The swim-bike-run game of triathlon is on the rise, with more than 2 million aerobic addicts each year toeing a tri starting line in the United States. That stat is from USA Triathlon, an organization that also cites sprint races, which are favored by newbies, to be on the uptick. In our article this week for Outside magazine we highlight a spread of tri gear for first-timers, “The Top 10 Triathlon Essentials for Beginners.”
We leaned on three key experts for this article: Ray Maker, founder of the popular endurance blog DCrainmaker.com; Aaron Hersh, an editor at Triathlete magazine; and store owner Kevin O’Connor at Gear West Bike & Triathlon in Long Lake, Minn. If you’re a tri aspirant, or currently in training for a race this spring, the gear below will get you to the start line then swimming, biking and running to the end.
The Top 10 Triathlon Essentials for Beginners
1. Wetsuit: Zoot Z Force 1.0
2. Running Shoes: K-Swiss Blade Light
3. Energy Food: CLIF BLOKS
4. Swim Goggles: TYR Nest Pro
5. Sport Sunglasses: Smith Pivlock V2
6. Compression: CEP Sock
7. Bike: Felt Z85
8. Tri Suit: Long Distance Tri Suit from 2XU
9. Watch: Garmin Forerunner 310XT
10. Book: “The Time Crunched Triathlete”
—Stephen Regenold is the founder of GearJunkie.com and a contributor to Outside magazine. See his bio page on Outside at this link.
