Just cut the bottom 1/4 off a perfectly good pair of waterproof trousers in preparation for charging/slogging around the west coast on Saturday.

Whose gonna be there and what’s your top tip for this big day oot?

Don’t beast it up the first road climb.
Watch out for the water bars on the Mamore descent.

Very much as above.

If you puncture, run/carry down don’t stop to fix, it just wastes time.

Also mentally prepare yourself for the carry section after the river crossing. If you think you’re reaching the top, you are not.

Will be there. Still can’t decide whether to take FS for comfort or light HT for speed on the big landie tracks.

One of them teeny cans of coke to pick you up after the hike a bike from hell stage!

Did it last year.. all good suggestions above. The 2 that stick in my head are the waterbars on the mamore decent and the hike a bike.. be prepared for a lot of false tops! You’ll need something sugary or some food after the hike as its tough..

Can’t wait, coming up with 3 other mates. Just looking to enjoy a big day out!

Done it a couple of times and above advice all good. Don’t go too fast on the first climb and blow up like I did first time around. Pace yourself

If it’s cold, take a pair of waterproof socks to put on after the river crossing. Your shoes will be wet but your feet dry and toasty while you carry your bike up the hill. Make sure you have crossed the little stream after the main river first though 🙂

Hi guys,

All very good advice there.
As far as spares goes, apart from the obvious tubes etc, a quick link for the chain is a must!…and make sure you have a chain splitter.

The advice of taking it easy on the road is good, because as I recall from last year, the road was a total walk in the park compared to the rest of it!

oH, and remember to keep drinking and munching :O)

Bob

LOL @ ScoobysM8 – that’s exactly what my mate did, with a flourish after river crossing he changed into dry warm socks, felt somewhat defaulted when he got to the next stream ::)

First one was an interesting river crossing, to say the least. All manner of crossing methods, use bike as support, carry bike over head, water depth and strength was challenging..

Thoroughly enjoyed it though, went for warm though not waterproof clothing, seemed to work very well. Rather than full-on waterproofs that you just boil in.

Was chummying a mate that wasn’t on top form so it was basically a long spin out with other bikers rather than a race for us. Which was fine, caught up with a number of folk I hadn’t seen for years. Excellent.

It’s a route that lends itself well to racing like a nut or just cruising for fun.

Make sure you keep eating, and make sure you warm up a bit before pressing on after the river crossings. I failed to do both of these and lost about 20 mins to cramps.

And I have a cold virus. Gutted to not be ble to go.

could be worse. it could be that last weekend you were working, when the race wasn’t so you couldn’t take part but today, waking up and thinking where you could go, you see this thread and think – that can’t be right.

and they say i’m not the sharpest tool in the box!

lesson one, never cut thy waterproofs down in vein. cutting those trews down was your sign of commitment and should have been your reason to man the f up and not wimp out cos of a runny nose !