Any one on here do much XC racing, if so what sort of distance do you need to beable to cover and how fast roughly to do quite well ranking wise?

Also what sort of bike/setup do you have?

Cheers

I would say around 2-3 hours, around 25-40 miles as a general rule. It can vary though. Enduro XC can be around 50-60 miles, or even 100 miles if you take the Kielder 100 as an extreme.

If you can average over 10 mph for over 3 hours of riding you will certainly do ok, faster for shorter events. This is all very dependent on course type off course. Racing the chilterns will give you far faster average speeds compared to somewhere like the Dyfi forest. Pros can easily acheive 14 mph average easilymind you. Depends what you want to acheive.

I have 2 carbon bikes, a hard tail and a full suss, both 100mm travel. I use full suss for enduro’s and the like (unless I know its not a hard course, like Sherwood Pines area) and the hardtail come’s out for trialquests/MTBO events that can have a fair amount of road in them.

Thats my 2 peneth….

I do some. Short course 45 mins/ 1 hour.
For that I come straight over from road racing, and I ride off road once a week to keep my skills 🙄 hand in.
I didn’t start until I was 50 and got 11th place overall in my first race. Though I’d fall back sharply on very technical courses.
(though only an average road climber, I will make places on off road climbs)

Pace is hellish (if you want it to be)at first then it settles into a tactical race IME.

Bike wise, just a 26″ wheeled standard XC hardtail, flat bars. I use locked out forks to help with a quick getaway, then hit the switch for suss for the rest of the race.
My bike cost under £100.

Find a local race, enter Fun and see how it goes. You could always start in Open if you want more laps, but it will be faster. Depends how fit you are already.

There are races all over these days – Southern, Midlands, North, South West and Eastern all have their own series. XCRacer.com is a good place to check out a calendar.

GB

Some are quite short- some of the more techy SXCs are only about 18 miles, but I’ve done “short” XC races up to about 35.

As for speed, it’s all relative. I’m sure I’ve got a lower average speed from my races that I’ve done in Scotland than someone who races at Gorrick or Thetford all the time. You just need to be faster than everyone else, which needs training.

I’ve not ridden these short races for a few years now, but when I did I did them on a Scott Scale. Full sus has no place, especially if you race in England. Sub 2 hours, hardtails are faster, and I’d agree with flat bars- time’s made on the climbs, get bar ends on there.

I now race Enduro stuff, though, and ride full sus because after about 2 hours I find the bike beats me up too much on a hardtail.

I’d echo Gee’s advice, just try it. No amount of analysis of speed or distance or whatever will mean anything, just give it a go. Bike wise, ride what you have.

It’s good fun.

Nothing to add to the above except:

😀

Gorrick’s are usually under 15 miles, and something lightweight would be the best bike.

What age are you, as some classes are quite ‘competitive’ – the Vets for one. We finished at the back to start with, and by the 2nd year had progressed to half-way down.

I was in the same position as you a few weeks ago. I’m reasonably fit and raced in the gorrick in the vets. Loved it. Hard work with an average heart rate of 170bpm. Did alright I think, finished 25 out of 64. Just enjoy it, that’s Tue main thing.
ride a carbon bmc hardtail BTW.

Well like you say think ill just give it a go, what harm can it do.

In answer to your question i’am 27, sort of fit depends on what you measure it against
Ride twice a week 15mile minimum, 1&1/2 Thai boxing once a week then gym session once a week. But like you say until you try you won’t know.

Based in oxforshire so will try and fine some thing in the midlands.

There’s a Southern XC tomorrow just north of Reading, before you change your mind 🙂

Full sus has no place, especially if you race in England. Sub 2 hours, hardtails are faster, and I’d agree with flat bars- time’s made on the climbs, get bar ends on there.

What a daft thing to say! Depends on so many things, personal choice, one is not better than the other, irrespective of which country you race in 🙄

I lugged a Scott Spark around Thetford and it was horrible. While in, say, Laggan or Fort William it’d make a lot of sense.

Luke, just cos a bike feels slow or fast, doesn’t mean it is.

Tests have shown full suspension can feel slower while actually riding faster.

I thought you had a science degree?

Yes because Thetford, one of the two flattest courses in the country, is totally representative of English courses 🙄

Personal though, even there, there are few courses I’m quicker on a hardtail. But my fs does weigh less than many hardtails, so it’s not really a handicap.

If it’s something you think you want to give a good go at doing as well as you can and you say you do a reasonable amount of excercise every week don’t start in Fun. Sport is the place to start as there are plenty of riders who should be in Expert to see how quick you really are and if it’s something you want to do more of.
Oh and the lightest bike you own and then thinking carefully about what you need to change or buy if your going to stick at it.

yeah, if i have a go. i will want to try as hard as i can. at the minute only have an orange five 1×10.

have been looking at building a cheap 29er hardtail but looks as if a carbon or alloy 26er frame and building it up using bits and exsiting wheels might be the way for now.

living round here and working x amount, means not getting the time to travel to get the time in on the five.

Why not just enter something on your 5 to see if you actually like it? No offense, but based on your activity levels I doubt you’ll be trouncing everyone in sight.

trouncing? none taken.

just wondered really managed 50th on the tour de ben nevis last year first race ever entered and turned out i had 2 broken fingers from doing skyline the week before.

decsion made just give it a bash see what happens! cheers for all your input.

A couple of years back there were a few Elites riding 5s. Don’t let all the talk about having to have a hardtail put you off.

Tests have shown full suspension can feel slower while actually riding faster.

Yeah. Years back they did back to back testing on the old Sandwell 24 course. A pretty mixed and definitely a bumpy course IIRC.
The riders were players at the time, and each thought they’d gone quicker on their hardtails. When in reality the short travel sussers were faster every time.

Op. until you get near being a contender I’d stick with what you have, of course you don’t have to. Short races IME are pretty out and out, you don’t get time to look at the bike or ponder it’s characteristics.

I started racing a couple of seasons ago. Gave fun a go and by the end of the year was placing reasonably high up, this was on a steel hatdtail, not the best tool for the job. This season I managed to pick up a 09 anthem and have switched to the open cat, tend to be in top third. I would say I,m a fast recreation rider, rarely overtaken at trail centres and the like, but compared to the fast boys you,d think I had lead in my wheels.

One bit of advice I,d give is learn to let the fast guys go. Yes you can keep up for 20 mins or so but they can keep that pace up for 90 mind!! Had a couple of painful races learning that lesson! I much prefer endurance events over short course and I place much better. Not sure why.