Lessons Learned From Lodi VII to Lodi X

I apologise to Cornershop for blatant plagarising the title. Anyone interested check out



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKimNdqZ3Z8



Smashing!!



Anyway, hardly an expert on this "marathon" mtb-lark but I have learne a thing or two, either directly through bitter experience or vicariously watching other poor buggers suffer like dogs. So here goes, few "words of wisdom" to avoid some of the worst horrors for anyone attempting a long mountain bike race for the first time!



Lesson One - Lube Up or Die!



A very painful lesson learned on my first foray into endurance mtb fun. 2005 and the 7th edition of 12 Hours of Lodi Farm. My first solo 12 hour race. I'd never really ridden for more than about 3 hours before and never bothered to lube up the private bits. So even when the guy camped next to me offered lube I declined - BIG MISTAKE! Warm nights lots of cycling, sh#t loads of sweating and by mornign my backside felt like it had been sand-blasted! Let's put it this way - bathroom tissue was not even an option for three days, lots of showers! And I had to use a "doughnut" to be able to drive to work. Oh yes lube is good!!!!

Now if (like me) you are a cheap SOB then expensive bike specific lube seems a bit of a freakin' luxury. Fortunately in 2005 I had a child in diapers - so lots of Desitin about the house - let me tell you this stuff rocks. Thick as axel-grease and about as water-soluble, one liberal application lasts a good 12 hours and you'll still have trouble washing the stuff off when you get home. And if you look at the ingredients - titanium oxide! The bloody stuff is made of titanium!! What biker is going to pass that up.

Lesson Two - Don't Panic!!

You know what, yep this is a race, but it's a bloody long race! That's why it's called endurance racing! So try and control your exuberance and don't hurtle off in the first 30 min like it's a normal Sunday ride. You'll have many unhappy hours to reflect on your mistake. Curb your enthusiasm - first hour is warm up. Last place is fine, far better to spend the next 11 hours passing people than being passed.

Lesson Three - Expect the unexpected

This is a cliche I know, but whilst some cliches are cliches cos they sound good, some are cliches cos they are worthy of repeating and repeating. I always plan like a beast and still am always blindsided by what can go wrong during a long race. In my 6 years mountain biking I have broken precisely one chain! When? Lap One of Lodi 2005!!! Did I have a chain tool? Did I F#*K! So I had to run the last 3 miles of my first ever lap in an endurance race just to get back to my car, so I could mend the damn thing. How often have I broken a seatpost? Yep once! When? Lap two of Lodi 2008, kin fantastic.

Basically shit will happen! Get over it already and just do your best - see lesson two! The race is long, even a lost 30 min-1 hour is not the end of the world. Be calm and try and sort the problem - if you can't then hopefully you have tent pitched at the start/finish and a cooler full of beer!!

Plan as much s you can but then just relax and go with whatever fate throws at you. If you have a incident free race then raise a "cold one " to the MTB-gods at the end cos they have smiled upon you - THIS TIME!

Lesson Four - Carry back up lights!

If the race has night riding you basically can not have too much redundancy when it comes to lights! Beg, borrow (even steal) your friends lights to make sure you have more than you can ever imagine needing. More races are spoiled due to light failure than just about anything else. Your light dies you are toast!! I would strongly recomend a cheap battery powered headlight (an EverReady unit from Target $10). Stick it in your hydration pack. If your light packs up midride you at least have a light to use to try and diagnose the problem. And if your light is just plain screwed it will provide just enough light for you to limp out of the woods and back to basecamp (where hopefully you have your backup system ready and waiting).

Hopefull wise words

Get out there and ride long!

DogzBollux