I don't think I can make it this weekend either. Was thinking of doing Tokeneke as a warm up. Also looking for a cannibal TT beforehand. Any thoughts?

konrad said:

I'm into it. This weekend may not work, but I agree... we should get together at least twice beforehand.

Any road races until then that anyone is interested in?

If you want to get a look at some of your New England competition. Hilltowns this weekend is where it's at.

Blergh. Money and transport mean I'm out for this weekend.

konrad said:

Blergh. Money and transport mean I'm out for this weekend.

Understand...me too. Training weekend for me.

All Green Mountain participants. Consider also getting in a real crit before the big weekend. The 6 turn crit course in Burlington is among the most challenging I've ever done. It's fairly routine that 1/2 the field gets pulled before bell lap.

There are a handful of good crit racing opportunities coming up. This weekend in Sterling, NJ. In a few weeks or maybe next, I can't remember off hand, nearby Danbury CT, then the weekend before GMSR, Chris Thater is happening in Binghamton, NY.

Very sad that I'll be missing this again.

GMSR-ers...check it out on the main discussion page. A poll!

Also on another thread there was the question of which would be better prep for GMSR, a road race, or time trial. For me, the answer is that "it depends."

If you are able to continue to get in good training and continue to maintain or grow your fitness without benefit of racing, then you should pick whichever event is going to make you feel more confident going into the race.

Some unique reasons to choose a hard RR in CT:

• You'll get a preview of the form of some of your competition
• If you enter with all of your GMSR teammates, you'll get practice executing team strategy

Some unique reasons to choose a TT:

• You'll get mental and physical practice riding against a clock
• You'll have some recent TT racing data to help you race/manage the clock in VT

Entry fees go up $20 tonight at midnight. They go up another $30 on the 11th. I'm calling bullshit on these entry fees. They're making a fucking killing. $295 if I decide last minute! Come on.

I'm thinking really hard about this race. Is it worth it? $500 when it's all said and done for a weekend. 4 races. An experience? What is so special about this race? Somebody let me know.

Please.

Uh, you'll be lucky if you get up and back for $500 all in. Entry, car, fuel, lodging, food...it's a fucking black hole this sport. That's why its dominated by rich people.

(oh and that said, I'm definitely doing GMSR)

vlad said:

Entry fees go up $20 tonight at midnight. They go up another $30 on the 11th. I'm calling bullshit on these entry fees. They're making a fucking killing. $295 if I decide last minute! Come on.

I'm thinking really hard about this race. Is it worth it? $500 when it's all said and done for a weekend. 4 races. An experience? What is so special about this race? Somebody let me know.

Please.

My take on stage races (granted it's been a couple of years) is that the main difference is the camaraderie of the team house, and the out of race hangin' with the gang experience.

Just registered. Wasn't going to get any cheaper if I waited. With fees, just paid $257. As I registered for Tokeneke today too, that is $320 I have spent today on registration.

Dudes, sign up. What's the point in wasting $20 or $50 by putting it off?

Vlad, this is the best stage race as it allows all types of rider to have a chance at success on at least one or more days. Vermont is beautiful for cycling. It is one of the very few occasions we get to do a 4 day event.

Ryan is right though, I think double your $500 is about right...

This race weekend is expensive, no doubt. But for Sarah and I we've always treated it as a mini vacation. Aside from rock solid racing every day, what I like about the Mad River Valley is that it's very much alive and kicking, despite the fact that it's in between ski and leaf-peeping season. When I get up there, I instantly feel relaxed and "on vacation."

I feel like I've written novels on why I love this weekend of racing, and I'm assuming you are more interested in the racing angle, so I'll try to keep this latest update brief.

Day 1 TT. Nice course with gorgeous backdrop. Even though it starts with a significant climb, and it's Cannibal style, it rides out like a legit TT. But at 15-18 minutes of pain, it's you know, over soon. I especially love the ride home from there with spectacular views, a breezy descent, and a roll through two cute towns. I always loved being able to ride to and from race starts. Nice to not always have to pack up the car. And getting rolling up a driveway after a hard race, showering up, while the bike is leaned against a wall, not worried that it's going to get jacked, having a sandwich on a bench with lawn and trees and mountains all around? I love that shit.

Day 2 CR. This course is classic. Advertised as one for "not climbers." Fatties like myself know better. The lead-up to the feedzone climb is actually kind of brutal, but survivable if you are smart. Which makes me feel less weak/fat than I probably am. It kind of drags false flat style to feedzone, then smacks you in the face with a couple of kilometers of steep stair steps. The bonus here is that if you get back onto the pack, before the right turn at the bottom of all the climbing, then you've got lots of recovery miles to spin spin spin. If you want to sprint for placing or points, you need an 11, or a 12 and be comfortable cranking 130+ rpm. No joke. One hot year, immediately after the CR, where Sarah was parked near the finish line, was what Vermonters call a "swimming hole," but in this particular spot, it was more of a big open rocky beach and an amazing place to recover and enjoy the cool waters. I love that shit.

Day 3 RR. This years course isn't finalized due to perpetual and ongoing road projects that seem to exist up there. The organizer wants to send us over two major gap climbs. The last time I did this race with two gap climbs, it was rough going. Because if you get dropped (as I did) on the first mountain pass climb of about 5-8k in length, then you've got nothing but your shame and daemons to keep you company on the flat valley roads between the first climb and baby gap. And you lose tons of time. One year, a motorcycle official felt sorry for a group of about 10 of us (including one Eugene Boronnow, if I recall correctly) and he totally motorpaced us for I don't know 10 miles on the flats? Heading up App gap is kind of epic, although not as hard as Devil's Kitchen, the final K of this 5K-ish climb is steep and slow.

I've always had a kind of "gender confusion" when it comes to riding and racing. I'm not particularly good at going uphill, but in my mind I'm a polka dot king all the way. And so when I have an opportunity to crank up a crazy steep final kilometer at the end of a hard race and basically need to be held up as I cross the finish line, I jump at it. Also, bombing down the other side of App Gap, rolling into aformentioned driveway, pounding some calories and chilling out at great inn? All this stuff. I love that shit.

Day 4 Crit. 6 corners in Burlington. 50% attrition rate. You know me. I totally love THAT shit. It's the only day I get to feel like a stud. Also, Burlington is a cool town to spend some time. At a minimum, easy to find good eats.

Other things I loved about the weekend...

• Craft fairs, farmers markets...are things my wife likes to do. They have 'em.
• Kayacking on the Mad River was fun one year.
• Swimming holes with Penny and this year Peter? Please, can't miss. Keeping my fingers crossed for a warmer than average weekend.
• There's a really good taco joint in town that I'm sort of jonesing for.
• There's a cool movie theater in town. Won't happen for us this year, because of Peter but that has always been a fun evening for us. A little BBQ, then catch up on a movie, while sitting in an overstuffed couch.
  

I'm out. Going to have to work. 

@vlad: You sign up and pay the money because it's the best stage race in the Northeast. Nobody argues that point as far as I know. The sprinter jersey is legit. People fight really hard for it. Guys like Malcolmson and Da Silva would be perfect for that competition. The KOM jersey is legit. People fight really hard for it. If Ryan got it, it would probably be his best result yet. A stage win is of course legit. The GC is ... VERY legit.

Fuck Jeff.  If I wasn't already signed up I would sign up right now.  Might even sign up again as is.

I love it. Jeff > salesperson than Marc.

Marc = Varied courses, beautiful views, fun stuff to do. Crickets.

Jeff = this race is fucking awesome, and legit. Adam gets jacked up all over again for race he's already signed up for.

I'm going to have Jeff write all my ad copy next time.

Ah, don't feel bad Marc.  Last time I did GMSR I stayed at the Weathertop Inn, a location found based on your advice.

I'll chime in and say that GMSR can be sold on the merits of stage racing in general. 

^what Ryan said.

Joaquin said:

^what Ryan said.

FWIW, I take this approach when doing a series like ToAD. Full immersion, by the end of it I'm a fluent crit speaker with a crush on my host sister.

sorry guys realized I haven't officially bailed on this race yet. I can't take the days off of work to do it. Good luck!

REG'D and fully intend to show up!

Last call. So far Vlad, Konrad and Niall have expressed interest in a pre-race course breakdown. Since I'm fast running out of time (off to Chicago in a few days), I'm going to suggest that a team dinner in Vermont the night after the TT.

At a minimum--and I don't have to be part of the conversation--the cat 3s squad should break some bread together. Looks like Konrad and Adam had some strong finishes at Tokeneke, and Ryan can never be counted out when the road tilts up. Nice to go into the road race stage with 3 double legit weapons. Especially now that they've returned to the classic 2 gap climb!

"We are very excited to announce that after a 3 year hiatus this year's Champion System Mad River Road Race will be contested on the classic 2-gap course. This course pre-dates the start of the GMSR and for many racers it put the Mountain in the name of the event. For several years racers have been asking us to return to this true climber's challenge, and with the nearly completed replacement of a closed bridge in Bristol we are finally able make that a reality.

This course offers two significant climbs with the Middlebury Gap first, followed by several challenging shorter pitches, finally ending with the climb up the Appalachian Gap. According to Strava this course is 64 miles with 5,560 feet of elevation gain for your enjoyment. Of course that is not enough for our Men's P/1 and Cat. 2 fields so we have added an extra little loop to bring their race to 94 miles and 7,280 feet of climbing. We promise this will be an epic day of racing whether you are going for the win or just trying to survive to contest the Burlington Criterium on Monday. All the course details will be posted under the Stage 3 page soon. Please note that both the South Street Bridge in Bristol and a bridge on Rt. 100 in Granville Gulf are closed. They are both scheduled to be open by August 19th."

Tokeneke racers will note that at least one of that day's top finishers, Oliver Hall (1KToGo; 5th place) is also scheduled to race GMSR. Probably not a bad idea to do a little cross referencing results/start lists as you mentally prepare for this big weekend.

With just 3 KCC riders and a challenging 4 days ahead of you, some careful planning and heads-up racing should net some strong team results. Of course this is a big weekend and feature event for many, so you may want to just go out there, do your own thing and see how things shake out on App gap and in the crit for final GC standings.

Riders going for GC placing, will have to be smart about how they approach the opening day's TT. All the usual rules apply for doing a good TT. Proper warm-up, not killing yourself in the opening kilometer (which is easy to do here because it's a climb), warming-down to ready legs for subsequent stages, proper post race nutrition, etc.

The CR, will likely see all the contenders finish in a mass field sprint. Unless you are going for the Sprinter's Jersey, best just stay out of the way and get "same time" finish. Anyone going for the climber's jersey will have to be a little more attentive on this day though. It's not a "gap" climb, but make no mistake about it, it's a real climb. Good recovery procedures after this stage is going very important. 

The RR might see alternate tactics now that there is an early, more significant climb up and over Middleburry Gap. For the top GC contenders though, stuff will likely still get ultimately sorted out on Baby and App Gaps.

The crit is typically a 50% attrition rate. The good news is that you only have to finish 1/2 the race to get placed in the final GC. The bad news is that if you do get "pulled and placed" you will get a slower time than the group that finishes the complete distance. Might not be enough to kill any gaps you may have created on App gap, but then again, you might be able to put away some pure climbers with a strong crit finish! Warm-up and good start is CRITICAL here. The course is one of the hardest I have ever done.

Good luck everyone! Good training, good eating, good recovery, good tapering. If you haven't already been doing so, please pay close attention to all the details starting NOW.

I'm curious to dip my toe in the GMSR water. What's the housing/rides situation up to VT looking like? Does anyone have room left for 1?

Dudes let's get roll call on this:

Adam, thanks for checking in. Yeah, me and my crew of kid and dog are all set for rental car/lodging.

Allow me to offer some hot tips so you don't get caught out on the holiday weekend for rental cars.

Step 1: If possible, rent from New Jersey. Fort Lee, Jersey City. Lots of cheaper.

Step 2. If possible, rent NOT for just the holiday weekend. Think about renting, for example Wednesday to Wednesday or Tuesday to Tuesday for a weekly rate. Why?

Holiday weekends are expensive, and often, renting for the week starting significantly before the holiday, not only will you have a better chance of getting a car (NYC cars absolutely sell out for the weekend, but not necessarily for a Tuesday afternoon pick up), but more importantly, the weekly rate will be very much a better value. Maybe even cheaper.  In fact this entire summer I've been doing as much, and renting for an entire week, with a midweek-ish pick up has been just $30 more for an entire week versus renting for the weekend only. This way I've been able to get in a Tuesday night at T-Town (in addition to weekend fun), grocery shop with less fuss, etc.

(as an aside, using this same theory, and looking at my family biz/road/cross season ahead of me, we've actually rented a car for an entire month which is cheaper than stringing together just two of the weekends we have scheduled in the next month.)

Step 3: Confirm your car is "unlimited mileage." Some neighborhood locations place limits on the mileage and you'll be blowing way past most limits with this trip.

I'm in, and I'll be driving, but not sure I'll be much use to anyone in that regard because I have to leave late Thurs.

Had a request for activities in the Mad River Valley. I'll try to dig up the specific post where I blather on about all the things Sarah and I have done in the past (it's in here somewhere, probably a couple of times), but here's a link to an official Mad River Valley Chamber of commerce calendar.

http://www.madrivervalley.com/events

I receive the following Burlington intel:

Hey gang. This post is for those of you traveling with family, looking for some ideas to keep everyone having a good time. I've written so many of these and yet, can't find any of them, so I'll just do it again.

In general, the Mad River Valley is very much alive and kicking in the summertime (not just ski and leaf peeping season). So, everything is open. Shops, restaurants, movie theaters. It's really a great location for a mini-family vacation amidst a pretty spectacular 4 days of stage racing. What you and yours ultimately end up doing will depend on a lot, like your energy levels, race start times, and how much you want to save your legs for the following stages.

In the early years, Sarah and I spent hours quite literally lost in a corn maze way, way up north in the state. It was fun, and we did it a couple of times, but I don't recommend that kind of pedestrian walking action for good recovery.

I'm going to resist playing cruise director by cross checking your race times with area activities because that would take a serious chunk of time, and based on previous posts, I won't even get a single "like" or "insightful," never mind, dare to dream, an "awesome" from the lot of you. #winkyface #funnycuzitstrue #c'mon

That said, here is a general suggestion for a possible itinerary.

Thursday: Drive to Waitsfield. Check in, relax, find some yummies for dinner.

Friday: TT day. Racers do your thing. If your lodging is close to the start, consider riding there as the first phase of your warm-up. This frees up the car for family members to go out and do a little general touring/exploring of Waitsfield area. A good opportunity to "recon" which shops/activities they want to check out later in the weekend.

Saturday: CR day. Family members get up first, head on over to the farmers market and load up with lots of yummies for a picnic on the lawn of the school where the feedzone is. Lots and lots of grass, pleasant road, quiet. After last time through feedzone, load up in car, drive the course backwards to get to the finish in time to watch the fireworks. If it's warm, spend some time at the finish in the cool waters of the Mad River nearby. Have some recovery foods for your racer to power down, so they can enjoy the water. Then dinner. Still early and not tired? Think about catching a movie in town.

Sunday: RR day. If your family is not manning the feedzone, then they've got a pretty long chunk of time to visit all those cool stores they reconned on Friday. Also big craft/art fair is this weekend. If they are doing the feedzone, watch you at the finish routine, like Sarah typically does, then you'll have to spend a few minutes coordinating drop off times, leaving times and parking etc. If your race is close enough to my 40+ category, then you are welcome to follow Sarah as she's pretty pro at getting from point a to b to c. After the race, you are going to be kicked. Recovery foods as soon as possible, shower, dinner, go to bed. Monday is a big day.

Monday: Crit day. Lots of cool stuff going on in Burlington. Racers will regret not getting to the race AT LEAST 90 minutes early for proper pre-race prep. Classic New England college town. Tons of shopping/browsing/eating opportunities in town while you are doing your warm-up thing. During the race, family should walk the course backwards and see how exciting a 6 turn crit can be. It's less than 40 minutes of watching. Afterwards, get your pictures from the podium, change and eat a congratulatory meal. Grab some desert and stroll down to the beautiful shores of Lake Champlaign before heading home to reality.