Dirty South 100k

Friday afternoon we headed toward Alto Pass, IL for this years Dirty South Roubaix. There were a few people camping so we got a cabin at the same park. The weather was not going to be good enough that I really felt like camping and we were not like the rest of the group who are living the van life. We were able to check in early and then we headed out for a ride. It was great to stretch out the legs and take in some of the views.It is also good to see new areas.

The area was very nice to ride around. It was a little different area then I have ever rode, but it was still pretty nice. I had really slacked off the training the last month and a half after doing really good up to then. I didn’t feel too bad for most of the ride, but the steeper sections hurt more than they should have. We then went in to get our registration packet and eat some dinner. St. Nicholas Brewery was a pretty nice place, but very busy. It took a little bit to get a table, but not too long.

After that, we took the longer than preferred drive back to the cabin. We had a cabin at Giant City state park. The cabin was really nice and I can definitely. see myself going back. It was a really nice area and had a lot of options for things to do. We finished getting our stuff ready for the next day before hitting the sack.

The night didn’t go too bad, but it was time to get up earlier than I would have preferred. Got up and moving and headed to the start a little early. We got ready and I tried to warm up before the start. Last minute I put my vest on because I was colder than I expected. Actually, it was warmer than what it looked like it was going to be earlier in the week, but the forecast improved and it was supposed to be better, but still not what I would call great. The temps felt a little colder than it said it was, but I figured it would warm up pretty quick. But, it turns out that it never did warm up enough to take my vest off. I was sure glad I put it on.

📸: Laura Fritz

Before long it was time to get lined up and ready to go. It was still colder than what I thought and hoped it would be, but it didn’t feel too bad. I figured that I just didn’t do a good job of getting warmed up. There was a few announcements, but I could not hear them all. Then I heard the count down and we were all off and rolling. The start was fast as usual, but seemed a little faster than last year. I was hanging in toward the front, but it was not easy. My heart rate was higher than I have seen in a long while. It sure hurt, but I was still hanging in there.

📸: Laura Fritz

I had a couple times where a gap was formed and had to do what I could to bridge the gap. Some were not too hard to handle, but there was one that really put me in the hurt zone. I knew if I could get up there, it would be easier ride. Eventually I made the jump, but it still hurt a lot. I was rolling along pretty good with this group. We held on to the front group for a while, but eventually had a gap that was not covered. This new group held together for the next several miles. I got in my head a little bit here. I backed off because I knew there was a big climb coming up. The problem was that I was not remembering correctly on how soon the hill was. I feel like I backed off a little too much/too soon. But, then again, it might have been just what I needed.

📸: Marcus Janzow

I was pretty happy with how I was riding for most of the sections. The steeper climbs are the sections that I was not doing as well on. There was a good sized group that I was hanging with. Lovins was in this group, a couple other riders I know and some other people that seemed to be part of a group that was riding together. They had a couple spots where they waited on each other, but it was a free for all when it came to any of the outsiders. I can under stand some, but we were not just there sucking wheels.

I had several spots where I was stuck out front pulling the group. I was fine with this since it seemed that when I was hurting, there was someone else to come to the front and help out. I did have a section of time that it seemed like I ended up at front more than my share, but I am sure it didn’t seem like that to everyone. When I tried to hang out at the back when I was hurting, there were some grumbles in the pack. I think I pulled my weight and deserved to be there. Oh well, I was only worried about myself that this point. I did hear later that one of the group riders made a comment about not pulling us all to the finish. I sure wish I heard that after all the pulls they let me take.

📸: Laura Fritz

The top of the hike a bike climb after the levee, I made a quick stop to relieve some pain. It took a little longer than I thought it would and was having trouble getting back on to the group. I came up on E2 who had stopped to get some stuff out of his pockets and we both went on together. On the next road section we were really working to get back to the other group, but it just wasn’t working. We would make up some room and then they would pull away some again. It was about 100 yards, but it was just too much. Eventually we were both wore out enough to give up and just go our own pace.

📸: Antonio Martinez

From here it was mostly just us till the end. We would have a rider or two join us for a short time, but never really stick around. After we passed the levee section again, I knew we were getting pretty close to home. The next road section lasted way longer than I thought it would, but I was just riding in survival mode at this point. The new private land section was not easy. I rode the first field section, but after we turned the corner, I could see there was a section that I didn’t have in me anymore. I rode what I could, but had to walk part of it. Finally we were on the bike path and I knew we were almost there. I did reel in a couple riders and pass them, but it was too little too late.

📸: Antonio Martinez

I finished in 4:09 and that put me in 30th place in the open. I’m not really that happy with my placing, but I was happy with how I rode for most of the day. It felt like I was riding hard all day. There were a lot of moments where I thought I was going to get dropped and a lot of moments where I was putting in good pulls. I couldn’t ask for much more. It was a lot of fun riding with Eric all day. I think we were both hurting each other at times. We were a good match for each other. Our strengths seemed to be in different places at times and it was what the other one needed.

📸: Laura Fritz

My placing sounded high, but it looks like less than 15 minutes would have got me in to the top 15. Hanging with that group a little longer would have made a pretty big difference in the day. I was however a little surprised when I looked, that all three years I finished pretty close to the same time, but that really doesn’t mean anything with the different weather and course for each year. I did think I would have been a lot faster this year on the geared bike than the SS from last year, but I was less than 5 min difference. It sure felt like I was riding a lot faster.

📸: Antonio Martinez

After the race it was really fun hanging out with the Team People’s Brewing group at the venue and at the camp site. It could have been just a touch warmer, but the fire did a good job of keeping everyone warm…..ish. and the endless amounts of laughter to keep me from caring. If you have not done this race and enjoy gravel riding, then do yourself a favor and sign up next year! The race sold out this year, so don’t wait too long. The race is March 7, 2020.

2018 Gravel Grovel slop fest

After last years record time and the fact that for most of the year I was riding stronger than I can ever remember, I had some high hopes for putting in a really good ride this year. But, I did a good job of making sure that didn’t happen. The last 3 months leading up to the race it seemed like I had a lot of conflicts and issues that kept me from getting a lot of rides in. My monthly mileage for September was an all time low. I did a little better in October, but still way lower than normal. November was also busy, but I did my best to try and get my legs to snap out of it and let me finish the year strong.

The last couple rides leading up to the race didn’t really make me feel any better. I was still riding the climbs, but I didn’t have any pop. I had a bigger gear on the Spot than last year with the thoughts of going faster. With my weaker state of riding I made a last minute decision to change the gearing back to what I had ran the last couple years. This was a very good decision for my legs. I figured if I am going to have a bad year, why cause myself any more unneeded pain.

I got there early enough on Friday to get checked in to my cabin and all settled in. After Bushong got there we went for a little ride to loosen the legs up. We just did the small loop from the start area. This also let us see how some of the roads were looking. The legs were not feeling too bad, but still not where I had hoped they would be.

2nd place SSer, Jeff Bushong

After the pre-ride there was more people showing up at camp. The plan was to head in to town to eat, but how were we going to get there. With the number of people, we would need a couple cars. Then Big Red came to the rescue! We all pilled in the back of Big Red and off to town we went. What a fun and crazy drive in to town. I have no idea how Big Red fit in the parking spot that was selected, but it did squeeze in pretty good and we were nice and close to where we were going to eat.

Dinner was just ok, but good thing we had some good company to make everything better. I thought for sure we were going to see some major carnage on some scooters, but some how they didn’t crash or at least where we could see them. Eventually we all piled back in to Big Red and headed towards home for the weekend. We got settled in and didn’t stay up too late.

The next morning came sooner than I wanted, but I am used to that. I got some coffee and breakfast going and we hung out and chilled for a little while. Got signed in for the race and made necessary bike adjustments for the race. It seemed like we were up a little early, but this let me chill out for a while. We got to see Jason head out to the heckle stop. This is where I went back and forth a couple times trying to figure out what to wear. It was cool and the rain also settled in for most of the night. It was going to be an interesting day.

Even with getting up early I somehow find myself getting to the start line last minute again. I see E2 in the middle of the pack and join him. I figured there was no need to get to the front since I was not in the greatest shape. Next thing I know the race was off. After the bottle neck over the bridge we were cruising down the road. I always try to not get too caught up in keeping up with some people who are going too hard for that early. I settled down in to my pace and followed E2 for a little while.

I could still see the front longer than I thought I would be able to, but I was not setting the world on fire. The new pavement was keeping the pace faster for more people than normal. I made it up the first climb pretty good and continued moving well. E2 got away from me somewhere in this section. Combs road was pretty sloppy. I have seen it worse, but it still made you work hard to keep moving.

Just hoping to make it to the top

The traffic on the climb was heavy, but I was probably better off since I had to walk a little section with all the riders. I was able to get back on near the top and ride the last part. I kept moving over the top and skated my way down the other side. I must have passed E2 at the top, but I didn’t see him. I could see Jeremy up ahead as I started down blue creek road. This section was pretty soft in spots and was not easy. My legs were feeling really heavy at the bottom of the climb and I was struggling with traction when I needed to stand. I figured it was not work the extra spent matches and got off and pushed the first part.

Once it leveled out some I was able to get back on and get moving better. I was able to catch and pass Jeremy on the down hill. The flat section at the bottom was really muddy in spots and line choice played a big part of how much effort you needed to use. Once I was back on the road Jeremy passed me again and took off. The Nebo climb was really tough. Tougher than normal. Overall I was moving pretty well, but the steeper parts were hard to keep traction. It was a real struggle when I had to stand and really work it. I did manage to get by Jeremy on the trail section, but I made a stop at the heckle group to have myself a beer. Jeremy didn’t stop and got by me here.

After hanging out a little and using the facilities, I got back on and pressed forward. Once I was back on the road I was in no-mans land for a while. Just spinning along as what ever pace the bike wanted to go. Not quick enough to be fast, but still moving. I was really wore out at the bottom of Mt. Baldy and had some concerns that I would be able to climb it with out walking. Somehow I crawled along and kept moving. I made a quick stop at the rest stop and took off.

Even though I was hurting, I could still laugh at myself

The rest of the race was mostly uneventful. I was tired and hurting, but kept moving. I had to walk more hills than normal, but with the trail conditions the way they were, my legs had to work harder than normal to keep moving. The main issue I had was that I had to keep stopping to pee. It was an unreal amount of times. I have no idea why either, but there was no holding it, I HAD to go.

As normal, the section after you take a left, before the fire tower, really dragged on. I was just hoping that the church would be around every bend. Then once again, like several times in the past, I came around the corner to see the turn to Maumee. Dammit!! I was not even there yet. This section always gets me. I am deep in the pain cave at that point and just want to get to the finish. Eventually I came to the church and made the turn. Finally on the home stretch. I was feeling a lot better knowing it was almost over and mostly down hill. I did have to make another dang stop before the end, but I was getting close now.

I passed a person who looked like they were assessing the creek as I just went right at it and rode across and in to the finish chute. I knew I would be close to beating the 5 hour mark, but came up just a little short rolling in at 5:02. This put me in 53rd place overall and 6th place in the SS class. Before last years race and how I was riding this summer, I would have been very happy with this finish time. Funny how perspective can change like that. I was really not that mad at this finish time. I knew I was not in the shape I was earlier this year and after stopping so many times and even drinking a beer, I can’t complain to finish at a time so close to what used to be my goal. I am sure I would have beat the 5 hour mark if I didn’t have the beer, but there is no fun in that.

Jason the fire master keeping the flame going

After cleaning up and getting a bite to eat, the rest of the evening was filled with hanging out with great friends around the fire, drinking some more beer and having a fun time. Riding my bike is fun and all, the views are spectacular, the exercise does wonders for my health and pushing myself in a tough race really makes me feel good. But, I can not say enough that how much the time hanging out with people I really enjoy hanging out with really makes it all worth it. I am not sure they understand how much I really need that. My brain thinks a lot of strange things. Burying myself on the bike does a good job of shutting my brain up, but when I am with these few people I don’t have to worry about trying to distract myself to shut my thoughts up. I don’t even really think in those moments, I just enjoy.

I hope to continue to improve and get stronger/faster over the winter and hit next year in a better position than the previous. I am getting a lot closer to feeling like I actually compete against the people who are where I want to be. I still have a long way to go, but at least I feel like the journey is actually moving forward. Here’s to more fun times on two wheels!

It at least looks clean again

Off and On Track

I had the whole season planned out.  Things didn’t go as planned.  That’s ok.

1. Mountain Bike

My first race was fine, and was covered in the previous blog post.

The second race went even better than the first.  At a very technical, tough course I repeated the mantra “stay tough, everyone is racing the same course, be tougher.”  I managed to pull out a third place in Cat 2 at Lindsey Wilson’s Mountain Bike Classic in Campbellsville, KY.

Podium (except no podium for third)!

 

I have found through the years of biking that midsummer is personally always the hardest part of the year.  The combination of some form of burnout by this time of year along with our annual 4^th of July party creates a few down weeks where I’m out of my best form.  Having a later start to the biking season this year due to running and trying to limit the normal exorbitant amount of Coors Light intake, I tried with limited success to limit the effects of this downtime.

I went down to Louisville’s Cherokee Park with a bad feeling on the morning of July 8^th.  I pre-rode the entire 5 mile loop because I showed up a little earlier than normal and wanted to try and get rid of this gut feeling.  Fellow teammate Reed Kress showed up and I gave him a short briefing on the course.  The race started and I went out way too fast.  I broke my rule that I had been following all year of riding my own race, not blowing myself up in the first half hour to put myself into the third spot after the holeshot.  I had to slow down to get myself out of redlining, and lost a few spots in the process.  I never felt strong in my legs all race and was questioning my full lap pre-ride all while losing a couple more spots.

Then I took a wrong turn and rode about a quarter mile in the wrong direction.  In a sort of poetic sense, this is the point where my season went off track.  Completely disheartened I finished the race and left as quickly as I could.  Sorry Reed for not sticking around to chit-chat after the race but I just wanted to get out of that park.  Worst race I’ve ever had. 12/15 Cat 2.

I look focused and fast in the picture, but don’t let it fool you

The next race scheduled on July 22^nd was rained out, so the plan for the rest of the season became murky.

2. Hike

After the Cherokee race and the rain out I devoted most of my training to hiking the High Sierra trail.  Although hiking may seem like a pretty gentle sport where you go out and walk a few miles in the woods, I knew the upcoming trip was going to be anything but that.  Carrying your backpack every day for six days loaded down with your food, clothes, tent and all the rest of your gear is quite the taxing experience.  During the next month Kendra and I comically looked like we completely overestimated the new Parklands loop in Jasper with our fully loaded backpacks on our back.

The trip itself was an awesome experience.  Our group of eight including Steve, Tony, Noah, Nate, Michelle, Shay, Kendra and I were tested physically and mentally.  We had some trying times, but the ever reminding weight on your back was counterbalanced by the spectacular views that were afforded by the trail.  The trip also gave me plenty of time to contemplate on what the plan was going to be for the rest of the season.

At the top of Mount Whitney

3. Run

While I wanted to finish the mountain bike point series, with their decision to hold a 12 hour race as the season finale makeup race my mind was made up for me.  Call me weak but the thought of sitting on a mountain bike seat for 12 hours didn’t sound appealing (not to mention on a Sunday from 7am-7pm with a 2.5 hour drive one way).  And truth be told, I was looking ahead at the upcoming running schedule.

Last year I decided to take the winter off from biking and focus solely on running.  Something clicked and suddenly the sport I used for cross-training (running) became a sport I came to love.  I think the reason I became so enamored by the sport is the direct correlation between input and output.  With biking, basketball, soccer, and most other sports the success can be influenced by a number of factors (bike, other players, etc.).  With running, besides maybe weather, what you put in is pretty much what you will get out.  While you run with and against others, it truly is a sport against yourself.

After the hike, I focused exclusively on running again.  I finally ran in the big hometown race held in Jasper on Labor Day weekend, the Heartland Half Marathon.  I had run the team event in the past, but this year was the first year I had run the half myself.  While I may have a little hometown bias, I really love this race.   Seeing the streets of Jasper filled with nearly 500 runners (if you include the 5k and team challenge) at the start of the race is awesome.  The combination of a large payout for the top 3 and a difficult course makes for a great race.  I surprised myself with my result on this hilly course with only a couple weeks of dedicated training, running less than a minute off of my PR and good enough for 5^th place overall.

I set my sights on the Indy Monumental Marathon set for the beginning of November.  In the meantime I submitted my Carmel Marathon time from the spring in hopes for entering the Boston Marathon.  While I was pretty confident 4:57 under my qualifying time would be fast enough, the BAA twitter feed starting tweeting some ominous tweets about only accepting very few people with qualifying times less than 5 minutes better than their qualifying times.  After a week of waiting I finally received an email that my time was fast enough.  I’ll be running in the Boston Marathon in 2019!  Only later did I find out that the cutoff time was 4:52 under BQ time, meaning I only made it by 5 seconds. Finally a few seconds that went my way.

With my spirits high I had a great lead-up to the marathon.  My plan for this marathon was to focus less on workouts and speed work and just put in miles.  I consistently averaged around 45 miles a week constantly, which was equal to my highest week in the spring.  With that much time devoted to running I’m burning through podcasts at an unsustainable rate.  Anybody have any suggestions?

The morning of the race was perfect.  Clear skies and cool temperatures.  With only one marathon under my belt and knowing how difficult that one had been my anxiety was building as race day was approaching. Strangely enough though, the pre-race butterflies in the stomach were nowhere to be found that morning.  Besides the chaotic first two miles dodging people, the race went as smooth as can be.  The route went right next to Shay’s house at around 12.5 miles, so I was only expecting to see my cheering section once before the finish line.  Steve surprised me around the 7 mile mark, but I think the most important part of the race was at around the 17^th mile.  At a time when I was becoming very susceptible to the doldrums of a marathon my cheering section surprisingly appeared like a mirage of an oasis in a desert, only this was no mirage.

With some unexpected fuel and motivation I pushed on through to the actual race part of the marathon, the last 6.2 miles.  While I hadn’t completely blown up as I’ve seen others do in my first marathon, I was in the pain cave for the last 3 miles hating everything.  Something was different this time though, and the extra miles paid off.  While it was hurting I just told myself to keep form, keep my legs moving at a steady pace, don’t overstride.  I knew I was under 3 hours, but wasn’t exactly keeping track of my time so when the finish line showed 2:56:xx I was pleasantly surprised.  I finished strong and my corrected chip time was 2:55:57, better than 4 minutes from my first marathon.

Still got a little smile and a thumbs up after 26 miles

I’d like to thank all of our Team Adventures sponsors, especially Adventures Recreation and Gear and Downtown Fitness and Running for their help this year.  While it didn’t go exactly as well as I would have planned in some ways, it was even better in others.  I’m not sure exactly what the next year looks like, but I’m so excited about it.  Maybe it’s best to not try and plan it all.

Fools Gold 2018

I did this race last year for the first time. Last year I had a really good race and it solidified that I should be riding my SS for a lot more things. This year after my plans changed about going to Marji Gesick, I knew this race would be an easy substitution for me. It is a lot closer and should be some great riding or at least I hoped. This year that race started at a different location than last year and very little of the trail was the same that I was on last year.

Leading up to the race I didn’t get in the riding that I would have liked. I hoped my fitness was good enough to get me by. I had a lot of ache’s to go along with the lack of riding, but still thought I could at least have a good day on the bike. I was not sure how fast I would be. We headed down Friday and picked up our race packets. We only had so much daylight left so we didn’t drive anywhere to ride, we just rode the start section out for a half hour and turned around and came back. We made it part of the way up the first big climb so it was a good warm up.

After riding we went in to town for a bite to eat. There seemed to be a lot of people all around down town. The down town area was pretty cool and reminded me a little of Nashville, IN with all the shops and people walking around. We found a nice little place to eat and headed back to the hotel to get things ready for the morning

I didn’t sleep too bad, but I got up earlier than I needed to and had trouble getting back to sleep. Maybe I was a little worried about oversleeping. Eventually it was time to get moving and over to the race start. We found our parking spot for the day and finished getting ready for the long ride. There was several things to do, but I felt pretty good and everything seemed to come together with out having to rush.

I didn’t really get to ride around much to warm up. I do not do a good job about warming up for races. It was time for the pre-race meeting and get to the starting line. It seemed like everyone was ready, but it was not time to start just yet. I didn’t hear the start, but everyone took off so I figured it was time to go. The start has a fair amount of road section before hitting the gravel climb. The pace was faster than I wanted, but as we left the winery I was feeling fine. I was rolling the best my gear choice would let me go. There was a lot of down hill sections that I could keep up with everyone, but the flatter parts had me seeing a lot of people pull away.

Photo Credit: Thomas Turner

I was hoping I didn’t go too deep while trying to spin to keep up, but I do tend to get a little excited at the start and go a little hard. It didn’t take long and we were on the gravel. The first part was more of a roller section but the down hills didn’t last. The main part of this climb is pretty tough. It says it is 10 miles long and 2000 foot of elevation gain. Not much time to recover.

As I have said before, the SS tends to have a pace that it wants to go. I do what I can to keep the bike happy, but there are times this effort hurts more than I want it to. So far I was turning the pedals over pretty well and passing a lot of riders. I had a couple SS’rs around me, so that is always comforting, but a couple pulled away from me. Towards the top we took a left turn. The section right before that really hurt. I was wanting to walk some of this section, but I just kept talking myself out of it.

After the turn there was some down hill parts that let me recover some. I had a geared wheel to hop on and help pull me along. I was thinking this down hill section was going to take me most of the way to the first rest stop. It didn’t take me too long to figure out that I was not correct. I still did a pretty fair amount of climbing and still didn’t see the rest stop. Somewhere in this climbing I was passed by a couple SS racers. Then I had one come up on me and say lets go get them. I was feeling a little better after backing off for a little bit so I jumped on to his wheel. We were moving good and passed a couple of them back.

Photo credit: Dashing Images

He ended up stopping at the first rest stop and I kept going. There was a super fast gravel descent with some tight corners. I was rolling pretty good, but I guess not as fast as I thought. He caught back up to me and went flying by. This did help me go faster since I could see how tight the blind corners were as he took them. We were passing several riders and ended up catching another SS rider that I got away from me at the start.

The trail sections in this part were really nice. I was moving pretty good and tried to keep myself from going too hard. Later in this section I was starting to feel all the efforts and was really looking for rest stop 2. I looked a my mileage and figured we should be there already, but we weren’t. I had a section that I decided to push so I didn’t blow myself up too soon. Eventually I came around the corner and could see the volunteers.

They had my drop bag waiting on me before I got all the way there. I topped off my bottle with some Carbo Rocket and grabbed a quick bite. It felt good to stop pedaling for a minute, but I didn’t want to hang around too long and get tight. The bike shop that was set up there had some tunes rocking. When I was at the rest stop there was a Cake song on. I could not have asked for better tunes. I started to sing along as I was wrapping up my stop and took off. This song kept me motivated for quite a few miles. Eventually the climbing got steeper and more technical and the song faded.

Photo credit: Dashing Images

I had a few people that I went back and forth with in this part. There were times I would pull away and then they could catch me again. There was some tough parts that I had to push. This section was very difficult and was really hurting. There was one guy I wish I knew who he was. We rode together and went back and forth for a lot of this section. We had some nice conversations in this part. Somewhere in this part of riding and pushing combination, I finished pushing and went to get back on the bike and my thigh completely locked up. This was not good as I still had plenty of miles to go.

With my cramping issue there was one of the singlespeed riders that caught up to me. I tried to keep in front of him, but my legs kept cramping. I had to back it off some and try to take care of the issue. Somewhere in there I started to feel a little better and caught back up to the other SSer. I jumped on his wheel with me there, he picked his pace up. We rode together for several miles pushing each other. This was a lot of fun as it lasted, but then my legs started to cramp again and had to let him go.

Eventually my legs started to feel better and I was moving along better. I kept hoping I would catch him at some point but still didn’t see him. I did pass a couple riders, but they all had gears. I rolled in to the 3rd rest stop (same as the 2nd) and made filled another bottle. I was looking for pickle juice or mustard, but they didn’t have any there. I grabbed a couple shots of coke, a quick bite to eat and took off. As I rolled out I saw one of the other Pivot SS guys coming in to the rest stop. I was finally over half way and heading home and from there it was a mix of trying to keep pushing to catch the other SS rider and a little running scared, looking over my shoulder hoping I didn’t get caught by the Pivot SS behind me.

Photo credit: Dashing Images

I was rolling pretty good in this section. I had a couple moments where I thought I was going to cramp, but I could keep going. I tried to keep drinking to carry me onward. I kept catching riders and passing them, still looking for that SS guy that got away from me. This whole part was kind of a blur. I know there was some super fun trail sections, some creek crossings and still plenty of climbs. I’m not sure where, but the spinny SS guy from Florida passed me again. I was not sure where he got behind me, unless it was at the rest stop, but I really didn’t see too many people there.

Eventually I saw aid station 4 and rolled right on by. I was getting close enough that I knew I could make it home from there with out anything else than what I was carrying. I was getting pretty tired, the back of my arms were worn out and my legs hurt from all the cramping. But, I was still on the gas hoping I would catch the other guy and/or not get passed. When I hit the intersection that we took a right at in the morning, I knew I was really close now. I was still riding pretty good for the gravel sections and was passing more riders who some where part of the 38 mile race. Once I hit the paved road I had a harder feeling like I was on the gas, so I just kept turning pedals and was ready to hit the finish. After I finished I was checking the results and saw the SS guy that I was chasing, roll across the finish line. I have no idea where I passed him, but I’m glad I didn’t know I did. He helped motivate me to keep pushing.

I rolled across the finish line with a time of 5:09 and that put me in 8th place SS and 55th overall. I felt really good about how the day went even with the cramps. It was good to feel like I was competing for most of the race. I came in thinking I would be happy with 5.5 hours or averaging 10 mph. I was really hoping to be able to finish in under 5 hours and almost made that. My time would have been good enough for 16th place in the 40-49 class. Although I was right at an hour off of first place SS, I am happy that I was less than 30 min from making the podium. I still have a ways to go, but I feel like I am heading in the right direction.

I want to thank Lisa @ Mountain Goat Adventures for putting on an awesome race. The volunteers did a great job and were very friendly. I want to thank Adventure’s Recreation for helping me with more things than I can list. Carbo Rocket for keeping me fueled and on the gas. Honey Stinger for having food items that I still wan to eat after pushing the pace hour after hour. ESI grips for keeping my hands happy. TruckerCo for keeping air in my tires and my brakes stopping me. I also can’t say thanks enough to Drew Dillman Coaching for helping me get to this point that I am at. I know I could have been even farther along if I could have followed his plan even more. Maybe next year I will be able to come back and see if I can do even better.

Race results

Back in the Saddle Again

I’m back.  Back in the saddle again… That lame song has been going through my head since the race over the weekend.

When athletes like Michael Jordan and Ricky Williams take a hiatus in the middle of their playing career, people question why they would do such a thing.  While I am not making the money they made from my sporting ventures nor am I claiming to have near the athletic prowess, I can sympathize with them.  Sometimes you just need a break from things (omitting the rumored gambling problem and the failed drug tests of the aforementioned).

I had been biking for the last five years and needed a break.  If you’ve been following along you know I have been running in lieu of biking.  From last fall to early spring this year, I barely rode my bike at all.  It was exactly what I needed and after the marathon I felt rejuvenated when I hopped back on the bike.  I was a little too ambitious on my return though.  A little over a week after running the marathon I went down to Tennessee with a bunch of teammates and rode extremely hard for three days.  My legs weren’t ready for that, and combining that with the marathon my body was exhausted.  I was so spent it took me another two weeks to fully recover from all of that.

Awesome roads and trails in the Cherokee National Forest.

Feeling good in the midst of marathon training I decided to sign up for the Indy Mini Marathon.  That race had always been on my radar because I loved the fact the course included a lap around the mecca of racing, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

My training leading up to this race was subpar, because of the previously mentioned exhaustion, so I went in with the mindset of just having fun with this race.  Que sera, sera.  Steve and I arrived an hour before the race to warm up, and I could not believe the size of this race with the starting corrals stretching as far back as I could see.  Standing in my corral I met a guy named Jody who had a very similar story.  He had just run Boston and had spent the last two weeks exhausted and dealing with minor nagging injuries.  We both had similar times, so we decided to run together.

Running with Jody.  Sorry, not paying $30 for a picture.

That commitment meant that I ended up running harder than previously figured.  With that pact we were consistently there and pushing each other.   Along with the grandeur of the race and the Indiana pride I gained from running around the Yard of Bricks, I ran a smarter, more consistent race than my last half marathon and ended up with a PR.  1:24:53.

On a whim I decided to run in the local St. Joseph’s 5k June 2^nd.  I hadn’t raced a 5k since the Celestine Streetfest last June and had a soft PR that I knew I would be able to beat.  Although the race was hilly and humid I still beat my previous PR by over a minute.  18:06, 1st overall.

* * *

My training during the last couple months has been a mixture of riding and running, not following a laid out plan like I had for my marathon.  While the results were undeniable with a training plan, I felt like I needed a break from that now.  I have even gone as far as not logging most of my runs and rides on Strava, a practice sacrilege in the biking community.

Going into this first race in the Bluegrass Mountain Bike Cup series at Waverly Park in Louisville, my pre-race tactic was just to maintain a steady, consistent race.   One thing that I definitely gained with all of the running is learning how to pace myself more consistently.  My plan was to just keep the tires rubber side down and not blow myself up early in the race.

Start of the race next to a guy with an excellent kit.

After a crowded start I got shuffled back to about 13^th place or so when we entered the singletrack.  The front broke away and we had a couple of riders who seemed to be holding us back.  Egos started to show themselves and tempers were rising (mine as well) and people were losing patience with a couple of the riders.  Truth be told it probably was for the best, preventing me from going out too hard.

The lack of patience reared its ugly head and a couple guys in front of me hit tires, sending both of them over the bars.  The wreck was two guys in front of me and in a move reminiscent of Lance Armstrong in the ninth stage of the 2003 Tour de France, I courageously forged my own path in the heat of the moment..  Okay that might be laying it on a little thick, but the quick heads-up move allowed me to avoid the crash and pass about four riders total.

I stayed true to the plan, sometimes overly cautious on some descents but staying right side up is always faster than not, and rode a consistent, smooth ride.  Writing this I debated letting others in on my secret, but I figured anyone still reading this blog deserves it…  I recently put an oval shaped front chainring by OneUp Components on my bike.  The oval shape shortens the amount of time your pedal stroke is in a dead spot.  The pedal stroke feels smoother and feels like you have instant access to power at all times.  Highly recommend for anyone running a 1x setup.

I picked off a few more people during the race and really rode hard for the last half of the second lap.   I spotted a rider in front of me with what ended up being about two miles or so to go and really put in an effort to pass him and kept on it so he didn’t hang on my tail.  After I crossed the finish line and looked back to see him finish I realized it was all for naught, as he was in Cat 1 and had another lap to go.  I was overall very happy with the race though.  7/22; Cat 2.

The plan for the rest of the summer is to run 3 more of the Bluegrass MTB cup races.  The promoters of this series really deserve credit.  The race had a very grassroots feel, and is exactly what mountain bike racing is all about.  I’m hoping to keep my motivation high and hopefully get this stupid Aerosmith song out of my head.

Barry-Roubaix Psycho Killer 100 miler

In somewhat of a last minute decision, I was talked in to racing the Barry Roubaix in Michigan. I have always wanted to check this race out, but it just seemed like a long drive to a race that has a history of bad weather. Part of what talked me in to going was the fact that I had a ride for a little over have of the drive. This makes traveling a lot easier. It also helped that there was a group of people going that I always have a lot of fun around.

Hard to believe that in a 7.5 hour drive I could end up behind someone I know, who is going to the same race.

One thing that I didn’t realize when I started to commit to this thought was that everyone was signed up for this new race class this year. The Psycho Killer 100 mile class. I really wanted to race the 62 mile class, but with the start times being different and making logistics more trouble, I reluctantly signed up for the hundo. I was thinking about racing the SS, but once I entered this class I figured there is no reason not to take gears. I had also heard the race is pretty fast and flat, so spinning my brains out for 100 miles didn’t sound like fun.

Not a bad place to be for a long trip

After joining the Bushong duo, we headed to Lafayette to meet up with Kiel. Since we had to wait, we figured we might as well wait at People’s Brewing. The sun was shining as we sat out on the patio killing some time. This was so much fun that we ended up killing more time than originally planned. This had our arrival time just past the closing time for packet pick up. The hotel was also not right by the race, so we figured we would just head to Bell’s Brewery for dinner and pick up our packet in the morning. Our race started 3 hours before everyone else, so we figured the line would not be an issue. It took a little while to get a table and eat. We had a good time, but not too much of a good time. Well, maybe just a little more than we should have.

The early alarm came much earlier than I would have liked, but we had a little drive to get there and still needed to pick up the packets. I had to break in to the breakfast area to get a couple things to go with what I brought along. Thankfully there was coffee ready. We ended up with a sweet parking area real close to where the packet pick up was. After checking in, we started to get set up and ready. We were not really in a huge hurry, but then I was running a little late. I didn’t feel like I needed to warm up since I was not planning on trying to win. I rolled up to the starting area as the announcements were started. I was hoping I didn’t forget anything in my mad rush after a last minute trip to the bath room.

Photo credit: Michael Mielock

We took off as one big group of all 100 mile racers. Things were moving pretty quick. I kept up with who I wanted to stay around for a little while, but I was worried I might be going too hard. I backed my pace off a little and watched my group ride away. Since I was no longer attached, I figured I might was well stop to pee that I had been holding. We hit some of the sand sections and that made it very interesting. I was moving along better than a lot of riders, but after a little bit I would have to stop and pee again. Dammit! This was getting annoying. I continued the trend of passing riders and then stopping to pee all the way up to the first rest stop.

Photo credit: Michael Mielock

At this point, I topped off my bottles, grabbed a bite to eat and of course, had to hit the port-o-let. At this point several of the people I had passed could now go by me with ease. Eventually I got back on my bike and back to work. I was feeling pretty good and riding well at this point. I found a few people to ride with, but the groups never really stayed together. Somewhere along here I came up on Jen and told her to jump on. I didn’t think she did, but a little bit down the road I saw her on the back of our group.

Photo credit: Michael Mielock

We rode together like this for a while. I was pulling off the front anytime we would hit a hill. I would ease up and the group would join back up. I spent a lot of time at the front of the group because of this. I tried to drop back several times and draft, but it never seemed to last. Since the course was not fully marked, I was following the map on my Garmin. With this screen on, I could not see how far we were or how long we had been riding. I think this was a good thing. At one point I wondered, but was scared to look. I didn’t want to get let down by not being as far as I felt we were.

After the last rest stop a couple riders didn’t stop so the group got a little smaller. I now knew how far we had to go and was still feeling pretty good for being this far in. A little bit down the road the 62 milers joined us. It was kind of nice having more riders around again. Somewhere along here the group lost Jen. I had thought she was with us, but with a few more riders around it was harder to tell. I looked back and didn’t really see her. At this point I figured no more waiting on the group. I kept turning the pedals and moving along the best I could. It didn’t take that long and I was all alone again only to keep passing a lot of the shorter distance riders.

Photo credit: Rob Meendering

At some point I came up on one of the riders that didn’t stop at the rest stop. We rode together for just a little bit and then I looked over my shoulder and they were gone. I took another look at the numbers on my computer. I saw how far I was and what time it was. The fuzzy math in my head made me think I was on pace to finish under 7 hours. That sounded like a good ride time and I pushed the pedals a little harder and motored my way toward the finish. Toward the end I was moving pretty fast and thought I was going to make it. As I turned the corner and rolled across the line, the timer said 7:00:53. Just 54 second short of being under 7 hours. This put me in 91st place in the Open Men class.

By all means this was a solid time for me. I had loosely thought 8 hours would be a good effort for 100 miles. I am really happy with how strong I felt all day and with my finishing time. But, that negative side of me just can’t stay away. What if I would have pushed the pace harder in the middle and not stuck with the group? What if I would have tried to keep up longer at the start? What if I would not have had to go to the bathroom 7 times!!! I know those are a lot of what ifs and with everyone there is a chance I could have had a lot worse day on the bike. I have excepted everything pretty well for what my plan was coming in to this race. There is one what if that I really ponder more than the rest. What if I was not in the port-o-jon when Kiel came by? If I was on the road when he came flying by, I know I would have jumped on. I may not have been able to keep up, but I would have tried. The perils of racing and all the decisions and circumstances that happen throughout the day. In the end, I am happy to have survived and can hope that the next time I will make decisions that are better based off of past experiences.

***Cross posted from Bentcrank’s Blog post***

 

Commitment

It was a passing statement I’m sure she didn’t think twice about, and definitely did not intend to mean how I interpreted it.  I had just finished the Celestine Streetfest 5k when a lady who will remained unnamed (let’s call her Bonnie Metz), amidst sincere congratulations said, “You could be a really good runner if you trained.”

What?!?  If I trained??

Sure I hadn’t been focused specifically on running, but I had been biking and mixed in a little running to train for that 5k.  How dare she say if I trained, I thought. A short while after that Shay proposed running a half marathon (my last blog post), and I thought I’ll show that Bonnie Metz.  After finishing the half, and plugging my time into various online calculators that extrapolate your time to other distances, I realized I was close to Boston Marathon Qualifying time.  I knew I had to try for it.

Oh how wrong I was Bonnie, and how right you were.  After looking at marathon training plans online, I realized I had never really trained.  I picked the Carmel Marathon on March 31, 2018 as my target race, giving me roughly 4 months.  I talked to Coach Bill about it, and he shared my same concern of the difficulty of training over the winter.  I hate the cold.  However, my winning rebuttal I told myself was that I had to strike while the iron was hot.  Boston Qualifying time for my age, 3:05 (minus time cutoff).  Goal time, sub 3 hours.

I scattered in a few races to keep it exciting and to check how my training was going.  The first of these being the Evansville Resolution Run 5k/10k/15k on January 6th.  Temperature on the morning of the race, 1°F.

Jack Frost nipping at my Vogler nose.

Surprisingly I wasn’t that cold, due to the various arrangement of layers, tights, head/neck wear and the awesome Team Adventures shell jacket I got from Phil for Christmas.  I should have known better and checked the race map, but for the fourth time in about 2 years I misled a race.  It was questionably marked in my defense, but on the first lap everyone ran an extra half mile thanks to me.  Apologetically, I accepted my first place trophy for the 10k.

I mixed in the Cupid’s Dash 4 mile race on February 10th in the middle of a ten mile run.  I ran the three miles from my house to the race, surprised myself with four miles at 5:41 per mile, and ran home with heavy legs and my coffee tumbler prize.

The last warm-up race I decided to run was the George Rogers Clark 10 mile run on February 24th.  It rained all the way there, but luckily the weather broke right as the race started. I felt great during the race and ran 1:01:27, good enough for second.

∗∗∗

Kendra and I traveled up to the Roundabout Capitol of the World and stayed with Steve and Ellen the night before the big race.  I didn’t sleep well but that was to be expected.  Steve drove me to the race an hour before and I tried to keep myself warm during all the pre-race rituals.

The race started and I decided I would stick with the 3 hour pace group at least for the first half of the race.  If I felt better maybe I would make a move later.  The sun was out and I was worried I had overdressed wearing tights, an Under Armour base layer, a long sleeve Downtown Fitness & Running tech shirt, hat and gloves.  [Genuine question that I don’t understand about running culture: do fellow runners dress as skimpy as possible for weight reduction, for staying cool, or for looking tough?  I’m aware that I run colder than most, but I see others wearing tank tops and shorts in 35° weather and I can’t understand it.]  Luckily the sun went away after a couple miles and I felt fine.  The first 10 miles were exactly how they should feel, nice and easy.

Feeling great, waving and smiling like an idiot for the camera around mile 9.

Miles 10-20 felt fine, but it started creeping in.  Everything after mile 20 was painful.  I held on and just kept telling myself to not give up with only 10k left, 5 miles left, 5k left, etc., which would ultimately negate these past four months of training if I did.  I missed a water cup at mile 23, had to stop, turn around, grab a drink and then burned my last match trying to catch back up with the pace group.  The pace group started to pull away (Chris, the pacer, had said his goal was to hit 2:59:20) little by little during the next mile.  As I approached the next water stop at mile 24 I very seriously considered stopping to take a short rest break, pushing aside the truth that if I stopped, restarting would be so difficult, and I would inevitably stop again and the goal time would be impossible.  To my surprise I saw a familiar blue puffy coat ahead, and after a few seconds I recognized it was Steve.  He yelled at me words of encouragement, I tried to say something back but it just came out as an angry mumble.  No way could I stop with him standing there watching.  And if I didn’t stop now, why stop in the last two miles?  Thanks Steve.

The last two miles were awful.  My legs were exhausted, I had terrible tunnel vision, I was dizzy, my hands were cold and numb.  I heard nothing from my cheering section as I crossed the line, glancing at the clock showing 3:00:08 or so as I finished.

Not nearly as smiley at the finish line.

I found a patch of grass and went down to my hands and knees.  A volunteer found me and escorted me to the medical tent.  I may or may not have needed the medical attention, but I readily accepted because I really wanted a nice warm place to lie down.

My support group along with the doctors who insisted on putting on stethoscopes for the picture.

After the race, I cleaned up at Tom and Judy’s and they graciously allowed us to crash their Easter lunch.  Much thanks to all those who helped in any way during these last 4 months,  especially you Kendra.  Speaking of commitment, we’re getting married next June!

I checked my official time sometime at Tom and Judy’s, 3:00:03.  Three seconds.  AGAIN.

Dirty South Roubaix 2018

Last weekend was the second running of the Dirty South Roubaix in Southern Illinois. Last year a last minute decision had me at the starting line and I had a great time. The area has some great views and nice gravel roads. This year there was a couple more classes and with my trend for the year I signed up in the single speed class. Coming off of a great ride at the Gravel Grovel, this didn’t seem like that bad of an idea. All I can say is that I’m not really sure if it was a good idea.

We decided to head over on Friday night just to make the morning a little easier. We got there early enough to check in and get a bite to eat. Hanging out with a group of people is part of what makes racing even more fun. Riding the actual race is “fun”, but most of the time you are suffering all alone in your head. At times there are others around you, but it can get very lonely in your head.

We got there in plenty of time and started to get ready. There was a lot more racers for this years race than last year. The weather looked like it would be a great day for a bike ride. I went back and fort on a few of the items that I should wear, like I normally do, but I think I made the right choice. Everyone was rolling around warming up and it was getting close to race start. I saw E2 talking to the one bike shop guy. Turns out that his rear derailleur cable broke when he was warming up and they were trying to fix it. I had to run back to the car and take off my jacket before the race started. When I got to the starting line it seems that he had found a loner bike to use. Thanks to Bob Kay for being such an awesome guy!!

I was lined up a little farther back than I wanted. As we took off down the road I found a few spots where the pack was spreading out that let me move farther up. I found myself in the area of riders that I wanted to be, but after the neutral roll out was over the pace kicked up. I was really hating that I decided to ride the SS. I was spinning faster than I wanted to just to try and hand on. Eventually I had to let some riders go and just try to hang on to what ever group I could. I did not remember this section being so long or flat, but then again, I had gears last year.

We finally got to the first big climb. I was trying to not go too fast since my heart rate was still off the charts from all the spinning. Even trying to go slow I was passing a lot of riders. After few corners and pitches there was a real steep section that had really loose rock. After spinning out a couple times and with my heart rate still elevated, I deiced to get off and walk a short section. I was not happy about it, but it really did help a lot and it was not very long. I hopped back on and kept moving, still passing riders.

Once I hit the bottom of the hill and made the left on to the road, I was all alone. This section really sucked with the added head wind. I was going slower than I would have been on a geared bike, but it was all I could do. After a little while a rider came rolling up. I hopped on his wheel and my pace picked up. I passed the first rest stop since I didn’t really need it yet and hit the dreaded levee section. I was all alone, but seemed to be moving along better than last year. A little ways down the levee a group came rolling up. I saw E2 and Bob in there and hopped on to the back of the train. I took advantage of this while I could because I didn’t feel like I would keep up. Some how I stayed with the group for the rest of the levee section. I was riding near my limit for most of the time, but I was moving way faster than I could on my own.

After this section I was happy they eased up a little before taking off again. I stayed with the group and at one point I even took a pull. I figured my speed at the front would be a lot slower than they would want to go, but after a little bit I looked back and I had a gap. I am not really sure how that happened. Some of the group caught back up to me and we all caught a couple new riders. This new group rode together a little while. I thought there was a gap forming so I jumped on that wheel. Not much later I found myself off the front again.

This is where I rolled up on a new group that seemed too strong for me to catch, but there I was. Tweety was in this group so I felt a lot better about how I was riding. I didn’t think it would have been possible to catch up to her. I rode with this new group for several miles. I took a pull and when I was fading back, the next guy upped the pace a lot. I tried to jump on, but I was spinning way to fast to stay there and had to let them pull away. This next section of road hurt since I was out there all alone.

Eventually I did join a rider or so on and off, but we would never seem to stay together. Everyone was just riding there own pace and doing what they needed to do. I rolled in to the new section of the Trail of Tears. There was a guy taking pictures, so I felt the urge to ride a wheelie for him. It was not the greatest, but not bad for 3 hours in to a tough ride. Right past him I saw the road go up hill. The gravel in this section was also very soft. My legs did not think the wheelie was a very good idea, but I just kept turning pedals over. Still seeing riders on and off, but not really sticking with any for very long.

I crossed the road to the other side of the Trail of Tears and as I climbed there was a couple riders walking. One of them jumped on and followed me up the hill. We rode mainly together for the rest of this gravel section with a gap forming here and there, but always getting back together. We rolled in to the last rest stop. I was completely out of water and he apparently wanted a PBR. It was very tempting to have one, but I was still feeling like I needed to go. I took off on my own and rode almost all of the last section alone. I did see a few riders, but never really hooking up. The last paved climb hurt really bad. It seemed to go on for ever!! I knew at the top we would take a right and in to the finish. As I got to the right turn I saw the arrows painted to keep going. What!!! Dammit, I thought we were done. But, good thing it didn’t take too long to make it to the next right and roll up to the finish. I felt so happy to be there that I had to ride a wheelie across the finish line.

I came in at 4:13 which was good enough for 3rd in SS and 38th overall. I also beat last years time by 4 min. It would have been interesting to see what gears would have done for me, but I will never know. I might have even been slower. I felt like I had lost a lot of time at the start when I was spun out. I also felt like I was slower on most of the road sections. Any time I could hook up with other riders, my pace would go up. This helped me out a lot and I owe all of those guys a huge thank you!! I just wish I knew who they all were. For most of the race I hated myself for riding the SS. After looking at all the numbers it doesn’t seem to hurt as bad. I had a lot of PR’s from last year and I am happy with my time. If I would decide to race the SS again next year I would probably run a little bigger gear to help with the flat stuff.

Thanks to all the volunteers and the promoters for all the work to put this event on. It was a blast both years and I plan on coming back next year if I can. If you didn’t make it either year, then you missed out on some good riding and great views. Make sure and put it on your calendar next year!!

Gravel Grovel 2017

Post copied from Bentcrank’s blog

I can’t remember how many years ago that the Gravel Grovel was started, but I sure am happy that I found it. A lot has changed over the years. Where the race starts and finishes, how bad the weather conditions are, what bikes I have used and how bad the pain was. I have had a few years that would make a lot of people not want to come back, but for some reason I find myself lined up on the starting line every year just hoping to do better than some previous years.

This year seemed a little different for me. Last year I was coming off of my fastest year ever and feeling strong. The pre-rides had me really happy with how I was riding, but race weekend had me not feeling very good. Bad enough that I really can’t believe that I even started the race. It was a struggle the whole way, but I had put so much work in to the year that I didn’t want to not race. Somehow I pushed thru the pain and finished with a respectable 5:20. Most years the goal was to finish in under the 5 hour mark and I only did that a couple times.

2018 I have committed to racing some big races on the SS. So, this year I figured why not race SS again. Before the last couple years, I had done this race a lot more times on one gear than I did with gears. I figured this might not be the fastest option, but more for the training benefits. I plan on doing a lot of stuff with one gear for the next year and no better time to start than now.

Friday we got there a little earlier than I had in past years. Checked in to our cabin and got moved in. The weather was great so we planned on doing a little ride to get the legs moving. We went out like the start does and just finished the ending loop back to the horse camp. This was about a 15 mile loop and was exactly what I wanted.

We then took a little trip in to town for some food and settled down for the night. We had a nice fire and a few of us hung out awhile. I didn’t drink too much and went to bed early enough to get a good night sleep. Conditions were going to be great, so no need to mess things up by being hung over or dead tired. I had high hopes that I could put in a good time or at least a lot better than last year.

I woke up a little earlier than I thought I should, but this gave me plenty time to get ready. I got some coffee and oatmeal going and headed over to check in before there was a big line. I finished breakfast and got my bike ready. I made my drinks and gathered what I was packing. I felt like I was done too early. I know it was a lot earlier than other years, but not sure this is bad. I took it easy and just waited til I thought I needed to go. I changed my mind a couple times about what to wear and rode around the area to loosen up the legs.

 

After saying hi to people I saw and riding a little bit, I had to go back and change a couple things I planned on wearing. I thought I was ready except for a jacket I had on that I didn’t plan on racing in. I went back to riding around a little bit, but really more talking to friends. It seemed like it was getting close, so I went and took the jacket off and made a last minute natural break to hopefully keep from having to stop later. Next thing I knew, I heard the pre-race announcements and hurried my way over to the start. I found E2 and made my way up near him. I was not as far up as I wanted to be, but it was going to have to do.

Time started to count down to closer and then it was go time. I have
learned to not go too crazy at this point. There is always a bottle neck
at the bridge and brakes get locked up. I did good at keeping moving
and not getting caught up too bad there. Once on the road, I tried to
pick up the pace. I saw E2s wheel and jumped on. He was making his way
up the pack and moving good. The pace was pretty fast and I was doing my
spin/coast as best than I could. I could see the Team People’s jersey
leading the pack right before we hit the first gravel section. This is
by far the farthest forward I have been at this point. But, the pace was
moving faster than my legs were ready to spin and I had to let him pull
away.

 I found another good wheel, Jeremy, to jump on for a little bit. This let me get to the paved hill in no mans land. I tried to not kill myself on the climb, but keep moving. I seemed to be passing people and I was not breathing that much harder than I already was, so it seemed to be the right pace. From here I just kept on going moving and jumping on wheels when I could. Somewhere along here Jeremy caught back up and let me tuck in behind him. We stayed like this until a little after Maumee bridge. As we got on to Combs I went to the front. I was moving forward and passing some riders. As I got close to the Combs climb I could hear all the heckler’s on top. I was going to do everything I could to not walk this section. But it might get tricky since I had 3 people in front of me.

As I approached the top and saw some good friends, I could not help to
smile. I was feeling good and just climbed a tough hill. Lots of people
hanging out cheering or what ever. How could not not be happy at this
point? It was pretty tempting to grab a beer or even a shot of fireball,
but I was riding well and didn’t have time to mess around. I bombed
down the back side and headed over toward Blue Creek as fast as I could
go. Up and over the bridge and on the gas.

I set another PR on the Blue Creek climb. I just kept moving at what ever pace I felt was good. I tried to not get stuck behind someone and stay there. I made some more passes on the down hill and kept hammering. This whole section was a lot dryer than I typically see it and that is a good thing. As I came out on to the road, I could see E2 just taking off. I guess he didn’t get too far just yet. I also had Brian pass me on this road section. This is where the singlespeed is limited. I can only go so fast. I am not sure if this is a good or bad thing. Maybe these sections allow me to rest just enough to climb the harder stuff better.

I didn’t take any time at the Nebo parking lot and jumped right in to the climb. It didn’t take me too long before I caught up to a rider on a cross bike. I didn’t get excited and just kept moving. By the time we hit the left turn there was 3 bikes in front of me. 2 cross bikes and Brian again. There was a spot that Brian was going over a log and his chain came off. He pulled over and the rest of us went around. There was a little hesitation by the one cross bike and the two of us left went by him. A little bit down the trail I made a little more effort to get by and shortly after I was all alone again.

I felt like I was riding really well on the trail sections and making some good time. Nebo didn’t seem to take very long where as previous years it felt like it took forever. As I finished this section up and climbed up to the road, I passed E2. This didn’t last long. As I started down the road I was working on eating some food. I looked over my shoulder and there was E2 getting ready to fly by me. I was in no place to try and jump on. I just had to finish eating and go at a pace that felt good. At this point another nice rider came by me and said to jump on. We rolled pretty good thru this next section. This was a huge help as it kept me moving faster than I would have done on my own.

As we started up Mt. Baldy I pulled away from the friendly cross bike rider. I did see another single speeder just up ahead of me. I paced my way up the hill trying to not go too slow or blow up. As I was rolling up to the rest stop I could see E2 pulling away. I said hey and went to work getting my next helping of CarboRocket 333 out of my pocket and in to my bottle. I tried to do this as quickly as possible. I didn’t really take any time to see what was on the table, but I did take some trash out of my pocket so I would not loose it on the road. Right as I was getting on my bike to pull away, Brian came rolling up. I said that he would probably see me in just a little bit, and off I went.

I turned on to the paved section, downed another Honey Stinger gel and tucked and went as fast as I could roll. I didn’t get up to 50 like I thought I might, but I was still going in the upper 40’s. I took it a little easy on the tricky left hand corner as I watched another rider not make the turn. I knew this section was not going to be easy. This next climb always seems to take it out of me. Some how I kept moving fairly good and was at the top before I knew it. I cruised down the other side and let gravity do what I could for me. After I made the next couple corners here came the friendly cross rider again. He was nice enough to tell be to come on again and mumbled something about one FG with a little bit of bewildered tone as he shook his head.

Together we went along fairly well for a little while. I am not sure when he lost me or even if I lost him, but after Cornett Cemetery, I found myself alone again. But, along came Brian. We rode together right up until the climb before the next single track section. I pulled away just a little before I went in to the woods. I rode this section well and popped out the other side fairly quickly. I took the left and settled in for the climb that I knew was coming. As I neared the top the loose gravel got the best of me and I had to walk the last little bit. As I got to the top I figured I should take this time to take another much needed break. As I was there Brian caught up to me and passed me.

Somewhere in this loop I caught back up with Brian and we rode together for a while. As we took the right hand turn I let him know about the loose down hill that can be sketchy. We went along for some time. I really do not know when I got away from him. I was in my zone and just moving the bike at what ever pace it wanted to go. I flew past the intersection where the single track comes out and headed toward the next trail. At some point on this road I caught up to the single speed rider that I saw on Baldy. This time I didn’t get caught up in his pace and tried to pull away from him. He was right behind me as I hit the trail. There was a cross bike in front of me and he messed up on one of the first little dips. I made my way around him and took off. I heard him ask if the other guy wanted around, but I didn’t stay there long enough to hear his answer. A little bit down the trail when it turns back on itself a little, I didn’t see anyone behind me.

I came out of the woods as E2 was getting a bottle topped off. I said hey and proceeded to get one of mine filled up. I kind of glanced for a coke, but it didn’t sound like he had one. I quickly took off and tried to catch up to E2. We did get back together somewhere along this section. We rode together for a lot of this section. Some of the time he was behind me and some times he was next to me. I was in a little panic worried that SS rider would catch back up. I was wearing out at this point, but not cramping. This section really seemed to run on. I kept wishing the church was just around the next corner. Then I saw a corner and thought we were home free!! That was until it was the turn to the Maumee Boy Scout camp. Dammit!! We didn’t even make it to that point yet. So, back to turning the pedals over as smooth as I could. When we finally made the turn at the Hickory Grove church and the grade pointed down, E2 pulled to the front and his pace picked up. I jumped on his wheel and away we went.

We made good time all the way down to the turn toward the bridge. We made are way over the bridge and kept moving. I really wanted to stop and pee again, but there was no time now. We were too close to the finish. So, we kept moving forward. I am sure we were both just happy to be almost done. As we hit the creek crossing I made sure and back off a little. I let E2 take the lead in to the water. After the huge pull I took off of him down the road, this was no time to try and race it out. If it would have been almost anyone else it would have been a different story. Thru the creek and up to the finish. I could not have been any happier with myself at that point. I rolled across the line at 4:14:23, just 2 seconds behind E2. This put me in 5th place for the SS class and 63rd place overall. I want to give a shout out to all the other SS racers. The top guys are just crazy fast!!

This was by far my best Gravel Grovel!! I beat my best finishing time by almost 45 min. and last years time by 1hr and 6 min. It was really unbelievable. I was on cloud 9 for the rest of the evening. It was great hanging out around the fire with everyone that stuck around. Even after they left we stayed up until the wood and beer was basically gone, well most of us :-). No matter how I ride or finish, the test that this race can put you thru and all the good friends that I get to see and hang out with make this the best race of the year! Finally having a finishing time that makes me feel more like I competed and not just attended makes it even better. I can only hope to continue riding this well, no matter what bike I am on or how many gears I have.

This race was the second endurance race this year where I felt like I was on the gas the whole race. Fools Gold was the other one. I did both on a SS and for some reason I just perform better when I don’t have to think about shifting. But, I do not think that the bike what the only thing that played a part in that. The major difference that I changed late in the season that I feel has made a huge improvement is switching to CarboRocket. The Half Evil 333 has been my go to drink for the longer races. I have used just the hydration mix some of the time depending on race lengths, but the added calories I get from the Half Evil just makes the difference for me. I always have a hard time eating enough and when I dig too big of a hole it is hard to come back. The other change is also taking in some Rocket Lytes. I have been on the gas and have not had an issue with cramping yet. I can not thank Brad @ CarboRocket enough for helping me out!! Give them a try!!

And Now for Something Completely Different

The shift from summer to fall signals the end of XC mountain bike racing and many fellow mountain bikers switch to cyclocross, endurance races, gravel or something along these lines. I’ve never raced or competed in any of these disciplines, so usually I ride as I please during the fall and get lazier and lazier as the temperature drops. I have little motivation to keep me moving once the weather starts getting cold, so when Shay mentioned running the Indy Monumental half marathon, I decided to fully commit my training towards distance running.

I had always been interested in running a half marathon, but never wanted to run one just to run 13.1 miles. So I researched training for a half, put together a plan, and set a target goal (1:30). I usually use running as cross training for biking, but have never got a lot of enjoyment out of it. It was just “there,” similar to eating bland food just for substance. However, during the course of these past two months something switched inside. I realized early that you must slow down to be able to go fast. Before, I would run as fast as I felt that particular day and feel good afterwards, but I wasn’t able to run for more than two or three weeks at a time without getting mental or physical burnout. Going on these longer, slower runs became a zen experience as opposed to the grind I had experienced previously. I still had some speed work days of course, but I really started to enjoy running and found myself yearning for my next run.

When registering for the Indy Monumental, it asks for a previous time to place you in a seeded starting wave. Having never run anything more than local 5k’s and one 10k trail run, I had no previous times to report. So I decided to sign up for a 10k race in Owensboro on September 30th to use as a tune-up race and get a qualifying time.

The morning of the Run for Your Life 10k race was perfect, lower 50’s, sunshine, and calm. I went into this race not knowing what to really expect. I wanted to maintain a 6:40 min/mile pace, which was my goal for my half marathon, and maybe break 40 minutes if I was feeling good.

We started and I was behind three other guys after the first half mile of sorting through all the kids who always run out really strong. The three guys in front of me were going at a pace that was too fast for me and I didn’t worry about them. The first mile ticked off at 6:14, I was a little nervous about going out too hard so I eased off the pace just a little. I grabbed a water cup on the run at the second mile because the gel I had taken pre-race had my mouth a little dry. Shortly thereafter, I heard footsteps and was passed by another guy. There was a gap between us, but I held the distance and maintained the same pace as him. We went through the first of two laps and the clock read 19:26, which is only 4 seconds slower than my previous 5k PR.

I felt good and turned the pace up just a little, and pulled the runner in front of me back in with about two miles to go. I told him “Let’s break 40,” not really knowing what my overall time was going to be. He hung on and we ran together. A police escort was in front of us and anytime he pulled a little further away I would instinctively want to pull the car back in. We pushed the pace and I just kept doing the interval math game of “Ok I only have 1 mile left, just keep this pace up, its only 6 minutes or so to go,” all the way to the finish line in quarter mile increments.

We got to the finish line and his kick was stronger. I didn’t really care all that much either to be honest, because I was running it for the time. And who cares whether it is 4th or 5th place? However, post-race I learned that the three in front of us had only been running the 5k. Therefore the race was for 1-2! Had I known that, maybe I would have tried something a little further out, but I was still very happy with the race. Final time was 38:10. I was excited that I ran a negative split, which would have been my best 5k time as well.

…and the award for ugliest trophy goes to Owensboro Run for Your Life 10k

In the midst of training between the Owensboro 10k and the upcoming half marathon, I got an itch to run another race, to try and set a 5k personal record. I decided to run the Sounds of October 5k race in Huntingburg on October 21st. I was feeling great during the race and knew I was going to be able to shatter my previous PR. However, I was misdirected by course volunteers, and as I was rounding the track for the final 300 meters my watch only showed around 2.5 miles. I crossed the finish line in 15:10, but I had only ran 2.65 miles. I notified the officials of the discrepancy after I finished. Because I had a sizable lead, they were nice enough to still award me the prize money and medal.

After plugging these race times into online calculators and getting a feel for what my race pace actually was, I decided to lower my goal to 1:25:00. It was ambitious but I was feeling good with my training. However, a few days out from the race my fears of getting sick came true. Kendra thinks because I thought about it too much I somehow conjured it up myself; but Kendra, the cold is going around right now.

After a dreadful 4 hour trip to Indy, Kendra and I met with Erika, Greg, Shay, and Beav and had a nice meal the night before the race. It was the most grown up I think I had ever felt. We sat around listening to soft music, while our friends served us a proper meal in their house, then going to bed at 9:30.

The beginning of the race was a little chaotic and exciting with all the people around. The date of the race missed the time change by 24 hours, and with the start set for 8:00 a.m. we were starting right before the break of dawn. It was one of those ‘tweener days with the temperature. Not sure how to dress I decided on a long sleeve tee with shorts. I had forgotten my gloves and hat, but seeing other people wearing singlets and shorts I figured I would be ok.

I know I shouldn’t think this way because it means the terrorists are winning, but for a minute I felt a bit of nervousness being in such a large, vulnerable crowd. I looked up at the starting gate and intentionally switched these thoughts out with the usual pre-race nerves. I swallowed a gel, listened to a beautifully sung national anthem, and waited for the countdown.

The race started and the worries were gone. I changed my watch units to kilometers a few weeks ago in preparation for this race, so I would be able to check my pace more often. My first few kilometers rang off at 3:54, 3:55, one at 3:50, then next at 3:49 (my target pace being 4:00/k). I was feeling pretty good but felt myself continually creeping up my pace to pass more people in front of me. Like the police car in the 10k, I have a bad habit of chasing the rabbit in front of me.

Checking my pace/flexing for the camera

I noticed a guy ahead of me wearing a Purdue running club singlet with American flag arm compression sleeves. I gave him a “Boiler up,” as I went by right before a water station.

I never really practiced running and drinking water at the same time, and man I’m terrible at it. Every rest station I felt like I was waterboarding myself, getting very little water actually down my throat. The seasoned runner he seemed to be, Purdue guy assumingly didn’t struggle as much as I did. He caught back up to me during the water stop, and we were right next to each after we tossed our cups. I asked whether he was running the half or full, and what was his target time. He said he was running the full with a target time of 2:50, so for his half split he was shooting for 1:25. Perfect. He told me to stick with him and he would pace us. I ran alongside him for the next 5 miles or so. It was nice not having to think so much about pace and just zone out and run.

The half marathon and full marathon split around the 7.5 mile mark. We exchanged introductions and I gave him an ice cube of a hand to shake. Thanks again Purdue guy Riley. I ate another gel right before the next water station at around mile 8, and slowed way down to wash it down with some water. The next couple miles were ok, but I could feel my legs getting tired. I kept waiting for the normal boost to come from the gel, but it eluded me.

By mile 10 I was hating everything. There was no zen. There was only hate. I hated running, why was I doing this? It hurt. I tried to tell myself it was only another 5k to the finish line, I had run 5k’s all the time, no big deal… lies! A (small) headwind was now in my face, and I cursed the perceived hurricane force wind. I was cold, I hate being cold. My head cold peeked in to say hello. I covered up my watch with my long sleeve and didn’t look at it again. It was just going to make me angry, seeing my pace slip. The clock next to the 12th mile marker showed 1:18 right as I arrived. I gave myself a pep talk and told myself I “only” had to run about a 7 minute mile to accomplish my goal.

I mustered up my remaining strength and tried to finish strong. I winded through the final turns and looked up at the approaching finishing gate and read the time of 1:25:something. I gave all I could for a final kick and looked up to 1:25:26 as I crossed the line, into the arms of National guardsmen helping to keep me upright. I got my finishers medal and a safety blanket. I was freezing cold as I watched Steve and Shay finish. Then we watched the full marathon finish and cheered as Dustin Betz limped his cramped hamstring to the finish.

Exhausted. (Marathonfoto I’d consider buying your pictures but $65 for 10 pics, na)

 

 

I didn’t think about it as I was crossing the line, but there was going to be a small correction to my time due to the difference between the gun time and when I actually crossed the start. I knew I was going to be very close to my 1:25 goal. My final time was 1:25:03. Normally, I would have almost counted that and been ok; but unbeknownst to me, Bill and Tim had an over/under bet on my 1:25:00. I am still disappointed I let you down by three seconds Bill.

So my season is now fully over, this being my last race report for the year. I have some possible plans for the winter months, and definitely will pick up mountain biking again in the spring. I’d like to say thanks to everyone on Team Adventures for the great times. Thanks to all the sponsors: Adventures Recreation and Gear, The Mill House/Basket Case Brewing, ESI grips, Honeystinger, and any others I’ve forgotten (I’ve always wanted to say all of this into a microphone to feel like a NASCAR driver). Thanks to Downtown Fitness and Running. Thanks to Bill for being my motivational coach. And thanks to everyone reading, I’ve had fun writing these. Here’s to hoping for bigger and better next year