decided to enter my first mtb race/need advice

[The Gist]

Note: This was previously posted to one other newsgroup,
rec.bicycles.off-road. I am also posting it here because this group
seems to get way more traffic. Hope nobody minds.

I decided to enter my first moutain bike race. The race is not until the
end of May so I have a good three months to polish my act up.
My current ride is kind of ****. A specialized I got back in '99 but
have since added front shocks to, new pedals, derailleur, cassette, and
a few other parts that I may be forgetting(seat post, saddle? can't
quite remember). I just had and still have a bit of sentimental
attachment on the beast and haven't gone about getting a new ride yet in
deference to it.
Anyway, I figure it should be ok for my first race anyway so that isn't
my biggest concern. Besides the basics of a helmet and maybe some riding
gloves any other recommeneded equipment. What sort of helmet is
recommended? The one I have right now is decent but not the studiest one
around. Any other equipment recommendations? I am decent enough shape
having been hitting the gym over the long cold winter but seeing as I
have 3 months or so does anyone have any endurance building advice that
fits in with the fact that its going to be pretty damn cold in my
location for the next month or two?

 

[Monique Y. Mudama]

On 2005-02-24, The Gist penned:
> Note: This was previously posted to one other newsgroup,
> rec.bicycles.off-road. I am also posting it here because this group
> seems to get way more traffic. Hope nobody minds.
>
> I decided to enter my first moutain bike race. The race is not until the
> end of May so I have a good three months to polish my act up.
> My current ride is kind of ****. A specialized I got back in '99 but
> have since added front shocks to, new pedals, derailleur, cassette, and
> a few other parts that I may be forgetting(seat post, saddle? can't
> quite remember). I just had and still have a bit of sentimental
> attachment on the beast and haven't gone about getting a new ride yet in
> deference to it.
> Anyway, I figure it should be ok for my first race anyway so that isn't
> my biggest concern. Besides the basics of a helmet and maybe some riding
> gloves any other recommeneded equipment. What sort of helmet is
> recommended? The one I have right now is decent but not the studiest one
> around. Any other equipment recommendations? I am decent enough shape
> having been hitting the gym over the long cold winter but seeing as I
> have 3 months or so does anyone have any endurance building advice that
> fits in with the fact that its going to be pretty damn cold in my
> location for the next month or two?

I'll relay the advice of a pro racer when I asked her all sorts of questions
about racing: Just sign up and ride. Don't worry about all that other stuff
just yet. I would ride your bike as much as you can, just because your sit
bones will hurt like hell if you haven't been riding, as my recent post
attests.

Will you have an opportunity to pre-ride the course?

--
monique

"Get a bicycle. You will not regret it, if you live."
-- Mark Twain

 

[S o r n i]

Monique Y. Mudama wrote:
> On 2005-02-24, The Gist penned:
>> Note: This was previously posted to one other newsgroup,
>> rec.bicycles.off-road. I am also posting it here because this group
>> seems to get way more traffic. Hope nobody minds.
>>
>> I decided to enter my first moutain bike race. The race is not until
>> the end of May so I have a good three months to polish my act up.
>> My current ride is kind of ****. A specialized I got back in '99 but
>> have since added front shocks to, new pedals, derailleur, cassette,
>> and a few other parts that I may be forgetting(seat post, saddle?
>> can't quite remember). I just had and still have a bit of sentimental
>> attachment on the beast and haven't gone about getting a new ride
>> yet in deference to it.
>> Anyway, I figure it should be ok for my first race anyway so that
>> isn't my biggest concern. Besides the basics of a helmet and maybe
>> some riding gloves any other recommeneded equipment. What sort of
>> helmet is recommended? The one I have right now is decent but not
>> the studiest one around. Any other equipment recommendations? I am
>> decent enough shape having been hitting the gym over the long cold
>> winter but seeing as I have 3 months or so does anyone have any
>> endurance building advice that fits in with the fact that its going
>> to be pretty damn cold in my location for the next month or two?
>
> I'll relay the advice of a pro racer when I asked her all sorts of
> questions about racing: Just sign up and ride. Don't worry about all
> that other stuff just yet. I would ride your bike as much as you
> can, just because your sit bones will hurt like hell if you haven't
> been riding, as my recent post attests.


Here's what I wrote to the OP in RBOR(E):

You know what? Don't worry about it -- just ride as much as possible to
get/stay in shape, and then go have fun. The first race is always kinda
crazy, so go experience it with no expectations and see how you like it.

The stress and worry will always be there for the next one.

HTH, BS (no, really)

 

[The Gist]

> You know what? Don't worry about it -- just ride as much as possible to
> get/stay in shape, and then go have fun. The first race is always kinda
> crazy, so go experience it with no expectations and see how you like it.
>
> The stress and worry will always be there for the next one.
>
> HTH, BS (no, really)


Yeah, that is pretty much what I have in mind. Just do it and get a feel
for it.
I have to ask tough I know what HTH is (hope that helps) but what does
HTH, BS mean? Even more puzzling is the "(no,really)" that follows? Explain?

 

[S o r n i]

The Gist wrote:

> I have to ask tough I know what HTH is (hope that helps) but what does
> HTH, BS mean? Even more puzzling is the "(no,really)" that follows?
> Explain?

My initials are BS.
--
BS (no, I mean it)

 

[bri719]

S o r n i wrote:

>My initials are BS.
>
>

I was going to suggest that. as are mine

they're quite common, I've known many so far in life. in fact it became
a bit of a nickname of mine back in ye olde h.s. days (ok, not really
all that long ago).

bri

--

* enjoying the karma *
remove LKJSDFJSD from address to email

 

[JD]

Try either rec.bicycles.racing or saving your money and just going for
a ride.

JD

 

[Paladin]

"The Gist" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:TcdTd.10318$QQ3.4324@trnddc02...
> Note: This was previously posted to one other newsgroup,
> rec.bicycles.off-road. I am also posting it here because this group seems
> to get way more traffic. Hope nobody minds.
>
> I decided to enter my first moutain bike race. The race is not until the
> end of May so I have a good three months to polish my act up.
> My current ride is kind of ****. A specialized I got back in '99 but have
> since added front shocks to, new pedals, derailleur, cassette, and a few
> other parts that I may be forgetting(seat post, saddle? can't quite
> remember). I just had and still have a bit of sentimental attachment on
> the beast and haven't gone about getting a new ride yet in deference to
> it.
> Anyway, I figure it should be ok for my first race anyway so that isn't my
> biggest concern. Besides the basics of a helmet and maybe some riding
> gloves any other recommeneded equipment. What sort of helmet is
> recommended? The one I have right now is decent but not the studiest one
> around. Any other equipment recommendations? I am decent enough shape
> having been hitting the gym over the long cold winter but seeing as I have
> 3 months or so does anyone have any endurance building advice that fits in
> with the fact that its going to be pretty damn cold in my location for the
> next month or two?

Drink plenty for several days before hand. If you can, pre-ride the course
and get to know it. It will shrink in size and difficulty every chance you
get to ride it. Night before, get a good night's sleep. Eat a good
breakfast that will sit well on your stomach and give you energy. Make sure
your equipment's working well. Get there early. Warm up more than you
might think you would. Don't be intimidated by all the posers. Ask
questions, get advice, it's ok to be the dumb clueless newbie. Smile and
joke a lot to make the posers nervous. And go have fun. There's always
sandbaggers in beginner class, so don't expect to place, but hey, who knows?
Be courteous, if you hear "track" behind you, or "pass on the left" then
somebody wants by. Use your judgment if you can let them by now or later.
Don't peak too soon. Don't over-ride your skill level and hurt yourself.

With all that said, give it all you got, and don't leave anything on the
table.

And did I say, go have fun?

just some thoughts from a guy who hasn't raced in almost 5 yrs. Maybe it's
changed.

CDB

 

[The Gist]

> I'll relay the advice of a pro racer when I asked her all sorts of questions
> about racing: Just sign up and ride. Don't worry about all that other stuff
> just yet. I would ride your bike as much as you can, just because your sit
> bones will hurt like hell if you haven't been riding, as my recent post
> attests.
>
> Will you have an opportunity to pre-ride the course?
>

Yes and no. I live a couple of hours away from the course itself but
will try and make it up there beforehand and check it out. That seems
like a really good idea, so obvious and I am embarassed to admit I
didn't think of that myself immediately. But yeah, I am in the mindset
suggested, sign up, ride my ass off, and get a taste of racing.
I have been riding more and more in the past couple of weeks. A lot of
the sidewalk snow has been removed making it possible for me to bike
into work which I have been doing.

 

[D T W .../\\...]

..
"The Gist" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:TcdTd.10318$QQ3.4324@trnddc02...
> Note: This was previously posted to one other newsgroup,
> rec.bicycles.off-road. I am also posting it here because this group
> seems to get way more traffic. Hope nobody minds.
>
> I decided to enter my first moutain bike race. The race is not until the
> end of May so I have a good three months to polish my act up.
> My current ride is kind of ****. A specialized I got back in '99 but
> have since added front shocks to, new pedals, derailleur, cassette, and
> a few other parts that I may be forgetting(seat post, saddle? can't
> quite remember). I just had and still have a bit of sentimental
> attachment on the beast and haven't gone about getting a new ride yet in
> deference to it.
> Anyway, I figure it should be ok for my first race anyway so that isn't
> my biggest concern. Besides the basics of a helmet and maybe some riding
> gloves any other recommeneded equipment. What sort of helmet is
> recommended? The one I have right now is decent but not the studiest one
> around. Any other equipment recommendations? I am decent enough shape
> having been hitting the gym over the long cold winter but seeing as I
> have 3 months or so does anyone have any endurance building advice that
> fits in with the fact that its going to be pretty damn cold in my
> location for the next month or two?


1) Enter into the Novice class
2) Assuming that the race is less than 15 miles long you won't need to bring
food, but a Goo pack or something won't hurt.
3) Water is a good thing.
4) Your helmet and gloves are fine.
5) Start in the back of the pack and see how it goes.
6) Stay out of the way of faster riders, keeping to the side of the track if
your the slower rider.
7) Don't ride the day before the race.
8) If you can, ride the course before the race.
9) Don't try to tweak anything on the bike on the night before the race.
10) Don't ride over your head, Get off and walk if your not comfortable.
11) Finish the race and have fun.
--
DTW .../\.../\.../\...

I've spent most of my money on mountain biking and windsurfing.
The rest, I've just wasted

 

[Monique Y. Mudama]

On 2005-02-24, The Gist penned:
>> I'll relay the advice of a pro racer when I asked her all sorts of
>> questions about racing: Just sign up and ride. Don't worry about all that
>> other stuff just yet. I would ride your bike as much as you can, just
>> because your sit bones will hurt like hell if you haven't been riding, as
>> my recent post attests.
>>
>> Will you have an opportunity to pre-ride the course?
>>
>
> Yes and no. I live a couple of hours away from the course itself but will
> try and make it up there beforehand and check it out. That seems like a
> really good idea, so obvious and I am embarassed to admit I didn't think of
> that myself immediately.

Well, some courses aren't open for preriding, or they don't publish the
exact course ahead of time.

Anyway, when I did my one race last year, I prerode it several times. It
definitely helped, especially in that there were two or three huge mud
pits/puddles ... getting the opportunity to figure out how to deal with them
ahead of time was really good. After the race, I heard a lot of people
talking about how they'd injured themselves at those spots. Unfortunately,
not everyone has the opportunity to preride.

> But yeah, I am in the mindset suggested, sign up, ride my ass off, and
> get a taste of racing. I have been riding more and more in the past
> couple of weeks. A lot of the sidewalk snow has been removed making it
> possible for me to bike into work which I have been doing.

Nice =)

The only real reason I signed up for a race was because I'd heard from several
sources that it would definitely improve my riding -- and it did. I also did
it because it scared me, and I hate not doing something out of fear.

--
monique

"Get a bicycle. You will not regret it, if you live."
-- Mark Twain

 

[[email protected]]

I guess your be in the 1st timers class right. You will
need a high carbs and lots of drink. The 1st time I raced in 99 I
came in last and zonked all due to lack of carbs. Didn't race last year
due to a out of town trip. But in 03 I took 1st and my medal hangs on
the wall with framed number plates from every race. Looking at racing
this April at 51 years young, no joke.

 

[bri719]

[email protected] wrote:

> I guess your be in the 1st timers class right. You will
>need a high carbs and lots of drink. The 1st time I raced in 99 I
>came in last and zonked all due to lack of carbs. Didn't race last year
>due to a out of town trip. But in 03 I took 1st and my medal hangs on
>the wall with framed number plates from every race. Looking at racing
>this April at 51 years young, no joke.
>
>

what class?? 50++?

what class did you win?? when I race this summer, I'll be sure to bring
plenty of "drink" for before & during....and some for afterward ;-)

--

* enjoying the karma *
remove LKJSDFJSD from address to email

 

[Raptor]

[email protected] wrote:
> In your training: if you start riding and you feel tired from the day
> before, do not ride. Overtraining hurts you physically as well as
> mentally. Rest as hard as you train.

(OP I recommend heart rate monitors for any serious exerciser, and if
you're racing, that qualifies you. So think about getting one. Wear it &
watch it for a while. Get to know *your* heart, and ignore the age-based
recommendations you get everywhere. Of course, you don't need one, but
manually checking your pulse frequently is inconvenient.

Watch your resting heart rate, threshold rate and max. RHR is when
you're completely relaxed and rested, like immediately after a good
night's sleep. It's the most useful number to know, as it helps guage
your fitness and recovery. The other #s are mainly curiosities unless
you get really serious about your conditioning.

As you get fitter, your RHR should go down. If you wake up with your
heart racing (relatively), then you probably want to take it easy that day.

Unless you want to spend the $ to get tested at a lab/doctor's office,
watch for your highest number ever seen, add 5-10 BPM and call it your
max. This number goes down as the years go by, but is also subject to a
multitude of factors. Don't go trying to push it up or hunt it down
aggressively, since there is no documented training benefit from working
so very hard. It's mainly useful for setting % target zones for your
workouts.

Your threshold is when you're at your limit of sustainable effort. As
you get fitter, it should trend up. If you're in race shape, you should
be able to sustain 80-85% of your max for several minutes at least. And
your heart should recover quickly from anaerobic efforts (your pulse
drops back below 80% within 1-2 minutes of going hard). For interval
efforts like mtb races, your recovery rate is crucial.

If you're riding and watching your HR, and it seems like it's just not
acting the same as usual, that's a clue that you're overdoing things.
This and an out-of-step RHR are the best reasons to have a monitor. But
your HR varies due to a wide variety of factors.

Recovery rides should stay in the 60-65% range of MHR. When I used my
first HRM, I found that 65% was surprisingly easy.

There are, of course, books written about training with a HRM that'll
tell you much more.

--
--
Lynn Wallace http://www.xmission.com/~lawall
"We should not march into Baghdad. ... Assigning young soldiers to
a fruitless hunt for a securely entrenched dictator and condemning
them to fight in what would be an unwinnable urban guerilla war, it
could only plunge that part of the world into ever greater
instability." George Bush Sr. in his 1998 book "A World Transformed"

 

[JD]

Raptor wrote:
> JD wrote:
> > Try either rec.bicycles.racing or saving your money and just going
for
> > a ride.
> >
> > JD
> >
>
> That's definitely a roadie group, but it might be worth a try.


Hence, my recommendation. Roadies race, mountain bikers just ride.

JD

 

[bomba]

On Thu, 24 Feb 2005 05:01:39 +0000, The Gist wrote:

> I decided to enter my first moutain bike race. The race is not until the
> end of May so I have a good three months to polish my act up.
> My current ride is kind of ****. A specialized I got back in '99 but
> have since added front shocks to, new pedals, derailleur, cassette, and
> a few other parts that I may be forgetting(seat post, saddle? can't
> quite remember). I just had and still have a bit of sentimental
> attachment on the beast and haven't gone about getting a new ride yet in
> deference to it.

As someone once said, "It's not about the bike".

You don't need a new bike or new parts. I got a second place last week on
an 8 year old bike with no suspension and one gear. I'd have won too, if I
hadn't lent my other bike to my brother...

> Anyway, I figure it should be ok for my first race anyway so that isn't
> my biggest concern. Besides the basics of a helmet and maybe some riding
> gloves any other recommeneded equipment. What sort of helmet is
> recommended? The one I have right now is decent but not the studiest one
> around. Any other equipment recommendations? I am decent enough shape
> having been hitting the gym over the long cold winter but seeing as I
> have 3 months or so does anyone have any endurance building advice that
> fits in with the fact that its going to be pretty damn cold in my
> location for the next month or two?

Run. Ride. Go further. Go faster.

 

[Parbs]

"bomba" wrote in message ...
> On Thu, 24 Feb 2005 05:01:39 +0000, The Gist wrote:
>
> As someone once said, "It's not about the bike".
>
> You don't need a new bike or new parts. I got a second place last week on
> an 8 year old bike with no suspension and one gear. I'd have won too, if I
> hadn't lent my other bike to my brother...
>
>
When racing I'm faster on my rigid SS than I am on my XC dually. It also tends to get a lot more cheers and comments from other
riders and spectators.

Parbs

 

[JD]

[email protected] wrote:
> First of all, ignore the anti-race troll. If he doesn't like
mountain
> bike racing, he shouldn't be posting in this thread.


<snip>

> I'd like to read it, even if you think it sucks.


Now that's funny.

JD

 

[Monique Y. Mudama]

On 2005-02-26, [email protected] penned:
>
> Definately figure out which foods don't upset your stomache under full
> throttle riding.

Yes. I've found that dairy foods leave me spitting up nasty stuff for the
whole ride, race or not.

--
monique

"Get a bicycle. You will not regret it, if you live."
-- Mark Twain

 

[routebeer]

> As someone once said, "It's not about the bike".

Who said that? Do you think there's anyone that could win the Tour de
France on a Huffy? I'd like to meet them. I'm not saying Lance
couldn't win riding a Trek 2300 or something, but you gotta believe
that all the high tech equipment he uses gives him a substantial
advantage (in addition to all the other advantages he's lucky to have).