From Evernote:

Sunday - Softly, softly, catchy monkey.

With a new course and a different set of riders I've been thinking a lot about race strategy. This year it looks like fast riding out to the nuclear test site at Emu then sand after that. The fatback has an advantage on sand, but not the handicap that everyone thinks on the hardpack.

In addition, we have seven fat bike riders including some seriously fit people. While I'd like to win, I won't win soley on fitness or on bike advantage.

Choices in strategy would be go hard at the start and try to stay in contention or to take it easy and ride your own race. Each has pros and cons.

It would be a real shame to loose the entire race on the first day because you went too slow and lost time you could never make up. This could well be the case if the course turns out to be super fast and easy. By contrast if the course is hard and you burn too much on the first day the rest of it will be a ordeal; it might be hard to finish, let alone win.

The second plan is to go slow, look after yourself and ride at your own pace. This has a number of benefits; it's less painful for a start, you keep some energy in reserve to use if things get hard and if they do, your not competing in the early days against people you who fail to complete the course on later days.

Softly, softly is the more intelligent plan, it lacks testosterone but has applies more gray matter. I'll ride my own race, it's just the risk of being left far behind that scares me.