Why You Don’t Need a Triathlon Specific Bike

If you are new to the sport of triathlon, probably the last thing you need to do is rush right out and buy a brand new triathlon specific bike. I have seen any number of bikes in races, especially shorter races, including mountain bikes and cruisers. Nobody is going to care what you ride in your first race. So, let’s take a look at a few of your options.

When I first got involved in the sport four (or five) years ago, I didn’t have a bike and I didn’t have any money to buy one. Thus, I started trainining for my first race by attending spin classes at my gym. You could also simply ride on the stationary bikes in your gym’s cardio room. This is not exactly like the real thing, obviously, but it will get you used to pedaling and it will build a tough rear-end that will see you through those long rides.

My Cervelo P2SL at Ironman Florida.

For my race, I borrowed a road bike from my brother-in-law. He is a big bike geek, so he had several to spare. I actually ended up buying the bike from him later, but before I bought, I wanted to make sure that triathlon was something I enjoyed and was going to stick with. I would be willing to bet that many garages have a fancy new tri bike sitting there collecting dust. Someone signed up for a race, got talked into buying a triathlon-specific bike, and never used it again after they realized how hard triathlons are!

For my first two years of training, I used a road bike with clip-on aerobars. Only after I decided I was going to stay in the sport for awhile did I go out and by my first tri bike, a Cervelo P2SL.

For now, simply borrow a bike, any kind of bike, from a friend or neighbor. After you finish that first race, you will have a better idea of what kind of time and money you want to invest in the sport. In a future post, I will discuss the benefits of a triathlon specific bike, but for now, stick with something that rolls fairly well and you will be fine!