This Canadian won the N.A. champs by riding 800 km in 24 hours
Ben Sweet took a huge win in his first ultra race, the 24-hour North American championships
Photo by:
Sheila HC
Gone on any long rides lately? Three hours? Four? Maybe five? I bet you didn’t go for 24 GD hours. But Coldwater, Ont.’s Ben Sweet did—and ended up winning the 24-hour North American championships in Bayboro, N.C.
“It was my first ultra race, but I knew I was capable of being competitive and had a chance at winning. I went in with the goal of 500 miles or 805 km,” he said. “Knowing that the winner the year before only did 475 miles (764 km), I knew that sticking to this pace would put me in a really good position to win.”
Format of the race
Forty brave souls competed in the 24-hour event, which is a non-draft race. All riders start at the same time and place, and the goal is to ride as far as possible. Drafting is not allowed, making it a pure test of rider versus rider.
The win also means he can ride in the Race Across America (RAAM)—but that was never his goal.
Pain from head to toe
“I came to prove that I am a rider to watch in the ultra scene, gain some exposure, and try to win the North American championship jersey,” he said. “It was a super hard race. The course was pancake-flat, so you were pedalling the entire time and crammed in an aero position. I was feeling pretty haggard around hour 8 in the heat of the day. I was riding on a borrowed bike from a teammate and hadn’t had much time to really dial in the position, so my shoulders and butt were feeling it.”
Between 12 a.m. and 3 a.m., he began to feel drowsy. Around 3 a.m., second place caught up to him.
The race for the win
“I was getting time gaps to who I thought was second, but was actually third and knew I had a sizable lead,” he said. “But the actual second place rider was having timing chip issues, and I had no way of knowing where he was on course. The shock of him pulling up next to me snapped me straight back into race mode, and I felt as if I had just started.”
That meant the last five hours of the race were a max effort as he knew he needed to open the gap and had no way of knowing how big his advantage was.
“Those last five hours hurt so bad,” Sweet said. “I just wrung myself inside out trying to get everything out and ensure the win, and I ended up putting 20 km into second place over those five hours.”
By far the most painful part was the three days following the race, he explained. “I was so incredibly sore; every joint and muscle was super stiff and on the verge of spasm. The most I could manage was hobbling around the house and to and from the car,” he said.
On fuelling and hydration
As you can imagine, fuelling is huge when you’re riding all day and all night.
His plan was to limit stops as much as possible. “I had all my food and water/drink mix in musette bags. I never stopped for any real breaks, only for equipment changes for nighttime and for issues. I stopped for the first time after 8 hours to put on my front light and leg warmers and to eat some real food—a McDonald’s cheeseburger to put something solid in my stomach,” he said.
He stopped again around hour 11 for a jacket and a quick light adjustment, another time around hour 15 for a quick bathroom break and to plug in his front light, and again around hour 16 to install his backup light after issues with the first.
Support staff snag
“My only other stops were in the final two hours, when my feeder fell asleep. I asked for water bottles from another team and stopped for food from a tent along the loop,” he said. “My goal was to do 500 miles, so I knew I needed an average speed of 33.6 km/h with my stops to do so. My plan was to try and average 35 km/h for my time on the bike, anticipating 30 minutes of stopped time throughout the race. This would put me ahead of my goal and give me some room to slow down later on.”
This event was part of his preparations for a big multi-day effort next summer, where he will attempt to beat the Trans Canada Fastest Known Time (FKT). His training has been long days in the saddle, with many 6-10 hour rides on weekends, setting two new FKTs on the COLT (Central Ontario Loop Trail) (457 km of gravel) in just over 21 hours and an unsupported lap of Lake Ontario (860 km) in just over 37 hours.
No RAAM…probably
“I knew I was capable of riding this distance and that I had the fitness to do it fast, so this event was a great place to put the theory into practice,” he said.
Despite qualifying for RAAM, he doesn’t think it’s in the cards for him.
“It’s a big logistical and financial challenge and is a race I want to dedicate myself to 100 per cent. With my cross-Canada record attempt and the planning involved, it’ll be difficult to plan and budget for both.”
That’s not to say he wouldn’t be up for it if he could get support for it.
If you want to follow more of Ben, check out his Instagram.