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Squaredisk
Harder, not sure, they were both hard. TCR was probably more physically painful with the shit roads but TABR was miserable with the sub-zero temps (give me a heatwave any day!).
TABR was mentally worse because I was on the back foot from the very start and grovelling for lots of it with mechanicals or injury. By the time I watched my goals disappear in the same way in TCR I didn't really care :) TABR is probably easier logistically with more conveniences/services available for much of it.
Fitness from TABR? Ha. No, there's no fitness, just physical issues you hope don't reappear and a mental strength to keep going.
KA pushed a lot harder. With so much shit going wrong I finished TABR riding strong so the month probably was enough to recover physically but mentally perhaps I cared less about my finish position so didn't push on when I should've, although I was still trying to every time I made a move something else would go wrong and I got fed up with it going wrong. I never expected a great result in TCR but thought I could get a top 10. That disappeared pretty quick with routing issues (fucking detours) and then, for me, I don't feel the need to push as hard just to get a minor placing. I could've tried to do a Samuli but my bike was getting worse as time went on. I really should've fixed it properly.
I dunno. I'd probably race both of them again but it does take a lot of time and money and I think if I got the result I wanted in TABR I might not've pushed when I did in TCR (even though it came to nothing).