Just Joel

CBC Cyclocross Race#2

2010-11-15T16:26:00.000-05:00

After getting home late from a seminar at BarCamp the previous day, I had very little motivation to get up early and race my butt off. Surprisingly, I was up around 7am and feeling almost awake by 8. That must have meant I was still a little hungover from last nights fun... I made myself some coffee, got suited up, loaded up the bike & gear and headed over for race #2 of the CBC Cyclocross series...I was certainly not expecting to be able to perform today like I did last week, but curious to see if my hectic week really does play a factor on my performance level. In other words, I was experimenting on myself. I already knew the expected outcome, I just wanted to verify it. Verification complete. Without an proper night's sleep and a generous amount of mental and physical preparation, I am a sluggish toad.

The weather was perfect. No extra layers were needed...The course was tough and very different from last week. It would have definitely been in a mountain bikers favor if I had selected the proper gear and had enough strength to turn the pedals...I ran a 42x12 and really suffered right from the start: Mental preparation error: make sure you can race with the gear you chose...There was inclined forest loam singletrack, layered hillclimbs and sandpit turn traps. It was gonna be a tough day for sure.

Starting line: the man said go and I couldn't. The entire pack took off and I sat there trying to get my pedals turning for what seemed like forever. As I finally got things moving, I snapped into position in the back of the lead pack. Knowing after only 1-2 laps that I would not be able to hold this pace, I totally backed off and just let people fly by for a while just pedaling along deciding if I should just quit. I found my body really fighting me to stay moving and my legs were like two slabs of rock. I kept pedaling along waiting to get past this wall and hope the blast came back soon. It came back, but a little too late. 35 minutes in, I finally started to pick things up and felt a little better flowing along, but still hating my gear selection. I dealt with the slow pedaling and started being more efficient in use of my brake as I only had a front brake on the bike because my rear one was at home in pieces. I then picked up the riders I had targeted to let slip by and placed decent gap between us and I started trying to level my pace to survive the remaining 10 minutes. Then my chain flew off and I had to stop and fix it. 4 riders flew by again and once again I jumped on and took off after them. I don't know how I was able to chase them down, but I picked off 3 of them once again and just could not catch the remaining rider in a "Trek" jersey riding just ahead of me...defeated, spent, hungover.

I went out there today to really test myself against the factors of life. I realized that just because life hands you a hectic week, you shouldn't hide inside on the weekends as a result. Challenge yourself to the fullest everytime you can. I may have lost this race on several levels, but I gained some valuable keys to winning races in my future where I stand a better chance.

Good stuff CBC! Thanks for the fun!

Congratulations to Nathan Smith and David Hall for placing top 2 in Cat 1 Mens!

BarCamp CHS

2010-11-15T15:56:00.000-05:00

I recently attended my first and surely not to be my last BarCamp in Charleston. It was everything I hoped it would be and a bit more. While it was not an uber:geeky low-level coding seminar like I really want to attend, it was something a bit more diverse. Bar Camp is a loose network of user-generated conferences that allow one to share their most intense technology or other related hobbies and talents with others of like interests...the name itself is a spinoff of the geeky word which developers use frequently in test applications: "foobar". Since there was already a "Foo Camp", the only logical choice was to use "Bar Camp", right? (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BarCamp).

The words of the day were in no particular order: organic, Drupal, cloud, SQL, confidential, Google, beer, Java...did I mention organic?

Upon arrival, I was worried everything that was to be said would have been spam pushed from some major companies wares, but I was slightly wrong. Yes, there were major influences publicly there such as Google, Yahoo, BlastOff Games, ATDesk, etc...but they were all low-key and very open in their sharing of information...

After registration, I bumped into a few old friends from previous companies I have worked for and we socialized for a few minutes before the sessions got underway. It was great to see so many local talented technology professionals attending this conference!

The first thing that happens at BarCamp is the pitch session. After finding a seat in the auditorium, everyone who wants to hold a seminar goes up before us all and has 30 seconds to lets us know what they are going to be talking about. There is someone on hand to moderate and holds everyone to their 30 seconds which is great because a few presenters were pushing the 30 second limit...60 presenters went up and 60 presentations were to be voted on. The vote was, however, skipped after realization that 10 sessions an hour for 6 hours would fill in the timeline perfectly...Thus, BarCamp started and everyone hurried over to the Seminar wall to find out which seminar to attend during the first hour of BarCamp. My first hour's choice was a seminar on Cybercrime. It sounded interesting and I definitely enjoy figuring out how hackers do what they do, so off I went....

Late for my first seminar was not a good sign...why I was late is a good question...I must have been trying to make sense of the schedule for too long. I missed his opening case scenario and introduction and wondered if I would even get anything out of this. After hearing all the regular mundane, do's & don'ts about personal information security, the speaker (from Phishlabs) hit upon a neat little topic which I thought would be great if he intended to followup entirely. Fortunately, he did followup and described a situation involving the tracking of a generic spam message based on the email address. The basics of the message were unimportant, but the spam senders email (hotmail) address had an IP embedded in it which revealed its origin. Upon tracing that IP back to its source, it was found to be based from some PC in Somewhere, USA. After then being able to contact that actual PC owner directly, it was found out that the PC was in fact infected and was being used as what is sometimes referred to as a Zombie Bot! So, by being able to, with the owners permission, trace back the directed commands being sent to that ZombiePC to perform, they were able to trace it beyond the reflected source. The trace resulted in the command coming from some spot in the Netherlands. After further investigation, it was found to be an IPSec line and not traceable at any point beyond that...Fascinating! This is an organized endeavour! After further analysis of it all, it was found that this entire "system" is made up of coordinated efforts... First someone creates software used to initally infect PCs via undisclosed vulnerabilities. Still another developer writes tools used to "control another persons PC in an efficient and virtually undetectable manner. Then they sell those tools on the blackmarket to someone else needing "infection & control tools". The buyer then uses those tools to setup "virtual harvests" of compromised PCs out there that obey their every command via those secure connections. Well, once that was understood, the speaker even described the technique used to be able to obtain over 5 million actual, not stolen "hotmail" addresses. The buyer basically purchases blocks of valid hotmail address from yet another source which specializes in creating bulk hotmail addresses mappable to the Zombie PCs IPs for tracking purposes. This "email source" even has a special technique in validating these email address to get by the Captcha system by paying people in third world countries pennies per captcha that they decode for them. Once decoded, the captcha answers are zapped back to awaiting automatic scripts specialized in creating the hotmail accounts...It was more than enough to make your head spin! There is a serious game being played out there!

My next seminar goal was to attend my friend Paul Reynold's: Reading Code for the Layperson...it was a really great seminar and started out simple and thorough. My objective was to see if there were other techniques being implemented out there to write more "readable" code. Halfway through, I remembered the HFT(High Frequency Trading) seminar was going on, so I promptly exited his talk since most of this was review for me. Since I am a novice day-trader, anything having to do with trading, high speed and awesome technology were really intriguing to me. I walk in and realize a friend of mine Nathan Smith whom I ride bicycles with is doing the presentation. They were still going over basics of HFT which I already knew somewhat and made it just in time for the juicy details of what happens during a live transaction. That was pretty cool. Then they explained that there were algorithms (business logic rules) applied to the feed to further analyze and set buy / sell points in a more optimized manner. Truly cool stuff. Live trading feed, realtime analysis, semi-artificial intelligence algorithms used to handle decisions...wow. Then, when I thought I had it all grasped in my head, they said this stuff happens at the rate of some ridiculous # of transactions every 2 micro seconds...micro seconds is equivalent to one millionth of a second...insane..Needless to say, I really got a lot out of this presentation...

Then off I went to my next seminar: Cracking a Windows accounts...I was curious if other methods existed which were more creative. After 10 minutes in this seminar, I summarized the methods he was going to use and exited promptly not wanting to waste time as I wanted to get some info from Andre Pope's seminar on "Teacher's Preparation for the upcoming wave of tech-savvy students". Andre is out in the teaching trenches talking about what he is doing in realtime. He speaks from the heart as well as his technically enlightened mind on how he is converging his collaborative knowhow with current teaching methodologies in order to better connect with his current students. As a technical futurist myself, I really can "envision" the realities he is attempting to explain to modern-day teachers. I also gained a lot from this seminar.

Lunch happened afterwards and I got there a little too late as there wasn't much left to choose from. I was able to cobble together a ham and cheese sandwich from some scraps and flung some lettuce in there to help ease the hunger pains...chips were also available. I found myself feeling very much like a kid in high school again not knowing where to sit and overwhelmed by the amount of people already congregated in the eating area...so off I fled to find a nice quiet couch outside the scope of the enormous amount of talking heads...I find a spot near Nathan and continue to pick his brain on the ATD machine itself...not a lot more was gleaned as most of my questions had to do with areas of a confidential nature which he was not at liberty to discuss...I found alot of this door slamming throughout the day with many professionals...regardless, lunch was a good time.

Then off to the History of Hacking seminar I went. I had high hopes for this seminar, but found it to be stammered and lacking in essential immediate information. The topic header did not accurately reflect the subject matter and I left early and disappointed. I slipped into the Yahoo Query Language seminar and found it to be a powerful way to get information from the yahoo databases that they allow you access into. It's a great second door if Google APIs start to get bogged down from user glut....

At this point, I was getting dizzy from the amount of information being gleaned, but I was determined to make the most of this day. Thanks to the many BarCamp sponsors, delicious Island Coffee was available everywhere and anywhere. Tasty cookies and other sweets were also available as well as major label sodas!

After getting my fix, I went on to my next seminar: the Google Q&A session. Like the history of hacking, I was also disappointed by this seminar as practically every question you could possibly think to ask was carefully considered, muttered aloud and then redacted as not being able to answer on grounds it could disclose some key piece of the Google Collective. The head Absorbaluff, er I mean speaker smiled and made lots of clever remarks and was able to hop skip and dance his way through a one hour session with no juicy details of the Google empire described. Yes he was that good at dodging questions.

So this was a mjor revelation that at BarCamp, you are just have to realize that you are not going to enjoy everything said, or not said. Its about what you get out of it that matters most....

My next seminar was userinterface design with emphasis on the button. Unfortunately, this talk was focused on web design and I absolutely loathe web design, primarily because I suck at it. I can do the technical stuff all day long, but layout, graphics and visual aspects stop me cold. So I left early knowing this was over my head, and went onwards to find out about NoSQL. I had no clue what this was and still don't really have a clue, but from what I determined it is primarily for web-based data management, and allows very loose typing of records...which spells danger in data integrity in my old programmers head, so I get up and leave before I get lazy and adopt this a a new way of programming. I hop into a few other talks and find nothing being accomplished by doing this, so I wait out the hour in a Java seminar and move onto the last seminar of the day: HomeBrew 101...

Yes beer making is one of my passions and this being a 101 seminar would make it simply a review of the basics, but you don't know what you may have never known, and I knew that much so in I went...It was a good review and I was relieved to see that many of the same difficulties I faced in brewing beer were also challenges faced by others. The speaker was clear and focused on the basics. He demonstrated with real equipment and kept it simple and clean the entire time. He keyed in on sanitation many times throughout and stressed it heavily at the end. There were even a few homebrews to try out at the end which really peeked interested from more than a few.

Then off to the afterparty! After being mostly on my own floating from one information session to the next, I was now able to catch up with Mikey, Andre, and Paul to discuss BarCamp at the Mellow Mushroom. It was a great time and we talked about anything and everything for more than a few hours eventually finding ourselves back on the path to our homes...what a day!

I am really looking forward to the next BarCamp and hope to have something to present next time myself....

Pumas Final Match...

2010-11-11T22:42:00.000-05:00

I must say after seeing my girls play their hearts out on Thursday against the Cougars, I was very optimistic about next season. They played with such passion and fierce desire to prove they are learning, that I was able to stop "coaching" for a little while and just watch the great game unfold. Yes, they did not win, and the odds were stacked against them, but that REALLY did not matter in this match. What mattered was that they completed every basic and intermediate play that is vital for developmental soccer. Defending was outstanding, offense was actually moving the ball downfield, and the attackers really figured out where to go without my constant "coaching" from the sidelines....too much fun to watch! After not seeing that "spark" most of the season, I am glad I was able to witness it once before waiting out winter and starting up again in spring.

Gooooo PUMAS!

CBC Cyclocross Race#1

2010-11-08T10:24:00.001-05:00

After looking forward to this event series all fall, it is finally here! Cyclocross racing time again! Thanks to the guys at Charleston Bicycle Company & North Charleston Wannamaker Park, the CBC Cyclocross series is in full effect!

Upon the initial week before this race, I was in mediocre shape with occasional rides out at Tuxbury, Francis Marion gravel roads and a little bit of Marrington thrown in for variety. I even hit the spinbike for a few days to regulate my cadence and work with more resistance. I was in good shape, but not great shape...too much else going on in my surrounding life to really focus on my passion for cycling right now unfortunately.

So, the first official cyclocross race of the season crept up on me way too soon and before I knew it, I was loading up the bike in the frosty early morning weather. There was a decent turnout for the first event and the course seemed fast and furious. I wish I had geared up more as I was turning a 42x17 which gave me a decent flat singletrack speed, but a spinny open road speed. So, the race starts with a whimper and I roar like a lion to the front of the pack....front of the pack? really? seriously? Yes, front of the pack is where I set myself and then proceeded to hold that position in the top 4 for the first 3-4 laps...then as expected, I started to fade. I was mentally ready for 30 minutes of hard effort and found that the new combined classes based on little or no expert class resulted in a mixed category race with everyone hammering for 45 minutes instead...so, that was that, I was running on fumes and trying to hold steady. I would burst forward, pass and then fall back and get passed. The last 15 minutes were all like this...tough and high-speed...I was passed on my final lap by one other rider who had been with me neck in neck for quite a while near the end. 6th place would have to do...

I finished the race with my lungs burning and my heart pounding. It was an indicator that I needed to do more to place better next time around....But how to find the time??

Overall, lots of fun, lots of support and I definitely heard more than a few cowbells cheering us on, which is great to experience.

Can't wait till next week!

Pedaling for Peanuts...

2010-09-20T14:24:00.000-04:00

After a long dry spell off the bike, I got the urge to pedal as hard as I could again. I found a neat sounding little grassroots race up in Wilmington called "Pedaling for Peanuts". It was for a good cause, and it was on trails in the Wilmington area which I had yet to explore, so I was definitely considering it. I started to talk myself out of it a week ago as I did not feel like I was entirely ready for 6 hours solo on the bike yet, but I really wanted to ride. Then, I got a invite to race with an old friend, Marshall Brown, on his Team Yellow Flies as his current partner had to drop out. It did not take me long to decide as this really sounded like a great idea based on my current fitness. I actually mentioned the race to a friend of mine, Justin, who went for it hook, line, and sinker. We trucked up to Myrtle Beach and met up with Marshall and proceeded to catchup along the way. He actually knew of another guy racing this weekend from Charleston, whom I had yet to meet, Ed Thomasson. Funny how many people in common we seem to know....

When I got our pit setup, met Ed and the others,and Marshall and myself registered, I started to wonder whether or not my current setup was a good idea based on all this talk of roots, sand and tight turns...I have been pushing myself since the "Great ORAMM Disaster of 2010" to focus on riding taller gears, standing up and hammering more and quit wimping out on climbs by sitting in the saddle and spinning...Instead, I have been riding a super tall gear on the flats of Charleston of 42x12 and found this to be quite a nice bit of resistance. I even rode this gearing on our local trails at Marrington and found it to be one heck of a tough exercise. Thus, I went with the tallest compromise I thought possible: 34x17...which was about 57 gear inches...I was worried about the gearing, the fact that I chose to ride fully rigid, and went with a fatter front tire. Only time on the trail would answer all of my questions.

I volunteered Marshall to go out for the first lap since I kind of did not want to go out too hard and punish myself right away. Nonetheless, the team style LeMans start had me doing the running and Marshall waiting on me. It was hard to run that fast since I had not sprinted in a long time...I came in second in the sprint and gave the baton to Marshall and off he went into the woods in a great position. I went, sucking for air, back to the tent as the running really worked me over. It felt weird to sit back and wait as I am usually going strong once they yell go until I can't go any further or the end of the race, whichever comes first. Then out of nowhere, here comes Marshall looking strong, and before I know it, I am charging through the woods floating over roots and pumping over the hills. I felt great, the gearing was perfect, and my legs were holding strong. The trail was super tight, twisty, rootier than I imagined and a bit sandy in all the wrong places. Nonetheless, I felt ready for this environment since our local trails share some similar conditions. I flew through the switchback climbs standing up and out of the saddle on every climb. This trail twisted so much that I completely lost my orientation after about 5 miles in. I then simply followed the markings and hoped I was still on the right trail. After what seemed like 10 miles, I popped back out of the woods and into the pits to a surprised Marshall who did not expect me back so soon. I jokingly heckled him to get his gear on and move it! He jumped back into action and I went back to the pits for a bit of downtime. I got antsy after about 5 minutes and wanted to get back out there and race which was a good sign that I recovered from that lap quickly and was ready for more.

My next door pit neighbors, Ed and his crew had cooked some great food and I found myself nibbling and eating stuff I never tried in the middle of a race. Marshall came back out in consistent time and off I went for my second lap. I took off strong and immediately wrapped around a tall berm too hard and my low pressure tire got wrenched off my wheel by a nasty root. I heard the bead pop and the tire went limp. I went sliding off the bike to the right and got up staring at the tire not knowing what action to take. After a moment, I decided to pick up the bike and run back to the pits since they were about 50 feet away. I got back, popped the bead back on with a CO2 quickflate, and re-did my lap. I was about 7-10 minutes down after all of this and still managed to put in a good lap, but unknowing of our current position. Marshall then went out on his third lap still looking strong. I sat back and started replenishing my water and sugars with my Honey Stinger goodies. All of the new stuff from Honey Stinger tastes better than ever and am really happy I stick with these products for my race nutrition. After an unusually long wait, I noticed a few teams coming through which I knew were behind us. Then more teams, and Justin flies through once again looking really strong, whom I heard had one of the fastest lap times of the day. I started to worry as I was cooling down fast. I finally hear from Ed's teammate, Spencer, that Marshall had a mechanical and his seat came off. I wonder what Marshall is doing and whether or not I need to start the lap over to get things moving. Before I make any decisions, Marshall comes riding up telling me he has been standup riding for the last 2 miles...yikes! I tell him to try and get his bike fixed before I return and set off on another great, fast and consistent lap. My legs once again felt fantastic! I arrive to find Marshall worried as he was not able to fix his bike and does not know what to do. I ask him if he still wants to ride and if he wants to use my bike. He definitely wants to ride and pedals off on my bike with a worried look on his face. I also start to worry that he is going to get fully punished out there on my bike since it is a singlespeed, fully rigid and not setup for his riding style. I lay back in the pits fairly certain I will not see Marshall again until well after the cutoff time since he is riding a different bike. Justin comes by shortly after looking very strong and I hear rumors that he is the predicted winner by about 20 minutes! I go next door and grab me a plate of some of the best pasta I have eaten in quite some time and savor the tastes. I feel like I had about 4 more hours of pedal time left in my body and am happy to know I am in great shape for the fall season. Then shocker #1 happens, Justin comes crawling out of the woods way too soon with reports of full body cramping and no desire to be on the course any longer, first place gone. Shocker#2 happens shortly afterwards; Marshall comes screaming out of nowhere with 5 minutes to go before cutoff time. He is smiling from ear to ear mentioning something about how awesome my bike is and how much he now loves singlespeeds....another converted soul for the singlespeed army! I take off and then stop short at the checkin area to determine if going out on another lap will change anything...they tell me no since we lost positions because of those mechanicals earlier. I call it a day and coast back to the pits. No podium once again, but it was an excellent day for lap racing. It was hot, humid and one heck of a tough, rooty trail, but fun was had.

Thanks to Marshall for calling me out to be on his team.
Cheers to Ed, Spencer, Jeremy, and their wonderful wives for the good food!

Looking forward to more fun races!

ORAMM 2010

2010-09-15T10:58:00.000-04:00

I guess I could blame it on the ridiculous heat, the fact that I haven't been riding quite as much as I was a few months back, or I could just chalk it up to pure lack of motivation to actually race my bike through 62 miles of some of the toughest backcountry Pisgah has to offer... or maybe it was my 32/20 gearing choice, or maybe it was because I chose to wear a CamelBak this year, or maybe....meh. Too many excuses!

Regardless, let me finish up this draft post with some information for my own reflectance to never let me be in this position again, if I can help it. I came into the race with some gastrointestinal issues which plagued me for most of the weekend and left me very dehydrated. I also was not mentally prepared this year for the heat onslaught experienced (115 degree index). This combination of factors made the latter part of the race quite uncomfortable for me and I was no longer having fun, so I decided to exit the race after logging in around 42miles and reailzing I still had 20 more of the harder miles left to go. I still think it was a good decision as I heard there was a massive rainstorm upon my expected arrival time which would have made my suffering even greater. Kudos to those who finished! I was stoked to see so many familiar faces racing at stronger levels than before. Congratulations to the CBC bike team guys for enduring their first ORAMM, hope to see you guys at next year's race!

Next stop, Swank 65...

The Greenway Grinder - 6 Hours worth...

2010-05-10T10:34:00.005-04:00

My fingers are still sore from the stress of the root barrage endured this Saturday...The 6 Hour Grind on the Greenway was definitely a shocker to my system as I had let my training routine go south a bit. It all started when I realized the Pisgah Stage race just isn't as realistic a goal as I want to believe I can achieve based more on personal situation than actual time and effort, so I went back to focusing on getting more done around the new house, finalized the handling of the old house, which recently sold(yay!), as well as assistant coaching my daughter's soccer team with emphasis on core strength training. I also have been working on some software updates for my company to handle the latest ridiculous specification changes and security mandates Microsoft made when introducing Vista/Windows7. Thus, it's just not that I don't wanna ride my bike...I just can't get on the saddle enough to enjoy myself...ok, enough whining, on with the ride report...

It started with my good friend and upcoming ultra endurance racer, Mark Sackett, putting the bug in my head about the Grind on the Greenway happening in about a week...I knew it was coming up, but wasn't sure if I could manage it into the weekend soccer schedule. Oddly, the weekend's games had been moved to Sunday, which left Saturday open and clear for some possible racing action...All that was left was my decision to go for it. I had not turned a pedal in about a solid week. My bike lay covered in mud and scum from the last 4 hour training session at Marrington, and I had not even picked out the winning gear combination. At this point, I still sat on the fence about wanting to do this race as I did not feel like driving all that way as well. The other issue was the SingleSpeed category: it was full of rippers. I definitely felt I had no contention against the heavy hitters currently dominating the SingleSpeed category since there is not an age grouping in this class, so I entered Solo Men 30-39 just to bench test myself. All that was left to decide was the drive up to Ft. Mill. Fortunately, endurance & XC mountain biking is experiencing a steady wave of interest from some strong riders here in the lowcountry and another good friend of mine, Matt McMaster, offered to give me a ride up to the race! So off I went with the Charleston Bicycle Company race team members Jana Glover, Lise Morrison, Matt McMaster in Jana's super luxurious personal shuttle van. It was a great ride up to the race with good conversation and anxious energy from everyone. It was their first time riding in an endurance race and they were also not familiar with the lap format of 6/12/24 hour races yet, but they were ready for anything and looking in great shape, unlike myself...
Parking, unloading and gear setup occurred in record time and everyone was fluttering about trying to get everything handled the best that they could. The spot we picked for our tent was in a strange corner which was all that was left on our end of the pit station, but it did not make for a totally difficult situation, just tricky. The race started in a mass start scenario to try and spread us out and I found myself closer to the upper pack than I had anticipated. I tried to feed back, but others staggered as well, so I fell into line and started spinning. My gear combination of 32x20 was a bit too spinny for this area and wished I had 2 less teeth to get some more momentum speed for the hill climbs, but that was what I had setup and thats that. The singletrack started fast and furious as I was in a much faster pack than previous races. It was a shock to the system, but I hung in there and rode consistent and strong throughout most of that first lap. I got bucked midway through my first lap and flipped straight over my handlebars, landing twisted like a crab staring at my bike with no injury other than a bit of shock and time lost. I quickly re-straightened my handlebars and took off again trying to get my speed up. With the wind knocked out of my sails, it took a bit more effort to get my pace back and I soon found myself feeling a bit rough around the edges after only one lap. The second lap was much like the first, only this time I felt the true intensity of the exposed roots lurking around every corner as well as the sloshy muck sections where new roots were showing up. The Greenway course is fun, technical, and fast twisty in some parts, but there are some nasty roots dropped in too frequently to gather full speed and carry it forward. The climbs were short and punchy with no major effort required, just determination. 3rd lap was a bit slower as I was feeling the pinch of the heat now bearing down on all of us. I started passing more riders lagging on this lap. Then, the dreaded lap 4 was started and I was feeling weak from the start. As I pitted before lap#4, I came upon Matt, who was taking a break under the tent. As I went to refuel, my legs started to cramp up. I could not figure out why except for possibly not eating enough? I followed Matt out on lap#4 and was steady on his wheel for about 2-3 miles before I decided to stop and relieve my bladder deep in the woods. All of a sudden, my legs went into hyper cramping mode and I started feeling faint and weak. I took a break at the top of every miniscule hill climb and tried to coast through every downhill I could. This was a major showstopper as I was midway through lap#4 and realized that this would stop short my 6 lap goal... I saw lots of familiar riders start passing me by and dreaded the fact that my body was not functioning right at all! At one point as I sat there debating the very issue with myself of whether I was staring at dandilions or daisies, Mark Sackett pulls up and looks me in the eye and asks me if I am ok...I slowly come out of my fog and respond with yes, I have everything I need, I just don't know what it is. Mark gave me a puzzled look as I urge him to move on and not give up his position in the race to help my lame self out. Lise comes by shortly afterwards and also checks up on me and I tell her all is well, move along...I finally make it back to the pits after the dreaded lap#4 and have a long think and decide I will rest for a while before going out on lap#5. Lise is sitting in the corner debating the sanity of this event and I let her know that this is what it all comes down to, physical as well as mental perseverance...She offers up a large camelbak filled with gatorade that she could not drink since she is thinking of quitting at this point. I actually take her up on the offer as gatorade sounded tasty right then and there. I guzzle down the entire contents of the camelbak, pop a few Advil, mount my bike and start back out on Lap#5 before I talked myself out of going back out for another. Surprised by my immediate decision, Lise also jumps back on her bike and decides to punch out one more lap...She takes off much faster than I because of my spinny gearing, but I quickly catch back up to her on the climbs. She still looked like she was tired and overall done with this course, so I pass her by and continue on my way, looking to try and possibly catch up with Matt. Before I realize what is happening, I discover my legs are back to carrying me up the climbs. I start turning the pedals at a smoother pace and start passing people again. It dawns on me that the earlier heatwave we endured might have left me more dehydrated than I thought. The massive gatorade refill from earlier left me totally refreshed and zooming through the trail once again. I clean every obstacle with little or no stumbling and find myself completing lap#5 at EXACTLY 4:30pm. This meant I made the cutoff time to go out for yet another lap! I would be able to meet me goal if I could get myself through this last lap! As I pedaled through the pits, I make a last minute decision to not stop since I still had one more water bottle to carry me through the remaining 9 miles. As I pass my pit zone, I see Matt sitting back looking refreshed and strong. This meant he would be out chasing me very soon. I put the hammer down and decide to use that anticipation as fuel for the tank. I pick up the pace and continually visualize Matt chasing me down on the last lap. It works well and Lap#6 passes by in a blur. Lots of cramped souls were on this lap. Pain everywhere. I return to the pits to find Matt still sitting there, Jana sleeping in the grass and Lise in the corner wondering what madness made me go out on a 6th lap...I just told them I had the chance to go out on another lap and I did, regardless of how I felt. It was a great personal accomplishment, a weak showing for the day, and a massive shock to my physical state. All in all, a good day. I made some new friends, hung out with some old friends, watched some slower friends kick my butt and watched faster ones kick my butt once again...I also witnessed some newer friends enter into the endurance racing world, hopefully to be seen again at future events.
The ride home was just as fun as the ride there...except with lots more to talk about and experiences to share, such as the misadventures of Jana, who tried to squeeze in some run training with her cycling during the race...Matt is getting stronger with every race and definitely a future hopeful...Lise surprised us all with her second place win and strong showing in her first ever endurance mtb race! Mark Sackett is getting amazingly strong and his determination is paying off-next stop Burn24 for him. Mike Pierce surprised me with a really strong showing as well! Like I said, it was a good day...

Cheers!

12th place, 6 laps;Solo Men 30-39 on a singlespeed no less!
Garmin connect lap data: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/32835406

The 6 Hour Battle of Warrior Creek...

2010-04-05T08:05:00.002-04:00

That's what it felt like...A surging battle with hundreds of Indian brave warriors pressing forward....

I made my way up to Wilkesboro, NC for the second annual 6 Hours of Warrior Creek endurance race. This was a race which was not on the official calendar for the year, but just happened to occur and I just happened to obtain a free transfer entry into the event. I had been very curious about this trail since last year when a few of my close friends had started mentioning just how perfect these trails really were. I then mentioned the race to a few more of my cycling friends and they also agreed that Warrior creek was an excellent, fun course. Fun was definitely the main theme which I insisted on carrying forward as I did not know what to expect. I left late on Friday, made my way up to the Bandit's Roost campground and claimed my spot. After driving a few hundred miles and realizing I had forgotten my tent, I made a quick decision to sleep in the back of my zippy Prius. Meeting me there were Mark Sackett, Mike Pierce and super pitman: Nicolas Deloach. We meet and I start rallying everyone to jump into Mark's van to go preride the course. We finally find the course and quickly start pedaling away! The first entry point into the course was at the 2 mile mark and set the overall tone for the rest of the weekend: FUN! This course is unbelieveable! I immediately got swept up in huge banking turns with spread out sections full of pump bumps helping to keep the speed into various lines with little or no pedaling needed. This course truly was a giant BMX course. I could not believe some of the incredible features this course had to offer! So smooth and so fast and so tricky! The turns would sneak up on you and really smack you around if you were not ready for them. Off camber singletrack really kept your mind spinning and focusing on the singletrack. Good power climbs with well laid out switchbacks and rock gardens topped it all off. Saturday was going to be a great day for rolling in the woods! After getting a poor quality pre-ride dinner, talking about racing and our bikes, getting our bottles and stuff ready, we were all looking at 11pm and time to sleep. I made my bed in the Prius and feel asleep within minutes. Morning clambered in much too soon as I was really enjoying the perfect temperature and sounds of nature to get up and ready. But ready or not, it was time to race!

We break camp at 7am and eagerly make our way to Warrior Creek campground to start 6 good solid fun hours of rolling through the hills. upon arriving, we realize we have made good time and find a great spot in the cul-de-sac leading back out to the trail. The place is getting so packed that we find ourselves parked in front of the Team Ergon booth with the Odeas both getting ready to race. I get my Infinit-infused fluids and Honey Stinger chews and gels out and ready for a solid energy filled day and set off to see who else is here. I bump into Stephen Janes who I did not know was going to be there. He looks strong and ready to throw down some serious racing. I bump into Shanna Powell of Endless Bikes and get hooked up with a few collector's series spoke cards which will go on my everyday riding wheels until I can figure out how to keep them in place on my I9s. Shanna is riding some crazy rigid beast of a bike complete with a big toot horn on the front and streamers to set it all off nicely: the rolling epitome of keeping it fun on the trail! I see and talk with Mike Stanley of Niner bikes showing off the latest cool bike, the Jet 9(drool!). I catch a glimpse of superstar Team Dicky rider, Rich Dillen, but I am quickly pushed aside by either the paparazzi or maybe his team manager, Mike Piazza, has appointed bodyguards to keep the throngs of admirers and facebook stalkers at bay. Lots of familiar faces start to appear from the many endurance events we seem to congregate to year after year. I roll back to my pit and rest for a few minutes taking in all the lovely bikes rolling through the area. Its a good day for racing! As usual, the countdown to the race begins unexpectedly and I get into position for what appears to be one heck of a large mass start. My neutral start strategy places me lower midpack with Mike Pierce, Matt Depp, Allan Atkinson and a few other names I cannot recall alongside me. Mark Sackett is somewhere up front and hungry for a win today. The race starts and takes us up and down the paved streets of the campsite area. This rolling start attempts to spread us out into an orderly mob before entering the singletrack. It is really crowded all around me and I wonder if I will lose more energy riding like this or should I have been further up in the pack. Too late, as I enter the woods and hit that first bit of singletrack. Already there are guys huffing and puffing, blown out, from cruising too fast on the start paceline. The passing frenzy begins. Then ends as abruptly as it starts as there is simply nowhere to go. I stay in line and focus on an efficient, easy low level cadence to conserve energy. The banked turns and fun spots are fully packed with riders, fast and slow. I actually pass a guy on the high side of a banked turn because he kept slamming on the brakes and creeping through the fun turns. Walkers already on the climbs! Tip-toers on the rock gardens! This goes on throughout lap 1 and I arrive back at the pits ready to make up some lost time. I zoom through and Nicolas hands me a fresh water bottle. No time lost in the pits, I go forward entering back into the singletrack with a bit more lap traffic, but this time passing is possible. I start slowly making my way through it all using perceived exertion to stay aware of my bonk limit. My BMX skills really do come in handy here as I whip my 29'' Salsa Selma through the corners with precision which amazes me. I find a pace I like and start controlling my speed and energy levels for most of this lap. I turn in another decent lap, not strong, just decent. I go back out on lap 3 and start trying to assess when I can start opening up my legs which feel great thus far. I fall into line behind some crazy girl with a red tutu by the name of Shanna Powell and we talk for a while. She has the incredible ability to talk, ride and comment on other rider's fashions all while lofting crazy air off the whoop de doos. It was pretty cool just to be able to ride with new friends. I push ahead and find my pace is slightly stronger than I anticipated and tackle the climbs with ease and rock gardens with style and grace. I zoom back into the pits and rip off my noise making bike tool pack. I decide that I am going to have to invest in one of those Awesome straps when I get back home. For now, duct tape was the answer to hold my tube on the frame. Lap 4 was more of the same as lap 3, legs felt great but not super powerful. I felt a little fade, but was able to work through it with no cramps the entire time. I cleaned the climbs once again and was excited that Lap 5 was almost upon me. As I enter the pits, I realized this would be my last lap since the time cutoff was 3:30, so I took a quick break, ate some food, and set back out on my final lap. This lap had me hot and cold throughout. My legs would fade and my body would weaken with no signs of cramping, just weakness. I kept thinking about what I was missing....Fluids, electrolytes, food...hmmm, maybe I just need more sugars...I stopped and propped myself against a tree and slurped down a chocolate Honey Stinger gel washed down with water, which I thought would have sent me into cramp mode, but instead seemed to do nothing, at first. After about 5 minutes of continued slow speed slogging, I started to come out of my slump. I began to pick up my pace and then like Contador passing Lance on the Swiss Alps, I was back to dancing on the pedals again! I started picking off a ton of riders who were struggling, suffering or both. I pass a rider who appears to have flatted out and roll by only to hear him ask me for a tube. I actually was in the process of chasing down one last singlespeeder who had passed me earlier and did not really wanna stop, but being the nice guy I am, I quickly stop, rip the tube off my frame and give it to him and wish him good luck(I later find out that he was 2nd in men's open and would not have placed at all if it were not for the tube I gave him). As I proceed onwards, I track down the singlespeeder who had passed me when I took my Honey Stinger gel break. His legs had shut down and he was walking the climbs. I punch forward and pass him in a full standup climb up the last remaining climbs to seal the deal. I roll through the rock gardens for the last time and call it a day with Lap#5 in the bank. My legs felt weak, but a 6th lap would have been possible. It was a good day to play in the woods!

We broke down the pit area in a mad dash to get to the lodge for the awards ceremony. Mark Sackett placed 5th! That is one strong finish for a group as powerful as I had witnessed today. Mike Pierce had a long hard day in the saddle and left early. I came in 12th in Singlespeed and felt great to have energy on reserve after such a long day throwing the bike around those turns. Shanna got 1st in women's SS which was much deserved after witnessing the beating she was taking on that aluminum rigid beastie. Raffle prizes were awarded and I actually won an Awesome Strap! After eating some great BBQ & beans and saying my goodbyes to friends both new and old, I jumped in the Prius and set out for home to get some Easter family time in...What a Saturday!

Part 1: The Run.

2010-03-29T23:30:00.000-04:00

Just made it through one heck of an eventful weekend. I never realized I could do what I did this weekend, but once you get in the flow, it all seems to work itself out.

First off there was the Charleston Cooper River Bridge Run 10k. This event in itself is a handful for most. Last year, I had planned on doing the run and then the Ride after the Bridge Run Century hosted by Charleston Bicycle Company. Unfortunately, running was not as easy as it seemed as I pulled my calf muscle badly enough to have me out of commission for about 2 months afterwards. This year, I set my sights on the same 2 back-to-back goals....

As the date for the Bridge Run came near, I found myself nowhere near ready to run the Bridge. After hearing some "hype" from friends stating they were also doing the run, I motivated myself to continue with my plans. I did minimal training for the Bridge Run as I knew as long as I ran slow n steady, I would be able to complete the entire run. Wifey pulled me out for a nice long run and this had me wondering if I should be running at all. Coming up on the day of the event, my long time friend from Myrtle Beach, Jeff Dekleva told me me might not be able to run the event due to a previous running injury. This left me bummed as everyone else I knew who was running the Bridge had backed out or simply decided not to run it. I kept with the plan as I knew once the run started, it didn't matter who else ran since it was just me against the Bridge. Thursday, I received the great news that Jeff was running the Bridge so, Wifey, the Raven and I met up Friday night for dinner with Jeff, his brother David, Kristen and another couple of friends whose names I cannot recall. There was some smack talk as to who was going to win. Based on the motivation factor, my money was clearly on David. We planned on meeting up at Starbucks in the morning, but that was a silly plan altogether which will be explained in a moment. Upon waking early at 6am Saturday morning, I sat there slowly getting my morning started thinking about how smoothly everything was going when I realized I should already be in my car on the way to the event to find a parking spot! I panicked, grabbed my bag of clothes for afterwards, and bolted out the door. I rushed to Old Mt Pleasant arriving around 6:30 am and a ton of traffic! Some of the office complexes had turned into fast cash parking lots and I had no cash, so I went off in search of a secluded place to park the Prius. After finding a spot some blocks away, I jump out into the 45 degree weather and hurry down to Starbucks which was crowded beyond belief. Realizing there was absolutely no way to find Jeff and Co., I hang out close to the crowds for warmth and await the start of the run. 15 minutes before the start, I see the lines at Starbucks diminish and grab myself a small cup of coffee. It went down smooth and easy. I felt great and ready to go! Upon the 5 minute warning, I am walking down the sides looking for a place to jump in when all of a sudden, the announcer simply yells out 3-2-1 GO! I was surprised there was not more of a readiness count, but immediately my lines of entry were cut off. Walkers & runners mixed together and before I knew it, I was jumping the fence to mix in with the rushing crowd. This was eerily similar to last year. I immediately told myself to maintain my excitement and just walk until the start line. The only thing that counted was the chip time anyways. After passing through the start gates, my adrenaline rushed and my legs started running. I held myself in control for the first 2 miles doing a light jog with very little passing unless needed. Upon seeing the Bridge coming up, I noticed large gaps in the crowd because of people who had pushed it too hard in the first mile and decided to open up the legs a little. I started running smoothly up the Bridge with little hesitation. My body felt great and my mind was clear. Passing tons of people at this point, I made the gameplan up to run a strong, but steady jog up to the top and then fly down the backside. Good legs, good plan; it all came together. I reached the top in excellent time, and started my mad out of control dash down the backside. The controlled fall I had discussed the previous night with David worked out to my advantage. The load on my legs was very light as long as I kept the flow moving along. The only problems would be walls of people, which were starting to thin out because of their exhausted efforts getting up the Bridge. I felt great and moved along to the bottom. Reaching the left turn off of the Bridge, gravity took over once again and I felt a little worked from my free-run. I throttled my pace down to a light jog and took the time to recover and get my heartrate down. Reaching the first right turn in the city, I felt once again light on the feet and started a nice steady strong stride passing lots of people once again. Going through the streets felt great and I actually was able to notice the throngs of people standing on the sides yelling and cheering this time around. It was great to not be in pain like I was last year around this time in the run. I was able to enjoy the last few miles with a overwhelming sense of accomplishment and the realization that I can set my sights higher next year timewise. As I reached the quarter mile stretch, I opened up my stride and sprinted to the end just to give it a last second punch. Running through that gate with that amount of energy on reserve was an amazing feeling! I had a grin on my face and my body was humming. I let the post race endorphins rush through my body as I went in search of food and anyone I might know...I found the food, but never found the others...As I wound down, I realized it was still cold and I had to get ready for soccer, so after a 30 minute cool down, I went off in search of a shuttle to my car and ended my Bridge Run 2010.

58:00 runtime was recorded in the official books. I had it marked at 52 minutes by my watch, but that is that...either way, I had a great run!

Go home to rest? Nope.

2 hours later, I found myself standing up running up and down the sidelines coaching at the first of my daughter's 2 soccer games scheduled for the day...Then dinner out with friends that night. That was the longest Saturday, I can recall ever having.....

Part 2: The Ride.

2010-03-29T23:15:00.003-04:00

Saturday seemed to never end. After arriving home from soccer and dinner, I set out to get my stuff ready for the Ride after the Bridge Run century the very next day. A century is a 100 miles. 5 water bottles, 4 with Infinit, 1 with water, Honey Stinger Gels and Chews and minimal riding clothes were set out. I was going to be on my road bike for a very long time Sunday and was not sure if I would be able to do it based on the previous day's run, so I decided to simply ride it on my own, not use any of the support services and just tag onto the ride drafts when they came whizzing by if possible. This was done primarily because I ride these roads all the time, and I needed to get some training in for the 6 hours of Warrior Creek next weekend. Because of the nature of this decision, I would be skipping out on the first and last 10 miles to the finish, totaling my ride miles at around 80 miles/4 hours which is more than enough for me to know if I could do more. Having a draft help out is just icing on the cake.

Sunday comes quickly and before I know it, I am rolling along with some local friends who are also going along for training rides of sorts. We ride all the way up to Huger before the Bridge Run Ride pack is upon us. It was a crazy, exciting feeling to get swept up by hundreds of riders all of a sudden. Before I know it I am leading the pack for a few miles at 28+ miles per hour and adrenaline is pumping through my body. To picture this, you have to realize I am in front of about 75-100 very strong riders with fresh legs all pedaling as hard as they can inches from each others back wheels! What a rush! I smoothly pull to the left after a few miles and let someone else take the pull, feeling very satisfied that I helped pull the pack along. I make my way to the back listening to friends advise me on where to fall back to and when to make my way to the front once again. I pull a few more times and start to think about ways to conserve energy for the entirety of the ride. I fall back farther into the mass and am surprised to see how deeply the line of riders really is. I find that many riders simply lurk in the back and never actually take their turn up front to pull. Either way, they are making a draft for someone else, so it all works out I guess...I slide in midway into the horde and maintain my position for a great many miles. Then as the weaker riders start to fade, I feel them peeling off little by little. After one or two more major turns, sections start to gap and separate. I lose 2 water bottles in this period because of the rough road conditions. I barely recover in time to make it into the second section as a lead breakaway group of about 10 riders pulls away. It's pretty cool to actually be close enough to the front of the action to see it going down! Those lead riders had to be pushing it extremely hard to get away from our group which was chasing them down at 25+ mph! This went on for the next 20 miles...Then upon reaching the 50 mile mark, I hear a rider mention my tiny Park hex wrench tool had fallen from my bike bag. Thinking about losing the water bottles earlier and now my tools, I decide to pull out of the pack. I smoothly exit left and pedal out to the opposite traffic lane and watch the pack fly away at breakneck speed. I wonder if I made the right choice to get out with 50 more miles left to go. I feel really worried that I should have stayed in place as I pedal alone back to locate my hex tools with a wind pushing me along. Then as the fleeting pack is almost out of sight, I hear shouts, yells, brakes squealing and cleats scraping asphalt! I turn around and look hard to where they are at and notice them all bunched up almost on top of one another. I realize someone has crashed hard. As I stare in amazement, I notice the entire pack pickup their bikes regroup and take off like a mad pack of animals on the run. The pack thins out and all that is left is one rider crushed into the ground and one rider staring at him deciding what to do. I race back to the injured rider and assess the damage. He is hurt really bad. Major scrapes on his forehead, twisted neck, possible spinal injuries, arm pinned under his back, legs tangled in the bike, possible broken bones, etc. I slowly untangle just his bike and urge for him not to move. I ask him if he can breathe and he replies yes, and I tell him I am going for help. I get back on my bike and race back to the support station to notify a rider is severely injured. I start to feel a bit tired riding back and forth, worrying that I may be out in this wind for the rest of the day. I race back to the rider who is now being helped by many and let him know help is on the way as an EMT arrives. They start to take over and I exit out of the way to let them do their job. Shocked by what I have just witnessed and the amount of energy expended to get help flowing, I fall into a sluggish crawl for the next few miles. It doesn't help that the wind is howling into my face and I have so much on my mind now, such as the fact that I almost ended up in that crash if it wasn't for my decision to go back and get my tools. After getting my thoughts back on my pedal spin and energy consumption, I get some Honey Stinger chews and gobble them up. I finish off my third bottle of Infinit (wonderful stuff) and feel my energy reserves stabilize. As I drift into the death march home, I hear a group come up on me and a rider mentions for me to tag onto the back and enjoy the ride. I smoothly enter their draft and trail them for a few miles letting my legs clear out the fog they were in from stopping for so long. I take charge and start pulling the group, noticing their speed increase as I pull them on longer and longer periods. Slowly, we start hitting 20mph averages and develop a nice smooth cruise. We pick up a few more riders and really start kicking it into high gear. Before I know it I am on the final 15 miles home and just open hammer it all the way to Clements Ferry Rd. I politely thank them for letting me tag along on their ride and they thank me for the extra pulls I contributed to get them back home. I cut out and spin out the last mile home satisfied that I had made it back with energy in the tank to spare. Surprisingly, I had enough energy in my legs to possibly squeeze out another 50 miles.

3 hrs :58 mins 82 miles

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/28283223

It was a great day for riding!
My weekend mission was a success!

Snake Creek Gap #3

2010-03-08T22:48:00.003-05:00

After my last experience at Snake Creek Gap, I was not too enthusiastic to return to Dalton and give it another go, but with the promise of nice weather and the option to carpool, I made the solid decision to return and face the Snake once again....

It was a smooth ride up to Dalton until we decided to listen to my Garmin Nuvi GPS which siderailed us with a 1.5 hour delay because of poor alternate routing...Once in Dalton, everything was once again under control and relaxed. Matt McMaster and I met up with Mark Sackett, Mike Pierce and some friends from Charleston, Ken Privette and Mike Wagers who were there for their first battle with the Snake...During dinner we shared information on how to handle the mountains all the while thinking of how we were going to ride it ourselves. I went up with a plan to keep it slow for the first 20 miles and then increase my power output incrementally. I stuck with the plan and did not deviate as I had also had similar advice from Dave Hall in regards to how to tackle this 34 miles of trail. My friends weren't so sure it was the best plan, but it was my plan and I wanted to try and stick to something which has been working well for me lately. After a great night's sleep at the Quality Inn, we went down and had some free breakfast and hit the road. Upon arrival for registration, the weather was already looking positively better. I was still cold and had several layers on, but not as many as in February. After some chatting around the fire and loading up our bikes on the transport trailers, we hopped in the big bus and rolled upwards towards our 34 mile destination...No sooner had we gotten comfortably numb on the bus, we were dumped out and made ready to ride....Not wanting to stand around and wait for my legs to start tightening up, I quickly jumped in the takeoff line and before I knew it, I had started my challenge on Snake Creek Gap once again!

I felt a bit mentally cloudy and not yet entirely responsive...but some quick climbs and rapid downward acceleration made sure I was in the game for now... After a few miles, I noticed my tire pressure was too high and my new I9 wheels were definitely stiffer than my old ones...I also think I may have used the wrong tire for the current condition of the trail as it was loose and sandy, nothing like the conditions in February. Cruising along on a open fireroad climb, I come across Mike Wagers who had the deer in the headlights look in his eyes...been there, felt that-not a good feeling...I arrive at the dreaded raging creek of doom and discover that it is a little less than knee deep and pull a wicked wheelie and charge right through it. I come out fairly dry with nothing soaked at all! I continue onwards and keep picking my way through early casualty traffic, always checking my speed and keeping a steady pace...I come up on Ken Privette who is hunched over, grunting, and pedaling like a man on a mission. I mutter something positive to him and continue onwards. I reach the 10 mile mark and clean lots of climbs I had previously walked up. I find a few that I still had to walk on, but most of my walking time was spent running up those climbs to keep my time low. My plan was working well and I was well and working. Upon hitting mile 15, something seem to have messed up the strike plate underneath my shoe cleat and it would no longer engage in the right pedal. I did not want to stop, so I kept pedaling along trying to think of what to do. After doing a fast and messy one footed descent at mile 17, I decided to pull over into the woods and fix my cleat properly. Tools were pulled out, cleat was removed, faulty strike plate was removed and disposed of. All parts reassembled and I was back under way, but with a massive time loss. Matt caught up to me while working on my show and he looked strong. Shortly thereafter, Mark came flying by trailing Namrita Odea who seemed to be having a stellar day. I really wanted to keep up with everyone, but my plan was to keep it slow for a few more miles and on top of that, my legs were cold again from the maintenance stop. I got back into a rhythm and just kept cruising along focusing on the ride and the scenery....After a few more miles, I ran back into Matt who was having some possible hydration issues with severe onset of cramping. I urged him to eat and drink and pace himself for awhile which he did, but shortly caught back up with me. For a while, he was moving along and seemed to be having a good recovery. I reached my first planned destination which is the 21 mile gravel road climb which meant I was "allowed" to increase my attack speed a little based on my overall feeling. I felt great, so I started a nice tempo climb up the gravel road passing a few geared riders along the way. After a few minutes of this, I mentioned to Matt how nice this climb is when the weather is right, but heard nothing behind me. I looked back to realize I had dropped Matt never to see him again until after the race. I knew what had happened as it has happened to me several times in the past. Matt's cramps onset and then returned much harder than before, not allowing even the slightest pedaling to occur. I pedaled onward pushing those thoughts of him suffering out of my head just wanting to keep myself together for the next 10 miles...I rode onwards at a nice clip, playing in the switchbacks, taking on the rock gardens whenever safely possible and passing lots and lots of riders cramping and near cramping in the woods. I started to push myself harder only to find out I did not have a lot to give at once, so I eased up a little and then held on to whatever cadence I had. I would attack climbs, and hug the closest tree near the top of each one for about 30 seconds to recover and then move forward. I did this for the next few miles pulling myself off trees and hugging them to hold me while my heartrate was back under control. I trudged onwards until I saw the 4 mile mark at which point I started pedaling like a madman! I ran up climbs which I could not pedal up and quickly worked my way through lots of small rock gardens and tight singletrack. The descents worked my arms and the neverending 4 miles of trail left worked on my mind. I kept looking for the radio tower on the mountain which meant the race had only 2 more miles to go, but it would not come up! After some major frustration and some near falls on the sharp rocks, the radio tower appeared and the rest of the way was sprint history for me. I worked as hard as possible knowing I could rest on the downhill return on the highway. I hit 40 mph on the downhill straights and really felt glad to have finished.

Upon arriving, I jumped in line for food, water and sat back in the nice warm sun and soaked it all in. What a well organized event! Great volunteers, very nice and approachable. The crowd at the end was thick with talent all having completed their time trials in much less time for certain. I received my results with a time of 4hrs:26mins and deducted my previous time was 45 minutes longer than this time around. I felt great about the improvement and just smiled for the rest of the day....its good to have closure.

Cheers to Matt McMaster for a great ride although he worked much harder this time around... Hang in there Matt, its good to learn this stuff early in the season.
Cheers to Mark Sackett for another consistent result time. Man, you are getting STRONG!
Cheers to Mike Pierce for a good solid ride with only a rear brake! INSANE!
Cheers to Ken Privette for entering and completing his first Snake Creek Gap Time Trial...
Honorable Mention to Mike Wagers for attempting the Snake...some more offroad time in the saddle will transform you into a mountain loving kinda guy, my friend...don't give it up!

Cheers,
Joel

12 Hours of pain, 'er I mean Santos

2010-02-23T13:28:00.005-05:00

Being that it has been rainy, snowy and just downright cold and mucky in Charleston, I had been quite sick of the cold and wet stuff, so when the calendar showed 12 Hours of Santos coming up, I was more than ready to take the trip down south for a day and bask in the predicted warmth of the sun....Talk about perfect weather! Rode down with Dave and Robert in the coolest road trip van on the planet ready for a great day of riding on Saturday. Uneventful smooth trip down south with the temperature climbing steadily as we drove. Arriving in great time, we setup camp, watched the freeriders blasting off the jumps and went for a few pre-race laps...My legs felt great! I felt great...I guess being on a road bike for the last 2 months with nonstop headwinds really makes you appreciate the vacuum-like quality of a tight, fast, twisty trail with little or no wind resistance. It was definitely worth the trip. I took a decent speed lap, then another at a lower speed, then played for a while on the rocky stuff looking for easy climb lines...Took time off the bike, waited for Mark, Mike and Nick to roll in and watched Niner & everyone else setup for awhile and hastily went for our annual Mexican food feast. I order 2 entrees with extra guacamole to make sure I had plenty in the tank for tomorrow's adventure and ate every bit of it. That night, the usual Santos campout revelry occurred at a much higher volume than last year possibly due in some part to an alleged conspiracy to keep everyone awake and miserable throughout the night. I heard Dave planning a revolt outside my tent and lots of mutual agreement, but I was so tired from the past week's lack of sleep due to work, that I greeted Morpheus with open arms...

Saturday came up nice and smooth until some of our guys started honking their car horns to annoy the other camps, oh well...The organizers of Santos(GoneRiding.com) had a great breakfast spread laid out for the riders complete with oatmeal, coffee, cheese danish and cereal! I ate happily and got suited up for a full day's worth of riding. Have you noticed yet, how I have not complained once about cold weather? It was THAT warm! It was a great day for a race. As always, from that moment on, everything went into fast forward and before I knew it I was running up a hill with a bunch of other nuts in search of our bikes to hastily make our way onto the singletrack express. I actually got into the woods pretty smoothly and proceeded to tag onto some steadily paced riders. The pain train rolled onwards without any major issues through lap#1. I skipped pitting since I did not need anything vital and went out for a full fresh lap. After opening up the legs a bit more throughout lap#2, I realized this was going to be an excellent day for me as I did not have any signs of hesitation when demanding more power. I eased back to make sure I would make it and settled into a very nice pace. I rode strong through lap#4 and then suffered a major setback which possibly cost me a chance at the podium...chain snap! Upon leaving the twisty singletrack, you enter back into a section of the "Vortex" before making your way back to the pit area. The Vortex is a mixture of tight turns and punchy uphill climbs. I went to redline the heartrate to get up the climb, fast and quickly, when my chain snapped without warning. I spun out but thanks to the steady platform of my new Time ATAC pedals, I was able to keep from smacking my knees and "tenders" on any section of my frame. I quickly unclipped pulled my bike over to the side and tried to assess what to do. I looked for the broken chain link, but could not find it. I was not sure what to do, as I could not fix it immediately and wasted a large amount of time making a decision. I finally stuck with just running the bike through the remainder of the lap and fixing it once in the pit area. I ran in, fixed the bike, got back on and took off again trying to makeup for lost time. I actually fell back into a rhythm and decided I would probably be dead last, but I was determined to finish my goal of at least 10 laps. Lap#10 came up quick and next thing I knew there was still plenty of time for more laps! I hooked up my Ayup lights(which worked perfectly) and took off for more pain. Santos was really starting to abuse me around this time as the lava rocks in the course are unforgiving and staggered to make it hard to float over them with precision so I slowed down. 2 singlespeeders caught and passed me in lap#11, and I worked hard to pass them back. We played like this for a while at the beginning of Lap#12 and then I finally noticed both guys suffering in different sections of the trail due to major cramps which allowed me to pass and drop them with ease. I was also feeling weak, but not that weak....I came in off Lap#12 at 9:23 and decided to not go back out for another lap since I thought both of the other guys were 1 lap up on me anyways. I later found out that only one of them was a lap up, so I could have clinched 4th place! If it were not for my chain breaking, I may have had a chance for 3rd place and that would have been fantastic, but nonetheless, this race was a major victory for me to actually tackle and finish a 12 hour endurance race which was truly an unknown to me.

Overall, my hands were hamburger meat, my legs were cooked, and my rear end was chaffed beyond belief, but my passion for lap racing grew a little more. I learned more about what kind of strategy I should try next time as well as how to eat & drink a bit more efficiently. My goal was to complete a 12 hour race with at least 10 laps. I more than satisfied that goal and certainly look forward to next year! I could not have even come close to this goal if it wasn't for Dave Hall's coaching tips and his leading of the WBL this winter which was hosted by the Charleston Bicycle Shoppe. Thanks to Mike from Niner bikes to assist me in the pit area when in need of some quick thinking and reconfiguring of my lights for the night laps, he really helped me out when I just could not think straight anymore.

12 Hours of Santos is quickly becoming one of my favorite races of the year, not only because of the warmth of Florida, but also because of the great people who come down to race, assist, and just generally be a part of it all. Did I mention all the cool looking bikes rolling around out there? Awesome stuff!

Results here:http://www.goneriding.com/2010/12%20hours%20of%20Santos/results/12HOURSOLO.htm

No GPS stats available since it went berzerk at around lap#2.
I believe I may have killed it at the Snake Creek Gap in the nasty elements. :(

Up next, The Snake Creek Gap Time Trial#3!

Cheers,
Joel

Snake Creek Gap TT #2

2010-02-08T22:40:00.021-05:00

I cannot believe how tough this first race of the season has been for me. After hearing the horror stories of just how extremely cold it was back at Snake Creek Gap TT #1, I was really worried about becoming a stranded frozen popsicle out in the Chattahoochee National Forest....I really thought I was prepared for what was to come, but I do not think I was even close...mentally nor physically.

Backpedaling in the story, you, the reader, must understand that I have been road training(basically being pummeled by macho roadies who love to drop neophytes such as myself in 15-20mph headwinds at paces above 23-25mph avg), working furiously on a new software feature, indoor spinning, and buying a new home all at the same time. Not to mention that Mother Nature and the unknown forces at work have been pummeling the Earth with massive amounts of rainfall, therefore rendering useless what minimal amounts of local trails we do have! It had not been an easy January...Then closing on our new house(yay!) and realizing we must evacuate our current house(doh!) made the start of race season that much more complicated. So, my "rest" week before the Snake was spent lifting lots and lots of heavy boxes, then working until 4 or 5 in the am, waking at 10am and then doing it again...and still doing it now. I do believe the best night's sleep I received was at the hotel before the race through the Pinhoti Trail System...

So, where was I? Oh yeah, Matt McMaster and myself headed up to Dalton Georgia late on Friday arriving just in time to get some late chow and meeting up with Mike Pierce and Mark Sackett to discuss Saturday's race strategies. Mark mentioned the rainfall would more than likely have a serious affect on the initial creek crossing which had been a frosty nuisance in January. I hoped he was wrong on that one. He also mentioned some serious rock gardens which were close to impossible to climb entirely while in the saddle. I shuddered to think about rock gardens along a ridegeline with temps forecast into the upper 30s...We did all agree that the overall temperature was better than January, but we knew of no other elements which were within our control...off to sleep I went with too many unknowns in my mind.

Saturday came fast and furious as expected...a minor setback, was the discovery that breakfast at the Courtyard Dalton was not complimentary and we had no time left to enjoy a waited breakfast. I simply gobbled up assorted cookies and breakfast bar items and we all set out hurriedly to meet the Snake Creek Gap challenge...41 degrees at the start...Arriving a bit late for initial registrants, we found ourselves rushed from one line to another to get our bib numbers and free tshirts (nice shirts Northwest Georgia SORBA!) and nice cloth maps of the Pinhoti Trail system, which will be mounted on a wall under glass in the future. We then found ourselves being shuttled up towards the start point in a super nice heated luxury RV which I was reluctant to get out of when approaching our destination. After waiting a few moments for our bikes to show up, it was time to say our good lucks and start on our solo adventures.

The Time Trial is setup to have 15 second gaps between riders in order to not have as many riders all scrambling for the same trail space at any given moment. It was an interesting and pleasant way to start the race. Mark took off first, then some other riders, then Matt, then more riders, then it was my turn and last, but not least, Mike. My thoughts kept going forward to the creek crossing: should I ride thru? or walk it barefoot? After some initial warm up climbing for the first mile or so, I arrived at the first creek crossing and my choice was made for me. The water was on the brink of unpassable. It was really coming through thick! My first thought was: there is no way I am gonna get across. Matt was already across. Then, I see some people strip off their shoes, hike on their bike and start sloshing across, getting pushed sideways by the heavy currents, then going deeper, deeper and then coming up and out of it. No WAY! Before my mind could convince me to turn around, I quickly took off my neoprene booties, shoes and socks, stuffed them in my jacket and started across. The creek pushed me sideways and I really had to push my way across...up came the water past my knees, up it came further...oh yeah, past my waist...still inching higher...oh there it goes...mid chest...COLD! I started to slosh faster and just as quickly as I dipped into it, I re-emerged soaking wet from lower mid chest down...so much for staying as dry as possible. My extra socks were soaked, but they were wool(Wigwams rock!), so I immediately wrung them out and slid them on. Mike comes across soaked through. The wind was quickly letting me know just how wet I was, so it was vital to cover up as quickly as possible. 2 pairs of semi-soggy socks, shoes and soggy neoprene booties back in place, I jumped on the bike and take off again to make up for lost time and build my body heat back up. Did I mention there were 2 more back and forths on that creek? I rode through one which went midway up my frame...soaked already, so it no longer mattered. I quickly forgot about the creek crossings as I then entered the no-man's land of mucky climbing, John's Mountain...

I realized at this point that I had selected a gear which was too high

for the circumstances that followed. I kept getting really bogged down in the mud and muck from the water pouring down the mountains. It was the most frustrating climbing situation I believe I have ever encountered. I would jump off and walk, but slip and sink deeper into the mud. I finally found a balancing point which made me maintain a certain speed, either walking or pedaling whenever I could. This went on for the next 10-15 miles. Pedal, get some speed going, approach climb with intensity, bog down, standup pedal lightly, bog down further and spin out from my tall gear choice...walk. Lots of hike-a-biking...After some mindless muck madness, I finally catch up to Matt who seems to be having the same issues except he is geared...but I notice he is spending more time in the saddle than I am which is good for him. We ride together for a while and then I fade/walk, then I catch up again, then take off on some nice singletrack. It goes on like this for about 5 miles...I ride his wheel for a while, then notice we are on a super nice ridge and decide to stop and eat something at the view. The stop was nice, the mountains were beautiful, light snow was falling and the food was sweet and energy filled. I slog on. More creek crossings! I suppose this is why it's called Snake Creek as it winds along like a coiled up rattle snake in various corners of the trail and then it stings you when you are not expecting. Yes, at this point, I got "stung"...Upon nearing the final creek crossing in a series of switchbacks, there were several rocks jutting about in the water, which I did see and hit anyways. It was the "your body goes where you look" type scenario. I saw the rocks and headed right into them. I hit them, rolled over a few, lost momentum, stopped short and fell sideways clipped in into the shallow creek. Soaked and a little bruised, I quickly getup, check myself, and continue onwards. Yelling at myself for getting sloppy, I take off again finding some nice gravel road climbs to make up some lost time on. I catch up to Matt again at a last chance rest stop before the entry into the rock gardens...I skip the rest stop as I am fully fueled and starting to get a chill as the temps are falling. Mile 22, and I ride onwards through some really nice singletrack. It then starts to weave up and down, work, reward, repeat. I enter the rock gardens and entertain my mind manuevering through the jagged terrain. I descend through it all and clean so much of it, that I actually start to begin having some fun! Overconfident, I realize that was just a warmup. As I hit mile 26-27, I see more rocks, more jagged edges, rocks in the turns, both inside and outside...I start to make small mistakes. I fall again, but it is a simple clean tumble. I realize I was lucky. I stop to assess my situation. I am getting colder, my body is not responding nearly as well as I had hoped, and my gloves are soaked thru and starting to freeze. I am sleepy tired, and feel sick to my stomach(mild hypothermia?). My emergency Snickers bar is frozen solid, which I force eat anyways. Not good. I start walking through sections which seem dangerous and simply look for clean lines only, no more challenges. I then start to have a few mechanicals with my chain. I guess the extreme torqueing I was doing on earlier climbs made my EBB slip and my chain was loose. I stopped once to slip it back on and tried to fix it, but my fingers were so numb that I could not feel my tools or work my fingers for that matter. So I simply slip the chain on and ride with less side-to-side vigor. It works for about 3 more miles and then chain off again. As I was putting it back on again, Matt comes rolling up and agrees this rock garden is for superhuman MTBers only...I tell him to keep going and don't stop. He disappears onward...I keep a cautious pace to keep my chain on and finally reach the radio tower. Back to gravel, back to roads and onwards to the finish...half frozen, ridiculously tired, I roll in 5 hours and 11 minutes later...

Mark was there already changed and looking much warmer than I feel. I start to shake uncontrollably and rush straight to my car to change. It hurts more to strip down than it did to remain in my wet cold clothing, but it was necessary. After a bowl of free chili and some talk about the trail and conditions around the fire pit, I start to realize I am not feeling any better or warmer. We wait for Mike to roll in, I say my goodbyes and Matt and I jump in the truck, jam on the heat and roll out. The ride back was another adventure in staying awake, but Matt shared the workload and just like that, we were back home and off to our own worlds again....

Snake Creek Gap Time Trial was very well organized, good support and overall great attitudes for the weather being what it was...Thanks to all the volunteers and organizers who help keep the Snake alive!

Up next....Santos.....

Snake Creek Gap final round next month? Only if those temps inch upwards: playing in the cold is for penguins and polar bears...

No Cowbell Challenge for 2010

2010-01-08T21:33:00.002-05:00

Ok...pretty sad to read about it, but CowBell 2010 is no more. Why? Lack of sponsors, internal issues and tough times ahead for many a small company....Why so sad? Well for one, I had my heart set on winning a cowbell this year...yes its a selfish reason, but that little cowbell is so symbolic of a greater accomplishment...it is symbolic of coming back after giving up last year being so close to having earned it....Also sad because it was such a popular race for all who came and knew each other, also sad because of the amount of the money brought in that was given to good causes...sigh...Goodbye Cowbell...

http://cowbellchallenge.wordpress.com/

A moment to reflect....

2010-01-07T21:02:00.005-05:00

Well, the end of the year just came and went in a blinding fury of "whooosh"! Just like that, it's almost the middle of January....and what does that mean? Well it should mean I should be pedaling my butt off getting ready for the upcoming season of off-road cycling racing fun! Ok, I am kinda, but not really pushing it to the point that a pro should, being how I am simply not pro, but having fun at an amatuer level regardless I am trying to find the balance between family, work and fun...of course racing is my fun...

Turkey Day & Xmas were great, family visits were wonderful, eating lots of great foods was also wonderful, time off the bike was ok, but I do miss a day out in the deep woods just pedaling along...spent some nice time with my Aunt & Uncle in Charlotte, rode the train to downtown which was exciting.

Work is constantly evolving and we find ourselves with many feature requests in queue, which are sometimes difficult to accomplish, but worth the effort when the results equate to a newfound spike in sales...also have some cool new "hush-hush" integration ideas I have been working on which may gain a few more interest points of recommendation...

We are also closing on a new house Yay! Which means funds may be limited for the meantime to focus on unexpected or unforeseen expenses...but the newer living space will mean more freedom for us to spread our wings and hopefully dig our roots in...I am trying to continue focusing on the cycling calendar which really helps me escape some of the reality of adult responsibility and icky stuff like that...unfortunately, the 2010 calendar may all be tentative this year since the new house thing is coming into fruition much faster than expected...

Family is doing excellent, can't complain. Raven is getting taller and stronger... I am going to be helping coach her soccer team this spring which is new territory to me, but I am really excited to be involved with her sports activities! Wifey is wonderful as usual, keeping us all healthy with her new Superfoods nutrition program. Hopefully this winter freeze will release us so we can go on some nature hikes or bikes.

Currently trying to attend the WBL series which Dave Hall leads out on Sundays, but I always find an obstacle blocking the way. Either work on a Saturday, or 12 degree temps which hinder my ability to pedal properly(although many showed up to the ride last Sunday despite the cold). When I do actually ride one of the WBLs. I really have a great time! So I am going to try not missing the next few since the WBL is probably about over...but definite thanks to Dave for letting us tag along on his strength building program which he is literally allowing everyone to sample....

So, if all goes according to plan, we should be moved out by month's end and putting all the pieces together in the new hacienda throughout February which has a few preregistered races already in motion. Nothing I can do about these races since early registration grabs the discount rates...so I will try and do my best, and hopefully my stress level won't become too much of a factor at events...it may actually help me find an outlet... :)

I have new race wheels which are on the way to give some offtime to the current ones in need of servicing...new pedals also on the way to rid myself of the CrapBrothers EggBeaters...not much else new I believe since most of my components held up great through last season except for the 2 sets of Crank Brothers pedals I went through and not from abuse, but from actual wear...Gonna try Time ATAC this season and hope to not have to focus on pedal spring failures...doh, I am rambling...

Regardless, I will be posting more blog-matter to keep my legion of blog-followers satisfied...you know who you are!

Cheers,
Joel

Swank 65

2009-11-10T10:31:00.003-05:00

What an absolutely different Epic Race this was when compared to last year's freezing temps and unknown race course. Moonlight camping, lots of stars, perfect weather, good vibes, good friends, gourmet campfire cooking with my wonderful support Wifey. Listening to spooky stories ala iPod upon falling asleep under the bright moonlight. Waking up to great coffee and the nervousness that comes from pre-race tensions and anxiety and excitement! It's full-0n energy overload! Yes, I did suffer miserably for a short period of time challenging myself against Farlow, but only because of my own bone-headed mistakes, nothing more. I did not train like I did for ORAMM, and I did not come fully nutritionally prepared, but only because this is a really fun-race and nothing more. 33x23t was a good choice for this event due to the high frequency of climbing, but I may be a little more daring in the future and gear up higher to get up climbs a little faster...

Mark Sackett had planned to lead us through the starter of the race to get us a good position at the first climb. Unfortunately, I knew his pace was very strong and a bit higher than my current threshold would maintain, so I told him I was going to lay back and pace cruise up until the first official climb. It was good strategy and I am starting to really understand the importance behind it. Race start was LeMans with a forward roll which was hilarious: if someone did catch that on their camera, I beg you to delete it.

Cove Creek was a bit logjammed, so there were 2 choices to make, charge ahead and pass aplenty, or cruise along and pass when necessary...I simply cruised along. My legs felt great, body was feeling good, but my head was foggy, so a slow pace really was for me at the moment.

I continued on this pace, averaging 8.5-9 mph until the first climb up 475. I stopped for a very short moment at RS#1 to remove a thermal layer and continue forward. The climb was smooth short and fast. I storm through RS#2 no need for any refills. 13 miles in, legs feeling great! Did I mention the reststops? They were great! Maybe a little too nice...made me wanna stop and relax at each and every one...but I digress as this is a race recap and forward momentum must be maintained...Downhill to Butter Gap...smooth sailing, loving this high speed descent! Butter Gap flows along and I clean almost everything I challenge my legs with. It's looking like a great day for riding. 475 comes along much too quickly and I excitedly realize I am climbing again with a good constant speed. Oops, I am out of water. By skipping RS#2 earlier I had depleted all of my reserves inbetween Buter Gap and Long Branch. 8.6 m,ph avg here...No worries, I am almost back up to RS#2. I arrive parched and worried about the lapse inbetween water. I guzzle down fluid from my reststop supplies only to find out I guzzled some Heed which just does not agree with my system at times. I eat, drink some clear water, jump back on the bike and start climbing Pilot Mtn Rd up towards Farlow....Well, well now...20 miles out and here comes a fast onset of the most serious cramps I have felt in quite some time. Both legs involuntarily seize within seconds of each other leaving me standing straight legged, staring out at the beautiful views that come with this climb listening to other racers pass me by, some quietly mumbling something about insanity and singlespeed in the same sentence...I wait patiently for the return of my legs and calmly drink water and start the death march up to the top of Farlow....I switch back and forth from walking to riding for a large portion of this climb realizing that I am totally bonked and my legs may never come back. At this point, I almost turn around and coast down the climb to quit at RS#2....But like the stubborn goat that I am, I march on, determined to find my legs again. I cruise up to the point of no return at Farlow and lean back, set my sights on the prize and take the plunge. I clean the upper section only to find myself sliding sideways on newly fallen leaves which change the personality of this descent entirely. I find a safe stopping point(meaning, jamming on the brakes and almost crash) whereupon I decide to hike the rest of the way. Lots of other hikers were present and some commented positively on my futile attempt to try and traverse the leaf laden mountain side...I actually pass a few people hiking since I am actually familiar with the creek crossings and the overall distance remaining as well as having rubber soles to grip on stuff (Mavic Contagrips rock!). I once again run out of water and dip into the highest creek stream I can find and drink aplenty. My legs return after a few short minutes with newfound energy ready to take on Daniel Ridge. Man, what is in that Pisgah mountain water?! I start really moving along, trying to make up for lost time. RS#3 comes along with a fresh water refill and nothing else. I eat some honey chews on the way and get another burst of energy, which powers me up until the end of the very last climb up 475b/225. I once again find my legs screaming in misery upon entering the Cove Creek trail within the last few miles, wishing I had more magic Pisgah water... Lots of people strewn up in here with cramps and pain. I zigzag through it all, managing my own pain, focusing on finishing ...time no longer an issue, I finish! Ahh yes, and what is the first thing I see, Wifey's worried look wondering where I have been, Mark and Mike holding beers, already changed, asking what took me so long...sigh, good friends....A few hamburgers, recovery beers and warm fireside conversation, and back to sealevel I went, Wifey leading the way...Thanks Marsha for being there to support and worry about me, you rock!

Total time: 5:46:06

Total miles: 37.81miles

Elevation Gain: 5641ft.

Cheers to Mark Sackett for his outstanding 30th place result!

Cheers to Mike Pierce for his outstanding results even with his wardrobe malfunction!

Todd, Heather; it gets better every year! Thank you for once again organizing this event and giving everyone a chance to goof off in the mountains.

Looking forward to next year guys!

Francis Marion Expedition ala Kawasaki!

2009-10-26T17:47:00.005-04:00

Went out on a super fun off-road excursion earlier today. Dave Hall and I took the motorcycles out for a little trip out and around as many backroads in the Francis Marion forest area as we could find in the time we had. Turns out one too many stops for fun riding over obstacles and exploring obscure trails made for a definite re-visit in the future...There are so many gravel roads out there to explore...Dave also got stuck a few times although he was able to slog out of most of his predicaments. I, unfortunately, got stuck knee deep in some very swampy muck which almost saw me leaving my bike there to return with towing assistance(my truck). Fortunately, Dave remained calm and collected while I impatiently kept tugging away on my sinking motorcycle and thought of a great idea having to do with tons of sticks and brush to make a false floor. It worked long enough to pull the bike over and out of the swamp. Most of the day was spent exploring lots of trail ends leading to various sections of the Santee and North Santee as well as Echaw Creek. So much fun...so little time...more exploring in this area to come.

Total Distance: 104 miles...
Time: 5 hours total including mud jam interruptions...

More details at:
http://imdavehall.blogspot.com/

Garmin GPS Data:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/17169617

Enjoy the pictures!

Mini-Adventure...

2009-10-12T22:17:00.002-04:00

So it started out as a great idea. Get up early, load up bikes, and ride the Palmetto Passage...7 miles...seemed easy...and it was a great idea...initially.

I thought it would also be a great way to take the Raven out on her first ride on her newly built Salsa Moto Rapido mtn bike.

But then, like a pesky friend, chaos took over the driver's seat...and things got a little more hectic...

Somehow, in the fog of the early morning, I ended up changing our initial departure riding point from Buck Hall to the Swamp Fox trailhead. And just like that, we were riding up the Swamp Fox trail at 8:30 in the morning..which seemed ok at the time considering the weather was nice. I figured, a mile up through scenic points of the Swamp Fox trail and then turn around, and fork over to the Palmetto Passage and leave the best part for last...so far, so good..

But, did I mention anything about the mosquitos? Absolutely relentless! At first few miles, not a big deal...but wow, they never ever gave up the fight...not once!

The Raven was the first to spot a snake on our ride. Snake, she yelled as I rode past it much too closely. When I asked her to describe it, she said, brown with diamond markings on it...gulp.

I started to worry that my great idea to get the Wifey and Raven into some nice weather trail riding was much too premature in the season.

After turning around a mile or so into the Swamp Fox trail, we return back to the fork in the trailhead and I decide to simply ride onwards towards the Palmetto Passage...another left turn taken by chaos. I figured it couldn't be too muddy on this part of the trail, so we pedal on. Upon looking back to check on the family, they heft big smiles letting me know they were having fun or at least smiling for me to let me know they were with me....Then I hear the Wifey say something about a tree going after her and then "oof!". Wifey hit a tree, but had a great recovery and we were back pedaling away. Raven trudges through some muddy lines and holds up the Wifey who is starting to pedal like a pro through the muddy stuff. It was classic lowcountry trail riding. I really wish I had brought my camera. We cross the highway and enter the Palmetto Passage with the family still showing a good deal of energy left...The Palmetto Passage is definitely a must repeat for cooler weather since everyone was really enjoying this part of the ride...

Remember those pesky mosquitos? Well, they certainly don't give up the fight easily. All of the nice scenic stops I had planned on making basically did not happen. We simply charged through each and every break point only to stop on top of a windy bridge long enough to hydrate and take a break from blood loss...Raven wrecks once into a tree and holds back the tears and continues onward. We reach Buck Hall and briefly rest to catch our breath. At this point I realize it is getting very hot, much hotter than was forecast for the day... I round up the troops and we set off cruising along at a good pace. The Wifey blazes ahead with a newfound set of legs and sets a pace that Raven simply cannot hold, so I bring up the tail end to keep everyone in check...The Wifey clears some roots on a climb which simply leave me amazed while looking back Raven gets off to walk...all the while mosquitos are eating us alive...literally. I tell here to get back on as soon as possibly and keep moving...The Wifey later announces she has just seen a snake on the trail about 50 feet ahead with a mixture of screaming and excitement in her voice. The Raven and I plunder on carefully making our way forward. I take back lead point and start pacing us closer to the end constantly reminding everyone that it is ok to walk over obstacles that they do not feel comfortable riding over. The Wifey seems to have taken to mountain biking overnight as she attacks another rooty uphill climb with positive determination. I stop and stare at her in awe as she flies up the climb only to stop a few feet short of the top and discover she is geared too high. She falls over, tangled up in her bike in a nasty looking pile. I wince watching it happen and then we help her recover. She gets up and keeps on moving! Wifey is on a mission! Raven cannot believe her mom is a mtb maniac! We finally exit the Palmetto Passage and we try riding up the side of the highway to shortcut our way back to the car, but Wifey finally succumbs to her rampant energy bursts and hides out in a shady rest while she commands me to continue onward and bring her chariot to her. I proceed, pick the family up and head back home..

17 miles of mosquito laden lowcountry trail fun was had...Overall, a great day!

Cheers to my Wifey and the Raven for riding as hard as they did...

Next family ride: Marrington(hopefully on a cooler day)

Captains Log; Stardate 63216.1

2009-10-01T11:01:00.004-04:00

Seems I haven't written much in a while...while it may seem that not much has been going on, there actually has...

Life has been going on. Regular, busy life...

News which has been rocking our boat of life:

First, I broke my toe. Yes, its broke and I can't figure out how to get it to heal without sitting dead calm still...its quite an annoyance. I broke it surfing trying to stand up too fast for a wave and jammed it into the top of my board...I thought it was jammed, but I cannow clearly see it is broken, all swollen and different looking... Hitting it into all sorts of corners only helps me verify the toe exists. i thought it was done healing recently, but a weekend event last week left it really puffy and not feeling all too well...

The Wifey has been going through a major case of kidney stones... From what she describes, its like giving birth all over again...ouch! Anyways, its a bit different having to adjust to running out to get her meds, handling some of the indentured Wifey's chores as well as just being there for her to "hug". I really do feel for her...especially when she had one pass a day before our Waves to Wishes 5k run....so now she is on meds for most of October and has been told via doctors orders to chill out...

Awaiting exciting news for one major "secret" event which is currently going on involving living arrangements for the Wifey and I.

Adopted a new pet into the family...a Green Cheeked Conure Parrot we named Mr. Bean because of his silly antics...so far, he has really fit in well with our current menagerie of animals...
All other animals are doing fine and receiving considerable attention and care as well...

Cello practice has hit a wall...I am learning long stretch positions for flat notes on the first position...needless to say, there is pain involved and it really has me frustrated... simply means more practice, more focus.

Work is moving along...always lots to do in software land...Writing some really cool features for more secure multi-threaded SSL related communications which I had wanted to integrate for quite some time now...also dabbling with a bit of low volume eCommerce stuff which may make our software more powerful in the foreseeable future...

Bought a lightly used Dual-Sport motorcycle from Dave Hall. Its a really well kept mini-green machine Kawasaki KLX 250. Since it had a kickin new aftermarket pipe on it, jetting was needed. I ordered a new jet kit from it and knocked that out in a day. What a difference that made! This bike is great! Lots of off-road power, and I can simply ride from my house right to the trail head in under 15 minutes. I have been out a few times recently and hope to get some more time in out there since it just begs to be ridden, and it keeps my broken toe stationary in a stiff boot.

Finally was able to license both motorcycles, both the BMW and the Kawasaki...now both are fully street legal! woohoo!

Participated in the Folly Beach Challenge Triathlon. Did miserably in the kayaking portion, probably because I used my giant aluminum canoe, Did ok on the bike portion since I am an ok spinner, and did really miserably on the running portion. Left me spent and hurting. Did I mention my toe was broken? Not planning any more of these events anytime soon. I really like biking, and running is ok for small events, but combine them all up with some kayaking/swimming and you really have to be in tip-top condition...and nowhere in my hectic little world is there such time to alot to multiple sports...and probably a bit too late in life to get into super multi-sports...

Speaking of sports, the Raven is now fulltime on the soccer bandwagon.. After wanting to call it quits early in the season, I went out with her for a little one on one training (broken toe and all) and taught her fundamental basics on different passes, attacks, control techniques and the essence of defense strategy to help give her the foundation she missed. Upon attending her next scrimmage match, the coach came up and asked what happened, since the Raven was on fire! She was a totally different player! I was so proud! So, soccer is our current family focus with her and she has a massive schedule of events coming up for this sport...so it will definitely keep us entirely too busy for the months to come...

Since I am canceling all of next month's racing activities because of my increasingly weakening athletic abilities(broken toe, broken spirit), family has planned to sneak in some simple convenience camping sometime in October...looking forward to this...

Built the Raven a new bike...Salsa Moto-Rapido with some nice farkles...21lbs ready for some fall XC fun...i think she is gonna love it...

Bought some new shoes to replace the Bontrager RXL Dutch-boy clogs I was so enamored with. What a disappointment those shoes were...I now entirely associate the word "Bontrager" with "Pain". Replaced them with some super comfortable Mavic Chasm shoes...the difference is night and day! Rubber Tread, Carbon Sole, nice arched inners, excellent fit. Superb workmanship has gone into the Mavics and I really look forward to great times spent in them...

hoping to get back on the bike soon and just remember what it was I was trying to accomplish before all the dust started flying...a weekend in DuPont sounds really nice right now...sigh...

River's Edge Thoughts...

2009-09-02T10:57:00.002-04:00

The River's Edge Marathon despite my shortcomings was a well organized and very fun event. I will definitely be looking forward to it next year. Instant race updates and great support during the event really make this a happening race.

It turns out the guy that broke his hip was on Goat Hill which was a rocky climb section, and overall slippery early in the morning...I got through that section by hike-a-biking up it on my first lap... I wish him a speedy recovery and hope to see him racing again soon...

Overall, the trails were fun and fast and once dry, really let me bike hookup on the corners. The USNWC is one of my favorite trail systems when visiting relatives in the Charlotte area. It is amazing how tough they can be after a few nonstop laps on them.

I believe a large reason('excuse') for my performance hit was that I had not properly recovered from the previously raced events. I had just finished ORAMM, and Fools Gold, both of which are giants to accomplish outright for someone like myself. I also think going out surfing from Thursday-Sunday the week prior to River's Edge in hurricane surf for 4-5 hours each morning did not help. I think I have to learn to consider my past actions as well as the future when deciding to race these events since my overall fitness level in the "now" does not always dictate how I will do 4 hours into such an event. I guess I am going to have to learn more about tapering and preparation.

Sleep deprivation may/may not have had such a large impact on my performance, but I am thinking it did. I will have to monitor my sleep levels more carefully and determine what I truly need to have a stellar day...

Once again, I need to refactor my nutrition... My friend Mark is a die-hard user of Infinit liquid nutrition and I may start using this product soon to get used to it before the 12 hours of Unicoi. This will be my first 12 hour and I really want to NOT worry about my stomach clogging up with crap, which is what my gut felt like 3 hours into both Fool's Gold as well as River's Edge...Honey and water seem to really unclog my system, so I am sticking with those. Electrolytes kind of just felt like they sat in my stomach...Less electrolytes may be the key to help keep my system normalized, but I just don't know without further experimentation..so I am going to go simpler in my upcoming training rides.

SHOES....my new shoes hurt so much I am going to be changing them out as soon as this post is done. I had been riding SIDI Dragons for the last 2 years without any issues whatsoever, when they finally felt apart after the Cowbell Challenge scorching heat race... I then went to my LBS and purchased some nice new blingy Bontrager RXLs with lots of toe box room...Well, lets just say what's good for some is not always good for me. Not only will these shoes not tighten down enough to hug my foot, the cleat positioning is still too far forward on the backmost setting which puts my hold over the front of my foot instead of where I was used to it previously, stressing a totally different set of leg muscles. They also have a terribly wide heelcup which makes me feel like I am wearing large flipflops when off the bike and hiking. Partly to blame is the fact that they are fully carbon undersole and stiff as concrete. Power to the pedal is the only thing that these shoes do well. If you are a superhuman biker and never consider getting off your bike to push, these shoes might be right for you, but not for me. Because the ankle strap cannot be repositioned, they dug into my right upper foot pretty badly. I still have a tender lump where the ankle strap meets my foot and cannot even put them back on to do a recovery ride. So I am now considering new pricey SIDIs or some Mavics with the rubber sole for hiking....Cannot wait to get the shoe issue straightened out to get on with my riding...Sheesh!

So to wrap this blathering all up, lets review; recovery, sleep, nutrition, and properly fitting shoes should be my focal points...like I said before, "The learning never ever ends"...

Rivers Edge 50 Mile Marathon...

2009-08-30T23:04:00.003-04:00

The personal learning just never ever ends...you think I would know all there is to know about myself by now, but it just never seems to end...

First off, it is now a fact that I do not do well without a proper night's sleep. I can work all night on software projects and really fascinate myself with some of the solutions I come up with, but I cannot actually go to sleep and then wake up in the middle of a heavy REM cycle and start performing properly again.

The Rivers Edge 50 Mile Marathon at US National Whitewater Center was not a race I was planning on entering, but being that I knew the course so well, I was curious to see how it would go for me racing from memory. Well, with no real preparation, the battle was over before it started...

I left the house at 4am on Saturday morning and drove my caffeinated butt up to Charlotte, NC for the race. I was prepacked and very organized before getting to bed and left in a seemingly awake state. The drive up was very uneventful. So far, so good...

About 10 minutes before I arrive at the USNWC, I start to feel groggy. Not good..I park, start unloading my cooler and simply stare at my equipment before me for about 5 solid minutes in complete and utter indecision. This was the first sign! (I definitely was not entirely awake).

I finally start toting some of my stuff down to the feed area since this was a lap race and I had to setup my station for my bottles and food. I find a spot way down at the far end and upon returning to my car to suit up, I run into Stephen Janes of Siren Bicycles! He greets me and offers me a spot under his feed station tent and I move my stuff over there. I meet his friend OJ and his lady friend whose name I cannot recall. Then Mark Sackett shows up with Mike Pierce and his lady friend Krystal...all good friends ready to have some fun racing. At this point, I find out the race has been postponed because of the prior night's rain by an hour, and I simply start to settle back under the tent and forget to start preparing. I start checking out all the cool bikes everywhere, and find out this is the largest single speed group I had ever raced in. I watch everyone shuffle around and suddenly snap to attention, run back to my car, suit up and head back not knowing what to do next. I realize I am in a groggy haze.

Before I know how to snap out of it, the race is being started in a stretched out mass group format...basically a free-for-all! I suddenly wake up knowing if I am not in a good position entering the woods, I will be hike-a-biking, so I start flying up through the pack and find myself a few nice temporary spots and then catch Mark Sackett up ahead doing the same thing...I catch his wheel and start pacing him flying right into the woods on his tail. We find a steady flow for the first 5 minutes and then start encountering lots of mass traffic. Mark starts navigating traffic really well, so I slipstream into his wake and flow past most of the stragglers undetected. This works really well and we end up passing well over 30 people in the process. I know we went into the woods upper lead pack so I start thinking about how hard I am going and try to set my own pace at this time. Mark also eases off the throttle and we find a smooth group of riders cruising at about the same pace. Body feels good, legs feel great, bike is handling perfectly...Now we are racing! Too much fun!

Reality check: This would have worked well if it were not for how eel-skin slippery the trails were because of the rain. People were slipping left and right on any little root in any given spot.

Chaos...

I had not realized the severity of this critical situation even after watching a guy go down nearly 10 riders in front of us (and find out later he had broken his hip)! In my mind, my only concerns were to set and keep my pace, drink often and ride a strong first and second lap, backing off on the third and punching out the last. All of a sudden, I am flat on my left side, helmet grinding across a root face, with my body soaking up the entire blow. The air being forced from my body let out a massive bellow and I simply slid right off the trail into the bushes. I had slipped on a massive angled root. It was over before I knew it and later I would realize the damage that had been done. Some riders from behind witnessed it and stopped to make sure I was alright, shocked by the hard crash they had seen. I simply said go on, I will be fine...(not!) I let/watched 5-6 riders fly by me and limped my way back on my bike hoping I could shake this off. For the time being, I lost my entire focus on the race and simply ghost pedaled my way through the remaining few miles left in lap #1 thinking I should go ahead and DNF. Upon arrival, I decided to not DNF and try and ride a slow second lap to find my pace again. Did not happen...I entered the woods for my second lap and really started to feel the pain setting in. Left hip, elbow, neck, mid back...all over the left side...pain. I cruise through lap# 2 in good form, but the pain was really wearing on me. I enter lap# 3 and think I should have stopped to relax a bit before taking off again, but I really wanted to find my speed again. I lose a ton of energy from my body at this point trying to manage the pain and stop to pop some Advil to help out with that. It seems to make things worse as my legs start locking up and I start getting wicked cramps. Nothing seems to help with the pain and onset of fatigue...

The downward spiral begins...

1/3rd of the way through lap# 3, I start to feel a rush of riders start passing me. I simply had given up the fight. It was not my day to race. I hadn't felt this terribly during a race since Cowbell and only because of extreme heat had that happened. I decided I did not want to DNF, so I start the deathmarch. It was some ugly deathmarch...Stephen Janes catches me at a open spot in the field as I was waiting out some debilitating cramps and looks in great form! He asks if everything was ok and if I needed anything, I say no thanks quickly to him to allow him to keep his speed and he flies by as I cheer him on! A few minutes later, Mike Pierce comes up on me crawling up goat hill and also checks on me. I basically tell him I am not going to quit and will figure out a way to finish this thing...He is also moving along at a great pace! I start back up and do the cramp dance every 2-3 miles pissed at myself for falling, not sleeping enough, not eating enough, possibly overdrinking too much fluid, etc...simply pissed. Fully upset with myself, I feed on that energy and get a little momentum going. I finish Lap# 3 and stop to guzzle down some cold water. Before I let myself relax, I go out for Lap# 4. I find routine in this lap and also a little comfort knowing I won't have to trudge up this trail anymore today. I find myself climbing areas I had not earlier and although still shaky, I am not cramping up as often. I actually clean the clay hill climb from earlier which I had only cleaned during lap# 1. I am shocked that my legs are actually semi-working again. Pissed at myself again for coming back to life so late in the game. I actually felt more in control during this lap than #3. I finish Lap# 4 satisfied I had not quit.

Total Time: 5:58:41
Place: "DFL" (last place SS) :(

Pain factor during race: 85%
Overall in-race fun: 90%

Hanging out with friends after the race: Priceless...(Beer and Advil really helped)

Today I am truly feeling the after effects. MY hip is purple. My elbow slightly bruised and tender and my neck muscles are super sore...my back keeps spasming and my body all over has a truly worked over feel to it. I haven't really felt this poorly after a race in a very long time. Not to mention the scores are posted and I left thinking I was in 15th place to find out I am in DFL place...

This might mean a little time off the bike to let things work their way back into place...but I think its for the best...(we shall see how long that lasts)

more thoughts on this race fiasco to come I am sure...

Cheers...

Daniel Island 5k finale...

2009-08-21T15:15:00.003-04:00

Since I had just ridden a pretty tough race on Saturday, I was just not feeling like running on Thursday, so instead of just quitting altogether, I decided to do something much cooler... I actually paced Marsha through her last 5k run and I believe I helped her gain 2 minutes on her previous times...It was a nice pace for myself and a bit more pressure for Marsha. Overall, it was a good decision for myself as the running helped shake out my legs and keep my heartrate from surging too much. It was a great experience to wrap up the series running along with "wifey" since she is really the reason I am even running in the first place...So, our first 5k series is wrapped up and we are already looking forward to a few more of these little runs, maybe even a 10k in the future....I, myself, have found my stride and feel much more comfortable running and will continue doing so in order to fulfill my cross-training requirements as well as enjoy the simple peace of mind that running gives a person...

Dahlonega, Georgia...

2009-08-21T11:59:00.012-04:00

After my Fool's Gold race writeup, I never really got to write about how nice it was to visit up there in Dahlonega, Ga...It is definitely a hidden gem in the foothills...It's one of those "blink your eyes and you might miss it" driving through type of towns, but it was definitely full of charm! Since I was focusing on the race, I had not been expecting much out of the town I was staying in since there is never really time to take it all in before and usually after a race...

Local Blueberries for dessert!

Good thing I stayed as a guest of the Hall's or I would have never had any relevant information on the town hosting this tough endurance race. Did you know Dahlonega was site for the first real "gold rush" in the US? If you are a Deadwood buff like myself, then this is a neat fact! Anyways, Dave's mom & dad were a treasure trove for information and I really enjoyed their time while there. I actually stayed right down the road from "Dahlonega Square", which is a really nice little square with lots of shops and antiquities nested with restaurants and lots of churches. I was amazed by the number of people frequenting about on Sunday throughout the square. It was filled with motorized mountain goers, family members and lots of casual tourists all centered around a building labeled the Dahlonega Gold Museum.

Speaking of Gold, during the race, I had my head down plenty enough during my long arduous uphill hikes to realize there was a reason for the name of the race. Mostly everywhere I looked, pyrite was littered into the rocks strewn along the trail. Fool's Gold! It was beautiful in the noonday sun. I actually brought home a small nugget for my daughter's rock collection.

During my race on Saturday, around 48 miles in, I passed by some amazing falls very close to Camp Wasega. I believe they were called Black Falls, but I am not sure. Riding up along the river on my bike, the water had slowed up into a dark glassy pool and then suddenly a telltale dividing line where it fell down a smooth edge about 10-20 feet onto the rocks below. It was beautiful and it begged me to stop for a short moment (I really enjoyed stopping). I entertained the notion of staying out there and swimming for a moment, but then came around and started pedaling to the finish once again. I marked it on my GPS, so a casual return visit to the falls will be in order.

Lunch for myself on Sunday was at a slightly shabby little place called Foothills Diner. While I was apprehensive at first, it was pretty tasty for diner food! I will have to go there again next time I am in town.

Dahlonega is definitely a must repeat experience!

Cheers!

Fools Gold 2009

2009-08-17T12:34:00.009-04:00

In a nutshell, Fool's Gold was a lot of "fun" for an endurance race...

To better define an "endurance race" as "fun", it would be better to add descriptors like: pain, intense, excruciating, anguish, fear, suspense, pain, dehydration, nauseous, excitement, speed, hiking, loss of hope, optimism, stubborn tenacity, and more pain...

This race hurt bad....I do believe Dahlonega Georgia has some of the tougher mountain bike trails out there...Bull Mountain to be exact...my lower insides still hurt!

I rode up to Ga with Dave Hall of Terrapin Beer and found ourselves arriving early on Friday with some time to pre-ride the course...It turned out to be quite a wakeup call for me since I was not expecting such tough climbs...33x21 seems too tall now, but I stuck to my choice. The first ascent up Bull Mtn was kind of like a water runoff line going down the mountain with just enough of an edge to dig into with lots of roots and rocks thrown in for a good challenge. I found it immediately impossible to keep my heartrate down and just redlined it all the way up stopping to catch my breath at the top. Dave had charged way ahead of me and falls back to see where I am at and asks if I was also having trouble keeping my heartrate down and we both conclude that this is some pretty relentless climbing...After 10 miles, I finally find my legs and we wrap up 10 more miles including some great rolling singletrack, calling it a day..good fun stuff..

After an excellent night's feast and wonderful quarters as a guest of the Hall residence, 5 am arrives and it is time to race the 50 miler...Of course, this is when everything happens so fast that your head starts to spin, so before I knew it, I was suited up, energized, and sitting in a large pack of racers ready to do the challenge...I roll up to the pack with Mark Sackett and we soon find Stephen Janes awaiting nervously for the start. The 100 milers had just taken off and we were up next. After some chatter, we hear 3-2-1 GO! We are off like a bunch of frantic bees trying to find a way out of the grassy start field...Immediately, there is a crash right before the grass meets the gravel and holds up a massive pile of riders behind...After some joking and anticipation, we are off and rolling up the primary gravel road...I "switch on race mode" and start finding a spot in the crowd to settle into my pace...I am soo far in back and notice their pace is so much slower than mine, so I spin up further and after about 50 or more riders passed, I find a nice open spot to settle into. I start focusing on heartrate and a relaxed cadence. Pedal, drink, relax...so far, so good. I find the first hour climb to start getting steeper and steeper. I finally adjust my pedal stroke and start to standup climb...Man, this hurts! Estimating the climb to be about 5 miles, I start to fall into a zone. I look back and realize there is noone behind me for quite a ways, so I ease back on the energy output and try to focus on conserving. It was too quiet for too long...all of a sudden Mark comes up beside me and says hey Joel! Surprised, I lose my momentum for a moment, but realize many others are closing in on me...Mark and I pull ahead and simply ride along smoothly uphill for a mile or so. I get bored and frustrated with a few gearies passing by so fast, that I fall in behind them and start trying to draft them. This works for a good while and I end up lowering my heartrate as well. We arrive at some downhill sections and start flying along with some full suspension gearies buzzing right past me.. I always play it a bit more held back on downhill gravel road descents. SAG#1 is fast and I switch bottles out and blaze on...total stop time:20 seconds. We enter some tight, twisty, fast singletrack and I open it up and quickly gain positions on more than 4 gearies in the woods. My bike is meant for exactly this kind of terrain and I find myself finally having some fun! It is around this point in time I realize I am finally racing, and not just trying to survive an endurance race. Mark is a daredevil and entered the woods ahead of me, but I track right up on him in the singletrack and we end up riding back and forth like this for about 20 miles...I skip SAG #2 charge up Bull Mtn exactly like yesterday's preride. This is where the music stops and the record scratches because my wonderful legs just decided to go on an abrupt strike. It was totally my fault. I started conserving water after skipping SAG#2, but forgot to eat entirely and started making up for that mistake too late in the game I believe. I physically stopped, popped some endurolytes, washed it down with water, and started walking to flush out the legs, but the pain kept my legs twanging like banjo strings. Every wrong move up a climb at this point had me encountering a new muscle group in my legs. After giving the salt a chance to get me out of my rut, I switched to Honey Stinger Gels...wonderful product. These little shots of natural sugars, really kicked in and helped bring me back to life, but the bursts were short and I was really forcing my legs to give me more, not to mention, that the climbs at Fool's Gold were relentless and unforgiving. I ended up bonking and entirely considering giving up more than once. I switched out bottles at SAG#4 and trudged my bike up the loop thereafter. I definitely walked/hiked a lot on this section since the climb was so unbelieveably steep and rocky...At the 40 mile marker, I reached deep into my head convinced my body that I was almost done. Somehow, I was able to mount my saddle again and start pedaling over all the climbs which presented themselves on the way to the finish...48 miles in I was flying along legs back to normal and excited that I was going to finish this race...52 miles later, I was deliriously happy to be crossing a creek at Camp Wahsega realizing it was all over. Finishers received a bar of personal travel soap from Sudstress which I put to use shortly thereafter!

My official GPS trip time was 5:46.25. Overall, I am very happy with my results and see a large amount of improvement in time next year since I "plan" on doing the 100 miler... Unfortunately, that is all I have in terms of placement results since the official results people at this event very not organized at all. Surprisingly, only top 3 in all categories received awards/mention, WHAT? Too bad for them since I was not the only one disappointed by this glaring omission in results feedback which does not fall well within expectations when based on a unusually high entry fee...Hopefully they will get their systems together by next year...or the quote "A fool and his money are soon parted" will ring more true than ever @ Fool's Gold

Nonetheless, BIG thanks to Terrapin and Sweetwater for all the beer I could possibly drown in after this mentally exhausting event. Thanks to the event promoters in charge of nutrition, as there was great food available throughout the day! Delicious subs and tons of high-end pasta!

Congratulations to Dave Hall on the 5th place finish...(MTB Race news mentioned top 5)

Congratulations to Stephen Janes for kicking it into high-gear and making it through the 50 miler!

Congratulations to Mark Sackett for building a rigid singlespeed beast the week before the event just to race against me and kick my butt...That was too much fun man!

Cheers!

DuPont State Forest

2009-08-10T11:59:00.004-04:00

I drove out to DuPont State Forest on Sunday and really had a chance to explore some of the trails I only get to ride once a year. Brad and I rode up there hoping to meet up with a racer friend of mine but he was not answering his cell phone, so we assumed he had a rough night and was not going to make it out to be our trail guide...so we went all the way to Brevard's Sycamore cycles and purchased a trail map to make sure we didn't miss anything once under way. I also got some nifty wool Pisgah Works socks since I have been wearing through socks lately. 45 minutes behind schedule, we finally suit up and are on our way through the forest! I am geared for an easy day with a 33x23 gearing and am really hoping to enjoy my "Kick-Ass Cog" from Endless Bike Co. DuPont is really crowded with creek wading tourists and lots of horseback riders...not too many mountain bikers surprisingly! The trails are, as always, butter smooth and well maintained. We head straight out to Bridal Veil Falls, and from there start climbing up Corn Mill Shoals Trail and decide to first climb Burnt Mtn. We climb it the hard way and I actually clean most of the climbs! I am really enjoying my gearing choice since there are very few flats for me to end up spinning out on. Burnt Mtn descent is fast and smooth with perfect jumps around every corner! Brad is now loving his first trip out to DuPont and I mention he will really enjoy the Cedar Rock climb. Cedar Rock is a unique mountain climb in that it starts to clear out closer to the top and you wind up climbing on granite rock walls for the last mile or so...It makes you feel like you are not going to have enough traction, but you actually do! We make it to the top and take a quick break at the crossing sign before deciding on a descent. We take the most scenic one and Brad takes off ahead since he is a much faster descender on the full suspension. I hug the brakes a bit and then start picking lines to get some speed built and soon catch up to him still descending. What a fun climb that was! After a bit of exploring to find a quicker way back to base camp to refuel, we decide the only clear way back is Corn Mill Shoals Tr. We return back via a few creek crossings, refuel and head towards Triple Falls...this area had a nice descent tucked away in there near Hooker Falls, but not enough to satisfy...so we trudge on and find a unique climb named Ridgeline Trail ...this trail is a super clean climb and I mention this is going to be an awesome descent as well! After climbing for what seems forever, we reach a loop named Hickory Mtn Loop. We decide to do the loop in order to align us back onto the Ridgeline trail going downward...I paid no attention to the elevation profile for Hickory Mtn Loop and pedal on entering the loop counterclockwise...WOW, what a mean vertical climb that was! IT kept climbing up and up and up with no switchback to ease the pain and suffering, slippery gravel, loose rocks, nothing certain to sink my tread into, kept me weaving back and forth up the climb like a sidewinder...The only good thing I can say is that I climbed it on my SS with no stops. I simply did not want to end up walking up this beast of a hill...we reach a false plateau and continue climbing upward...finally reaching the true summit. It was nice and cool up there at around 3000 feet! I take a quick hydration break and we start the downward plunge! Half a mile into the rocky Hickory Mtn Loop descent, Brad gets a nasty pinchflat. We stop, Brad fixes, we resume...IT was one heck of a wild downhill ride! Berms everywhere! Smooth grippy flats and turns...too much fun! We finish up riding along the highway for about a mile back to basecamp, me spinning like mad because of my gearing choice, but happy to have ridden such great trails today! We break down our gear, guzzle a recovery drink, then have a nice COLD beer from my cooler and talk about the great trails we had just been on...cooled down, we make our way back to Charleston fully spent from so much great trail riding!

Happy Trails!

Cheers...

GPS Data:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/10878311

Daniel Island 5k #3

2009-08-07T09:27:00.002-04:00

I truly believe I overdid it yesterday...

While this was my second 5k in a series of 4, I wish it was my second in order to simply be able to drop this time from my results...27:45! 5 minutes lost from my last time!
However, I do believe after talking with my personal trainer/wifey, that I did a ton of wrong things leading up to an event like this.

First, I haven't really been running lately. I was actually knee deep in trying to finish up a software project which is way overdue.

I have been riding my bike when and if I can, but it is sooo different from running.

Worst of all, I rode 30 miles a few hours before running my 5k, in near 100degree weather...
I also ate a bowlful of potato salad right after my ride and before my 5k. Big MISTAKE!

The strange part is I felt fine starting the 5k run, then hit a wall nearing the 1.5 mile mark. The course had also been changed once again and felt oddly longer than last time...I was not the only one to comment on this...

I actually had to stop and walk during a certain point since my legs felt like weights and my heart was jumping up my throat, not to mention the stitch in my side probably from eating earlier...it was a bad feeling...I knew my time would suffer, but not that badly since I was fast walking when I did stop.

Upon finishing, I asked a few runners if they felt the course was longer and most everyone agreed the course felt much longer...and everyone's times were off by around 2.5 minutes! ODD?

Anyways, I felt like crap and couldn't even get in a cooldown walk, so I jumped in the car and went home...

Upon getting home, I showered, changed, crawled downstairs made myself a huge chocolate milk protein shake and started grilling dinner and playing with the dog...feeling tired and fine, but not destroyed. Then as dinner was completing, something went funky in my body and I felt as if every bit of energy from my body had been instantly zapped. I crashed on the couch, forced down dinner and sat there suffering...my head started hurting beyond understanding, my body felt queasy, and I thought I was going through caffeine withdrawals again, but I have not been drinking a ton of coffee lately! I asked wifey to make me a hot cup of coffee to try and quell the strange feelings, but the coffee did not make a dent in my current status...I decided to try and just go to bed. Took 2 advil and I sat in bed for 30 minutes, feeling nauseous, before I ended up in the bathroom and losing last night's dinner. After washing up and once again retiring to bed, I felt much better and finally found sleep. Woke up refreshed and ready for the day...

Was this heat exhaustion? I don't know as I have never directly experienced it...either way it was a terrible experience and will have to monitor myself closer during stressful exercise...

Cheers.

Off Road Assault on Mt Mitchell

2009-07-27T14:38:00.003-04:00

The 2009 Off Road Assault on Mt. Mitchell is in the books! I survived and I actually met my one main goal, which was to finish in under 8 hours! Considering my last year's time was 11:19, I was very happy to find out I completed ORAMM this year in 7:49! On a singlespeed too! How awesome is that? No major cramping, no flat out bonks...cleaned all climbs, and scorched all downhills...it felt so good to be able to just keep moving! 2009 ORAMM ran like a well oiled machine. Veterans of previous years also agreed this year was like clockwork.

I drove up to Old Fort Saturday early morn and decided to get in a little heartrate tempo training with a ultra light climb up Curtis Creek from the 2 bridges where it gets really steep. I rode up it with little or no effort. This was great and my heartrate peaked, I held it for a while and then let off with some smooth downhill action and repeated a smaller interval. I then packed up my stuff, and checked into the Comfort Inn where I quickly prepped my feedbags, and gear for tomorrow. Afterwards, I drove into Old Fort, registered, talked with a few friends, new and old and proceeded to hunt down a dinner spot.

Dinner consisted of Smokey Que's BBQ...Chicken, Catfish, BBQ pork with beans, potato salad, hush puppies, yum yum! (predinner has not yet been whittled down to a science, but I am working on it) Afterwards, straight to motel room and bed.

My Race Report:

6am came insanely fast, and before I knew it, we were rolling out onto Old 70. I was sticking to the plan by not going out hard and let many riders by in an effort to control my pace, but after seeing too many people in front of me hiking up Kitsuma, I decided to start turning up the juice just a little. I had a nice climbing pace going for about 20-30 good solid minutes where I passed dozens of gearies spinning away in their granny gears.I just kept ringing my bell and cutting through the masses. I think the shaved off 10 minutes or so as I still was knee deep in traffic hiking up Kitsuma. The downhill was no different. Stop and go the entire time...lots of unsure riders were ahead and even some who had never pre-ridden the course! So I finally make it to rest stop#1 and quickly swap out my bottles for 2 more of my own. I realize that the Kitsuma descent knocked my endurolytes and chamois cream packet out of my pocket so I now have no Electrolytes! I roll on trying to figure out what to do about this problem. I immediately start chugging my Nuunz water bottle to at least restore a few bits of lost salt, but I know Nuunz isn't concentrated enough to fully replenish like 3-4 endurolytes can(hint Nuunz Concentrate?). I also chew on a few pieces of Honey Stinger Chews and they perk me back up within minutes, so off I go to Lower Heartbreak ridge to hike some more up to StarGap. At this point I realize I have been hiking more than biking and not because I am undergeared, but because there are way too many people still jammed up in front of me.

Traffic Jams are Very frustrating...

I also realized hiking was taxing my heartrate much more than simply sitting in the saddle and spinning, so I start trying to ride and pass hikers. It works for a while, but some of the hikers are all over the path, so back into the queue I go. Not having endurolytes starts to worry me, but I hit Stargap with a bit of extra charge and try and hold a steady pace. I back off for a while anticipating the climb up Curtis Creek coming up. StarGap is uneventful and over with before I know it. Rest Stop#2 arrives and 2 bottles are swapped out. I look around for free endurolytes, but there are none to be found. I quickly take off again realizing I just lost a few minutes...I zap up a shot of Honey Stinger Gold gel and wash it down with Nuunz H20. This works well and does not seem to shock my system. Smooth ride until midway up Curtis Creek, I spot my wife taking pictures and ask her to load me up with endurolytes from the car. She ziplock baggies me a dozen or so tablets, I take a few and continue on up Curtis Creek. I roll through various forms of digestive issues since so much is going through my system right now and finally I feel everything start to normalize. The quivering crampy onsets are gone, I have a little pickup to my step and I start to do some standup climbing. It is difficult, but I find my rhythm and make up lost time. I might actually use a 23tooth cog next year...we shall see. I arrive at Rest Stop #3 and reload 2 fresh cold bottles Perpetuem and Nuuns H20. I chug a mini-coke and eat half a Honey Zinger Peanut Powerbar. I change into fresh full finger gloves for the Heartbreak descent and continue on to Rest Stop#4 The out n back leading to rest stop #4 is long and arduous and really taxes your patience. I arrive at Rest Stop #4 and quickly swap bottles and move out fast. I cruise up the road to HeartBreak Ridge excited knowing I am somewhat making up for lost time earlier. The hike a bike up to HeartBreak seems almost twice as long as before but I finally get moving and fast! The descent down HeartBreak is fun and smooth, taking some risks and losing no momentum. Finally, I see train tracks and arrive at Rest Stop#5! I stupidly swap out my bottles again, only to realize I had not taken a drink since Rest Stop#4 since I was descending the entire time! Lost time! I speed off and start the ridiculous trudge up Mill Creek Ridge gravel road...This road seems to wind on forever and I start to complain out loud, "is it ever going to end" ??! Then, like some mysterious dejavous, I am hiking back up Kitsuma, slower than before since I am feeling drained. I pass people trying to ride their bikes up the switchbacks and continue onwards. I plan on making up my lost time on the descent. I arrive at the true top of Kitsuma and let off the brakes. I approach 25 miles an hour and start hopping around. Kitsuma felt rougher on the descent than Heartbreak and repeating it really hurts. I pass 3 riders on the descent. I get out on the final stretch towards the finish and ride along with a fellow singlespeeder who has taken a few falls today. He seems in great spirits and we end up riding in together. I arrive to see a few of my friends already finished and lots of cold beer on tap! I immediately grap a cup of celebratory beer and gulp it down! Success! What a great day!

Cheers!

Follow the leaders!

2009-07-24T11:26:00.004-04:00

Something radically awesome and uber geeky is happening this year at ORAMM! I, myself, being a techhead, first and foremost, have been checking out this technology for quite some time now. It was shown successful at the Great Divide earlier this year and now officially hits the most important race on the calendar, ORAMM!

Here it is quoted straight from a quote from Team Dicky's Blog:

We're going to be testing out a new thing this year...GPS tracking. A handful of the top riders will be equipped with a GPS unit that will track their movements on a fancy little computer program. This should allow us to give spectators an accurate idea of when the top finishers will be crossing the finish line. Pretty cool. Thanks to AMB i.t. (Champion Chip) for making this possible. We look forward to seeing how this new technology will work for backcountry mountain biking.

Now remember, when the leader finishes the race, simply add 4 more hours and you should get my time, roughly, give or take an hour... :)

More information here: http://blueridgeadventures.blogspot.com/2009/07/gps-race-tracker.html

This is going to be some kind of cool!

Cheers!

ORAMM PreRide Report

2009-07-20T12:19:00.006-04:00

July 11th saw me up in Old Fort, parked at the foot of Curtis Creek for a ORAMM pre-ride scouting trip. The plan was to ride up Curtis Creek Road, then ride down the Blue Ridge Parkway, descend down HeartBreak Ridge, then fork off and go across StarGap ending up back at the car.

The initial part of the ride was fully experimental and simply to satisfy my curiosity as to how I would probably fare on a singlespeed climbing this neverending 9.2 mile gravel road. I also had a "secret" gear combo I was using which I had my doubts about, but am now certain it will work fine for most of ORAMM...

Upon starting the climb, I thought I was never going to finish this ascent since I am not the worlds strongest climber, but I can maintain, so I found a steady pace I could hold and basically just kept it right there and enjoyed the sounds of nature. The grades on the road ranged from 10-20 degrees! I would guess about 90% of the climb was done standing up and carefully listening to my heartrate monitor. It was intense at times and I did desire to stop on the side of the road a few times and simply walk, but I resisted and before I knew it, I had completed the climb and the rest was adrenaline history...riding the Blue Ridge Parkway on a singlespeed was interesting, yet liberating..the views were incredible and I felt great relief after having made it to the top of this climb...

Heartbreak was not that bad actually, although my hands still burned from holding the brakes so tight, but the switchbacks were manageable and the speed was insane! Stargap was a mess and needs to be mowed down(I do not look forward to this part of the ride next week)

Overall, about 3 hours riding time...some time was wasted seeing the sights up top and being a typical tourist. Equipment held up really well and nutrition notes were taken. Excellent day and worth the time making the trip!

1 week until ORAMM!

Trip GPS recap:

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: ORAMM Scouting Trip
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/8562769

Cheers!

Daniel Island 5k results...

2009-07-20T12:14:00.003-04:00

I got 43rd out of about 160 in my first 5k run series. I ran it in 22:00mins. There were some really fast people out that day! I have 3 more races to do in the series to best that position and time. I think I can do better. I just did not know what to think that first time out. Running in a series race event is much different than just running around the block for a few miles. The race left my body pretty weak and hurting all over, but my recovery is still pretty good and I was able to pre-ride a race course up in the mountains a few days later with a decent results expectation. As with everything, learning just never ends...

Back at it...

2009-07-07T11:52:00.003-04:00

This weekend was a nice escape from reality....I watched the Tour de France, tweaked on my bikes, rode my motorcycle around for awhile and tended to a delicious pulled pork shoulder which smoked with applewood and hickory for 7 hours straight...the meat slid right off the bone...it was tender, moist, and extremely flavorful...my mustard sauce was a hit and I will be putting that one in my recipe book as a must repeat....That evening, I spun on the spin bike at medium resistance for 1.5 hours watching Babylon AD, (which sucked), Sunday, cooked tons of shishkabobs which the Wifey put together for us and I cooked them in traditional street vendor style out back with lots of steam, smoke and taste...oh so good! Finished off the day at the pool on Sunday and enjoyed a bit of downtime with some nice tasty craft beers!

Monday; work, errands and a light 2 mile run to get back into the swing...followed by 10 miles on the bike with the new equipment onboard...

Rotor Q-Ring installed, new tires with more bite installed...cleaned the chain, adjusted the saddle once again...rode very compact and responsive..I can't wait to really try out the new Q-Ring tonite!

2.5 weeks until ORAMM!!!!!

Cheers!

Weekend Plans...

2009-07-01T13:34:00.003-04:00

With all my training I am squeezing in, it is hard to realize the 4th of July weekend is almost upon us! I am going to go out today or tomorrow and load up on mortars this year...I personally think those attract the most ooohs and ahhhs...and they come out to about the same as buying one of those funky sketchy variety packs...so mortars are in for me. As for a little bit of a training setback, I am also plannin on smokin a double stack of Boston Butt with Dre's Special Butt Rub to share with all our neighbors when we get together for our 4th of July dinner. I will be smoking the butts for about 8-10 hours starting early Saturday morning and it should be ready just in time for the festivities... I am also thinking of a mustard sauce instead of a standard vinegar sauce, so this will put a spin on things...

Of course the Tour de France starts Saturday, so I will be able to watch some exciting racing while the butts slow cook..I think there is a FIFA Soccer game on too!

mmm..South Carolina Pulled Pork! Can't wait...
of course this means an extra long bike ride on Sunday....woohoo!

ITS Going to be a GREAT Weekend!!!!!

Cheers!

Training again...

2009-07-01T13:18:00.004-04:00

I am sitting here a little sore from pushing myself a bit harder these past few days to get ready for ORAMM as well a few upcoming Twilight 5k runs. I started Monday in the evening with a light spin on the SS MTN bike around the neighborhood about 10 times which adds up to about 8-10 miles at a nice high smooth cadence. I then did a light cooldown and parked the bike and ran a moderate pace 5k based on my wife's instructions on how to navigate the neighborhood to equal out a 3.1 mile distance properly. I pulled it off in about 25 minutes. I felt good throughout and never once felt any leg or calf strains from exertion. I am a believer in thoroughly warming up my muscles with a bike ride before running. It is a much better transition. Tuesday was a followup in the evening with a night spin through the woods at Marrington. I rode from 8:30-10pm and the trail was full of previous storm debris which meant lots of hike-a-bikes. My Ay-Up! lights were fantastic, ultra light and never faded. Today will be nothing more than a 1 hr light spin session indoors on the spin bike followed by a light run of an unknown distance. I plan on riding my Mtn Bike to the Bridge tomorrow and doing some climb intervals. As you can tell, I am trying to stick to one bike to really get familiar with it. This is a new technique to my training for upcoming MTB race events. Friday will be either a light run, surfing, or a easy mtb trail ride...hopefully surfing if there are waves...

so far feelin real good....

Cowbell Challenge Marathon 2009

2009-06-22T10:49:00.007-04:00

I guess there is a first time for everything. First time riding a bike, first time racing...first time winning, first time losing...but I have never, ever in my life quit in a mountain bike race like I did in the Cowbell. Everything was going perfectly as planned. Arrived the night before and I had the wifey and child there to help out in the pit, excellent nights sleep at the Homewood suites the night before...I even had our pit tent already setup on Friday. Although my preride of the course should have been an indicator of the problems I would be facing on Saturday, I was too excited with the idea of my first SS marathon. Did I mention I busted a spoke during that preride? bad omen?....

So, Saturday morning comes like a typical race morning usually does come, fast and blurry. Before we knew it, we were driving from our hotel out to Fisher Farms 10 minutes behind schedule...Justin was waiting to get his numberplate from me and was ready to go...I was slapping stuff on and noticing all the madness going on around me...It was an awesome turnout! Pros in attendance were Harlan Price, Dejay Birtch, John "Fuzzy" Milnes, Dave Hall, Rich Dillen(Team Dicky)...So with all this madness going on I start to realize it is only 9am and the heat is already off the charts! We finally get shuttled into town and the race starts. The first part of the race has us flying through town for about 6.5 miles along backroads and greenways and all you hear are the townspeople ringing cowbells which is really neat! Spinning like a madman, I start to find my pedaling start/stop points since the rolling hills give me some needed momentum. Finally we arrive at Fisher Farms via the back entrance which corrals us over the hardest of the 2 ending loop climbs right from the start....immediately a bottleneck occurs and geared riders all around me start dropping straight into their granny gears...i only make it halfway up the hill climbing since there is too much traffic in front of me and immediately unclip and start running my bike up through spinny gearies...I make it up the climb and out of the woods in good shape, but right before you cross through the starting checkpoint, you have to pass through the Kudzu corridor...I have never realized just how much heat kudzu traps, but it is similar to laying out in 100+ degree weather on top of aluminum foil...radiant, pulsing heat. It just takes the fight right out of you. I get bottlenecked again and jump off and start running my bike up and out of the kudzu...My body at this point is pouring sweat out by the gallons trying to cool off and this is just entering the first lap! Not good.

Laps 1-3 are a blur...they went by smooth, hot and not that easy, but they did go by...Lots of twisty, turny rooty slippery singletrack. Twitch cramps waiting to happen everytime I slid across roots....deep gultches with skinny rail crossings....log piles everywhere, dropoff bridges, off camber singletrack, slippery grass turns, open field scortching heat, rock gardens, more rock gardens, slippery punchy climbs...you name it, this course had it...a true challenge....

Lap 3 saw me finally entering a zone, but something still did not feel right...my legs were still not altogether there and I was just not wanting to be there anymore...it really had me concerned. I roll back to the pit upon entering lap#4 and realize I am not alone...I hear many rumours of others quitting, such as Dejay Birtch, Rich Dillen and still many more who had not made it through lap 2...so I am thinking ok, I am not crazy or totally weak, this heat is insane! I relax, drink lots of water, load up with Perpetuum, endurolytes and another bottle of cold water on my back to drop my core temp down a bit and roll out for Deathmarch Lap 4. This lap hit me hard....I went out slow because I had just eaten a potato to see if it would help restore my system levels, but nothing was processing anymore...I spent more time in the switchback hanging off trees and trying to focus on the trail ahead that I knew, this would be it for me. It was nasty hot when entering the open fields and jungle heat emanated from the woods. There was no shelter to be found. I continued onwards conserving energy at all times. Everytime I saw a hill, I walked, switchbacks were taken with great care and my overall pace came to a crawl...So many riders were passed at this point who were keeled over with cramps and heat exhaustion, it started to look like a warzone. I saw EMS pulling a few riders out with IVs to rehydrate them. Upon passing through the final stretch of kudzu, I decided I would take a long break in the pits this time around before thinking of Lap 5.

Upon arriving at the pits, I saw someone there who surprised me entirely. Justin Fisher, who was sharing our pits, was zonked in a corner with a look of total confusion on his face. I knew immediately what happened. Heat exhaustion had hit him hard. I took this as the final sign. I got off my bike and started downing cold liquids. I sat there for about 10 minutes staring off into space deciding what I should do next...I then started to feel stiff. In a final fleeting moment of panic, I got up and decided to try and roll through lap 5. Justin thought if he tagged along behind me that he would find his legs again and hold his strong lead on his race class. It was weird having Justin trail me since he is usually miles in front of me, but I rode on through the technicals using reserve energy in spots I should not be using it, but my mind was not thinking clearly. I should not even be out here anymore. Justin yoyos back and forth catching up to me on flats and from my quick glances appears sluggish and not in total control. After about 2-3 miles, I ask Justin if he is feeling any better and he immediately replies loudly NO...I take that as the final marker and throw in the towel. I cut off the trail and decide for both of us that it is time to head back to camp. It is at this point that Dave Hall comes flying by pedaling with some insane determination to finish this lap. That was me getting pushed out of third place at the time...So I realize I won't even get a Cowbell for this effort and really decide to stop, drop and roll...Justin and I walk back to camp stunned by the amount of heat still smashing us in the face....We arrive, cool down and watch one rider after another stumble in. Because of the record 115 degree heat, DNFs were not recorded and places and times continued. This is great for me since I did not want a DNF on my records...but deep down inside, I gave up the fight...but only to be able to fight another day...8th place in my first Singlespeed marathon...better than dead last i guess...until next year...lessons learned...

Tour Divide

2009-06-16T11:05:00.003-04:00

There is an amazing race going on right now as we speak. The Great Tour Divide This race is basically a little under 3000miles(yes thousand!) which starts in Canada and ends up at the Mexican border. Unreal! It is touted as the longest, most challenging MTB race on the planet. I am definitely interested in this. It is fully self-supported racing with some of the best scenery you can only find while doing an event like this. Not only is the race extreme and unlike most sprint races, the technology for following your favorite rider or all of the riders is soooo powerful! They are all carrying SPOT devices to ping back their location to a centralized computer server which serves the location request via Google maps.

+1 for insane pedal power!

Check out the leaderboard:
http://tourdivide.org/leaderboard

Sweet!

Le Tour de Cure....part deux

2009-06-15T12:36:00.008-04:00

Ok, I really, really underestimated the Tour de Cure this year...IT was much harder than I was anticipating. Fun, but surprisingly difficult. I never knew Irmo, SC had so many hills. I did plan it out pretty well this year by getting a room ahead of time to rest up for a full day of road riding, but never planned on climbing in and out of the saddle all day long. The Tour de Cure occurred on Saturday, June 13, 2009. It was a nice cool 8am start with a surprisingly large crowd. I was riding with team "Low Country Fat Tire Freaks". All were present and accounted for. Luke Farrow rode up with me late Friday night as he was planning on completing his first semi-metric century (60ish miles). I really knew the heat was going to be my worst enemy all day long, but had not factored in the amount of climbing I would be doing. So just like that, we were off and running with no real idea of what was in store. I started slow to keep myself in check and not try and go chasing after the lead pack because this was not a race, it was a ride....That kind of focus worked great until about a few miles in and I realized the heat was only going to get worse. I started to unconsciously up my pace trying to find a moderate paceline to keep me moving but not have to work so hard. The first thing I realized was that riding with more experienced riders than myself, such as the Lowcountry Volkswagon Team, I was able to more comfortably understand when it was time to shift the paceline. I other words, I had become somewhat of a "cyclist snob". Some of the riders I was riding around were noticeably less experienced in holding a steady line and it made me nervous. I knew this would expend more energy by trying to hold a slow line in a dangerous pack, so I broke away from the mid pack and started trying to chase down the leadpack alone. I was feeling good about 40 miles in, so I kept a great 18-22mph pace. The winds were relatively calm which was why it was so dang hot, but helped with riding solo. I picked up another fast guy who was also looking to chase down a more organized pack, so we started a duo-paceline. It worked out really well for the next 20 miles, but shortly afterwards, I started to feel my legs fade a little, and ran very low on water, so I made the decision to stop at a rest stop and refuel. I mentioned to the other rider that I was fading and I may not be able to ride further with him. About 10 miles in, I had realized I forgot to turn on my GPS again, doh! Shortly afterwards, we picked up a third rider and although he seemed to undertstand how tired I already was, once we got moving again he wanted to try and push me harder. I dropped the group and watched them sprint away like there was a only 5 miles left. I dropped my pace down considerably and focused on keeping my heartrate in zone 3 and taking it easy on the climbs. I actually ran across Nick Latto, our team captain, on the next to last rest stop. He had taken a wrong turn somewhere and was looking at only completing around 80 miles today...which is still NOT bad at all! My strategy really worked well for me in terms of energy control. I felt great coming back into town and started to pass a ton of people who had entirely blown up from going out too hard in the beginning. I tapped into my reserve energy at 10 miles to go and broke away from all the trailing people trying to draft on my tail. I held it all the way up to the finish and rode right up to the lunch counter to fix myself up a plate of some good food! Surprisingly, the guys who had dropped me earlier finished 5 minutes after I did....interesting. Don Watts and Luke had already completed their ride and were in great shape! Beers were consumed and food was devoured. Excellent end to a great ride! What a great day!

Cheers!

Pictures:
http://www.lowcountryfattirefreaks.com/?p=268

Garmin GPS recap:

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: Tour de Cure Century - Irmo, SC
Tour de Cure Century - Irmo, SC

If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/7135024

Ay-Up Lights!

2009-06-11T16:38:00.007-04:00

I just got my new lights for the fall night racing season in the mail today! Direct from Australia! Less than a week shipped direct. Unreal! I did not expect these lights for about a month. The lights come from a company called AY UP! The lights cannot be described with words alone...they are TINY. True LEDs with Lipo Battery Packs. These guys really, really know how to build light kits. The kits come with a neoprene bag to store all items properly for maximum organization leading up to a race event. I ordered the MTB kit with 2 lights all for around $300, which I believe is a fantastic deal. 12 hours of battery life, fully waterproof, and very low weight unlike most of the other brands! They came highly recommended so I will be running them for the entire season. Did I mention they are anodized in some really cool colors? I am stoked! I almost want to go ride around in the dark tonite just to test them out, but I am in rest mode and cannot ride my bike today. I will however put the mounts on my bike and get it ready for my next night riding session...I will probably writeup a followup report later on to really let everyone know how well these puppies work. In the meantime, I wonder what AY UP means.....

Singles Night #2

2009-06-10T14:25:00.010-04:00

Singles Night #2 ...ahh yes...another memorable race meet...

I had ridden my road bike for about 2.5 hours earlier around noon to make sure all was in working order since I have the Tour de Cure century coming up this Saturday and I wanted to really put in a decent ride for that event. With this said, you can probably already tell I was not entirely prepared for the race that evening. I made my way out to the race with SS changes consisting of taller gearing, 36x17, and the Reba Race back on to get used to her since this is the fork I have selected for the Cowbell Challenge on Jun 20th. I was hoping the taller gearing would really let me put a gap between my opponents when I reached the flats, but little did I know nature had just thrown a monkey wrench into things. An hour or so before arriving to Marrington, it had rained/downpoured in that general area. This means the trail was not going to hook-up at all! This also meant my taller gearing was going to grind my legs to a pulp with all the stopping and starting I would now be doing in every approached corner...things were definitely not going my way this week. So, once again, I changed my strategy on-the-fly and decided to just ride a steady even pace.

Did I mention this weeks line-up of heavy hitters? Yeah, we had a great race in store today! Last weeks winner, Joe Pelton from Columbia was there to defend his title, Justin Fisher was present and looking hungry for a win...Brad Phillips had somehow managed to cobble his SingleSpeed back together to try and reclaim some of his dignity, Robby Bennett had his machine tuned and ready, Sean Mehaffey was back for more with some comtemplation of fully converting to SS...

Seems like I was not the only one looking for an edge on speed. These spy photos taken of my competitors rides show they are all running taller gears in hopes of keeping up an exceptional pace.

Some others were employing alternative ways to go faster such as wasp venom injection taken 10 minutes before the start, no I would not count this as a "technical violation" just yet....would we? Maybe we may just need to have everyone "tested" after finishing here as well?

Racetime:

So we decide the course, clockwise, roll out in a nice orderly calm fashion and decide to do a gradual rolling start...We all unconciously sort each other out and then like he was reading my mind, Robby Bennett blasts out of nowhere from the back of the pack and mixes everything up which really makes the racehorses twitchy...sensing this edginess, I jump out of line and rocket up behind Robby laughing all the way since there is no way in hell I am going to go fast today, especially with the mud already starting to fly everywhere. MY first thought as we enter the singletrack is: BE CAREFUL, Do NOT crash. Of Course Robby was on a mission and spills almost immediately upon touching the first bridge which rolls like ice because of the wetness. I slow to a stop see him laughing and not in pain, so I unclip and run-launch around him. I feel others do the same behind me and I suspect the race is now officially on! Off I tear like a rabbit in pursuit only to realize I do not have a bit of traction. Upon Approaching the first turn I goto lightly bank and find myself still sliding forwards. I run up and into the bushes and whiplash out of the turn hangning onto the lead by inches...Behind me I hear Justin mutter something about staying on the course and then he asks me if I am already blown up from starting out too strong. I cannot think of a reply since I am just trying to avoid slamming facedown into the mud. I try a little harder to separate myself from the racehorses to my backside, but I feel it is a downward spiral today, so I quickly swallow my pride and yield. Immediately almost instinctively, Justin takes the opening, shortly followed by Joe and then finally Brad. I feel the pressure let off but the trail is still nowhere near rideable. I try like mad to trail them, but slide out of a corner and almost lose it. I trim the speed and find my pace. Heartrate was not a pretty sight. Handling was out the window, and the legs were on strike. Somewhere in my head I hear the voice, do not stop pedaling, no matter what. So I continue pedaling, trying to figure out where I would make up lost time. After a few moments, I gather steam and approach a good rolling boil of about 18-19mph, then immediately go skidding to a halt because I missed my turn to Fosters Creek. Damn! That sucked. Turning around I feel my legs shouting at me for making them restart...then off through the valley of the dead I went...Foster's was a blur...a slow painstaking blur of mud, slippery roots, heavy breathing, sweating and lots of stand-up pedaling. Wrong gear choice for the mud...Once I finally made it, I was moving fast! I had found my legs and I was trying some nice sliding manuevers around the turns in the Amazon. I pulled most of em, and never ended up crashing, miraculously. Upon approach to Mary's Landing, I felt my system start to fade again and went back to pace mode...never stopping. I passed Page at this point and then shortly after this Robby Bennett who had also missed Foster's Creek or some turn in it and decided to just lap out the course...I also saw a glimpse of Brad working really hard to get out of the singletrack. This was the inspiration I needed to keep moving strong. I started churning noticing him up ahead by about 1-2 minutes in the crossings. Yeah, my strategy was actually working! I worked hard up to Mary's Landing and actually had Brad fully in my sights then. I rang my bell in celebration, and yelled out that I was coming for him and the hunt was on! No sooner had I said that when I slipped on a root in the middle of the technical section and gently smacked the tenders onto the stempost. All the gas was momentarily gone, but the injury was light as I had been able to catch myself for the most part. Upon getting my momentum up again, I realize Brad is gone and I jam out of the technicals with my sole purpose to hunt him down. I entered the red section and see him one last time whereupon I unwillingly go back into pace mode and finish out my lap running on nothing but fumes. Surprisingly, I was right behind Joe and Brad the entire time. Justin had finished a few minutes before them and was also still spinning around...Awesome Race! I had not won the race, but my strategy really helped me finish in a good time. I was satisfied with my performance. Beer made it's appearance at this meet and cheers were shared by all...

So finishing order:

Justin Fisher

Joe Pelton

Brad Phillips

Joel Watson

Sean Mehaffey

Robby Bennett (DNF)

Cheers!

I have been Facebooked...

2009-06-09T09:48:00.003-04:00

Ok, I believe I survived the MySpace fad, but the Facebook thing has hit me square in the head after request after request to have me be someone's friend...I went to a family get-together a few weekends ago and I was asked by nearly everyone if I had a Facebook page and that we should link up to share photos of the party and stories...bah! I finally caved in and added myself to the huge Facebook melting pot...My only concern was with being able to update yet another virtual entity online with blogging being my main focus since it helps me gather my thoughts...Anyways, I am now on Facebook, which is really not a big deal, but more virtual maintenance for me if it is to be taken seriously. I did find however that it is a clever idea with lots of interweaving of relationships. The privacy filters are very well thought out. The Add-A-Friend suggestion window is smart and probably entails tons of brilliant search algorithms. The in-browser utility toolbar with integrated instant chat is a wonderful implementation of AJAX technology on steroids...overall, lots of features, yet still not busting at the seams with overkill...which is great! I really enjoyed the way multiple people can jump into another's "wall" by commenting and leaving posts...It is really doing a great service to families who want to stay in touch...Focusing on searching for lost friends and catching up with new ones as well as posting photos, videos, notes, pulling in your blogposts from other sources is just as close to virtual addiction as you may find....
As my close cousin told me, "It's like crack son!"...

Cool stuff indeed...

Cheers!

2009 Catawba Riverfront Classic

2009-06-08T09:44:00.005-04:00

This weekend, I got to break my new steed in, the Salsa Selma, at the Charlotte National Whitewater Center. Their annual XC mountain bike race was being held, the Catawba Riverfront Classic. Brad Phillips and I made the journey to represent Charleston and the Lowcountry Fat Tire Freaks. It was a great event with a decent turnout. I raced singlespeed division for the first time. It was harder than I thought it would be...First mistake made was surfing in the ocean for about 2.5 hours in rough surf the day before. I drove up to the event still sore from paddling for such an extended period of time. The waves were really fun though and you just don't always get days like this in the Lowcountry. I knew this would affect my performance on raceday, but I really did not know by how much. At the start line there it was hard to concentrate on getting my raceface on with so many COOL singlespeeds all around me...Bianchi, LiteSpeed, another Salsa! It was a sight to see...The announcer counted down 5...3...1..Go! We went from chatty, to dead silent, then into action we sped...wait, not me, I slipped a pedal. I tried again, and could not clip in to my eggbeaters...I laughed, and tried one last time..CLIP, I was in! Unreal, missed clipin off the start, not good...Then, with some explosive BMX-style speed, I cranked through the crowd up into 2nd. Into the singletrack I went holding 2nd strong. I kept thinking all the while, this is some insane speed...I must throttle back soon, but I couldn't with so many riders bearing down on my back! I drafted 1st place and after a mile he made a mistake and crashed into the bushes, just like that I had 1st! I cranked harder than ever, cleaning climbs I had previously been walking and just had total control of the race situation. I started to get far enough ahead that I could no longer hear others behind me. I then started to realize I may have first wrapped up! 5 miles in and still clearly in 1st! While fantasizing about 1st place trophies, I came upon my first obstacle; last place women's expert racer...She was going at a strange moderate pace which had me confused because I suddenly thought I was back in a major endurance race where a slow moderate pace is key. I let off the gas momentarily and started to feel the effects of my efforts...my body was hurting! I then realized I had to pass this person. I made myself noticed and she finally let me by, but I knew that I had lost a lot of time to my pursuers...I cranked it up again, but felt my lungs burning and my arms were stinging from yesterday's surf session. I reached my cruising speed once again and held it for about half a mile before being overcome by a singlespeeder who had finally caught up with me. He came by breathing hard and simply said..."that was one heck of a strong start!". I said thanks and watched him overtake me and continue cruising along. I kept on his tail and focused on simply working on him until the end where I could possibly sprint finish, but it was too far away to know what would happen next...
We both rode up upon yet another women's expert rider...Same kind of pace, but with a bit more struggle. Still hurting all over from going out so strong, this slowing of pace was comforting, but the guy in front of me was determined to pass her...MY second mistake. I should have also passed that person with no hesitation, but I did not and it cost me. He took off after his pass and I slipped in behind her for a bit longer trying to find my pace. I settled into a pace hoping my other pursuer's would be doing the same, but more more than 1/4 mile further did another singlespeed demon come into view. I then started to panic and realized I had to make my move now. I passed and tried to get away, but a pack of 3 were now on my tail. It seemed the slower expert woman from earlier had made her move and was gunning for the gold. She was also pulling along a singlespeeder in her draft. I was immediately left in 3rd position. I was crushed. I then tried for the remainder of the race to chase these guys down. About 2/3rds of the way in I almost had them, only to lose my legs to poor nutrition since I had not been thinking clearly at all. With this blanket of heat around us, I had forgotten to drink constantly, and it was past time for some more Endurolytes and Heed. My arms started cramping, my legs started twanging like guitar strings. I fed myself and waited for the assimilation process to occur and within a mile, I was somewhat back in action, but with time and distance lost, I had to focus on simply maintaining my position. I rolled in at 1:49minutes for about 19 miles...3rd place. no more no less... Valuable Lessons ReLearned. Fortunately this race was on my training calendar simply for upcoming events like Cowbell Challenge and ORAMM. Time for a light spin to spew all the bad stuff out!

Did I mention Brad Phillips got 2nd in Sport Men? A very strong finish was witnessed. Impressive! Cheers to the State Champion!

My Garmin Edge Recap:

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: 2009 Catawba Riverfront Classic2009 Catawba Riverfront Classic

If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browserhttp://connect.garmin.com/activity/6648041

Cheers!

Beer & Bike...without the biking...

2009-06-05T09:45:00.002-04:00

Thursday night was supposed to be Bike & Beer night out at Marrington Plantation, but the rain had been coming down all day and this only makes things much worse on an already waterlogged trail...So, just when I was planning on getting on the spin bike and doing a few boring hours, Don calls me up and mentions he is about to start making some homebrew...I am a amateur craft brewer myself and really have been curious to see his setup since he brews from all grain instead of starting with mash extract like I do, so I roll over as quickly as possible. I arrive just as he is starting the second stage which is steeping the grains in 154degree water for about an hour...The next step is called sparging which consists of carefully pouring 175degree water over the top of the "mash tun" and opening a valve on the bottom of the mash tun to allow the sweet grain water be forced out...The heavier cooler sugar water will go downwards and into the wort boiler...From this point on, everything is similar to what I do, depending on the recipe desired...but the setup that Don has is very impressive and rekindles my desire to create something similar. Did I mention that during this timely set of steps, we had a chance to sample a few of Don's recently created masterpieces? MadDaddyPat joined us in downing a few pints of select ales....It was a good Thursday night after all!

Ahh yes, the Joys of Homebrewing....

:o)

Piccolo Spoleto

2009-06-05T09:32:00.003-04:00

I found time in the afternoon to sneak out and watch another Young Artists series performance from the Piccolo Spoleto Events. I definitely enjoyed this one. My cello instructor Yun Hao Jiang performed with Jesus Manuel Toro on Piano with some movements from Dmitri Shostakovich. It is incredible to watch a performance like this since it lets you really see what your instructor is trying to teach you in terms of self control while playing the cello. I was awestruck watching him play in so many different positions as well as styles on the cello. Hopefully in about 7-10 years time, I may be good enough to play a performance like this one, but for now, I will continue practicing my open string, first position scale, and focusing on my bow arm... ;)

LCFTF's First Singles Night

2009-06-04T17:07:00.004-04:00

A fellow Lowcountry Fat Tire Freak, Robby Bennett, came up with another original idea for a unique race requiring all participants to either race SingleSpeed bikes or stay in one gear of their choice...

The reasoning behind this was to try and level out the playing field. Most riders at Marrington know racing is fast, furious and can greatly depend on gear choices.
So those willing to accept the "restrictor plate" race challenge were ready and waiting on Tuesday June 2nd for the first ever Singles Night Racing...
Onhand were Robby Bennett, Sean Mehaffey, Brad Phillips, Joe Pelton, and myself, Joel Watson, were on hand ready to go!

Joe Pelton had already been riding around the course and was changing gears to something a little higher when I rolled up. I did the math and found he had hit upon my ideal gear combo for Marrington. So much for my only advantage...but he was also riding a 69er, which is basically a 26 wheel in back with a 29 up front...this might help me out a bit... Brad rolled up shortly after I did and came out of his car with parts falling out left and right...After determining what was truly bolted to his bike and what was not, I realized he was running some insanely high gearing of 42x17 or it could have been 42x16...Either way, it was more than 60gear inches and one heck of a high gear to push through Foster Creek. Sean was running a 2x9 gearing and chose a 38x19 gear to plow through the trail I believe...Robby was running SingleSpeed in some secret combination which escapes me...

After some smalltalk concerning course layout and a little exciting buildup to a mutually agreed upon readiness state, we were rolling towards the start....The start simply consisted of Joe Pelton asking us if we were ready to which everyone quickly replied "yeah", and then Joe casually bellowed out a loud "Goooooo!". I believe Joe was expecting everyone to simply cruise out and spread out slowly, but I decided to shake things up early on since I really wanted to see how my legs would fare after a brisk high cadence warmup, so I pulled away with a sprint start. I took off fast and furious, but was soon limited by my gearing choice...not too spinny, not too mashy... There I was spinning like a madman hearing bikes closing up behind...IT really plays on your senses! I surprised myself by reaching the entrance to the singletrack with no real opposition. I knew Joe was playing conservative, but just how much he would allow was still in question. I did not know where Brad was yet, but I am sure he was picking up speed and closing in sooner or later...

The problem with racing against others on SingleSpeeds is that if their bikes are in good shape, you really can't hear em coming until they start backpedaling... Not too many aggressive racers back pedal and this was the case with Joe and Brad. I was holding a decent lead up until a few miles in when I sensed Joe on my wheel...Now nothing wears me out more mentally than someone trailing me inches behind. I immediately assume I am holding them up and will definitely yield if neccessary. I try and pull away looking for a straight line in the singeltrack so I can look back and check my gap, but once again sense Joe pulling me back in. I then yield to let him by and accept second for just a while..but all of a sudden, Brad storms by me with a loud hum coming from his bike...meaning he is hauling some serious ass...so off to third I fall. Racing means having to do lots of improvisations if you are just not strong enough to hold it up front all day long...so I replan my strategy and decide to simply hold their wheels as long and as hard as I can. This worked great because as soon as I started to relax, my legs came back and I was moving along once again...Brad decides he no longer needs his chain to go this fast and throws it once, twice..3 strikes...Brad is out....I kick up my speed and trail Joe like a deerfly in the woods...I follow him through the entire Foster Creek loop and feel myself fade now and then realizing I just cannot pass him...yet.

We exit Foster creeek and enter lower Amazon, both feeling the surge coming back since it is wide open in this area. I look for my moment to pass Joe and it comes when he reaches for his water bottle. As he is occupied, I dart past him hearing him slurp in disgust because he was hoping for a break. No breaks this time around...I tear off through the Amazon, trying like mad to shake Joe off me, but he is strong and experienced and once again passes me....We come out of the Amazon with our minds now set on simply switching the workload back and forth to create a gap between us and a fictitious Brad who we assumed to be gaining on us with each and every passing moment. I pass Joe again and hold it entering the yellow section at Mary's Landing. This is where I think I may finally be able to drop Joe since I can ride through this area practically blindfolded, but upon exiting and looking for a chance to catch my breath, I find Joe steady on my tail, waiting for a chance to pass....I realized too late that he was drafting me since I was exhausted at this point and simply trying to shake him off. His strategy worked perfectly because as soon as I hit the pavement, I was baked. No more fight was coming from me. I hoped he did not sense my fatigue long enough to let me get back into the woods alongside him, but he took off midway down the pavement and kept on gaining speed upon entering the last remaining singletrack yellow area. I tried one last effort to catch him by riding through all the twisties without using any brakes and all technique, but as soon as I caught back up with him, my body said no more.... I managed to keep him within distance until the end, but I had no more fight left in me...What a GREAT mini-race! I think I plucked about 7-10 ticks off of me from cutting corners so tightly and hitting branches, leaves, bushes you name it. My lungs were burning, heart was literally pounding out of my chest for a few moments, but my legs felt pretty darn good.

I am so looking forward to next Tuesday!

Road Cycling Training

2009-06-04T16:57:00.002-04:00

I have been doing a ton of road cycling lately. It really is fun when the bike just "fits". I can go over 100 miles and not really suffer, whereas previously, I would not make it more than 50 miles without major discomfort...

My cycling tips:

A Great supportive saddle...not too cushy and not too firm
Good Fitting Bike shorts with lightly padded Chamois
Chamois cream, Bag Balm, Udder Cream...etc...anything to keep the friction to a minimum.
a good nutritional liquid meal
Some sense of where you are going and how far you are planning to go.

Follow these tips and you will be on your way to a great day!

12 Hours of Santos

2009-02-23T16:53:00.001-05:00

Ever have one of those moments where you just wanna ride your bike all day long? I did....it was some fun!

I recently made a last minute decision to go down to Florida to ride in the 12 Hours of Santos. Dave Hall from the Trek Bike Shop had mentioned riding along to this event sometime back, but I kept it in the back of my mind since I did not feel ready for a main event so early in the season. I entered the 6 hour event since I had never raced this format before and was curious about the entire endurance race thing in general. Turns out 6 hours was more than enough for me...This was one heck of a fun race! The trail itself was tough and unforgiving. Not a lot of climbing, just harsh rough twisties and fast rolling flats....The Vortex is the place where the pain started and the Twister is the place where you tend to forget about the pain you just endured and just floated along singing a song...until you return to the Vortex again and again for the next 6 hours! There was quite a large turnout, much like a music festival or something...lots of partying going on. Lots of positive attitudes...Lots and Lots of COOL bikes man! Everywhere, bike-porn eyecandy! IT was great! Anyways...the night prior to the event, the weather decided to mess with us by dropping down into the teens...not cool...nasty cold weather on the first night made for tired souls on the morning of the big event...regardless, this is an event everyone must try at least once to really find their tipping point...Santos is a trail system which must be visited just to check it out...it is truly a work of art...

so to recap: camping, seemingly endless bike riding, beer, good friends, campfire, more beer and steaks!

Along for the ride with Dave were Adam DeWitt and Justin Fisher(who met us there).

Congratulations to Dave Hall who finished 1st overall in the 12 hour Solo Singlespeed class and 5th overall. WOW!

Congratulations also to Justin Fisher who finished 9th overall in the 6 hour solo Elite class! Impressive first time Justin!!

Cheers to Joel Watson who managed to simply finish the 6 hour event ....

Kudos to Adam Dewitt for attempting the 12 hour event...impressive times Adam!!!

Santos Results Posted here: http://www.goneriding.com/2009/12%20hours%20of%20santos/results.htm

We all had a great time and I personally plan on attending next year!

-joel

Pictures available here:
http://www.lowcountryfattirefreaks.com/?p=162

Cello

2009-01-15T17:27:00.000-05:00

Ok,

So my New Years Resolution this year is to finally master one musical instrument I truly love to hear. The CELLO. While being a very simple instrument to understand, it is one of the hardest instruments when it comes to intonation. I am really suffering on the mechanics and the intonation is really kicking my ass, but my teacher is patient and is trying different ways to get me to understand how to relax, listen, and focus....

good luck to him.... ;)

Swamp Fox Passage of the Palmetto Trail

2009-01-11T16:47:00.000-05:00

I have been wanting to ride more of the Palmetto Trail ever since I read about the "famous" Swamp Fox. I have been itching to do a little micro-exploration and it seems Justin Fisher was on the same wavelength. We had previously ridden the lower section from Hwy 17 to Buck Hall which is an endpoint to the Palmetto trail. He has been really chomping at the bit to do this ride since we both read about Trek Bike Shop's very own David Hall riding it a few months back. It seems that was the catalyst. A little back n forth texting and we were up early and on our way to do a little adventure riding...The trail is loopy, swoopy and bumpy in spots. Lots of mud, lots of great bridge crossings, beautiful swamp scenery, tricky log rides with some fun rooty singletrack, even some nice rock crossings thrown in...I was impressed and look forward to doing it again very soon!

Distance covered: 29.5 miles.

Time: 2:55:38s

Avg Speed: 11mph

Weather: Light Rain, hazy, 60-65degrees

We started from Quenby Creek and Rode all the way up to Canal recreation area....right under 30 miles end to end...but they are some tricky miles....but for the most part fun, fun , fun...

Photos available here: Palmetto Trail

Swank 65 2008

2008-11-14T16:42:00.002-05:00

How can I possibly start this article? How many different ways can one be subjected to the most extreme elements mountain biking can offer? Obviously quite a few...

Somewhere out in Asheville, I believe Todd Branham and his merry little crew of masochists let out little snickers of joy as they traverse the intended race path thinking of all the pain, suffering and misery we subject ourselves to. That's my conspiracy theory. In reality, Blue Ridge Adventures once again steps up to the call for setting up the most intense epic mountain adventure races in the Pisgah mountain area. Like moths to the flame, we drive out there to challenge ourselves against the forces of nature while following Todd's roadmap over treacherous terrain, unrideable creek crossings, as well as hanging from vines on the edges of washed out trail. I will tell you right now, I almost entertained the notion of quitting this time around. Something about biting cold weather and brutal rocky descents make one weak all over....This is one of those races where legs and technical must meet properly. Once you have those two factors down, you then have to turn your attention to factor in the elements. It is biting cold when you leave and if done at the snail's pace I encountered, biting cold upon arrival. I learned so much from this race, much more than my ORAMM experience since I really focused on listening to my body scream out loud at me while partially ignoring it.

The Swank 65 is the final epic race goal for the season that I had set for myself. It is by far nothing like I had expected. I arrived early Saturday morning to setup camp since it is included in the rider registration fees. I arrive to find the camp area very much desolate and devoid of human life except for a few Blue Ridge Adv associates. They inform me Cove Creek campground is also the Start/Finish for this fine event. I accept the information, find my little spot in the woods, setup camp nice n quick, get some hot coals going for cooking, then proceed to wander about trying to find things to do without blowing myself out since I am supposed to be resting up for Sunday. I try helping out with registration setup and find there is not much I can do there. So, I strap on my biking shoes and go putter up Cove Creek trail on the blue section for a little bit. This was an enlightening experience as I find it totally covered up with leaves and no sign of roots or rocks hidden beneath. I spin around after a few brisk light spin miles upward, and descend back towards camp at full speed. The rush returns and I realize I am looking forward to riding some new terrain tomorrow. A few more campers arrive and night soon falls as everyone hugs the edges of the fire, I realize I am truly having a great time camping, but know I must go to bed shortly. 10pm comes quickly and I retreat back to my frosty campsite and slide my way into my sleeping bag restless, anxious cold and a bit nervous hearing all of the horror stories of past years events....

Sunday comes up fast! I am up and awake at 6am. Coffee is on by 6:30. Restless, I get suited up and go over my battle/survival plan. While eating my dozen pancakes breakfast, I notice the grassy knoll which just yesterday was littered only with a pack of dancing dogs from nearby campers was now overridden by car after car after SUV. The hotel stayers had arrived. I would say about a good hundred or more. The madness started right away. Time sped forward and before I knew it we were instructed to lay our bikes in a large group area and walk up and away from our bikes to start in a "Le Mans"-like fashion (Indy car racers would have to run to their vehicles when the green flag was waved). Todd briefed us on the start and instructed us on where to run. While he was talking I notice Andy Campbell had shown up to race! Awesome! I wish him good luck and just like that we were running through the woods. I notice many were simply walking which forced the runners up through them all. I say we must have started in the upper third of the pack upon grabbing our bikes and spinning off. I immediately realize running up and down a mountain before a race really sucked. I was winded before I ever got onto the trail, not a good feeling. The ride winds up Cove Creek and it is climbing singletrack mixed with a handful of tricky creek crossings. I fall into a rhythm almost immediately and hope that my breathing can slow down before I pass out from sucking wind. I feel every bit of the cold mountain air deep in my lungs and grow a bit more upset that I just cannot acclimate properly. I notice myself passing many riders who are having a worse time than I am at breathing and quickly understand I am not the only one battling the elements. Rest stop 1 comes quicker than expected and I find myself warm and optimistic. The rest stops were AWESOME! The attendants were so organized and really there to wait on you hand and foot. I was told not to get off my bike, but to ask for what I needed, so I ordered a peanut butter sandwich, my water support bag, and a fresh set of lungs. They simply could not fulfill the lungs part, but that is a difficult request...Off I rode from rest stop #1 in less than a minute of arriving which was a shock to me as I had expected to lose 5 minutes at each stop.

Up a long gravel road climb I went. Daniels Ridge connector is around here. Onwards to rest stop#2 which came quickly, so I must be deprived of oxygen by this point. Once again, awesome reststop! I fly through this one, only eating a sandwich, climbing on and quickly entering the singletrack in Gloucester gap. I start making up tons of spots here. I finally catch up to Andy and am flowing along with the large group he is mixed into and notice he starts slowing because he has popped a rear derailleur cable! I stop to check if he needs anything, but he already has his hex wrenches out and working on the problem, so I scoot on ahead. I drop the rest of the group and am feeling really optimistic about finishing around 5 hours based on my current speed and physical status. Then it happens...a simple creek crossing turns into a nightmare when I get my front wheel hooked in a gap between rocks. I flip over, hit my helmet on rocks, my shoulder and part of my back go into the cold creek, and my feet are still clipped in! I cringe from the impact and both my legs cramp solid. It is agonizing pain. I force my legs to unclip and straighten out for the next 10 minutes staring at everyone fly by me asking if I am ok. Andy passes me again at this point and checks if I am ok. I tell him thanks, and to get moving, no problem here and I never see him again for the rest of the race. Not being able to move freely was the downward spiral to the entire race. In pain, cramping everywhere, cold, and slightly wet, I pedal on. No more optimism. I make it to rest stop#3 and look forward to drying out a bit on the climb up Pilot Mtn. Rd. This climb is a lot like Curtis Creek on the ORAMM, long steep and ridiculously long. I actually find I don't mind climbs like this as much anymore. I did dry out, but the cramps would resurface again after a few miles upwards and send me looking for a nice sunny warm spot to allow my legs to carry me onwards. It was time consuming and something I will be focusing on entirely throughout next season. I finally make it to Farlow Gap and breath a sigh of relief because despite everything terrible I have heard about this descent, I am looking forward to some time not pedaling and simply flowing...WRONG. As I enter Farlow, I realize it looks pretty and simple, but underneath the overgrown grass, moss, and barrage of leaves, are boulders, baby head rocks and sharp protruding rocks everywhere. It is one of the most difficult decents I have ever attempted to make. I make it a third of the way and go over the bars again. Fortunately, I catch myself clip back in and try again...halfway down, the banging, constant line changing and state of panic for my body's safety grow to a level where, I simply cannot proceed on the bike and get off and start walking quickly. I carry where I can, and roll it where I can, but I try everything to keep moving along. I am not only afraid someone is going to catch up, I am afraid I will be stuck here well past dark. I reach some trees I must climb over and start complaining out loud about how I am not having fun not riding my bike, but then I think hard about how cool it is to be out here in a spot which is hard enough to hike to and using my bike to get me here and out of here. It is also quite beautiful out here. I come to a creek crossing and notice a nice waterfall off the right edge, don't fall here! I hike onwards and upwards. Up and through junglelike singletrack, wondering if I am still on the right course. I come to another creek crossing and realize I haven't ridden my bike in quite sometime. Finally, I start seeing some steep uphill singletrack and clip back in and creep forwards since my legs are screaming in pain now. 2 riders actually catch up to me and my spirits sink for holding what few spots I had retained. I make it all the way to Davidson river trail and this area actually sends nice vibes through my soul since it flows and makes up for the setbacks I had on Farlow Gap. I start really cruising along now and make it back to rest stop#1 which signifys I am coming close to the end of the race. I am really happy I made it to this point because I learned I can ignore some pain in my body and continue forwards. Onto Cove Creek I ride, discovering another long arduous uphill gravel road climb was in store. I actually made this entire climb in my middle gear, so I am assuming it was not nearly as steep as Pilot Mtn Rd. It winds upwards for around 4.5 cold cold miles according to my computer and then quickly enters some super nice single track which is Cove Creek. I start jamming on this trail as soon as I realize it is the same trail we rode upon the start! I take tons of chances, roll over some of the same creek crossings that I earlier walked across and hop over rocks and anything else which would get me to the finish as soon as possible. I then hear the beautiful sound of people talking, and cheering as they see me coming through the woods. As I approach the finish, Todd announces my arrival and gives me a hi-five which sends a smile across my face! I made it! 6:07:02 official time, 5:21:33 computer time. I actually made it back in time to have a beer from the keg which was one of my goals as well! I hang out for the next few hours watching riders roll in amazed there were still so many out there! There were also quite a few DNFs and a few riders still not present as darkness set in! There were dozens of people who were getting ready to camp for their second night and although I wanted to stay one more night and really engage in the merriment with others whom I had met here, I had to get back to work the next day. With that said, I said my goodbyes, thanked Todd and crew for their fine work, and I hopped into the car, and drove quietly into the night taking with me a strong feeling of accomplishment and awe. I am sure I will return next year for another round of punishment, 'err enlightenment.

--Joel

Check out more pictures here:

http://www.lowcountryfattirefreaks.com/?p=119

My Tsali Fat Tire Freaks Camping Trip

2008-10-15T16:39:00.000-04:00

The Freaks went camping out to Tsali Recreation Area which is near Fontana Lake in Western North Carolina. The trip occurred October 10-13th, 2008. Tsali happens to be home to some of the finest, well-groomed mountain bike trails I have ridden in quite some time. There is not really a definite way to compare them to other trail systems like FATS, Dupont, as well as some of the other frequented trails in the Pisgah Forest area... Tsali is old forest, clean, predictable and definitely standing the test of time since the last time I had ridden these trails was over 15 years ago! There are easy loops and moderate loops, but nothing insane, meaning lots of group riding fun. The campsite at Tsali was clean, simple and VERY popular! There was good food, good friends, lots of jokers and lots of different personalities...did I mention all the great riding within feet of our campsite? I ate, drank, turned around jumped on my bike, did 10 miles up and around, afterwards coming back for more food and drink...too perfect...

Campers in attendance were:

Don Watts

Collin Papke

Luke Farrow

Ken Michalak

Ken Kirchner

Shawn Mehaffey

Steve Jolly

Mike Hobson

Joel Watson

I, "joel", rode up with the "Kens" in the Kirchner "expedition" shuttle. The ride was smooth and nicely uneventful. The weather was freakishly perfect. I already knew this weekend was going to be sublime. We arrive at Tsali campground amidst a smackload of other campers also coming in and filling spots. It was a madhouse! Tsali campground is first come, first served, so you gotta hustle to get your gear in place. Collin had already landed one and I ended up putting my gear in Collin's massive tent for the first night until the others arrived. The "Kens" ended up camping up the road a bit from us at a different campsite, which looked great for family camping in the future. The Tsali campground was definitely all about the mountain bikers. There were SOO many bikes here! It was mountain bike eyecandy heaven! Being a slight gearhead myself, I rode around a bit to see all the different bikes, components, and setups people were riding on. I calculated close to half a million dollars in just bikes alone. This did not take into account extra gear! Thats insane!

The campsite was very accomodating with clean bathrooms and hot showers! No sooner had we setup camp, that we realized we had arrived early enough to hit the trails! We immediately suited up and took off like a pack of wild kids who had been in the car traveling for way too long! Upon paying the trail entry fee, we immediately hit right loop since it is open on Friday. Smooth moderate climbs, nice breezy descents, incredible views, so much fun! The primary consensus was to just do a little bit of right loop since it was getting close to dark and it is always typical to be overly cautious upon first entering the mountains when trail riding. That notion flew right out and over the lake after about 2 miles since this trail was flowing so nicely! We finished all 13.9 miles of right loop in a great time with tons of energy left on reserve for the remainder of the weekend. Back to camp, time to eat! Chef Collin had already taken the liberty of precooking our first night's meal of some kind of pasta alfredo which really hit the spot when warmed up. Good beer, good food, and lots of relaxed smiles everywhere you turned. oh yeah!

Saturday was a classic slow wake, no hurries type day with many miles of trail left to explore. Upon eating one heck of a delicious hungry man's breakfast made by Chef Collin, we discussed the order of trails to be ridden that day. Steve, Mike and Shawn arrived sometime this day. Today's agenda revolved around Mouse Branch and Thompson Loop of which both were moderate and open on Saturdays. Collin had taken the extra effort to bring along his extra bike, the Caffeine 29er. After some chatting about it, Collin offered to let me take it for the day on the trails. I was reluctant at first because I was truly trying to focus on enjoying the trails up here with no worries about my handling skills based on a different bike setup, but this apprehension dissapeared after about 5 minutes riding along on this bike. My eyes were opened to 29ers on this weekend after riding every trail effortlessly and with little or no problems climbing. Thanks Collin! You've made a believer out of me. Ok, Mouse loop, wonderful descents, slightly rocky, moderate climbs, lots of people on the trail, but manageable. This trail was certainly the most technical I can recall. Thompson Loop was kind of more of the same with a bit more gumption in the climbs than Mouse Branch. The reward for climbing Thompson Loop was a fast Pisgah-like downhill which sends you screaming down straight into our campsite. Lunch, then Thompson loop again! oh yeah! Afterwards, I was back in camp and setup on a nearby hill for the night. Perfectly seasoned steaks and creative work with our current leftovers were on the agenda for that night's dinner. It was an excellent meal once again. Great campfires were everywhere! Rest settled in and one too many beers with way too many pounds of food sent everyone right off to bed.

Sunday was a hazy start. Breakfast was pancakes by Don Watts and fried buckeye walnuts cooked by myself since they seemed to be abundant everywhere! I believe Buckeye walnuts could be the answer to our energy shortage. After another excellent breakfast, we decided on hitting Left Loop since the talk is this is one tough hair raising trail. After a heated debate of whether we should hit right loop first or left loop, we go forth on left loop and plunge right into the fun. Left loop has a little bit of everything; whoops crossings, switchbacks, rocks, smooth fast forest loam, peek through views of the lake, wide open cliff hanger views of the lake, as well as a scenic option with a nice climb to a breathtaking view of Fontana Lake and the Smokies! This was truly a treat. I think I rode this loop twice today...We then rode a half loop on right loop before calling it a day. Night was coming up fast and it was soon time for our night ride! We left out of the camp with lights ablaze towards right loop. The weather felt cold until you hit the woods. It was warm and comfortable. We ended up shedding lots of our layers throughout the ride and had a blast while catching glimpses of the lake simmering in the moonlight. What a great last night's ride!

Monday was breakdown and pack up day. But our riding was not over. Collin had mentioned attempting to meet up with John Lackey and Andy Campbell who had chosen to challenge themselves at Pisgah Forest this weekend. Our meeting point was Dupont. Dupont was also a last minute treat with our special tour guide, Shrimper, leading the way up and over burnt mountain, cedar rock and a few trails whose names I still cannot remember, but such excellent riding! Shrimper had previously ridden at Marrington and had offered to show us some of his favorite spots when possible. He met up with us at Dupont with a smile and an eagerness to ride. Thanks Shrimper for your time! It was unforgettable!

So many showed up this time around! It was really cool!

Special thanks Luke Farrow for the AWESOME photos he took!

Click on the picture jump to the massive slideshow:

ORAMM 2008

2008-07-28T16:35:00.002-04:00

Masochism....insanity...abuse...futility; all adjectives which accurately describe the OffRoad Assault on Mt. Mitchell(ORAMM).

I am quite comfortable stating that while I am a fairly seasoned rider with some decent technical riding experience under my belt, this event tested me beyond normal acceptable human limits. This was the most grueling climbing endurance marathon I have ever participated in. I never realized how far one can climb when they simply have to. Pain was everywhere, suffering was everywhere, broken bodies and wills were everywhere. Quitting was not an option for myself after 30 dedicated miles ....To make a long story short, I suffered, survived, and completed my first, and possibly last Off-Road Assault On Mt. Mitchell....unofficial time: 11hrs:??mins... official computer time 8:36:07, therefore with moderate reststop visits, about 9.5 hours(more on that later)...oh yeah, one more thing:climbing sucks.

Personal Computer Data:

Total miles ridden: 65.26

Total Time: 8:36'07

Average Speed: 7.5mph

Maximum speed: 29.4mph

Travel Crew: Brad & Jennifer Phillips, and myself, Joel Watson....

Other participating LCFTFs: Justin & Tina Fisher & family, Nick Latto, Andy Campbell

PreRace.)

Breakfast time at the Comfort Inn. 6:30 am and all is quiet in the Continental breakfast lounge. I grab myself a danish, some rather rubbery looking cooked eggs, OJ, and some wickedly watered down coffee...i go back for some toast and more OJ....Some more water back in the room to keep the hydration system circulating...we all get dressed and stagger out to meet the monster. Food Drop bags in place, then shuffle into a good spot to avoid the lockdown at the hike-a-bike at Kitsuma...

Start.)

GO! I have never heard that many knobbies roaring along on a paved road before...it was an amazing sound! Adrenaline pumped through my body. The rush was overwhelming. My heart rate shot up to 175 instantly! I could not control how incredible and insane this start was! Heartrate check: 184. Myself, being stuck dead in the middle of this fearsome aggressive pack of winners made for an uncomfortable feeling of not making the slightest mistake in formation. One turn led us through a man trying to control the pack traffic into a left turn, but he was too short to see, so many riders almost hit him: maybe he should be up on a large pedestal next year? This went on up most of Old 70...truthfully, I actually felt immediately winded from the immediate grade that the road started taking....I started wondering if I would even see RestStop#1....

Kitsuma.)

Ahh yes...lovely Kitsuma, she sounds like a lovely gentle asian flower, but in reality: demanding, demeaning, and will only give up her gift upon total devotion and surrender...so with that in mind, I briskly rode forward down a bit of singletrack towards a sharp left vertical turn by the highway whereupon an immediate congestion of riders commenced. Heartrate check: 170. At this point I realized I was not far enough at the front of the pack to avoid the traffic jam, so I physically and mentally throttled down and started the humbled march up Kitsuma...and up...and up....damn this hike-a-bike! Heartrate check: 180. Then, when all patience seems to vanish and thoughts of pushing riders out of the way to get ahead enter one's thoughts, you hear chatter from relieved riders ahead..."downhill, finally, alright..about time!..etc". I catch my breath for a moment, and impatiently clip in and start hammering...WOW, hard drops off roots, rocks jutting up everywhere! Quick ascents upward make for another moment of bunched up climbing, but before anyone can mutter a word about hiking, I am clipped in again and flying along bones jarring from the harsh, loose, rooty drops which propelled me forward to about 20mph in the blink of an eye and the slight release of the brakes. I fly across off camber ledges praying not to slip out, forcing my focus to remain on the trail ahead, feeling the presence of hundreds of riders breathing down my back. Hands screaming in pain from the downward pressure of the descent and the constant loading/unloading of the brakes...I let off the brakes and start really making some room! WOW...this is fun stuff now...total devotion and surrender and Kitsuma will bear her soul to you....and just when it starts smoothing out and turning fun and twisty, she takes it back! Heartrate check: 160. aww...i wanted more...ever heard the quote: be careful what you wish for? Arrived at RestStop#1 at the 15 mile marker according to my computer...dazed, I was starting to realize the key to surviving this race is not to race it out...off to RestStop#2

Star Gap.)

As soon as you set out from RestStop#1, you enter another type of climb up an old dirt road which is run over with mountain foliage. This climb seems to never end and I soon start to understand why this is called a climbers marathon and quickly decide I want don't want to ride anymore....too late possibly...I continue thinking thoughts of bailing after reaching RestStop#2, but RestStop#2 never seems to come...Heartrate check: 185. Wicked cramping sets in...Just when it seems like my legs seriously are done climbing, the road starts to point downward... fast, fast, fast...oh yeah, to hell with quitting, game on! Cramps forgotten. The downhill drops you right into RestStop#2 and I am overcome with adrenaline at the crazy descent I just finished, ready and wanting more. But, minor setback#1 occurs with a harsh reality check about the current state of logistics: no water at the feed station! Ok, getting worried...I calm down and slowly take out my pre-loaded feedbag which does not contain a water bottle, just some gels and energy foods and slowly eat them hoping the replacement water will be here once I am done. 10 minutes later, no water...Fellow LCFTF, Andy Campbell, shows up with the same look on his face regarding the current state of the race...ouch...15 minutes pass. finally...water arrives...frustrated, but not negative, I reload and immediately continue onto RestStop#3 trying to make up for unforeseen lost time.

Curtis Creek Rd.)

Someone at RestStop#2 mentioned this being his 3rd ORAMM attempt which always ended along the Curtis Creek Rd climb. This information worried me. Nonetheless, I had plenty of water, heartrate was 158 and I felt renourished and ecstatic having made it this far! I start the climb...Sweet! This is nice a leisurely climb up a long campground road, why all the fuss? Wow, this road sure is long..holy cow, this road is still climbing...omigosh, are you serious?? Still climbing....climbing....if I see any more gravel I am going to scream...nobody actually cared when I yelled...why are all the riders so silent? I can't stand this anymore...please give me something different to climb...damn it, I am not giving up...up..up...up..pass 2 riders..up..up...pass 5 riders, one at a time....Heartrate check: 180. stop, pee in the bushes, get back on ...up..up..up...up..up...get passed by some chick with groovy tassles on her bike seat...are you kidding me?....up...up...up, pass the tassles chick after she drops to her granny gear....7-10mph, mid-ring up front(this is the key)...up...Heartrate check: 170...up...you get the picture...I finally get off for a bit to walk and stretch my legs since saddle-itis is setting in and I gotta take care of tha' taint....get back on after a mile and ride past some lady who claims I only have 2.5 more miles to get to RestStop#3...awesome...up..up..up...1 mile left...I chug down my last bottle of water to keep the hydration system pumping steadily...all systems normal and operational....Heartrate check: 168. Finally RestStop#3! 1:30pm, I enter the feed zone with adrenaline surging...I grab my feedbag, down my food, look at my watch and tick off 7 minutes. I want to be outta this stop no later than 1:40pm. I quickly get my bottles ready for a refill and minor setback#2 occurs: NO WATER AT THE FEEDZONE! ok...getting panicky, so I ask the attendant when they expect more, to which his reply was: he doesn't know and he doesn't expect anymore anytime soon...Great! Wonderful...adrenaline turns to bewilderment...I turn around to look at what other liquids are available...2 roasting hot cans of RedBull sit amidst a flurry of emptied cans in an overflowed trash container. I finally make the decision to use them when someone runs up and chugs them both into his camelbak...wow, everything cannibalized...this is not good...nothing left at all except for remaining feedbags which were not an option to me...I sit down and try to think of a rational way to solve this issue, all the while, time rushes on....30 minutes...45 minutes...1 hour later, frustrated with it all, and mentions from many about abandoning the race as well as mentions of refunds....the growing group of upset people all walking around waiting for water are handed other's liquids from unknown feedbags...not cool. just wanting to get on with it I take it, reload and go away, not certain what lay ahead at RestStop#4...

BlueRidgeParkway.)

Determined not to let technical minor setbacks influence my adventure ride, I started moving along at a fast clip. Beautiful scenery, nice little decent and then, level and up again...oh no...not another gravel road! Climbing again...faster this time...rested, moving along at 10-12mph...really surprising myself...passed riders who had at least 45 minutes on me...moving along so nicely...this climb is just as insane as Curtis Creek! legs burning from the cold restart...heartrate: 175...drop it down to 7-10mph...keep moving don't stop....bam! Heartrate: 160. RestStop#4...oh surprise! They are out of water...and so here I am stuck yet again...man, I am frustrated, but NOT rude...this is obviously a logistics problem...not knowing what lay ahead I wait it out for water again..15 minutes pass, I finish my feedbag grub and look for a nice spot of grass to sleep in, but before any water detail arrives, a generous man named Phillip shares from his gallon of personal water with me! Alright, back in action! 25 minutes later I am back on the road! The only thought on my mind was: I cannot believe I am on my way to RestStop#5!

HeartBreakRidge.)

While waiting it out at RestStop#4, I overhear mention of the brutal downhill awaiting...over 6 miles of it! I don't know whether I should be afraid or very afraid...onwards up the BRP about 1-2 miles...then sharp left right into a mean, vertical hike-a-bike section...then...the moment of truth...the downhill begins....steep, fast, wicked fast if you wanna...ruts, turns, off-camber berms, ledges no safety net...you name it...Heartbreak throws everything it can at you...this descent is only for the serious-minded, seriously mental that is....sharpened focus is the key to survival here, as well as controlling your downhill descent speed...I did suffer a sever cramp in my left quad muscle when attempting to unclip upon arrival at a steep switchback...it almost turned ugly, but I caught myself and simply laid back on some shrubs for about 5 minutes to ease the pain...back to downhill flying I went...I witnessed some of the nicest outlook views from some of the points on the ridge where I paused to give my hands a break from the intense pain. I finish the downhill and cross over some surreal looking railroad tracks and discover RestStop#5...woohaa! I am not gonna even check for water...I catch my breath, get off the bike and spit on my rotors just to hear them hiss, laugh, gently massage my hands to bring them back to life and then set out to finish this beast off...

MillCreek./Kitsuma.)

I speed off again fueled mainly by adrenaline only to meet yet another climb! Blast this race and its neverending eternal uphill battles! Along the way, I meet a couple, Russ & Megan, who had entered the ORAMM because of their friends who had backed out at the last minute due to unforeseen circumstances...They were troopers! Onward I climbed...up....up...up...and yes, up...ok, now old 70 again....things are looking great, then I remember...Kitsuma...again...remember what I wished for earlier?..well, I take it back...I didn't wanna hang out with Kitsuma anymore...Strangely, now with little or no energy left in me, Kitsuma seemed a much larger challenge than before. I did, however, manage to navigate up many a switchback before jumping into hike-a-bike mode which left me a bit impressed to know I can handle this trail with some skill. After goofing off a bit and dizzy with completion anticipation, I start the downhill...whoa...I didn't realize how many descents and climbs there were...I noticed a lot of different challenges now that I was entirely spent...the switchbacks were much harder and trickier...I could not believe some of the drops I had taken earlier with little or no thought...you really get to know your limits in this race. Finally, I reach the bottom sweeping downhill of Kitsuma and start charging taking lots of risks to simply end this game...I blast right out of the woods into the campground area and startle a large group of campers who were walking along. I take note of the directions and get on the long road home....

Finish.)

The road to the finish is old 70 back to Old Fort...it is fast and paved...oh yeah, big ring, top gear...kickin it up I reach almost 30mph and love the wind cooling me down. My legs start quivering half from pain half from adrenaline...feeling very much alive....i reach the one mile marker and start really cranking...just when I thought the racing was over, here comes a dude with a yellow jersey on who I had passed looking dizzy 15 minutes ago on the Kitsuma descent...He flies up in front of me, so I start drafting him...he throws a textbook move from the Tour de France at me and proceeds to start shaking me off...I laugh and dart ahead...testing him...he takes the bait and follows...I then proceed to shake and drop him...and then slow down to maintain energy...then he blasts by again...I see the finish coming up fast...I crank like a madman to pass...he ramps up his speed...we end up finishing basically tied(no photo finish)...it was pretty funny battling for something like next-to-last place...but it made the last mile enjoyable... Being close to the last one returning, pretty much everything was gone...the keg was drained, the spaghetti was mushy, but I enjoyed every bit of my mushy dinner and frothy bottom of the keg beer like it was the best meal ever... After explanations as to why it took me so long, we were caught up, loaded up and back on our way to Charleston...

Aside from the minor setbacks based on water shortages: Logistics as well as rumours earlier riders were wasting water by using it as personal shower systems(I truly hope you guys get this problem figured out Todd), I had a great adventure...

Overall, this was an awesome test of perseverance and true mastery of one's bike handling & survival skills...I am happy to be able to honestly say I completed it and now truly know what it is all about.

ORAMM is one hell of an adventure challenge....do it...

Tour de Cure 2008

2008-06-28T16:33:00.000-04:00

Well, this was a great way to break in my new road-bike computer(it still has the plastic on the screen!)....it also shows how many miles you can ride in 5-6 hours because of one wrong turn....ouch!
Overall, the Tour De Cure was a really fun road ride with lots of great people helping out at every stop. The food and drinks at the end of the ride were great(bbq, beer and lots of fixins!) and the SAG support was superb! Thanks to Charles Fox and everyone else we met out there who really made this event possible!

Fat Tire Freaks in attendance were:
Don Watts,
Nick Latto,
Nick "Speedy" Luther,
Chris Eaton...
special hello to Ramsey, who was there with us throughout...
cant wait till next year!

Pisgah Rocks!

2007-10-09T15:48:00.001-04:00

Pisgah Rocks!

Incredible trip, words cannot describe everything experienced riding in Pisgah. We arrived late in the evening on Friday, setup camp in the dark all while trying to control our excitement about the upcoming rides. Andy Campbell had arrived earlier and had already ridden 17 miles! We setout Saturday morning focused on riding as much as we could.

Saturday - Clawhammer Mountain:

This was a major wakeup call! The initial climb was an uphill gravel fireroad from hell! I had chosen to use a CamelBak for the trip which I had not used in quite some time and started to feel the weight of it within the first few miles. That gravel road really made me start sucking wind and made me wonder if I was going to feel like this all weekend. I finally got into a nice pace and started moving along. After our first stop at the top of the gravel road, we discovered we had lost "Naked Bear Ken". After a failed search party attempt , it was later discovered that he had taken a right turn earlier on an entirely different trail! We continued on a bit concerned about where Ken could be, but soon became preoccupied with one of the gnarliest hike-a-bike sections I have ever witnessed. At times it seemed we would never see the top of Black Mountain. Finally reaching the summit, we found ourselves looking deep over the valley with one thing on our minds: the downhill! A little more singletrack ups and downs and finally we found what we were looking for! The first downhill out there was one of the roughest most abusive descents I have taken in a while. After about 3-4 miles of nonstop downhill aggression, I actually had to stop and rest my hands because my thumbs were on fire from the constant bashing the trail was giving me. Hard Turns, berms, erosion bars, off-camber rocks, you name it, this downhill trail was dishing it out in buckets. After reaching the bottom, we then paused to enjoy the adrenaline rush we were feeling. Thinking the ride was over we started up again after giving our thumbs a good long rest, we discovered the best laid directly ahead. The final descent of Buckhorn Gap was a perfect set of pump track humps with oversized berms just begging to be carved! After racing downhill again loving every moment of this insanely perfect speedway, Collin went into attack mode ahead of me and grabbed a huge part of the berm and whipped out of it super fast using it to connect to a perfect jump up ahead! It was really cool to watch someone else enjoy this trail in the way it was supposed to be enjoyed... We then returned to camp, ate a light lunch, hydrated on CytoMax by the buckets, and decided to try another trail before dark. I found my second wind and rode much stronger than earlier and yes, you know it, we hit that super fast downhill once again...it was too good to not do twice...JD had other thoughts on that second ride, but that is his story to tell...Dinner at camp Saturday was incredible! Dutch oven cooked biscuits! Red Beans & Rice with bits of sausage! German Beer! CytoMax! woohoo!

Sunday - DuPont State Forest:

Sunday morning came up fast! Breakfast was by Collin , another Dutch oven masterpiece! Feeling well nourished, rested and ready for more adventure, we loaded up the cars and drove off to DuPont to find out what all the fuss was about. Joe Pelton has been mentioning this place to me for quite sometime, but I have had an unusually busy year with only local trails within my grasp to keep myself fit. I now know what all the fuss is about DuPont...this is one incredibly beautiful trail system! Our first ride was up Laurel Ridge Tr, which was a moderate climb with a great rewards system around every bend. Ultra smooth climbs followed by curvy predictable descents. I was in heaven! THEN we found Bridal Falls! WOW! Slick Rock on the East Coast? No Way! Intense! I was in another world! We climbed all the way up to the Falls and then sat there taking it all in. It was really nice...words can't really describe this once again...THEN we returned to the parking lot for lunch and our next trail adventure! The last trail that day was on another section of DuPont called Cedar Rock Mountain. This place was something else. It starts out as clean singletrack leading into rocky sections leading into slick face off-camber climbs. The climbs went more and more vertical as you leave the security of the trees and up and out into the open. I have never had such fun climbing and enjoying the magnificient views as I have while I was there. The views alone helped you forget the fact that the climbs were incredibly challenging. This is one place to visit again and again. I did, however, take a pretty gnarly spill on the way down. It happened near the end, so I guess it was due sooner or later. I had started to get pretty comfortable racing downhill with my suspension plushed out, so this was definitely a lesson to be learned. Racing down the slickrock really gave me a charge, so I started to go much faster and take more risks. I came near the end of the trailhead and I noticed a super smooth hill begging to be jumped. I guess I was hitting around 26-27mph when I neared it. Speed has a way of making simple decisions very very difficult. I approached the jump, got into position and then saw horses up ahead! I decided to try and stop and float up and over the hill...BIG mistake, too much speed, brakes locked and up and over I went, landing a bit sideways immediately sliding into the gravel...ouch! Down I went, sliding across onto my hip, elbow and a bit of my helmet. The landing was uglier than it felt. I got up, chunked my bike, checked myself over, apologized for scaring the horses, and got back on and finished the ride. A little blood, a few reminders to be more careful and all was good. I was lucky that day...

Monday - More DuPont State Forest!:

Monday gave us more of the first trail in DuPont since JD was eager to go back and explore that trail some more...I, at this point, was totally exhausted and finally gave in to the cramps which were probably more from eating too much camp goodies the night before...

Noone really wanted to leave, but we all had places to return to in the "real-world"