Getting Back In A Groove

I need to find my groove again now that the Berryman is over, I have noticed that my body is playing catch up as far as calories go because it just seems I can't eat enough. I hope to get out of that stage in the next day or so, I remember doing this after Lumberjack as well (I do enjoy eating!!).

Went to spin class tonight, Mark had us doing long climbs with rapid descents and short flat sections. We did this three times, man I love climbing workouts!! Tim wasn't there tonight so that gave all of us in the class a chance to talk about him.

STUPID GOSSIP!!!

Berryman Epic Recap

Well let me start off by saying that this race was truly an epic, by every standard in my opinion. Molly and I arrived late Friday evening and ran into Doug and Denny driving out to get a signal to try and call us, when we stopped you could hear the water running down along the side of the road. As it turned out the water was well out of the banks of the river and was up over the road near the turn off to our cabin. We got upto the cabin and everyone was already there: Doug and Jeri, Denny and Margie, and Jim Cummins. We got our luggage in and sat around the rest of the evening just talking and having a good time, it was very relaxing. Sat morning was a very cold morning, the tour riders were getting ready to start their ride and they were bundled up. Since the water was out the resort had flatbed trailers that the riders jumped on with their bikes and were hauled across the river, it was over waist deep at this point and had actually come down. We watched and laughed because we knew we needed to get across to preride and we were not sure what we would encounter the next morning for the start of our race.

We went back to the cabin and ate breakfast and then we prepped our bikes and headed down to the water, after a short discussion Denny said he would drive his truck across the water with us in the back. We made it thru the water fine and parked on the other side and started a 2.5 mile climb up a gravel road. We met up with 4 guys from Arkansas and after a haul we did not see the trail head, so we rode a bit further and still did not see it. We opted to ride down to the truck and drive til we found it and then start riding from there, turns out we were only about 200 yds from the trail head when we turned around. We went into the singletrack and it was very moderate climbing to start as we were well up the hillside already and then some fast downhill. We dropped into a bottom, crossed a small creek and then hit the first steep climb that really wasn't short, it did lessen in intesity but the climbing continued. We rode, and rode, and rode some more, I finally looked and my computer was a little over 10 miles and I knew we had to ride back to the truck. I wasn't looking for a long preride but I guess I should have known better!!! We rode to the first check station and Doug started back into the singletrack, we all stopped and called him back wanting to know how far he was intending on riding. Doug is a stud and can ride several miles and be fine for the next day but I didn't want to ride a lot further. We ended up going back to the check station and asked some campers the best way back to the resort. At the check station we had just crossed Brazil Creek which meant what? that's right, we were at the bottom of a hill so we had to climb out. We had a paved climb that I swear went on forever and when we thought we were there it kept going, and going, and finally...oh crap no it kept going. I know it's hard to believe but I can be a smart a$$ sometimes and as we were climbing as a group I yelled to Denny "Hey, get out of your big ring". All the Arkansas guys whipped their heads around to look at his ring situation and of course I started laughing, Denny ended up looking down because he thought maybe I was serious at first. When we got to the top of the hill we found the gravel road that eventually took us to the truck, approx 20.5 miles of preride and I was very tired.

Sun morning we got our gear ready and noticed that the resort truck was pulling the flatbed again so we made our way down to the start area. Shortly after arriving we saw the truck come back with no trailer and we knew we would not have a ride across the cold water. It was warmer that morning but still very chilly, I was shivering down on the start plus anyone that has raced with me knows that the 15-30 minutes prior to the race start is the time I hate the most. I can't stand the waiting part, I just want to get started with the pain of it all. Finally the race started and we had a makeshift bridge (the flatbed) that got us across the river. I rode the gravel climb pretty good, riding solid in the climbs and pushing in the flats so I was able to pass a few people before the singletrack. I love endurance racing but I still never know just how much to hold back so I have enough to finish strong. I was riding pretty comfortable but yet at a steady pace. Denny caught up with me shortly after the first check station and we rode together to the second station that was at the 21 mile mark. My sensor on my computer had moved and I had no idea how far I had gone....which sucked. A few miles after the second check station my bike was making some funky noise so I tried to locate the noise but was unsuccessful. Denny had pulled ahead of me by this point so I just settled into a good pace but soon started feeling the early signs of cramping. I backed off a bit but knew I needed to keep some good pace going. I was frustrated that I have had a couple cramping issues this year and I felt like I had prepared my body for this issue but still was feeling it, but that's just part of racing. A few miles later I could not get my bike to shift into the small ring, that is big trouble on this course as it was climb, climb, climb. I made some barrel adjustments on the fly and got back into business, the only problem is I over adjusted and when I hit the gravel road I went for the big ring and jumped the chain off the sprocket. I finally got to the last check station and the girls said that Denny had just left a few minutes prior. I was sure that I would catch him since I have done several endurance races and this was his first and he was carrying a fast pace but it turned out that he actually gained time on me. The last leg was rutted out and had some good drops over rocks and roots, it was a blast to ride. It would have been even more fun if I wasn't so tired and if it wasn't so wet. Also I had locked out my front shock on the earlier gravel section and forgot to unlock it, now I know why my arms were taking a beating on the downhills. Denny had an awesome race and finished almost 13 minutes ahead of me. I had some mechanical issues but he out rode me, plain and simple. I can't really complain because I still turned in a good time of 6 hr 19 min 50 sec and finished 54th out of 120+ racers. Even with some rough conditions there were 4 riders that were fast enough to beat the old record.

Berryman Epic Packing

It never ceases to amaze me how much stuff I can pack for a bike race, especially when I will be a long way from home. I know that I will not need everything I pack, in fact I will not need most of it but I want it on hand just in case. At least I will be driving my own van and I can pack it with whatever I want. This trip is taking extra planning since I am using 2 camelbaks (a different race strategy this go round), and my first time taking advantage of a drop bag.

I have early shifts the next 2 days so I guess I should start getting ready for bed.

A Legend Retires

It can be argued that Chris Eatough is the best endurance mountain bike racer in history, he is a six time 24 hr solo world champion (in consecutive years). He is also a 5 time 24 hr solo national champion as well as the winner of the 2007 NUE series (100 mile races). He has 10 victories in 100 mile races and several top 5 finishes as well. Chris was suppose to race at the 2009 national 24 hr solo race earlier this month at the 24 hr of Moab but I could not find his name on the start sheet. He had announced that this would be his last race as a professional and he would be focusing on his coaching career as well as testing new product lines for Trek.

I feel very fortunate to have raced against Chris on 2 occasions, both of which were at the Lumberjack 100. I'm sure he was shaking in his cycling shoes when we toed the line, at our first meeting he was a pro and I was still racing beginner. He lapped me at approx mile 40 on a 25 mile course which meant he was at mile 65. This past year I was at mile 50 before I let him around me, he had 75 miles under his belt and still looked fresh, when I got to the 75 mile mark I laid on the ground to stretch my back out before heading out for the last 25 miles.

I purchased a Trek Volkswagon team jersey on our first trip to Lumberjack and after the race at the post race party I had the opportunity to approach him and ask for his autograph. He was sitting at a table with other pro racers and I felt totally out of my league but asked anyway. He is a super nice guy and was happy to sign it, I now have it framed and it is one of my favorite possessions.

My favorite Chris Eatough quote: "There's a cutoff for this race?"

What A Minute

I am not apposed to wearing a little bit of pink when I ride, in fact I have a pair of pink wool socks that I love to wear, but this just crosses the line. Actually it looks like it fits inside the line........that's disturbing (but funny!!!).

I am hoping to get a gravel ride in tomorrow, mileage will depend on time restraints. I really need to ride tomorrow since I am missing spin class again, especially since I have been eating like a horse (stupid oats).

Boys And Toys

I hate to say it but I haven't been getting the miles in that I am used to, I did go out and ride the loop tonight in the 42 degree temps (it really wasn't too bad). I have been wanting to get some 6 plus hr rides in to prepare for Berryman but it just hasn't happened, I'll still ride hard but I am just not where I want to be right now fitness wise. I have been spending some time off the bike trying to help Molly since she has been ill for almost 2 months now, hopefully since the scope yesterday we can get things totally figured out and get back to our lives. I have also been getting some things ready for my other passion, deer season. My two oldest kids have shown interest in going with me and my Dad, of course I won't let them carry a gun yet but they can still go and experience the hunt. My Dad, Brother, Sister-in-law, and myself went out and worked on deer stands Sun afternoon (I really wanted to ride but I knew time was running out for stand work) and we got 9 of the 10 stands at one farm completed and ready to go. I went out and shot my rifle today and checked 3 of the 9 stands at the other farm, actually there are only 2 stands left to check since my Dad has been working on them also. I would have liked to shot more rounds today but at a little over $2 a shot it really adds up.

Great Conditioning Ride Today

I went on a 4 hr ride with Coach today but didn't have the performance that I wanted, I ended up on the edge of bonking when it was all said and done.....maybe I was over the edge. I didn't take my camelbak (bad idea) and then ended up leaving my Hammer Gel in the truck. I started off running too much tire pressure, add a few soft spots with wet tires and that made for a rough start. After letting a little air out of my rear tire I was riding better. We started at the campground and headed up to lot 17 and then took the grass service roads over to N Poosey. The grass roads were not cut super short so it took a lot of power to get thru and it isn't a short distance to get there either, the return trip was worse because we were tired and riding straight into a strong headwind. Once over at N Poosey Coach took me on a trail that I hadn't been on before, he told me there was a steep hill on it but I had no idea what I was in for. We came up over the top and my eyes got HUGE and my rear squeezed tight!!! I tried to take the outside line but saw real quick if I dropped in it would not be good so I stopped and watched Coach finish his descent. He turned around to see me at the top of the hill and yells "what are you doing?" I told him I took a bad line so he yelled "well go back and do it again". I have to admit it was very nerve racking, as I rolled up to it Coach yelled "keep your weight back". I rolled over the edge and rolled over a small rock toward the top and was committed to the ride down. I feathered the brakes but didn't let myself go too fast, it would be real easy to get out of control (and I like control). I was behind my saddle completely and my rear was hitting my back tire and I still felt like I could go over the handle bars if not careful. When I got to the bottom Coach said "Turn around and look at it" so I did and then he smiles and says "Good thing you rode it before you saw that isn't it?" It was intense, the more I ride it I hope it is no big deal, it was obvious it was no big deal to him and probably not to several of our riders but it shook me up a bit.

We went to another hill that Coach said he hadn't been able to climb for years, it was a doosey. We ended up throwing off some rocks that were momentum killers and it was easy to see what line you needed to take. Coach ended up climbing up the hard part, I only made it up about 1/3 of the way before I spun out. I tried several times but kept spinning out, it was pretty soft. I think if it was dry it is very climbable now. I walked my bike up the rocky section and then turned around and rode down, now that was fun!! We went back up all the way to the top of the service road and then rode all the way down together, now I know about more places to go and play.....if I can remember how to get there.

I'm going to feel that in the morning.

Went out and did the Monday night ride and just going thru town I could tell that the ride was going to hurt. When we hit old 190 I asked James if someone was bleeding because it was obvious Coach could taste blood. I don't know what we avg for the ride (my computer hadn't been reset) but we were hauling tail the whole way. The last climb going up Springhill toward Fair st was super painful tonight, that hill is usually tough but tonight it was brutal. I stayed with James until half way up and then he dropped me like I was standing still, and no offense to James but I don't think he sped up (I just all but stopped I think).

Rolfe was back on the bike tonight, I was good to see him again. He was suffering but he rode really well.

Missed Racing This Weekend

There was some serious cross racing this weekend in Parkville and I had to miss it, turns out I make more money working than racing.....oh wait, I don't make any money racing. I sure hate missing out on the races, the experience gained is a huge thing to miss out on. Also in my opinion, racing is the best training, you can't always put out the same effort on the practice course as you can going head to head with dozens of competitors. No one out there to cheer you on like the races, (can you wait a minute, I need to ring my cowbell). There now I feel a little bit better, okay I really don't but there will be other days for me to race. The Berryman Epic is 3 weeks from today, I still haven't done much in the way of long rides to be top notch. I am not worried about the distance (55 miles) but I hate not being at my best for a race. I guess I can't be at my best for them all, I would just like to be at my best for at least one. I am looking at the Berryman Epic more as a fun race for me, I will be competing with mostly expert level riders so I can't expect to finish high in the rankings. Kind of like racing the Lumberjack, mostly expert riders except for the PRO RIDERS, I was just glad to make it farther along this year before the pros lapped me!!

A Little Cross Practice Tonight

I went out to the Kline cross course tonight and did some laps, really only had one awesome lap, the rest were good but not great. I would rather ride with someone else so we help push each other. I did catch some air on one of the mounds, that was a blast, especially on a cross bike!! I am working on a new dismount, so far I like it much better than the step thru. I can carry more speed into the barriers and I can actually slide off my pedal into a stride, still needs some practice. I think that is one of those things that it doesn't matter how much you have done cross, you always need to practice (just like anything I guess).

Kid In A Candy Store

I felt like a kid in a candy store today, yep I went to a bike shop!!! Actually I wasn't too tempted to purchase items as I was there to get some repair work done. I thought I needed to get the brakes bled but they just needed new pads, especially the front pads (they were almost to the metal). I broke a hanger last night and evidently bent my cage on my rear derailleur also, he worked on it a bit and it is shifting much better now. Now I just need to get back out and ride some more, last night was a perfect night for riding.....hopefully we can get some more days like that soon.