Pete Stetina Uses Marginal Gains to Set a White Rim FKT
2020 has been a rough year for traditional racing, but has brought a surge in interest in Everests and Fastest Known Time (FKT) efforts on well-known courses. And for these solo, pride-of-place FKT attempts, Marginal Gains matter. In this episode, WorldTour-Pro-Roadie-Turned-Gravel-Privateer Pete Stetina nerds out with Josh, Fatty, & Hottie about his preparation for — and execution of — an FKT around the choppy, sandy, rocky, windy White Rim: a perfect MTB century loop in Canyonlands, Utah.
Enjoy this episode, and be sure to catch the video of Pete's attempt at https://youtu.be/WeFkg9nwDE8
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What a great episode. I got inspired and did the White Rim yesterday to see where my fitness was, get some desert time, and also to test a theory.
One theme of the podcast regarded that the conditions for Pete’s run were sandy, slow, and required walking. The three times I’ve done White Rim IAD I waited until just after recent rain, thinking that the sand would be a bit more packed down. This was the case yesterday. There had been a couple recent rain events from the time that Pete did his FKT and when I did my slow af time yesterday. It did seem like it was enough, though—I didn’t have to walk at all; all the sandy sections were ridable, even for a hack like me. This was despite the fact that I was so worried about endless sections of sand that I strapped a pair of running shoes to my camelback. ;)
I’m guessing that seasonal drought conditions do influence the course in general, as y’all emphasize, but doing it 2-3 days after rain/snow (even in drought conditions) may be worth waiting for those conditions. That said, the course did feel a bit slower than my previous rides, but I might be making that up as a justification for my slow time.
Congratulations, Pete. This is a fun and thought-provoking episode.
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