RACE DAY TIPS

with Adam Cohen

Training can be a lot like drinking: to have a great time you need to know when to stop. In the week leading up to a race or event, athletes can do more to undermine their training than they can to enhance it. Yet, just like that “one more” drink, it’s the prospect of getting a little extra something that gets you in trouble. - Chris Carmichael (Carmichael Training Systems)

There are a lot of misconceptions when it comes to preparing for an event. Many people will try to cram in last minute workouts, hydration, and rest into the final few days before an event. In reality any high intensity workouts during race week will not benefit you at all on race day but may actually raise your fatigue levels. All of your fitness work such as running, cycling and swimming workouts need to be done in the weeks leading up to your race, race week should be spent doing lighter workouts such as easy spins on a bicycle or some light running. Some people like to do “openers” the day before the event which typically would consist of some moderate intervals to get the blood flowing.

Now let’s talk a bit about hydration. No you can not chug a gallon of water the day of the race and claim to be hydrated. Hydration is extremely important for endurance sports. Racing two hours in the Florida sun with 20lbs of gear on is definitely hard on the body. Proper Hydrations should be maintained during training and racing but let’s be real, No one is perfect. I try to step up my hydration four to five days before the event. Everyone’s a little different when it comes to water intake but I try to drink a minimum of 5-7 bottles of water per day. Many people like to train and race with different hydration substances added to their water but you’re going to want to test them during your training days as some people find them hard of the stomach.

Last but not least is rest. Most of us work full time jobs and many work jobs that require physical labor which makes this last topic of rest very difficult to achieve. Rest on race week is extremely important, your body needs this time to recover from the weeks of training and racing. August to May is a really long time to keep the body performing at a high level so it’s important to take rest very seriously from the very first race of the season. There is really no tip or trick to this one other than turning the TV and phones off and forcing yourself to go to bed.

Hopefully this small write up will help some of the FTR membership out. I Will be at every Hare Scramble and enduro this season, feel free to walk up and introduce yourself and ask me some questions. I’m also on facebook and instagram if you want to reach out.

Adam Cohen Former National & State Mountain Bike Champion

Adam Cohen aboard his CR 125 at the Big Buck Hare Scramble