Obviously, if everything had gone according to plan, I would have finished.
At first glance, my nausea and diarrhea for several race days might be what most people think went wrong, but it wasn’t what went most wrong. Illness was not exactly unexpected, lots of people get sick, I’m not so special that I can expect to get away free.
In reality, the lessons for me were more about logistics.
Route Familiarity
I can follow a GPS track, and I generally do so without using the turn-by-turn directions. For the SRMR, I felt pretty confident in my ability to simply navigate. Had I spent time familiarizing myself with the shape of the route, I would have been more able to anticipate turns, chose campsites, and waste less time. Instead, I had looked at the map, but not studied the details.
I missed a turn on day 2, followed other racers off course for 8km. On day 3, I went the wrong way for 100m, and then again for 200m, day 6 was a doozie with 10km of bonus route. and of course, on day 9, my navigation was nothing short of incompetent. I would not make these mistakes again, because I would never go into a race like this without spending enough time studying the route that I could reliably predict correct directions.
Next race, I’m studying the map.
Electronic Devices
I was using a Hammerhead cycling computer, I could work it, and I loved the big, clears screen, but in my training, I had not spent a lot of time practising zooming in and out, looking at route detail, or getting used to using it in all conditions. It has a rain lock feature, it can zoom, and it can even provide turn-by-turn directions if used with wireless headphones. I didn’t use the headphones since they required too frequent charging. I liked the touch screen, so I had several accidental operations take place from rain when I didn’t remember to put the rain lock on. On the worst navigation day, I couldn’t make the computer zoom, and it wasn’t showing the blue line from the previous day’s track – not to blame the computer, just my insufficient skill with it.
My backup navigation was using the Komoot turn-by-turn directions for each stage. Though I had trouble hearing the directions on busier roads, this was fairly effective. But since I had not practised with Komoot, I missed several of its quirks. I knew a couple of the stages had been revised, but I did not know that when I downloaded the new stages,the old ones were retained. This led to 10 bonus miles near Munduz when I followed the old stage. It left me confused before Naryn, when the directions conflicted with my computer. The most race-affecting trouble was when the stage out of Kel-Su would not start, I still don’t know why, it merely said “Navigation Cannot be Started”.
I’m sure Komoot works just fine. But I am not using it again. It does not match my thought process well enough for me to want to develop fluency in using it. I regret trying to use it since I knew before the race that I was unfamiliar with it. I was depending on my general computer and GPS literacy to be able to make cursory use of it.
Next race, I’m using a single, and simple device, probably the MapOut app on my phone.
I brought a PedalCell generator for charging my devices. I liked how it could charge from a low riding speed, and that I could move the roller away from the wheel for mud clearance or reduced drag on hike-a-bike. I did not anticipate that when I got sick, I was going so slowly that I was not generating charging power for my phone, lights, computer, InReach, backup InReach, or power banks. I struggled to keep things charged, and spent some days with devices turned off, powering them on for brief segments where navigation was required. In the future, I would bring more power banks to tide me over the slow days. I would also aim to have fewer power needs by using fewer redundant devices.
I also had the computer and phone brightness turned down to conserve power. This meant that the yellow line I was following on the computer looked a lot like the white lines that were roads. I did not have a mount on my bars for my phone, so I had to stop to look at it if I was wanting a second opinion.
I had printed out a paper map, it lasted until the first rainstorm. I own waterproof photo paper, a printer, and ink. Enough said.
I learned my lesson though, in the future, I will have the required familiarity with fewer electronic tools, as well as sufficient reserve power.
Food
I knew that food was not going to be easy. I brought enough food to last the race as long as I could find bread and candy to supplement my calories. Where I let myself down was not having an adequate plan for moving food for the day from the main food bag to somewhere easily accessible like a pocket or a feed bag. I had planned on using a hydration waist pack, and when I could not wear it, it also affected my strategy. This did not stop me from finishing, but it was not as well managed as I could have.
Next race, I’ll eat what I brought, and eat more of it.
In the days leading up to the race, I did not manage my nutrition well. I believe that this at least weakened my digestive system and contributed to my getting sick.
Next race, I will eat properly before.
Top Tube Bag
The zipper was on the non-drive side, this was a mistake, especially in light of the fact that I only put bags on the drive side of the bike. I’m all for thrift, but not remaking the bag was a false economy.
Not Playing to my Strengths
I know that I sleep well outside in the cold. I know that I ride better when it is cooler. Sleeping at a guesthouse at CP1, and sleeping in a yurt at CP2 were both mistakes. I got almost no sleep at either, and that meant I went into the following days in worse shape than I could have. In a well-rested state, I find it hard to believe that I would have made such poor navigation choices out of Kel-Suu.
Though I did miss out on some probably spectacular scenery by riding at night, I also made some pretty good time, and at little expense to my body. I had planned to nap on hot afternoons, and I only did this at the top of a pass on day 2, when I didn’t really have the energy to get over the top. There were other days when a 2pm nap could have meant an earlier start the next morning, or a later ride in the cool evening.
Next race, I’ll live up to the coldbike handle, and I’ll ride in the cold and sleep outside.
Rain Gear
I am honestly not sure that my habit of putting on rain gear at the start of rain, and removing it as soon as it stopped was a bad habit. The one time I waited to put on rain gear was coming into CP2, and that left me soaked, late, on a fairly cool night. Really though, I did not understand just how frequently it would start and stop raining. My rain gear itself worked perfectly, my time management in putting it on and off was not so great.
Next race, I’ll have somewhere to stash layers so I can change more quickly.
Language
I could speak no Russian, and even less Kyrgyz. I had downloaded the languages to a translator app, but I was missing a crucial component, namely the Kirilic keyboard, so while I could type things to people, people could not answer me.
Conclusion
Sure, not everything went according to plan.but the important thing is that I learned. At the same time, I didn’t go for an easy time, and having been challenged, I am glad I went. I still amn’t sure I am going back for another attempt, but I haven’t ruled it out. My favourite times on a bike have been on snow, and the snow races are thankfully closer to home, though really, only the Iditarod Trail Invitational 1000 has the same kind of appeal to me. No matter what racing the future holds for me, in the meantime, I will still be out riding my bike.
