LegendsMX Trailseeker

[Mountain Bru]

Anyone else giving this a go?

I'm entered for the marathon (70km). Has anyone done it before and maybe have a gpx file of the route? 

Any tips on what to expect? I assume it's gonna be next level dusty, and pretty quick seen as there' isn't much elevation gain on the route. 

[DonatelloOnPinarello]

No need to worry about GPX files, the trail seeker events are exceptionally well marked, and there will be a Marshall at every point where there’s even a slight chance of taking a wrong turn.

don’t  be too sure about the lack of elevation, it makes a couple loops through the Kopjes, and depending one where in the pack you are, the technical sections will often cause a traffic jam. The trick is to stay close enough to the front runners in your start batch, but not to end up too close to the tail of the batch ahead of you, as you approach the technical bits. If you get caught in traffic, keep calm, remind yourself it’s all just a bit of fun. It’s much better than being that guy that treats the newbies so badly horribly they decide to never do another race again. 

[Mountain Bru]

The GPX file isn't for navigation, it's for pacing.... Knowing the distance to go, the elevation gain remaining, where the climbs are, using climbpro on the garmin to pace the climbs nicely.... All really useful stuff when it comes to pacing. 

[DonatelloOnPinarello]

9 hours ago, Mountain Bru said:

The GPX file isn't for navigation, it's for pacing.... Knowing the distance to go, the elevation gain remaining, where the climbs are, using climbpro on the garmin to pace the climbs nicely.... All really useful stuff when it comes to pacing. 

Okay, well in that case I can’t help. I rode it marathon there in 2019 last, so doubt my track would be accurate still. I’m sure they will send something out later this week, normally 24-48 hours before the event. But I think your overthinking this one. There are some kopjes, that you will criss cross, but no serious climbing. If you have done any sort of prep, you should expect to comfortably ride at a 19-20km/h average, so plan to be out for about 3.5 hours. 2 bottles and a small camelback should be plenty if you want to avoid the feed stations (I would under current conditions). It is a pretty easy ride. From my memory of the previous race, the climbs were mostly short punchy things, interspersed with long flat gravel/jeep/single track sections to recover (or make up time on) depending on your strategy.

Edited August 18, 2021 by DonatelloOnPinarello

[JCA12]

Ja the problem with these races is they generally change the routes every year. 

You could maybe search on Strava if there is an activity for Last year's one and then compare the route profile to this year's one. 

But I expect it would differ a bit. 

This appears to be the 2019 Event

2021 event. So looks quite different. 

They have used Rosemary Hill in previous years

[Jewbacca]

Whatever happened to 'go till you blow'?

Also, Jolande Neff rode without a bike computer or PM at the olympics... I'm sure you can manage without one for a solid mid pack finish... ????

[Gerhard765]

From my experience the overall race was not such that you have to save yourself for the end. For me I tried to keep the pace constant for the total distance. It is a fairly fast route with some long distances where drafting really helps, for me at least. I am fat and slow now more than then.

I remember one technical section where there was a traffic jam where you could not fairly easily get past the guy in front of you. Was about 15 km in if not mistaken. Not that it was difficult, just the normal one guy stops and everyone then walks thing. Other than that think Rosemary Hill for technical level.

 

Enjoy it and keep the tires down.

[Mountain Bru]

2 hours ago, Jewbacca said:

Whatever happened to 'go till you blow'?

Also, Jolande Neff rode without a bike computer or PM at the olympics... I'm sure you can manage without one for a solid mid pack finish... ????

Jolande also rode the track a million times in training, probably with a head unit and power meter..... ????

"Go til you blow" is my default tactic for zwift races. Start with a 400w surge from the gun, and then hold the front group until either the bunch sprint or you catastrophically blow. 

[Mountain Bru]

3 hours ago, DonatelloOnPinarello said:

Okay, well in that case I can’t help. I rode it marathon there in 2019 last, so doubt my track would be accurate still. I’m sure they will send something out later this week, normally 24-48 hours before the event. But I think your overthinking this one. There are some kopjes, that you will criss cross, but no serious climbing. If you have done any sort of prep, you should expect to comfortably ride at a 19-20km/h average, so plan to be out for about 3.5 hours. 2 bottles and a small camelback should be plenty if you want to avoid the feed stations (I would under current conditions). It is a pretty easy ride. From my memory of the previous race, the climbs were mostly short punchy things, interspersed with long flat gravel/jeep/single track sections to recover (or make up time on) depending on your strategy.

Mate it's a race..... Ballztothewall from the gun or what's the point? ????

Thanks for the advice on the route. I have a proper bike with 2 bottle cages, so won't be weighing myself down with a camelbak. The Buffelsdrift Trailseeker had 200m more elevation and I suspect far more technical sections, and I had touch down that cost quite a bit of time, and I managed a 19.2km/h average on that, so this should be a fair bit quicker. 

[Trashy]

9 minutes ago, Mountain Bru said:

Mate it's a race..... Ballztothewall from the gun or what's the point? ????

Thanks for the advice on the route. I have a proper bike with 2 bottle cages, so won't be weighing myself down with a camelbak. The Buffelsdrift Trailseeker had 200m more elevation and I suspect far more technical sections, and I had touch down that cost quite a bit of time, and I managed a 19.2km/h average on that, so this should be a fair bit quicker. 

I've decided I'm going to start keeping score for every time you mention the number of water bottle cages on a bicycle.

I'd love to know what percentage of your total post count are fixated on your bicycles ability to carry adequate liquids....

[DonatelloOnPinarello]

8 hours ago, Mountain Bru said:

Mate it's a race..... Ballztothewall from the gun or what's the point? ????

Thanks for the advice on the route. I have a proper bike with 2 bottle cages, so won't be weighing myself down with a camelbak. The Buffelsdrift Trailseeker had 200m more elevation and I suspect far more technical sections, and I had touch down that cost quite a bit of time, and I managed a 19.2km/h average on that, so this should be a fair bit quicker. 

Please report back here if you manage a finish anywhere inside the top 30places, or top 10 in your age category. Otherwise it’s a fun day out with likeminded people, an excuse to pig out at the braai later in the afternoon, and a bit of an opportunity to benchmark yourself against a bunch of other armatures having a laugh on the weekend. If it gets any more serious than that, then it just doesn’t sound like fun anymore. Also, camelbacks are great, try it, it might surprise you. ????????

[Jay F]

Beginner here. First event, doing the 40km half. Looking very forward to it!

[Mountain Bru]

2 minutes ago, Jay F said:

Beginner here. First event, doing the 40km half. Looking very forward to it!

Lekker man! Hope you have an awesome ride.

If it's your first event, my only advice would be to not get sucked into going too hard at the start, which can sometimes be very tempting when there's suddenly all these guys around you that are hammering or want to pass you, or that you think you're faster than. 40km is gonna be a few hours of riding, so try start at an intensity that you think you can hold the whole way, and if necessary speed up in the last 5 or 10km. It's much better to ride within your limits for 30km, and then push hard for the last 5 or 10km rather than ride over your limit for 10km, completely exhaust your legs, and then suffer for 30km.

[Jay F]

3 minutes ago, Mountain Bru said:

Lekker man! Hope you have an awesome ride.

If it's your first event, my only advice would be to not get sucked into going too hard at the start, which can sometimes be very tempting when there's suddenly all these guys around you that are hammering or want to pass you, or that you think you're faster than. 40km is gonna be a few hours of riding, so try start at an intensity that you think you can hold the whole way, and if necessary speed up in the last 5 or 10km. It's much better to ride within your limits for 30km, and then push hard for the last 5 or 10km rather than ride over your limit for 10km, completely exhaust your legs, and then suffer for 30km.

Cheers, thanks! 

That's exactly the plan, to start at a pace that I feel comfortable with and that I think I would be able to sustain the whole way. I'm not fussed with time or pace - I know I'm not going to be competing for the top spots. More about the experience and using it as a stepping stone to gain experience for bigger, longer races. 

[Mountain Bru]

3 hours ago, DonatelloOnPinarello said:

Please report back here if you manage a finish anywhere inside the top 30places, or top 10 in your age category. Otherwise it’s a fun day out with likeminded people, an excuse to pig out at the braai later in the afternoon, and a bit of an opportunity to benchmark yourself against a bunch of other armatures having a laugh on the weekend. If it gets any more serious than that, then it just doesn’t sound like fun anymore. Also, camelbacks are great, try it, it might surprise you. ????????

I shall gladly report back on my middle of the pack finish... maybe "upper" middle of the pack if things go well.... ???? 

I don't really care so much about winning or where I come though, but it is nice when you do well in your batch. It's more about giving it my best shot and emptying the tank for me when it comes to MTB races. If I wanted a leisurely ride around Rosemary Hill/Legends, I'd go there on any other weekend and save on the race entry fee. 

On the camelbaks... as Trashy pointed out, I've dug a deep trench in the "2 bottle cage" camp so I don't think I can change sides now. But also... I rode with a camelbak for many years when I first started out and my bike only had 1 cage... I thought it was great, until I got into road cycling and learnt about the joys of having nothing on your back and being able to see how much water your have left. 

[Danger Dassie]

Power weekend with events in Gauteng. Legends Trailseeker, Mini Munga 8hr and SOX Gauteng Enduro 1 series