You might think that being a successful mountain bike stage racer is all about training and fitness. But while these things can help, if you’ve ever participated in these events before, you’ll know that the real race starts when you cross the finish line each day. Depending on where the event is being held, how remote the location and how many people are competing, you might still be racing right up until you get to sleep that night and will almost certainly begin racing again as soon as you wake up in the morning, even if the actual stage doesn’t start for hours.
Shelter – Put a roof over your head
The first thing that you’ll want to do when you cross the finish line each day is take a rest. You’ve probably been on your bike for multiple hours, often enduring unfavourable weather conditions and difficult terrain, most likely smashing yourself senseless trying to stay with a particular group, battle with somebody in your category or even contest the outright victory. The point is that you’ve probably not just been out for a gentle roll on your mountain bike. If it’s hot and sunny you’ll want to find some shade, if it’s cold and rainy you’ll want to find some shelter…and so begins the real race.
Look for a spot that best facilitates rest. If it’s sunny, then keep in mind that shadows move and a good rest spot is somewhere that will remain shady for a few hours while the sun moves across the sky.
Find shade where possible, but be mindful of shifty shadows. Photo: Mongolia Bike Challenge, Ophélie Astier-Mayet
If it’s raining and there’s no official covered rest area then you might need to get creative…faking an injury is a good way to get inside the medical tent if things get difficult. Try complaining of nausea, light-headedness or a general feeling of impending doom. And remember, you deserve to be in that medical tent because you rode harder (and more safely) than any genuinely injured riders who come in after you.
The medical tent is for those who earnt it, or who can find a reason to be there.
Food – The need for greed
Mountain bike riders have all sorts of different ideas when it comes to recovery nutrition. If you need some special powder, tablet or an intravenous contraption then make sure you have packed it in to whichever bag is most likely to be at the finish line when you get there. Depending on the race, this might be impossible to foresee, so just use your best judgement.
Don’t forget to eat
There is usually some communal post-race food and drink available for riders so once you’ve staked out some prime rest real-estate, head for the food. You’ll have to put any selfless tendencies on hold here as you try to collect and consume as much of the food as possible. You can justify greed in circumstances like these because you’ve ridden harder (and therefore deserve the food more) than anybody who arrives later, so don’t be shy, fill your mouth, hands and pockets. Your helmet can also double as a bucket for most solid foods, or even liquids if you’ve got one of these:
Get Aero, and get fed. Photo: Flickr Creative Commons
Showers – Streamline the Cleanline
Once you’ve consumed the contents of your helmet, it’s time to get clean. Nobody likes standing in line for a shower and the fact is that the longer you wait, the longer the line will be when you get there. A shrewd Stage Racer might even head to the shower queue with their helmet full of food and consume it while waiting in line – that’s called multi-tasking and it’s these “one-percenters” that football commentators use to describe the small efforts that can add-up to a game-winning advantage.
Everyone needs a shower
Dinner – Make Reservations Ahead of Time
While eating in the shower queue can save you valuable time, unfortunately, showering in the dinner queue does not generally enhance your popularity. You will want to be particularly mindful of this if you are targeting a sportsmanship award such as the Mongolia Bike Challenge’s Top Biker award.
Becoming the Top Biker is a source of pride. Photo: Alex Denham
“The Top Biker award will be given to the athlete who will distinguish himself by his availability, sportiness and unselfishness.”
If you can, organise a rotating roster group where one person queues up as early as possible. That way the others can go about their business with less stress and just cut in behind the dinner operative as soon as the food is served.
Electricity – Take charge of your power requirements
It would be unreasonable, in this day and age, to expect anybody to go without a functional mobile phone, Internet access, GPS navigation or personal HD video recorder, even during the most remote mountain bike stage race. Many race organisers now provide charging stations, but if they’re full then you might need to resort to some covert tactics in order to charge your phone, GPS device, notebook computer, GoPro or portable DVD player.
Watching the race can help your mental state. Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Pack an extension cord and look for unused power outlets in places like the timing, food or medical tent. And remember, you deserve that power more than anybody who’s been careless enough to injure themselves during the stage.
Hopefully these tips will help to make your next Mountain Bike Stage Race a little less stressful, a little more enjoyable and leave you feeling a little less guilty about taking every possible advantage of those slower or less-fortunate riders. Good luck!