I'm doing mega for first this year I have posted about this before, my orange five is last of 26" it's a pro but whole thing has been upgraded Fox talas 160mm, shock is float x ctd has xt crank with 34t hope chain ring plus guide, xtr shadow plus rear mech, reverb post, carbon seat, short stem and wide bars, hope tech two brakes,four piston calipers, ztr arch wheels hope hubs, bike is well serviced.
As it's first time don't want to buy expensive new bike and trash it out there ,was just going to buy bigger brake discs, and duel ply tyres. Thoughts welcomed any tips and advice to
Unless you have history with overheating brakes I wouldn't bother getting bigger discs. Supergravity Schwalbe's are lighter than any dual ply tires but plenty tough enough.
If you want a good result get as fit as possible for an hour of intermittent sprinting (starting at altitude!). It's much easier to pass people on the climbs which there's plenty of once you're off the glacier, and while the qualifier favours skilled DH riders and is hard to pass on, the main race favours fitter riders a lot more in terms of passing oppportunities. Mainly though, have fun and be prepared for all kind of random crashes/mechanicals!
Cheers thekettle I'll look in to those tyres,rear discs is worn anyway, and on long descents do get slight fade
Your bike will be fine. Good points made above. Fitness is the key.
I would maybe get your brakes checked/serviced, I used a new set of hope tech v2 when I did the mega, they were awful, totally faded half way through qualifying my mate also used hopes m4s and had trouble, could be a coincidence but nothing worse than crap brakes.
Enjoy the trip. You will love it.
Definitely use dual ply tyres SG Shcwalbes are not tough enough. A puncture in the qualifying will ruin your chances of getting into the main race.
Last year I ran tubed Super Gravity Hans Dampfs on my Orange Alpine for a month in the alps, including the Megavalanche. Only managed to get one puncture the whole trip! Even so, the added weight of tyres will be nowhere near as annoying as a puncture during the race, so thicker is probably better.
Would third advice on brakes and fitness. Improving your endurance/sprinting ability will have 100 times more positive effect on your finishing position than your equipment, but it’s always nice to be able to stop.
You will probably find that you get stuck in a big traffic jam on any and every singletrack section, use the time to save energy and then sprint past a few at every possible occasion. Ride the quali track lots and look for passing places. Feet up, stand up on the snow. The tripod technique is overrated.
Ms Rickmeister is doing the Mega on a 5 as well, also the 26" version of 2008ish vintage. All on original stuff.
Its on Hope M4 brakes with the phenolic pistons, floaty discs and Dot 5.1 silicon fluid. She hasnt mentioned any fade issues after many Alps trips with this set up and isnt changing for the race this year..
Edit:
Just remembered, will be putting a 32 front ring on for the cheeky climbs..