These don't have to be daunting. As long as you can swim, ride a bike and run - at any level, you will only be put in with people with your own capabilities as long as you don't tell any tall tales on the entry form about your capabilities.

I have total respect for the 'iron man' entrants who used to finish their event with the liverpool marathon. I'd be with the other few thousand up at Camp Hill waiting for the gun to go for the start of our race as the organisers would tell us to put our hands together for the iron man team who'd already swam Carr Mill dam open water that same morning and cycled 30 miles or something- phew.

Anyway, the swim in the ones i've done usually consists of 6 swimmers per lane (so 36 in the water at any one time) all with colour coded bathing caps so eg. On the first whistle, all the blacks dive in - or jump, it doesn't matter - then the yellows 5 seconds later, then the reds say. As long as you've all filled in the forms correctly, you'll not be hitting anyone feet or holding anyone up as you'll all be of the same speed.

Here's one i've done before and it's only 6 lengths of the baths (the longest one i've done is 32 lengths which is half a mile.

The swim is always first so as you're not flaking out at the end and drowning.

http://www.seftontriathlon.co.uk/


.

i've done the sefton triathlon twice now - i love it!!!

The first one i did in 2007 was the very first ever sporting event i took part in - i don't do things by halves, i went for 3 disciplines at once rather than one at a time :pound::pound:

And i lived to tell the tale and take part in other events too :lol::lol: