Get ready for the Grand Raid BCVS with ARNAUD RAPILLARD – EPISODE N°5
8 May 2025
4 months to go before the GRAND RAID BCVS!
Equipment is evolving, and the evolution is dictated by the discipline of Olympic crosscountry. A different format, a loop circuit, a much shorter race time. Show, jumps, rock gardens, lots of technique. More travel, a telescopic stem, wider tires… but is Nino Schurter’s bike really the ideal bike for September 6? The answer is obvious: the course is far from it.
When it comes to top riders, the semi-rigid is often favored, not least for its weight. Long climbs on hard ground are in its favor. Descents are not very technical. However, this is not unanimous. Some of the winners opted for the full-suspension model and made the difference, especially on the last descent.
To avoid any nonsense, here are a few points on which we can focus our attention:
🚴Tubeless tires, a matter of course in 2025
🚴Tires with a “rolling” profile on the rear wheel. The fastest riders will make the same choice for the front wheel. If you want to be on the safe side, use a tire with more studs on the front.
🚴Tire pressure adapted to rider weight (for comfort and performance)
🚴A telescopic seatpost for added comfort and safety, even on fast descents on 4×4 tracks.
🚴100 to 120 millimetres of bicycle travel
🚴A telescopic fork that works well, a definite advantage for the final descent (NB: specialist fork overhaul and preparation offers a real advantage).
🚴Semi-rigid or full suspension? a question of weight and comfort.
🚴For my part, I set my best time on the semi-rigid, but also finished in the top 10 on the full-suspension.
As you can see, it’s impossible to define the ideal bike. However, as time goes on, it’s always better to focus on comfort!
Arnaud.
Registration and information at www.grand-raid-bcvs.ch.
Introducing your coach : Arnaud Rapillard, 37, 5x top 10 Verbier-Grimentz, PR: 6h23 and 49 seconds in 2016. He has 18 editions to his credit between 2004 and 2023, including 12 from Verbier. He knows the course “like the back of his hand. Trained at the University of Fribourg and then at Macolin in the field of sports science, his knowledge of training and physiology were the keys to his consistency on this legendary event. A hard worker and perfectionist, he has always sought to pay attention to the details of his training and his equipment in order to push back his limits. Now retired from competitive sport, he puts the same energy into his company Next Percent to help endurance athletes achieve their goals.
