Essentials
Triathlete's tend to have a lot of gear but they also tend to wear it out or run out of it when it comes to the essentials. Some of the following ideas could be bundled together as one gift and can be found at most local bike stores or online.
• We always seem to run out of or wear out our socks, so how about some new socks. Don't get them tube socks, get them some thin socks something like what DeFeet (link) makes. • If they don't like wearing socks, then help them prevent some blisters with a product like Blister Shield powder (link). • For racing or training they should have a CoolMax hat or visor, something like what Headsweats (link) has to keep the sweat away. • An essential they should never be without for a race if they wear a wetsuit is Bodyglide (link) which helps prevent chafing and blisters caused by the tight fitting wetsuit. • Too many water bottles, no way, so to keep them hydrated during a race or just during training get them a portable water bottle. We like the Brooks Waterboy Handheld (link), a 21-oz water bottle with a hand cradle that has a pocket for gels, salt tablets, or keys. • To stock that water bottle with the essential fluid / nutrition they need how about a case of their favorite hydration replenishment drink or a new canister of the same stuff but in a powder form.

Special Items
If you want a big hug this season we'd suggest giving them one of these as a gift.
• Most athletes enjoy a pre-race day massage to relax the muscles or a post race massage to get rid of some of the knots derived from racing hard. So why not get them a gift certificate for a massage or two. • Athletes tend to be finicky when it comes to certain brands or the fit that a certain product offers. Maybe you just don't know the size they require or brand they like. Problem solved, get them a gift certificate at their favorite or local triathlon / bike shop. If that's not possible, go online and do the same. Some online stores to look at are all3sports.com (link), Gear West Bike & Triathlon (link), Inside-Out Sports (link) or TriSports.com (link). • The race entry fees start to add up after a while and more so when the fees go up or they participate in longer distance events. For example an Ironman distance race could have an entry fee of $200 to as much as $450 or more. This should bring a smile to their race. Get them a cash gift card at your local bank with a pre-determined amount of money that they can use towards race entries expenses. • Better off, if they tend to travel to races by plane and you have frequent flyer miles, get them a plane ticket with your miles, they would sure love you then.

Top of the Line
If money is no object and they don't already have this or something like this and they seem to have everything else then this is what you should get them.
• The Garmin Forerunner 305 (Amazon link). It's the ultimate watch; it has a personal GPS receiver and a wireless Heart Rate Monitor built in. This watch has the ability to track your pace, the elevation at which you were at and tell you what your heart rate was along the way. Oh! and it comes with a docking cradle so you can download the data to a computer and plot graphs and maps with all of the information.

We hope this helps you this holiday season, if not this year then maybe next year...