The Mega - starting to have doubts...

miss notax

Hello

I'm starting to wonder if entering the Megavalanche this year hasn't been a serious case of misjudgement on my behalf.... :shock:

I'm an ordinary average kind-of mountain biker - I have good days and bad days, and am often found halfway up (or down) hills on the ground or swearing at my bike. I'm starting to wonder that maybe this isn't the event for normal people :?

Spent yesterday riding at Coed y Brenin - all good and lovely - and then planning to do the downhill trails at the Forest of Dean today. Spent yesterday on the Orange, and got the Minxy out today for the more gravity-biased stuff. Pushed my bike up to the top of the bloody hill, thought $&%! that looks steep, did one EXTREMELY slow and feeble section, thought my brakes felt a bit squishy and really wasn't feeling it So went back to the car, swapped bikes and helmets and did the xc trail instead whilst feeling like a proper failure

I'm really hoping that today was just a case of 'wooah - different bike!' as I have ridden FOD before and it was all good, but I am really panicking about the Mega. I like to challenge myself and this was kind-of along this vein, but at the moment i'm feeling like the flipping Marathon would have been a more sensible option :roll:

I have also realised that the Minxy needs to go on one hell of a diet - I guess starting with wheels is a sensible option?

Any helpful advice or virtual kicks up the bum and cries of 'snap out of it' welcome!

chazkayak

Virtual Kick up the arse.........MAN UP WET PANTS!!!!!

Helpful advice....... I did the Mega last year for the first time, I loved it!! Im not a vetran downhiller but you could call me a vet now as I just turned the big 40. There are some "dificult" sections on the course but a lot of it is...well....its a mix of everything. Steep, drops, boulders, loose rocky grassy meadows, a few up hills.

I rode a Scott Gambler staright out ofthe box (sort of) the seat post had benn cut down by a nugget so when I sat my knees were beating me in my chest. It was hard on the ups as it only had a single ring at the front and was too heavy.

BUt it was my firts Mega and im doing it again this year. If I had 4000euros I would be riding a Trek Slash.....long travel 160mm, light weight ish!! and two rings up front.

Go for it......dont be put off just cause you have a bad day.

The Northern Monkey

Which track at FOD?

miss notax

chazkayak - THANK YOU Very helpful advice (even the first bit ) and really good to hear your thoughts on it. Did you go through the same panics before it?? Some days i'm totally ready for it and can't wait, and other days (today ) i'm thinking OH MY GOD!!!!

The Northern Monkey - it was Corkscrew (fine but thought my brakes felt cr@p) and then Mr Rooty (which I have ridden ok before - in torrential rain - but this time had a huge girlie panic and walked most of it :oops: )

chazkayak

I was lucky and did five days training there before the qualifier/race. I was nervous at first but soon got over them when I realised my bike could suck up bigger hits than my XC bike. Some of the drops are very daunting but very doable.

I had nerves on race day, but I am very competetive so I put it down to pre race nerves as opposed to difficulty of terrain type nerves.

If you can get there a few days early and ride as much of the course as you can as many times as you can.

Should mention that I went with a few nates who had done the comp a couple of times before.

The Northern Monkey

To be fair, the roots do seem to have come through quite bad at FOD ( I was there on Saturday).. But the corkscrew isn't that steep!

Just need to get in as much practice as possible and you'll be fine, get confident with the bike you're taking and get to know its limits. If it was me doing it, i'd be spending 80-90% of my time on the bike I'm riding at the mega to make sure I'm used to it!
Have you tried any of the black runs at Cwmcarn? The top section is all rollable, but proper steep... much steeper than anything at FOD.

I'd be slightly worried if you're expecting the mega to be like FOD DH trails though, looking at the vids FOD is pretty tame in comparison!

miss notax

chazkayak - yeah, i'm also out there for 5 days before the event so i'm hoping that'll get me in the zone! None of us have done the Mega before though, which I guess is making it such a totally unknown entity (and neither of the lads are going to admit they're nervous about it, whereas I will happily admit that i'm bricking it )! I'm also quite competitive so i'm hoping I get my pre-race red mist which will see me through!

The Northern Monkey - corkscrew was fine, it was the rooty one after that which did for me I've also ridden the dh trail at Cwmcarn although I must admit I didn't try all of the optional trickier bits - they are on my list for next time. It's hard knowing what to expect from the Mega - i've watched all the video clips etc but they always flatten everything etc. I have ridden in the Alps before though (Morzine & Verbier) and got down the dh trails there, some more successfully than others, so I have a vague idea of what it'll entail.

I think you have hit the nail on the head with the bike though. I feel completely comfortable on the Orange but I don't know all the little quirks of the Minxy yet. Need to get out on her more. The problem is that riding the Minxy around here (the New Forest) is bloody hard work!! It's not the lightest bike - although I am looking to sort that a bit hence my post in Buying Advice

The Northern Monkey

Haha, well I'm riding the canyon (with all its 9 gears) round everything at the mo seeing as I don' have another.. Trust me you'll get used to the weight!
Either that or you'll just get fitter which will only be a benefit on the mega!!

miss notax

The Northern Monkey wrote:

Haha, well I'm riding the canyon (with all its 9 gears) round everything at the mo seeing as I don' have another.. Trust me you'll get used to the weight!
Either that or you'll just get fitter which will only be a benefit on the mega!!

Yeah, I think i've convinced myself that after the Mountain Mayhem (June) i'm tucking the Orange and the Santa Cruz up for a month and only riding the Minxy until the Mega (July) - it'll be a painful month but hopefully worth it!!

felix.london

I was speaking to guy who rode the Mega a couple of years ago and said this book was a real help;

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0736083715/ref=s9_simh_gw_p14_d0_g14_i1?pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=0AJV2PWFCER1XJWM2JAH&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=467128533&pf_rd_i=468294

Just ordered myself a copy

miss notax

felix.london wrote:

I was speaking to guy who rode the Mega a couple of years ago and said this book was a real help;

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0736083715/ref=s9_simh_gw_p14_d0_g14_i1?pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=0AJV2PWFCER1XJWM2JAH&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=467128533&pf_rd_i=468294

Just ordered myself a copy

Brilliant - it's my birthday in about a months' time, and it's now on the list!! Thanks

Andy B

Have you considered a skills course with Jedi @ UK bike Skills?

He will unlock all your potential and release skills you didn't know you had. He's so enthusiastic & well chilled, his coaching style will help your physical & mental skills progress at a rate you are comfortable with, some folks learn better by doing not reading so the book may not be of any use to you, then again it may be!

Well worth the money and journey to visit Jedi though, perfect birthday prezzie

miss notax

Good suggestion Andy, but I have already been Jedi'd - had I not been, there's no way I would be considering this craziness!!

Totally agree though, he really did change my riding dramatically

Andy B

miss notax wrote:

Good suggestion Andy, but I have already been Jedi'd - had I not been, there's no way I would be considering this craziness!!

Totally agree though, he really did change my riding dramatically

Send Tony an e-mail, I know he'd be happy to help with a few reminders of what you did on your skills course and maybe a few more helpful hints too.

'tis weird when you're on the trails & his voice pops into your head.. footwork...footwork...

ilovedirt

The best advice I could give you (having not done it myself) is to get super fit, especially your arms. I thought I was fairly fit, but raced at Rheola this weekend in the student champs. The track is under 5 minutes long for us mere mortals (the longest track I've ever ridden), under 4 for the pros, but after 4 practice runs on the friday and only two on race day (riding flat out) i was SHATTERED. Definitely work on your cardio, riding downhill is really tough when it's a long track, particularly on your thighs/calfs through the fast bits, and your arms as well. I had some serious arm pump after my race run, couldn't even take my gloves off! Definitely work on that, nothing worse than not being able to brake or hold onto the bars!

chazkayak

felix.london wrote:

I was speaking to guy who rode the Mega a couple of years ago and said this book was a real help;

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0736083715/ref=s9_simh_gw_p14_d0_g14_i1?pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=0AJV2PWFCER1XJWM2JAH&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=467128533&pf_rd_i=468294

Just ordered myself a copy

Ditto that book, mine just arrived from Amazon, picked up loadsa tips already.

ilovedirt wrote:

The best advice I could give you (having not done it myself) is to get super fit, especially your arms.

almost forgot about the pain, I was quite fit from lots of kayaking but still had to do lots of middle finger braking, I was finding it hard to hang on!!. You should look at doing quite a lot of weight training for the upper body, ideally for a couple of months before hand. Im lucky I get to do PT five days a week (not voluntarilly!!)

chazkayak

Will try to upload a video of my qualifier.

bennett_346

I have to say i agree that the videos make it look relatively easy.

chazkayak

uploded my qualifier run from last year

http://youtu.be/6N9G0XopbHU?hd=1

TOO LONG AAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGHYHYHHHH all i want to do is upload a video.

Jedi

miss notax, let me know how it goes. good on ya!

bennett_346

chazkayak wrote:

uploded my qualifier run from last year

http://youtu.be/6N9G0XopbHU?hd=1

TOO LONG AAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGHYHYHHHH all i want to do is upload a video.

Should of rode faster

mac_man

Sounds like a bit of a confidence crisis...
A day with somebody like Jedi to give you some final tips and that all important dose of MTFU might be just what you need.

All the best tho....

Mate of mine did it last year and thought it was epic.
Mind.... he is a regular podium finisher in the seniors category at UK DH events

His advice was 'take plenty of spares'.

chazkayak

bennett_346 wrote:

chazkayak wrote:

uploded my qualifier run from last year

http://youtu.be/6N9G0XopbHU?hd=1

TOO LONG AAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGHYHYHHHH all i want to do is upload a video.

should have rode faster

I was trying!!

bluechair84

How hard is it to enter and get into the Mega? I'm riding the route this summer, maybe next year could aim for the race...

chazkayak

Dead easy to enter.

Go on the website and choose you package. you get entry fee, or entry plus 3-4-5(somthing like that) day lift plass,

Theres no prerequisites or anything.

Just go do it!!!!!

felix.london

bluechair84 wrote:

How hard is it to enter and get into the Mega? I'm riding the route this summer, maybe next year could aim for the race...

I'm doing in next year too (well depending if I make it back in one piece from the Maxi this July :? )

bluechair84

I imagined it would be an event that sold out dead quick - you can't even get tickets for the damn Dyfi Enduro. Any idea how many can enter?

miss notax

Not sure how many people can enter actually.....!

We are booked with these guys http://www.summitdown.com/megavalanche as I wanted to take as much stress as possible out of it - accomodation etc included, they sort out the entry, make sure you're in the right place at the right time, cart you and your bike around in their van for the week before etc. Given Notax's pre-disposition for ending up in plaster or landing on his head every time we ride in the Alps, I thought it might be prudent :?

bennett_346

It wouldn't be the course i would worry about, it would be the 1000 angry french downhillers behind me!

Either way i am sure you are building it up to be more than it is. If you're gonna crash doing DH, this is the place to do it given the emergency response you would get

miss notax

bennett_346 wrote:

It wouldn't be the course i would worry about, it would be the 1000 angry french downhillers behind me!

Ahhh, the joys of being a girl.... There are only ever about 50 girls riding it (and I can pretty much guarantee that they'll all be in front of me )!

bennett_346

miss notax wrote:

bennett_346 wrote:

It wouldn't be the course i would worry about, it would be the 1000 angry french downhillers behind me!

Ahhh, the joys of being a girl.... There are only ever about 50 girls riding it (and I can pretty much guarantee that they'll all be in front of me )!

Don't worry, knowing french men they'll probably spend 5 minutes at the top ogling the 50 women that they wont realise the race has started..

#protips