Who is going to Fitz's Challenge / Epic / Extreme?

[mrgolf]

You must have been there or thereabouts with me for most of the ride. Was the 11hours total saddle time, or did you get home at 5pm?

https://secure.epsomrdstudios.com.au/vi ... _id=453766

I was the guy in the black and red with white arms on the left. What colours were you wearing? (what was with that teenager in the devil suit?)

[twizzle]

Epsom always has their devil at some point. This one is a bit hotter than the one from the AG Gran Fondo!

(Keeps repeating to self... I'm a married man... I'm a married man...)


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[jcjordan]

Looks like the have up'ed there game. Will have to look at it for next year.

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[MN GLXR]

I did the 165 and it was a harder ride than I expected.

The hills are endless and I saw plenty of people doing the walk of shame up Fitz's Hill.

Was well organized with plenty of food and water. All the motorists were patient to.

[Ross]

Epsom always has their devil at some point. This one is a bit hotter than the one from the AG Gran Fondo!

(Keeps repeating to self... I'm a married man... I'm a married man...)


Sent from my iThingy...

Yeah the AG GF devil chick was a shocker, she had thighs bigger than Anna Mears' and cellulite as well.

[skull]

The fitz's devil was rather attractive.

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[singlespeedscott]

The fitz's devil was rather attractive.

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Poor thing must of been freezing her butt off though. I reckon it couldn't of been much warmer than 5 degrees on that hill.

[mrgolf]

I dunno. Maybe the fact that I am a teacher makes things different for me. I kept thinking of all the students I have that are probably older than her. (not judging...)

[Pete.]

11 hours was a rough target.
I ended up finishing at 4:40. I reckon it was about 10:37 riding time. I was Duvel jersey.
I think I spent the early part a couple of wheels behind you. Not sure of how much petrol to burn to keep up at the front.
The bunch split before here https://secure.epsomrdstudios.com.au/vi ... _id=453814" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

...but the front guys must have soft pedalled as we caught up 4-5km before Fitz's. Stupidly I sat at the back and got tailed off before the climb instead of starting with the bunch which would have made me push a bit harder up the hill perhaps riding with a group to the turn.
I think you caught back up to us just before Fitzs and i was pretty impressed that somebody could puncture and manage to catch back up.

[Pete.]

Should have written 10:37 is total time, not ride time

[mrgolf]

Is that on the way out to rendezvous? I punctured just before Rendezvous. I stopped just before Tharwa for a wee and chased, though. Both chases took a toll. I was grinding hard up corin.

After Tharwa things settled down a bit and we took the op to rest up before Fitz. Then all hell broke loose. I was determined to stay in the saddle the whole way and was third to the top within striking distance, but I was hesitant to put in a really big effort in case I fell short later.

I remember you from your jersey. As an ex home-brewer, I was quite envious of it. Nice one. Where did you get it?

[Pete.]

The photo was on the way to Tharwa (I think)
I saw the Duvel jersies in belgium a couple of years ago and wanted one straight away, but they were too expensive.
I got mine from ebay for about $70-80ish. Good jersey for cool mornings and with a full zip to regulate the heat on hills.
Made by belgian company Vermac. I'm sure you can find them on the internet somewhere.

[rogan]

11 hours was a rough target.
I ended up finishing at 4:40. I reckon it was about 10:37 riding time. I was Duvel jersey.
I think I spent the early part a couple of wheels behind you. Not sure of how much petrol to burn to keep up at the front.
The bunch split before here https://secure.epsomrdstudios.com.au/vi ... _id=453814" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

...but the front guys must have soft pedalled as we caught up 4-5km before Fitz's. Stupidly I sat at the back and got tailed off before the climb instead of starting with the bunch which would have made me push a bit harder up the hill perhaps riding with a group to the turn.
I think you caught back up to us just before Fitzs and i was pretty impressed that somebody could puncture and manage to catch back up.

Thanks Pete

I'm in that photo too, in the Saxo Bank jersey just to the left and behind you. It's the top of a nasty little rise. I said "I'm hallucinating" or something similarly hilarious at exactly that point... That photo is about 20 km into the ride. That bunch was the rear half of a larger bunch which had formed soon after the start then split up the steep hill after Cotter Dam, but reformed later on (near Tharwa, I thought) before splitting again up one of the lumps.

IMO the benefit of the bunch is getting to Fitz's, once you hit Fitz's it's every man (and woman) for themselves, plus no drafting effect at 10%... and the next 15km to Rendezvous is so lumpy that you really need to just go at your own pace. I saw very few Extreme riders forming groups after Fitz's.

Me and a friend (in that bunch but can't be seen - he and some other mates were in Mid Life Cyclist jerseys) did the 205 in 8h 50min, or 8h 14 riding time. The 255 is a long long way, well done for getting through it.

[mezla]

First time Ftiz's for me. I did Fitz's Epic. Loved it! Honeysuckle OMGosh... what a beast.

I was riding with a mate who unfortunately came down with some sort of tummy bug on the day. He completed, but spewed twice and had chills riding up Fitz's Hill. He gets extra hardman points. So this meant we stopped and rested a lot because he frequently felt ill. Took us 12 hours to finish, but we spent a lot of time resting. My avg was 24.7. Next year I want to do the 255km and avg 27 with much less time spent standing still!

Fantastic event... great organisation, provisions, community spirit, incredible weather - although I had to laugh at the poor buggers from Sydney who were confronted with such a cold morning

My fave pics of me
https://secure.epsomrdstudios.com.au/vi ... _id=453895" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
https://secure.epsomrdstudios.com.au/vi ... _id=453896" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[mrgolf]

The photo was on the way to Tharwa (I think)

Yeah, it was just before Tharwa.

Original question was where did I catch up to you.

Great jersey. As tempted as I am, I might leave you the glory of that rare beauty. I am probably better off riding team kit on events like that.

Rogan, you are right about every man for himself. Having helped a team mate carry his bottles and ride pace while he tried to fix his cage while he rode, he and a mate rode off the second I punctured and never sat up. Beyond that, it was hard to form a group. From Tidbinbilla to home the extremes managed to form a bunch, which was great relief.

[ro.]

Finished 255km at 4:10ish. Total saddle time 9:24. Av spd 27.3. That is by far and away the hardest thing I have ever done.

I rode with the lead pack to Rendezvous all the time with niggling aches in my knees. Then, 5km from Rendezvous I punctured and had to chase the group rather than ride alone as I was in no mans land between the group travelling at my pace and the rest of the field. Caught some at Orroral and only about 600m behind leaders. The rest of the way was nursing my knees and struggling through. The gear ratio was about right for a fast average, but not for a slow grind. Coming down Corin to the damn dam wall, I was unable to pedal due to pain. This was my hit the wall moment. At the checkpoint, I ate half a watermelon and walked around for a bit. While there, a teammate who had hit the wall on Honeysuckle joined me and we rode the rest together. I had to stop at every checkpoint just to give my knees some respite. We ended up 8th on the road if my calculations are correct. Great event. Would I do it again? Ask me in a month.

Also, who would have thought that a cheese and coleslaw sandwich could taste so damn good!!!!

Well done on the 255k, that's me in the Vikings cc kit in the photo. I recall going past you before rendezvous ck. Was thinking that was bad luck, dropping out of the main pack. Though everyone kind of shattered from there anyway.

I did the 205, felt ok but was stiff and sore on fitzs, couldn't put out any power. Had to ease up and lost the front boys. My mate was hammering it, would of liked to sit on his wheel. Felt better later, might just of been cold.

It was my first go at fitzs, was a brutal ride, but satisfying effort. Rolled in a bit after 2. Pretty happy with that, 7:50 or so in the saddle. Was a good event.

[Pete.]

The photo was on the way to Tharwa (I think)

Yeah, it was just before Tharwa.

Original question was where did I catch up to you.

Great jersey. As tempted as I am, I might leave you the glory of that rare beauty. I am probably better off riding team kit on events like that.

Rogan, you are right about every man for himself. Having helped a team mate carry his bottles and ride pace while he tried to fix his cage while he rode, he and a mate rode off the second I punctured and never sat up. Beyond that, it was hard to form a group. From Tidbinbilla to home the extremes managed to form a bunch, which was great relief.

Normally I'd wear my club jersey but the quality is rubbish and wouldn't have been warm enough at the start.

Looking at your Strava file I actually think you were always in front of me. It shows you getting to Rendezvous Ck about 10 minutes before me, which kind of shows how slowly I rode that section if you included a 6 minute stop. I mst have confused you with somebody else who had punctured.

We last crossed over at the start of the Tidbinbilla Rd. I remember seeing a small group coming out as I was heading in.

[nickdos]

Just noticed the results have gone up on the Fitz's website.

[hannos]

Kudos to all that finished, nay, attempted, Fitz's.
I pulled out at 180 of 255km last year due to knee issues.
It's a dead set killer of a ride, worse by far than the 200 or 250km Alpine classics.

[skull]

I'm glad to hear people say it is a really hard ride.

As I was quite demoralized pulling out at 166km.

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[mezla]

The word I would use is BRUTAL.

[ausrandoman]

Thanks nickdos, for pointing out that the results are available.

I compared the figures for the 255 with the Alpine Classic Extreme.
http://www.alpineclassic.com.au/index.p ... Itemid=106" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

We must note that Fitz's is 13 km longer, which adds about 30 minutes to the time of the fastest riders and about 40 minutes to the slowest rider.

If we take off 30 minutes from the fastest finisher (by the way ... wow!), we get about the same time as the fastest in the ACE.

The median time for Fitz's was 11hr 04, which corresponds to about 10hr 30 for the ACE. The median time for the fast group on the ACE was 11 hr 19, so Fitz's looks easier. Fitz's felt harder but my average speed was the same so .... I dunno While I was standing around waiting for the start, I noticed a very different clientele. Fitz's attracted far fewer riders and they were generally much younger. I also notice that a much greater percentage dropped out of Fitz's. We old blokes have the advantages of experience and mental toughness. If I count the DNFs, I can kid myself I was about half way through the pack

[Pete.]

Perception is a funny thing. Both rides are hard but I can't really compare them as I've only ever done the 200 at Bright, and a few years ago at any pace.
I think it depends on what sort of training you do. I suck at those long sustained hills so i prefer the shortist rolling hils where you hammer up one, recover and repeat. I found a few guys sitting on my wheel over those and at the first sign of a real climb I was instantly dropped.
The fastest time was pretty hot. (I don't think the surname was correct)

I don't know how many riders in the longer distances have racing experience but if you want to set better times then this is the way to do it. Even if you think you are to old (oldest guy i ever raced against was 80- and i couldn't drop him), too slow, too unfit there will always be somebody worse (and a few better of course) but replacing a weekly ride with a race will pay dividends.

[mrgolf]

The first guy was Ryan Gormley. Mofo of a rider. He quite often rides the same hard Wednesday ride as me, which is usually about as hard as any race I have done. Good training smash.

I reckon its more important to get some long rides in. This was my mistake. I did not ride my best this year as I had not done a >100km ride in months and had no hills in my legs. Fatigue meant that as soon as I hit Corin, I was unable to cadence fast enough to alleviate pressure on my knees and duly caused myself great discomfort. Once I got off the big climbs, I was much better. I usually enjoy a climb and am no slouch up hills, but I just couldn't maintain my normal riding style. With better training with hills and distance, it would have been a different story. However, I dont race often enough, so the jury is out.

Im glad I was quicker than the median time, even though I didnt ride my best. 27.3 moving average was good enough for me, though. I am starting to feel like I want another crack at it. We'll see.

[mezla]

I just remembered something funny. On my way down Fitz's... I bunny hopped over a dead roo.

I can't really believe I did it... coulda made quite a mess of myself. The guy coming up Fitz's had a good laugh though, so totally worth it.