Which is a more epic experience; Stage Races or 100's?

Pearl

Pearl

THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING
Trying to think of things outside of the box to attempt next year. With all the W100 chatter, figured it would be good to fire this up;

TSE or W100 (or a different 100 miler)

Would love to hear from someone who has done both, but if you have done one or the other, please chime in. Would treat it as a week of bike riding, as fast as I can, or a long, long day in the woods.
 
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Trans iowa or breck epic....
Im doing ctr next year...kinda "epic" although tour divide kills anything other than gdmbr
;)
 
Can't remember how many dirt 100 races I've done now, they're generally all hard while you're doing them. Tour Divide was tough because it was just day after day with no time to recover.

I've never done a stage race, but the BC Bike Race looks appealing to do at some point.
http://www.bcbikerace.com/
 
Well budget isn't such a big concern, but always something to think about. Dollar per awesomeness value needs to be good. Something semi local (4-5 hours max).
 
pearl said:
Well budget isn't such a big concern, but always something to think about. Dollar per awesomeness value needs to be good. Something semi local (4-5 hours max).
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TSE $999
Blue ridge $500

vs.

WC100 $140 & up
W101 &140 & up
Shenan 100 $150 & up
 
Does the experience of the Stage Race cover the 100 miler races? 5-7 days @ $999 vs one day at $150... The stage race is a better bang for your buck ;)
 
I've done w101 and a few other 100m races over the past few years, and for me they are more of an accomplishment to look back on rather than "fun". Unless you are a great rider in sick shape, you are going to suffer miserably over an 8+++ hour day on dirt. Just no way around it if you are human. Sometimes I feel great about my time when its over, but seriously have a hard time calling it fun as its happening. Also, after the first 40 or so miles of a 100, I really dont feel like I'm "racing" anymore, just surviving.

I did trans andes and breck epic last year, and had a blast every day. Breck was especially good as you can stay in a condo in a great town, never get in a car all week and the riding is hard but incredible. Each day in the stage races seem like a more "normal" ride (+/- 4hrs for me), and the fields are on the small side, so you get to know and ride with some great people everyday.

I'll still do some 100s, but would like to do a stage race every year. TSE has never worked timing wise, but im still trying to swing the Pisgah stage race (just got back from doing ORAMM two weeks ago, was a good reminder of how great the riding is down there). Its an 11hr drive from NNJ, so not fun travel but worth it.
 
One thing is for sure -- the training for them is completely different. I haven't done a stage race, but just think about it: you have to be ready and able to ride between 30 and 50 miles every day. And most of these tend to be designed to give yotu eh most bang for your buck, so it's not exactly like just going out and riding those miles every day. There's usually some pretty challenging stuff. I think it's easier to prep for a hundred miler. It's all about one long haul, and you can gear your training around that one peak. For a stage race? You have to be ready to repeat a hard day over and over for the duration. It's a pretty cool idea and I hope to give one a try someday, but it requires a certain type of focused training. I do have a few friends who've done the TS Epic, and from what they told me there is an added component of that: you are required to finish within a percentage of the winner's time each day to remain in the standings. Otherwise, you drop out of that and are moved into the "experience" category, where you can still ride every day but you don't get an official ranking at the end. I'm not sure if that's still the case but that's what I'd heard.

A few more ideas to think about:
24 hour solo - more mileage than a 100 miler but also more "controlled" in that they are lap races.
Self-supported Ludicrousness - The "biggies": CTR or, even bigger, the Divide Challenge. These are bike-packing experiences where you are all alone and have to figure it all out on your own. I love the idea of these, and I've become a "blue dot" addict when they are running (Divide went through June this year and CTR is still going on, althoguh the winner did it in a sick sub-four days.) If you have a lot of free time, this is the ultimate challenge for any cyclist. There is no official podium and you win nothing, but it costs nothing either. It's just a personal challenge in the purest form -- you seriosuly have to figure out first how to survive and only THEN how to finish. Crazy sh*t and I really hope to do one or both in my lifetime!
 
The wilderness 101 is on my radar for next year. I would really like to try some of these bigger races, maybe work up to a stage race.
 
was hoping for more feedback, where are all these people!?

i guess i will just have to do both
 
My good friend has done TSE and said it was a world of hurt more so then the 24hrs of mooch. I have to say i do miss the 24 hrs of mooch some of the greatest and not so great moments in my cycling life. I literally had an out of body experience at 3:30 am and to sit down and almost cry. Surreal shit!
 
Not too many people have done stage races, so your audience is somewhat thin with this question.

I'd love to join you for both of these but I'll be washing my hair.
 
Ayo Pearl. We carpooling to W100 nxt yr. Srs.

When does TDF 2014 go up on Bike Reg? I wanted to give stage racing a try.
 
You should def do the W101, and hang in the creek drinking beers, and hang at the finish cheering for the stragglers.

As for stage races...I'd love to do both. More likely I'd be able to do Pisgah, and even more likely it would have be a stage race and no NUE's.

I have done a three day bike tour with a century on the last day. That was a cool experience, and rolling into a head wind for the last 15 miles, on the third day... felt even worse than it sounds.
 
Pearl don't drink beers. I drink them for him which means I get more drunker.

W101 was on my radar but then I got sick for a month and lost focus. Meh.
 
Multiday events always have an adventure thing going for it, and it is kind of like a little vacation. So I see stage races as more epic. I'll tell you more after Ruta as my first MTB stage race, though I've done several road stage races, and they are always kind of adventures. 100miles is kind of just a long race rather than adventure.
 
capedoc said:
Pearl don't drink beers. I drink them for him which means I get more drunker.

W101 was on my radar but then I got sick for a month and lost focus. Meh.
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My focus this yr has been beer hand-ups, both in races and while on the couch. My time at the 101 showed this.

Ideally, you should go into your first hundred with good fitness and some level of confidence.

You won't be alone in the creek... Even if next yr I'm focused on fitness, I'll still be in the creek, beer in hand.
 
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