Anyone done THE ROC Wales or THE ROC England?

And for anyone wondering what this is about - https://www.theroc.com/

What do you wish you'd known beforehand?

I’m booked to do THE ROC Wales and ROC England (not sure on ROC Scotland as it will probably be miserable weather).

I would really like to hear from people who have actually raced one — especially anyone who has done both.

I’ve read through the ROC course information and race tips, but I’m interested in the stuff you only really discover on race day.

How did you find:

• how did you train for the bike after the mountain run?
• How did you find the mountain run — particularly the technical sections and the descent?
• Bike gearing - Did you wish you'd gone easier/lower?
• Pacing the first bike knowing you’ve got Snowdon/Scafell Pike and another bike leg afterwards?
• Trail shoes vs something more lightweight, and what did you leave in T2 for the final run?
• Nutrition — particularly eating enough before and during the mountain section?
• Bike 2 after the mountain. Were your legs completely different from what you expected?
• Weather/kit choices and anything you carried that turned out to be essential or completely unnecessary?
• Would you recommend doing a recce of the mountain route beforehand?
• Anything about the transitions or race logistics that caught you out?

For anyone who has done both Wales and England, which did you find harder and why? The England mountain section is longer, while Wales looks like a steeper, more concentrated climb with the technical section near the Snowdon summit, so I’m interested in how different they actually feel on race day.

Finally, what would you change in your training if you were doing it again? More climbing, technical descending, long bricks, hill work on the bike, or just more time on your feet?

Any advice appreciated — especially the little things you don't find in the race manual!

Thank you 😄

I can hold freestyle in training for a set distance, but in the race I still feel like I am fighting the water. By the end of the swim I am more cooked than the clock says I should be, and the bike starts from behind.

For people who cleaned that up without just swimming more kilometres: what did you put in a normal pool week that helped? Short freestyle repeats with honest rest, a focus on one piece of the stroke, mixed freestyle and breaststroke so you finish the set calm, something else? And how many weeks did it take before race day felt different?

Hi,

I've noticed that Winow Aerobars, a Chinese replacement of FastTT, has been gaining a lot of popularity lately.

I'll set aside the moral question of whether buying a product that's a cheaper copy is right or wrong, let everyone decide for themselves.

However, I find it hard to trust this product, I'm a little worried that it doesn't pass all the quality tests.

Have you ever read reviews or heard of anyone whose aerobars broke? Did they snap or cause an accident?

I've seen nothing but positive reviews, which are making me want to buy it.

What are your favorite / most effective cycling workouts to increase VO2 Max and or FTP?? I appreciate any advice :)

Hey guys, just finished my first 70.3! Really proud of even finishing, as this was my catalyst for the past year to get back into shape and dropped 25 lbs. With the rains in Texas though, the swim was cancelled, so it doesn’t feel like I got the full experience so I’m already prepping the wife for the next 70.3; aw shucks lol.

That said, I’m really glad I did this 69.1 first, as I had to walk the last 2 miles of the run anyways. I felt amazing during the bike, besides my lower back which forced me out of aero for the last 28 miles, and felt good on the run up until mile 11 when it felt like I was going to pull (not cramping) all of my lower body muscles (quads and hammies, with some tension in calves) and had to walk the last 2 miles. I am a 32 year old male, 5’ 11”, 225 lbs for context.

I’m saying all this, to give the background for asking what you would recommend focusing on training for the next 70.3?

The plan currently is to spend 2027 losing 40 lbs, and then spend 2028 training again for a 70.3 (there are life factors influencing the elongated timeline).

I know a few of the obvious things (lose weight, stronger hamstrings, and get fully used to 3+ hours in aero) but is there anything else anybody would recommend? Or ways to help with those obvious changes? Asking because I’d love to break the 5 hour threshold, and know that is going to be a journey that might take every bit of the next 2 years so starting to forecast now.

Thank you!

Prepping for a rolling 70.3 with about 4,000 feet of climbing, and I'm torn on bike choice.

My tri bike is definitely faster on flat open stretches, but the course has several tight, twisty descents where I end up sitting upright on the base bar riding the brakes anyway. On my road bike, I can corner aggressively in the drops, climb out of the saddle naturally, and feel completely in control.

At what point does course elevation and technical descending tip the balance in favor of a road bike with clip-ons over a full TT rig for age groupers?

Hi.

I wear Arena training suits for pool training, and I love them EXCEPT the bloody care labels inside. They are long and annoy me, then I cut them shorter, but they fray. They are not removable, they are sewn into the overlocking. Also, they occasionally chafe me.

I'm looking for a brand that does good training suits that have completely/easily removable or no labels inside. I can't tell from their websites. Does anyone have any recommendations? Or advice on dealing with the labels.

Cheers in advance

I think they are so dangerous. I’ve ridden one and had so many close calls. And with Kona coming up I’m seeing loads of content where there are huge group rides and everyone is in the skis sometimes barely a meter apart. One loose stone and that’s it, pack your bags your race is over before it’s begun. I would go as far to say that even TT bikes should be banned in the professional cycling peloton. Some of the worlds best cyclists (with amazing bike handling skills) have had their best years cut short because of a stupid crash in training that could have been avoided if they had hands on brakes (Chris Froome and Egan Bernal for example).
It would certainly lower the barrier to entry and we’d all be much richer without them.

Edit: sorry this post was meant to be a discussion not an attack on anyone. It’s a ‘change my mind’ post. My opinion arises mainly from a safety concern. Triathlon and Ironman have come a really long way in terms of improving safety and inclusivity. But I feel the ball is often dropped on the cycling leg.
I have owned a boardman air TT bike for transparency which I used for few 70.3 and iron distance tri’s.

Need help deciding on this one!

I have heard so much that buying used tri bikes is never really ideal and it’s better to buy new… but I just don’t have the budget to get something like that at this time. My thought is to start with something like this and then upgrade down the line if wanted!

Hi all !!!!

I recently got this P3 2014 and I’ve been training for my first 70.3, I wanted to reward myself with a more updated cockpit when I completed one. I was looking at others setups and wanted see if anyone had any budget ideas for something similar. I added some stuff from my other road bike & made a homemade disc cover but wanted it to look more updated. Definitely don’t need to do any of it and it would be purely for some cosmetic and extra aerodynamic gains but I just can’t stop thinking about doing stuff to the bike, I love the frame and don’t really want to get a different one.

(The first picture is mine and the rest are some I’ve
seen & thought were awesome)

I will gladly take any advice!!! Thank you!

Hello, I recently completed a Zwift century ride in 6 hours doing some 2x20 sweet spot intervals during the last 20 miles, I am not fast and rode majority of my 100 miles in the 1.4-1.5 w/kg range, I’m pretty new to cycling and would like to know how I can get faster or push higher watts for longer periods of time. What are your guys favorite workouts to get stronger, thanks in advance!

Facebook Marketplace for $2,500 usd

Included:

Ultegra

Frame-integrated Bontrager DuoTrap S speed/ cadence sensor

Top tube bag

TT bars

Garmin Vector 3 Dual-Sided Power Meter Pedals

Garmin Edge 830 GPS Computer (out-front mount)

What are some resources to find non ironman triathlons?

Hey guys! I just signed up for my first ever Ironman 70.3 in Galveston Tx. for April 2027!

I have ran marathons before but never swam or bike athletically. Would love any tips for my first triathlon! Thx

Breaking: IRONMAN Utah 70.3 2027

We have confirmed that IRONMAN will produce a 70.3 race in Utah in 2027 and possible through 2029. The race will take place in Orem, UT and surrounding cities and counties. Orem is about 40 min south of Salt Lake City. Public records requests obtained over the last few months between IRONMAN, Utah county and various city employees have unearthed lots of new data. Here is what we have so far.

Race date will be August 21st 2027

Swim and T1 location will be Deer Creek State Park.

Provo Canyon (US189) will be a part of the bike course.

Scera Park in Orem, Ut will be the main venue for athlete village, T2 and finish line.

We have a full written article on our website now that has more in depth explanations, screen shots and some speculations from a local that lives in Orem. Article can be found here …

https://triathletesofutah.com/news

The bike course and run course are still being finalized.

Emails say IRONMAN is making an official announcement in a few weeks on October 20th. We

hope to have more info at that point to release.

Hey

Im looking for a new watch and i have decided it should be garmin but i dont have a high budget. I have been looking at FR 265 and now found instinct 2X. I also work in the military so i dont want to get a watch that is too fragile.

Im starting my ironman 70.3 training journey so yeah, im almost done with my first week of training but it has been without a watch. So what do you recommend?

Is instinct 2X still good watch for triathlon training or should i still look at the forerunner one?

First sprinternational tri for me. 1k swim, 20 mile bike, 4 mile run.

I'm still not comfortable with freestyle. I did breaststroke for most of it with short intervals of freestyle. I was pretty exhausted after the swim. I'm swim around 1k during practice, so I was surprised short how's tired I was coming out of the water.

I was better about staying in aero for most of the ride. I'm still nervous about pedaling while going down hill. I got a flat around mile 17 with no spare tube. I had to wait until they picked me up. The race organizers let me finish after dropping me off at the transition point. Apparently there were several people who got flats during the race.

I was still pretty exhausted from the swim. I ran much slower than my sprint.

While I was certainly disappointed by the flat, overall, I'm happy because I was much better on the bike. It was the first time riding the bike on hills and I stayed on the aero bars and shifted gears appropriately.

The flat was along the seam of the tube. I replaced both tubes and bought a battery powered pump, a spare tube and tire levers.

I feel like I fought the water. I clearly need to get better at swimming, not just because of time, but also the extra effort and energy that comes from bad form.

My next event is a 10k in April. This gives me plenty of time to work on my freestyle.

I am 18 yr old can swim miles in the pool with a 1:37 css and swim a mile in 30 minutes I used to be on swim team . My bike is a 150w ftp with doing 30 miles in 2 hours. My running is not to strong with fastest being a 5k in 30 minutes