Its 7a.m. on Monday. I should be asleep. I slept from 3pm until 7:30pm Sunday evening after eating 3/4 of a large pizza. At 7:30pm I woke up starving. Down I came to finish said pizza, minus a couple pieces for Marja. Next came the tater tots.
10pm I go to bed and surprisingly fall asleep. 4a.m. I am awake.
This is how the next week will go. My "internal clock" is whacked to say the least.
At noon Saturday was the start of the 2010 Coolest 24hrs Mountain Bike Race. Just like last year, I would be battling it out with Mike Harrison who now rides for Global Biorythms, and new comer to 24hr racing Zol Whitman, also with Global Biorythms. There were also several names on the start list racing single speeds I had never heard of which made me anxious for the start to get to racing to see who had what legs.
The weather was perfect, the course was sloppy in places - hey its Cool right, if you live around here you know that even in drought years you are getting muddy and wet on the Olmstead Loop in May.
We roll out onto the dirt and off we go. I ride Mike's wheel for the first 1/2 lap. He starts fast, so i wanted to stay close until the numbers thinned out. Then, ride my race and hope its fast enough. Maybe in the middle of the night or the next morning crank it up.
First lap didn't feel good, but it never does. Top of Knickerbocker on lap 2 I am feeling ready to race. The course was quickly drying up and getting faster...then the 8 o'clock hour hit and all the 8hr solo and team folks were off the course....ouch, the water began seeping back into the mud bogs and the water holes were only getting deeper.
I came into the pit to change my clothes and have my lights put on the bike. 4 minutes later I was riding again. That was my longest stop of the race. A huge thanks to Pete and Marja for keeping me over my bike and riding.
Somewhere around 10pm, I roll up to the pit, Pete shoves a piece of pizza in my mouth. In the pit area (made up of 3 10'x10' EZups) at least 6 people are hanging out eating pizza and watching movies - TV and DVD player, really Pete!? 45 seconds later all are cheering me on as I ride away. Thats what is so cool about these races, just a great scene!
The night laps go by well. Its cold, but not bad. Its a 2/3 moon. It was a great time to ponder anything...everything. Me, I just keep thinking about the next decent, the next climb. What I need to ride to finish another lap. I make an effort to talk to every racer I pass. Makes me feel better and hopefully brings some comfort to them. Some are in a bad place, some just don't want to chat. Can't blame them, I just give encouragement and keep pedaling. I know if I slow down I won't catch Mike, if I slow down Zol or someone else will catch me.
And so it goes.
My Moab HID battery dies after only 8.5 hours, bummer, but with only one last lap in the dark, my MiNewt on my head will be fine. At last the sun peaks on the eastern horizon. For some reason that sliver of light makes me oh so happy.
I pit, change helmets (lose the light) and Pete tells me I am holding 15 minutes back. Good news, 3rd place is now almost 2 laps down. The best breakfast burrito EVER and I am rolling again.
Hit the top of Knickerbocker and there's Zol. I have to get within 10 feet to tell its him, my vision was hazy and blurry thanks to all the mud overnight. Zol had a rough night. So I had 2 laps on third but still had 15 minutes to make on Mike. Zol and rode together and that helped to speed things up.
Pit, 20 minutes down on Mike, 2 laps to go before noon. I come through before heading out on my last lap. Still 20 minutes, but I have 1 hour and 40 minutes to make my last lap, no worries barring disaster.
Top of knickerbocker, there's Marja and she starts yelling at me to pick it up. In 1/2 a lap I had taken 10 minutes on Mike. Turns out Mike's pit crew was waiting with Marja and gave him the low-down on how fast I was catching him. He dug hard and ended up 15 minutes ahead of me after 23 hours and 40 minutes.
In the end, I took 2nd in the Solo Single Speed class and 3rd overall behind Dez and Mike. Its always great when a couple of single speeds get onto the overall podium.
Me - 2nd Place 24hr Solo Single Speed, 3rd 24hr Solo Overall
19 laps
241 miles
32,300 vertical feet.
Marja - 3rd Place 8hr solo Pro/Expert Women:
6 laps
76.2 miles
10,200 vertical feet
The overall podium: Dez in the background, Mike and I enjoying bacon and a maple bar post race in the foreground!
No comments:
Post a Comment