RoboIsGod

Who's doing it and which category? I'm planning on racing the 1/2 with a few of my teammates. I just upgraded to 2's about a month ago, and looking at the pre-reg list and course descriptions it looks like I'm in for quite a race.

Any advice from those who have already done it is appreciated.

dnuzzomueller

why yes you are in for quite a race....GOOD LUCK!

I will ask Patrick my teammate. He has done it a few times.

rbart4506

Oh boy! That's a fun one...Bring your climbing legs

echappist

do you have a cassette with a 32t cog?

mike868y

i did it a few years ago. it was the highlight of my season back then. i'm not that strong but still managed some top 20s (in the 4s) which i was really happy with. but it's a really, really hard race. devil's kitchen is the hardest climb i've ever done. and the third stage that year was actually harder as a stage than stage two was. it's a good race, but just prepare yourself for what you're in for. i won't be making it this year because I can't afford it, but i wish i could!

notwist

did it last year.. definitely a climber's race

globecanvas

I'll be there in the 4s. For anyone who did it last year, they swapped stage 2 & 3 this year (2 is Airport Road now, 3 is Platte Clove). Also the course is harder this year than last, because stage 2 has a long (30 minute) stairsteppy climb back in that was out last year due to road construction.

RoboIsGod

Dang, this sounds like it will be tough. I'm running a standard crank (53/39) and am planning on using an 11-28 cassette. You think that will be enough?

mike868y

get a compact.

Grumpy McTrumpy

was in. now am out due to crash today.

echappist

depends on your cadence preference. long stretches of 12% (at least a mile) means that most will be going at 7-8mph. 34/26t is "even" in the sense that 7mph is ~70rpm

if you have a PM, you can probably estimate how much you can put out and the associated speed.

Grumpy McTrumpy

I used a 32 last year and even that felt tough. the 12% sections have a lot of 20% ramps

globecanvas

Boo! What happened? [edit] I read your post about the crash in the other thread. I'm glad you're not too badly banged up, get well soon!

I ran 34/25 last year and am going with 34/28 this time. For me, at least, Airport Road and Platte Clove are climbs where success equals just surviving.

island rider

I'll be in the 4s. I'm running a compact with an 11-28. I'm not investing in new equipment just for this race, but I know guys going to compacts with 32s.

RoboIsGod

Bahhhh. Maybe I'll see if I can snag a long cage derailleur and cassette for the race.

Grumpy McTrumpy

I've used a 32T cassette with a normal cage 7900 RD