mega avalanche questions

murfeey

would like to enter for next year,what type of bike is needed?full suss,hardtail ,downhill,tyres sizes too,also understand its quite gruelling anyone follow a training pattern for this type of event,any help or advice please.

cheers murf.

P-Jay

Not done it myself, but hoping to in 2012.

People have done it on all sorts, when I did some research it seems if you're looking to get a 'good' finish a full DH bike for qualifying and a 6" Am style bike for the race is about best - but if you're just looking to finish you've got a better chance of not getting a DNF if you use a DH bike for the whole thing.

Specific training is hard as it's not easy to get a descent anything like that long in the UK. I'm told the biggest killer is arm pump so on top of riding as much as possible perhaps some powerball or gripper training would be good.

I did find a 'how to' online which a rider wrote explaining how he set his bike up for the race, he also said he stripped the whole thing and rebuilt it using locktight and the correct torques on all the bolts as lots of people have technicals because shifters, levers etc rattle loose.

el loco pollo

Done it the last few years - some wankers use a DH bike for the quali and something lighter for the actual race but I think that goes against the spirit of the thing. I did it a couple of times on a DH rig but the last time I did it on an orange 5 with 36s and a CCDB and it was near perfect. Use DH tubes and big tyres, most run maxxis 2.5s but I have had success with conti rubber queen 2.4s. Not sure about specific training, I'm a fat bastard Good luck, it's great fun - and remember that a lot of it is pure luck, there is a lot of argy bargy during the qualis and the race itself, you will probably faceplant a few times! Take plenty of water.

Northwind

Never done the mega but people I know who have suggested that the only way to do on-bike training for it in this country is to head up to fort william... Apparently the red route is a reasonable match terrain wise and the gondola uplift means you can get in double figure runs (at 6km of descent a go) plus you can add the wc route if you want to up the abuse and difficulty. Makes sense to me, certainly nothing else I've ever done has beaten me up the same way. But you'll have to take it as it comes, I can't compare myself as I've only done the nevis routes not the mega.

jcdalton11

you guys with lifts are so lucky!

alitodd

6 - 7" is definitely where its at. As most of us mortals can't afford two bikes, get a do-it-all Enduro bike with a coil shock, a full face and a box of spares.

A tip if you're going to go for 160mm forks - BOS Deville forks are on offer at the moment - cheaper than Fox Van's! Screw arm pump, the BOS's would send you down on a pillow.

^just a suggestion.

thel33ter

alitodd wrote:

#A tip if you're going to go for 160mm forks - BOS Deville forks are on offer at the moment - cheaper than Fox Van's! Screw arm pump, the BOS's would send you down on a pillow.

^just a suggestion.

Where?????


A guy on here called 'supraman' did it last year, he used one of these with Lyrik Coil U-turns, the standard air shock, and 2.5 minions. He isn't crazy fit or anything, but got through the qualification easily.

alitodd

BOS? from their store. Through the exchange rate, they come out at £680... Bargain.

http://boutique.bosmtb.com/en/produits/p9-deville

Northwind

No danger of getting bummed by customs there is there? £750 in the UK which might bring with it other benefits

alitodd

Other countries in the EU = no import tax. Look it up on the Inland Revenue & Customs site.

You'd be buying directly from BOS, and they're top guys.

Northwind

alitodd wrote:

Other countries in the EU = no import tax..

Ah, cool. It wasn't so much import tax as VAT but I see that's covered too. Would you be able to do warranty work etc through the UK distributors? I've half promised myself a set out of my redundancy payout once I get a new job, assuming there's any left

alitodd

Warranty work? I'm pretty sure (if they broke) you'd be covered. The question is if they'd break - they're some of the most reliable forks out there.

thel33ter

Cheers, only spent £400 on my Wotans, so I'm not that annoyed, if they had been £550 or less..


:evil: :evil: :evil: :evil:

Northwind

alitodd wrote:

Warranty work? I'm pretty sure (if they broke) you'd be covered. The question is if they'd break - they're some of the most reliable forks out there.

Oh aye, I'm sure,- wouldn't buy them if I thought they were fragile, but anything can break after all. Cheers for the input!

alitodd

if they had been £550 or less..

Well if they'd been £550 or less, they'd send all the other companies bust instantly. Mind you, if you but the new Morewood Malaku, you get BOS Idylle and Stoy shock fitted to an incredible bike, all for about £4600. Bargain of the century, if you see what I mean...

rockmonkeysc

I would also like to do the mega one day.
I have got a Giant Trance X with 120mm travel & a On-One 456 Summer Season hardtail with 160mm travel. Could I do it on either of thes or will I need a bigger full sus bike?
I'm not super fit and won't be competative, just want to have a lot of fun & see what I can do.

hoochylala

For those interested in the BOS Deville there are some opinions and piccys here;

http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/t ... eville-yet

Oh and I would love to do the Mega one day....

alitodd

Rockmonkey SC - I reckon you could 'do it' on the 456, but your legs would be absolutely screwed by the end. The geometry on the Giant is too steep for this type of riding, based on the 65ish degree head tubes most people run.

If you want to do it that badly, grab a big bike. Its so much more fun when you haven't got to worry about your legs, and you can just concentrate on lines and not having your mech kicked out by some French nut.