I was asked to be on a 24 hour MTB race team!!!

[Reesha]

My day was made today! My LBS owner asked me after road riding 35 glorious miles of murderous hills and then cooling down with a 10k mountain bike, if I wanted to be on his shop's 24 hour mtb race team!

Seriously! I can't believe it a bit. But it's a mixed gender team of four of us including LBS owner, that guy I've got a crush on and a woman from Placid I haven't met yet. We'll wear our awesome Leepoff jerseys and hopefully tear up the course.

Anyway, this will be my first major mountain bike race and what a way to start!

Is there anything I should know for a 24 hour race before I do it in September? Tips? I know how it works, I just don't know what I should do to prepare.

Man this is so awesome!

[abvnx]

i have no tips or anything, but thats really cool! congrats, hope you have tons of fun out there.

[LBTC]

Reesha, that's awesome! I've raced and done support on 24 hour teams several times. Your two most important things: preparation and support. Do you have support people? If you don't yet, sweet talk a small army of volunteers or spouses to help out. Also, if the race is in a place where you can sleep in a condo or house, rather than camp in a tent.

Where is the race? When? Can you preride the course? Ride with your teammates before the race if you can. Oh, there's plenty more to say, what do you want to know!

You're going to have a blast!

Hugs and butterflies,
~T~

[Reesha]

Reesha, that's awesome! I've raced and done support on 24 hour teams several times. Your two most important things: preparation and support. Do you have support people? If you don't yet, sweet talk a small army of volunteers or spouses to help out. Also, if the race is in a place where you can sleep in a condo or house, rather than camp in a tent.

Where is the race? When? Can you preride the course? Ride with your teammates before the race if you can. Oh, there's plenty more to say, what do you want to know!

You're going to have a blast!

Hugs and butterflies,
~T~

Well, I'd like to have the 8 kids I'm a houseparent for come and be the support team with one of my support houseparents. That would be such an awesome experience for them! I know at least 6 or 7 kids that would love to be involved. There is no housing for us, but tents will be fine. Maybe we can bring a really giant one and some air mattresses. That would be good

The best part is that the race course is a mile from my home. I've been on the terrain many times before so I know what to expect at least a bit. I rode with two of my team mates yesterday on the road and tomorrow the same two and I will do a mountain bike ride. Jeremiah will leave me in his dusty wake, but Mark will stay with me. We're not racing tomorrow after all

Yay I'm psyched!

[han-grrl]

24 hour racing is one of the best ways to start racing, since it is more of a relaxed atmosphere.

some tips - pre-ride the course to figure out what your times are, then you can plan to be at the transition area on time....
plan your eating well - the fatigure and excitement can put tummy on edge. So eat what you love, and yes it might mean some simple carbs. for me i eat powdered donuts (mmmmm donuts), fig newtons, chips, plain pasta and perogies for most of my 24 hour racing. no fruits, period. i told that to a team mate, and she ended up barfing up her cantelope during her lap because she thought she would be fine. everyone teased me about my pepto bismol and everyone else used it 'cept me!
clothing - it can get cool at night, and weather is unpredictable so bring it all!

i pre-bag my bike clothing, so that i don't have to think about it too much (ie one short one jersey, sports bra and socks in each bag).

DO NOT LEAVE THINGS un covered over night, the morning dew gets on everything! i have laughed seeing teams hang everything "just so" when they set up camp, only to have it all soaked my morning.

practice your night riding

i'll think of more later, time for the AM coffee

Smile!

han

[rocknrollgirl]

I have my first 24 hour race coming up in three weeks. I am on a team with 4 other people that I ride with all of the time. We will be tenting it, that is the only options for all racers. I think it is going to be fun.

I will post after the race.

[dirtygirl1]

I have to agree ... 24 hour races are an awesome way to get into racing.

A few quick tips:

1. Practice night riding
- how long does your light last? (does it last long enough for a lap?)
- does it shine in the right place (i prefer helmet light over a handlebar light but everyone is different and you need to figure this out for yourself)?
- is it bright enough for the speed you want to go?

2. Food
- the weekend is about ripping it up, eating, resting (feet up), and doing it all over again. Ensure that you have lots of snack and regular meal options to keep you fueled. You may want some racing or riding food as well for the lap; depending on how long it is
- eat as soon as you are finished. Something with good carbs, fat, and protein and that is easily digestible (smoothies are great). Then a snack or meal again as soon as you get out of those shorts ... then rest

3. Liquids
- drink, drink, drink
- and don't forget to drink something with electrolytes!

4. Legs up!
- when you are not racing around the course or eating, you should be resting. During the day there is alot of excitement and really you should just soak it in ... wounder around and check it all out. Socialize. This is one of the big draws of 24 hr racing. But whenever you get a chance ... sit down or lay down. Put your legs up. It will help keep them fresh for the next lap

5. Ear plugs ....
- at night IF you want to sleep you may need ear plugs; depending on who is around and what is going on

6. Maximize rest between laps.
- set up a plan with your team for who will wake up the next person for the night laps. For example Person A goes first and hands off to Person B. Person A returns to the campground and wakes up Person C ... by this time you know Person B's (and everyone elses) lap times so you can accurately judge how much time you have to get dressed and get up there. Not likely an issue in NY this time of year but it can get cool at night and staying in the sleeping bag an extra 10 minutes can feel really really good.

7. Have fun!!!!!!! These races are laid back and are a blast when you do them with people you like and get along with. Sounds like you are in for an awesome weekend. Enjoy it!!! Oh, and take the Monday after off if you can!

That's all I have for now ... if you have specific ques, just post them.

[spokewench]

There are some good pointers here. Here are a few more.

1.Yes, definitely get help. You will need someone to take care of getting your lights recharged cause some of you will have to do more than one night lap. It helps if someone is there to do maintenance on bikes, i.e. even just lube chains between laps, etc.

2. Have a chalk board or ink board that can be wiped off that states what lap you are on and what times, the riders basically did for each of their laps, and who is up next. This helps everyone know where you are, especially at night when you kind of lose it sometimes! Remember, some people don't lose much time at night some really do. If you get tired, your laps will slow down a lot too. Watch out for that lap right before daylight - it is a killer!

3. There are varying styles of how people ride these things. Some people prefer to do two laps at a time (this gives more rest between laps); others like to just rotate the four riders one lap at a time. (This is the way I have always ridden 24 hour races on 4 person teams.) Make sure this is planned and you know what is going on before your race starts.

4. Keep your basic riding clothes in separate bags for each lap you think you will do. You probably don't have enough jackets, arm warmers etc. to do each lap so just keep them in a separate place so you can find them quickly. Trying to find things at night when you are sleepy is no fun!

5. Stay warm between laps. try to sleep but if you can't put your feet up. Eat a lot. I usually try to keep it to simple foods. Potatoes, rice, chicken, bagels, peanut butter, sports drinks for recovery (very key), find one that works for you well before you try this race, bananas, sports bars, beans (not too many). Make sure you have used it when you are really tired, cause they can act up when you are tired more than when you are feeling good. Cook all the food ahead of time cause you won't have time or feel like it when you are riding. Eat gels and bars while you are riding. You cannot take in enough fuel for this type of riding!

6. Be prepared for a flat tire and basic bike maintenance on the trail. You must be able to change a flat and fix basic bike stuff (so take a tool).

7. Don't know where you will be riding as far as temperature, but even in the summer, in some places, it can get cold at night so take good gloves with you. You want dry warm clothes when you start your laps.

8. Get a good night rider helmet lamp. They are the best. I have ridden with only a handle bar light but it was not as good. then I tired a handle bar mounted light and a really good helmet lamp. I found the helmet lamp by itself worked the best for me. The helmet lamp you can direct where you want to go, the handle bar mounted lamp just points in front of you so if the trail is curvy, it doesn't help much.

Can't think of anything else right now, but I've done a 4 person team three times so if you have questions, just holler, I'll answer if I can.

And, the last thing you have to remember is: Have a Good Time, and Go your Own Speed, don't let the pressure get to you of having other team members, you will ride as well as you can this way and not get hurt!



Spoke

[han-grrl]

Yes to the ear plugs - they are a permanent addition in my travel bag.

August - Sept depending on where you are can be pretty darn chilly at night. The joke a couple of years back for a race I am about to do called Hot August Nites - it should actually be called COLD August nites...arm warmers are great for the night rides...

I don't know if anyone else has or does this, but over the years hubby and i had accumulated lists for stuff the bring and one sleepless night i compiled it all, complete with check off boxes. SO every race it gets printed off and it works well. We have added stuff to it as well, and now his whole team uses our list. Anyway, lists are great, it prevents from forgetting stuff...

Hubby lost one of his team mates to a wedding, so i'll be doing a 24 hour race this summer after alll, part of me is dreading the night laps though...