The routes have just been announced and the qualifying route for the GF World series is 100 miles!
Anyone raced this before?
I’m in the race group but wondering about the “pit stops”, are they off the road meaning you need to stop to fill up?
Fast as the race is I don’t think I can carry enough to drink for 100 miles
This WAS my A race for this year. Unfortunately life has already got in the way.
Four of my team mates raced and qualified last year. Three did the race, one did the sportive. The race was fast and I don’t believe any of them stopped. Don’t think it was 100 miles last year though.
I raced it last year and it was 128km (80 miles) as opposed to this years 161km (100 miles). I didn’t see anyone stop at the aid stations but some people managed to qualify even after puncturing, so I imagine it is possible to to still qualify the worlds and represent your country if you made a very quick stop just to grab a bottle or a few gels etc. But you’d have to put the work in to get back on the group you dropped off immediately which is easier said than done as it’s a very flat race course favouring raw power. It just resembled a three hour crit last year with quite a lot of crashes and injuries but there was a huge field in the “race” category with a lot of first time racers. Interestingly a lot of Europeans used this race to try and get their qualifying place as they thought it a lot easier being a pretty flat course.
Enjoy
Oh the aid stations are by the side of the road.
I’ve signed up for it this year too. Not planning on qualifying but gonna give it a go!
I don’t think i’ll bother stopping unless it’s really warm and I get through both water bottles. I’m lucky that gels agree with me too.
Really don’t know what to expect - I’ve only done crits before but have heard this is a “crit-like” road race…
I had hoped to do this but life has gotten in the way.
Five guys from my team entered last year and all qualified. Their Strava rides would confirm that it’s both flat and fast. They didn’t say anything about crashes though.
I’m a local. Route is flat this is the fens after all.
I did it last year as part of the sportive. Qualified. Didn’t stop for a drink as the group continued.
Have you considered a hydration pack? There’s no hills so you’ll have like zero watt penalties for carrying it.
Thanks all.
I have two big (1L) bottles that will last me about 3 hours so I’m thinking those and another bottle or 2 small ones in my jersey.
I’ve dehydrated before and I know how it knocks my performance.
The weather will have the final say
I have done it twice but it was the 80 mile route. Apart from a tiny but surprisingly sharp little kick up near the end past a church its as flat as it gets (the old route was anyway). The feedstations are by the route but off the road and you will have to pull in stop and get off. I rode with two bottles and didn’t stop. I finished in 3:32 and didn’t qualify but the year before people qualified taking up to 3:45. Depends how many in your age etc and its based on time of top 20% and not a fixed time. Its a fast course but a nice fast. My advice is take two bottles a couple of rice cakes and a couple of gels. In the race group assume you’re not going to stop. Find a group to work with. It can get very windy through the fells. Make sure to conserve energy by working in a chaingang and forming echelons in the cross-winds.
Oh and be careful, not everyone with a race licence in this event is a racer and I saw a lot of totally avoidable accidents.
Didn’t stop last year, no one did in my age group. Ran out of water with about 20k to go. Ideally you’d want someone to hand you a musette at the half way point.
I was able to take advantage when our group caught the younger age group with about 10-20k left and finished 28 overall.
It was absolute carnage and I was lucky to stay upright the whole way. I saw so many people walking their bikes to the finish line with blood on some part of their body. I think the groups are smaller this year so it might make things feel safer.
Good luck!
Thanks guys
Not too worried about my own race skills but those around could be an issue.
The course is pan flat for about 40 miles at one point and then a few bumps at the end.
Looks like I’ll be carrying an extra bottle in my jersey, with it being so flat at least not much weight penalty
How did it go for everyone?
I went off far too hot on the back of a group made up of stronger riders than me - all those sprints out of corners chasing into a headwind took their toll. Got dropped off the back with 30 miles to go and soloed the rest 
I made mistake changing gears for a corner, hit the wrong di2 lever and ended up in the small chainring at 40kph. Took me a few seconds to sort myself out and by that stage the front of the group was gone and we couldn’t catch them.
The wind was really unpleasant, either leaning at an angle into it or tucked in as small as possible into it.
Despite the wind it was still insanely fast.
I didn’t qualify for worlds but I’m happy enough with my ride and managed to avoid the crashes, one of which was riders directly in front of me.
I didn’t qualify either but like you happy to stay upright.
Just slightly disappointed that when I was dropped I didn’t have the good sense to sit up and wait for another group. When a group did pass me I didn’t have the legs to stick to the back of it.
What age group were you in smurf?
I want to do it again next year but it seems that there aren’t going to be any race gates - just the gran fondo. That could get messy.
45 - 49 men’s race. I’m 45 in December so one of the youth in the group.
As I heard someone say “fast for a bunch of old guys”
I have to say my quads are feeling quite tender now, stairs may be a challenge tomorrow
Holy all sorts of things
I’ve just got an email from the race organisers
I’VE QUALIFIED FOR WORLD CHAMPS!!!
Something to do with a lot of people moving from race to sportive groups so it must place me in the top 25%, even if I’m the last placed person that’s good for me
Me too 
Weird.
I pretty much gave up after bonking at the 70mile mark. Stopped and had a couple of flapjacks at the last food stop.
Dont really think I deserved to qualify but I’ll take it 
The civilised way to qualify.
Iv signed up for this as my A race next year! Any tips other than stay upright?
What training plans did you guys do for it?