I microwaved myself pretty good yesterday. Hardest day I’ve had on two wheels. At mile 60 I went Winchester on fluids… burned thru 150oz. Yes 150oz. It was mass carnage out there, they said over half the field DNF. Finished 30th OA on my SS. No idea how my body would respond today, took it easy the first 10miles… felt good. Picked it up finished strong 27th OA today.
I had a friend down there racing, She said she went through 4L of water in a 30 mile stretch on Saturday!
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Nice job working through the heat. Crazy stuff on a SS. I only did the one-day race yesterday, I’m already back in the cool weather in Texas (in the 80’s)… Looking at results, only 37 people finished the 100 yesterday, crazy number of DNF’s. It looks like Paige Onweller won again today, she dropped everyone in the group I was in yesterday about 30 minutes into the race and she rode the remaining 90 miles solo to win by about 30 minutes. I limped in 4th overall, but that got me the win for the Saturday only race (so I’ll put an asterisk on that) and I ended up with some cool swag. Top 2 places were females, some serious girl power on display this weekend. I’ll be interested to see how Paige does at unbound this year after winning big sugar at the end of last season. It sounds like she is hanging out in emporia and doing some serious training leading into unbound.
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Banged out a solid XL simulation ride yesterday! Started at 3pm to figure out breakfast/lunch on race day, and got a solid 3 hours of night riding testing the light setup. Broke a spoke on the 700c wheels I am planning to run, so this ride was on 27.5 x2.2” Conti RaceKings which was definitely too much tire.
Super happy with the Outbound Detour light! However I do wish I had more light on the sides for turns, which is why I imagine most folks like head lamps. I am hesitant solely from a safety perspective, as having a big metal object strapped to your helmet does not seem safe if you were to crash and hit your head (same reason I dislike all of the GoPros on helmets in crits). Plus I am sure adding a big lamp up there negates nearly all of aero benefits from an aero road helmet.
Still, might just suck it up and grab something small like an Exposure Diablo so I can get some better visibility in corners.
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I had an exposure light for years and it was great. I used it mountainbiking and my one complaint is that they are a little sensitive if dropped. And last I checked, they don’t service them in the US. I eventually switched to outbound lights for night riding, but I miss the wireless button I had for my exposure light. Quality product, just a bit fragile.
Hey everyone. I’m hoping someone here may be able to help.
I’m landing at Kansas City Airport at around 4pm on Tuesday 30th. My team don’t land in Emporia until the Wednesday night, so I’m looking for a lift from the airport and a place to crash on the Tuesday.
Would anybody be able to help me out? Of course, I’m happy to split costs. Please drop me a line on Instagram (joe.laverick), or via email (jtlcycling@gmail.com), if so. Thanks!
Have you tried posting on the “unofficial Unbound 2023” Facebook page? Probably getter a better chance there since it’s mostly people doing unbound this year.
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I have easily talked myself into a new helmet. Unbound is likely to be very hot. I have never had a aero helmet, but was thinking buying one this time around to try to save some time. I figure even as a slow rider. I will be riding into wind, which creates a time savings. Do people riding long hot events like Unbound 200 still grab their aero helmet most of the time?
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It’s a little challenging to get true comparisons between helmet brands and exactly how aero they are, but there are quite a few good helmets now that are “aero” and still allow reasonably good cooling.
A couple that I’ve tried and liked:
Poc Ventral Air - POC Ventral Air Mips Helmet | POC Sports This is usually the one you see Lachlan using.
Giro Eclipse Spherical Eclipse Spherical Helmet | Giro Keegan used this last season. I’ve really liked it and used it for XC and gravel extensively. Used it for Leadville last year and didn’t get hot. It’s a little more comfortable than the Vanquish that preceded it.
Giro also just launched the Aries spherical. Aries Spherical Helmet | Giro They aren’t claiming it’s faster than the Eclipse but do claim it is faster than the older Aether. It might be a good option if it is a blistering hot day.
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As long as it cools well, go for it. For me, I have a Bell helmet with a lot of ventilation. I also have a white jersey that’s very breathable with mesh on shoulders and chest.
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I have and have crashed in both (and gotten replacements at a discount. The Giro is more aero, Poc is cooler, Giro Aether cooler still. I have a KAV 3D printed on order, but has yet to be finished, so it likely won’t make the cut for Unbound this year.
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Athletes tackle Kona with full on TT lids……
Get an aero road lid and enjoy the time saved at the finish line. 
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Well “the best laid plans and…”, “Murphy’s law”, etc etc.
I’ve spent the last 3 weeks rehabbing a rolled ankle sprain, only to develop a very sore back which has turned into arthritis in the SI. Unbound cancelled. And of course Vancouver has stopped raining 24/7 and I can’t enjoy the weather!
Maybe next year.
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First two really HOT days in SF Bay Area. Ouch I am not ready for this.
Crashed last Saturday, was out of town for work for the week and came back to some warmer than normal temps in San Jose. 86° F Average yesterday and 80°F today, but today it was over 90°F for the last hour of my 4 hour ride. Hit a point where I got an eat prompt and I really didn’t want to, but I ate anyway. Glad I did, but man, it was baking.
Say what you will about SF Bay Area, but the 2.5 Hrs I spent fully exposed with the last hour over 90 really was good training and a wake up call to do more heat acclimation if at all possible.
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Book some time in a local sauna….start at 20-30 min and build yourself up from there. Try and get to at least an hour before race day.
You have plenty of time.…only takes 10-14 days to help with acclimation. 
I could get maybe a week in here in Cali, then flying to Minnesota until we head down to Emporia. Still it’s important enough to see if I can make it work.
That is the beauty of using saunas for acclimation….you can do it anywhere, even when you travel to cooler areas.
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Normally, I have no problems getting my heat training it, but we’re having a really cool May in central Texas. Not a single day in the long term forecast over 90F and it’s been in the low 80s much of the month. Crazy cool for us. I’m enjoying the riding, but worried that I’m not getting my heat adaptation. We had a long ride in April where it hit mid 90’s and I did a race in Emporia last weekend where it hit 95F and they both felt pretty bad. We’ve got some days coming in the upper 80’s the next couple weeks, hopefully that’s good enough.
You’re doing pretty good compared to those of us in the Midwest 
. I think I’ve done the vast majority of my outdoor riding between 35-50 degrees, and we haven’t yet had a day above 80 degrees this year (and won’t in time to get a proper ride in it before Unbound). 
the weather this year is more 2022 than 2021 
I feel fortunate in Georgia that we had the weekend where I at least got a few hours each day of riding in mid to upper 80s. If I wasn’t training for a notoriously hot event I’d be happy with the spring weather this year outside of the rain.