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I have heard about the mysterious bag monster that lives in your bag during #joberg2c and eats up items of clothing and other odds and ends which you never find ever again…..
Living out of a bag for 9 days (The maximum size of your bag allowed will be 100cm (L) x 36cm (H) x 39 (W)) with a new location every night and in a tent means that there has to be some serious organisation. If this is not high up on my priority list in terms of preparation, a little bag monster which really does exist and who you can never find, hides away in your bag and eats your things leaving you with a missing sock of odd glove who’s partner is nowhere to be found creating a chaotic situation where EVERYTHING has to be pulled out of the bag to find what you are looking for.
I seriously don’t want to waste my time and energy on this so I’m planning to be super organised when it comes to my bag. The bag needs to fit your sleeping bag and pillow into it and then everything else you will need during the race. @joberg2c has been very kind and has put together a suggested packing list (https://www.joberg2c.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/PackingList.pdf) for us to use and I love the fact that they include “a sense of humour” and “character” as mandatory on their list…. One thing they did forget to add are “big girl panties” and “HTFU (Harden the F@#$ Up) Pills” which will be the first things to go into my bag.
So, as I said organisation will be key here!
My general approach is to pack less rather than more, stage races and mountain bikers in general are usually very laid back and you often spend half the afternoon napping, so your gear stays fairly clean and nobody really cares if you wear the same tracksuit pants every day.
What I am planning to do is pack my bag, then remove anything that I think I wont need.
Repacking the bag and then repeating the process. I am also going to explore ways to back daily items into smaller bottles or bags as well as buy big ziplock bags to pack at least 3 or 4 days of race kit into from socks to suntan lotion and label them “day 1”, “day 2” etc.
There will be the times when I will need to wash pairs of cycling kit and dry out cloths that got wet on the ride and this will all be done in the afternoons when there is time to get organised. Brett and I have also said that we must each have duties so when he is washing bikes, I must be scrubbing sweaty shammies… sounds like an awesome job to have! LOL!
I’ll post my final packing list and tricks and hints that I have picked up along the way closer to the time so watch this space.
After my last post, a few people have asked me for my Date Bomb recipe, so here it is….
I weigh out 40g portions and then form them into little bars, wrap them with foil which makes it easy to unwrap while you are on the bike, take a bite and re-wrap it afterwards for the next snack time.
You can get experimental here and roll them in coconut or add chia seeds into them but I find you spend the next few km’s picking out chia seeds from in between your teeth which can be a bit of challenge. I make a big batch and keep them in the freezer and take them out just before a ride.
It is now called baboon poop in our house. Brett pointed out the resemblance that the date bars have with baboon poo… I’ll leave it to you imagination!
Training comments:
Training this week went well. I had 2 rest days – one planned and one because of a migraine which took me off to the optometrist to check my eyes which at the age of 40 are starting to get worse (joys of getting old). We had a big weekend of running planned with a +- 50km night ride on Friday, just over 100km on Saturday and then a bit of fun joining some peeps doing a bit of enduro on the Sunday. But the rain had different plans which left me with a 9km run, 1.2 hours on the indoor trainer and a good solid ride at Suikerbos Rand so all was not lost. I managed to knock off 18 minutes from our last ride time there so super chuffed!
I’ve upped my “Pee Squats” to 48 per day so will look at increasing this as I go along.
As I mentioned last week – You are what you eat and what a difference it has made to my performance. I feel stronger and can go for longer without doubting myself if I can manage this race comfortably…. I now actually feel like I can do this!
I was very strict on the bike and ate when my alarm went off and concentrated on eating small portions throughout the day which still feels like a lot of food but something has changed in my performance and the only thing that is different is my diet. So I am going to carry on with this and update you as I go.
Training Summary
3rd February – 9th February
Mountain Biking : 57.39km – Suikerbos 2.57hours (18.89km/h), ascent 1251.00m
Indoor Cycling : 1.2 hours
Running : 23.93km
Pee Squats : 240
Total Training summary from 1st January 2020
Mountain Biking : 407.15km
Indoor Cycling : 5 hours 52 minutes
Running : 126.97km
Pee Squats : 1040
Weight loss : TBC
Yours in adventure
Lindsey
Lindsey Lotringer:
"To me, old age is always 20 years older that I am… sorry to everyone that’s 60! The older I get, my life gets more and more adventurous and I am absolutely loving it! Being 40 is knowing what I want, who I am and proud of what I have become. I am a partner to the most amazing guy, mother (well, step mom really but I don’t like that description) to Kim who’s turning 12, a very grateful entrepreneur of a bustling catering company which has grown into a healthy happy business over the last 5 years, I am a friend, a sister, an aunt and a daughter… I am who I have made myself into and I love it! I started riding in 2012 and it fast became a part of me… the personal challenges it brings, the smile I get after achieving, the social side of it, the chance to exhale after a busy week – you don’t need a therapist if you ride a bicycle, especially if it’s a mountain bike!"
“The fun begins where the tar ends”
joberg2c
joberg2c is riding the off-roads less travelled and trails never travelled across four provinces of South Africa. It is sharing a passion for mountain biking with those who love riding. The communities, the trails, the landscapes and the feast of flavours all conspire to make this a journey for the soul. for more info visit their website: https://www.joberg2c.co.za/