Mountain Biking - calling XC Racers - Any advice ?

I will enter my first XC race at the end of March, in the beginers level race.

Want to do the best I can - so is there any type of training I cud now until then ? & also any skills I shud practice that I wud need in an XC race ?

Since you are going to be racing in the beginner class just go and have fun. As for training the most structured you should get is just ride as much as possible. Just build up you endurance some. You are not really supposed to "train" for beginner xc races.

Some simple advice. Don't take off like a bat out of hell once you get to the race. It happens way too often in beginner class racing and 90% of the time you will end up bonking and being miserable for the second half of the race. Take off at a comfortable pace then see how you feel. After about five minutes if you feel good then pick up the speed some. After you do a couple of races you will have a better understanding of how to take off.

Oh yeah, even though the distance will seem short on paper, once you get out there you will be amazed at how hard short distances are to do at race pace.

Most importantly, HAVE FUN!!!!!!!!!

Just ride, ride, and then ride some more! Explore as many trails in your area as you can; get familiar with different trails.

And most of all, have fun!!! :D

Thanks - no problem to ride, ride, ride.....& it's always fun !

I did 25 mile yesterday and was pretty shattered after - the local club I just hooked up with also have a 100 KM (about 70 mile) in the summer...... cannot imagine RACING yesterdays ride 3 times over in one day !

Agree with the advice to have fun, but there's definitely training you can do. You need to get used to going anaerobic, so anaerobic intervals are a good idea - mtb races are intense.

Also, ride the trails where the race will take place if you can, so you know what to expect, where you can pass, etc.

And finally, not going all-out at the start is good advice. People get hyped up and really hammer the first part of the race, then are thrashed - you have to go fast, but don't go all out at the beginning so you have nothing left.

Good luck!

If you have a chance, pre-ride the course a few times so you know what's ahead on race day. Then you can make changes to your bike setup or strategy. Many races have a flat, open start, but quickly turn narrow and start climbing. If the course profile forces the pack into tight singletrack, it's in your best interest to be at the front of that group. At that point, you can recover a bit, as it will be difficult for riders to pass you. Later on, you can open up the throttle and make some gains on the field. Watch out for crashes, which can be very common in Beginner class.

If you have any long mountainous trails you can climb ,climb them as much as possible without burning out .They can be your good friend & tool.Like what has been said , DO NOT be a yahoo in the first stages & try to relax as much as possible.
Watch out for the clumsiness & the yahoo'ers they can be used as a tool to your advantage or they can be a tool tossed into your gears.Your food consumption is important also like massive amounts f carbohydrates.

my only advice is dont drink water/sports drinks like nuts the night before. you want to keep a steady "fluid equilibrium."

my only advice is dont drink water/sports drinks like nuts the night before. you want to keep a steady "fluid equilibrium."

Actually you should be doing this at least three days prior to the race. What works best for me is a 50/50 mix of gatorade and water starting on Thursday (race on Sunday). Of course you really should be drinking water like crazy everyday. I try to drink at least 100 ounces of water daily.

do some pushups, sit ups, stretching, vitiams, and ride as much as possible and eat healthy food and drink gallons of water

I have to disagree with the advice about "don't go out hard".

The fact is that the big pack is going to go out hard. And if you don't you will be left behind. If you are left behind you will find it VERY difficult to make these places up later on. Especially in the beginner class where riders are prone to walking over hard obstacles and up steeps and basically clogging the course.

My best advice is to warm yourself up thoroughly, including several all-out efforts. Stay at or ahead of the pack and basically get ready to suffer.

Good luck and have fun...

-Z