Course: Out and back on the A23 road, starting in Sattley, CA.
Course Description: Flat with a few small rollers that you probably wouldn't notice except in a TT. When weather conditions are good this is one of the fastest courses in the country.
Distances: 20km for Juniors and older masters, 40km for everybody else.
Road Surface: Good to excellent.
Gearing: Once again, only the strongest riders should consider a single chainring bike. If it's as windy as it has been in the past only a small minority of riders will ride the head wind section solely in the big chainring.
Facilities: The infamous Porta Can Trailer at registration. There is a market in Sattley about .25 miles from the start.
Weather: Sattley is up in the mountains so it could be quite cold in the morning. Come prepared for the worst and hope for the best. It's been super windy on occasion, including rain showers in the past.
Feeding: N/A
Rules Specific to this race:
Race Advice: First of all, you're going to need to find a place to stay nearby. Sattley is more than two hours from Sacramento if you drive fast, and the race starts early. Most riders stay in Truckee.
I've found that bringing a stationary trainer is a great way to help get a good warm up. It can be quite cold in the morning (down into the 30's!) so you get a much better warm up on your trainer. Also, I find that I get a better warm up on my rollers because I don't stop every 100 yards to talk to somebody. I just sit on my rollers and keep spinning while I chat with anybody that stops by. Even with your trainer you'll still want to go out and ride on the road a bit and do some jumps and short TT efforts to get your heart rate up before the start. You should come to the start a little sweaty.
I always time trial with a cyclometer and a heart rate monitor. I start the timer on my HR monitor about five seconds before my start and can use the timer along with certain land marks to estimate my finishing time along the way. The Sierra/Plumas County line is almost exactly 10km out and you can get your first split there. I use my HR monitor kind of like a tachometer. I try and keep my heart rate in the range that works best for me and can easily notice if I've accidently "dozed off" and need to concentrate more. I also use it along with my cyclometer to make sure I'm in an efficient gear.
At the start you'll want to get up to speed quickly, but be careful that you don't dig yourself a hole by going too hard too early.
The middle section of the 40km course from the county line to the turn around and back to the county line is somewhat harder than the first and last 10km. There are a few little rollers that normally aren't much at all, but will cause a little pain when your legs are already full of lactic acid. Expect to lose about a minute through the middle 20km compared to the first and last 10km combined.
Specific advice for women racers:
Lodging: There are a number of motels in Truckee which is about 30 miles from Sattley. I believe that there is also a motel in Sierraville which is only 5 miles away.
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Kevin Metcalfe
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