Top gear for iron men: 9 accessories for triathletes

Reem Mohammed / The National

Reem Mohammed / The National

Reem Mohammed / The National

Reem Mohammed / The National

Reem Mohammed / The National

Reem Mohammed / The National

Reem Mohammed / The National

Reem Mohammed / The National

When you are competing in one of the most difficult one-day sporting events in the world, you need to know you’ve got the right gear to back you up.

David Labouchere is in training to qualify for the Ironman World Championship, which will be held in Hawaii in October. The triathlon consists of a 3.86-km swim, 180.25-km bike ride and a 42.2-km run, completed in that order and without a break.

When he’s not busy in his role as the managing partner of boutique gym Optimal Fitness, in Dubai’s Studio City, the 52-year-old Brit spends more than 25 hours a week in the sea or pool, on his bike, or running in the desert. He is currently one of the top 20 Ironman competitors in the world – and also a brand ambassador for lululemon athletica.

Having the right gear for such gruelling training sessions and competitions is essential. He took time out to give us the lowdown on what helps to keep him in tip-top Ironman condition.

1 Cervélo P5 time trial bike

“I’ve had this fabulous Canadian bike for three years,” he says. “It was the first-of-its-kind imported into the UAE. It is the Ferrari of bicycles – more world championships have been won on this bike than any other. It’s all electronic, so you change the gear by pressing buttons. It weighs very little and is extremely wind-cheating. I like it because it’s fast, and looks it – even without me on it.”

• Dh60,000 with accessories, from www.wolfisdubai.ae, on Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai

2 Bont triathlon shoes

“These shoes are designed to mould to your feet. So before wearing them, you cook them in the oven for a minute or two to soften up the compound inside them. They then mould accurately to your foot shape.

“They are specifically designed for triathlons, so you wear them without socks and fasten them with Velcro so you can get them on and off quickly. Your feet don’t sweat much because there’s a lot of space and air, and they’re white, so they reflect the sun. I also like them because you can strap them down really tight.”

• About Dh800, from Probike in Al Barsha, Dubai, www.probike.ae

3 HUUBdesign DS Long Course tri suit

“This skintight suit is made from advanced sports fabric, so is very thin but very tough – and it’s also very snug to keep your muscles compressed. The DS stands for Dave Scott, the six-time Ironman World Champion, who helped design it.

“This remarkable suit keeps the sun off, but at the same time, you can ride with it completely wet. You swim in it, ride the bike in it and then run in it for up to 10 hours. It’s probably the best on the market at the moment.”

• Dh1,030 from www.trisouq.com

4 MyID Sport Bracelet

“We triathletes tend to spend a lot of our time alone in lonely, far-distant, hot, dusty places. If I hit an oryx while cycling and I fell, when the ambulance finally found me unconscious in the desert, they would scan this bracelet and know my age, name, where I come from, that my blood type is O positive, and that I have no allergies to drugs. This particular bracelet was given to me by my wife for Christmas but I’ve always worn one. This one is scannable, but most medical ID bracelets have the details printed on small metal plates.”

• About Dh100, www.getmyid.com

5 Garmin Heart Rate Monitor

“This device wraps around my chest to monitor my heart and transmit a heart-rate signal to my wrist monitor and my bike computer.

“It also tells me when I’m running how many milliseconds my feet are in touch with the ground, and how high I am oscillating off the ground, which is also an indicator of how well I’m running. It’s quite a clever little machine. Athletes need to train on a combination of heart rate, power and cadence, and all that data is mixed together in my computer to tell me how well or badly I’m performing. It comes with the watch monitor or the cycle computer.”

• A package with a cycle computer costs about Dh2,400 from most sports stores

6 Catlike Mixino helmet

“This is a very lightweight road-racing helmet made of a carbon and composite honeycomb. It features 39 holes to allow the air to pass through, while not compromising my safety.”

• About Dh1,125 from Enduro Supply in Dubai and www.trisouq.com

7 Oakley Jawbone sunglasses

“These are almost indestructible and very comfortable.”

• About Dh450 from Probike in Al Barsha and many other sports shops or Oakley stores

8 Garmin 920 XT watch

“This is a swim-bike-run computer, which tells you all sorts of information – from the power you’re producing on the bike to your heart rate. It’s GPS enabled, so it tells you where you are in the world, how fast you’re travelling, how many paces you’re using and also the time of day.”

• Dh2,500, with computer, from www.probike.ae

9 Garmin 810 cycle computer

“A GPS-enabled computer that tells you how fast you’re pedalling, how much power you’re putting into both left and right pedals, your heart rate, location, speed, and distance. “It’s an invaluable tool for training and racing on a bicycle.”