I hadn't noticed that, but you're right!Originally Posted by SportWagon
Bicycle Troopers, perhaps?
(sign in to see both pictures together below)
I hadn't noticed that, but you're right!
Bicycle Troopers, perhaps?
(sign in to see both pictures together below)
Last edited by George; January 16th, 2018 at 02:27 PM.
Er, Starship Bicyclists?
Actually, I'm not an expert, but while the two bicycles on our left of the picture do not show any image-manipulation artifacts (to me), I think the other two do show some artifacts. And the cyclist furthest back (third from our left) looks a little too large for the correct perspective. And should probably be more obscured by airborne dust.
Oh well. An attempt to artistically capture the feel of the ride?
Last edited by SportWagon; January 16th, 2018 at 03:15 PM.
My "write-up"
So last weekend I rode 610kms in Revolve24 - a 24 hour bike race - and since finishing I've felt compelled to share a few bits and pieces about it. The picture attached (ie. the finish line pic above) sums everything up so well. I'm tired but happy, I'm filthy, I'm unable to sit up straight yet I feel ten feet tall and I'm probably about to cry.
The race started in an awful, horrible dust storm, but fast-forward 17 hours from the start (still somehow only just two thirds distance) and a dejected me had just given up on making it to 600kms. My average speed had dipped below the required 25kmh due to a long but much needed rest stop of 30 minutes. I thought it would be too hard to make up enough time on the track when I set off at that point but somehow I started to ride like a freaking madman! I powered through the next two hours and got my average up to ... 25.6 I think? Time again to come into the pits where I ordered (nicely) my de facto pit crew to get me a coffee and told them I'd be back in at 11:40 and 1:20 and I wanted coffees ready for me then as well.
So yeah, with five hours to go (which, on reflection, is still actually a VERY long time) I'd figured out a plan to make it to 600 by just dividing the time into three stints. I rode as strong as I've ever ridden, watching my average speed creep up, taking advantage of drafting when possible, but more often riding solo with my head down just watching the edge of the track to keep straight. Come my final stint I had done enough to need to plod along, and with maybe about 15 minutes left I crossed the 600km barrier and gave everyone watching from pit wall a rolling high-five.
At that point I also figured out that at my current pace I'd easily have to do three more laps, so I slowed down to the point where instead I'd only have to do two and would cross the finish line just after the chequered flag came out. Tactics or something! My family had just arrived as well so they got to see me do the old two-hand salute over the line ... albeit a bit of a crippled version.
Holy moly. What a hell of a thing to do.
Right, anyway, here's a bunch of other points in no particular order that may be of interest to anyone doing the challenge themselves ...
- It's three days later and two of my four numb fingers have most of their feeling back, but my left thumb has so little strength it's hard to grip things or even tie my shoes
- Reflux at the twelve hour mark is bad. It's hard enough to eat by that point - you have to force yourself - so having it burn all the way down is not ... nice.
- Making on-track friends is important and fun! Trying to remember who is who after the sun has come back up is difficult
- I'm not as good at mental arithmetic as I used to be, but there's plenty of time on the track to calculate your projected results
- Open energy bar wrappers properly - that way it won't take three laps of fumbling with the wrapper down the main straight (which was the only safe part of the track to sit up thanks to the wind) to eat the thing
- When it's cold and dark and you're setting off after a break your arsehole legs will steal all the blood from the rest of your body and you will freeze
- If you have no pit crew, just borrow someone else's. They're probably bored anyway so accept all help!
- The mechanic is also bored and will happily clean your bike after any prevailing dust storms sand-blast all the oil from your drivetrain
- Pit in, eat some pizza and a Mars Bar, drink coffee or coke, grab a gel and a banana, get back out on the track
- Seven and a half hours is a long time, no matter how you try and dress it up. Less than one third? Maybe, but seven hours is still seven freaking hours.
- Several groups of people watching from the pit wall learnt my name and I got cheered every lap. Sometimes I wanted to be invisible but it was all appreciated
- Thank you Kiya
Those Gran Turismo races like Rome 2 Hours and such (not to mention the actual 24 Hour races?) paid off?
I'm finding they don't make riding gloves like they used to. You should be able to prevent your fingers going numb. It's not a good thing to do to them.- It's three days later and two of my four numb fingers have most of their feeling back, but my left thumb has so little strength it's hard to grip things or even tie my shoes
Could that have been because of trying to digest dirt?- Reflux at the twelve hour mark is bad. It's hard enough to eat by that point - you have to force yourself - so having it burn all the way down is not ... nice.
I thought you'd done another 24 hour ride before this? Did you have similar problems then?
Probably difficult to use your smart phone, yes.- I'm not as good at mental arithmetic as I used to be, but there's plenty of time on the track to calculate your projected results
What was the low temperature?- When it's cold and dark and you're setting off after a break your arsehole legs will steal all the blood from the rest of your body and you will freeze
Nice write-up, G'day.
If I were any good with PhotoShop or similar, I would make a movie poster out of that for an imagined remake of On The Beach.
The nuclear fallout has arrived and they're racing bicycles to the last man, or something like that...
Hah, anything with a pause button is not even close
My gloves are pretty cheap, so I'll definitely get good ones before doing anything like this again!I'm finding they don't make riding gloves like they used to. You should be able to prevent your fingers going numb. It's not a good thing to do to them.
Possibly? Two of my Everests came close to 24 hours but I had no such problems. I spent far more time resting in those too because there's a set target instead of a ticking clock.Could (reflux) have been because of trying to digest dirt? I thought you'd done another 24 hour ride before this? Did you have similar problems then?
Difficult and also against the rulesProbably difficult to use your smart phone, yes.
10°C, which is not that cold but the wind was enough that I had to put on a base layer. As I said though, after you stop and start off again you basically freeze. Shaking, chattering teeth, the whole lot.What was the low temperature?
In addition to possibly cheap gloves, your numbness ("cyclists' palsy"?) was possibly partly due to the course not encouraging a lot of variance in riding position; there were probably no significant descents. (In contrast to Everesting).
Yes 10C is where it starts to get definitely cold. I've never observed the legs taking all the blood phenomenon, however. In fact in my early days I would often keep the legs a little bit more warmly dressed than the upper body. But in 10C I'd always wear at least light tights, and long sleeves, and an extra top under layer. Unless perhaps I really expected it to heat up drastically really soon.
Oh, and here's a cycling-related impulse purchase coming over from another thread...
Last edited by SportWagon; January 18th, 2018 at 01:30 PM.
So I just got an email to say that I've officially qualified for RAAM! No way am I doing it obviously, but that's a pretty cool little bonus achievementMakes me wish OP was still around - he would've appreciated that.
Now there's a short film. I'm in it a few times, looking almost delirious by the end - https://www.sbs.com.au/cyclingcentra...1689/Revolve24
Me and Katusha
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