Long Ride

[Rhodent]

Ok guys, lets see if I can get some help here...<br /><br />I have a double century race coming up on the 24'th of November. Anyone have advice on how to handle the transition from 100 km's to 200 km's? Food to eat during the race, amount to drink?, whether a stop is suggested or not, how soon one is allowed to start crying for one's mother?<br /><br />Secondly I hear of a whole lot of qualifying rides for the PBP next year (200, 300, 400 and 600km's). While I am not thinking of doing the PBP these sound like a really good test of oneself, anyone planning on doing these (and moving on to PBP in 2007?)

 

[admin]

[quote author=Rhodent link=board=15;threadid=2639;start=0#22588 date=1037191450]<br />Ok guys, lets see if I can get some help here...<br /><br />I have a double century race coming up on the 24'th of November. Anyone have advice on how to handle the transition from 100 km's to 200 km's? Food to eat during the race, amount to drink?, whether a stop is suggested or not, how soon one is allowed to start crying for one's mother?<br /><br />Secondly I hear of a whole lot of qualifying rides for the PBP next year (200, 300, 400 and 600km's). While I am not thinking of doing the PBP these sound like a really good test of oneself, anyone planning on doing these (and moving on to PBP in 2007?)<br />[/quote]<br /><br />I'll take the risk of looking like a ******** here......but whats PBP ?<br /><br />cheers

 

[Rhodent]

Paris-Brest-Paris. 1200 km race, 90 hour cutoff, no professionals, you stop and eat/sleep when you want. Its held once every 4 years, 3500 people entered the last one. Very much something which sounds like one should do it once in one's life.... The next one is 2003...

 

[Old Timer]

The 200km qualifier is on Sunday 1 December. Start at Alan Van Heerden Cycles 6:00am. Enter at the start. I will probably do it depending on the weather on the day. ie Not a cloudless day at 35-40s and not pissing down with rain. I'll decide on the morning. Good way to have a fun day and socialise before the wind down for the festive season. <br />Rhodent. Re the double century. Treat it like a extra long century. eat and drink as usual only more so spread out over the time. Don't stop at all unless essential. I have a strong bladder! ;D Used to ride 12 hour TTs in my mispent youth. ;D ;D ;D

 

[Anthony_Doman]

So how'd it go on the DC, Rhodent? Hope you weren't one of those comedians saying &quot;amper daar&quot; as they whizzed past us on the downhill, at least 10 km from the laastedrif turnaround!<br /><br />My experience: two of us out of the nine were rookies. In fact this was my longest one-day ride ever by 70 km. Still, finished with our leading 6-rider group although we were well down the field at 10:18 (actual riding time 9:04, with just too many unplanned stops, and generally needing a stronger organisational hand). <br /><br /><br />Used about 3 litres of energy drink an hour (planned on 300 ml an hour) and snacked on a couple of energy bars, nougat and fruit cake. <br /><br /><br />I'll certainly be back next year to test myself against a great course and enjoy the tremendous camaraderie. Only this time I'll camp out at the start with the sensible people, and not sleep at Worcester with the party animals who return home at 3.30... <br />

 

[Rhodent]

Hey Anthony, the race was a complete stuff up. It was only 6 of us down from Gauteng, of widely varying abilities. The trip down was enough to make people laugh and we stayed in the seediest place in Touw Rive about 80 km from Ceres. Got to the start in time, but our one team member from Cape Town was late, so started 10 minutes late (our name, &quot;a Few Spokes short&quot; coming true from the beginning). Was a bit demoralising with our 6 man team being passed by very professional looking 12 man outfits. That first hill outlined the rest of the race though, one guy was feeling VERY weak on the day and it was a struggle keeping the team together. Eventually at 80 km's the team split completely with the stronger guys going ahead on a hill and deciding, when they got to the top, that they weren't going to wait anymore. I was helping the weak guy up the hill and obviously didn't find out about this till we got to the top of the hill and couldn't find them. Spent the next 20 km's fuming etc (trying to work with the guy who was struggling). In the end he got fed up with me waiting for him and trying to keep his spirits up and told me to go ahead. I caught up with another of the guys the strong blokes had dropped and worked with him until the bottom of SwaarMoed pass. At that stage he wanted to rest and asked me not to wait (I should have, but I wasn't in a team mood anymore either). I then tried to chase down the next guy who I had found out was about 10 minutes in front of me. Didn't catch him till he got back to the watering point after the 24km loop and realised he had given the wrong number (no timing chips for us!!!). So he did the loop again with the other two guys....<br /><br />A complete stuff up, our two strong riders refused to work with us properly and the one guy was a ton weaker than we were expecting (he beat me by 15 mins in 94.7). I think our &quot;team&quot; time ended up being about 10h30, though that was ranging between just under 8 hrs (the one super strong guy), just over 9hrs (me) and the 10h30 (the last 3 including the one guy who did 226 km's!!!).<br /><br />I guess I should have worked with the slowest guy all the way but it just didn't work. Next time I do this it will have to be with a team of at least 8 people that I have trained with and know the strengths of.

 

[Mampara]

Everybody missed a GREAT ride yesterday. I'm talking about the 200km qualifying ride for the Paris-Brest-Paris. It was HOT and the road was long. At about 15 km to go we rode into a thunderstorm and the water was lining Ontdekkers half up the curb.<br /><br />The day started with 100 participant and we had to organise smaller groups by our selfs so that we didn't disrupt the traffic too much. The ride did not go without incident with one rider being hit bay a car, but he still finished and a nother just rode into the back of someone that was a bit nervous and sensitive on the brakes. The last incident happened in the rain when a car sweved infront of us and the guys back wheel locked and he went sliding into a curb. His helmet disintegrated and his face was full of blood. Luckily there was a medic in a car just behind us and he was with him before the other riders could turn back. And can you believe, an ambulance was there within 10 minutes and that nogal a Jo'burg emergency services ambulance. His wife that was waiting at the finish was phoned and she came to pick up his bike and went with him to the hospital.<br /><br />Our group rode into the parking lot at The Blue Goose with a time of 10h31m. Take into acount that that is stopping for something to drink at every shop we found and having luch at the Wimpy at Magalies.<br /><br />All I can say it was a brilliant ride that you have to do. You will be tested like you've never been tested before and a well deserved personal victory.<br /><br />I met a nice young lady along the route named Ellie. She rides for the Biamax team with the big girls. If the reads this I want to thank her for the great chat that made the route feel just a tad shorted then what it really was.

 

[Old Timer]

Mampara<br />Well done! I really intended and planned to do it but was unable to escape the dreaded &quot;Family Committment&quot; ! &gt; Probably just as well. Heat, thunderstorms and me don't mix too well! ;D ;D )

 

[Old Timer]

Mampara<br />I hope you gave Ellie the Cyclingforums URL? ;D

 

[Mampara]

Yip, she's got it. She said she'll pop in sometime this week.