Lukas Verzbicas DNF's triathalon debut

Citizen Runner wrote:

There was a Competitor Radio interview with Lukas a few weeks ago where he talked about his plans to do this race. If I recall correctly he mentioned that the swim was with the current.

For the poster who asked why this matters since everyone swims the same route, it effectively makes the swim portion shorter, favoring the athletes who are comparatively weak swimmers but comparatively strong on the bike or run. The swim has historically been Lukas' weakest event and obviously he's a pretty good runner.

But its "shorter" for the strong swimmers too. I'm thinking about it like one of those moving sidewalks at the airport. If everyone is in the same current won't it just make everyone that much faster? Or are you saying that it will aid the weaker swimmers because they have to work less to complete the swim and therefore have more energy for the rest of the race?

Think about it this way. Suppose that the stronger swimmers are 10% faster than the weaker ones over any distance. If it takes them 20 minutes for the swim and they are 10% faster than the weaker swimmers that is a 120 second lead going into the bike section. If the swim portion is shorter and it takes them 16 minutes then 10% is 96 seconds and the slower swimmers are in a much better position going into the bike.

or in running terms, if you are a 16 minute 5k guy and you are racing against a 15 minute 5k guy, you would expect to lose by a minute in a 5k. if the race is only 4.5k, then you would expect to lose by less. i'm also ignoring the fact that a current will help a slower swimmer, who i assume has worse form, than it will a better swimmer. this effect is most pronounced in the nyc tri where there is a massive current and a condom floating down the river does the full 1.5k in something like 20 minutes.

It's just math wrote:

Think about it this way. Suppose that the stronger swimmers are 10% faster than the weaker ones over any distance. If it takes them 20 minutes for the swim and they are 10% faster than the weaker swimmers that is a 120 second lead going into the bike section. If the swim portion is shorter and it takes them 16 minutes then 10% is 96 seconds and the slower swimmers are in a much better position going into the bike.

Another thing to consider is swimming economy. Good swimmers can move through the water much more efficiently than average swimmers (in this case I would define an average swimmer as over 19 and under 20 minutes for an open water 1500m). In still water this gives them a big advantage. In a current the advantage starts to diminish. It’s analogous to a wet suit. A wet suit helps average swimmers a whole lot more than good swimmers.

"It's just math" is spot-on with why a swim with the current makes a big difference for weaker swimmers. That said, the swim wasn't with the current. It was in a river and the race had sections with the current and against it.

I follow triathlon closely and was certainly surprised and impressed with LV's swim and bike. Once healthy I'm sure he'll be in the mix at Continental Cups. It might take a few years to get up on the podium at World Cups and World Championship Series events.

Big heart, little balls.

Lukas Verzbicas @LukasVerzbicas 1h Reply Retweet Favorite · Open

Developed a stress reaction in my tibia during the race Sunday, still grateful for gaining such experience. Told fast recovery :) #alterG

poo pants wrote:

Running site. Please, talk about running. Please, do not talk about tri.

Topics on this site often stray very far from running.

ilrunner wrote:

Lukas Verzbicas @LukasVerzbicas 1h Reply Retweet Favorite · Open

Developed a stress reaction in my tibia during the race Sunday, still grateful for gaining such experience. Told fast recovery :) #alterG

Sounds like an excuse. Nobody DNF's because of the pain of a stress reaction.