In the last post we compared “intensity” across two different sports – mountain biking and motocross. This time we’re going to stay within class; looking at the physical demands of motocross, enduros, and desert rallies. Unfortunately, I don’t have data on hare scrambles but, given their duration (1-3 hours), it would seem logical that they would fall somewhere in between motocross and enduros on the “intensity” scale.
As you might imagine, the intensity of motocross is considerably higher than enduros and desert rallies. Given the inverse relationship between duration and intensity, it only stands to reason. During motocross, heart rate is generally higher than 80% of maximum (180-200 beats per minute) and is maintained at quite high levels for the duration of the moto. Oxygen consumption is in the range of 80 to 100% VO2max and post-race blood lactate is over 5 mmol/L indicating that motocross is a mix of aerobic and anaerobic metabolism.
Conversely, in enduro and desert rally competition, heart rate is generally lower (80-150 beats per minute) increasing only during the most difficult parts of the track and then only for a few minutes. Oxygen consumption falls somewhere between 20 and 50% of VO2max and blood lactate is only 1.0-1.5 mmol/L; well below the anaerobic threshold and indicating that enduros are primarily aerobic activities.
None of this should come as a surprise but I always find it interesting to quantify effort for comparison’s sake.
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