Andy Potts and Leanda Cave will attempt a three-peat championship at this Sunday's Escape From Alcatraz triathlon. Here are their race tips:
Leanda Cave
"Try not to listen too much to what other people say. My first one I won and everybody was telling me about hard this is and how hard that was. Going in there as a newbie I would say switch off what everyone else has told you and just try to absorb the experience."
Andy Potts
On the swim and transition run:
"Don't spend too much time sightseeing when you are out in the bay. You may think you are going to see some really cool sights of the city, but when you are so low in the water, the only thing you are really going to see is water or feet. Just concentrate on staying warm and moving forward. Definitely go to your legs with a couple of minutes left in the swim. You're going to want some extra blood flow going to the legs because it's a half mile transition run and you're cold. Switching into shoes is your call. I do not use shoes, then again I am also trying to win the race. If you want to be able to walk after the race, you might want to bring an extra pair of shoes."
On the bike:
"If you go out and hit the first hill too hard, you've got more hills around the corner. So pacing on the hills is going to be crucial."
On the run:
"Use shorter, quicker steps on the way out when you're going up and behind the Golden Gate and underneath the Golden Gate Bridge. Once you get to the sand ladder, use the sand ladder as your half-way point knowing that yes it is downhill once you get to the top of the sand ladder but you still have 3 1/2 miles to go."
On the sand ladder:
"Use the rope for sure. Pull and walk. I definitely don't run it. A good thing to concentrate on is the pull motion because your legs are going to be exhausted. It's a good respite on the legs but it's not really a respite because everything's burning by that point."
Good luck to all Alcatraz racers. Stay tuned for a race report...
Source: Mark Davis - San Francisco Examiner.
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