2021 Rapha Festive 500

[Sid the Sloth]

I am aiming for Festive 500x2, I will mostly be around Knysna and then CT. It's 125km per day so about 4-5 hours depending on if I take road or gravel bike. Might cut down a bit from my usual elevation gain. Also need to chat to the coach!

[babse]

1 hour ago, Sid the Sloth said:

I am aiming for Festive 500x2, I will mostly be around Knysna and then CT. It's 125km per day so about 4-5 hours depending on if I take road or gravel bike. Might cut down a bit from my usual elevation gain. Also need to chat to the coach!

is everything okay? 🤨

[Spinnekop]

5 hours ago, Job said:

Plan is to start with the 9 loops at Klapperkop on the 26th then follow that up with 100 -150km daily MTB rides. Last year I did the same and my FTP shot up nicely for the Cullinan to Tonteldoos MTB Ultra in April.

We are still battling to get someone to open the gates for us that day.....and then of coarse the safety aspect is playing a big roll these days.

@River Rat might be able to help or advise or give hope?

[Spinnekop]

4 hours ago, _David_ said:

I'm in, will have to do some of the kms on the IDT. 

62.5km a day over 8 consecutive days during the festive season sound easy 🙂

 

 

IDT does not count towards Rapha500 (Dont' know these days but back in the day you had to go OUTSIDE).
The whole point of the Rapha500 is to have adventures and fun outside!

[Spinnekop]

1 minute ago, Spinnekop said:

IDT does not count towards Rapha500 (Dont' know these days but back in the day you had to go OUTSIDE).
The whole point of the Rapha500 is to have adventures and fun outside!

I see they have added "virtual rides" to the challenge this year.  

[Spinnekop]

This will be my 10 one.  Aiming to break my PB at 1034km for the 8 days.

The weather always plays a huge roll in this.  If you cannot do a 100 every day because it is pouring, then you have so much more pressure on the following days.
But it's always a fun challenge with the added benefit of good fitness and amazing friendships that gets formed over hours of faffing around on bikes.

[WIPEOUT 1000]

Unless Rapha brings back the little roundels, I'm not doing another Festive 500. 

[River Rat]

30 minutes ago, Spinnekop said:

We are still battling to get someone to open the gates for us that day.....and then of coarse the safety aspect is playing a big roll these days.

@River Rat might be able to help or advise or give hope?

The only hope is to contact Cedric Thenge of Nature Conservation 072 479 5553 I suggest that you  offer to have someone man the gate for the duration of your ride.

[Sid the Sloth]

2 hours ago, babse said:

is everything okay? 🤨

Coach has approved and girlfriend will find out… on about 28 December when I start complaining that my legs are tired!

[Frosty]

7 hours ago, ouzo said:

I'm working, so simply dont have the time for it, would love to give it a shot.

It works out to 62.5Km per day.
With an indoor trainer it’s possible to do double session days if you struggled with outdoors.

That said, there are 3 weekend days and 4 week days, so maximizing the distance on the Saturday to Monday can make it doable.
 

Last year, I did 140+33+140+140+0+0+52+40 as driving to the SW tip of Africa meant two days of no riding. I didn’t need to do the 40, as it was sewn up on the 30th.

This year I’m not targeting the 140Km rides and I’m not planning a ride on Christmas Day. 80-100Km sounds like a plan.

[Frosty]

8 hours ago, NotSoBigBen said:

I'm in ... probably just my normal training rides though 😜

Reading your post, and with the exception of getting out of town, I’m keen to do it without riding in the same roads more than once.
 

I can see myself planning some rides heading out N, NE, E, SE and S. Walkerville would be as far West of Al-berton, longitudinally speaking, that I would be going… probably works out to SW.

 

[NotSoBigBen]

9 minutes ago, Frosty said:

It works out to 62.5Km per day.
With an indoor trainer it’s possible to do double session days if you struggled with outdoors.

That said, there are 3 weekend days and 4 week days, so maximizing the distance on the Saturday to Monday can make it doable.
 

Last year, I did 140+33+140+140+0+0+52+40 as driving to the SW tip of Africa meant two days of no riding. I didn’t need to do the 40, as it was sewn up on the 30th.

This year I’m not targeting the 140Km rides and I’m not planning a ride on Christmas Day. 80-100Km sounds like a plan.

110+35+70+(45+10)+90+82+81+78

Thinking I might aim to do 500 this year, only on single speed ... but split between my SSR MTB and my SS 'road bike'. Do the longer ones on road and shorter ones on MTB

Could be a nice challenge

['Dale]

5 hours ago, babse said:

is everything okay? 🤨

Ja nee - is alles oraait by die huis, Sid 🥴

[NotSoBigBen]

So definitely having a go on SS only ... Lets see how it goes

Had to laugh, on a WA group I'm on there has been some robust discussion about this challenge and one of the comments was

'it's the Festive 500, not the Festive-Far-Further-Farfurtherest'

[Sid the Sloth]

I did not quite think this through and did 192km on the gravel grinder this morning... This is going to get interesting. 

[SwissVan]

On 12/8/2021 at 3:40 PM, WIPEOUT 1000 said:

Unless Rapha brings back the little roundels, I'm not doing another Festive 500. 

As a newby at this, whats a “roundel” ?