8 Hours of Labor, 2010
A little more than 24 hours until the 8 Hour. This one has been on my list all year. For the last couple years, in fact. And hooray! We are finally going to get to go again.
It's Friday, a designated rest day. Too busy to ride anyway. Food prep is underway. Fruit/protein bars all made. Sushi rice bars cooling, waiting to be cut.
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OK, I confess. I used chocolate cheerios in the protein bars.
Seemed like a good idea at the time.
After tasting...
...definitely a good idea!
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Ready to wrap.
Tomorrow, I'll pack Perpetuum and Gatorade, portioned into zip loc bags. A bottle of Endurolyte capsules. Lots of water for mixing, a few cokes for later in the day. Protein balls, rice bars, V-8. A jar of big, green olives. (Oh yes, and at Popeye's request, an emergency supply of peanut butter and jelly.)
A nice balance of sugar and salt, protein and carbs. That ought to see us through.
The cooler, the canopy, and a couple of lawn chairs, we'll be all set.
Sounds more like a picnic than a race so far, doesn't it? Well, in some ways that's exactly what it is. Grazing with a purpose. (Or grazing with an excuse, however you want to look at it.)
I love the 8 hour!
The venue is San Felasco. Easy, shady, singletrack.
The race is 8 hours. 9-5. No getting up before dawn. No lights to recharge. No lights required at all! Setting up, riding, taking down - all in daylight. Like a vacation, right?
You get to bring a cooler. And a lawn chair. The course is a ten mile loop, with a start/finish chute in an open field. Park alongside the loop. Set up your canopy. Stop in for drinks and food (or a sit in your chair) every ten miles, as needed.
You can go solo or grab some teammates. See how many loops you can do before 5 o'clock. How simple is that?
OK, so we should probably check the Stan's and lube the bikes too, but I will tell you why I pay so much attention to the food.
I'm just not that fit. And, much as I love it, I am just not that good on a mountain bike. There aren't many people whom I can outride. But sometimes, if I play it just right, I can outlast 'em. Well, some of 'em anyway.
In order to ride for 8 hours, fitness is a good thing. But with loops, it's not actually that essential. You can alternate loops with a teammate, or if you're solo, simply quit and sit down when you've had enough. You're never more than ten miles from home base.
A huge part of endurance is to keep the food and fluids coming. Pacing yourself on the bike might be obvious, but pacing yourself with what you ingest is just as important. If you screw up hydration or nutrition, you are screwed no matter how fit you are. Much more screwed than if you simply get tired and have to take the pace down a notch.
That said, I haven't been on the mountain bike this year for anything longer than the last Tour de Felasco. So we'll see how my theory holds up. I know I am as likely to forget to refill a camelback as I am to remember, so I figure I'd have a fifty/fifty shot at hanging in for 8 hours, even if I were sufficiently trained.
But so what? San Felasco is a great trail to ride for a day. There are deer and trees, trolls and hills, and sights to see pretty much anywhere you look.
The guy in the polka dots for instance, who was set up next to us in 2010. Yes, he made the outfit himself. And yes, it was hard not to notice as he passed me at least three times at that race. Not only was he the overall winner that day, he was obviously way good at sewing too. Always something to strive for, right?
Something else to strive for at the end of the day.
All dirt. No blood.
Popeye's finishing look.
And no bonking.
Wish us luck.
8 Hours of Labor. Sept. 1, 2013 http://www.goneriding.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=693&Itemid=349
Recipe for Sushi Rice Bars
Recipe for Fruit/Protein Balls. Use the second recipe in this post, not the first. Scroll down to Distance Bites. (Which is so true, especially if you don't eat right.) http://bikeeatsleeprepeat.blogspot.com/search/label/Biking%20Bites
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