Lara Santana's Cycling Challenges in Her Triathlon Debut
From picking her first bike to the fear of clipping in, Lara Santana recalls her early struggles.
Transitioning to triathlon holds surprises for anyone new to cycling. Lara Santana joined Bruna Mahn to discuss technical jargon, bike fit pains, the fear of clipless pedals, and racing entirely in the small chainring.
Getting into triathlon seems simple in theory: swim, bike, and run. In practice, however, the bike leg is often the first major reality check for athletes crossing over from other sports. In a conversation with Bruna Mahn on Stemma Performance, influencer Lara Santana shared her journey from short-course races to preparing for an Ironman 70.3, revealing that adapting to life on two wheels was filled with doubt and technical hurdles.
From buying the bike to the misery of the bike fit
Used to the simplicity of buying running shoes, Lara assumed getting a bike would be as straightforward as walking into a shop and picking a model. However, her first encounter with the market was overwhelming. Salespeople threw around technical terms about Shimano groupsets, aerodynamic components, and price tags ranging from R$ 10,000 to R$ 50,000 without clear explanations for beginners. After visiting three different stores without understanding the differences, she went home empty-handed.
When she finally bought her first bike, the second hurdle arrived: the bike fit. The initial setup caused persistent pain and discomfort during workouts. It took swapping frame sizes and tweaking geometries to find a tolerable position, proving that road cycling ergonomics requires patience and proper guidance.
The dread of clipping in and switching to a TT bike
Another tense milestone common to every beginner was learning to ride with clipless pedals. The confusion began with the terminology itself—telling apart clipping shoes into pedals from locking into aerodynamic armrests on aero bars. Lara jokes that during her first clipless rides, she felt like she was in the movie Avatar, trying to tame a rebellious creature that refused to bond with its rider.
Switching from a traditional road bike to a time trial (TT / triathlon) bike, such as the Speed Concept, required even more composure. As non-cyclists might not realize, locking into the aero position means riding at high speeds with your hands away from the brakes—a nerve-racking experience until bike handling becomes second nature.
Racing the entire first event in the small chainring
With only a month of training before her competitive debut, handling anxiety dictated her race pace. On a short, technical course packed with sharp turns and U-turns, Lara's strategy was simple: she rode the entire bike leg in the small chainring, afraid of crashing, overshooting corners, or getting in other athletes' way. Her only goal was to finish safely.
The turning point came through practical, relatable coaching. Simple analogies comparing bike mechanics to driving a car helped demystify gear shifting, cadence, and posture. Today, with experience across sprint, standard, and relay events, Lara handles aero bars and TT bikes with far greater confidence as she builds toward her first 70.3-mile challenges.