Zero to Sani 2016

[Pusher]

Sani might not be that technical for an experienced rider but for a beginner it can get very technical. With other riders riding around you I have seen beginners panic and do stupid things and hurt themselves which in other situations they might not do.

 

Don't kid yourself...work on your skills! Its an area where you can never do enough training and you more than anyone else will benefit from the results.

[Slowbee]

Sani might not be that technical for an experienced rider but for a beginner it can get very technical. With other riders riding around you I have seen beginners panic and do stupid things and hurt themselves which in other situations they might not do.

 

Don't kid yourself...work on your skills! Its an area where you can never do enough training and you more than anyone else will benefit from the results.

 

Lets make no bones about it. We know we are not that skilled and fast. The plan is to take it easy from the get go and hopefully find ourselves at the back very early on in day 1 (even before we get to the first single track). By day 2, I expect we will be one of the last groups to leave, either M or N. Yes, it might mean less time in the day to ride, but this way there will be less riders around us. Also, less pressure to go "fast" and everyone screaming track track track at us and putting the pressure on to overtake. The climb out the valley will be less congested allowing for a wobbly rider to be all over the place and not worry about straight lines and crashing into others. We can ride at our own pace.

 

The idea is to be competent at riding on open dirt road (s2c has a fair amount of that), and smooth single track paths. Add to this the ability to just "spin" out the uphills and we should be ok to finish. Even if we walk alot of uphills, if we can ride the flat parts and gentle uphills and still have some energy in the legs then it will be a job well done. I would rather finish thinking we could have gone faster, than finish exhausted. We dont care if it is last or third last, we just want to finish and finish well, in one piece and wanting more, rather than wanting to just go home.

[eddy]

 I would rather finish thinking we could have gone faster, than finish exhausted. We dont care if it is last or third last, we just want to finish and finish well, in one piece and wanting more, rather than wanting to just go home.

 

  :clap:      

[Stretch]

who is this poster with less than 100 posts...how can we take her seriously..

 

 

 

you will be fine Mrs Bee...just do a long ride every weekend and a couple of short technical ones during the week to get your skills up and keep the fitness

[davetapson]

Day 2 and day 3 are long.  Just do some long rides on the weekends, don't stress about the rest.  If the hill is too steep, walk.  But you got to be able to ride 100km.

 

My training has simplified over the years - I just make sure I do one long ride per weekend (with the odd break) and make sure that you get in one ride of 100km or so a month or so bf Sani.

 

Then, if nothing else, you know that at least you can ride 100km (which is effectively what day 2 is.)

 

If you can get some hill training or anything else in, that's a benefit, but not necessary if not being in the front half of the field matters to you.

 

Easiest way?  Ride 10km longer each weekend, with a shorter ride every 3rd w/e or so.

 

Least effort for max return in my experience.

[Traverse]

Was it last year or the one before when that guy finished so late that they put him on the stage for a massage while handling the prices? The problem with not enough training is you arrive late and do not rest properly so every day is worse. At the end a not so tough race which is supposed to be really enjoyable becomes a nightmare![emoji6]

[MrsSlowbee]

So, hiccup no 2 in the training was that my bike ended up spending a week in the bike shop having a new shock fitted (again!). Have been on the IDT for an hr a day but today we were finally on the road again. Did a 20km mellowish ride in the southeaster - a little bit of a hill, a wee bit of single track and the rest just battling the wind on the straight. Managed to go down a pretty steep/fast part of single track without touching the brakes (Mr Slowbee shouting from behind to make sure I didn't!) which I'm pretty chuffed about. Still so much easier to trust a horse than a bike but I'm getting there... : )

 

A quick nutrition question: I dont really eat carbs as part of my day to day diet (unless it comes in the form of chocolate!) - can I get away with eating fruit as my carb intake for training? Is that enough to replace glycogen stores? When my rides get longer and more intense I will do the post-ride drinks but want to stay away from them as much as possible for now. And no, I am not a Noakes follower - I just dont really like read/pasta/rice etc. I also work odd hours and often get too busy at work to eat so my main/only constant meal of the day is breakfast and an afternoon snack (if I remember to pack it!). Supper doesn't usually happen unless its a week end.  Can I just carry on as I have been or do I have to adjust my eating habits?

 

Thanks all for your encouragement so far!

[V12man]

So, hiccup no 2 in the training was that my bike ended up spending a week in the bike shop having a new shock fitted (again!). Have been on the IDT for an hr a day but today we were finally on the road again. Did a 20km mellowish ride in the southeaster - a little bit of a hill, a wee bit of single track and the rest just battling the wind on the straight. Managed to go down a pretty steep/fast part of single track without touching the brakes (Mr Slowbee shouting from behind to make sure I didn't!) which I'm pretty chuffed about. Still so much easier to trust a horse than a bike but I'm getting there... : )

 

A quick nutrition question: I dont really eat carbs as part of my day to day diet (unless it comes in the form of chocolate!) - can I get away with eating fruit as my carb intake for training? Is that enough to replace glycogen stores? When my rides get longer and more intense I will do the post-ride drinks but want to stay away from them as much as possible for now. And no, I am not a Noakes follower - I just dont really like read/pasta/rice etc. I also work odd hours and often get too busy at work to eat so my main/only constant meal of the day is breakfast and an afternoon snack (if I remember to pack it!). Supper doesn't usually happen unless its a week end. Can I just carry on as I have been or do I have to adjust my eating habits?

 

Thanks all for your encouragement so far!

Eat real food and you will be fine - just dont forget to eat regularly and make sure you eat before you are hungry when riding - unless you are going close to your limits there is little benefit to specialised high carb foods and sulplements

[Wayne Potgieter]

I love this thread.

 

My best bike "races" have been with my wife.

 

We even won a stone last award for being the last ones across the line.

 

But man we had fun. We stopped a lot. We smiled whilst pedalling. We tested our marriage on some hills. We were a team.

 

I wish you both well....

 

Well done.

[Squier]

I would consider doing a skills clinic. It's not about being fast on the singletrack, but being efficient. There's a fair amount of singletrack each day and knowing how to handle your bike in an efficient manner would mean conserving energy for later in the day. Trail riding, even though it's downhill, tires the body. Upping your skill will not only make you faster, but, more importantly, more efficient and add to your overall enjoyment factor of the event.

[Martin PJ]

Sani is not that hard. Take it seriously and you will be fine. For a stage race it may be easy, it is certainly no fun ride. Day 2 in the valley is a bit of a slog coming out. From a fitness point of view, that is the toughest part.

 

Don't underestimate the technical side, you need to be able to ride down a small drop off or sharp incline, be able to come around a few hairpin bends coming into the valley (at low speed of course). You won't enjoy the race if you are too nervous and that would be terrible.

 

Get the bike serviced thoroughly before the race, service everything that can be serviced. Replace anything that looks like it may need replacing. Tubeless tires are a must, get a nice grippy fat tire for the front.

 

Eat and drink continuously through the race, solid food and less sugary drinks if you find you are not hungry.

[Slowbee]

I would consider doing a skills clinic. It's not about being fast on the singletrack, but being efficient. There's a fair amount of singletrack each day and knowing how to handle your bike in an efficient manner would mean conserving energy for later in the day. Trail riding, even though it's downhill, tires the body. Upping your skill will not only make you faster, but, more importantly, more efficient and add to your overall enjoyment factor of the event.

She has done Joanna's 'biking in the bosch course level 1.

 

When her fitness and strength get better we will do level 2. Two sessions a week of gym work are helping get her core strength and arm strength up. When she rides the IDT I also asked her to ride with her helmet and hydration pack so the neck/shoulder muscles can get used to the "weight".

 

@Wayne, really looking forward to the ride together. I really enjoy being out on the roads with her.

[Pikey]

She has done Joanna's 'biking in the bosch course level 1.

 

When her fitness and strength get better we will do level 2. Two sessions a week of gym work are helping get her core strength and arm strength up. When she rides the IDT I also asked her to ride with her helmet and hydration pack so the neck/shoulder muscles can get used to the "weight".

 

@Wayne, really looking forward to the ride together. I really enjoy being out on the roads with her.

you are a fortunate couple ,the very best of luck to both of you.

[Benjamin]

So, hiccup no 2 in the training was that my bike ended up spending a week in the bike shop having a new shock fitted (again!). Have been on the IDT for an hr a day but today we were finally on the road again. Did a 20km mellowish ride in the southeaster - a little bit of a hill, a wee bit of single track and the rest just battling the wind on the straight. Managed to go down a pretty steep/fast part of single track without touching the brakes (Mr Slowbee shouting from behind to make sure I didn't!) which I'm pretty chuffed about. Still so much easier to trust a horse than a bike but I'm getting there... : )

 

A quick nutrition question: I dont really eat carbs as part of my day to day diet (unless it comes in the form of chocolate!) - can I get away with eating fruit as my carb intake for training? Is that enough to replace glycogen stores? When my rides get longer and more intense I will do the post-ride drinks but want to stay away from them as much as possible for now. And no, I am not a Noakes follower - I just dont really like read/pasta/rice etc. I also work odd hours and often get too busy at work to eat so my main/only constant meal of the day is breakfast and an afternoon snack (if I remember to pack it!). Supper doesn't usually happen unless its a week end.  Can I just carry on as I have been or do I have to adjust my eating habits?

 

Thanks all for your encouragement so far!

Not sure about the horse part. Can't trust anything that eats while you are sleeping . Bike at least goes where you point it.

 

Sounds like you going well. Just remember though, likely to be spending about 16 hours plus on your bike over 3 days, so will certainly need a few longer rides over next few months, and do some on consecutive days. Nothing quite like sitting on your bike on the morning of day 2 and feeling every clip from yesterday in your butt.

 

Day 2 is a serious bike ride, can't underestimate it. Going to be going uphill for about 3 hours...

[Benjamin]

Also wrt nutrition, probably not a good idea to miss meals (like supper) when you been training. Got to replace the kilojoules , and the fluids.

[nonky]

:eek: , that is NOT in the contract.......

 

Yes, it is...and the name of the contract is:

 

"IF YOU KNOW WHAT'S GOOD FOR YOU"