The Mallorca 312 event is now one of the biggest sportives of the year with over 8,000 riders from all over the world taking on 3 separate routes around the beautiful closed roads of Mallorca. I will share my knowledge and give you my top tips for completing the Mallorca 312.
The route
The 167km route is challenging with plenty of climbs. But with lots of groups to ride the flats in it makes it the ideal sportive for most riders.
The 225km route includes an additional loop by the coast with stunning views and is well worth the extra 60km. Then there is the ultimate 312km which is a real test of endurance having to complete in 14 hours with tough cut off times.
Having completed the event three times now and with the first year, I only made the first cut off point by 4 minutes I thought I would share my top tips for the day ensuring that your day is not cut short!
If you still training for the event then check out my training blog here
My 5 top tips for completing the Mallorca 312
Arrive early
This cannot be emphasised enough! The clock starts from when the first rider crosses the start line and with 8000 riders to set off you can lose 30minutes at the start line before you even start the ride. You cannot be there too early as no matter what time you get there someone will be in front of you but you want to reduce the number of riders in front as much as possible.
Ride your own event
As nice as it is to ride with your mate I would seriously think about that for this event. With so many riders it is hard to keep together and especially at the feed stations which are chaos. You don’t want any extra delays during the day by stopping to find each other at various points in the ride. You will not be alone whatever as plenty of riders around at your speed for company!
Limit time spent at the feed stations
Any time off the bike is time wasted so limit this as much as possible. That includes toilet stops and crucially feed stations which can be very hectic so my advice would be to grab some food/drink and continue riding the event and fuelling on the go. Even if you have to ride slowly it will still save you more time than being off the bike.
Fuel
As with any endurance event, it is normally a lack of nutrition where people struggle and thus hit the wall or bonk! The day before you want to make sure you are hydrated and have eaten a reasonable amount (no need to go mad). The morning of the event you want to have a good amount of carbs to set you up before you start then make sure you eat little and often which wants to start before you feel hungry otherwise it will be too late! You can pack pockets with flapjacks and bars.
Ride sensibly and efficiently
With so many riders you can get caught up in the moment and lose all concept of ‘normal” riding. Be aware of others on the downhill and remember all your normal skills for descending and when climbing reduce the gear so you can climb in an efficient manner and thus save precious energy reserves which you will need come the end!
And finally, don’t worry if you get overtaken by the green polka dot jersey riders! The idea of this group of riders is to ride at the exact speed needed to complete the event in the 14hour cut off however they end up stopping longer at the feed stations so gives you a false representation of the pacing needed as I found out last year!
Do you want more training tips?
Check out this blog post from Epic Road rides
Good luck and have a great ride!!
As this will be my first time riding the 312, I had no idea about the Green Polka Dot Jersey riders!
It caught me out when they came past me and struggled to hang onto the back of the group only to find when I caught them up at the last feed station they were enjoying a beer!