Considering some races

[ssnoobie]

Hello,

As my name i mplies I am fairly new to this sport. I am by nature not a very competitive person, but I enjoy being around people that share my interests in cycling. So far the only organized cycling events I have done have been road century rides and the Vermont 50 (as a sweep). There are a couple of races that are local to me, and I am considering trying some out this year. I figured it would be a good way to get out and ride some different trails with some equally obsessed cyclists.

The races I am looking at are the coyote hill race in west fairlee and the pinnacle race in Newport (maybe some others if I like the coyote hill race).

I would likely ride my single speed either in the novice class or the single speed class.

Can you do both in a day, or are you limited to racing in one class? I only ask because in my former life as a motorcyclist t was pretty normal for people to bring multiple bikes and race multiple classes.

What is the race environment like? Is it a pretty friendly environment, or do people keep to themselves?

My training consists of daily rides, with no real target or goal other than to get out every day (this time of year is a little difficult, but the trainer helps a lot). The race distances sound very managable especially if you dont mind coming in DFL.

Any info you could give me would be great.

ssnoob

[Slider]

Ssnoobie - Go for it. Racing is a lot of fun, and you get all the benefits you outline. You ride in new places, you meet new people, and you learn a lot about your own conditioning. Learning to pace yourself is the biggest early lesson. That part took me a few years, and I never really got it down.

I dunno if I'd go single speed. I'm guessing the classes would be pretty small. For the most part, the more people in your class, the better. In any case, do not try to ride two classes. For one thing, unlike motos, several classes are on the course at the same time. Maybe if you clone yourself... For another thing, proper pace pretty much means you are used up by race end. Collapsing at the finish line gets extra points. ;)

Try to get someone to share the drive. You wouldn't want to, say, hurt your knee, and be unable to drive home. And you GOTTA bench race in the car afterward.

It has been a few years since I raced, and I don't know either of the races you mention. In general, I would save the tough climb-oriented ones until you get some experience. Pace is everything, and more so when you head straight up Mt. Snow right off the gun. That race always killed me.

In general, I preferred EFTA over NORBA races. If you pay the money, more is better, to a point, and EFTA races are/were longer.

Carry all the tools you need to fix a flat, broken chain, and bent wheel. CO2 is good, your call on whether to carry one or two tubes. Weight is bad.

One tip: hydrate massively, starting three days before you race. Some say you are only sufficiently wet if you have to wake up to pee twice the night before the race. No hard rides - meaning no lactic acid pains - starting Thursday beforehand, latest.

I got the pre race butterflies just remembering all this. I had a lot of fun, and have some great memories. Maybe that Wompy race late this year....

Slider

[ssnoobie]

Thanks for the info.

I will most likely give it a try. The other race I was thinking of was the putney/west hill race.

I chose the three races I outlined because they are basically within 30-60 minutes of my house, and would make traveling time a relatively small part of the experience.

I was going to take the singel speed because my geared bike is a 30 pound beater hardtail. Not XC race material. My single speed will likely come out in the 23 pound neck of the woods. Still not light, but better.

Thanks again for the info.

SSnoob

[mybluebike]

The coyote hill race was a great course last spring although it was really, really muddy. There were some single speeder's there. There seemed to be at least a handful at all the Root 66 races last year. I do know of at least one guy that rode the singlespeed class and then jumped into the expert xc class in several of the races. Not sure how the scoring works in that case though. Singlespeed usually ride with the sport class.

I started racing 3 seasons ago and immediately got hooked. The atmosphere is super friendly and hanging out with a whole crowd of people with the same interests is pretty cool.

You can check out the Root66 series at:
root66raceseries.com

[ssnoobie]

I will likely try it. Do you know if the course is laid out on public trails? I live pretty close to west fairlee, and it would be nice to preride the course.

I have stepped up my training int he hopes of not losing my fitness level too mych before the spring. I think my training will consist of riding the trainer and cross country skiing, at least until the snow thins enough to get my bike back on the trails.

Thanks for the encouragement.

SSnoob

[Slider]

Preriding is definitely a great idea. It really helps to know when you can hammer, and when to rest, and where the good lines are.

I'd recommend starting in Beginner, but Sport might be OK if you are pretty fit. For me, Sport meant 8 hours/week on the bike, minimum. Even then, I didn't make much headway on the climbs compared to the rest of the field. Ideally, I'd have done 12 hours, with an eye toward Expert. I never made that commitment, though.

It all depends on how far you want to take it. Never lose sight of the fact that you are doing it for fun.

Slider

[ssnoobie]

I will definitely try the beginner class to start.

I am currently training for a century, and when coyote hill comes around, I should have a couple of hundred trainer miles in along with whatever outdoor saddle time I could manage.

I am definitely approaching this from an out there to enjoy myself standpoint. THat is why I was/am considering riding in two classes (beginner and single speed). I figure if I explode in one of the classes nothing lost. At lesat I got some more saddle time.

We will see.

I am going to try to get in touch with the folks that run the coyote hill race to see if the trails are open to the public.

Thanks again,

SSnoob

[splat]

I also did the Coyote Hill race last year ! was a great course , had a couple killer climbs , But lots of fun!

make sure you warm your self up Good before the race . coyote Hill starts with a long climb , not super steep like a couple ofthe other climbs but Looooong! but then dumps you into some really sweet single track !