Our first race is only four weeks away! Exciting! A sincere THANK YOU to every ride leader for helping to build the skills and confidence of our student athletes. This team literally could not function without your contributions. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!
During the normal warm-up routine, talk with your ride groups about race-day preparations. Here are a few pointers to cover:
- Bike Checks: now is the time to make sure bikes are fully operational and in peak working condition. If brakes, shifting, tires, etc. need attention, it is better to get that sorted in the weeks before the race, rather than waiting until the last minute where a visit to a bike shop for service or parts may not be possible given the limited time and all of the other riders on the various teams who flood bike shops in advance of races.
- Race-day Nutrition: focused nutritional preparation starts several days before the race and includes properly pre-hydrating for the race. Riders should be eating healthy all of the time, of course, but in the 48 hours before the race, they should focus on not missing meals and eating enough quality carbohydrates to ensure their glycogen reserves are topped off. Think oats, rice, pasta, pancakes, potatoes, fruit, etc., as all of these are great sources of carbohydrates. On race day, riders should try to eat carbs (without any substantial amount of fiber, protein, or fat involved) several hours before their race start. This is challenging for the Jr. Devo teams because we typically have the earliest start times. If the rider can eat at least two hours before the race start, then some oatmeal and a banana might be a great way to fuel up. If they aren’t able to eat until the hour before the race, think even smaller portions and simple carbohydrates. Race morning is not the day to experiment — each rider should be working on sorting out what works for them NOW. Just as important as not skipping a race-day breakfast is for riders to avoid over-eating before the race. Riders should also be drinking water regularly throughout the days leading up to the race. Challenge the riders to work with their parents to prepare a written menu that they intend to follow in the days before, and the morning of, the race.
- Race-day Logistics: review with the riders the race morning process – 1) get all of your gear (particularly bike, helmet, kit, and shoes) dialed in and laid out the night before so it is ready to go in the morning; 2) get a good night of sleep; 3) travel to the venue; 4) check-in at the team tent in the race pitzone with everything you need to race at least an hour before staging time to get race plates and queue up for pre-race warm-ups; 5) warm-up as a team following the warm-up protocols we have used at practices; 6) top-off with a small, carb-based snack just after the warm-up and just before staging; 7) stage with the other riders in your wave; 8) race your heart out.
PINK / BLACK / SILVER
After warming up, focus on sustained riding at race pace. Perform three seven-minute race-pace efforts with four-minute recoveries between efforts. Don’t completely drop the pace on recovery; instead keep the riders moving at a tempo pace (conversational, but only barely and only by the middle to end of each recovery period). Intentionally stagger the order of riders in your group for each effort and encourage the riders to safely pass if necessary (always using good communication skills) during the efforts. Finish the ride at a conversational pace, with a focus on skills that your riders might need to improve (descending at pace, cornering, climbing position, shifting, braking, etc.). Don’t hesitate to stop and re-work a section of trail if it poses difficulty for any of the riders in your group.
RED / ORANGE
After warming up, focus on sustained riding at race pace. Perform three five-minute race-pace efforts with four-minute recoveries between efforts. Don’t completely drop the pace on recovery; instead keep the riders moving at a tempo pace (conversational, but only barely and only by the middle to end of each recovery period). Intentionally stagger the order of riders in your group for each effort and encourage the riders to safely pass if necessary (always using good communication skills) during the efforts. Finish the ride at a conversational pace, with a focus on skills that your riders might need to improve (descending at pace, cornering, climbing position, shifting, braking, etc.). Don’t hesitate to stop and re-work a section of trail if it poses difficulty for any of the riders in your group.
YELLOW / GREEN
After warming up, focus on sustained riding at race pace. Perform three four-minute race-pace efforts with four-minute recoveries between efforts. Don’t completely drop the pace on recovery; instead keep the riders moving at a tempo pace (conversational, but only barely and only by the middle to end of each recovery period). Intentionally stagger the order of riders in your group for each effort and encourage the riders to safely pass if necessary (always using good communication skills) during the efforts. Finish the ride at a conversational pace, with a focus on skills that your riders might need to improve (descending at pace, cornering, climbing position, shifting, braking, etc.). Don’t hesitate to stop and re-work a section of trail if it poses difficulty for any of the riders in your group.
BLUE / PURPLE
After warming up, focus on sustained riding at race pace. Perform three three-minute race-pace efforts with five-minute recoveries between efforts. Don’t completely drop the pace on recovery; instead keep the riders moving at a tempo pace (conversational, but only barely and only by the middle to end of each recovery period). Intentionally stagger the order of riders in your group for each effort and encourage the riders to safely pass if necessary (always using good communication skills) during the efforts. Finish the ride at a conversational pace, with a focus on skills that your riders might need to improve (descending at pace, cornering, climbing position, shifting, braking, etc.). Don’t hesitate to stop and re-work a section of trail if it poses difficulty for any of the riders in your group.