheels
and you'll have a much smoother race as a result. Good luck to you.

Kent