2010: An Otway Odyssey

[Megahead]

Just back from a weeks holiday including the Otway 50k. A few points, most have already been covered.
If you are walking up a hill - keep left! Very frustrating for those who would like to try and ride them but have nowhere to pass.
Coming down a hill - if you are obviously slower keep left, there's no riding 2 or 3 abreast here. If you can't pass/don't want to pass the rider in front, tuck in behind and let others through. if you pass the rider in front. make sure it's clear and then cross to the left. I lost count of the amount of times i was stuck behind slower riders down some of the fire trail.
I don't think I've ever come across so many slow riders in the single track especially in the first 25k. Get off the brakes and have fun! If you are obviously slower that's no drama but pull off to the side and let the que behind you have some fun.
That said - F$%%k I enjoyed myself. This years 50k was much better than previous years Apollo Bay to Forrest. A good mix of trails and a great vibe. Even managed to beat a mate home who always beats me.

 

[Eval]

Yeah me too on my first go, and me too on being more prepared for next year. You must've been pretty far ahead of me though, as the ambos who came to get that guy stopped at the top of the track turnoff and asked me if I'd seen a guy down. I said "No, but if may have happened behind me" and he said "It was about an hour ago" ... poor bugger. Must've thought nobody was coming.

As for the steep hills, I'd be interested to find out (don't know if it'd be possible) what percentage of riders ride them as opposed to walk them. I would've guessed more walkers. While I'd like to be able to ride them (and think I could, if I only had to do one or two in the race), I wonder if it would make more sense to have less of them. Or at least, a more rideable alternative, so more time could be spent actually riding by more riders. I'm not saying less vertical meters, just less of a steep gradient. Sure, it would be less challenging, but I hardly think it would ruin the race.

I get the feeling everyone who can ride them would say "No, get fitter and better at it ya slackarse!" and yeah, that's the plan, but I don't think it will change the number of folk walking them each year, and my point is to make it better for ALL participants, rather than just the guns.

The hills were steep and the traffic did not make it easy to find the best line. I was so excited and pumped for the OO (and my first 100ker) that I 'forgot' to eat throughout the ride and so bonked majorly at ~60km mark. I was pretty spent by the time I got to Forrest at 4hr30min and thats where I stayed. My matches had been burnt.....On reflection I should have slowed up the pace, and should have actually had a nutrition plan while on the bike and during transition. Ive since had a chat to some A grade roadies about pacing and nutrition and they've provided some guidance on those aspects.

I did feel bad for the chap who had injured himself. It was quite the haul in order to get from where he was to the next marshaling point. Bring on the OO 2011!

 

[slammin]

Couple of points....

The course was great, RA - don't take out any of the steep climbs. Its the difficulty of this race that makes it an adventure/challenge. I walked/ran plenty of steeps, and didn't loose too much time on riders trying to ride it and this helped my riding legs recover for the rest of the ride. I saw plenty of riders busting a gut trying to stay on the bike, then blowing up later in the ride as I passed them. I'm not in it to win but I am in it to get the best placing I can, so tactics in surviving the race (ala running instead of riding) are a big part of it for us meer mortals.

Staying left when walking is not as easy as one might think. In the first part of the race you will have a hundred riders on one steep climb. If only one rider slips and stops pedalling the domino effect stops all riders and I saw this on most of the Mt Sabine climbs. I thought riders were being pretty good about moving out the way, it just gets hard when so many riders are in close riding formation. Later on in the ride when we spread out more this wasn't a problem.

 

[pistonbroke]

Just a thought......
But in these marathon type events, if a rider is in front of you, they are not a slower rider, you are. It is a race after all.

Having said that, everyone I passed was great. Never any agro at all. Plenty of room given.

 

[Bjorn]

Just a thought......
But in these marathon type events, if a rider is in front of you, they are not a slower rider, you are. It is a race after all.

Having said that, everyone I passed was great. Never any agro at all. Plenty of room given.

Well said pistonbroke.
Hows it go, "I may be slow, but I'm in front of you."

 

[Gone Riding]

Just a thought......
But in these marathon type events, if a rider is in front of you, they are not a slower rider, you are. It is a race after all.

Having said that, everyone I passed was great. Never any agro at all. Plenty of room given.

Not really true when the start is self seeded, or if someone goes out too hard and slows up on the later climbs. And it stands to reason the person being passed is always the slowest rider at that point I didn't experience any agro either, I just think it would be good to have a fast and slow lane whenever there's room... Simple.

 

[Coaster]

My 2 cents worth on the walking bit.

I don't see it as a simple keep left if you're walking thing, when I was walking I'd pick the crappy line so if there were any riders they got the smoother part of the track regardless of side.

It pretty amazing really as it's simple courtesy and logic. I saw a few riders have to stop because people were walking 2 aside yabbering away even though the poor rider and other walkers were shouting rider right, etc. Having said that, it was only a few.........

See you next year,

Coaster

 

[Misplaced]

Well said pistonbroke.
Hows it go, "I may be slow, but I'm in front of you."

Hmm, a very similiar attitude to some drivers that sit in the righthand lane...

 

[Megahead]

Personally I think the hills that the majority of the field had to walk up came on a bit too soon in the 50k. I've found that when you have say 5-10k of rideable road/firetrail at the start it sorts the field out into their natural abilities somewhat and you then end up riding with people of a similar ability to you. When you are walking up hills so early everyone generally walks the same pace and the field doesn't get a chance to sort itself out before you hit the descents/singletrack. Having said that I didn't see any agro either (I don't think I've ever seen agro in a race come to think of it) but I certainly felt more frustrated in the first 15 or so k's of this race than I have in other events. I'm not one to voice it on the trail but there were plenty of others out there that didn't hold back.

 

[pistonbroke]

Maybe they should do the 100. Plenty of room there.

 

[uhuforrest]

Personally I think the hills that the majority of the field had to walk up came on a bit too soon in the 50k. I've found that when you have say 5-10k of rideable road/firetrail at the start it sorts the field out into their natural abilities somewhat and you then end up riding with people of a similar ability to you. When you are walking up hills so early everyone generally walks the same pace and the field doesn't get a chance to sort itself out before you hit the descents/singletrack. Having said that I didn't see any agro either (I don't think I've ever seen agro in a race come to think of it) but I certainly felt more frustrated in the first 15 or so k's of this race than I have in other events. I'm not one to voice it on the trail but there were plenty of others out there that didn't hold back.

Not having seen the 50km field, were there people walking up Kents Road or Thompson Track? Not just the hills after the Slegehammer downhill?

If so, I suddenly feel like an elite rider, I can do those even on a bad day.

For the 100km, there is about 5km of flat or gradual climb before Busty Road, and plenty of passing room. I generally get about 500m into Busty before walking that first pinch

Roland

Roland

 

[Stons]

I only saw walkers after the creek crossing (after the Sledgehammer descent) on Newcombes Spur track. Some people either hadn't ridden the course before or either over estimated their ability. I always start a bit further back then where I could but it never effects my final placing, 50kms of riding usually sorts that out.

Megahead, just start further forward next time

 

[Beej1]

I understand where you are coming from - it's bloody hard! - but I would be very disappointed to see any of the steeps removed... isn't that all just part of the challenge and the awesome terrain of the OO and the incentive to train harder for next year and make that next climb, or shave a half hour off your best time!? It helps create 'stages' within the race as well - you know you're legs are gonna hurt in the first 40km's, but then you get some sweet downhills for a while, followed by sweet singletrack for ages, etc - I think it helps break the 100km's up.

You're right - I didn't really think that through before suggesting it. Since, if they did change it to make it easier, I'd never know what it was like to finish it when it was more difficult.

Good point. I just need to HTFU.