Route planning and preparations
Planning is everything. Neither the Little Camel Rally nor the Norwegian Camel Rally need become extremely long, and the real challenge is to select a realistic number of bonus locations and then plan a route to visit them all within the allotted time. The one who rides the longest does not necessarily win the rally. The one who rides the smartest does!
Route planning
Above you will see a number of base route suggestions. Click the thumbnails to view larger maps with route comments. NOTE! These are only suggestions, and you are of course free to plan your own route.
When we created these route examples, our only concern were the nine checkpoints. In other words, our examples DO NOT suggest where you should ride according to all the other bonus locations. (The bonus location list will be published the evening before the rallies.) When you plan your route, you need to remember that the bonus hunt may call for some small road and stocky area riding, and that you will need quite some time in addition to the checkpoint-to-checkpoint base route. The route examples will not bring you directly to many of the bonus locations, and without saying too much we can tell that quite a few of the bonus locations will be outside of the major expressroads.
In your route planning the Internet based Visveg or another computer-based route planning application may be valuable, and during the ride a GPS based navigation system will be an advantage. That said, a good map and road guide will definitely get you there, too.
Other preparations
How do you prepare for a long distance rally? The route planning is of course important the last few days before the rally, but how do you prepare physically and mentally?
First of all you should be accustomed to longish, varied rides. We're not talking about a thousand kilometers a day, but good rides of about 300-500 km. In addition to this, if you have ridden Copenhagen–Paris or Madrid–Rome in one day on occation, you will have a good understandig of how you react to many miles and long hours on the road. And without trying to step on anyone's toes – if you think five hours in the saddle is an relentless chore, then a 24 hour rally is probably not for you.
It's hard to predict how any entrant will perform, and there are too many factors to consider to be able to give even loose directions. As in all sports, motivation and mental attitude are important. If you have never ridden more than 500 kilometers in one day, you will probably ride 1 000 kilometers or more in 24 hours in a rally setting, and rather comfortably too. A rally like this has a lot of variation, with new and exiting roads, frequent stops, and map studies, and on top of that you have the inherent motivation from being part of a competition.
We recommend the following preparations:
(1) Ride some good rides of 300–500 km or more in various weather, temperature, and time of day. Notice the distance and the time used when you try to ride efficiently with only a few short stops. Also notice how you react after some hours. How far can you ride before you get saddlesore? Maybe your back and shoulders should get some extra exercise the last couple of weeks before the rally? Notice how your bike and equipment works and what additional equipment you need. Maybe now is the time to buy that spine guard you've been thinking about? Rain is a natural part of a Norwegian summer - will your suit keep you dry? Are your hands warm even when your gloves are wet? Are your boots waterproof? What's the gas mileage in strong headwinds?
(2) Get a route planning pc program, or use Visveg or another Internet-based route planning application. Bring a good map, or invest in a GPS based navigation system.
(3) Check your bike thoroughly! Are you tyres good for another 1 000 km? Does the engine need some extra oil? Brake fluid and pads? Throttle wire?
(4) Pack some food, drinking water, and some warm clothes! It's pleasant to eat when you're hungry, and not when you arrive at some distant gas station. Also remember that carbs and fat makes you tired! Chocolate may help keeping you warm, but it does NOT keep you awake and alert. Also make sure you drink enough water. And don't forget to pack spare gloves and warm clothes to pull on inside of the riding suit. The Norwegian summer nights are seldom very warm, especially not in the highlands.
© 2004-2009 Camel Riders Mcc