FAQs

• Sign up to our mailing list (by sending a blank email to triathlon-subscribe@maillist.ox.ac.uk)
• Come along to a FREE TASTER SESSION. As a new or prospective member, you are welcome to attend any of our training sessions. Come along and introduce yourself any time, and you can try your first three sessions for free. During 1st and 2nd weeks of Michaelmas Term, we run taster sessions specifically aimed at those who are new to the club. These are totally free and there is no obligation to join. You don’t need any previous experience to come to a taster session or train with us at any of our sessions
• BECOME A MEMBER ( see membership page)
• If in doubt contact a committee member or via instagram

Of course! Every year we welcome many new members with no previous triathlon experience. All of the club sessions cater for novice members and our qualified coaches and experienced committee members are on hand to ensure that everyone can take part, benefit, and enjoy the training.

It is very common for people to take up triathlon from a background in one of the three sports, but with no experience in the others. You will be able to train with experienced athletes in your stronger discipline and get plenty of advice and support in those that are new to you. Almost all new members (including the vast majority of the committee) were new to triathlon when they joined OUTriC!

The answer to this question 99% of the time is yes! We have members ranging from novices to national and international athletes. By coming along to club sessions you will get to meet people of similar experience and ability to you in each of the disciplines, and hopefully find yourself with lots of new friends to train with.

OUTriC has many experienced members who train and compete regularly at a high level, including nationally and internationally at both age group and elite level. We’re always keen to welcome seasoned athletes into the club and help people find new training partners. We have lanes for experienced club swimmers in our pool sessions, and a great group of top performing cyclists and runners. Some of our athletes also train and race with the University swimming, cycling or cross country clubs individually. If this is something you are interested in doing then check out the respective club websites or get in touch with one of us via the committee page.

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OUTriC is also part of the Blues Support Scheme, which provides weekly strength and conditioning coaching, talks on areas such as psychology and nutrition. If you are interested in this scheme, contact the Men's/Women's Captains, but please be aware that the number of places are limited and athletes are selected based on merit and commitment to the club. There will be a google form before the start of the term sent out on the WhatsApp to sign up. More information can be found at https://www.sport.ox.ac.uk/blues-performance-scheme#tab-1332991

You can race on whatever bike you like, as long as it is safe to ride. 

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For club rides, road bikes and bikes with hybrid tyres are allowed on the Novice Ride but other club rides are strictly road bikes only. OUTriC has 3 road bikes that are available for members to borrow. Contact a committee member if you wish to use one for a club ride or turbo session. However, please be aware that these bikes will have to cater for all club members and they may not be the right frame size for you if you are particularly small or tall.

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For turbos, your bike must have road or thin hybrid tyres. It is also preferable but not essential that it has a quick release skewer on the rear wheel.

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If you wish to race and train with the club regularly, it is worthwhile getting a road bike. You don't have to break the bank for this - a second hand bike with decent components will do the job! 

First of all, don't worry - this is exactly why we set up the Novice Ride! All triathletes have to start somewhere and many of our most-experienced members originally came to the club with very little cycling experience. The Novice Ride, which is run every Saturday throughout term-time, is a great environment to learn group riding skills, such as hand signals/calls and road positioning.

As a club member, you can attend as many or as few OUTriC sessions as you like. There is no minimum or maximum number that you must attend to be a member or compete for the club.

Not at all! Athletes of all abilities can compete for the club in all of the events that we enter. For many members, representing OUTriC in a BUCs or Varsity competition is their first ever experience of a multi-sport event. Our Varsity matches against Cambridge both have “mob match” competitions where everyone who takes part contributes to the result, so the more people we have representing the club the better!

Training Camp

Every Easter, we organise a week-long warm weather training camp. More information about the training camp will be sent out to members during the year. This is a great opportunity to get some quality training in, as well as to really get to know your fellow OUTriC members.

Socials The social side of the club is friendly and welcoming to all members. The main organised social events of each term are the Christmas Dinner (Michaelmas), Annual Dinner (Hilary), and Varsity Dinner (Trinity). Club races are usually followed up with a meal out or pub trip, and after the Varsity matches we organise joint socials with the Cambridge team. As well as these, there are many spontaneous socials throughout the year such as breakfast post Friday morning run at one of our colleges, post-swimming drinks/meals after the Friday night swim, or finishing bike rides at the pub. We also organise crew dates with other university sports clubs (or sometimes even just ourselves!). None of the social events are compulsory to attend, but they are a great way to get to know people better and spend some relaxing time away from the intense training. Socials are usually advertised on the Facebook group. You can find out more about this year’s social secretaries on the committee page, and contact them if you have any questions or ideas.