An interesting tidbit from the AUSTri competition rules that I haven’t noticed before:
A competitor must wear the swim cap if provided by the Race Director on the outside of all other swim caps.
FOR AQUATHLONS OR OTHER MULTI-SWIM EVENTS THE WEARING OF THE SWIM CAP IF PROVIDED IS COMPULSORY FOR THE FIRST SWIM LEG AND OPTIONAL IN SUBSEQUENT SWIM LEGS.
Appreciate this may not be the case in UK, but any clever people able to shed a light on why it would be optional in a second swim, if compulsory in the first? What’s the difference?
I guess that they’re saying for events like swim-run where there are multiple swim sections then a swim cap is not needed for leg 2, 3 etc as the chances are a) it will go missing between legs, and/or b) there’s a risk of overheating putting a swim cap on after run 1, 2, 3 etc so you won’t get penalised for not wearing one on these legs. Compulsory on 1st swim for safety reasons.
ETA: I know a couple of Oz TOs quite well so can ask if needed. It’s also not in BTF rules as (currently) swim-run events are not overseen by the BTF (or World Tri) but must be in Oz.
Just a guess, but it might be due to the difficulty in getting it on in a hurry and while already wet, hot and sweaty, so they’ve just decided not to make people worry about it.
But the aquathlons I’ve done here are all run-swim-run, and they are saying it’s mandatory for that first swim after you’ve got hot running.
If it’s safety, then surely it’s safety for all swims?
If you’re doing multiple swims you’re probably doing multiple runs. You trust your shoes and goggles to not go missing.
Doesn’t bother me, I’ve happily put it on at the end of run 1 to wear, just curious as to if I was missing a reason why swim 1 would be different to others.
I think it has to be the issuing of losing it. You have no excuse in the first swim, even if after a run beforehand. Yet I’ve had numerous race issued swim caps pop off in triathlons. If you had to have one to enter the water for a second time, then what happens then?
Yeah good point on easily losing it in the water which isn’t really your fault, and then the faff of trying to reissue mid-race.
Suppose they could try mandate you keep it if it was so important (you can usually feel it slipping off and could stop swimming and put back on, or grab it when it comes off) but guess not that important
Bizarrely the WT definition of an aquathlon is run-swim-run but (maybe just outside Oz) they are just swim-run - which is the format they run at Continental and World Champs.