2011 an Otway Odyssey

[MTB_KAT]

ps Kat, Did you see Karen G on the course? Was looking out for her but didn't see her at all.

yeah, I started right at the back and passed her once we were on the dirt road somewhere, she managed to finish which is a great effort after her reports on her problems during the week

oh and you must have been just in front of me, I was about 4.20 as well

 

[RED_RACER]

EDIT: I was in the lead bunch over the Wild Dog KOM and a little bit beyond. Only DRAPAC riders took camelbaks (Lachlan Norris was not in DRAPAC clothing and I don't recall seeing him take a camelbak - Red Racer may be able to comment). I didn't know it was outside of the rules and didn't have a problem with it at the time. Gracie dates one of the DRAPAC riders hence Gracie getting the same opportunity for outside assistance. If they didn't know it was outside of the rules then it's a hard lesson to learn. If they did know then it was a very silly move. 2-3kg extra weight for the first 15km would not have stopped her winning the race.

2-3kg up the hill would have given her the 2 second advantage to win the queen of the mountain.

In regards to the men, I loved how Andy Fellows attacked when the Drapac boys were getting fed, awesome work. I was surprised to see the car and feeders on the side of the road, I would have liked to save a few kg on the hill myself. Im not sure exactly who took drink bottles as I was more concerned about not getting dropped by the Fellow attack! I just knew there were 4 bottles about to be held out...

 

[sneezy]

yeah, I started right at the back and passed her once we were on the dirt road somewhere, she managed to finish which is a great effort after her reports on her problems during the week

oh and you must have been just in front of me, I was about 4.20 as well

you never know....at that stage of the race you pass someone then stop for cramps(me) and get passed....as soon as the results for 50 are up we'll know. Was good to finish and I never thought I'd do it under 5 hrs so I'm happy as today....

 

[anth69]

great reading guys and well done ! is the bike traffic much of issue or just part of the atmoshere ? I did anaconda lorne as a first race , looks like OO might be a goal next

 

[jathanas]

Sorry guys, I think I'm the mud jinx. The only other year I've done the OO was 2008. The other members of my travelling party have banned me from coming ever again...

Hats off to Rapid Ascent for making some course changes after the Friday night deluge. 2008 was a hard slog but I enjoyed every minute of this years event. I'll put that down to enjoying riding in the mud generally and nailing the tyre choice. The 2.2" Cougar up front held on down everything and rolled remarkably well. The 2.1" Cobra down back clogged but I recalled 2008 and figured nothing was going to provide enough grip to ride most of the early climbs. Less mud stuck to it than a knobby so it was lighter to run up the hill with. On the roads and the Yaughter loop it was super quick. Legs stayed nice and fresh for that climb in the final 13km loop and I went past a few which was nice.

In 2008 I took 6:30 and was 50 somthingth, this year 5:01...11th place. Yeah I was as shocked as you. Congrats to everyone that finished. See you next year. Yes I am coming so it WILL be muddy!

That's an extraordinary achievement! Kudos to you mate.

FWIW: I would've stuck with my normal tyres too (Conti X-Kings 2.2 front and back).

 

[jjdevious]

Great day, finished the 50 in under 3 hours, very happy. Tracks were generally in good condition when I was on them - hearing about the mud and general carnage that the latter part of the 100km field experienced, it's hard to believe they were out on the same trails at the same event!

Probably shouldn't be impatient but would be great if they could get the 50km results sorted out - c'mon Rapid Ascent, get them posted! Last year they didn't even bother to categorise the 50km results (even the pioneer race got overall and categorised results), which I thought was strange.

Apart from that, a very well organised event once again, big thanks to all involved, especially those at the check points who offered a few much appreciated words of encouragement here and there!

 

[KazG]

I rode the 50km course too. This was my 4th so have experienced all the changes so far. This year I really enjoyed it and managed to ride all but probably 1km of the course due to cramps towards the end. This isn't including Red Carpet which was a slow stop start affair. I would say that if it was dry there wouldn't be the congestion(I hope). The slippery conditions made it a bit treacherous for those not used to it. My tyre choice was Crossmarks back and front @ 40psi. Was a bit slippery in the first bit of singletrack we hit and had me thinking rapidly about 08 and of pulling out halfway. I got used to them and carried on without falling off although there were a few "oh shit" moments. Ended up finishing in about 4hrs 20mins. Not outstanding but certainly a great result for me...about 1hr40mins quicker than last year thanks to doing a lot more(for me) training this year. Will probably be back next year as I may even be fitter even though none the wiser....

sneezy

ps Kat, Did you see Karen G on the course? Was looking out for her but didn't see her at all.

I did an OTB on Yo Yo, but finished and was happy with my time.

 

[peej]

50K rider too - This was my 2nd 50k Shorty, and I was much more prepared than last year. This year when I crossed the line I was able to eat food and hold a conversation which was more than I could do last year. I was just over 4.30hrs, as I came in just after Jason English (but he'd done 50k more !) I could have done it maybe 15 mins faster although I had to make sure my wife, competing in her first 50k was safe, as a bloke on the trails said to me "happy wife, happy life !"

The track was fantastic, unfortunately I too was stuck in the "ring road" traffic jam on red carpet. Not sure how this could be changed for next year as any staggering of the start may mean the 100k guys could get held up.

I'd like to give the 100K a crack next year, time to start training !

 

[Harder Nox]

Just on facebook and noticed that Podium Bike Hub are offering service discounts to otway riders...

This was there status update:

"Podium Bike Hub is offering a special discount for all Otway Odyssey competitors.
Bring you bike in to either store and receive 25% off servicing your (muddy) bike. You'll also receive 25% off any and all parts for that service.
That's driveline, shocks, the LOT!
Bring your race plate in to receive your discount!"

apparently the offer is open until the end of march and they have a shop at South Melbourne and at Williamstown...

My bike is booked in! God knows it needs some TLC after that mud fest!

 

[pistonbroke]

Would it work to make all the elite start with a minimum of 2 or 3 litres of water? If you want to be eligible for the prize money you would have your bottles or camelbak weighed before the start and tagged. This would only involve maybe 40 riders. Any elites seen starting without would cop the penalty.
This may also help reduce the amount bottles "dropped". I don't think the elite guys would like it, but if it's the same for everyone there is no advantage for anyone.

 

[Pizzaz]

As for the issue of outside assistance, and the effect of carrying an extra 2-3 kg on a 30 minute climb (for the chicks)....agreed it's not worth 4 minutes. But most likely she would've gone harder on the climb with the pack on (while being a bit slower). So, say a minute or two slower to the top, but probably taking herself closer to the red zone, which could have made an appreciable difference in the last couple of hours.

Kinda doesn't matter does it? Rules are rules... we all know 'em and the majority follow 'em...

The issue of whether the rule makes sense or not is an interesting discussion but still... its Rapid Ascent's race and good on them for applying the rules... and good on the rider that informed the race organisers. There's starting to be a bit of ca$h and prestige associated with winning these things so its just part of the sport getting more professional for those up the pointy end.

 

[Mark S]

Actual Distance

Do we have any comments on the actual distance? Someone previously mentioned 90km but my riding buddy's GPS said 92.5. However, it would appear that he didn't do the Noonday track ie: took the wrong turn (with many others) that was also mentioned previously.

Is it possible that the "wrong turn" was around 90 and the "real" race was 100km?

 

[slowdave]

My garmin 500, registered 89.3 km i think the wet weather route knocked about 10km out early in the ride. Bodin i think i passed you just about where phil anderson was screaming down the last fire road or just before you snapped your chain if that was you in the full bosari gear. Steveb was that you i passed just before that on the single with the black skate lid on. Well done to all who even attempted the ride, it was tough. i think my bike lost 10 kilos in a creek crossing half way through. But it was great fun.

 

[drfuentes]

detours and penalties

Was there any explanation by the organisers as to why they did not use the noonday diversion?? This is the one they announced they were going to use and the track that was unrideable and unwalkable. Certainly the wild dog diversion made things a lot easier. One hour into the race I passed the thirty km mark!!!!

I would be interested to hear from someone in the first fifty riders could you ride UP any of those hills. By the time i got there (about 300th) it was evil 4inch deep clag and we ALL stopped every hundred metres to clear our bikes (walkers and riders).

Also I checked the photos none of the elites seem to be carrying first aid kits??? Isn't that a twenty minute penalty?? Best of luck to the ladies winner who was singled out.

See you next year.

 

[liambarr]

50km course

Hey all,

3rd Otway 50km event I have done (including the 2008 mud fest from Apollo Bay). This track was by far the most fun course I have ever raced on (I used the word raced very loosely). I would like to commend Rapid ascent for the course they dished up this year, and if its similar next year then I will defiantly be back. It was nice to see the organisers acknowledge that a lot of the people that do the 50km events are your more novice riders that, by definition, just doing a 50km ride is challenge enough. You dont need to rip there legs off, you can leave that for the 100km riders. It had seemed to have become the norm to try to outdo the last event to make the hardest 50km course. This was refreshing.

I hope that other 50km riders think this was also. Myself and my riding buddies just love to be part of the MTB community, but with young families time to train is just not there. It seems to me that it makes sense that you make the 100km hard, but the 50km event is really aimed at a different group of MTB riders (obviously with some exceptions). I hope that the organisers of other events take not of this 50km course and the good feedback its been getting.

I too got caught in the red carpet hold ups. Im not sure what you could do here, but agree with a previous post, had the weather been better then I think it would not have been that bad, just a bit slippery for some less confident riders. But hey, I say the more new riders we have on course, the bigger and better the sport of MTB will become.

All round awesome day! Thanks to Rapid Ascent and the volunteers.

 

[Benizmo]

I measured 96k on my cycle computer which is probably more accurate than straight gps(unless you have a wheel sensor), I am starting to think that the private property we missed must have cut out quite a bit of time, someone who has ridden it recently could probably give a better answer

But we did do some extra track on 5 this year, because I am sure the big log roll wasn't meant to be in it, and it seemed like some of J2 was cut too

As for the mud hills, they were mostly rideable until the really sticky wet mud on noonday, then it was quicker to run which I quickly learnt was easier with the bike on your back.

I would like to know if anyone made it up sledgehammer, I got about 200m up and started sliding back down, that walk really hurt the calves!

 

[uhuforrest]

Was there any explanation by the organisers as to why they did not use the noonday diversion?? This is the one they announced they were going to use and the track that was unrideable and unwalkable. Certainly the wild dog diversion made things a lot easier. One hour into the race I passed the thirty km mark!!!!

I would be interested to hear from someone in the first fifty riders could you ride UP any of those hills. By the time i got there (about 300th) it was evil 4inch deep clag and we ALL stopped every hundred metres to clear our bikes (walkers and riders).

Also I checked the photos none of the elites seem to be carrying first aid kits??? Isn't that a twenty minute penalty?? Best of luck to the ladies winner who was singled out.

See you next year.

SWMBO did Noonday and registered 92.10km on her Garmin. From speaking with lots of club members it was VERY CLEARLY bunted as directing all down Noonday, including the elite female rider I asked. To miss the left turn meant you had to clumb under the bunting - unlikely to be done by mistake.

There were also marshals stationed at the exit to No.1 Spur until they realized what was happening. They also added more distance on Trail No.6. Most noticably by adding the "log" to the trail and the fun berms at the end.

Distances don't really change, but going down / up Noonday adds a few hundred metres more climbing. They also added more distance on Trail No.6. Most noticably by adding the "log" to the trail and the fun berms at the end.

Roland

 

[Benizmo]

Most noticably by adding the "log" to the trail and the fun berms at the end.

Roland

Otherwise known as "big log"!

 

[liamo]

I checked the photos none of the elites seem to be carrying first aid kits??? Isn't that a twenty minute penalty??

I can't vouch for all of the pros but Matt F, Lachie N and Chris J definitely had the kits with them.

 

[Bluedogg]

Good move adding the big greasy log and the berms to the No.6 section, those berms make me ride that trail often.
That bridge at the bottom of the No.6 berms took out the rider behind me big time, he made a mighty big thud on touch down.