Dirty Reiver 2023

Interesting video from DJ. Unbound isn’t as hilly as DR but there’s potentially 30 -60 minutes of saving here I reckon!

Not watched it ^^^ but do they report that a barrel bar bag and bum bag make you extra aero?!

Hmm, so i supposed to be doing the 130km DR on the 22nd, however, a long term back injury means my (flat) 30 mile ride yesterday was my first none e-bike ride for about 4 months. It felt like id never ridden a bike before it was that tough. So whats the odds i can get fit enough to complete it in the space of under 3 weeks?? Some serious miles may be needed over the BH weekend….

Training has mainly consisted of indoor sessions as work and weather has been getting in the way but now I have watched the video I am not so worried. Aero socks, USWE pack and riding on the drops will give me a 30w ftp bump so happy days!

Have managed to drop a few Kg since xmas and according to Trainerroad FTP is still going up so things seem to be trending in the right direction. Feel like I am in a similar position as when I started the bike Transalp last year but am safe in the knowledge I won’t have to contend with 35degrees on the event. A bit nervous but should get round.

Bike has just had a full strip down and should be able to get out a couple of times this next 2 weeks. just to give it a proper shake down.

@stumpy01 YES!!! 🤣🤣 Well not the bar bag but the bum bag does 😱

Route GPX files are now up on the Dirty Reiver website

This was our training ride from the weekend… I’m not Dan, but the other bloke.

Nice one 👍🏻 I watched that yesterday 😃

Dan is annoyingly good on the gravel bike. I was hoping he was gonna struggle 🙂

Yeah! I was impressed with his 299w 2h reliability ride too 🤩

just loading up the route and the elevation looks very low at only 2400m and the route is less than 200km.

Anyone else finding similar in Garmin Connect?

I’ve got 196km and 2880m on Komoot.

Strava is giving 122.7 miles and 12500’ I think 🧐

https://www.strava.com/routes/3078085483868699322

I downloaded the route from strava and put it in Garmin and it cuts the elevation. Really odd!

After watching the aero gains video I was thinking about doing away with my bar bag but the info provided says number has to be on display out front so that will shelter the bar bag so no additional losses!

It would be interesting to see their CdA data applied to the DR course. My hunch is that the greater amount of climbing means that the slower speeds will make aero slightly less important V the Unbound course which is obvs longer and flatter.

I still can’t decide which bike to ride. The second bottle cage and easier tool-storage is probably leaning me back to the Diverge at the moment even though I ‘know’ the full-sus xc bike will be less fatiguing.

Switching from a strategy of not stopping at all, to one of stopping at every rest-stop, makes it seem almost easy 🤣 I’m pretty sure I can do 2.5hrs on one 750ml bottle and a soft-flask full of sugar (making the Diverge bike choice less important). Would just have to pack enough spare sugar to top them up each time.

I’m doing it with a lighter mate this year and I’m already having mixed emotions about that. On the one hand, it will be nice to share the driving and have his camper to sleep in. But on the other, I really do enjoy being by myself 🤣
And on the ride, he will be bored and find it easy at my climbing pace. Even mid/high tempo for me is only 3.1w/kg which means he’ll be riding at 220w (his mid Z2) and I’ll be doing 300! Over 12500′ of climbing, that’s a big difference in energy expenditure.

Once again, I find myself approaching a DR wishing I hadn’t bothered training and had just starved myself instead 🤣

I’m in two minds what to do about feed stops. I’d love to skip the first feed station, but 103km is a long way to get on two bottles.

Ride with GPS gives me 2930m of climbing

In a similar situation to you @crosshair. If I ride with Dan from the video above, he can murder me on the flat, but I’ll be waiting for him on every hill. So I’m pretty sure we’ll end up splitting up. I’m in group of 5 though, so hoping at least a couple of us can stick together.

Yeah it’s tricky. I have no doubt he’ll be happy to have a wee stop at the top and wait for me, or pacing himself alongside me- but that will make me feel worse 🤣

On our century last Sunday, he was flagging a bit and he nearly bailed out onto the backroads. Then we hit a drag of a climb and he ended up in the light-guy group up the road 🤣 I was gutted as I knew I was fresher but couldn’t muster up the power to close the gap.

Last years DR was annoying with the crosswinds too as I couldn’t unleash the full amount of potential energy on the descents. I was basically dragging myself up massive hills just to create the impetus to wear out brake pads 🤣
And of course, the route is miraculously devoid of any flat sections whatsoever 🤣

The first feed stop usually looks really busy with all the short course traffic too- I must have a think about that and perhaps take a ‘disposable’ bottle in my jersey to at least get to #2.

Can I ask how tight people would say is too tight for clearance.

Been running 35/38’s on my cross bike and was planning on using it but on Friday I was out and got a big cut on one. My local shop had no stock but did have a pair old Vittoria terrine dry in the spare box which they kindly gave me to try. They seem to be coming up a bit bigger than the old tyres and there is maybe 1mm spare.

Am I asking for trouble having such tight clearance? If the wheel goes at all out of true I could be in trouble trying to get it rolling!

Have tried posting a pic but have never figured out how to do it with this site

I guess the danger is a stone jamming and damaging the frame or fork. Or any kind of mud if it’s remotely wet.

that’s my thought,
are 35mm on the lower limit of width for comfort?

I mean I guess that’s up to you 😀

I can’t say I found it harder going on 38’s than 42’s but that probably means I could have run the 42’s at a lower pressure.

its more understanding the terrain/surfaces.

I rode the SDW a few years ago on 35mm tyres and I felt like I had been kicked the full 100 miles so want to avoid that feeling!

It’s a variety of gravel. There’s only usually a minimal amount of savage baby-heads. Most is pretty fine or well compacted. The sheer duration does make it fatiguing though.

I’m on 45s. Only because that’s what the bike came with.

Talked myself into buying a 38t front ring today to help my legs with the climbing. I figured it might be a bit more spinny in places but can cope with that whereas I am fearing the climbs. It will play on my mind if I struggle on the climbs and I didn’t make this change.

I was hoping to do my longest ride this weekend, prior to the event but have caught the cold that my Wife & daughter have had for the last 10 days or so. Pretty peeved about that as the weather was great today and I’ve been getting good miles in.
Just hoping it doesn’t linger long & I can get a few more good rides in and be fully recovered for the Reiver.

I run 38mm tyres and notice a huge difference in how the bike rides and how fatigued I feel to what pressures I run. I think 30 psi front and 35 psi rear is what I’ve found to be best for my 80kg mass.

1mm tyre clearance is too tight IMO, my wheels can move more than that when riding out the saddle.

1mm is too tight. I think you’d risk the rubber hitting the frame on rough stuff or hard cornering as well as the mud and stone issues.

I rode the back 100km of the route on Friday. It is firm and relatively dry/hard. Last year I rode it on 35mm and it was tough. There are lots of chunky sharp stone section and some very fast descents where a bit of insurance is good. Nothing mtbesque but on 35s I ran firm to make sure I got round. Replaced my cross bike since then and can now run a 42mm, which I am doing. Slicks or limited tread (gravel kings SKs)

Thanks all,

panic over just had a rummage and found a pair of schwalbe G One 35mm in the garage so have stuck them on. Might be slightly less comfortable but I survived the SDW on them so think I will be ok.

Have Tuesday off so will try and get out for a decent spin to see how they feel

Another nice video and training ride @benman 💪🏻 😀

Are you feeling prepared?

I’m getting nervous now that my switch in tactics may not pay off 🤣
The lack of big training rides I did last year is leaving me lacking in confidence a bit so I hope the pay off is less fatigue.

I did a 5h13 Road century on Saturday but it’s not the same as a proper simulation ride.

@alansd1980
It’s not a universally popular opinion so take it with a grain of salt, but I just noticed above that you have an xc bike option.

Unless you’re planning on sub 8hrs- I honestly believe the xc bike will be the faster choice.

I’m still yet to do my final bike selection test rides. But if my gravel bike had 35’s I wouldn’t even be choosing- it would 100% be the XC bike.

@crosshair I don’t know what else we could have done to prepare, so I’ve got to hope I’ll be okay! I’ve never ridden 200k before, so we’ll see. I still had a bit in the tank after 100 miles. Hills are my thing, so if there are fast flat bits, that’s where I will suffer (And where I will be hiding in the draft…)

One thing worrying me is that I don’t have a power meter on the gravel bike. I’ll be riding to HR, which I don’t have as much experience with.

Look at the profile- there’s no flats 😭 😭 🤣

The closest you’ll get is a headwind downhill 🤣

If it helps, my HR has been mid Z2 average both times.
You’ll be able to climb within yourself all day so should have plenty in reserve for the non-uphill parts 🤣👍🏻

@Crosshair

I have been thinking similar, last year did lots of mile on the XC bike and did 8+ hour days for a week non stop so know the position should be ok for 10+ hours.

My XC bike is probably as light as my gravel bike so it’s maybe just sensible to bite the bullet.Its also got a 52 at the back which will probably help towards the end of the day!

I have all day tomorrow for a last shake down ride and had planned an on road route but maybe accepting I am no racing snake and the comfy bike will be best is sensible!

Watch how fast the dude towards the end of this 2019 vid went on an XC Bike 😉 (I think it’s my strava-crush Harold Evans who did it in 6h53m44s 😱)

The guy in the video said he won but on chip time- Harold beat him 😎

I truly don’t think it’s a “slower” option 🧐

(Although Harold won it in 2021 with a time of 6h44m39s on a gravel bike so who knows 😉 🤣🤣 )

Insanely, his time in 2022 was 6h44m54 😱 That’s pretty bonkers how close it was over such a long course.

This must be one of the few videos I haven’t watched on the trainer!

Best part of it is that bounty bars can be energy food!

More I think about it you are probably right, I am a plodder. Not very fast but never give in. Am expecting to be riding for probably 11ish hours if I am honest with myself.

Trouble is for me, I got a gravel bike, then ‘found’ Dirty Reiver in order to do something gravelly on it 🤣
It feels insulting to my Diverge if I finally give in and admit I had a better option in the shed all along 😱 🤣🤣

I am in exactly the same position!

Have a lovey Lynsey CX bike and it mainly gets used for winter road duties and commuting but think this kind of event is what its made for so trying to make it work!

Really glad you made the suggestion!

Best part of it is that bounty bars can be energy food!

until you spend 90km trying to get a sodding bit of coconut out a gap in your teeth, and it’s so distracting you forget where you are and what you are doing and then don’t eat anything else and bonk 😂

Weighing up the pros and cons, the big pro for my Diverge is storage. It has the room on the frame and plenty of mounts for infinite handy variations of bags, bottle cages and the SWAT box in the frame for tools.

However, now I’ve done the “Dirty Reiver non-stop” thing, I only need to ride for 2.5h max between feed stops.
On Saturday I did 5h on 1x 750ml bottle and 2 x 250ml soft bottles with sugar in them- more than enough to get the MTB to feed 1 or 2.

Then the only advantage left in the Diverge column is that I love riding it and have done about 90% drop-bar miles this year.

But to counter that, I did a 70mile road ride on the MTB the other Saturday and wasn’t achy or uncomfortable afterwards 🤦🏻‍♂️🤷🏻‍♂️🤣

It’s going to come down to a coin toss in the end isn’t it 🪙 #firstworldproblems 🤣😀😀