Transcontinental Race
Discussion
Yes, but he showed enough before succumbing to Shermers Neck, close to the end, that I think he's a very strong contender. Experience counts for a lot and he was oh-so-close in his first year. With that extra experience on a broadly similar route and with 8 months of full-time training - which you have to assume will include a lot of neck work! - then I think it would be a pessimist who didn't credit him with very high odds of winning.
cjm said:
It's not really a race but its 1205km in 90hrs so I'll need to be going a bit. If I can manage it then LEL shouldn't be too difficult!
300km a day means you could comfortably keep the riding to daylight hours, with battery-powered lights there if you need them. AA-powered for extra flexibility. The route could be quite lumpy which means you may not get much from a dynamo anyway. For 3-4 days I'd probably go with a battery pack and USB plugs for your gadgets. Nav would be a 'tested and reliable' Garmin and smartphone.Everytime I see an update to this thread I'm hoing its Gruffy with good news and an entry!...
I always thought it was Rick Mears of Indycar fame who was attributed with the quote "To finish first, you must first finish" but google says that it has been around since men bolted engines to cars and decided to see whose was fastest...
I always thought it was Rick Mears of Indycar fame who was attributed with the quote "To finish first, you must first finish" but google says that it has been around since men bolted engines to cars and decided to see whose was fastest...
Edited by anonymous-user on Tuesday 22 December 21:36
Usget said:
Schumacher DNF'd in his first F1 race for Jordan. Didn't stop Benneton from spotting the talent though.
Sure I'm just highlighting his complete inexperience, a single event which he packed from. Incidentally there's nothing wrong with DNFing you learn more from failure than you do from success. A lot of ultra events now employ psychologists to help competitors get over what can best be described as a grieving process- you sacrifice a lot just to get to the start line and it only gets worse, the best are quite tortured souls and certifiable in the nicest possible way.I'm fascinated to see how I handle two weeks of what is, basically, isolation under intense physical stress and sleep deprivation. I suspect I'll learn a lot about myself during the race. The thought of DNF'ing is so terrifying I simply block it out. 50% attrition rate was bloody high this year. TCR No4 looks harder to my eyes, so the odds of failure are very real.
t just got real.A quick update:
Ultra-distance specific training started last week after a cycling lab test revealed some interesting news on my suitability for the race. Blog entry on that here https://theadventurecapitalist.wordpress.com/2016/...
I'm building up a bike for this but that's taking much longer than expected. I started in October and was hoping to be riding it already but have been suffering delays with frame suppliers. On paper I think the Kinesis GF Ti Disc looks like the strongest contender and they've also offered a strong deal on account of what I'm doing with it and the exposure that the blog generates, but they don't have a demo model in my size and they seem to have trouble putting one together. Demand is strong so they're selling them before they land. Fair enough, but I'm no closer now than when I started and the clock is ticking. I'm also looking at a few others but haven't been pushing them too hard as I keep expecting to be testing the Kinesis any day. Time to progress with other suppliers though, who also have long lead times. J Laverack is one I'm looking at closely. It has reviewed well, looks stunning with a progressive design that suits the build and, as a nice touch, it's also built close to where I grew up.
The wheels are being built up as I type. With David Hunt of DCR Wheels I've worked up an experimental design that pushes the limits of fast ultra-distance wheels. Time will tell whether we've pushed it too far, but I should receive those when I get back from a trip to Japan in February. It doesn't look like I'll have a bike to put them on though.
Once I know what frame I'm going with I can spec the group set and get that ordered. It's far from an off-the-shelf configuration so I'm on the look-out for a friendly supplier who can help me assemble a full Shimano Di2 setup at competitive/trade prices. If anybody has any contacts please get in touch.
Another thing waiting on the frame is the bikepacking luggage. That's custom made to fit the frame perfectly. I have a couple of ultra-distance tests coming up and I'm keen to start riding these under full TCR conditions. I'm sure there's a lot of lessons to learn. At the current rate of progress though I don't think I'll have the set-up until late March at the earliest. In the meantime I'm just cracking on with training and nutrition improvements.
Ultra-distance specific training started last week after a cycling lab test revealed some interesting news on my suitability for the race. Blog entry on that here https://theadventurecapitalist.wordpress.com/2016/...
I'm building up a bike for this but that's taking much longer than expected. I started in October and was hoping to be riding it already but have been suffering delays with frame suppliers. On paper I think the Kinesis GF Ti Disc looks like the strongest contender and they've also offered a strong deal on account of what I'm doing with it and the exposure that the blog generates, but they don't have a demo model in my size and they seem to have trouble putting one together. Demand is strong so they're selling them before they land. Fair enough, but I'm no closer now than when I started and the clock is ticking. I'm also looking at a few others but haven't been pushing them too hard as I keep expecting to be testing the Kinesis any day. Time to progress with other suppliers though, who also have long lead times. J Laverack is one I'm looking at closely. It has reviewed well, looks stunning with a progressive design that suits the build and, as a nice touch, it's also built close to where I grew up.
The wheels are being built up as I type. With David Hunt of DCR Wheels I've worked up an experimental design that pushes the limits of fast ultra-distance wheels. Time will tell whether we've pushed it too far, but I should receive those when I get back from a trip to Japan in February. It doesn't look like I'll have a bike to put them on though.
Once I know what frame I'm going with I can spec the group set and get that ordered. It's far from an off-the-shelf configuration so I'm on the look-out for a friendly supplier who can help me assemble a full Shimano Di2 setup at competitive/trade prices. If anybody has any contacts please get in touch.
Another thing waiting on the frame is the bikepacking luggage. That's custom made to fit the frame perfectly. I have a couple of ultra-distance tests coming up and I'm keen to start riding these under full TCR conditions. I'm sure there's a lot of lessons to learn. At the current rate of progress though I don't think I'll have the set-up until late March at the earliest. In the meantime I'm just cracking on with training and nutrition improvements.
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