Dirty Kanza 2010

Emporia, Kansas

I’ve been riding/racing since 1974 and this race was by far the toughest. Over 200 miles of gravel, dirt, mud, suffering and pain. With steady winds, heat (over 97d) and no cover Kansas can be sooo unforgiving. Perhaps that’s why the early pioneers preferred to continue past Kansas and seek more humane conditions to live in. Though I loved Kansas State University and the four years living in Manhattan, I did practically give up cycling. It was only the occasional ride to campus or grocery shopping. Now I remember why.

The 2010 edition of this race, if you can call it that, started out at 6 AM with 70d temps, a light breeze out of the south, and a determined pack of 200 idiots ready for the ridiculous. I though it would at least start out at a reasonable pace, but I was dead wrong. Police escort to the end of town and a right turn on the first gravel road and all hell broke loose. No matter how I might preach to the Juniors that position at the front end is “everything”, the thought of fighting for position was just plain “crazy”. After a mile or so I was caught at the end of the first group working hard to bridge the gaps caused by the carnage coming back. Carnage is the appropriate word, and it won’t be the last time you’ll hear it.

I’ve done enough endurance events to know I can’t handle that kind of pace for 200 miles so I dropped back to the second group. Good thing cause we came upon the first group in a heap in the middle of the gravel. Crashing in the rain is one thing, crashing on dry pave’ is another, but a gravel road crash is the worst. Did I say CARNAGE? Thank GOD I was not on the tail end of that!

The first 60 miles from Emporia to Cottonwood Falls was 15-20 mph steady headwind so it was important to stay with the group until the first checkpoint. Most of the roads were just your run-of-the-mill gravel, hard pack with a few sections of looser stuff in the valleys. I found out early that the bigger chunks of gravel were at the bottom of descents. How did I know? Cause you’d see at least 5-10 guys just up the road from the bottom with flats. I have to thank John Farinella for my tire choice. The cross bike looked like a truck but it worked like a charm. Thanks John, I never stopped thinking how friends like those at MESA make the difference.

Did I say this was an UNSUPPORTED ride? Yeah, could not find anyone to provide support so I went it ALONE. Upon checking in and asking for water I understood why everyone had family, friends or significant others for support. NO WATER? WHAT KIND OF #$*&! RACE IS THIS? I had just found out. All those years of telling newbies to rely on none but yourself paid off for me. Enter the multiply friendly “CONVENIENCE STORE”. My salvation was that at least four of these babies were strategically placed along the route (about every 50 miles) and I had $60 in cash and a credit card with a $10,000 limit. Either way I was going to either finish or get a very expensive cab ride back.

Seventy oz more water, bag of ice, a coke, 2 bottles of 32oz Gatorade, salty snack and some 10-15 minutes of AC I was good again. By now the temps had risen into the upper 80’s and I was only a quarter way there. Back on the road and alone now I had at least turned north and to my delight a tailwind. SWEEEET! After being passed by what seemed like most of the 250 participants, I began to turn the tables. Catching, then passing others. Chalk it up to multiple ultra-distance races and a bit of smarts, the miles and temps started to take their toll on those that had gone out too fast. It was apparent not all had done their homework or simply got caught up in the competition.

Within the next few miles I caught and talked with the lead women or so she was told at the last checkpoint. I was stoked cause it told me something about what my position overall was. I had to be in the top 50. Most of the women I have known are stellar athletes and can hang with the best guys. I was elated to be where I was and it motivated me. We rode together for a while until I got a bit ahead of her and decided not to wait. Wish I had stuck with her.

My only mistake for the day was getting lost in the beauty of the Flint Hills of Kansas and missing a turn. Darn-it, I missed a right turn to what looked like nowhere and went about 2-4 extra miles. After back-tracking I got a bit more alert for the markers. Got my first taste of what was to come. Most of the roads had been wide-open hard-pack gravel but no more. This was a rutted, dirt, cow-patty infested grassy excuse for a farm tractor road. Did I call this a ROAD? I had just lost a half hour finding this road and was looking to give it back. Little did I know but the race was taking its toll on everyone. It took me another hour but caught the five people who I passed before. Unfortunately I could not catch a distant rider in front of me and “she” took a wrong turn.

Check-point #2 Council Grove and I loaded up again at the local C-Store. More of the same drink, some more salty snacks, various other “junk” foods and I was back on the road. It was important that I keep the breaks short (15 minutes max) knowing that it’s a time killer. The roads got worse and the temps were in the mid to upper 90’s by now. Humidity was as bad as St Lou but there’s almost no shade and no help for miles. I’ve always prided myself on finishing every event I participate regardless of conditions (without suffering the indignity of getting pulled) but it was “RE-THINK” time. I guess in a way not having support was somewhat a blessing cause no ride back even if I wanted. Actually was tempted on a few occasions when hearing someone ask “do you wanna ride back?”.

From mile 100 (Council Grove) to 140 (Alma, KS) was by far the worst. The few trees that were in the valleys were populated by fallen riders sitting, laying or standing under the little shade provided. Passing and asking a few “Are you OK?”, it became necessary to join them. Hydrate, force feed myself, and hydrate again. Ten minutes and back on the gravel till I found the next tree. Carnage under what seemed like every tree and believe it or not the buzzards turning circles above us. NOT KIDDING! There was no way of telling where I was placed and actually I didn’t care. It was now a matter of surviving/finishing.

Recently had a fellow USA cycling racer discussing how tri-athletes talk about simply finishing events and not talking about “Winning”. That kind of talk is appreciated here and more likely becomes “surviving” the race. Riders dropped like flies and most I talked with had already planned on calling it a day in Alma if they could make it. One guy looked at me strangely and said “you look in good spirits” like I was crazy. It’s ALL about attitude.

Making it to Alma it was back to loading up on fluids, more ice and a healthy dose of salt. According to my Garmin almost 8,000 calories had been lost from my body. No way to replace that much but gave it the proverbial college try. The C-Store had tables, chairs, seating booths and lots of company. One guy told me it was his third try and his third time to abandon. He was not alone. The guy next to him was wearing a tattered jersey and shorts obviously from a fall to the gravel. Told me he had lost control at the bottom of 25 mph decent and hit the gravel. OUCH!

Was on the gravel 20 minutes later feeling refreshed, but in 97d temps it didn’t last long. Saw fewer riders as I went on. Most were on the side in the shade or waiting for their ride. Its 6PM and no sign of relief, and I started to do the math. According to my average speed (12 MPH), the distance left and the conditions that would put me in at 11PM. OH CRAP! Worst yet only one more C-Store, it closes at 8PM and I’m 2.5 hours away. That may require begging at someone’s doorstep or a “break-in” at the c-store. One commodity that doesn’t lack in Kansas is nice people. Thank GOD they decided to stay open for longer. At least 10 more people dropped and once again asked me, “you wanna ride?”. NO THANKS.

Setting off for the last leg was no joy. Though that 20 MPH tailwind (the wind shifted from south to northerly) really helped and my speed on the good gravel was close to 25 MPH without pedaling, it was not clear sailing yet. By 9 PM it was dark, no moon but a hell of a lot of stars and a nasty looking thunderstorm to the east. Little did I know but there were tornados out that way too. The bike lights went on and my speed dropped. Oh yeah, at 10 PM I got my first/only flat. Five to ten minutes later it was back on the gravel but slow going at about 6-10 MPH.

This is not humane in any way shape or form. Thought maybe these last 20 would be the wide open gravel but boy was I wrong. It’s hard enough to ride 20-30 MPH on the descents but in the dark? That’s why I got one flat in the dark. Came upon a few more of those crappy farm implement roads and was just swearing my way through them. Lord I hope I didn’t miss any turn markers? Actually didn’t.

In the distance was the glow of Emporia and that nasty thunderstorm to my left. Just let me continue straight toward the glow and not the storm. Uhhhhhh, left turn followed by right, by another left toward the storm. Certainly luck was not failing me and driving me straight into that weather craziness? Also, if you’ve ever driven on the highway at night and seen the distant glow of a city you’d swear you were awfully close to arriving. NO SUCH LUCK!

Eventually Emporia got closer and the roads got better. Ended up on the east side of town and took various streets with flashing light markers. What a relief. Riding in the dark, scared and running on adrenaline the last 10 miles it was good to be back. The finish was confusing and to my delight still had at least 50-75 people cheering. It was 12 midnight and as usually my brain had stopped working at least three hours ago (bedtime is 9 PM for me when I can get it). Got my handshake, complimentary beer-drinking glass and told the promoter I would not be back.

Searching for the car in a strange place is hard enough, but I was very disoriented and it took another 15 min to find. After opening the doors it became evident my brain was no longer functioning. Asking questions like which shoe do I take off first and how do I pull this full zip jersey off became very complicated. In the car driving to the hotel swear to god my legs were still pedaling. Shower, eat a sandwich/chips, lots of water and time to turn in. Unfortunately the gravel was in the brain and the ride continued in my dreams till about 4 AM. The sun still comes up, even if you’re not ready to welcome it. The deluxe Motel 8 breakfast at 9 AM with a few riders sleepily joining me. Those who did and didn’t finish commiserated for one last time. At 10 AM it was on the road again back to the Lou.

Where did I finish you ask? Unbelievably, 5th place in the 50-plus and 43rd overall. Don’t really care, just glad to be alive and say I finished. If anyone is interested in doing this crazy off-road ride next year I’ll just do support.

Cheers,
Coach

Published:
June 10, 2010 – 8:22 am
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Joe Martin recap / Another perspective

On Wednesday, May 5th, my dad and I woke up at 3 am, to head for the Joe Martin Stage Race in Fayetteville, Arkansas. A challenging 4 day stage race, consisting of a 2.5 mile uphill Time Trial with an avg. grade of 7%. Then a 110 mile road race, a 92 mile road race, and a 60 minute crit. All stages had plenty of climbing. We arrived at about 6:30 pm, checked-in, and I was able to spin around with a couple of riders from spider-tech (a montreal canadian team) for about 45 minutes.

The day of the TT was about 86 degrees, pretty warm for a time trial. We arrived at the course an hour and a half before my start. I warmed up for 20 minutes, and headed down to the start. I came up to the line, feeling real good, and ready to do some damage. The first half mile is really deceiving, you’re going fast, so you try to go faster, but because most people do that they blow up on the climb. So when I took off, I held back some on the flat, and when I reached the climb, I let my legs go crazy. I was pretending the finish was around every corner, so I would keep a high speed, and focus on parts of the course, rather than the whole thing, which I believe is better mentally. When the real finish came, I was dying, breathing real heavy, legs are begging me to slow down, and eyes are going in and out of focus. I told my body to shut-up, and do what I want, which was go faster. I stopped the clock at 9:42 or so for 32nd place out of 99 starters. I was pretty happy with that, considering I don’t have climbs where I live. I then met up, with my teammates, talked to them for a little bit, and called it a day.

I knew the Friday road race was going to be tough. The longest I ever rode was 110 miles, and now I had to race it. We started pretty slow about 20 mph, then after 3 miles, somebody flipped the switch to difficult. It felt like a crit. People were attacking off the front constantly, people would bridge, peloton’s swaying all over the road, and we were going 35 mph, on flat. It eventually slowed down, and found a good pace. The climbs weren’t steep, but they were long, real long. The descents were crazy. I swear, they were descending like juniors at nationals. We were going 45+ mph, and the pack was real tight, people were flying by on the outside, taking large risks. Sure enough there was a crash, just like I expected. The rest of the race was hard, there was this one 6 mile climb, where the field split, and there was no longer a peloton. I was able to get in a chase group, it started with 3 guys, and we caught many people, and by the end it was about 35 people. The finish came, and my legs hurt in places they never hurt before, and the finish ends with about a 4-block steep climb. I was able to move up to the front, maintain it, and finish strong. Wow, that was hard.

The Saturday road race had even more climbing. We go out, do a loop 3 times, and come back for 92 miles. The start was similar to Friday’s road race. My legs were cooked from yesterday, and I was unsure if I’ll be able to hang with the peloton. The first part of the loop is the hardest, with the most climbing, then it seems mostly downhill or flat from there. I was able to fight through it, and when we came on the final road to the finish, we were flying. People were trying to move up constantly, yet no one attacked until about 3 miles left. That was awesome, we were going about 35 mph and people were bouncing off each other, elbows were being thrown, and people were swaying all over the road. It seemed an accident could’ve happened every 15 seconds. Then with about 400 meters to go, everybody stayed cool, and went straight into the finish line. I got 35th for that stage. I was surprised I did that good, considering how tired I was.

The last day, was the crit. A very technical course, it had about 12-14 corners, with a huge climb into the finish. While I was warming up, my legs didn’t feel too good, but I ignored it, because if I paid attention to it, I wasn’t going to do good at all. I found my teammates, rolled around with them for a little, and lined up. The announcer gave one of those speeches saying you won’t win the race in corner 11, but you can lose it, because it was sharp, narrow, and off camber. Then the start, which was crazy fast. It was like these people skipped the other stages and this was their first race. I was struggling to hang on, right from the go. I was doing better than some, because some got dropped after the first lap! I was able to keep going with the thought, that it would slow down, but it never did! So I started yo-yoing off the back and soon, I was dropped. I was in no-mans land for most of the race, with a couple of other racers. Our chase group, got up to about 15 guys, we had a good pace, but not good enough, because we were taken off the course, with about 5 laps to go. I was a little disappointed, but I had done good overall, and this was my first 1/2 stage race. So overall, I was happy. I ended up getting 38th overall GC. I was excited about that, I finished just outside the top 1/3 of the peloton, so to me, I had success.

The next day, my dad and I headed back home. Along the way, we stopped at Mesa Cycles Bike Shop. It was just off the highway, and we figured, we’ve never been there yet, so we’ll stop in. I saw Dave Breslin right when I walked in, and he recognized me right away. I talked to him a little bit, mostly about the race. Then I met Russ and talked to him about the race. He brought up a good point, how racers feel they only have to make it to the crit, and the crit will be a breeze, when it’s really the hardest stage. I thought that was cool, because that’s how I looked at it. It was cool stopping in the bike shop I race for, and talking to them.
After that my dad and I headed home, and now it’s all a memory.

Thanks for reading,

Tony

Published:
May 16, 2010 – 1:52 pm
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Joe Martin U23 Recap

This past weekend three members of the U23 Team headed down to Fayetteville, Arkansas for the Joe Martin Stage Race.  Matt Pence,  Alex Grman and Martin Lang made the trip down, with Matt Brandt at Collegiate Nationals and Zack Stein still finishing up school in  Colorado.

The race began with a 2.5 mile uphill time trial on  Thursday. Martin pulled out a 23rd at a little under a minute back, Alex was twelve seconds back in 30th and Matt only 30 seconds back  from Alex in 52nd.  The U23 Team was also joined by junior, Tony Wieczorek who had a strong time trial and finished in 32nd.

Going into Friday’s 110 mile race, with a 9 mile climb up Mt. Gaylor, the  strategy was to lose as little time as possible, and spend the least  amount of energy possible.  At around 85 miles in, at the top of Mt. Gaylor, a group of twenty or so had made it away from the rest of the 99 rider field.  Alex had suffered an inopportune flat near mile 60, and an incredibly slow wheel change and hadn’t made it to the climb with the front group.  Matt, Tony and Martin, who also suffered an early flat, found themselves in the second group on the road, about 30 riders strong at the top of the climb.  Matt, Tony and Martin rolled in with the second group 8 minutes down to the lead group, and Alex soldiered in with two other riders, after spending 50 miles chasing, and made the time cut for the next day.

Saturday brought a 90 mile road race with a similar 5000 feet of climbing to the first day. The team rode strong, and smart and finished easily in the front group, although plagued by their light weight in the downhill sprint finish.

Sunday was a brutal 12 corner criterium, similar to Snake Alley in that half of the race is the first lap.  Matt was riding very strong, having made the front group, when he was taken out about halfway through the race, in the nastiest of the 12 corners.  Martin and Tony were further back in the second or third group, and Alex finished close behind.  The team had a solid GC performance as well.  With Matt, Martin and Tony finishing 36th, 37th and 38th respectively in the overall, and Alex holding down the Lantern Rouge spot at 57th (Keep in mind his 50 mile chase, and the fact that the race started with 99).

Meanwhile, in his home state of Wisconsin, Matt Brandt rode a great criterium to take the Bronze in the Collegiate National Criterium!  ALl in all, it was a great first out-of-town race weekend for the team, and only promises to get better as the season goes on and Matt and Zack join up with the team.

Published:
May 14, 2010 – 1:02 pm
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Greensfelder Challenge Recap

Last Saturday, there was the Greensfelder Challenge race. The course was totally different from last year, making an 8.5 mile loop out of Declue, the Declue Extension, and Eagle Valley instead of using 3 miles of Dogwood. The course had 1,085 feet of elevation gain. I liked the course even more because I built part of the Declue Extension as my Eagle Project in the fall of 2009.

A cold front had pushed through and it was only 59 degrees and windy on Saturday. At first, I was pretty cold, but after I rode a two mile loop to get warmed up I was fine. A little after ten, the Marathon riders took off (including a couple on a tandem full suspension bike), then the beginners, and finally the juniors.

There was one other boy in my class named Nathan. He was twelve and racing up in the 15-18 category like me. After the start, I led up the gravel road to the radio towers and on the big, rocky, steep descent from the radio towers. About halfway down we came up to the beginner women. I was waiting for a good spot to pass when Nathan rode through the woods to get ahead. I followed him down the rest of the hill and onto the Declue.

I started to catch him on the climb up the switchbacks and on the third switchback, his chain popped off. I passed him then. Soon, I rode through the area that had been burned in a forest fire a couple of weeks ago. I rode the new part GORC built and descended into the creek below the rock garden. Along the way, I passed a bunch of other riders from older age groups.

At the bottom of the rock garden, I jumped off my bike and pushed it up the steep hill. Near the top there was a sign saying, “You really paid money for this?!?” Soon, the race course split off Declue and got onto the Declue Extension. I climbed up through the switchbacks, and onto the trail I built for my Eagle Project. About a mile later, the Declue Extension popped off onto the Scenic Loop Road. The course went down a small hill on the road to the Deer Run Trail. After the steep, technical downhill, I got onto the Eagle Valley. After 5.5 miles of technical single track, the wide, gravel Eagle Valley was a nice break. The fast, downhill section to the bottom of the climb went by quickly.

The big hill climbed 300 feet over 1.2 miles to the Scenic Loop Road. I passed seven riders going up this hill. After a short section of single track on the other side of the road, the race course was wide gravel all the way to the finish. I passed two more riders here. Right before the finish line, the race course had two switchbacks. On the first switchback, my chain popped off and got wedged between my frame and my crank. Since I didn’t know how far back Nathan was or how jammed my chain was, I ran my bike the last 100 yards across the line for a 57 minute 36 second lap.

I finished first in my category and was happy with my race. I felt pretty good and rode up a couple of technical, rocky spots I haven’t been able to ride before. Also, I passed 36 riders from the Beginner and Marathon classes.

Written by Ben Banet, who’s racing age is 14 in 2010 and has been racing since September of 2009.

Published:
May 10, 2010 – 11:43 am
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The Yike Bike

Do you want a bike that you can fold up and place in your backpack?  Well Grant Ryan invented a bike that is electric and very compact so you can fold it up into the size of a single wheel.  Also, it is very light so it is easy to carry.  I don’t know if it is better than pedaling but at least it may get a few more cars car off the road!

My reaction to this video was exactly “yikes”.  Especially, because of where Grant placed the handlebars!  Check out this insane video and see if you have a similar reaction.

-Julianna Crang

Published:
May 3, 2010 – 10:38 am
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Money.

(Photo Credit: khawkins04/flickr)

Well, I made it. I pretty much sat on the back of the field. Mostly because fighting to get to the front wasn’t worth the energy. Being a single rider, I was entertaining the idea of going for primes and NOT working unless for my own benefit or survival. And that was necessary many times in the hour long race. 50 laps. The long stretches of the race were head and tailwind (tailwind finish!) and the first turn went onto an alley that was very close to 10 feet wide. No exaggeration. Skinny road made even more clausterphobic by tightly secured barracades right up to the street. Can I say narrow again? Narrow.

Colavita was the largest team present and they were throwing their weight around proudly. Attacking and countering and soaking up as many mid-race primes as possible. They’d get a person up the road and sit and wait for the chase to get close. Then they’d throw another. And so on. Until Rushlee Buchanan made the move that would stick it to the field that was tired of organizing a fruitless effort.

The first 5 laps lead me to believe firmly I was ready for this pace and effort. But when the attacks started we were strung out for what felt like 20 laps. Somewhere in the dizzying number of laps, a gap let about 12 riders off the front of the shrunken field of about 25 riders. The race was literally split in half and I sat helplessly in the back half hoping it could come back together, but preparing for the fact that I missed the front boat. I found myself chasing after being too close to two crashes (on the back straight and then again in turn one). I broke hard, stayed up, and hammered…pretending I was giving an effort for attacking, for a prime…and not survival.

Within 10 to go, we caught the big front group and I spun around a few laps reconsidering that the small group left on the road were racing for 2nd. But confusion about lapped riders and my own disbelief left me mentally unprepared for the last 2 laps. I sat on the back…and suddenly in the last turn realized I’d let my finish go. I gave what I had on the final 300 meters and crossed the line 15th. Given the total absence of selfishness for my own result, I should be happy. Given that I finished I should be happy.

I am. But I should have done better.

I get to try again today at 6:30 (EST). Walterboro, SC. 1 down 4 to go.

Published:
April 28, 2010 – 10:19 am
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Puttin Money Where My Mouth is…

So, I’m here in Beaufort, SC getting ready to roll into the lion’s den for my first national level race. I’ve been practicing all kinds of mental fitness and self-affirmations. Going from a field of 10 women in St. Louis, to a field of 50 or so, is a the kind of jump I like–hard as it might be. The consequences of that leap are fighting for position, circling in a whirlwind of racers constantly trying to stay in the front–or simply in contact with the field. It means jumping out of the saddle out of each turn onto the thin alley-like streets here in Beaufort. I pre-rode the course. I know, from last year’s handful of laps of survival.

And dammit if I’m not nervous.

But, it’s like when my friends who started racing a year or two ago decided to cat up to a 3. For women in St. Louis, there are essentially two categories of racing. 4 and everything else. And still, knowing that, they cat up to grow, to race a higher level. And so, for them, I need to suck it up and throw it down and do the deal. I need to race my higher level. I did it last year. Poorly. I trained my butt off all winter. And I’m gonna go stick it to it. In 1.5 hours. I’m sitting at a counter in a host house writing this to find my calm before the storm (literally, it’s windy out and rain is a constant threat today).

And while my nerves are twitching, I feel ready. So, we’ll see if my winter’s investment of hours on trainers and sweat-soaked towels, days in sub-freezing weather with four hour rides, hundreds of dollars in coaching, thousands in equipment. This is what it’s all for. Days like this Tuesday where spectators curiously stand along sidewalks watching this huge group of women with gritted teeth and red faces ride fast in circles until a bell rings. I’m going to put my money where my mouth is and be there when that bell rings.

Published:
April 27, 2010 – 3:37 pm
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Sea Otter 2010

On March 23 I got the news that I was selected as one of 10 riders throughout the country to represent Airborne Bicycles. What the deal included was a bike of my choice, a all expense paid trip to 2010 Sea Otter, helmet cam, and some gear. With 3 solid weeks to train for the biggest race I have ever done I knew I would not be close to the top of my game but I could get some riding in and be slightly prepared.

I went into this race calm, open minded, and just ready to have fun, more so then any other race I’ve done. I lined up to a field of 40 or so racers front row. The race started and it started FAST caught me off guard but since we started on the raceway before hitting single track I had time to get back into it. Halfway through the race way section some kids got tangled up some how and ended up crashing and taking down several other guys, apparently riding on pavement is pretty technical to those kids. I managed to dodge the crash but it really broke up the field and by the time we hit single track there was already a gap.

I knew I would have to play catch up for the next couple miles. The course was a mixture of single track and wide open dirt roads. The single track was much different than here in St. Louis, its wide open and not technical at all.

I began to settle in on the first big climb and start picking them off one by one. Feeling more comfortable with my position after every hill. About halfway through the race I was running towards the front with some of the “big dogs” I was not impressed with their single track skills but very impressed with their climbing. Climbing has always been one of my strong points and each hill these kids just opened up a bigger gap. I started to back off on the climbs and save for the 4 mile climb to the finish. With my new tactic I got passed by a couple kids but was certain I could catch them where it counts on the last climb.

We came out on the road and looked up at our last long climb ahead of us. After the climb was a little downhill then a bunch cyclocross type weaving around on rutted up hills so I knew if I were gonna make passes it would have to be on the hill. I caught a couple kids and maxing out my heart rate, I tried to just keep the pedals moving. I got to the top of the hill and realized my plan had failed I don’t know what I was thinking to try and catch these kids on the climb. Riding down the hill towards the venue and finished I tried to just soak it up. I had a gap on the people behind me and to big of one in front of me to catch anyone so I just enjoyed the ride.

All in all it was by far the most fun race I have done so far. It was really awesome racing on a course that the top pro’s raced on a day later. I ended up 21 out of 40 or so riders. I feel like I could have certainly done better if I were properly trained like the nor cal boys I was racing who were peaking in their season for state championship coming up. Its kind of hard to compete with kids at the end of their season when this was the first mountain bike of the season for me.  Huge props go to Airoborne Bicycles, Magura for the fork, Funn for the bars and grips, Kenda for the tires, Reed Pike, Jeremy Mudd, and the rest of the flight crew for cheering me on. I would highly recommend this event to anyone who has ever considered it is every type of racing and riding jammed in one event with tons and tons of booths to check out. Now only if I can find a way there next year……..

Published:
April 21, 2010 – 7:33 am
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Racing Thanks

This might read like an Oscar speech, but I’m incredibly thankful for my personal support and the overwhelming local support of the event from this past weekend. The Tour of Hermann 2010 is in the books (and I was counting down the races. Whew!) While it’s a grave disappointment that they not were able to open the event to a Junior category, I don’t envy or discount the amount of organization it takes to run an event of this caliber. Two full days and what feels like the whole town involved…I have a ton of respect for what Jeff’s brought to the race calendar. Having that said, I reiterate the need for the inclusion of Juniors and hope they can be reinserted next year.

I’m constantly surprised at the number of people involved to make racing possible, safe, enjoyable and memorable: the orange-vested corner marshalls manning rural highway intersections for 3-4 hours on their Sunday, people who open their homes for racers to stay without incurring hotel costs, photographers planted on strategic hills and in fields to capture the agony and competitiveness, supportive friends and family helplessly watching as racers scramble pre-race and fold in exhaustion afterwards (and doing lots of yelling and cheering in between). I love the racing atmosphere and it takes so much more than racers to make it that way. So, this is my thanks, to all those that don’t clip in at the start line, but are as involved as those that do.

So, while one might have expected a lengthy race recap here, I don’t have a good one. My memories will be captured in the photos taken by various photographers, like the one above taken by Paul Pate. My hazy, adrenaline-clouded memory is best left that way, otherwise I might recall too vividly the pain I’ll need to forget to sign up for next week’s (or next month’s or next year’s) races. Hermann is hilly. Hermann has wind. There are never enough women to race against, but those that lined up were admirable and downright hardcore. I don’t know how many men would keep coming back to race 60 miles against 8 other men. It’s a long ride with very few cracks to hide in…So, lastly, I’m thankful for my competitors who refused to knit and have a Sunday ride. We raced. For two days. Relentlessly. And I can’t wait to do it again.

Results? They’ll be up soon, if they’re not already.

The infamous photos? Here are the ones I know of: Paul Pate / Suzanne Johnson / Dennis Fickinger

And podium shots, too.

See you all at the Tour of STL this weekend!

Published:
April 19, 2010 – 10:51 am
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Tilles Park Crit Pro 1/2/3 Race Recap

The race started with a Matt Pence being shot out of a cannon attack. Everyone tried to get onto his wheel, but no one could. Pence spent the next few laps solo; a few riders from Mercy and Big Shark organized a chase. Once the attack was brought back, attacks were being fired left and right from numerous riders. The Mesa boys played it smart in the early going, following only the moves with the strongest riders from each team.

The Mesa boys continued to play a game of smart hiding and following, staying out of the wind as much as possible, showing strength only at the right moments (including snagging a prime for a sweet Columbia jacket). The move the team was waiting for came about 25 minutes in to the race, 6 riders including; Matt Brandt Mesa Cycles/Gateway Harley, Dave Henderson, Justin Maciekowicz, a rider from Texas Road House, Mercy and The Trek Devo team. The gap rose to 20 seconds, and stayed there for a few laps, the 2 big teams missing from the break; Lindenwood and the Hub. They were forced to chase, their efforts would be futile with all the horsepower in the break.

A crash on a tight section of the course stopped the race for 10 minutes to let an ambulance on the course to assist wounded riders. Adrienne Murphy stepped in right away; handing riders fresh bottles and cans of Coke getting us ready to re-enter the battle. The break with Brandt was let go with a 30 second gap on the peleton. Immediately after the restart all the Mesa riders got on the front and blocked the field preventing them from putting together a good chase.

The break came within 10 seconds of lapping the field, and attacks started coming from the break. At one stage the Mercy rider escaped the break and came within 5 seconds of lapping the field. Sensing the possibility of Brandt being put at a disadvantage, Jim, the Mesa/Gateway Harley u23 team director, instructed the team to go to the front, and start hammering; so no rider could get away and find the safety of the peloton. The plan worked and the break brought the Mercy rider break, Brandt went on the counter attack, but was immediately chased down by the riders in the break. Justin Maciekowicz “Dog fish” countered and opened up a small gap, bringing out Dave Henderson to chase bringing the gap down to 10 feet with one to go.

The break fanned out across the road, seeing this Justin attacked again. Brandt watched him, knowing any chase would just do the work for the other riders and leave him gassed for the sprint. With Justin out of sight already on his last lap, the remnants of the break came around for the last lap. The attacks start with Dave Henderson launching into the first turn at full gas, followed by the Mercy Rider, then Brandt. The Mercy rider showed signs of starting to let go of Henderson’s wheel, Immediately Brandt went around him tucking in behind Henderson’s wheel. With 300 meters to go the Roadhouse rider launched up the right side of the road, Brandt latched on. Brandt started his sprint 50 meters before the last turn taking the sprint for 2nd by a good margin.

In the field the Mesa boys put together a lead out, and put a few riders in the top 15. A great day for the Mesa Cycles/Gateway Harley u-23 teams first race as a full team.

Published:
April 14, 2010 – 8:31 am
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