24 Hours of Fun, Fun, Fun

This last weekend was the 24 Hours Round the Clock in Spokane, WA. For those not familiar, this is a 24 hour mountain bike race. uBRDO Team Project (uTP) supported 3 teams and it was a production of epic proportions. We left Kirkland with 4 pop-up tents, 4 coolers, 4-6ft tables, 9 bikes, a giant box of bike parts, and the rest of the van was filled with the miscellany we would need for 2 days of MTB racing. 

Things were a little crazy trying to get out of town but we eventually made our destination at 5:30 am Friday morning after driving all night and getting an hour of sleep in the van in a rest stop. Not an ideal way to start the weekend.

Setting up camp was a blur in our delirium and trying beat the heat didn't help matters. It was about 30 degrees hotter in Spokane than we are used to on the west side of the Cascades. We did manage to put together an impressive camp for the team that was dubbed "The Condo." Friday was pretty low key with everybody making their way in throughout the day. We got everybody signed in, got our race volunteers squared away, started drinking and then went as a group to pre-ride the course.

Chaos ensued as our very buzzed riders were having a grand time checking out the course but ended up totally freaking out the other riders not on our team. Which seemed funny because I would have figured everybody had at least a few beers in them by that point. Apparently, not so... and too bad for them. It was fun.

We ended up getting pretty good sleep that night and all woke up ready to go Saturday morning. After a huge breakfast at a nearby European pancake house (the potato pancakes were to die for) the first riders got kitted up and made ready to race. I was a big ball of nervous jitters (no, not too much coffee). I was to do the starting lap, which included a La Mans style start. We had to rack our bikes, head to the start line and wait for the gun to go off. Then it was a 600m run up a hill, back down to our bikes and then ride back up the hill. The run was only 3 1/2 minutes or so, but I have never been so happy to get on my bike. Running in bike shoes and helmet is pretty lame. I'm told this is the traditional way to start a 24 hour race...

Being on a 5 person ladies team was fantastic. We had about 4 hours between laps and we did great. "C" was pulling down our fastest laps, "A" was hauling ass after not even touching her bike since CX season, "CH" was consistently solid, and "L" was a breath of fresh air. She came ready to race and she certainly did that with her consistent performance throughout the race.

The best part was the team dynamic. No bickering, no weird 'girl' stuff, and no drama. Just great attitudes, a willingness to keep at it, and a desire to have fun and race hard. I came back from my night lap at about 2 am and slept from about 230-5 am. I woke up wondering if we were still racing and sure enough the girls had kept at it during the middle of the night. As I prepared for my 7 am lap, I wondered how my legs would feel after so little sleep and being stuck in the heat the day before. As it turned out they felt pretty darn good and I put in 1:16 lap. Not my fastest but certainly not the slowest either.

I had given "C" the option of waiting for me to do another lap so she could get some more rest. When I came in she had a huge smile on her face, said she felt great and was ready to go. I handed her the timing chip and away she went. About the time I was starting to get ready to do another lap (an hour or so later) we got a call from "C". She had crashed and the medics were advising her to abandon the race. She had punctured her knee cap and couldn't move her leg for a few moments. She told Scotty she thought she might be able to continue on. We made the decision for her and I grabbed my bike and headed out to restart the lap. At this point we were solidly in second place and had been since the very first lap the day before. But with me restarting the lap we were getting bumped down to 3rd.

I spent that whole lap calculating how many laps the 3rd place team had done (assuming they hadn't dropped out) and when I would need to come back through the timing tent to be able to do an extra lap to beat them. We had to start the last lap before noon and I was mentally preparing for my 6th lap. To my surprise, "A" was waiting for me at the timing tent ready to take the timing chip and rally the course one last time. She came back 1:17 later with a smile on her face. 

We had done it. We had successfully completed our first ever 24 hour race, we stepped up when things went awry and overcame what would have been a looming 3rd place finish. 18 laps for a total of 270 miles got us 2nd place.

Now it's not all about winning. Heck, we didn't win. But we did great even though none of us had any idea what we were doing. All of uTP was pretty wiped after the race. The boys ended the race in 8th place after 2 really hard crashes in the first rotation of laps. The 2 man team was DFL and gave up about 6 hours into the race. They slept a solid 8 hours that night. Hilarious.

It sure was a lot of fun and I'm thinking about making a solo run at it the next time around. Sounds crazy but I think I could do it. The course was long enough that even after 5 laps I didn't have it totally figured out.

Just Ride

I've been thinking a lot lately about what has become my life adventure in cycling. I've come along from the days when I didn't own a car, was really poor, and what I considered fun on a day off as a trip over the Golden Gate bridge to Mt. Tam on my 1992 fully rigid M300 Cannondale. Man, those were the days. I used to just take off. Sandwiches and water loaded into the pack, my walk-man with a fresh set of batteries, and a sense of adventure. I would be gone all day, sometimes not making it home until after dark.

These days when I look back on all the riding we have done over the years, I think it would be neat to go back and ride all those places again. Would it be hard? Would Moro Canyon be as technical and scary as I remember it? Perhaps not. Now that we have been in the same place for an extended period of time, I have lots of opportunity reflect on trails that used to be difficult and made me nervous once upon a time. 

Take Tiger for example. The first time I rode the Preston RR Trail, I had to hike my bike through a mile of major blow down. Picture taking your bike and flinging it as high and as far as you can over the downed trees. Then imagine crawling through the innards of the trees to go retrieve your bike. Do that about 100 times. Then when you finally reach the other side of the blow-down, you are met with the wettest trail you have ever seen. A literal river using the trail to get down the hill. It was an adventure I'm not likely to ever forget, but that trail gets easier every year. Is it me or the trail? There has been a lot of trail work done in the last couple of years up there.

Brian and I used to ride St. Ed's from time to time. Half the fun was getting really lost but now we know those trails like the the back of our hands and it has turned into a place to take the dog riding instead of taking ourselves for a ride. Being on the constant hunt for new, more exciting trail systems seems to be the order of the day. Whistler is the next obvious choice for the excitement upgrade. It requires a new bike and a whole new set of gear, but that's a small price to pay for adventure.

I would love, one day, to go back and ride Slickrock in Moab. The first and only time I did that was on that M300 Cannondale and it was outfitted with full touring racks. I had never been mountain biking before (not really anyway) and I had no idea what I was doing. My guide, bless his heart, was gentle, encouraging, and gave me lots of pointers on what to do. How easy or hard would it be now? 

Along this same line of reasoning, I'm racing XC again and having a ball. So far this season, I have 2 wins under my belt and that effectively doubles my number of wins for my entire racing career. Now, is my class getting slower or am I that much faster this year? It's hard to say. I know it's a lot of fun but the girls this year just don't seem to have the same kill instinct I have seen in some past years of racing. It is a different group after all. In my defense of sandbagging, I did overhear a few of the girls on course chatting with each other. I hope they were having a great time... I know I did.

Perhaps it's experience, perhaps it's fitness, perhaps it's sheer dementia. I don't know. I wonder what it will all look like with another 10 years of riding experience. I hope to keep learning and getting better at it and maybe I can make it back to all those places to see what they look, feel and ride like then. 

'Cross Update

I said I'd let you know how the next few 'cross races went and if I had been bitten by the bug yet... My second race was a total disaster. We showed up 15 minutes before my start time and I barely had enough time to get dressed, let alone warm up. Not a good idea... I ended up 13th out of 14. Not an encouraging result. Worse is that I truly hated it. I was shouting curses through one part of the course (apparently that didn't go over too well because I'm still hearing about it - you know there are little kids out there) but I did finish and can say I'm 13th in the state of Washington in the Cat 4 group. Like I said, not a great result.

This last race was a whole other story. The course was a bike handlers dream and those with out the skills really struggled. I, however, actually managed to have a good time. Cutting girls off in the bermed turns and choosing the inside lines instead of the outside lines to make quick work of the twisty course was a lot of fun. I didn't feel like I was going to die the whole time and since I skipped breakfast, I didn't feel like throwing up for the first 2 laps. All in all, a pretty good race. Not to mention I came in 5th place out of almost 30 girls. A better result... Of course it's 5th place in the Cat 4's. Certainly nothing to write home about.

There are only 2 more races we have planned to attend, so the season will be over before I have the chance to completely fall head over heels for 'cross. From here we get to start thinking about the mountain bike season. Fun.

SSCXWC

A crazy day at the raceway... Portland shows again how to put on a 'cross race. A good time was had by all. I'm sure the free flowing PBR sponsored by The Bike Gallery helped. No tally yet on how many kegs were emptied, but the beer delivery guy was busy all day. The Foam Pit, courtesy of the Yakima Gang, was way too much fun; probably more for the spectators than the riders...

Rough(beer)garden battles the killer windmill and wins... this lap...

Speed Suit. Speed Dog

I'm a Little Cross

I have a bad habit of trying new things. When I turned 30, I decided I'd try racing mountain bikes. It was great and I have spent almost every summer since then racing my mt. bike.

Sunday was my first ever cyclocross race. 30 minutes of sprinting in the mud. It rained and it was cold and we were all a mess. Doc asked me if I had a great time. I think my response was something like, "It was miserable." Then he asked me again... I changed my response this time to, "Yeah! It was the best thing ever." It wasn't. Not by a long shot.

I have to wonder about people who LOVE 'cross. Here are the things I've come up with so far that is wrong with this silly discipline:

1. If I wanted to go to the park, I'd leave my bike in the car.
2. Freezing to death is not my first choice in ways to expire.
3. Getting off the bike and running is silly.
4. 30 minute race? Why bother?
5. Slogging through 4 inches of mud for 1/4 mile is no way to spend a nice Sunday.
6. Spraying the mud off your legs and backside with a cold hose after the race is truly awful.

I'm sure there's more... Perhaps I will list them next time.

OK! Yes, there will be a next time. I never said I was done racing 'cross. I just said it was silly.

Eat the Fruit!

This last weekend was the Cascade Cream Puff. What is it, you ask? 100 mile mountain bike race on some really fantastic trails in central Oregon. We went. I rode 85 of those 100 miles before I decided to save my knees. I don't really think I've ever been that far on a mountain bike in one day before. I was in the saddle for 12 1/2 hours and felt really great for about 9 of those hours. Yeah, I suffered, but not too bad and I'm actually considering doing it again. The watermelon at the aid stations saved me from myself. At some points of the day, it was all I could think about and what eventually got me to the next check point. Not too much to write about just yet. I'm still processing the whole day and waiting for my legs to stop hurting. They are a little sore to say the least.

Race Update

3rd out of 19... not too shabby.

Oh Happy Day

There was warm sunshine in Leavenworth this weekend. After several cold, really wet and totally miserable days here in Kirkland, the blue skies were a welcome change. Why were we in Leavenworth, you ask? For my first mountain bike race in more than 2 years. This weekend was the Bavarian Bikes and Brews Festival and it's one of my favorite places to race mountain bikes. In an effort to get prepared for the Cascade Cream Puff, NB signed me up for this race on the east side of the mountains. Thanks NB! It was to be C & NB's first mt. bike race ever and they peppered me with questions for most of the 2 hour drive out there. C wasn't feeling good and there was some question as to whether she would start. NB, however, had every intention of kicking some butt and I was just hoping to get the first race under my belt and not be the last one off the course.

We got there the evening before and had just enough time to set our camp up in an organic strawberry patch and head out to pre ride the course. I had forgotten how much fun Freund Canyon is! 4 miles up on some fire road and single track. Just when you think you can't take anymore, you reach the top and start the descent. What a descent it is! 4 miles of bomber, no brakes required, balls out adrenaline pumping fun. It's so fun in fact that when you get to the bottom, you get total amnesia and suddenly become willing to drag yourself back up the 4 mile climb just so you can come down one more time.

Strangely, I wasn't at all nervous for this race. In the past, I got so nervous before each race that it was hard to eat breakfast without throwing up. It only hit me moments before we headed to the start. I told NB I didn't really want to race today and he called me a 'total wuss' and firmly stated I was going to the start with him. And so it was...

Apparently NB missed his start by about 40 seconds as he was far back in the mob waiting for instructions on the coming to the start line. He had to push his way through the mass and chase to catch the group. I guess he caught the lead group as the fire road turned to single track.

The girls went off a few minutes later and it was a different start than I remember in previous years. The starts used to be so fast and I would go into oxygen deprivation just trying to stay upright on the bike for the first quarter mile. I'd watch everyone ride past me and I'd have to concentrate on finding a pace I could manage. Eventually most of the group would slow down and I'd start passing girls on the down hill and technical sections, picking them them off one by one. The longer races were better because I had more time to move up into the lead pack. This race was different. They sent us out and no one rushed to the front. In fact, I was sitting second position for a lot of the climb. Weird. A couple of girls did come through which is fine because I knew if I kept them close, I'd have no problem catching them going down. Which is kind of how it worked itself out.

Finally at the top, I prepared for the descent. It was hard to get relaxed enough to let the trail flow. After flying sideways into a swooping washboard right hand turn and hearing a group of spectators yelling "yaaaayyyyy! Did you see that????" and then remind me to relax and have fun, I wondered what the heck I'd been thinking these last 2 years. Racing is fun...

I knew I still had another lap to complete and I settled into rhythm of the trail. Even the down section was eventful with trying to get past other slow-poke racers, running over a lizard which I thought was a flat tire, seeing a guy who'd crashed and looked to be in really bad shape, and passing NB who'd flatted at the top of the hill and had not packed a spare tube into his pocket (apparently this bit of info was assumed on my part. I mean who mt bikes without tools and a spare tube?) Anyway, I got near the bottom of the first lap and suddenly was stuck behind this girl who would not let me through. She was on her brakes the whole time and all I could think was "GET OUT OF THE WAY!" She finally did just as we ripped out of the trees and back onto the fire road to start the second lap. I was relieved to see a few more of the girls right in front of me.

We headed back up the hill trading places and I put the bike in an easy spinning gear trying to save enough energy so as to not completely blow up before getting to the top. After all, this was a training race. The second lap was hard and I tried taking my mind off my legs by listing animals you would find in Alaska... bears, caribou, geese, eagles... that worked for a little while and got me to the top. The guy at the water station yelled "It's all down from here! GO!"

And I went. This time much more relaxed and way faster than the previous lap. But the slow girl was in front of me again... sigh... I asked her to move aside when it was safe so I could come through. She decided she wanted to talk about it and asked, "When do you want to come by?" "Now!" was all I could come up with. She still wouldn't slow up to let me through and I finally blasted past her when the trail opened up a little. The medics were taking the injured dude down on a backboard. He was strapped down with an oxygen mask on and completely bundled up in a blanket and neck brace. It didn't look good. I hope he is alright. I was then stuck behind a guy who was going pretty good and I kept thinking I should try to get past him but he was going really fast in the straight sections and only slowing a little in the turns. I decided I probably wasn't going to catch anyone else before the bottom so I just hung out behind him. We came off the trail and sprinted for the finish, although it wasn't quite wide enough for me to get past him.

That was it... the dude I had come down with stopped long enough to congratulate me on a fine sprint to the finish. As I was waiting for C & NB to come meet me, the slow girl came through the finish. I apologized for being so aggressive with her out there and all she could say was, "Wow! You are really fast going down. I mean, really fast."

We left before they posted the results, but it doesn't matter much. I had a great time and I'm relieved to know the first race is over. Now onto bigger and better things...