Thanks for checking back, I appreciate it!
Rightio, I apologise for the lack of updates but I was surprised by the dire lack of time between laps. Well, there was 3 hours, but the time just disappeared. Plus there was the little matter of needing sleep, eating, etc.
Anyway, after my flying first lap (well not so flying compared to the elite guys), Matt took off, followed by Paul then Andrew.
I got the last daylight lap at 5PM, then started getting ready for my double lap at 8PM (ish).
It sure was delightful sitting campside in Canberra, not too cold, as the sun went down and the rider’s lights came on. Hundreds and hundreds of lights, white and red, merrily twinkling away on the side of the hill, along the ridgelines and next to our camp (we managed to score a spot trackside). I’ll never forget the sight of these pretty determined mountainbikers wending their way, wrestling and overcoming, along the track so long as I’ll live. It was magic.
Andrew rolled in around 8.30PM and off I took for a double lap. Almost immediately I was too hot as I forgot that riding in the bush isn’t like riding in the wind on the road – you keep much warmer.
About halfway through my first lap, disaster struck. Stromlo is very rocky in places, with pinch flats a common occurrence at race pace. It’s the worst sound – “pisshhhhhhhhhhtt” as the rubber starts getting noisy.
I pulled over and began the usually 5 minute job of switching over. Not so this time. My tubes were Schraeder valves – the bigger ones. My rims only took Presta. So, no tubes, 10km from home. I’d already told about 15 people who’d yelled “you ok?” as they went past that I was, so I had to wait for the next dude to ask, so I could answer “Nope.”
Providentially I was given a new tube, but the trouble didn’t stop there. He’d given me a tube with a crappy valve so my hand pump (next time I’m taking gas canisters) couldn’t get the tyre to 42psi, so I had to ride very slowly to get home where Matt had a footpump + 2 more tubes waiting. That lap cost us 30 minutes and another lap.
I took off again and smashed out a pretty respectable 1’04″ and handed over to Matt. At this point, I didn’t get changed quickly enough so the cold wind and sweat ended up giving me a mild cold (I actually was in bed shivering uncontrollably).
As I went to sleep I heard a guy at the site behind ours come back almost crying “screw this 24 hour sh$t, I’m never doing this again. Stupid Stromlo. I’m going to ride near home, when I want, for how long I want.” He sure did have a big Beaker about it.
Sleep was difficult as my mind knew that I had to be up at 4.45AM for a 5AM-ish start. I got up at around the time Andrew would be swinging past, which would give me 7 minutes to get to the transition – we were about 7 minutes of track riding away, but only 3 minutes on the main access tracks.
Andrew came in but due to a puncture, wheel ding and helping a dude who’d seriously axed himself, only got a lap in so I took off at around 6AM for the sunrise lap. Matt B really wanted sunrise (sorry dude), but I got it.
I took off in pre-dawn light, still needing a light, but 1/4 of the way into the lap day had dawned. I was lucky enough to be on a ridgeline for the sunrise, so I stopped to chat to a solo dude and run some photos. That cost me a few minutes.
After I got back in I headed off for coffee. This was the coffee line (and it wasn’t even that good). Note to organisers. More coffee merchants.
I wandered back to camp and had a horrible scrambled eggs with cheese on toast for brekky. In the absence of oil or butter, I used water, except the water I used had Gatorade powder in it. Delightful!
It must have been really hard for those on the course to be riding through the camps with the smell of eggs and bacon wafting around.
Anyway, Matt rolled back in, Paul went out, then Andrew again. This left Matt and I with two more laps (1 each).
Daylight makes a big difference to riding and I was able to smash a quick one out again. At night, due to poor lighting and technical skills, I was struggling with technical uphill switchbacks and rocks, which resulted in me having some minor spills. At one stage I couldn’t even get my cleats back in the pedals which led to a “Er, looks like we have a roadie ahead of us” from some geezer behind me. Whatever dude, this is all on no practise.
But daylight let me smash it.
Matt took off for the last lap as we began packing up. After he got back we decamped and took off for the long drive home.
Below you can see the amount of fluids I had to get home. I did not drink anywhere near enough water the whole weekend.
Video
Here are some random photos I took.
Some girls are super can do.
Matt B
Matt B again
Overall this was a great experience. I ended burning around 42,000kJ, spent around 6.5 hours on the bike, ate 3 bowls of Nutrigrain, 2 egg+cheese sandwhiches, 3 Clif Bars, 3 Gels and nowhere near enough water. I don’t have heart rate stats as I can’t get my bloody Garmin to work with my Macbook but I do recall seeing around 190 as a max.
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Comments:
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Impressive write up and glad you enjoyed your first 24 hour race.
It would appear we were camped right next to you (3 marquees joined together and about a gazillion people on the same lot) plus you passed us on the way home @ about Gundagai (White Forester with 2 bikes on roof).
Small world!
Hey Ant, yep I remember the car. I had the green Forrester.
I think we passed you in Holbrook too.
Where were you camped? We were at the top of the track where it went through the main camp, just before it went back uphill for a bit, into that hairpin where there were a few tents and then up over the bridge that crossed the other track.
Thanks for kind words re: the write up. It was fun to do, I only wish I’d had an inverter so I could power my laptop and give more up to date comments.
Tim