Sage Brush Safari

This was the first race of the US Cup 50 miler series. Scott and I prerode the week before and I was ready to go on the new Marin. The course is a mix of mostly road climbs and excellent single track descents; two laps for the 50 miler. The Rodder crew rolled out together in the Eurovan - stylin! Scott and I went out together, pretty hard, but not too hard. The new bike was riding well and things were going smoothly through Wrangler (fun) and Bronco (some hike a bike). We picked off some riders as we climbed back up to Four Corners. I went into the red a bit here and backed it off as we headed into the aid station. Scott got out of there and pulled away on the road climb up to Los Pinos. I wouldn't see him until the finish (nice work Scotty!). Over the top at Los Pinos, down the fireroad on the other side. Feeling invincible on the new bike, I picked up a huge amount of speed... oh, better soak up that water bar. Oh shit, I hit that fast... getting bucked... coming down on the front wheel... too far forward... ground rushing up... ow, big crash. It seemed like it took forever to get going again. Looking at my Garmin data later, it was only about 5 minutes. A bunch of guys went past in that time. Once I realized I was able to ride, I started worrying about the bike. Everything seemed ok, but I was afraid I'd miss something and have another crash. I thought about packing it in - I could just coast down the road to the start finish. But that would be a lame way to go out, and it would hurt just as bad there as it would riding. So eventually I got going again, and limped down to Spur Meadow trail. I ran into Matt at Four Corners. He'd had flats and was done racing, but helped me with bottles (thanks Matt!). The crash took some of the fight out of me, but I hung in. Bronco was no fun - getting on and off the bike hurt. The second climb up to Los Pinos ws a grind too, but I enjoyed the ride down Spur Meadow, what a great trail. Descending Kernan, I caught up to Danny Munoz. This guy is crazy fast, why I catching up to him? He'd had a nasty crash (into a Jeep!) and had to replace a wheel. Bad luck! We rode in the rest of the way. I ended up 8 out of 16 in the Open men 30-39 category. Not so bad considering. Scott finished 2nd, awesome job.

Idyllwild Spring Challenge

 I was really looking forward to the great Spring Challenge course, and a weekend in the mountains. But Tuesday before the race I discovered a crack in my frame. Not good. After some scrambling, I borrowed a bike and even got in a shake down ride. The bike was a Banshee Paradox - a 29er hardtail with super short chainstays and slack head angle. I couldn't handle it as well as Mike (it's really suited to his riding characteristics), but I could work with it. I was racing in open category so I could do the long course. At 27 miles, it's shorter than a marathon, but longer than a typical XC course. All the climbing and single track made it feel longer too.
We went out fast for the first climb up to Keen pass, and were soon on May Valley fireroad. I was pretty far into the red at this point, but there's a lot of downhill in the second half of the course, so better go at it now. The Banshee and I got acquainted on the singletrack Bonita Vista trail down to the base of Lower Southridge. Ah, Southridge: rock and root infested hike a bike climb. I do actually kind of like it, though in the race I tend to dismount readily rather than try to clear everything; the spirit's all wrong, but it's faster. I settled in back on the fireroad, enjoyed the fun singletrack section near the top of MVF, then hit town at Astrocamp. Diana met me near the top of the course to hand off some bottles... thanks D! The final climb is some nasty steep road through town. The payoff is a great downhill singletrack, Mid Southridge. I had passed Coach on the road climb but he went hauling past on the descent - Coach has skills! After the initial steep trail, we raced Snakeskin, Cahuuilla, and Tres Hombres trails. This is where the early hard climbs catch up with me. It's downhill overall, but the trail twists left, right, up, and down through lots of tech sections. In other words, awesome trails, but not the sort where you can just sit and spin. This year the final section went back across Keen meadow and down the Keen pass trail. It seemed a little easier than the usual course; at that point, I wasn't complaining. I finished in 2:57 for 3rd place (of 11) in Open men 30-39. Would've been 10/16 in Cat 1, though... keeping me humble.

12 Hours of Temecula, June 2011

The June 12-Hours of Temecula had a lot to live up to. January's course was a fun, fast, roller coaster course; the weather was good; and Team Sherpa Dog had a great day. Personally, I had one of those special days where things just click - I did 8 laps, including 2 sets of double laps, and felt mentally and physically strong all day. I had done a lot of training since then, and so hoped for big things.

The parade lap seemed longer than usual, but the field was larger too. Riding in a pack with a bunch of mountain bikers is terrifying, but getting stuck behind slower riders is a lousy way to start. By the time we turned onto the course, I had a decent position in the top 20-30 riders. At that point I tried to settle in and ride my own pace, rather than race the really fast guys or the lead off riders on 4 man teams. I redlined it more than was smart, but did a decent first lap without hurting myself for later in the day.

While Mike was out, I caught my breath in our sweet double wide (actually, double deep) canopy pit stop. Fellow Rodder Racers Scott and Matt were riding solo (12 and 6 hr versions, respectively), while Milin was also racing on a 2 man team (Team Pegasus). Diana was running the pit, sporting her new Super D tee shirt. Milin left on his second lap, and I followed a few minutes later, wondering if I could catch up with him. It turned out that this would not be a problem...

Race director Jason Ranoa had laid out a short, fun course with two extended climbs and lot of twisty singletrack. About 10 minutes of riding brought me to the first climb, Bridges, which features a few winding switchbacks followed by a few steep ridgeline ups. The total climb is about 250 ft. Next, I descended Tarantula, a bunch of blown out switchbacks filled with deep sand. I was ugly on this all day. Eventually, I abandoned my pride and ran the worst sections, which was probably faster and definitely safer than if I'd ridden it. Tarantula feeds into the top of Tunnel of Love, a swoopy, rolly downhill section that can make you smile even after 6 laps.

Still no sign of Milin, but I thought I might pull him back on the next section, another 250 ft climb, this time on steady fireroad. This climb was about the halfway point of the lap, and took me about 6-7 minutes all day. I reached the top and made the hairpin turn onto Marlin Ridge. If you've never ridden at Vail Lake, the best way to picture the ridgeline descents is to imagine a roller coaster laid out on the top of a narrow ridge. The ground falls away steeply to either side of you, while the trail drops steeply, turns, back up, down, turn, up, turn, down, and so on. My gps recorded speeds of 20-25mph, but I suspect it was faster for brief periods. Some of the downhill sections are steep and rocky. It was on just such a section that I came on someone tending to a rider who had crashed. As I went past, I saw that the downed rider was wearing a Rodder kit. Milin! It took a second to process all this and I was 30 yards down the trail before I could stop. Milin was lying parallel to the trail, feet uphill. It was obviously serious or he would have been up already. I had done wilderness first aid training about 18 months ago, but he seemed stable so it wasn't clear what to do besides keep him comfortable, make sure nobody ran him over, and wait for help. Other riders had already carried the word down to the aid station. I told the two riders who had initially helped to keep riding. Milin was clearly in a lot of pain. As he described it, his brakes failed, he hit a choppy section at high speed, went over the bars, and landed on rocks hard on his right side. Based on the pain he was describing, I was worried he might have a fractured hip or pelvis.

I told Milin some stupid stories to distract him while we waited for help. For instance, did he know that, for reasons that were now self evident, the fireroad climb just before this descent was called "Ambulance"? The first help was a couple of guys from the aid station. I asked if they had any training... like first aid training? Nope. Then get on the radio and get someone up here with a board. I was pretty sure we were going to be locking Milin down and carting him out. By this time, Matt had come on us and stopped to warn riders to slow down. Scott came through a little later, but there wasn't anything for him to do, and we told him to ride on and pass the word to Mike and Diana in the pit, who were probably worried and confused. An EMT showed up a little later with a proper back board. About that time, a rider stopped, said he was an EMT as well, and offered to help. This guy was from team Cytomax/KHS, I think he was a Navy guy, he was awesome, and I/we really appreciate his help. Anyway, the EMTs did an assessment, we taped Milin down to the board, and drove him out on the back of a quad. An ambulance met us down in the campground. Cale, Milin's teammate, went with Milin to the hospital.

After conferring with Jason, I rode back up and resumed the course at the bottom of Marlin - just about where I had left off. A single track climb, twisty descent, a few side canyons and bmx tracks, and I was back to the pit area. I was out for about 1:50. After conferring with Jason, he decided to leave the time as it was, but give us credit for an additional lap. That seemed much better than the alternative of giving us a time equal to my first lap time, but only one lap, which would basically have meant we missed an hour of racing - which we almost certainly could have used to do another lap. All in all, I was happy with the way Jason handled it. Most importantly, I was glad he had plans and people in place to deal with a serious injury. I was also glad I was be there with Milin while we waited for help. I've had a few bad crashes, and it means a lot to have folks look out for you.

The rest of the day went by fast. After my extended 2nd lap, Mike and I swapped laps and my 3rd and 4th went well. I did scrub a little extra speed at the site of Milin's crash, but overall I was riding with confidence and good energy. A few adjustments to my fork and riding position in the week before had really helped with the bike handling.

I did a double on my 5th and 6th laps, riding the first just a little more conservatively and just slowing a few minutes on the second one. I had a Red Bull rally in the pit and was ready for the last lap of day. Team Sherpa Dog was currently running in 4th position. Waiting in the exchange area, I saw Kyle, a CSUSM student on a two man team that was in 5th. Kyle is super fast, and had passed me on our previous laps. His partner was a good bit slower, but I knew he could make up 5 minutes on me. Mike came in, told me the third place team was just a few minutes ahead. Third! I was worried about holding fourth!

As with the entire 12 Hr event, the only thing to do is ride as fast as you can and not worry about everyone else. I had no idea how long Kyle was going to be waiting for his teammate - he could be starting 1 min behind me or 10. It also wouldn't do any good to catch the 3rd place rider on Bridges only to blow up on Ambulance. But I did ride knowing it was my last lap. Kyle never caught me, and though it was dusk fading into night, I put up a time within a min or two of my earlier laps.

It turned out that Team Sherpa Dog finished 5th in the two man category (Kyle's team did not beat us, but someone else vaulted up in the standings, or perhaps there was a correction to the earlier results). Scott did 11 laps for 4th in Expert Men Solo. Milin got discharged from the hospital with no broken bones or internal injuries. A mostly good day...

Idyllwild Spring Challenge, part 2: Time trial

At the end of the XC race on Saturday, I told myself that all I needed to do was finish the race and I could bail on Sunday's Time Trial and Super D races. At first, it was a lie, easily seen through by the part of my brain that answered to my legs. But then it became a promise (to be broken), which gradually was believed. This helped with the last third of the XC race (first mental rule of endurance racing: only think about the next portion, not the entire insurmountable thing). After the race and a bit of recovery, I was ready to break the promise and think about the time trial. On Sunday morning, Scott and I headed up to Alvin Meadows to check out the course. Our pre-ride cum warm-up took about 20-30 min. The course could be described in one word: twisty. It didn't go straight for more than 20 feet in any direction, left-right or up-down. Add in a few rocks and trees, and you had a great all around test of mountain biking skills. This was no fireroad aerobic test, but also an assessment of handling, acceleration, and power.

As you'd expect in a time trial, we went off on 1 minute intervals. I was nervous for the start. Unanswered questions nagged at me... I wasn't too worried about riding hard, but could I carry speed through the turns? Could I run cleanly over the rocks? As I waited for the countdown to my start, I calmed and emptied my mind. And.... GO! The course was rolling up and down, but first part of the course was more down than up. Downhill, pick up speed, brake for the turn, lean the bike, hit the gas, out of the saddle for a short climb, lean again for the next turn, hammer out the turn into the straight, on and on for the longest 3 miles. I had a clean run, about as fast as I could have gone. The course was a blast, and the preride was essential. A couple more times around would have helped, as there were a few sections where I could have carried more speed if I'd remembered how the next section went.

In the second half of the course, there was more climbing than descending. My quads were burning at this point, which I took as a sign that I was doing something right. A tight rock squeeze, up a steep pitch, and I knew the end was close. Finally, off the singletrack onto a last bit of fireroad to the finish. I was done in 20:46, good for 4th among the 9 Open men, slower than nearly all the Pros and Cat 1 men (but faster than all the Cat 2 men :)  All in all, a good, fast, clean run with no mistakes and a high intensity effort. A cool down, an hour's rest, and time to start thinking about the next race: the Super D, subject of the next post.

Idyllwild Spring Challenge, part 1: XC

This weekend (4/30 -5/1) was the Idyllwild Spring Challenge - three races over two days on excellent trails. First up was the cross country race on Saturday, then a time trail and super D on Sunday. Each race was scored individually, but you could compete in all three as a stage race.

First, the cross country race. I raced in the Open category, which was basically for people who wanted to race Cat 1 but didn't have a license.

The course was billed as 27 miles, 4300 feet of climbing. Those of you who know the area will appreciate the route (and that the pros did it in <2:30): start with the Keen Camp climb out of Hurkey Creek, cross Johnston Meadow, climb May Valley fireroad, then Mirkwood (singletrack) to the Lower Southridge (hike a bike) climb. Back on May Valley fireroad, take Sunset trail, back on May Valley, then cut through town to the Southridge fireroad climb (last of the major climbs). Head back down hitting pretty much every piece of single track on the east side of May Valley Fireroad: Middle Southridge, Snakeskin, Tres Hombres (uno, dos, tres), Grindstone, Coffepot, Exfoilator, Rage Thru the Sage, and Tunnel of Love. Makes me tired just typing it. Then a bit of Apple Canyon Road and over Demoralizer to the finish.

Those of you who don't know the area really ought to go up there. Just the best twisty, flowing, singletrack through a beautiful forest setting and only 2hrs from SD.

Ok, so that's the course. On paper it is uphill to about 10 miles, then gradually downhill. So I went pretty hard on the climbs. I had dialed back the training volume and recovered from doing Vision Quest and Julian Death March on back to back weekends (which had left me wrecked, as Eric, my coach, had predicted). Despite going hard, I felt good and cleaned a lot of Lower Southridge. I had last ridden that trail a couple years ago and remember it being a slog. This time it took about 20 min. I continued to feel good climbing through town to the top of Southridge fireroad, reaching the high point of the course in about 1:40.

From here it went downhill, literally and - somewhat - figuratively. The start of the descent was steep with some loose sections, and I was tired and somewhat sloppy. Mentally, it is tough for me to switch gears from hard climbing to technical descending. After a couple dabs, I put my seat down some, which helped. But I gave up a few places to guys I'd outpaced on the climbs, and that got in my head a bit.

I was able to regroup and was probably riding pretty well, but every time I hit the brakes or dabbed in a rock garden, it was felt like a setback. Plus, the early hard pace was getting to me - I was tired. At one point, after it seemed like I'd been riding forever, the trail straightened out long enough for me to check my gps and I saw I still had 8 miles left. Ugh. Racing must be crazy, because what could be better than endless singletrack? I started telling myself that if I just kept pushing today I could bail on the TT and SD . Still, I kept taking in calories and didn't bonk, so though I was tired my pace was good through the lower, more open sections of the course.

I finished in 3:08:45, good for 7th in my age group in the open class. I would have liked to run faster on the descents and tech sections, but put in a good effort with no major mistakes and no mechanicals.

Rodder Racing was well represented at Idyllwild. Scott had a great race and was about 5 minutes ahead, placing well in Cat 1. Milin also raced the long course and Mike from NBB did the Cat 2 course.

Next post: time trial!

Vision Quest, part two

Here's my ride report for my second Vision Quest. Last year I had a good ride and finished just under 7:30 for about 50th place. This year I had been doing more training and felt in better shape. I hoped to improve my time, but I hadn't raced since January so I wasn't sure how much improvement to expect.

It's dark at the 5:30am start. Not twilight, not dim, but middle of the night dark. To get there, I'd gotten up at 3am to drive up from SD. Ridiculously early, but the kind of thing you can do because it's a big day you've been anticipating for a long time. As we climb Blackstar Canyon, the lights of riders above and below float through the darkness. There are low clouds (marine layer?) and as I climb through them it gets humid and my glasses fog. I reach the gate and turn onto the Main Divide in about 52 minutes. This first climb, about 2000 feet, is just a warm up for the rest of the ride. As I reach the Doppler ball (radar installation), the sun is coming up and the clouds are a deep red.

Near the top of Blackstar, I begin to settle in, and am feeling strong on the Main Divide. It's 8 miles of fireroad - up and down, but mostly up. My right hip flexor and back is feeling tight, which hurts and could signal a long day, but I ignore it. I see a spectacular crash as a guy in front of me (later I find out his name is Eric), crashes on his single speed carbon Air Nine and loses the rear wheel. As in, when he gets up, the rear wheel is not in the drop outs. Yikes. This section takes me about 55 minutes, meaning I reach Silverado Motorway in 1:46. Then it's down, down, down.

One of the interesting and challenging things about Vision Quest is the transition between long fireroad climbs and technical, singletrack descents. Silverado Motorway is a 3 mile, 1800 foot descent on loose, rocky singletrack. After nearly 2 hours of (mostly uphill) fireroad, I find it hard to descend aggressively. My plan is to ride in control and not risk a crash, even if it means giving up some time. But I am feeling comfortable and riding pretty well. I do get smoked by a couple of guys, though. One is Fuzzy, a well known pro who rides for Niner. He and I will trade spots back and forth throughout the day, with me making it back on the climbs and Fuzzy taking the descents. I find out later that the other guy rides there all the time and knows the trail well. I'm sure that helps, but he's still hauling ass. Anyway, I make it down Motorway in about 15 minutes and hit the aid station at Maple Springs.

A seemingly endless climb leads from Maple Springs back up to the Main Divide and on to Santiago Peak. Last year, this was the toughest part of VQ for me (ok, it was a tie with the hike a bike). Seven miles of relentless climbing. 2500 feet. Then, a bit of false flat and another 4.5 miles and 1200 feet. This year it seems to go by faster. The first part of the climb is on pavement and slightly steeper. It's made harder because you're transitioning back to climbing after the long descent of Motorway and the stop at the aid station. After a while, though, I settle in, my Red Bull shot takes effect, and I start to feel pretty good. My right side loosens up and I pass a number of people. My energy continues to hold for the final section of the climb, leading to Santiago Peak. This is the highest point on the course, at about 5600 feet above sea level.

The descent from the peak to the start of the Upper Holy Jim trail is uneventful. From there things get more interesting. Upper Holy Jim is the trickiest descent in the course - steep, rocky, loose. I haven't been doing a lot of technical riding (rainy winter = lots of road riding), so I am prepared to play it safe and walk dicey sections. Even so, it feels like my front tire is all over the place. The first crash isn't too bad, but the second one is a little rougher. Both are "loose control and steer into the side of the trail" crashes. There is lots of manzanita to "cushion" my fall. After the third crash, my legs cramp pretty hard and it takes a while to get up and pull my bike off the trail. My head starts filling with a bunch of thoughts that are leading towards a freak out: this is going badly, your ride is falling apart, all the preparation down the drain, you could really get hurt, etc, etc. I turn those thoughts off, lower my seat about four inches, and act like I know how to ride this shit. This turns out to work well enough to make it down the rest of the UHJ without trouble. After a short stretch of Main Divide fireroad, I turn onto Lower Holy Jim, which is less technical. LHJ is reminiscent of San Juan Trail, probably one of the better known OC trails (at least in San Diego). I don't feel totally comfortable, though; I'm still a little shaken from UHJ. About 1/3 of the way down, I realize my front tire pressure is really low. Not sure when that happened - maybe I burped it when I crashed? maybe that's why I crashed? But in that case I think I would have noticed it sooner. The good news is that it seems to be holding air ok, it's just low. Instead of taking a minute or two to stop and put some air in, I decide to try to make it to the aid station at the bottom of LHJ. I am careful of the front tire, but eventually it's clear that I have to deal with it. When I do add air, it's such an improvement, and so quick, that I wish I'd done it earlier. Finally, I reach aid station 2. Descents are supposed to be fun, but that one had been nerve-wracking.

From aid station 2, I head up Trabuco creek trail. This is the first single track climb of the day. Trabuco is rideable, but soon I reach the turnoff to West Horse Thief, which is super steep hike a bike. For about a mile. With an average grade around 20%. Last year this section took forever, but now it goes by faster. I am also able to ride more of it, which I attribute to all the strength-building workouts I've been doing. Thanks Eric!

I reach the top of West Horsethief feeling pretty good, and realize that I have a shot at finishing in under 7 hours (last year's time was 7:28). I'm all alone as I ride the last section of Main Divide to the top of Trabuco trail. I see one other rider on Trabuco. I enjoy the descent and feel great as I hit the lower section where slower riders are still coming up. The last section of the course is 4 miles of slightly downhill dirt road. I make good use of my big ring and sub 7 hours looks certain. Then I feel that wobbly feeling in the back - flat tire! I put some air in to see if it will seal, but there's a pretty big hole in the tire. Indecision is the enemy, so rather than trying to limp out on it or wasting more time (and CO2) trying to get it to seal, I quickly throw in a tube. There's one last creek crossing, then the finish in O'Neil park.

My time is 6:48:53, good for 31st. This is about 40 minutes better than last year. I attribute the improvement to training more consistently, and with a plan; working with Coach Eric Palmer (plug plug) has really paid off. Thanks also to Doug and Mike at North of the Border for all their support (plug plug).

VQ has a dedicated following, and if you talk to or read posts from these folks, it becomes clear that it's a special event. The idea of being tested is common. I was rattled by the difficulty I had on UHJ, but pulling it together and returning to a good performance was a mental victory.

Vision Quest initial report

Great ride today in VQ - finished in about 6:50, much better than last year (~7:30). Conditions and weather were good, had some flats but no major mechanicals. Here's a photo of the post ride smile:

Muddy, bloody, and happy

We're number 2!

Second place is supposed to be first loser, but Team Sherpa Dog was pretty happy to take 2nd in the 2 person open category at the January 12 hours of Temecula. The course suited us, we had good weather, no mechanicals, and great support from Diana. This was our highest placing yet and puts us in good position for the 2011 series.

12 Hours of Temecula - November

Team Sherpa Dog limped into the 12 Hours of Temecula race on November 12. We were down on two counts: I'd had a cold all week, and we were without our pit crew. Diana, our usual Pit Boss extraordinaire, had work responsibilities. Mike and I would have to clean our own chains, feed ourselves, and keep track of time. But we had great weather, good course conditions, and were motivated for the final race in the 2010 series. After consistent, strong finishes in the January and June races, we carried a 1+ lap lead in the 2-person open division series competition. We felt confident that we would take home the champions' jerseys at the end of the night.

SD 50 miler race report

I was breaking a rule... would I get away with it? "Don't make any changes right before a race." Everyone knows that. Tuning your shocks, changing tires, overhauling your bottom bracket - anything beyond putting air in the tires is a rookie move that invites disaster. But here I am, the night before the race, watching Mike build me a new rear wheel.

We finish about 11pm, too late considering my 5am alarm. I wouldn't have considered running the new wheel except that I knew Mike would build it right. Even so, I'm a little anxious. I dream about broken rear dropouts on my bike and wake up wondering if it's time to get up yet.

As we start the race, Elfin forest is covered in fog. From the base of the dam, we climb a mix of pavement and dirt until we're above the reservoir. It's tough to go out easy on this kind of an opening. After brief side trails, we descend to Lake Hodges. The descent is a nasty, steep, and loose gravel road scattered with water bars. One guy goes flying past me, but most folks are pretty restrained.

The trails on the east end of Lake Hodges are flat, and it's tempting to go too fast. I start racing. In an event this long, it's risky not to ride your own speed. But I get into a pace line and we're flying. Soon I'm making the turnaround and heading west. I settle in a little more after Del Dios park, but still quickly reach Hernandez Hideaway, the Dam, and the Steel Bridge.

Diana is waiting for me at the aid station at mile 24, near the golf course in San Dieguito River Park. I roll in around 1:40, which seems soon. It's awesome to have support on the course. Fresh bottles, a little lube on the chain, and I'm rolling again. There are many, many switchbacks. Not too steep, but very tight. They're lined with rail fencing (I guess this keeps people from cutting?), and while climbing you can grab the post with your inside hand and swing around.

Then we're on a bit of road and into the Lusardi loop (Black Mountain), which starts with a couple of long, steep power line climbs. Ouch. The bike is running great, though. The rear wheel is smooth like butter, and the Small Block 8 is hooking up well. I seem to be getting away with breaking a rule. I'm starting to feel the early hard pace, though. I try to eat more - my stomach is getting tired of Perpetuem, so time for a gel. I try to pace it out a bit, knowing the last half of the course is the tougher one.

Lusardi has fire road, then single track, then more fire road. Eventually I'm off the loop and back on the stem (we're racing a lollipop course, and a lollipop has a loop and a stem). Just after I turn onto the stem, I see a guy coming down the other way... is this guy lost? Did he drop his phone? Trying to be helpful, I ask if he's ok, but he just goes by. Then I realize - he's going the other way because he's just starting the loop. Now I feel like a jerk.

Some road, the switchbacks again, then I see Diana at the aid station and get a fresh bottle. My legs are on the verge of cramping and I keep thinking that the final climb is going to suck, and I will probably cramp up and have to walk. I realize I'm getting negative and setting up a self-fulfilling prophesy. So I change the tune and visualize being strong up the hill. I also try to pace myself and keep a little in reserve for the final climb. I am not even thinking about the rear wheel, and that is a good thing.

The single track at the top of the dam and around Hodges is fun. Then I'm on the road, riding up from Hodges to cross Del Dios Hwy and reach the base of THE climb. It's 800 feet and 1.1 miles to the top. On our preride, Scott and I climbed it in about 17 minutes. The start is steep, but I take it slow and make it to the flat(ish) section, which provides a chance to recover. Then the climb is moderate for a while, until I make a left and face the wall. Nothing to do but keep pushing the pedals over. I'm on the nose of the saddle with my chin out in front of the bars. Somehow I don't spin out, don't pull up the front end, and don't cramp up. It takes something like 20 minutes, but I'm just pleased to clean it.

Now a short trip through Elfin, mostly the main fire road, Tikes Hike trail, and then down the steep, loose, gravel-strewn, and twisty Cielo Trail. There's no one to catch, and no one to catch me. So I take it easy and make sure I get down in one piece.

Stats: 50 miles, 6k climbing, 4:28, 5th in sport category overall, 1st in my age group (35-39). I might have gone out a little hard, but was pleased with a good effort and result, especially considering that my training has been relatively unstructured this summer. And I broke a rule and got away with it. Thanks Mike!

Scott took third in sport at 4:16, Matt was 3rd in beginner, and Heidi and Rhonda were 2nd and 3rd overall women - nice job folks!

Kudos to Robert and his crew at Racers and Chasers for even considering putting this on. The logistics must be a nightmare, but it's great to have a long event right here in SD.

spectating the SD 50miler

If you have nothing better to do tomorrow, why not come out and heckle cheer at the 50miler? The weather will be great and you can fit a ride in at Lake Hodges while the race is further out on the course.

I think the best place to watch would be Del Dios park just off Del Dios Hwy (actually the corner of Lake and Date, map below). There is an aid station here and the race will pass through the area three times. First, after descending from Elfin, we pass through (mile 5ish) on our way east towards I-15 for an out and back. After the turn around (near the self storage facility just east of 15), we pass through again heading west (mile 23). This is when you can get a ride in, as the race will be on the San Diegito and Black Mountain sections for a while. Eventually, though, we head back to Del Dios park (mile 40) before heading back up to Elfin (ouch).

The race starts at 8am. I think 10mph is not an unreasonable pace. So racers should be getting down to Hodges by 8:30.


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SD 50 miler preview

The San Diego 50 miler (aka San Diego Multi Park Marathon) is this Saturday, Sept. 11.  Racers and Chasers is putting on the event, which starts in Elfin Forrest, drops down to Lake Hodges, makes an out and back east to 15, then continues southwesterly past Hernandez Hideaway, through San Dieguito, does a loop through the west side of Black Mountain (Lusardi), then goes back to Elfin.

There are good sections of single track in Hodges, San Dieguito, and Black Mt. There are also some decent dirt double track (aka fireroad) sections in Hodges and Black Mt. But there's some gravel and paved road too. Still, for being in town, it's a good route. Kudos to Robert (at Racers and Chasers) for putting it together; I know he had to negotiate with a bunch of different land managers to put this on.

The gravel road from Hodges (Del Dios Hwy and Date Ln) up to Elfin is brutal, and comes at about mile 45. It climbs 800 feet in 1.1 miles, giving 13.6% average grade. But near the top the incline goes to 32%! Guys will be cracking for sure. Otherwise, the course doesn't have any killer climbs. There are some steep power line climbs in Black Mt, and rollers elsewhere.

The weather is forecast for low 70s, so it should be a great day to race!

Here's the course map from Garmin Connect:

12 Hour preview

Last weekend was the June edition of the 12 Hours of Temecula. A race report is on the way, but here's some background.

The 12 Hour format asks a simple question: How many laps of a short (~1 hr) course can you complete in 12 hours? The competition is broken into solo (aka hardcore or insane) riders and teams of 2, 3, 4, or 5 riders. Mike and I compete in the 2 person open category as Team Sherpa Dog. We usually trade off every other lap, ie, one of us rides a single lap and then the other person goes out. During our off time, Diana cleans up the bike, gets us fed, and makes sure we're back at the transition zone on time for the next exchange.

The 2 person category is both interesting and horrible.

Traverse race report

Maybe there's a universe where 40+ miles of fireroad is a good idea, but it's not this one. So was the 8k+ of climbing supposed to make it fun? There had to be some reason I signed up for the Traverse, a 44 mile race across the Main Divide of the Santa Anna Mountains in Orange County. 

Julian Death March results...

are here (preliminary). A little hard to interpret since there were several distance options, but...

There were 78 finishers total. 28 did the full 86 mile course, with Brent Prenzlow winning in 6:25:02. Another 30 or so riders did the 64 mile option, led by Clifford Clermont in 5:09:27.

I did the 64 mile option in 6:12:24, or 6th among those who only did 64 miles. But 11 more riders finished 64 miles before me and went on to ride loop 2. Nice work guys.

First in the women's division was a tie between Heather Ranoa (whose husband Jason runs the SoCal Endurance races at Vail Lake) and Shalyn Gates in 9:36:05.

Julian Death March ride report

"You probably shouldn't ride for the next several days." This was my doctor's advice on Friday, the day before the Julian Death March. Almost two weeks ago, I crashed at Bootleg Canyon, landing with a football-sized rock under my lower back. The soreness hadn't improved since, but riding hadn't made it worse, either. But during the last few days, I'd experienced some mild tingling and weakness in my legs and feet. Diagnosis: soft tissue bruising and swelling. Prescription: rest and steroidal anti-inflammitories (could I get some EPO w/ that?). Does that mean six hours in the saddle is a bad idea?

Julian Death March Preview

Back in my college days I took a backpacking trip that started with a boulder and root infested "trail" that went straight uphill into New Hampshire's White Mountains. Ever since climbing hand-over-hand up the Black Angel Trail, I've given more consideration to the meaning of names. So it's with healthy respect that I approach the Julian Death March.

Vision Quest ride report

Short version:
I finished my first Vision Quest. Things went well: my legs were good, I had no mechanicals (thanks North of the Border!), and the weather, course, volunteers, and other participants were great. I finished in 50th place at 7:28:28. About 175 riders started the race, and 143 finished. First place went to Jeremiah Bishop, who came in at 4:45:14. Tinker Juarez finished 2nd, and Cameron Brenneman finished 3rd... on a single speed. Christine Grey was the first female finisher (and awesome preride leader).

Me descending Silverado Motorway

course map with photos

(Very) Long version:
Registration for the 2010 Vision Quest opened at midnight December 1st, and it sold out in about 45 min. I set an alarm to make sure I was up and able to get a spot.

SoCal Endurance Epic 50 ride report

So the SoCal 50 miler was Saturday at Vail Lake. The short version is that the course and weather were great, I felt good and did well. Read on for the long version.

The course was 2 laps of about 25 miles each w/ 2885 ft of climbing. There were two long climbs, one easy fire road, the other steeper and rocky. There were also a bunch of ridge running on the far side of the lake, which was fun (though every down had a matching up) and remote. I had pre-ridden an earlier version of the course, but very little of the final version.

This was my first mtb race, so I was a little nervous about riding w/ a bunch of other folks, especially on downhill sections. This turned out not to be a big deal, mostly because I went out slow and was with other riders who were not shredding the dh. I had trained w/ some pretty long rides, the longest about 35 miles and nearly 4 hours. I was not all that worried about the endurance aspect. Having done lots of long runs and (foot) races in the past, I knew that if I kept my HR low, I could sustain the same effort for a long time. Plus the weather was ~80F and clear, as good as you can hope for at Temecula this time of year. 

There were about 120 people total racing in pro, expert, sport, and beginner categories. There were also a few masters categories and a few hard core ss folks. Ouch. We started with a parade lap through the vail lake campground, just a mile or so to let people sort out before really starting. My plan was to go out slow and save for later, counting on lots of chances to pass folks later if needed. Tinker Juarez was the best know pro, but there were a few others (Tinker kicked ass - riding laps as fast as Jason, the organizer, did on his moto). Scott Holland was also racing, his first time at this distance, so he was also in beginner cat. Diana was crewing for me, and between the start and end of lap 1, she hung out w/ Scott's crew in the campground. 

So as planned, I went out painfully slowly, letting tons of folks go past but settling in w/ a few other riders at a pace w/ a good aerobic HR level. Early in the course, there was some moderately technical climbing and descending (single track w/ switchbacks, but not too rocky). This went well and I began to feel comfortable that this was a more or less another mtb ride, which I knew how to do. Of course, I'm sure it would have been different if I'd been trying to hang w/ the expert guys. 

Anyway, the course then went down tunnel of love, which is a blast, and up a long, gradual fireroad to the top of the dam climb - we then went down the dam climb (dam descent?) to the dam. I paced well up the FR, dropping the folks I had been riding w/ earlier, and catching a few more. The RIP9 really loved the rocky FR downhills. There were also a couple of single track side routes on the way down the dam climb, and I caught a couple of folks walking stuff that I rode - another confidence boost that I was not out of my league (ie, beginner class) in descending skills. 

After the dam, we then rode down a sandy wash into a headwind. Luckily it was downhill. Then we turned up and began a 700ft climb. The first half was steep and rocky. Lots of folks were walking, I rode a lot of it, but spun out and walked some too. My HR was just as high when walking as riding, and riding was marginally faster. At the top of this climb, we did a long section that crossed many drainages leading down to the lake. We dropped down and then climbed back up about five of these drainages to reach the second aid station (of 3 on course, plus the start/finish made 4). The 2nd half of the lap was much flatter and faster, including some nice, new single track, several miles of road, and finishing w/ a nice singletrack run through the area just east of the campground/resort. 

I was eating a few blocks every 20min, and a gel or two each hour, plus lots of water. I had been continuing to catch people, but was feeling a little unfocused and not too strong/peppy around in the last 30 min before I hit the end of lap 1. Through the pit I chomped a bar, gel, and blocks. My pit was pretty quick, thanks to Diana, maybe 5 min to reload gels and blocks, fresh bottles, and relube the chain. The extra calories during the pit must have done the trick, because after settling in on the long FR climb, I began to feel stronger. 

The riders had letters on the back of the calf indicating their category - so you could tell what category someone was in when you approached, or when they passed you. Around the midpoint in the race, I began to notice that I was passing more people w/ Es (men's sport) than G's (men's beginners). I took that as a good sign, but had no idea how many beginners might still be further ahead.

I rode more of the 2nd, steeper climb than I had on the first lap. Lots of folks were walking, and I worried a little that they knew something I didn't, but I felt good. I came up on Scott on this climb. He came through the pit about 5 min ahead of me after having 3 flats during the first lap! His stomach was revolting (pushed it trying to make up time after all the flats). He was very encouraging as I passed, and told me that there was only one beginner ahead of me, w/ green bike and blue jersey. That sounded good, but it's easy to miss someone on the course, so I wasn't 100% sure of the info. 

For the ridge run on the far side of the lake, I pushed the flats and downhills, while trying to avoid redlining on the ups. I caught more folks in this section, then came around into the last quarter of the course (last half of the 2nd lap). Before long, I saw a rider in a blue jersey on a green bike. Sure enough, he was in beginner cat - the first one I'd seen in a long time. I caught him on a short steep, which led to a longer, gentler climb. I put as much time into him as I could, and a short ways later there was a hairpin where I could see that he wasn't chasing. 

From there, the course seemed to go by quickly (partly bc there was a fast section of old road). I kept feeling good and pushing my pace. Soon I was back in the campground and finished in 5:10. The blue jersey rider was about 5 min back. Scott rallied and came in about 20min later. His info had been correct... I won first place in the beginner category. I would have placed fifth in sport. Overall, I was 42, almost cracking the top third. The race was a loads of fun. Winning was of course great, but mostly I was pleased that I had trained well, followed my race plan, and felt strong.