Never was a great mtb racer, but was nationally ranked in kayak. My advice train heavy, race light (train on gear heavier than you race on). Makes it feel like you have more strength and impacts your mental game on race day. Find a fast way to get into flow state and stay there for the duration of the race. You really want to make the event happen on instinct levels of movement, and save the brain cycles for random choices. Aim to make everything ready on race day to include: intellect (logical mind), emotions, physical body, and spirit - parts of the self . If you can get all 4 of those in a great place, you set yourself up for the best day possible. Some other things I am sure you know, course knowledge, dialed gear, dialed food before and during, and a strong support crew that help keep your 4 in a great place. Panic training plan might be an indicator of some randomness that you might want to settle down before race day 😂
Thank you! So many great points in this, love it. So excited to bring that altogether on race day! Thank you for sharing!! Hehe that’s just a title, I’m not really panicking 😉
Awesome stuff Katy. As an older rider (mid 50’s apparently) who’s done the Whaka 100 a few times I’ve learnt to watch my volume. When hill interval sessions are added i take longer to recover so the long rides (with any intention over zone 2) take back seat soon after. And I no longer taper - I plunge! 😂 an unplanned two weeks out worked last year for the 50km and felt refreshed on start line. Great to see Tom B again too after fun days in BC.
Well done - Katy and your spot on I am an avid MTB marathon participant and thanks for confirming what my coach is doing and good luck with your MTB xc and marathon season
Made the switch from Enduro to XC marathon last year. Lessons learned so far; Easy days are more important than hard days. If you go too hard on your easy days then your hard days won’t be hard enough. You can’t do Zone 2 on the MTB. Would much rather be on the mountain bike, but there is too much variability to train consistently. Don’t worry about skills if you are coming from Enduro. Your skills will be so far above most XC racers that you are going to get held up on the descents anyway.
I'm at the end of my training before a race (on the taper) the biggest thing I noticed was if I stayed consistant with the training how well the body reacted/recovered. I'll be following this series with interest as I want to contiue improving on the other side of my race. Good luck
Oh nice work, nail that taper! Love it, thanks for sharing. It is quite insane what the body can do with that consistency!! Best of luck with the race, please let us know how you get on!!
I'm loving seeing your journey on this one, I rode Whaka 100 last year - it's a great event, although was harder than a 100km race sounds - as it's almost entirely on single track, so constantly working with no real rest areas apart from a handful of fire roads. Enjoy the training and i've no doubt you'll smash the race, looking forward to seeing your progress up to race day.
Great video! I'm training for the 2025 Single Track 6 MTB Race. Last year due to illness and life, I was only able to train for 3 months. My capacity to race was at a fitness I would describe as 2.5 hours of solid race ability. By the third day I was worn down. This year, I am working with a regular Off-season starting now. I look forward to learning from you through this series! 😅❤
If you're training in Rotorua for this (especially if it's anyone's first go at the 100 race) ride Pondy Elevator and As you do. They're much different in terms of the type of trail and some good technique and line choice will be needed to ride them comfortably for a first timer! Some people newer to trail riding can find the exposure on No brains a bit scary too, so that's also worth a look for anyone who wants to do some skills stuff
Super interesting stuff, good luck for the event - looks epic and you seem to be in a great place! 💪 My tip would be if you have an off day don’t sweat it, the next one will be better, so many times I’ve stressed about not getting up a hill as quickly or easily as I think I should and it’s just down to attacking too hard or not having eaten enough or a crap nights sleep, then smash it next time, all evens out in the end 👍
This is great info and very inspiring. Looking forward to following the rest of the adventure. I'm currently in injury recovery mode, so planning for my own rebuild from an undertrained position. 😂 Have fun and good luck!
I got really into fell running in my late twenties. I was never a natural, having been a muscly track cyclist in my youth, but like you I wanted to find my limits. This quest culminated in running the High Peak Marathon, a 42 mile ultra at night in March, around the Derwent Watershed. It was a proud moment running in the dawn back to Edale, but the problem was I carried on trying to do long races without giving myself a proper break and my performance got worse and worse, I never recovered and in the end I stopped fell running completely. My advice would be to make sure you have a good rest. However you do in the Whaka100, be wise and be kind to yourself afterwards.
Thank you, this is such valuable advice! Rest and recovery is king, so easy when you’re on a roll and loving it to do too much though! Hope you find the love for it again! Thanks for sharing!!
Public accountability helps me! Saying I’m going to do a ride, writing it in the diary sharing on social media, what plan is what I need to do… I think the videos are a great way to do that! I want to do similar events here in Uk…sadly cancelled 15/9 weather is very challenging :(
My personal goal for the Whaka is last year I had Ross river and didn’t know but I completely blew up. I am hoping to be faster than last year even with this but we shall see. We share the same mantra to be curious of knowing how far you can go by starting
Mentally being strong after a crash has been the challenge for me. I took a step back, slowed down my riding with a view to try to ‘rebuild’ some speed. How do you recover or stay strong mentally after a crash or setback?
First is make sure your equipment is working well and is right for you. Nothing more destructive to confidence than not trusting your bike because your brakes aren’t working right or the tyres are no good or simply too hard. If that’s all sweet then I ride trails that make me feel good, on repeat. I don’t move onto anything more challenging until I feel like “me” again. This builds up positive experiences and reminds you, you can do it. Then bring in harder elements a bit at a time, being kind to yourself and no beating yourself up if you’re not ready to hit something you used to do. One step at a time! Visual rehearsal of how you used to feel when riding is also a great tool. Think about the times you felt great and how good it was and really feel those times. Get all these senses going and reconnect with that often. Hope that helps! Be kind to yourself!!
@@KatyWinton Being mindful of overtraining is certainly clutch, but also think of how much one’s central nervous system has to process ! Rested body, quiet mind FTW.
Practice your race day diet. Some foods are very different to take in when breathing through your eyeballs… relying on aid stations can be costly if they are not foods that work for you👍
Train with a full Camelbak and take lots of spare clothes and tools/tube etc. But then ditch it on race day. Feels much better racing lighter and you don’t feel the weight as much when you’re training.
My training motivation? Lots of personal goal stuff and inspiring things...sure... But there's also a Dove dark chocolate and peanut butter piece of candy with my name on it and the end of a bigger training day!
Never was a great mtb racer, but was nationally ranked in kayak. My advice train heavy, race light (train on gear heavier than you race on). Makes it feel like you have more strength and impacts your mental game on race day. Find a fast way to get into flow state and stay there for the duration of the race. You really want to make the event happen on instinct levels of movement, and save the brain cycles for random choices. Aim to make everything ready on race day to include: intellect (logical mind), emotions, physical body, and spirit - parts of the self . If you can get all 4 of those in a great place, you set yourself up for the best day possible. Some other things I am sure you know, course knowledge, dialed gear, dialed food before and during, and a strong support crew that help keep your 4 in a great place. Panic training plan might be an indicator of some randomness that you might want to settle down before race day 😂
Thank you! So many great points in this, love it. So excited to bring that altogether on race day! Thank you for sharing!! Hehe that’s just a title, I’m not really panicking 😉
Love seeing Tom Bradshaw. He was one of my faves at PB.
Good luck to you!
He is bloody brilliant!!
I passed you on the way up to gonna gotta and you passed me on the way down. You were flying, well done
Thank you letting me learn together with you.
my pleasure!! Thanks for watching!
Good FTP explanation Katy
Thank you 🤩
Awesome stuff Katy. As an older rider (mid 50’s apparently) who’s done the Whaka 100 a few times I’ve learnt to watch my volume. When hill interval sessions are added i take longer to recover so the long rides (with any intention over zone 2) take back seat soon after. And I no longer taper - I plunge! 😂 an unplanned two weeks out worked last year for the 50km and felt refreshed on start line. Great to see Tom B again too after fun days in BC.
love the way you explain training
Well done - Katy and your spot on I am an avid MTB marathon participant and thanks for confirming what my coach is doing and good luck with your MTB xc and marathon season
Fantastic news for both of us haha! Thanks for the luck 😍 all the best for yours too!!
Hell yeah Katy! PB on the stats 💪 don't over cook it!
And thanks for the shout out! 😅
Made the switch from Enduro to XC marathon last year. Lessons learned so far;
Easy days are more important than hard days. If you go too hard on your easy days then your hard days won’t be hard enough.
You can’t do Zone 2 on the MTB. Would much rather be on the mountain bike, but there is too much variability to train consistently.
Don’t worry about skills if you are coming from Enduro. Your skills will be so far above most XC racers that you are going to get held up on the descents anyway.
Absolute belter of a comment, super helpful thank you so much for sharing!!
@@KatyWinton excited to see what you accomplish in the next chapter of your career!!
I'm at the end of my training before a race (on the taper) the biggest thing I noticed was if I stayed consistant with the training how well the body reacted/recovered. I'll be following this series with interest as I want to contiue improving on the other side of my race. Good luck
Oh nice work, nail that taper! Love it, thanks for sharing. It is quite insane what the body can do with that consistency!! Best of luck with the race, please let us know how you get on!!
You are amazing and inspiring. I’m going to borrow your training plan for my race October 27th.
Thank you!! Absolutely, are you coming to the Whaka??
@@KatyWinton No, I wish I was though. My last race of the year is the USA Cycling Texas MTB State Championship.
The best guide/explanation I’ve seen on training 👍
Woah thank you so much!!! 🤩
Tom’s a coach AND pink bike presenter?! Sick as!
Tom is a man of many hats and expertise 🤓
I'm loving seeing your journey on this one, I rode Whaka 100 last year - it's a great event, although was harder than a 100km race sounds - as it's almost entirely on single track, so constantly working with no real rest areas apart from a handful of fire roads. Enjoy the training and i've no doubt you'll smash the race, looking forward to seeing your progress up to race day.
Thank you!!! This is great to know, I feel happy I’m smashing so much singletrack at the moment!!!
Great video! I'm training for the 2025 Single Track 6 MTB Race. Last year due to illness and life, I was only able to train for 3 months. My capacity to race was at a fitness I would describe as 2.5 hours of solid race ability. By the third day I was worn down. This year, I am working with a regular Off-season starting now. I look forward to learning from you through this series! 😅❤
Awesome!! You’re going to feel so much better this time around starting some training now, I’m excited for you!! Thanks for joining the journey!
If you're training in Rotorua for this (especially if it's anyone's first go at the 100 race) ride Pondy Elevator and As you do. They're much different in terms of the type of trail and some good technique and line choice will be needed to ride them comfortably for a first timer! Some people newer to trail riding can find the exposure on No brains a bit scary too, so that's also worth a look for anyone who wants to do some skills stuff
Great hot tips!! Thank you, will defo be keen to scope out before the race! Thank you!!!
Super interesting stuff, good luck for the event - looks epic and you seem to be in a great place! 💪 My tip would be if you have an off day don’t sweat it, the next one will be better, so many times I’ve stressed about not getting up a hill as quickly or easily as I think I should and it’s just down to attacking too hard or not having eaten enough or a crap nights sleep, then smash it next time, all evens out in the end 👍
100% that is so so important to remember! Thank you so much for sharing!!
Great work Katy. It’ll be interesting to see how your performance stats change over the 8 weeks.
Thank you! Yeah for sure, I’m excited to see 🤩
This is great info and very inspiring. Looking forward to following the rest of the adventure. I'm currently in injury recovery mode, so planning for my own rebuild from an undertrained position. 😂 Have fun and good luck!
Thank you!! Hahah the best position to start 🤣🤣 thanks for joining the journey!! Sending healing vibes for a swift recovery!
I always start in the ‘undertrained position’ 😅
It's a valid choice... 😂
A great position 🤣
I got really into fell running in my late twenties. I was never a natural, having been a muscly track cyclist in my youth, but like you I wanted to find my limits. This quest culminated in running the High Peak Marathon, a 42 mile ultra at night in March, around the Derwent Watershed. It was a proud moment running in the dawn back to Edale, but the problem was I carried on trying to do long races without giving myself a proper break and my performance got worse and worse, I never recovered and in the end I stopped fell running completely. My advice would be to make sure you have a good rest. However you do in the Whaka100, be wise and be kind to yourself afterwards.
Thank you, this is such valuable advice! Rest and recovery is king, so easy when you’re on a roll and loving it to do too much though! Hope you find the love for it again! Thanks for sharing!!
Public accountability helps me! Saying I’m going to do a ride, writing it in the diary sharing on social media, what plan is what I need to do… I think the videos are a great way to do that! I want to do similar events here in Uk…sadly cancelled 15/9 weather is very challenging :(
Oh no! Weather is looking wild at the moment in Europe 🤪 thanks for sharing your tip!!!
After you smash the Whaka 100, looks like the Leadville 100 will be in your sights next.
Oooooo now that sounds like a plan!
Whaka is all about the creek-gap at the end, that's where all the spectators are :D. Rest is just a fun commute to the creek gap!
Hahaha love it!!!
Love this Katy, are you still running aswell?
Yep still running especially when it’s raining!!
My personal goal for the Whaka is last year I had Ross river and didn’t know but I completely blew up.
I am hoping to be faster than last year even with this but we shall see. We share the same mantra to be curious of knowing how far you can go by starting
Oh gosh, that is no good at all! Are you recovered now?
Awesome, give it all you’ve got and see what happens! See you there 😁😁
Mentally being strong after a crash has been the challenge for me. I took a step back, slowed down my riding with a view to try to ‘rebuild’ some speed. How do you recover or stay strong mentally after a crash or setback?
First is make sure your equipment is working well and is right for you. Nothing more destructive to confidence than not trusting your bike because your brakes aren’t working right or the tyres are no good or simply too hard.
If that’s all sweet then I ride trails that make me feel good, on repeat. I don’t move onto anything more challenging until I feel like “me” again. This builds up positive experiences and reminds you, you can do it. Then bring in harder elements a bit at a time, being kind to yourself and no beating yourself up if you’re not ready to hit something you used to do. One step at a time!
Visual rehearsal of how you used to feel when riding is also a great tool. Think about the times you felt great and how good it was and really feel those times. Get all these senses going and reconnect with that often. Hope that helps! Be kind to yourself!!
Thanks Katy, great advice. I crashed on a trail I know really well, probably got a bit cocky and over confident 😮😅
@@KatyWinton
Yes !
@@KatyWinton
Being mindful of overtraining is certainly clutch, but also think of how much one’s central nervous system has to process !
Rested body, quiet mind FTW.
Practice your race day diet. Some foods are very different to take in when breathing through your eyeballs… relying on aid stations can be costly if they are not foods that work for you👍
Great advice, thanks for sharing!! My pockets will be filled with snacks!!!
加油！我在中国支持你！
谢谢
Train with a full Camelbak and take lots of spare clothes and tools/tube etc.
But then ditch it on race day.
Feels much better racing lighter and you don’t feel the weight as much when you’re training.
Yesss that’s a great hot tip! Thank you!!
Interesting stuff👍🏻
My training motivation?
Lots of personal goal stuff and inspiring things...sure...
But there's also a Dove dark chocolate and peanut butter piece of candy with my name on it and the end of a bigger training day!
Hahaha love it!! The real deal 👌
Dreams without goals are just dreams that ultimately lead to disappointment…
That’s it! There has to be a plan 💪
Training tip - mix things up to keep it fun and interesting. G
Awesome tip! Thank you!!