Who is a Slowtwitcher?

January 1, 2011

Slowtwitchers are often considered anomolous – or so I often hear. Are you all a quirky subset of triathletes as a whole?

Slowtwitchers represent the pointy end of the sport, according to those in industry to whom I talk (manufacturers, race directors, ad agencies, media). Maybe you are.

Only 4 percent of you, for example, intend not to race a triathlon in 2011. About a third of you are pointing toward an Ironman race as your A race this year. Two-thirds of you selected as your A race an event that's at least 70.3 in length.

Four in ten of you would rather work out at dawn than at any other time of the day. I think that makes you pretty hard-core. Only 14 percent of you are happily "unoptimized" as athletes; the rest of you are either fit and know it, or you're striving to become better than you are.

About a third of you intend to buy a new bike this year. Of those of you who'll buy a new tri bike, 25% of you will spend $6500 or more. Half of you who're buying a new tri bike will spend at least $3600. Three-fourths of you will do all your racing on a tri-specific bike.

You tend to favor upper-end components on your bike, even if value is a consideration. Only 20 percent of you will want on your bike Shimano 105 or below, or SRAM Rival or below. The rest of you think mid-range or upper-end groups are the way to go. More than 4 in 10 of you feel that Shimano Di2 or Dura Ace, or SRAM Red, represent not only your riding preference, but what you consider the best bang for your buck.

You aren't satisfied with riding your tri bikes as they come originally equipped. Almost 6 in 10 of you have swapped out your aerobars. Only 1 in 10 of you has not changed your saddle, crankset or aerobars from their OE spec.

You guys love your Computrainers. More than half of you think this is your favorite indoor training device. But this poll was taken before the Lemond Revolution was introduced, and, that device might poll better than it did were we to retake the poll (which we will in the future).

Notwithstanding the fact that these two companies represent $30 billion in annual sales, you're only moderately impressed with Nike and Adidas technical running footwear. They poll 13 and 5 percent respectively. Surprisingly (to me) New Balance doesn't seem to strike your fancy either (7%). Dominant is Asics (25%), and Chrissie Wellington-wearing Brooks sits at 12%. Saucony and Mizuno are hanging in there, and upstart Newton has carved out a market.

You're equally split among those who favor, or who are disposed against, so called neutral or barefoot running. It's 45% to 45%, with 10 percent of you having no idea what these terms mean (probably just as well!).

Seventeen percent of you swam in high school, and only 25 percent of you consider swimming your current strength. Yet, only 6 percent of you swim more (in aerobic equivalence) than you bike and run, and only another 18 percent of you swim in a fashion equal to your bike and run. We didn't poll this, but it's my guess that the 25 of you who consider swimming your strength corresponds to the 25 percent of you who swim equal to or more than you bike or run. In other words, those of you who swim poorly are destined to continue to swim poorly, unless something in your routine changes!

Click any image above left to read our poll results.

Slowtwitchers are predominantly male and North American