- This video is how to race multi-day stage races.
I've done a few in my time, endurance stage races
like the Andes Pacifico and the Trans Savoie.
Hopefully some of these tips will help you out
with some cross-country stage races as well.
Or even just some big, multi-day rides.
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A big one of course is to fuel and hydrate.
So you really need to try and plan
how much exertion you're gonna have that day.
Andes Pacifico, that's a multi-day enduro-race
and it's super hot so actually on my enduro-bike
I had a water bottle, so 750ml water bottle
with that ride because it was like 35 degrees some days.
Plus also the camelbak carrying a lot of my kit,
also kept the bladder in there,
so I tried to keep a liter and a half of water on me
when I start and then top-up throughout the day.
I don't like to carry much more than that
because any more than 2 liters on your back is pretty heavy.
So about a liter and a half, between the bottle
and my camelback and then just top it up when I can.
I wanna talk about fueling, that's of course food.
So, I always try and make sure I have a good breakfast
in the morning on a big day out, and then I try and carry
as much normal food as possible,
so things like cereal bars, nuts, even sandwiches
and I rely on gels, energy gels, caffeine gels,
basically the sort of last resort
if I'm feeling really tired, but the thing is with food
you've gotta try and keep eating away
throughout your day, every half-an-hour, every hour,
have a half a bar or something, but keep eating
before you get hungry,
so you want to sit and get yourself into a hole,
it can really make a difference to your energy levels.
So, definitely with food I try to take a little bit more
than I probably need for the day.
So just looking at my Garmin Connect from one of the days,
at the Andes Pacifico,
it says we were out for nine-and-a-half hours,
I burnt three-and-a-half-thousand calories,
not always the most accurate these things,
but it was a big day out.
Shows my training effects anaerobic and aerobic.
So big day out, and you've really gotta consume
a lot of calories as well, you don't wanna be in a deficit.
Also, at the end of the day
I make sure I took a recovery drink as well.
Just to try and make sure the next day is gonna be alright.
So before any beer, before any wine,
make sure you get a big nice recovery drink
after you've had a big day out.
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Learning how to pace yourself
on long multi-day stage races is super important.
Some like the Andes Pacifico is a really long,
really intense race, so it's dead easy to get carried away,
go too hard, physically or even just on the bike
and crash on day one,
skin yourself and then you've got a long six days
with a bit of skin missing.
I know that one from experience.
So, try and pace yourself, learn the conditions,
you know, really feel how much grip you've got,
but also you've gotta pace yourself physically as well.
Because if you go into a hole on day one,
you're gonna really struggle for the next two or three days.
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Preparation is gonna be really important
for multi-day races, so of course
try and get as fit as you can before you get to the race,
you'll often find that your level is the same day-to-day.
So you think, oh I might have a good day,
I might have a bad day,
but actually you'll settle into where you are in the race
and however well you've prepared,
you'll see it probably everyday.
So, try and get as fit as you can
and you'll need to be for big multi-day races.
Also, try and prepare your bike and the kit you need.
So, try and pre-plan that as much as possible.
Especially if we're going somewhere fairly remote
like the Andes, where you need to take things
like a spare mech hanger, gear cables,
things that you know you might need
and you might struggle to get when you're there.
So, be prepared with tools, but also spares.
My final point on preparation would also be to try
and learn as much as you can about a trail before you go.
Especially if you've not done that event or that race,
or been to that location before.
So, get yourself on YouTube,
you'll probably be able to find some POVs
or head-cams of those trails, look on Strava of course.
Look on Komoot, look on Garmin,
really try and find out as much about those trails
and how hard the day is gonna be,
before you go and just prepare yourself as much as possible.
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Make sure your bike works as well as possible
to make your life easy, to try to learn about terrain
by watching those videos, therefore you can choose tires,
so I actually chose Downhill Casing Tires
for the Andes Pacifico, I knew it was gonna be super rocky,
super rough, also try and do your suspension set-up
with all the kit you'll be wearing.
So, a full-face helmet possibly, your backpack
and any extra weight,
so make sure your suspension is set-up for extra weight.
Also, try and practice, so go for a ride with that bike,
with all your kit before you get there
to make sure it's comfortable.
In my years as a racing professional
and the last year of course,
I've just done some multi-day stage enduro-races,
so that is my background really,
but this year it's looking very likely
I'll be doing the BC Bike Race,
which is a multi-day cross-country race.
It's something that's completely new to me,
so I've got to take the time to set-up my cross-country bike
for that and actually spend a lot of time on it
to make sure it's working nicely
and that I'm comfortable, as much as anything.
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I think it's good to use a device to track your progress,
to something like a bike computer.
For enduro-races I use my Garmin watch, so it's a Fenix 5.
Just because I don't need the heads-up display,
so this is more about looking at it throughout the day.
So maybe on the transitions, just to see how far I've been
and how much I've exerted myself
and how much further I've got to go.
Of course, at the end of the day
I can download that to my phone
and really take a look at the details.
Something like a cross-country race
where you might want the heads-up display,
a bike computer might be the better option.
Again, just for really helping you pace yourself.
See where you are in the day
and maybe if you can attack or anything like that,
but it's definitely nice to have that data
to look at, at the end of the day,
just to make sure you're re-fueled
and ready to go again for the next day.
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My last piece of advice for a multi-day stage race
is to take a friend with you,
they can be the best of benches ever
and why not take someone else to enjoy it with you?
I did Andes Pacifico a couple of years ago
and it was great, I did it by myself.
This year I did it with Blake and it was wicked,
such a good time, except for the end.
It didn't quite finish as I'd hoped it to,
but this year I'm doing the BC Bike Race, hopefully.
So, if you've not done a multi-day stage race,
enduro or cross-country, whatever.
Have a look online,
they're the best things for discovering trails,
having big days out on the bike
and really doing it with a lot of cool other people.
So, they're really good fun, I'd definitely recommend them.
If you wanna see the video from the Andes Pacifico,
click over there for that one.
Give us a thumbs-up if you're doing a multi-day
stage race this year and hit that Subscribe button.