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Power up for the Alpine Energy 10 Hour Day/Night Mountain Bike Race

Entries Close  Friday 25 October 2019

Race Day is  Saturday 2 November 2019

About the event

You'll need heaps of energy and enthusiasm for this epic 10 hour day/night mountain bike race around some of the best flowing single track in the South Island.

Your mission - cover as many laps as possible during 10 hours of riding. Ride as a team (competitive or social) or for those wanting the ultimate challenge, as a Solo Rider.

What you get with the Alpine Energy 10 Hour is a great ride over a challenging course, heaps of fun, with a huge campsite right in the middle of the trail.   We have proven race management systems including an excellent timing system with a big screen showing individual lap times and team placings. And if that's not enough we have heaps of spot prizes, a massive party atmosphere.

The Corporate Print Challenge
The 10 Hour Race includes a great corporate challenge - the opportunity for local firms to battle it out for bragging rights.  It is a friendly fun activity, where workmates can and families can train together, compare notes and set goals.  It creates a great talking point and an added element of team work. 

The Course is rated one of the best by one of the best, the Anton Cooper.

This great course sits in Centennial Park, right in the heart of Timaru. The tracks have been built by South Canterbury MTB enthusiasts, supported by the Timaru District Council.  We link up of the best of these trails to create an 9km course with a bit of everything.  Undulating terrain, a few sharp but short climbs, some tight corners, fast straights - nothing overly technical - just perfect for longer races and suitable for all levels of mountain bikers, from beginners to World Champions like Anton.

And because we're running the Alpine Energy in November, warm, fine weather  has been pre-ordered.

Besides a fantastic track that is highly rated by riders, the Timaru 10 Hour is a very social event and festive occasion. A tent village is set up inside Centennial Park and the course winds its way through and past your allocated tent site. Lots of teams bring in those extra little things that help with their performance and make things a little more comfortable such as generators, lights, warm up bikes, BBQs, fridges and even couches and a spa pool!

You don't have to be  gun rider.  Just ride one lap, then kick back at your camp site and let your team mates take over.  When you've got your breath back and had some nourishment it'll be time to get back on the trail for another lap. 

You don't need to ride with night lights.  The 7.00pm finish is timed so darkness kicks after the race ends. 

Training for the Timaru Alpine Energy Ten hour day/night Mountain Bike Race

Make the 10 hour day/night Mountain Bike Race an enjoyable experience by being as best prepared by following these top 10 tips for training for the event:

  1. Riding your bicycle! Use these principles of training (riding your bicycle) to create structure to your training and get F.I.T. for the race:
    1. F.requency: this is the most important for the weekend warrior (in theory) - the more frequent & routinely you exercise/ride your bicycle, the more successful you will be at becoming F.I.T.
    2. I.ntensity: number 1 important point to remember with intensity is to vary it - have days where you train aerobic endurance (steady/moderately hard), really hard days (high intensity) and recovery.
    3. T.ime: the more time on the bike generally the better but always account for recovery time.
      1. To get a better idea of what is appropriate amount of the above you can enquire about the official Timaru 10 hour Mountain Bike training programme supplied by Odlin Cycle Coaching (OCC).
  2. If you’re entered as a team, aim to make time to ride with at least one of your team mates - a commitment to others makes training easier + you can learn the strengths & weaknesses of each other.

    i.      Having accountability of a paid training programme from OCC can assist in keeping you on track.

  3. Which type of cycling - Road or Mountain Bike? Both are appropriate, the latter being the most important for skill levels required for the course (see next tip). If you have a road bicycle, use it as a faster and easier way of building aerobic fitness required for the race.
  4. Train on the course: this is important to build your required technical skills and prior knowledge of the course helps for pacing and confidence on race day.
  5. Train over a similar time as race day: are you physically ready to start racing at 9am and at dinner time (6-7pm)? Train at these times (in the same time) to find out.
  1. Prepare yourself and equipment for varying the four seasons: rain, cold, wind & sunshine. As well as when on the bike, off-the-bike clothing/equipment is vital!
  2. Trial racing nutrition and hydration in training. As above on the bike nutrition and hydration is important, as well as off-the-bike.
  3. Write a plan/list for race day. The more relaxed you are about knowing everything is ready for you are good to go on race day, the better you will go.
  4. Train with heart rate monitor or power meter. Both these tools give an objective measure of your current performance and provide a way of tracking improvements in performance.

    i.      The OCC training programme is Training Peaks online-based which keeps track of both heart rate and power data.

  5. Have fun in training - it’s not just about the final destination! While completing this race could be an amazing achievement for some entrants, the process of training for the event, if done appropriately, should be as rewarding as crossing the finish line.