I did BWR in 2016 with great fitness from IMNZ. I did it on a road set up, 53/39, 11/32, with 25's (not tubeless an only flatted on the road). That was a really really hard day based on my bike setup choice.
I live about a mile from Questhaven and I ride the local road and dirt a lot. This weekend, I did the first recon ride on my Canyon Inflite. I'm running a 2x setup with 46/36 and an 11/30 cassette. I put on some WTB Exposure 30's tubless for the ride.
My thoughts for this race:
- I will be putting a larger cassette on to get a better range. Double Peak at mile 120+, assuming it's in the ride, will be tough without some easier gearing. Not to mention some of the steeper dirt sections
- The Inflite is absolutely the best choice for me. I did Rock Cobbler on the same bike with WTB Cross Boss 35's last weekend (2nd ride on the bike), and it was great
- The WTB Exposure tire in a 30 offers what I see as the perfect balance for road and dirt. Sure you can do it on 25's, 28's, or larger. But the 30 is great on and off the road from what I have seen
- Mountain Biking definitely helps stay off the brakes on the steep and rocky sections. Just let it rip
- I'm a big guy so nutrition will be very important. Eat lots and frequently
- I'll probably wear a 1.5 liter hydration pack, it really helps me stay up on hydration, and carry my flat kit, and makes my food easily accessible on the straps. (I ran this setup at Cape Epic last year and it was perfect, getting food poisoning otherwise was not)
- MTB shoes will be my choice. SWorks XC or Giro Empires. I feel confident I can ride almost the entire course, but at some point you will almost certainly happen upon a person or 10 that have backed up and require unclipping. I have destroyed a number of pairs of good SWorks road shoes in these types of events. MTB shoes will take the beating and keep on ticking.
I can't wait to see what MMX puts together this year. It should be shorter. Like 130 miles rather than 140+ of the past. Still a big day!
jake
Get outside!
I live about a mile from Questhaven and I ride the local road and dirt a lot. This weekend, I did the first recon ride on my Canyon Inflite. I'm running a 2x setup with 46/36 and an 11/30 cassette. I put on some WTB Exposure 30's tubless for the ride.
My thoughts for this race:
- I will be putting a larger cassette on to get a better range. Double Peak at mile 120+, assuming it's in the ride, will be tough without some easier gearing. Not to mention some of the steeper dirt sections
- The Inflite is absolutely the best choice for me. I did Rock Cobbler on the same bike with WTB Cross Boss 35's last weekend (2nd ride on the bike), and it was great
- The WTB Exposure tire in a 30 offers what I see as the perfect balance for road and dirt. Sure you can do it on 25's, 28's, or larger. But the 30 is great on and off the road from what I have seen
- Mountain Biking definitely helps stay off the brakes on the steep and rocky sections. Just let it rip
- I'm a big guy so nutrition will be very important. Eat lots and frequently
- I'll probably wear a 1.5 liter hydration pack, it really helps me stay up on hydration, and carry my flat kit, and makes my food easily accessible on the straps. (I ran this setup at Cape Epic last year and it was perfect, getting food poisoning otherwise was not)
- MTB shoes will be my choice. SWorks XC or Giro Empires. I feel confident I can ride almost the entire course, but at some point you will almost certainly happen upon a person or 10 that have backed up and require unclipping. I have destroyed a number of pairs of good SWorks road shoes in these types of events. MTB shoes will take the beating and keep on ticking.
I can't wait to see what MMX puts together this year. It should be shorter. Like 130 miles rather than 140+ of the past. Still a big day!
jake
Get outside!