24hr racing



Duckwah

New Member
Oct 30, 2002
755
0
0
Has anyone here ridden a 24 hr race either on their own or in a team?

I'm keen to put together a 4 man team for the MONT Canberra 24 hr in october this year and i was wondering if anyone had any tips on how to go about the race.

I don't think we will be taking it ultra seriously but would still ike to do the best we can

Whats needed, food, lights, equipment training wise?
 
Hi Duckwah,

I did the Mont 24hr in Canberra last year as part of a 4 man team... and i definately recommend it. Im keen on doing it again this year but just a matter of getting a team together.

We shared the load pretty much. 1 hour on, 3 hrs off. There are so many other strategies but it is all a compromise on firstly how long you want to wait around between rides (good at night time, boring during the day) and how long you can sustain good speeds. The Canberra course last year was not hard on the fitness, just rutted to hell so I think we could have ridden longer at a time in hindsight. Also, be wary of the teammate who stays asleep more than they should and requires you to hunt them down in the middle of the night. Not fun for either person!

I definately recommend a light on the bike and one on your head. You can get by without both but quite simply you will see less (although you may choose to follow the saying "what you cant see wont hurt you"). I only had a petzl zoom on my head but it was good enough, and did a miraculous job of staying on my helmet. Beware the battery tent though - an electrician's nightmare (or erotic dream maybe!). Mark your batteries/recharger with something though as where you plugged them in may not be the same spot you find them when you get back.

Foodwise just make sure you have something to eat when you are not riding. I pretty much ate as soon as I was off the bike so I could let it digest a little. Some carbs and a little sugar. As for the nutters doing it solo, I dont know how they did it - I heard pizza was a secret weapon for some. Those gu (or equivalent) packets were good just before going out though.

:) Troy
 
I used to participate in the Australian International Pedal Prix, where you race self-built recumberant bikes for 24 hours. I was a rider in 6 races over 3 years (team Sudden Impact), managed 2 teams in 2 years, and helped a few teams other years. The event is primarily for primary and secondary students (as a rider I was a secondary student), however there is an open category so (if time ever permits) I fully intend to build a new vehicle and race in it again as an adult team.

Teams consist of 6 riders, so 2 more than you're dealing with. By the end of the 24 hours we were absolutely rooted - BUT, here's where it gets interesting...

Each of the three years we raced twice - once in the Adelaide event and then, two months later, in the Victorian event (new at the time). After being absolutely rooted from the Adelaide race, a few days later we'd be back on our regular racing bikes and realising we had insane amounts of energy. This would last for about a month, and the month after that still have increased endurance and strength. Then the Victorian race would arrive and, wouldn't you know it, we'd not only do bloody great (infact winning the event outright all three years) but we'd still be full of energy after. In fact, since we had travelled from Adelaide and would stay and extra night after before heading back, we'd be hacking around in the bike/swimming/running around/etc for endless hours that night and STILL be full of energy.

I had always intended that one year we'd do a "simulated" 24 hour race before the Adelaide race - ie a month prior we'd go to a velodrome and take shifts at tearing around, perhaps two at a time to give some competition, to put ourselves under the same drain as doing the Adelaide race (though naturally you'll never be able to push yourself as hard, nor for the entire time). My theory was that a month later, as per the Victorian race, we'd arrive at the Adelaide race fully pumped up and ready to take the event out.

I never ended up trying that theory out, but I still believe in it to this day. If/when I organise a new team, build a new vehicle, and race in the event again I intend do carry this out - even if just a 12 hour one. Not only would it have the fitness benefits, but would give the brand new team a chance to get used to the vehicle as well as get the pit changes down pat (having this work efficiently became a great asset to us all those years back).

Anyways not sure if that's any help. Diets are dangerous in my opinion unless it's something you've been doing WELL and FAR in advance - we tried this one year, basically 2 or 3 weeks before the event, and little did we realise our diet had drained ourselves of crucial energy. Our first few hours each were fine, difficult but you assumed that was because of race condition, but after that we were all 100000% drained of energy for the rest of the 24 hour race... continuing on was pure hell. We were teenagers after all, guess we didn't necessarily know what we were doing, but my advise is to ensure you're not implementing any change too soon to the event - you'll have to live with the consequences throughout a 24 hour race!

What else? Sleep - my first year I found this easy, dosed straight off, which was important for recharging ready to wake up and take over the race. However, the other two years I found it very very difficult - I was still pumped up and sweating, so getting to sleep was virtually impossible... until 5 minutes before it was my shift in the bike again... :\

The issue of spares, equipment for repairs, etc is obviously completely and utterly obvious. Batteries - like tubes and tyres, you can't have enough of those. Don't forget spare lights allowing for accidents - 24 hours of racing can result in anything!

I guess the one big piece of advise I can give is that in the years I raced, the years I helped other teams, and the teams I managed we always did one thing exactly the same - we divided the team into two groups. We divided the 24 hour race up into timeslots, and each group was assigned an alternating slot. During those slots whichever group is "active" rotates between their 3 riders - the other 3 would help with pits or whatever, but otherwise they are off duty and free to sleep/rest/eat/whatever. This gives you added time to recharge compared to simply alternating directly between all the riders. It also means that during the night each group gets to have a sleep.

Not sure if any of this helps being a different type of racing and especially given you're talking only 4 riders, but hopefully it is at least a start towards some advise. Fire away any specific questions though, I'm sure there's countless of scenarios we encountered that I'm not thinking of.
 
Hey Ducky,

Count me in ... maybe not for riding but team support/pit crewing ....... as you know I am pretty good at organising stuff.

SF
 
Ok well i'm serious about going ahead with this now.

I talked to my training partner tonight and she is keen to do it, so thats me, her and possibly one other guy who will do it.

Anyone else keen to be part of a four person team can post here or PM me.

The general idea is that this will be a semi serious but social 4 person team plus support crew. I may be able to swing some sponsorship through work as well to reduce the entry fees

so lets get it on and see if cycling forums can put together a good team for the MONT 24 hr in OCT 2003

if there is a huge level of interest then we may consider going to a 6 man team.
 
I might be interested Duckwah, i'm waiting to hear back from the guys I did it with last year to determine if they are interested or not. Should know hopefully be the end of the week or so...

If they are not going then I am definately most interested!
 
Here is some great advice without getting into racing specifics.

Make sure you have all the light covered. I mean, make sure you have enough lights to ride the whole race. Make sure all your riders have lights that will be good enough and last enough to do the whole event.

It helps to have an RV or somewhere to relax. I found tents really do not do it. If you are going out to win then you need to make sure you can rest mentaly and physically. Have an outside person volunteer and always have something on the grill to eat!

Also make sure you have spare wheels and know how to work on bikes. However nowdays the Mavic guys are at many events if not all so stop on by and ask for their help. They are a bunch of great guys!

P.S. If you do not see them at night. Knock on the big trailer door. They are in there watching movies and stuff ;)
 
my buddy and I are looking for team mates for the Mont.

anyone interested?

it's over half booked already, so please reply soon!

(getting desperate) Nick
 
you also could do with a pit team if you can get one to sort ur bikes up and make tee n stuff for when your back/ wake up for your lap