Fun podcast with Hannah talking about her Leadville, answering some of your questions, and then jumping into her White Rim FKT!
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(00:00:00) Welcome!
(00:00:47 Hannah Otto’s Leadville Experience
(00:02:14) Leadville Race Strategy and Preparation Insights
(00:04:31) Leadville Equipment and Nutrition Choices
(00:07:12) Leadville Race Dynamics and Challenges
(00:25:27) Listener Questions and Bike Computer Setup
(00:37:26) Understanding Power Data and Performance
(00:38:51) Listener Question on Pacing for Gravel Worlds
(00:46:54) Listener Question on Stage Racing Tips
(01:03:51) Hannah’s White Rim FKT Experience
As great as I’m sure it would be to have Hannah as a cycling coach, it would be even better just to have her as a life coach. Every time you have her on, she says things that I can apply not just to my training, but to my overall approach to and outlook on life. Thanks!!!
@20202020:55 might be one of my biggest frustrations when racing mountain bikes. I don’t really understand why so many racers make passing in a mountain bike race into such a big deal.
I understand if you’re in a race long battle with some one going back and forth that you might not want to just yield a position, but when someone catches you rapidly from behind. Why is it such a big deal to just move over and let them by? I feel like I always have a sense of when I’m being caught from behind and just automatically yield the position without even needing to be asked. I always figure, if I’m being caught THAT quickly, it’s better to slot in behind and see if I can hold the wheel than it would be to hold the guy up.
The number of times I’ve caught someone and repeatedly asked “Can I get by when you have a chance?” just to be completely ignored and then actively blocked is infuriating. I always feel like a dbag when I eventually force the issue, but when I don’t get so much as an acknowledgement, I’m not really left with any other option.
Even if someone doesn’t feel comfortable with passing, they could just say something along the lines of “hey man, I’ll let you by at the next climb when things slow down” or “just wait until the next opening and I’ll let you through”, the silence is what really drives me up a wall.
Same thoughts when Jonathan mentioned people locking bars and challenging each other up the first big climb. Like… why waste so much energy so early. It’s a 105 mile race on a fire road. What’s the end game here?
Yeah, i was surprised when I heard that. I’ve seen a few random folks racing aggressive on Kevins, but usually it’s mostly chill riding up that first climb. But to be fair, the fastest corral I’ve started in was Red (before they combined red with silver), so maybe the fighting early is just a phenomenon happening at the more competitive end of the race. For the folks in silver, I can absolutely see them fighting for position early in the race. At that pace, you are potentially in the hunt for AG podium spots and being further forward in the race (and staying with your competition) probably matters much more than for those of us just fighting the clock.
And while it’s a lot of fire road, there are extended sections where there is one primary line and passing can be really inefficient (so it’s best to be as far up the road as possible prior to those pinch points). I found Sugarloaf to be particularly single-threaded this year with people riding wheel to wheel in a long line. I had a big group of ~25 riders right in front of me making the turn onto sugarloaf and figured I’d be able to pass at will on the climb like I usually do, but it wasn’t worth it with the course conditions and congestion. Might have just been bad timing getting caught behind that group, but I wish I had pushed a bit to get some clean space in front of me going into that climb this year. For me, Leadville is a race where pushing up the field early can buy you some “cheap” time as long as you don’t push too hard. Less congestion at the pinch points and better chance of getting in strong/smart groups on the flatter segments out to columbine.
I really appreciated around 11:30 when Hannah talked about how tough the conditions were this year, and said (according to the YouTube transcript), “so, if you were going for a time goal and you fell short, take a moment to pause and re-evaluate because it might have still been a very heroic effort on your part.”
It was such a thoughtful and kind thing of her to highlight. She already brings so much to the podcast just by sharing her own experience, and for her be sure to help other people recognize their achievements too really touched me. I didn’t ride Leadville and don’t ever intend to, but her comment was a lovely reminder to me how powerful it can be to build other people up. Elsewhere she’s said something like at the core of her love of the sport is the opportunity it gives you to learn, grow, and be a better person, and this really brought that home to me.
I always love the thoughtfulness and good humor that Hannah brings to the podcast - episodes with her are a special treat!
In all my years of racing, I’ve never had food provided for me. I was rather confused when Hannah mentioned something like “…not sure what food you’d have at the finish line”. I thought: “How could you not know what you brought with you? Are we discussing concussions now? “
Then, as she kept talking, I realised, oh, other people’s food, as in provided by the organisers? Really?
The recovery food I have at the end of a race has to be the food I brought with me or you have nothing.
Different experiences in life. I thought it was funny
What’s your view about the responsibilities of each party in an amateur race: how much should the person passing speed up to make the pass vs. how much should the person being passed slow down?
My view is that the person passing should differently speed up, vs the person being passed slow down.
Absolutely. I think the only valid debate is how much the person being passed should be obligated to facilitate a pass by pulling off the racing line. If there is room to pass on a crappy alternate line, I don’t think the person in front is obligated to move from the good line, but if the person in front needs to move over to make the pass safe, they should. But I don’t think the rules say the have to.
Really, my only real pet peeve when it comes to passing are people who are totally unresponsive. Some people just refuse to acknowledge others while racing (passing and any other interaction). I find it really strange. But I also like to chit chat during races like it’s a group ride, which I know drives some people crazy also. I guess as long as a rider is within the rules, they are free to ignore other riders.
I am like you too, when someone comes up from behind I always try to let them pass if I can, ASAP, otherwise communicate - “I see a safe spot coming up in just a second!”. However, one time I was racing a local MTB race with 3 length courses which meant that the pros unfortunately would end up stuck in the shorter courses’ traffic. The fastest pro (the first to come behind) caught me by surprise - all I heard was someone yelling “SIIIIDE!!!” I didn’t know if they meant inside or outside and of course I chose wrong. They were PISSED at me. I don’t remember much about that race other than the negativity of that interaction and I think of that whenever I see him now. This race had no UCI / USAC points - no glory - this was just a local grassroots MTB race with a reputation for being fun. Most people were racing for the beer and tacos at the end.
I hear @Jonathan ‘s complaints and completely agree, but the responsibility lies on both sides to be respectful, and clear - maybe “on your left” or “on your right” would have been better - which I think is what most people around my neck of the woods understand.
On the other hand, in another Norcal 8 hour MTB singletrack lap race back in the day, Levi Leipheimer would show up and race in a team with his young protege’s. Since it’s a lap race, all of us slower people (most of the people there) would get lapped by this group. You would expect them to be really frustrated passing all those people but they were always the nicest people ever when passing. So calm and pleasant - “Hey, whenever you get a chance…”.
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Really?
