An End to Summer

Summer has come to end as of yesterday.  I am both sad to see it coming to a close and happy at the same time.  The days are getting shorter which means riding with lights and soon the cooler weather will be pleasant.  The summer did not meet the expectations that I set forth this spring.  Spring was going well.  Fitness was at a new level.  Racing was going well, I felt I was getting better with each race.  Then in late June I crashed viciously at Greensfelder almost leaving me unconscious.  The next four weeks I scarcely touched the bike.  The crash had sent my fitness and confidence, especially downhill confidence, in the crapper. By late July I was back riding a couple of time a week and decided to make a new debut at Rapture In Misery.  This 6hr race had been on my mind since last year.  First place last year left me wanting to defend.  This trip to Trenton now turned into survival.  Goal: Ride all 6hrs and finish.  I did that with much pain and cramping in the legs.  I cramped off and on for almost 5 hrs that day but stay determined enough to finish.

6hrs in the book and I was cooked.  St. Louis racers had a good showing.  Z and Busken came in first and second in the 12 hours solo competition with Mashor being 3rd.

The next race I went for was the Jeff City Single Speed race at Binder Lake.  I was the first guy who signed up that actually brought beer.  I joked with the promoters about having a class for back of the fast pack or solo rider.  I find myself always riding alone in races like these.  Not fast enough to keep up with the fast pack, but faster than the not-so-fast group.  So I signed up for not-so-fast.  I took first place by a couple of minutes and finished somewhere in the top twenty overall.  It was a fun day on the bike and good practice for the Tall Oak 6hr that would be held at the same venue Labor Day weekend.

Feeling better, I set my goal on Tall Oak 6hr as a chance to get through a race and not cramp.  Overall, things went well and I spent a great deal of time on the bike and only felt like I was going to cramp near the end.  Todd Holtman pulled me through the last couple of laps when my mind was starting to give out on me. I owe him a big thanks for that.  I think I finished around 12th out of 30 or so.  My times were almost identical to last years times and the lap count was the same.  I came to the conclusion that I was at the same point fitness wise as last year.  I am finally catching back up after my summer crash.

Time has been spent recently on the Ozark Trail and at Council Bluff Lake.  The ICCC race is being held this weekend and Burning at The Bluff will be on the 9th of October, followed by The Berryman Epic.  The season is coming to an end soon.  My season has not gone as planned but that is life.  Injury and all around bad luck are part of the sport.  I just keep riding my bikes knowing that I would  rather not be doing anything else.  Here are a few random pics from the summer.



State Mtb Race

The location was Castlewood State Park.  The class was marathon. State Champion jerseys were on the line. The finish, unknown.  I do know that I finished somewhere near the back of the pack.  I was lapped by at least five riders.  It was nice to think the timing chip thing would go off without a hitch, but that is technology for you. 

Arriving at CW around 8:30 I got out of the car to feel that the heat was already settling in for the day.  I was already sweating just pulling the bike off the roof rack. Quickly, Brian Busken and I sat up the team canopy and registered.  We decided to do a warm up by riding up Love trail to get loose and shake down the bike.  Stitz came along and everyone worked out the kinks.  Everthing seemed to be in working order.  All lathered up, I decieded to settle under the canopy and concentrate on staying cool.  Busken took a trip up Lone Wolf to give his bike the final shakedown on the steep ascent to River Scene Trail.

Satisfied with my preride I took my place on the starting line at the bottom of Lone Wolf.  The official gave the countdown and off we went.  Well, sort of.  Off everyone else went while my gears mashed away in the moist morning air.  Gears 2x6/7/8 all of a sudden created chain suck and then a switch to 9 put my chain in the spokes.  Time to dismount and yank the chain out of the spokes.  During all this the beginner race had started and I had to get out of the way so they could make their way up Lone Wolf.  I put the bike in 2x5 and stood pretty  much the rest of the climb, passing the beginners, taking a rough line to get around them.  I had to ride the first lap under the same conditions, standing on any slight incline.  I was not prepared to push so hard so early and found my heart rate pounding near 180 for most the lap, way up in the red zone.

Pitting on my second time through the start/finish area I grabbed a Dos Equis and tried to cool down.  I thought about quitting, but changed my mind and just decided to have fun and finish the race.  I was so far back I knew I had no chance to be competitive.  Caleb adjusted my high/lows and half a XX later I was back on the trail, riding for pride and fun.

It was a hard day on the bike. The heat was near unbearable but I made the most of the last couple of laps, even cracking a smile or two here and there.  I cheered some riders on and chatted with others.  This was my second race of the year, not counting the non-race.  I guess I am satisified with the results, finishing that is.  I came close to blowing up the first lap while trying to catch the marathon field and think without the mechanical I would have had a more respectable ride.  Legs felt okay, but the heat nearly brought my head to a boil.  I usually don't mind the heat but that was something else.  I think I even overheard someone say they saw the devil looking for a glass of water out there.  This week is Lost Valley and the forecast is more heat.  I guess I better suck it up and get used to it.

St. Joe Leabbelt XC

The first race of the year began in typical fashion.  Rain, mud, and cold temps.  The moisture misted down all morning.  By race time the sun had poked out just enough to bring up some rumblings from the start finish line and then quickly disappeared.  I lined up for my first Single Speed sport race.  I had done one six hour race on a single speed last year.  Binder Lake is a great spot to ride a single speed.

So the gun sounded and we were off.  The guy who took off in the lead took a horrible line through some trees and we were all zigging and zagging trying to not hit trees and each other.  Why he did not lead up the road and then drop in at the trail I will never know.  I believe I hit the woods in 3rd, but most likely 4th.  The pace was high and the trail was a bog.  Two DRJ guys set the pace and I hung on bitterly for the first 3 miles.  The mud was too much.  I looked down at my heart rate and was pushing 180.  I had burned so many matches keeping up through the first two miles of mud I had to reel it in a bit.  Two guys passed me at this point. 

The next couple of miles things got better.  The feeling of puking on my handlebars started to subside and the trail was getting into some rockier conditions.  In fact when the guys in front of me hit the rocky soil before me, I could hear them war-hooping up ahead.  Screams of joy quickly turned into concern for another rider.

I caught up to Loreen Mattson, an expert women challenger, and was following her for a bit of downhill.  She knows how to handle a bike in these conditions.  Loreen hit a dip and I am not sure if she hit a rock or just washed the tire out and went down hard.  I could see two trees about baseball bat size smack her in the upper chest and near the head.  I was truly concerned having seen it all from behind.  Staying with her until she regained her senses  may have put me out of a third or fourth place, but I am not here to win championships and hope that someone would stop to see if I was okay if I was in her situation.  She hit those trees so hard that her visor flew off her helmet.  I was glad to see she got up and rode on and placed second in her category.

The race became more of a ride for me at this point.  First lap was finished and I could still see some of my challengers in the woods ahead of me.  I did not have the desire at this point to chase so I just throttled things back knowing that if I suffered through 3 more miles of mud I could enjoy the last half of the course.  There were so many back and forth creek crossings, a ride through a culvert, and some dippidy-doos to be had on the second half of the course.  Mike Barro asked me how the race went,  I told him "I was only a few minutes off the pace the first lap."  Then he asked about the second lap.  I said, "More of a nature ride, Mike."  He just laughed.

Caleb Hulsey put in a good show for Momentum, winning Sport 20-29 while Brian Busken ripped out three laps using "The Swede's" training principles.  Barro won expert in his age class, racing against himself.  Not a bad day, considering.  We wrapped up the evening by heading the CB Joe's BBQ near St. Francis State Park.  Good BBQ and BIG portions.  Overall, I have nothing to complain about.  6TH place in my first SS race.  I know my form is not there yet and this was a good gauge to see where I am.  Lost Valley is the next test.

Indian Camp Creek

The heat wave set in today so a I met a few friends out at the Creek to break in some trail.  The group consisted of Brian Busken, Chris Dial, Matt Keeven, Christian Stitz, Keith Weinkein, and your truly.  Stitz broke trail on the new section as we all followed and made our way to the first fork in the road.  We chose left, or I should say, Stitz chose left with Keeven and Busken following.  I thought, ouch.  The snow was flying and as we rounded one corner Busken's rear end washed out and down he went.  As he lied there laughing in the snow I zipped to the left and snapped off a limb of a tree, almost whacking the trunk with my shoulder.  We regrouped at the top of the hill I noticed that the trail was rerouted.   Into the woods and down to the street.  This next section had already had some wheels on it so it made for a more flowy, fast ride.  Busting out onto the field I was feeling it a bit, but remembering the cedars up ahead pumped my blood up.  Weinkein turned on the camera and shot some footage.   I hope it turns out so we can put it up on here.  After the last downhill and through some flats we pop out on the park road.  Feeling cooked but not overdone, we turned around and did it all in reverse. Snow and a receding sun made for ten miles in some great conditions with some great guys.  A cold sunday riding in January could not have turned out any better.  Happy New Year and the best wishes to all in 2010.