Just thought I’d bring this up since the 2024 is coming up. Anyone planning to attend? I did the Wafer last year.
Some takeaways from last year for me:
The singletrack so early created an annoying bottleneck. I walked a lot that I could have ridden but there was no point because there’s no room to pass and some of these sections were quite long.
I SUCK at long fast descents on gravel.
Supposedly this years course is going to get rid of the bottlenecks early on. I’m probably going to do the Wafer again but I MIIIIGHT do the waffle. Depending on what the courses look like when they come out. I’m going to run some more knobby rubber this year to boost my confidence on the fast loose descents. I ran 42c pathfinder pros last year that were 45c on my 25 ID rims. I think I’m going to run some 700x44c Vittoria Mezcals this year. I think with my terrible descending skills they won’t really be any slower overall for me.
I also put a 70mm dropper on my bike this year. I think it will boost my confidence on the descents and make some of the downhill off camber singletrack sections later in the course a bit easier to carry speed through.
Maybe I’m going too far into MTB territory, I guess if so I’ll find out in June!
Anyone else going this year? Tips or tricks from last year?
I am going - doing the wafer (70m option). Will be my first time doing BWR.
Not sure about tires. Last time I road in DuPont (just riding, not racing) I was on 38 Vittoria wet. Tread was a little bit of overkill and not as cushy as I needed for the rougher “roads” there (ran at 30/33 psi or so). This time, I am thinking of 48 Thunderos which seem like they should help soften the ride and have a good mixed tread. Other options I have are Cinturato M 40s and Gravel Grinder 38s.
I did the Waffle last year and loved it. The early single-track bottlenecks were super annoying and the reason that there were so many who didn’t make the time cut-offs. I plan on doing the Waffle again this year. I ran Vittoria Zero’s (38 mm) and wished I had a something a little wider. This year, assuming dry conditions, I’ll probably run the Pathfinder Pros (42 mm).
I’m definitely looking forward to seeing what the courses have to offer this year. Hopefully, they’ll be out soon.
Thanks for the input! 48 Thunderos sound like a good option. If you’ve ridden around DuPont you should have a good idea of what it’s like. Some of the gravel is definitely pretty chunky and more volume is nice to have.
Congrats on doing the full Waffle! That’s an impressive feat for sure. I’m leaning towards just the wafer again but will reassess that decision once the new courses are released. I didn’t realize the single track bottlenecks actually prevented people from making the time cut-offs! That would be super demoralizing.
I doubt the bottlenecks caused someone to be cut off. Bandy was the first cut off, 46 miles and 5 hours to do it in. I’d guess that if you got cut at Bandy because of a bottleneck, you were making it back by 6pm anyway, provided it wasn’t serious mechanicals causing the delays.
Got an email this morning with the updated mileage details. Now I’m really torn on which course I want to do. I really should probably do the Wafer but the Waffle is tempting me now. I typically do 8-10 hours of volume a week with my longest rides being 4-4.5 hours on average. I think I could comfortably do the wafer. If I do the waffle I will be hurting.
Waffle
~120-miles
~10,000 feet of climbing
~17 Unroad sectors
49% Unroad - All the surfaces
3 Queen/King of the Mountain segments
3 Queen/King of the Dirt segments
3 Queen/King of the Sprint segments
7 Feed Zones
I considered doing it again but Yikes! that race costs too much. I just dont think they really have that race figured out enough to charge that much. Looks like 5 points 50 for me instead.
The last third of the race looks to be the same as past years-pinnacle, stanton rd, deeter. Any locals care to comment on what the first portion of the race looks like? Looks like they may have gone back to old start with the gravel climb at 10 miles in.
TIRE TALK:
I have been planning to ride IRC’s Boken Plus 42mm tires. BUT after seeing a few of the posts across all social media, I am second guessing myself. I feel the boken plus may be a little to ‘roaddie’ and not ‘knobby’ enough.
My train of thought was to maintain a proper pace during the road sections and hoping the knobs on the side of these tires were enough.
Anyone with any experience or opinions about this race and tires???
David, I think a lot of it has to do with your own handling abilities. I did it last year on 42c Pathfinder Pro’s and found myself wishing I had something with some knobs. I know for ME with my abilities the fastest tire is different than what the pro’s run. If I can maintain confidence on the singletrack and fast gravel descents I’m going to be faster overall than if I saved a few seconds on a road climb.
Now if you are an amazing bike handler in all situation, by all means go for the faster tires.
