NEVER UNDERESTIMATE!!!

I had not raced my mountain bike since October until yesterday, training has been going very well after a pretty rough start this year. I feel strong for this early in the year but I still have a long ways to go, so doing the marathon class at the Levee Trails race in Lawrence, KS was going to be a good test of where I am at. The Levee Trails are a very beginner friendly trail, I would have no problem taking Molly on a ride there, I can only think of a couple short steeps that might give her problems if she didn't carry enough speed. I guess what I am getting at is that this trail is a lot easier than some of the other trails that we have raced. This is a big ring course that you can really fly on, rip the tight twisty turns, and a couple drop ins that will have you smiling big time. I am glad that I prerode a short bit of the course because I had forgotten about a little surprise. There was a sharp right hand drop in that banked hard left halfway through and your speed shot down the rest of the hill and up the next short up, my speed shot me to the left hand line and over and down the next drop. I had forgotten that the left hand side of that drop had exposed roots with a slight drop, it really isn't that tough to ride but when you aren't expecting it and next thing you know you are halfway down it.....it can really get your attention. It wasn't very far into the lap so we were running a long train of riders and if someone faltered there it was going to be a mess for everyone.

I really enjoy endurance racing but for me a 3 hr race isn't the endurance I am used to, I prefer a 6 hr race over a 3 hr. It might not make since to some but in the 3 hr race there is not time for anything other than ride fast, and then keep riding fast. I did ride fast some!!!! I was in the third row at the start and when we took off it was a mad dash for the single track, I fought my way around some riders before we hit the woods and was in 7th when we made it in, I was still in 7th when we exited the trail toward the turnaround. I made my way around a rider and into 6th place but as we were heading back out 3 or 4 riders got around me. I tried to keep track the best I could as to what place I was in and I could have sworn I finished in 11th or 12th place but Tim told me I was 15th. I didn't stick around to check my place because Molly, the kids, and my inlaws had come to cheer me on and I know they had been out in the sun for quite some time and didn't want to hold them up too long. It was a lot harder to keep track of riders after the expert and sport riders joined in on the course. It was easy on their first laps because I was over 2 hrs in and that is where I started to really slow down, there would be nobody in sight behind me and then 10 seconds later I would here "On your left".....dang, where did they come from.

I have to admit that I didn't ride quite as well as I had hoped. 3 plus hours is a long time to be pushing your big ring, especially at race pace and it took it's toll on my legs. For some reason my lower back started hurting less than an hour into the race, my lower back will sometimes bother me in an endurance race I have never had it hurt that early and I was in some severe pain by the time we finished. I also went through a lot more water than I had planned on, at first I figured 2 bottles but took a third just in case (then took a large bottle for after the race), I went through all 3 bottles and had Molly fill and empty bottle from my post race bottle in between laps. I think that I underestimated the course because I knew it was a fast course but on a fast course like that there really is no place to recover. Plus there are several places where you can see other racers heading the other direction so you can guage how far ahead or behind your are. My final lap (I think I did 9 laps but I totally lost count) I was a hurting unit, I really struggled to get through it (it was a little discouraging). My legs were fried and my back was putting me through some serious pain, I was glad to be finished.