Ahhhhh a little cyclocross to sooth the soul. My last race was epicly epic, THE Shenandoah 100. So its nice to be coming to a race that involves less preparation, less stress, less travel, and less... rac'n.
Charm city is nostalgic. It was my first real bike race. I did Cat 4 in 2010, then won both Cat 4 races in 2011 to get my upgrade, and did both 2/3/4 races this year.
Day 1 was not all I had hoped. I started 4th or 5th row which was decent. I liken a start with that many racers of different skill levels to escaping a burning building. The first lap or two is the burning building. Some escape easily, others not as easily. Point being, you can't start racing until you escape the building and get with a group of riders that aren't holding you back and aren't going to wreck wildly.
The start was sluggish. I picked my way through pretty well on lap 1 to move into the top 20. My body wasn't too happy though. I was nervous that my lack of cyclocross training would hurt me. I was hurt'n! I hung in there. It was hot hot hot. I didn't enjoy this race immensely but it was fun. I think I finished 15th.
Day 2 was a totally different. I start 3rd row this time and from the "go!" felt like my old cyclocross self. I put in efforts to pass and was in the top 15 after lap 1. But this time I felt that there was plenty of gas in the tank. I caught up to a group including Jameson Ribbens and Andrey Doroshenko. I'm pretty sure I can ride with these guys and I know they did well on Day 1 so I'm happy.
After a while I hear that we're in the top 10 and there are tons of guys just ahead. I decide to attack and try to make it to the next group. This was foolish in hindsight. I had worked hard to catch these guys who mostly started front row. I should have spent more laps with them. The attack hurts me and I drop back to the back of the group. And I'm hurt'n! But I think I can rally and still take this group in a few laps.
Approaching the sandpit it takes a lot of effort to ride it because I'm sitting at the back of the pack and have to deal with the riders in front of me swerving and slowing. This became a recurring theme for my race. Bale or crash in the sand pit. Spend a lap to catch back up to the group. But bale or crash again because they are all sprawled out in front of me (that's right, i could do it easily if it wasn't for them, lol ;).
But I'm loving this race. I'm riding hard but within myself. I'm competing. I'm pedaling AND thinking. Usually it's all pedaling for me. I'm making mistakes and learning. I'm measuring up the guys in my group. I'm looking for ways to beat them. I've never really been able to enjoy the tactics of racing. This is awesome!
I end up in a group of 3 riders with a lap to go. The body has been giving it all she's got and i'm in the mix for a top 10 finish. I start thinking how I'm going to handle our last sandpit pass. This sand has been killing me. I'm going to run through it and go for the sprint on the road.
We come to the sandpit, and once again i'm sitting at the back of the group. I immediately go for the run but stupidly go inside. There is room but not much. There had been plenty of room on the outside line! The rider in front starts swerving and ends up coming into me and the tape. I'm running full speed and just tear through the tape and kinda through him (sorry dude!). Its a mess and I'm not proud of it but I make it through. The guy at the front of our group is clear and I'm not catching him but the second guy is still close enough.
I close down the gap in the final turns and sprint on the road. The guy makes an effort but he can't match. I come close to catching the leader of our group but it was too much space. Soooo FUN!!!
Super exciting and I think this is one of my first really tactical races (it showed). There is something to be said for not just pedaling ur guts out the whole race. It was a blast and I believe I ended up 10th.
Monday, September 24, 2012
Friday, September 7, 2012
Shenandoah 100 2012, race
Oh man, this was so brutally terrible it almost doesn't qualify for a lancefun blog. But this chat with Danny got me kick started. The report follows this chat. But the chat is better.
Dan: http://www.bobs
Dan: http://www.bobs
me: lol, that's the "i'm going to be top 5 SS" look
silly fellow
Dan: haha!
me: deep
down inside its also the "danny really kicked my ass up that last hill
and now i can't see him. i thought i was going to out climb him?" look
Dan: man I was looking for you, I totally expected you to kill me on that hill
me: i
could see u and wolfy. but i was zone 5 at least to be that close.
and after that really long climb somewhere in mile 20ish i never saw u
again. and i was totally broken by then
miserable
Dan: 
man it makes me sad to hear you were miserable
man it makes me sad to hear you were miserable
me: ya.
it was just such a struggle. never felt comfortable until i decided i
was going to quit chasing u. but didn't decide that until after i sunk
my own battle ship with no hope of feeling good. and then i had to
walk up all those techy climbs. bad to worse. i enjoyed some of the
descents.
me: until my hands got exhausted and i could barely brake anymore. hahaha. pathetic
Dan: hahah it was a pretty rough intro to NUE i guess
you still had a solid time
me: ya,
could have been worse. rallied from mile 40 to 85 (through soul crusher) but then that big descent just ended me with the exhausted
hands (crash). and the final long climb was sad... lol. man i hated a
lot of that. this is my race report. i don't think i'll blog about it
because it doesn't qualify for lancefun.blogsp
Dan: oh man! epic hard days are the best blogs to read
me: lol.
that was definitely my favorite part of the entire ride! glorious
that they got that pic. makes my day. thx dan. i'll post this chat as
my blog post. then maybe fill some stuff in as i have time
Shenandoah-oah-oah-oah.... Your mountains are large and I shall climb them like a frolicking goat!
So most of the blogs I read leading up to this behemoth 100 miler is that the climbs are long the descents are awesome and its basically a party. The only thing i was worried about was the sheer time on the bike. I had never ridden a bike for longer than 4 hours and 42 minutes during Hilly Billy Roubaix 2012. So 8+ hours sounded like a lot. Also, my longest mountain bike race was a 24 mile race at Sugarhill 2012. I bonked pretty hard during that. Also, I converted my bike to single speed three week before so I had never raced a single speed. But despite all that I still thought the only real issue for me would be the total time and distance.
Then I read this blog by Schottler from 2011 where he finished in 7:46 (fast!) and it sounded a little tougher. I thought "alright maybe this is going to be more technically challenging then i think".
I drove to the campground the night before, arriving at 10:30pm. I was sleeping in my car and maybe fell asleep by 12am. Super happy about a decent night's sleep. I woke at 5am and got ready. I hadn't planned for the darkness and didn't have a headlamp so getting ready with my bike light in awkward positions made for slow going. The whole drop bag situation confused me some. The stations already have tons of food. The drop bags are just for rider specific stuff. Weird and I don't feel comfortable with the drop bag stuff. Ok, I'll put some Cerasport and Probars at aid station 3. But I'll just carry the bulk of what I need. (MISTAKE)
Pat shouted for me at the start. I got in next to him. The sun is starting to rise so the race starts soon. Pat points out Gerry Pflug, Ron Harding, and others. I get to chat it up with Roger Masse (love that guy!). This is cool. 6:31am and we're off!
Right away I'm huffing and puffing. This is nothing like the party pace I read about in previous 100 miler descriptions. People are flying. And my single speed is holding me back. I'm at the back of the big lead group and start thinking "Maybe I just need to dig deep for 30 minutes and things will really settle down on the first climb"
The first climb is mildly-hard. and pretty long. I'm digging and passing some but mostly keeping up. I can see Danny Atkins and Dan Wolf (both of Race Pace bicycles) not too far ahead. These are the guys I had hoped to ride with. But that's because I thought I would be well within myself. But I'm redzone. We're 20 minutes in and people aren't backing off. "Ok, well maybe I just need to dig for 1 hour hard then things will settle".
Things are a little slick and loose on the descent. I feel pretty capable though. Mostly we're all happy its not raining. Things are a blur from here. I don't remember what happened for a while. But I know that I was still uncomfortably working hard. Spinning like crazy on the flats. Mashing on the uphills on my 32x18 single speed. I'm hurting. We hit another long climb. Again I see Dan and Dan but can't catch them without sprinting. "Maybe I'll see them later".
We get into some single track. This was getting pretty technical with big rocks jutting out everywhere. What the hell? Its really hard to follow geared guys because the spin slowly through this stuff. I'm single speed and have to back off, then mash over a slick rock, then back off. This is getting brutal and I'm not even a quarter of the way through. I'm already borderline miserable. But probably still doing well place wise. press forward.
We go down a long technical descent and out on the roads. I'm guessing we're at mile 25 or so. I'm spinning like crazy to stay with a group. I know that I'm heading towards a disastrous 100 if I keep doing this but the Dan's are still ahead, and I can't bear to let these groups go and ride my own pace. We catch a big group that is part pacing. I believe Dan Wolf is in it. I don't see Atkins. The leader looks like Gerry Pflug but that doesn't seem right because the women's leader "Sue" is here as well. I'm so happy to be going slow and to have caught up with the group that I believe I belong with.
The joy is short lived. We turn into a trail section and I'm towards the back of the group. Again the climb is pretty technical and the geared riders are taking it so slowly!!!! Its killing me as I balance on my single speed, then mash hard over slick roots/rocks then back off so that i don't run into the line of rider ahead of me. I know I need to walk but I'm also trying not to stop and cause the people behind me to have to walk to. Finally a falter and scramble out of the way to let people go by. I'm starting to hate this.
After some significant walk-climbing i see that nearly everyone is walking now. In fact this is a know "run-up" of the race. I just was walking sooner than everyone else. I just can't believe how technical this is. Its nothing like I imagined. eventually I see some one riding up behind. Its Roger Masse! Dude is riding much further up the "run-up" than most others. impressive. I know I'm toast and he looks pretty good. Damn I wish I had stuck back with him earlier.
I don't really remember the descent after this long climb. I think it was fun. I had met up with a single speeder, Kelly Klett, and decided to stick with him for as long as possible. We seemed to be climbing at similar speeds. I'm mashing and he looks more comfortable. He tells me he's riding 34x21! I tell him I chose a 32x18 and it was proving to be too tall. He chuckled and said "well i shouldn't be seeing you in the last 30 miles". I agreed.
Its starts raining pretty hard. UUUUUUGH! Not rain too! I'm feeling sorry for myself. Bleh! Thankfully I had arm warmers because I wasn't pedaling hard enough to keep warm.
I rode with Kelly for maybe 15 miles. But lost him as I stopped at aid station 3. This was fair since I think I caught him after aid 2 where he stopped. I basically rolled through that one (MISTAKE). There was a longish road section where I had plenty of time to chill and contemplate quitting. I'm feeling pretty terrible. And this is my last chance to drop out anywhere close to the finish. But i've invested this much time/effort/money/pain. Press forward. My only real fear at this point was cramps. So I was drinking Cerasport and eating Probars and Hammer gel liberally. Of all the things I did wrong I can at least say I ate enough. The MISTAKE was that I carried most of it with me and should have put most of it in drop bags at aid 2 and 4 as I had originally planned. That weight adds up.
I drafted on some geared guys. Again this felt way harder than I imagined it should. I'm feeling crummy. We get into some trails and approach a monster climb at mile 50. I try to ride it but again its just too technical (narrow, semi-loose, very wet roots, rocks). It felt like the roots and rocks were trying to push me off the side of the trail. I would get to a flattish section, hop on my bike. Get clipped in. Pedal pedal then back tire slides on a root and i'm back off nearly falling down the hill. Now I'm just angry. I WISH I HAD QUIT! The descent is not all that fun for a broken angry fellow either.
Out on the roads leading into the biggest climb of the day I pass by people that look as soul-less as me. We all look pretty fit/fast. But are having bad days from one thing or another. No one is really talking. I'm getting depressed just recounting it, lol! We're climbing slowly and then enter some double track. Now the real climbing up to aid 5 begins.
I can't sit climb. The legs are shot. So like my four year old son, I stand on the pedals and churn slowly, body swaying back and fourth for over an hour. I have no idea how I can pedal standing for so long. Just for short segments when I sit. I knew this would be a long climb but it seems to go beyond long. Danny Atkins had warned me that the climbing wasn't over by aid 5. So at aid 5 I get some food, get a drink and prepare to climb more.
Well, the climbing past aid5 is nothing like the climbing before. This is muddy. This is boggy. How is there so much water on top of a mountain? It stopped raining 30 minutes ago but water is coming out of every mountain orifice. I'm told by another rider that its wet up here even when it hasn't rained. This defies logic. Its a an active volcano of water up here! The pedals are turning so slow but I'm still passing other dead folk and I'm still fighting. How can I possibly still be pedaling. standing and pedaling? The human body is amazing.
I keep climbing and dipping and climbing and dipping. Its maddening! does this mountain have a top. Looking at the map I suppose I was riding the ridge of the mountain. This IS crushing my soul but i'm a little happy that the legs aren't cramping. They are turning. And finally! the descent. No wait another rise. The descent! Nope another rise.
Then the real descent. This thing is so long. I thought I would be glad to be here. But this is even worse. I'm exhausted so I have no technical skills. So I'm on the brakes. But the hands are shot. Literally I can't squeeze the levers anymore. I stop to let the hands rest and go again. I can't believe even the descents are crushing my soul now. At some point I wreck, imagining what my face will meet as i go over the bars. Will a stick stab me in the eye? Will my neck get slashed on a rock. Nope just dirt and gravel. I check my bike praying that there is no damage. Ok its good. I litetally pray out loud, "God please get me off this MOUNTAIN!". This marks my first steps into desperation. The crash gave my hands a little rest though so I'm able to descend again. But I keep meeting techy, kicker hills. The legs can't do it and I have to walk my bike up them.
Finally the bottom. I basically skip aid 6. I just want to get back. MISTAKE. 12 miles doesn't sound like much but at 9mph, its over an hour to the finish. This dawns on me about a mile past the station. I'm not turning back. So far its road and I can do that. Then the final climb. I know it aint little but now its the biggest slowest slog. At least its not technical. I get passed by a single speeder that makes me look like i'm standing still. I care. But can't do anything. The downhill is miserable with my mushy lifeless hands. Some guy tries to past me just before the finish area. He could hear that we were close and took a chance but crashed.
I finish in 9 hours 22 minutes. Ugh! Pat cheers me in. He won the single speed division on the same gearing (32x18) today finishing in 8 hours 8 minutes. Life is improving. I finished. And Pat won. Food! Wash the bike and cry to Dan Atkins and Dan Wolf how much that sucked. They didn't have the most fun either finishing in 8 hours 40ish minutes. I ended up 8th among single speeders. There were and incredible amount of DNF'd riders.
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