Hello all, asking for some first race advice. I've done some searching and gone over the sticky, and they were all very useful, however a few questions remain.
How much more should I ride this week?
I've been doing around 100 miles a week so far this year, maybe a little less but not much. The big day is Saturday, a 24 mile road race, 2 laps of a rolling to flat circuit.
I've ridden 3 of the last 4 days and feel very good right now. I went out and did a 22 mile TT yesterday and set a PR average pace with a bit of wind, and the legs don't feel the least bit punished.
My main question is how much more should I ride this week and when? I want to keep pushing my form to maximize my potential to stay with the bunch, especially since the weather here is decent (the race is in upstate ny, where the winter has been pretty harsh, so I think that may be an advantage), but I also want that fresh legs feeling they get after a rest.
Also, how do you eat not just the night before, but the week of?
I've been working toward loosing weight (I'm still way to heavy for anything with climbing in it, I'm 5'6" and 200 lbs.), but should I be more liberal with the carbs and portions this week? I've been drinking water like crazy, taking my multivitamins, and self massaging as often as possible. I will probably hit the sauna today one last time as I won't have access once I head home tomorrow for Easter and the Race. But I'm not sure what is good food for race prep. My staples seem to be tuna sandwiches, hardboiled eggs, greek yogurt with fruit, stir fry, and lots of Green Machine to drink. Should I mix more carbs into the equation? What kinds specifically?
Lastly, for the race should I bring just sports drink or something else as well?
I've used the Gatorade 1,2,3 series before for animated group rides to some success, although I'm more sold on the 3 (Recover) product than the other 2. Should I pound a gel at the start and then again for the start of the second lap?
Sorry for the newb questions but I want this to go well. I'm doing at least 3 more races this year, and my A race is a crit in July. But I still want to do well for this race as well, as I worked hard over the winter.
Thanks!
