I want to compete in a triathlon wil a normal mountin bike do?

Question

i have a regular mountin will it work in a triathlon i know there are bikes made just for them but there very expensive.

Answer 1

You can definitely do it, it's not ideal, but neither is buying a new bike sometimes!

Firstly, put on some road tires.  Knobby tires will just get chewed up by the pavement and make your ride much more difficult.  Smooth road tires.

Secondly, make sure that it's tuned properly and running smooth as possible.

I'm not sure what you mean by a "regular mountain bike" If your bike is a hard-tail (front suspension only) it will be easier than if it's a dual suspension.  The DS bikes are great for trails, but less efficient on the road and heavier.  

Another option might be to simply borrow, from a friend,  a bike that you think may be more suitable.

Answer 2

i would say a road bike would be a huge advantage.  Triathlons are pretty d**n hard to do and the wide tires of a mountain bike will make it alot harder.

Answer 3

Mtn bikes are allowed in sprint and many olympic distance races. They are not allowed in half ironman or Ironman distance. Due mainly to the cutoff times. There are also off road triathlons that are designed to use a mtn bike. The run is a trail run. These races are called Xterra.

I have seen people use road slicks on their mtn bikes for tri's. Slicks will cut down on the rolling resistance. The weight of the bike will slow you down.

Don't worry about a new bike until you've done a triathlon and you are sure it is something you want to do. Then a road/tri bike will be worth the expense.

Check http://www.usatriathlon.org for rules and other useful stuff.

Have fun.

Answer 4

If it's your 1st and that's all you have you have a couple options:

1. borrow a road bike to use if you can. But you want to do some training on it 1st, not just ride it on race day.

2. use your MTB. If at all possible, pick up a set of road tires for it. 1.5 wide slicks that can handle 80 PSI. That will really help you out on what you have for about $40.

If that's not an option yes ride what you have. If you like it and want to do more start gearing up.

Answer 5

you probably won't be neer the podium on your first race, so if all else fails, go with the equipment you have. I agree with MR though. try to at the least borrow a road bike, and train on it before the race. once you start getting into races, are ready to buy a bike, and are making your new friends, Im sure some of the guys will have some used bikes which might be worth buying.

have fun!

Answer 6

Consider your goals.  

If you want to be competitive a mountain bike (even with high pressure slicks rather than nobbies) will put you at a disadvantage ... but is certainly useable.

If you want the experience/challenge/satisfaction of completing the course and don't really care about your time a mountain bike would be fine (but I would suggest putting on some 70-80 psi slicks as narrow as your rims allow (ask at a bike store)).