Swim gear
I have only tried Zoot ultra trisuit, Zoot tri shorts, 2XU tri top and Ironman trisuit. Of which, the last is the crappiest. It has absolutely no padding - I suppose the M Dot logo took most of the money? - so as to cut cost? I don't know. It is just a guess. Otherwise, all the rest works just the same. So no complaints.
As for goggles, I am using the VIEW - somehow sold in ARENA shops here - looks like diving mask but its great as it is not claustrophobic. Provides a lot of vision.
Running shoes
I have tried ASICS DS Trainer, Nimbus and Kayano. Both Nimbus and Kayano are heavy cushion shoe, so much so that they really weight a lot. As mentioned in another post, I attributed my MCL strain to the shoes, after having read about how unnatural thick cushion shoe is for running. Well, after so many years of research, the heel strike is now considered as passe and wrong way to run. Frankly, I am quite sceptical with all the research. But what the hell, I have no choice, but to go with the flow isn't it?
Ever since the injury, I have worn out 2 pairs of Newtons - one a racer, and the other the stability model. And wanting to play it safe, I retired them after 500km each. Now I am training on my 2nd pair of Newton stability and a new one is being kept in the store waiting to be used for my IMJ 2010. Somehow, I liked the Newtons very much. The midsole/forefoot strike keeps my cadence up and knee pain free. Having said that, I do keep my stride short, but a higher cadence. Short stride so that legs are not stretched out too far from my CG, while I suppose the higher cadence will keep the speed up?
I tried to squeeze in a few more km into my Newton racer but realised that it was a mistake? Somehow the cushion had hardened and I got some discomfort in my knees. Well, they are costly here but nothing is more costly than my knees. Perhaps it was all in the mind. But what if it were not? So I rather err than to have knee problems, from now on, I just stick to 500km retirement for all my shoes.
Anyway, I do average cadence of 88-90 per minute. I had done 100 before but that was really fast and not possible to sustain for too long a distance? With 88, my speed, as according to my Polar HRM, will be in the range of 9.7kph-10.3kph. With increase to 90 will keep me above 10kph quite regularly. At 100, I will be hitting sub 5min/km and average in a 10km run I did was about 5:15/km. If only I can sustain this cadence over 42km... Darn!
Recently, I included a pair of NIKE Free 3.0 in my shoe cabinet and absolutely love the "free" feel. They are so light and provides a bare foot running sensation. The cushion is so minimal that when I wore them for a 24km run, I returned home with my ankles feeling very very sore. I guess I need to let my legs get use to the less restricted feel and slowly increase the mileage with the Free. However, I do not think that the shoes will be able to sustain very high mileage. After having done less than 80km, wear is already starting to show. I predict that it will not go beyond 300km.
I have a pair of AVIA Lites too. Not exactly my favourite. The shoe is very stiff and does not flex very much. I am not sure whether they are suppose to be good in this way. My limited knowledge says that running shoes have to bend easily? Perhaps, somebody can enlighten me?
Bike
I ride a Cervelo Soloist carbon, 2009 model. Running MAVIC Aksium training wheels, and a pair of 2009 ZIPP 808s clinchersas race wheels. Overall, no problems with the bike. It has served me well. And with IMJ looming, I suppose a road bike will be better than a tri bike.
But in any case, I would love to change to a Cervelo P3C. It is not a matter that it is a "faster" bike, it is just a personal preference. Speaking of "fast" bike, I somehow have concocted that it is all plain rubbish. Age grouper participants are not pros. The wind dynamics on the bike seriously, I doubt has much impact on our timings. End of the day, it is the rider and the amount of training put into riding that powers the rider to T2. Also, the rider himself catches more wind than the bike!
I was in a bike shop and the owner asked me,"When are you getting a faster bike?" In my heart, I snorted at his question. As what one of my experienced biking buddy would say, "Just buy a bike with a colour you like, fits you, fits your budget, that would be sufficient. Nothing else really matters." And after having spent money on 2 previous bikes, I really buy into what he said.
I have given up on keeping weight of bike down? With 5 water bottles, 1.8kg ZIPPS or 1.9kg MAVICs, aluminium handlebar and aerobars, the bike is really heavy during my trainings. During races, the bike will go a tad lighter with fewer water bottles. So might as well...
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