Big race prep

jgsi

Ok, Sunday is big race .. in that have trained specifically for it and used my racing thus far with this 1 in mind.
Making a 300 mile roundtrip with B&B as well, so not exactly a cheap trip out.

Checked Sunday's forecast and it is clear for the morning hours the race is on.

I'm now feeling 'too wound up' if thats the right expression... any got any of their own pre race tips to get the best out of your major event?

turnerjohn

JGSI wrote:

Ok, Sunday is big race .. in that have trained specifically for it and used my racing thus far with this 1 in mind.
Making a 300 mile roundtrip with B&B as well, so not exactly a cheap trip out.

Checked Sunday's forecast and it is clear for the morning hours the race is on.

I'm now feeling 'too wound up' if thats the right expression... any got any of their own pre race tips to get the best out of your major event?

pack well the night before, get a good night sleep, relax......oh and don't have spanish "beef" the night before !

wcrombie

preparation is everything. If you have everything covered (including mundane things like kit etc) and you are confident you have done everything necessary to achieve the result you want, then there is nothing to worry about. A bit of positive mental visualisation to help support all the above is also useful.

giropaul

Time trial or road race? Distance? Time of day of start.?

My advice would depend on these questions, to be specific for your event.

jgsi

wcrombie wrote:

A bit of positive mental visualisation to help support all the above is also useful.

I hear what you're saying ..

Plan of action is get down there to recce the circuit tomorrow.. scrub my new Vittorias in.. send the missus off shopping.. ( I have saved up the cash!) I have even pestered for an eary doors breakie on Sunday, so all the practical stuff is signed off
its road race/54 mile

this must not happen

giropaul

OK, 54 mile road race. Key things to me would be:

Make sure of the course - hilly, flat etc. Select cassette and maybe chainrings to suit.
Make sure you know where the HQ is
Check bag (licence, crash hat etc)
At least 2 pairs of prepared wheels (in case of flat whilst warming up)
If you're going up the day before, try to get a gentle ride in round the circuit, look for hazards, opoortunities to attack etc
CHECK OUT THE FINISH - exactly where it is, likely wind direction, pot-holes etc
Check the start list for likely winners, known early break attempters etc
Eat well the night before

On the day:
Breakfast at least 2hrs clear of start, 3 hours better (it's only 54 miles, so there won't be much steady riding at the beginning in all likelihood)
Get to HQ early, get sorted, get a good warm up - (54 milers can go from the gun)
Make sure you know where the race is actually starting (may not always be the HQ)
Your preferred energy regime before the start

Enjoy - hope it goes well for you.

jgsi

Cheers for that...
Decided to squeeze the 2nd bike in the car .. it's a flattish course by all accounts so , I knows the pace will be high from the off, guaranteed.
A few lads are also making the trip even though the Tom Simpson is on same day.
I am now going to do a turbo session .. pack the car later and watch the England match!

Herbsman

What are people's preferences when it comes to rides the day before a race? Should they be hard or easy?

okgo

I've done both, and I've found that the sweet spot is a fairly easy ride with a few efforts to get the HR up. I remember doing a 60 mi fairly brisk ride, then a fairly quick 50 mile RR the next day and I felt good for it.

On the flipside I've done races where I've not been out the day before, or even the day before that, and they haven't been great for the first 30 mins or so, which in a fast race is enough to see you dropped!

Eric Cartman

I find an easy ride the day before works best but attack a couple of hills to get the heart rate up. It is as much about making sure my bike is running sweet.

I usually struggle to sleep the night before, not being able to get to sleep used to worry me (and then that would make it more difficult to sleep) as i thought I would feel the effects the next day - as i would if i wasn't racing - but when racing I dont think that is the case so much. If anything my best results have been on the back of less than 3 hours sleep the night before!

glasgowbhoy

so, how did it go?

jgsi

Glasgowbhoy wrote:

so, how did it go?

All the advice about prepping the bike sweetly..
only managed to recce the course on the morning. As it was more than undulating, the 11-21 cassete had to go for a 12-25. That was swapped ok. Then as I was on lap 5 of 7 I admit to blowing as spectacularly as I have ever blown on a race.. game over.
it was only back at hq that I discovered that the front brake had been binding... to say that I was a little mad with myself that I hadnt loosened off the blocks after the last race on a smooth circuit is not really describing the language in my head - silly silly error.... apart from that the day/course/weather/organisation was pretty much perfect
.

amaferanga

Which race was it? City Road Club?

Herbsman

JGSI wrote:

Glasgowbhoy wrote:

so, how did it go?

All the advice about prepping the bike sweetly..
only managed to recce the course on the morning. As it was more than undulating, the 11-21 cassete had to go for a 12-25. That was swapped ok. Then as I was on lap 5 of 7 I admit to blowing as spectacularly as I have ever blown on a race.. game over.
it was only back at hq that I discovered that the front brake had been binding... to say that I was a little mad with myself that I hadnt loosened off the blocks after the last race on a smooth circuit is not really describing the language in my head - silly silly error.... apart from that the day/course/weather/organisation was pretty much perfect
.

I think I know which race you mean. I almost died 16 times!

Thing is, if it's the same one as you're on about, I did it last year and it was easy!

jgsi

Sorry forgot to say... LVRC on the Nettlebed circuit close to Henley.