100 mile mntn bike race--who's done one?

[limewave]

My friend wants me to race a 100 mile mountain bike race with her this coming spring. Sounds like fun to me! But I have no idea how to train for one on my limited schedule. And I have no idea what to expect! Just wondering if anyone on the forum has raced one before. I would like to hear your experiences.

Thanks!

[Aggie_Ama]

WOW! I am doing a 85+ miler January 7. It is not all trail though, it starts on trail (9 miles), road to another trail, 18 miles (+/-), road back and then about 1 mile of trail. It is called the Excrutiation Exam. Otherwise we don't have a lot of super-endurance marathons here. I am doing a 52 miler Saturday but that isn't 100!

[limewave]

If I am correct, the race I want to do is almost all singletrack. It's a 33 mile loop. Here's the website.

And I want to hear all about your race when you're done! With a name like Excruciation Exam . . . you should have an experience to share

[TrekJeni]

My friend wants me to race a 100 mile mountain bike race with her this coming spring. Sounds like fun to me! But I have no idea how to train for one on my limited schedule. And I have no idea what to expect! Just wondering if anyone on the forum has raced one before. I would like to hear your experiences.

Thanks!

Lumberjack rocks! It's beautiful and the terrain is varied. What I did to prepare was ride a lot of road miles because we had such a wet spring.

Jeni

[limewave]

Thanks TrekJeni! I am so excited about this race. I really hope I can get in. I am going to be doing a TON of road riding this spring.

[jessmarimba]

I've never raced one (hah - or riddein anywhere near 100 miles) but the BF does Shenandoah Mountain 100 every other year. I know he does big mtb trips on weekends but does lots of road riding during the week to train.

[Catrin]

I've never raced one (hah - or riddein anywhere near 100 miles) but the BF does Shenandoah Mountain 100 every other year. I know he does big mtb trips on weekends but does lots of road riding during the week to train.

I've several friends who do the same thing. They don't race at all, but do lots of mountain biking on the weekends and try to road ride at least 100 miles during the week to keep in shape for the trails.

[spokewench]

Never done a 100 miler mountain bike race; but have done a 24 hour race that you do about the same mileage. For the 24 hour race on a team, your goal is to ride a bit faster than if you were doing it all alone; so you have to train for pace and intervals. But to ride a 100 miler mtn bike race, I would say your goal is to keep going and finish at a reasonable pace. So, I'd say just ride a lot; lots of miles, both on road and off. I say off road, cause as you know mtn biking takes more strength in upper body and arms and so you will have to have those areas of your body ready to take the bump punishment. I would not concentrate on speed or interval work as much as I would just miles, hills, time in the saddle kind of stuff.

[SpeedyChix]

Lumberjack is a blast. It's not a technical course but it is mostly singletrack. Rolling terrain so momentum from downhills help on the uphill. I've done LJ100 three times. Other 100s include Cohutta and Mohican. Work toward back to back long weekend rides. Practice / learn what fueling and hydration works for you. Many DNFs on the 100s are from issues eating / hydrating. Overall endurance is a goal, being comfortable on the bike. A real plus to the LJ100 is that you can see familiar faces in the pit twice during the race. If you're fit and ready to rock this event, ride the first hour to two hours at a solid to near XC race pace, then settle into a sustainable high-endurance / low-tempo pace for the balance of your race. Ride w/in yourself. Be present on the trail and constantly attentive to eating, spinning, riding the trail. It's a fun day.

[limewave]

If you're fit and ready to rock this event, ride the first hour to two hours at a solid to near XC race pace, then settle into a sustainable high-endurance / low-tempo pace for the balance of your race. Ride w/in yourself. Be present on the trail and constantly attentive to eating, spinning, riding the trail. It's a fun day.

That is really good to know. I was wondering about pacing . . .

[Anelia]

If you're fit and ready to rock this event, ride the first hour to two hours at a solid to near XC race pace, then settle into a sustainable high-endurance / low-tempo pace for the balance of your race. Ride w/in yourself. Be present on the trail and constantly attentive to eating, spinning, riding the trail. It's a fun day.

Yes, I found this at a marathon. It was only 60 km but still it took me 4 hours to finish it. So the first hour I rode really competitive but then I had to slow down a bit. Still, when I noticed that a faster on the downhill competitor came behind me, I had to push harder on the uphills not to let her gain advance on the downhill. It was interesting that I found motivation and power to push harder, facing competition. Changing gears quickly and forseeing the terrain when passing river beds and small springs helped me a lot then. On the final kilometers on a flat land I was not burnt and I had the power to sprint. It was an interesting race and I'm proud that I didn't give up.

[Anelia]

A teaser for my challenge in April

[limewave]

Anelia . . . how is your training coming along???

I have come up with the bare-bones of a training schedule. Which only has me riding 2 days a week. Scary, I know. But that is all my current schedule will allow.

1st ride: 90 min/intervals (done indoor on the trainer, very controlled)
2nd ride: Build from 30-50 miles on trail or gravel road up to 5 weeks before. 2.5 weeks pre/race--pre-ride entire course. No rides longer than 30 miles after that.
3x a week strength train
2x a week, run
1x a week yoga

we will see how it all works out!!!!

[SAMbike]

I've done a couple 100's and in addition to properly training your body for pounding away the miles, I think the other, almost equally important, thing to figure out and "train" for is your food and drink consumption pacing. So I'd say practice this too! On long rides think about what you can continue to eat, what's working, what's not etc etc. Hope this is helpful - and good luck!

[Anelia]

Anelia . . . how is your training coming along???

I have come up with the bare-bones of a training schedule. Which only has me riding 2 days a week. Scary, I know. But that is all my current schedule will allow.

1st ride: 90 min/intervals (done indoor on the trainer, very controlled)
2nd ride: Build from 30-50 miles on trail or gravel road up to 5 weeks before. 2.5 weeks pre/race--pre-ride entire course. No rides longer than 30 miles after that.
3x a week strength train
2x a week, run
1x a week yoga

we will see how it all works out!!!!

Hi there. Sorry for the late post but I didn't see the thread developing. Limewave, did you made this schedule by yourself or a coach recommended it? I would recommend you to ride more instead of doing weights or running or yoga. At least this is what I was advised to do: focus on riding. Everything else is a waste of energy and time.
So now I ride 7 out of 8 days. I aim at 6 out of 7 days but I don't want to miss a nice day out and I ride more. I do shorter rides during the weekdays: 1-2 or even 3 hours, as much as time permitted. I do intervals or/and strength training on the bike. On the weekends I do longer rides. On Sunday I had 6+ hours on the bike: most of it on road but still the miles and time on the bike count. At the beginning of April I think about 200 km Randonneuring on the bike as I did last year. It takes me about 8 hours to finish since I don't have a roadie. I wish I could ride more off road but I don't have company who can endure that much (6-8 hours)
Also I have to get used to my racing bike. It is very rigid and my butt is always sore after longer rides.