~ Trying it on ~
If you are entering an event that is going to last several hours, you will be well advised to do a little bit of training. What you need to develop is muscular endurance, as well as appropriate feeding and pacing strategies to get you through the ride. As you need to ride for a few hours, the pace will need to be a lot slower than your quick thrash round the local routes, so get your body used to longer, slower rides. If you currently only go out at weekends then we suggest you try to increase the length of your weekend rides. There's no need to replicate the distance for your longer event, but you will need to get to at least three quarters of the target distance at some stage.

Remember - the secret is learning how to pace yourself over the longer duration, but if you build up slowly then this should not be a problem. We also suggest that you try and get out at least once during the week for a shorter, faster, more fun ride, to maintain the skill aspect of your riding.

~ Before the big one ~
Final preparations for the big day are vital to your success and one of the most important aspects is diet. If you start an endurance race with low muscle glycogen levels then you'll fatigue much sooner. So how do you make sure that you are loaded with glycogen ? Firstly, you do not want to do any long rides within a couple of days of your event. This would deplete your glycogen stores. Next in the days leading up to the event, increase the amount of carbohydrate you eat. But be careful - most people just eat more.

You should actually try to substitute high fat or high protein items with ones that contain carbohydrates. This is why marathon runners have a pasta party the night before a race. Preparation before the event should include a large meal no more than 4/5 hours prior to the start, and keeping well hydrated leading up to the start.