Slowbee's TransKaroo Ride 2014

[Slanghoek Louis]

Hi Slowbee. How is your training coming along. ? We do short 30kms twice weekly (or try to) in evenings and a 120kms + on sundays. We both work on sat so only sundays are open for long rides. Wife works at Du Tiotskloof cellar and I build mtb routes and tracks during own time. How long do the long rides have to be ? 120 or 150 or 200?

[DaleE]

Hi. I am interested in riding this event, and wonder if those who have done it before can advise the following:

As it is an A to B ride, how do we get back to Ceres...do the organisers arrange this or must one make a plan? I see a bus to Cape Town, but I am from Gauteng. If I drive down, my car will be at Ceres.

Sleeping arrangements? on finishing, what does one do

 

Any info will be appreciated

 

A somewhat belated reply ....

There are options to get back to your car on the Sunday - just mail the race organisers for details, IIRC Daytrippers are doing this shuttle.

Best option is to book a B&B in Ceres and another in Sutherland. The Start is close to Ceres and I'm fairly sure you could leave your car at the start till you pick it up on Sunday .

In Sutherland there are B&B's, but start phoning now as spots are limited. Other option is the Sutherland Hotel - very basic, but clean and neat and just round the corner from the finish line.

 

Some general comments ....

if you are looking for a Sani-style experience, this is not the race for you. The field is really small and you may end up riding alone for long stretches.

It's a mind game - start slow and go slower as the race progresses ... if you feel good in the last 50km then give it horns, not before.

Make sure you're self sufficient between water stops - mechanics are few and far between out there.

Scenery is awesome in a kind of arid, desert way.

Practice your nutrition / hydration strategy on long rides beforehand ... dehydration aint funny. My personal view is you separate hydration and nutrition, so plain water and real food, not energy drinks.

 

Lastly, it's a wonderfully rewarding ride, whether racing or cruising.

[straatvark]

A somewhat belated reply ....

There are options to get back to your car on the Sunday - just mail the race organisers for details, IIRC Daytrippers are doing this shuttle.

Best option is to book a B&B in Ceres and another in Sutherland. The Start is close to Ceres and I'm fairly sure you could leave your car at the start till you pick it up on Sunday .

In Sutherland there are B&B's, but start phoning now as spots are limited. Other option is the Sutherland Hotel - very basic, but clean and neat and just round the corner from the finish line.

 

Some general comments ....

if you are looking for a Sani-style experience, this is not the race for you. The field is really small and you may end up riding alone for long stretches.

It's a mind game - start slow and go slower as the race progresses ... if you feel good in the last 50km then give it horns, not before.

Make sure you're self sufficient between water stops - mechanics are few and far between out there.

Scenery is awesome in a kind of arid, desert way.

Practice your nutrition / hydration strategy on long rides beforehand ... dehydration aint funny. My personal view is you separate hydration and nutrition, so plain water and real food, not energy drinks.

 

Lastly, it's a wonderfully rewarding ride, whether racing or cruising.

 

You could say that again - in 260km, on a Sunday afternoon I had seen 4 humans: a donkey car carrying a mom & two kids as well as a farmworker fixing a flat on his farm bakkie.

Edited January 28, 2014 by straatvark

[Slowbee]

I cannot wait for this.

 

My training took a HUUUGGGEEEE dent over January as the family got sick. Those who have kids now all about it. Little one gets it, recovers, as Mom starts to get it, then Dad gets it, and Mom recovers, in time to help the little one recover from getting it again, and so the flippen cycle carries on.

 

So now, with 3 months left to D-day - I need to get some seriaaass riding done. It is very nerve racking!

[Slowbee]

Well this ride is going to be interesting.

 

I have been out on the bike and managed a whole whopping 35km for two days in a row. And it hurt, mainly on my bum bones. 240km with two huge uphills in between is seeming very far away right now. The confidence has taken a bit of a dent. That's for sure

 

Since the goal is to finish, this is the way I am looking at things. 240km in 17 hours is about 14km/hr. There are 5 checkpoints, and I reckon around 10 minutes at each, so make it an even hour, that equates 240 in 16 hours. So that means an average speed of about 15km/hr. This is achievable, but that last 40 odd km from the base of the pass is all uphill, and after having done 200km, now you have to ride uphill all the way home. Some serious stressing going on here!

[Skubarra]

I am looking at things. 240km in 17 hours is about 14km/hr. There are 5 checkpoints, and I reckon around 10 minutes at each, so make it an even hour, that equates 240 in 16 hours. So that means an average speed of about 15km/hr. This is achievable, but that last 40 odd km from the base of the pass is all uphill, and after having done 200km, now you have to ride uphill all the way home. Some serious stressing going on here!

 

Will be joining you on the Transkaroo.

 

Haven't done the math yet but your'e obviously not going to average 14km/h up Ouberg Pass and the climb after it will also be slower (more like 8km/h - 10km/h up Ouberg and something like 12km/h afterwards), so I guess you must aim to do something like 16km/h up until the the start of Ouberg.

 

Still a lot of time to train though, Good luck!

[eddy]

 

I always wanted to ride up the pass. Well now I will.

 

 

No you won't, you will be walking it !

 

The good news is that so will everybody around you. I finished in just on 14 hrs and not a single person around me rode the pass. I aways find it k@k when I want to walk whilst others are riding. If everyone is walking somehow it feels as if it is OK for me to do so too......

 

Enjoy, it is a great experience.

[Slowbee]

No you won't, you will be walking it !

 

The good news is that so will everybody around you. I finished in just on 14 hrs and not a single person around me rode the pass. I aways find it k@k when I want to walk whilst others are riding. If everyone is walking somehow it feels as if it is OK for me to do so too......

 

Enjoy, it is a great experience.

LOL, considering I will be at the back, it sounds like I will be walking alone ..... in the dark ..... up a hill ..... in the dark .....alone.......

[Dicky DQ]

Will be joining you on the Transkaroo.

 

Haven't done the math yet but your'e obviously not going to average 14km/h up Ouberg Pass and the climb after it will also be slower (more like 8km/h - 10km/h up Ouberg and something like 12km/h afterwards), so I guess you must aim to do something like 16km/h up until the the start of Ouberg.

 

Still a lot of time to train though, Good luck!

 

I walked 90% of Ouberg and I think that on it's own took about 1.5 to 2hrs.

[eddy]

LOL, considering I will be at the back, it sounds like I will be walking alone ..... in the dark ..... up a hill ..... in the dark .....alone.......

 

No you won't, even if you are riding alone for a bit before the hill, the hill concertinas the field and you see all the lights of the people around you. it is magic.

 

It was light when I got to the hill and dark when I got to the top after a nice walk interspersed by short spells riding.

 

After a lekker skaapribbetjie off the braai at the top and changing into a warm top, the last 40km were some of the nicest riding I can remember.

[Dicky DQ]

And my total riding time was 12:07 total "race time" was about 13 odd hrs.

[Skubarra]

I walked 90% of Ouberg and I think that on it's own took about 1.5 to 2hrs.

 

eish...

 

ok, makes sense that after 180km & and 9 hours + on the bike that most mortals would walk a climb like that

[Slowbee]

What a boring weekend training. The wife is on call so have been on the IDT. An hour on Friday night and an hour on Saturday night. Legs feeling a little bit tender so going to make today a rest day, it is Sunday after all

[Mads]

No you won't, even if you are riding alone for a bit before the hill, the hill concertinas the field and you see all the lights of the people around you. it is magic.

 

It was light when I got to the hill and dark when I got to the top after a nice walk interspersed by short spells riding.

 

After a lekker skaapribbetjie off the braai at the top and changing into a warm top, the last 40km were some of the nicest riding I can remember.

You describe it so beautiful. Cant wait to see this.

[Slowbee]

OK, so time is not on my side (as it was when I last did a long distance ride).

 

Can you guru's please explain to me how to go about this thing of a training program where you have long slow rides (apparently that means 70-75% of your HR), interval hard days, and rest days.

 

Given the privilege of being able to ride 7 times a week (IDT ), how do you integrate this all together ? Given that there is this wind factor that can make what is mean to be a slow ride into a really long slow time trial.

 

Any tips on how to work this out.

[DaleE]

Can you guru's please explain to me how to go about this thing of a training program where you have long slow rides (apparently that means 70-75% of your HR), interval hard days, and rest days.

 

Not sure I qualify for the "guru" label, but this is what works for me when training for endurance stuff.

 

Aerobic (long slow) rides.

2 or 3 2-3hr rides per week. As you mentioned at 65-75% of HRmax. This is really slow and sometimes boring ... more so if you try it on an IDT.

On the IDT, I alternate high and low cadence in 10 min cycles to relieve the boredom, always keeping HR in the zone.

Aim here is to build your aerobic base, it's not a strength session!!

 

Interval training

2 (no more than 2) hard interval sessions per week. These consist of 30-45min warmup, then go find a 1km hill and do 5 repeats (Suikerbossie is perfect for this). First repeat I just use to get into the groove ... HR at about 90% which means hard riding but still have legs to accelerate near the top.

Next 4 repeats are progressively faster. last one should be very close to 100% HR. puke if necessary

Warm down properly - 30min or so.

Some folk prefer a shorter hill for this, but I find that if training for races like TK, the hills are long, so best get used to longer hills.

You could do this on an IDT by cranking up the resistance, but takes more discipline than if you have a hill to climb.

If you find you're feeling over trained or exhausted, rather miss an intensity session than a slow ride session.

 

Non-bike training

2 x 1hr session per week. focus on core and upper body stuff. Long days in the saddle require more core strength than you think. Simple stuff like sit-ups, pull ups, squats, plank, yoga, push-ups, lunges, etc all work for me. Either go to the gym or do at home in your back yard.

Possible to do this on the same day as a slow ride.

 

My 'normal' cycle for all this is:

Mon - morning: gym evening: 2hr slow ride on IDT

Tue - morning: Hard interval session

Wed - evening: 2hr slow ride on IDT

Thur - morning: gym

Fri - morning: Hard interval session. or take the day off if I'm feeling tired.

Sat - easy (very easy) coffee ride with mates. 1.5hr.

Sun - long slow ride >3hrs.

 

Lastly, you will see that there is no allowance for training in the 75-90% HRmax zone. I'm of the opinion that training in that zone is a waste for endurance events. You are neither building the aerobic base efficiently, nor building strength properly. Others will disagree with this approach.