[blue]

I know this seems apples/orangesy, but I was just wondering what people thought. You know, overall, whats the hardest/toughest event to compete in? I would say that would have to encompass training for it, the skills it takes to compete, and how much pain you have to endure.

I'm guessing there's going to be lots of DH answers because of the forum populace...but gimme some reasons.

 

[Silver]

Road, that's easy. Way more training than DH, and since there is money in it, the competition is better than it is for XC.

 

[blue]

Road, that's easy. Way more training than DH, and since there is money in it, the competition is better than it is for XC.

This is true. I should really have rephrased that...Then again, on a European level, there's hella competition for XC people.

 

[reflux]

Road, that's easy. Way more training than DH, and since there is money in it, the competition is better than it is for XC.

Plus when you take into account the team factor involved in road racing, it's often more difficult to excel when compared the individual events.

 

[kinghami3]

XC is endurance with flow skill, Road is just endurance, and DH is fast flow skill but not a lot of endurance, so I would say XC.

 

[blue]

There may be more competition in Road, but I'm not sure if you could count it as more grueling/tougher than 24 Hour and Epic racing. Most road races are single day, not too bad events (Road mileage is nowhere near the equivalent of MTB mileage). Even the longest single-day race in the US, LOTOJA, is only 200something miles long. That is...nothing...compared to a 24 hour race.
Stage racing takes it to another level, but you don't have nearly the wear and tear on your body and bike that you do while racing on an MTB on dirt. I could honestly ride my roadie day in and day out without having any difficulties, but I would be hard pressed to do an MTB stage race over three weeks.

 

[jon cross]

I would say road as well. I'm assuming you mean at the pro level- I understand 24 hour races are hard (the ones I've done have been a riot, and hard as all get out) but you won't be racing them back to back, or even weekly. The same may be true of any MTB discipline. While gravity racers do have DH, DS and MTX practice and racing to do, these efforts, while exhausting, cannot compete with a UCI Elite road race- especially in Europe. A road racer overseas racing for a living will spend hours and hours each day on the bike, will do little else besides eat, rest, train, race and work with the soigneurs and sponsors. They will race several times a week, often back to back. Any grand tour is several weeks of the fastest racing in the world and the shorter ones are still several days long and will be followed by crits or more road races. It's nothing but train, race, recover for those guys.

Of the MTB set, I'd say DH racers have the harder time. They have to do their elemental training, practice runs, MX, BMX, however the individual likes to do it. They have to spend time on the road or XC bike to work on fitness. They have to hit the weights to keep everything strong and well padded. The typical XC pro puts in anywhere from 15-30 hours on the bike weekly, depending on the rider and time of the year. I would guess the DH'ers to match that and add to it off-the-bike strength training and elemental work. I may be wrong, as I'm no pro gravity racer by any stretch of the imagination, but these guys have a lot to cover.

 

[blue]

I would say road as well. I'm assuming you mean at the pro level- I understand 24 hour races are hard (the ones I've done have been a riot, and hard as all get out) but you won't be racing them back to back, or even weekly. The same may be true of any MTB discipline. While gravity racers do have DH, DS and MTX practice and racing to do, these efforts, while exhausting, cannot compete with a UCI Elite road race- especially in Europe. A road racer overseas racing for a living will spend hours and hours each day on the bike, will do little else besides eat, rest, train, race and work with the soigneurs and sponsors. They will race several times a week, often back to back. Any grand tour is several weeks of the fastest racing in the world and the shorter ones are still several days long and will be followed by crits or more road races. It's nothing but train, race, recover for those guys.

Of the MTB set, I'd say DH racers have the harder time. They have to do their elemental training, practice runs, MX, BMX, however the individual likes to do it. They have to spend time on the road or XC bike to work on fitness. They have to hit the weights to keep everything strong and well padded. The typical XC pro puts in anywhere from 15-30 hours on the bike weekly, depending on the rider and time of the year. I would guess the DH'ers to match that and add to it off-the-bike strength training and elemental work. I may be wrong, as I'm no pro gravity racer by any stretch of the imagination, but these guys have a lot to cover.

I think that if there was enough money in MTB racing, you'd have a much higher level of competition. You could afford to train, race, and recover. Right now, as a pro-level mtber, you still have to worry about living.

 

[BadFastard]

road?
ah, just get doped by a good doc and you're in for a win.

Exaggerating off course, and i'm not saying it's not happening in other branches of cycling, but the level of doping in road racing made it lose all of it's credibility as a sport.

 

[Smelly]

XC is endurance with flow skill, Road is just endurance.

Not so much. Learn to ride shoulder to shoulder at 25mph in a pack of 80 people. Learn to corner on unbanked turns sprinkled with gravel on 23c tires at 40mph. Road riding may not beat up your body as much as XC or DH, but that doesn't mean there's no technical skill involved. And the punishment for crashing is higher

 

[douglas]

There may be more competition in Road, but I'm not sure if you could count it as more grueling/tougher than 24 Hour and Epic racing. Most road races are single day, not too bad events (Road mileage is nowhere near the equivalent of MTB mileage). Even the longest single-day race in the US, LOTOJA, is only 200something miles long. That is...nothing...compared to a 24 hour race.
Stage racing takes it to another level, but you don't have nearly the wear and tear on your body and bike that you do while racing on an MTB on dirt. I could honestly ride my roadie day in and day out without having any difficulties, but I would be hard pressed to do an MTB stage race over three weeks.

Being road is so easy, do this race:

http://www.raceacrossamerica.org/files/route/raceroute.htm

 

[douglas]

Depends, do you mean which is hardest/toughest to get on the podium? or hardest/toughest to just race in?

Heck a 24 hour race, you could do 2 laps (each taking an hour or so) and still actually finish the race.

My vote goes to road, with the simple reason of more competition.

~I have raced XC-sport, DH-sport and 24's-team , and stood on the podium at least once in each discapline~

 

[splat]

Being road is so easy, do this race:

http://www.raceacrossamerica.org/files/route/raceroute.htm

That is one hell of a race!


from the 1991
WOMEN’S DIVISION:
1. Cathy Ellis, Cambridge, MA*—12: 06: 21 / 9.95 mph av.
2. Debbie Breaud, Burleson, TX—13: 07: 49 / 9.16 mph av.
3. Susan France, Newberg, OR—13: 23: 36 / 8.73 mph av.


Cathy is a friend of Mine !

 

[Jayridesacove]

Not so much. Learn to ride shoulder to shoulder at 25mph in a pack of 80 people. Learn to corner on unbanked turns sprinkled with gravel on 23c tires at 40mph. Road riding may not beat up your body as much as XC or DH, but that doesn't mean there's no technical skill involved. And the punishment for crashing is higher

Yea, my friend's dad is a roadie and he's told me all the times he has wiped out and had to goto the hospital and have the medical staff pull out bits of road embedded in his skin.

I've had some crazy crashes doing DH runs. But I don't think they'd feel as worse as getting your body shaved by the road.

 

[Heidi]

I haven't raced DH or MountainX, but I'd still venture to say 24 hour racing is harder. It's just mentally and physically wearing on you.

 

[blue]

I should have made the 24 Hour cat Solo.

Yeah, crashes on road bikes are always a hell of a lot harder, but you don't wreck as much as you would on an MTB. My worst wrecks, blood wise, have been on my road bike, but I've only been injured seriously racing on my MTB (XC, no less ).

Heidi is right, 24 is very mental, in my experience. You get delusional, and forget why you're riding, you have to have a pit crew tell you where to go, and sometimes, you want to lie down and sleep on course. I think RAM could be counted as an epic race, even though its on road bikes, no?

 

[JRogers]

Admitting this is a ridiculous question doesn't make it any less ridiculous.


Oh, and if you think road is all physical endurance, you clearly have never raced or ridden extensively on road.

 

[Ridemonkey]

I've done 24 hour races. Road is harder. Nothing but pain.

 

[Carbon Fetish]

Depends, do you mean which is hardest/toughest to get on the podium? or hardest/toughest to just race in?

Heck a 24 hour race, you could do 2 laps (each taking an hour or so) and still actually finish the race.

My vote goes to road, with the simple reason of more competition.

 

[blue]

Admitting this is a ridiculous question doesn't make it any less ridiculous.


Oh, and if you think road is all physical endurance, you clearly have never raced or ridden extensively on road.

Yep, I have. 24 Hour solo was tougher, for me at least.

Well actually...I dunno. I suck terribly at XC, but I'm pretty good at ultra-endurance events. So I guess XC is harder, but thats just for me, I suppose everyone is different.

And I know it's a stupid question, but I just wanted to see personal opinions, because I know that people do tend to put certain racing types above others.

 

[douglas]

I should have made the 24 Hour cat Solo.

?

you still can do just 2 laps and finish. 1 at noon Saturday, and 2nd one where you finish at 24:01 (Sunday)


This is why I asked about the podium

 

[splat]

you still can do just 2 laps and finish. 1 at noon Saturday, and 2nd one where you finish at 24:01 (Sunday)


This is why I asked about the podium

The Podium Question is very Important,

Becasue on a DH race, you can just stop and walk down sections you can't do , XC races you can just take easy like a easy sunday ride , But Road Races , if your too far behind they will DNF you.

 

[motomike]

XC.........I raced hardcore for three years and can safely say that it is harder. I trained WITH all of the roadies during the week, busting my arse doing intervals in 8 degree weather at times. The training can be the same, its just how you take. Or how far you want to take it. Then you have to take into account all of the other muscles that are needed to race a MTB. You do have to have some upperbody muscle to make it. I'd say look at Trent Lowe. He is a pro xc racer who can go out on open weekends and spank up on some roadies. For the record, I have raced road several times, and am not impressed.

 

[PsychO!1]

I've raced road (cat2) crits, and stage: I've raced mt bikes (expert) DH, DS, XC. The most painfull gruelly racing i've ever done is cyclocross!!! Road pain at it's worst and offroad skills required.

 

[motomike]

I've raced road (cat2) crits, and stage: I've raced mt bikes (expert) DH, DS, XC. The most painfull gruelly racing i've ever done is cyclocross!!! Road pain at it's worst and offroad skills required.

oh snap!!!! I totally forgot about that. yeah, cyclocross definitey takes it.

 

[Heidi]

24 is still a gazillion times harder than cx