Here are some tips to help you get through the swim calmly and quickly:

• Get in the water at least 5-10 minutes before you start and warm up a bit. If the water is cold, warm, choppy, etc, you want to be prepared for it before you start racing.
• Seed yourself according to your swim ability. If you’re a newer or a weak swimmer, seed yourself toward the back and/or outside of your wave.  Stronger swimmers should take the “prime” spots at the front and/or inside.
• If you’re at all nervous, wait 10-20 seconds before you start swimming! Let the rest of the swimmers get a bit of a head start, and then start your race.  The few seconds won’t make a difference in your time, and will give you a lot of peace of mind as you swim.
• If the water is cold, make sure you put your face in the water before the race starts. Hopefully you’ve had a chance to warm up, but sometimes this is not possible.  Flinging yourself headfirst into 65 degree water can take your breath away, so find a way to get your face wet before you start!
• Look for a draft. While swimming in a triathlon, drafting is legal.  It gives you anywhere from a 5-20% increase in speed.  Swim immediately behind another swimmer to maximize your draft–get your hands as close to their toes as you can (but don’t touch)!
• If you get kicked or swatted, do NOT retaliate. They didn’t do it on purpose.  Getting pissed will only screw up *your* race.  Contact during the swim is par for the course.  Keep moving forward!
• Breathe away from any surf or harsh sunlight you encounter. This is where your bilateral breathing in training gets put to good use!  If surf is coming from your left side, breathe on your right (and vice versa).
• Sight every 6-12 strokes. Don’t lift your head out of the water more than is necessary to get a quick glimpse of the next buoy.  Don’t sight too often (sighting slows you down) but don’t delay your sighting more than every 12 strokes or so, as you may end up swimming off course.
• Know how to do a “dolphin dive,” and execute it in shallow water. Dolphin diving, or performing a shallow dive in thigh-deep water, is faster than swimming or walking.  Do several dolphin dives as you start (if it’s a beach start) and exit the water.
• Get out of the water SLOWLY. The transition from swimming (in a horizontal position) to running to your bike (in a vertical position) is very stressful.  Even though you’re racing, it’s worth an extra second to shed the dizziness and disorientation that comes from this switch in body position.

With a few notable exceptions (professional and elite short-course racing), it is illegal to draft in triathlons.  However, the specifics of what exactly is considered drafting are a bit confusing.  If you’re a new triathlete, it’s particularly important for you to understand the drafting rules, primarily for your safety and secondarily to maintain the ethics of the sport.

So, what is “drafting?”

• When cycling, riders must keep their bike more than 3 bike lengths of the rear wheel of the rider in front of them. 3 bike lengths is a long distance.  Get out your bike, pace off 3 meters (10 feet) and visualize what that distance looks like.  There is one (AND ONLY ONE) exception to this rule.  See the next point.
• If you want to pass the rider in front of you, you may do so.  You have FIFTEEN (15) seconds to pass the rider. During this time you may enter the 3 bike length draft zone.  ”Passing” is defined as the front wheel of your bike overtaking the front wheel of the other athlete’s bike.
• Once you have passed the rider in front of you, the other rider has FIFTEEN (15) seconds to drop back to the legal distance of 3 bike lengths. To assist in this, continue to maintain your speed as you pass the rider.  That way, the overtaken rider doesn’t have to hit the brakes to get behind you.
• If you get closer than 3 bike lengths to the rider in front of you, you MUST pass the athlete.  If you do not, you will get a drafting penalty. You CANNOT approach the rider and drop back without passing.  There is only one way out of the draft zone, and that’s by passing the rider.  (The reason behind this seemingly unusual rule is this–even at 3 bike lengths, there’s still a noticeable drafting benefit.  If this rule did not exist, an athlete could “hover” between 2 and 4 bike lengths behind a rider for an extended duration, getting a nice draft in the process.)
• If you take longer than 15 seconds to drop back to 3 bike lengths after being passed, you will get a drafting penalty. Men, if a lady is passing you let her go.  Don’t try to catch her.  You’ll only humiliate yourself and get a penalty in the process.
• During your 15 second passing period, you may be anywhere within the draft zone.  It is LEGAL to get right behind the rider you’re about to pass and then “slingshot” around him or her–provided you do it all within 15 seconds.
• During this whole process, you must stay as far to the right as is practicable.  When you’re riding on your own you should be to the right anyway.  When you’re passing an athlete, you should pass on the left, but stay as far right as you can.  Certainly, do not cross the yellow line.  After passing, move back to the right so as not to be in a “blocking” position (riding too far to the left).
• It is polite (but not required) to announce “on your left” as you are passing the rider.  Give the rider plenty of advance notice so they don’t get startled and swerve into you as you’re trying to pass them.

Even if the race you’re doing is crowded and/or flat, if you can follow these rules, not only will you avoid costly penalties, but you’ll be improving everyone’s race experience–including your own!