SF Enduro II - take 2, 2 years later!

About 2 years ago Murphy of the Gestalt Haus infamy decided to put together and event he coined "Mixed terrain Enduro." His original description was something like, it's about 100 miles, with a metric ton of climbing, and any bike you pick will have a disadvantage. As it turned out, the ride left Golden Gate Park in SF, hit a few City locations, then ventured across the Golden Gate Bridge into the land if illegal singletrack, errr I mean Marin. So basically, lot's of road connecting a shite ton of fireroads up, some more really steep fireroads up and some hairball, crazy rocky descents down, and then you had to come back across the bridge. 2 years ago I did it on a rigid 29er singlespeed ouch!


This year...would be different....SF Enduro II
3/21/2010 account


Ouch Ouchie F*ck!

I did not pick the right gear. I shudda known after test riding the gear on a few dirt roads near my house that the gear selection would be too steep. Alas, I was dead-set on not letting the spinny gears( 32x19 29er) that got the better of me two years ago repeat it self.

So I used Sheldon's gear inch calculator and also calculated the more commonly used "gear ratio" in the mountain bike world. I should have let my track experience bias my decision towards gear inches...alas, I'm dumb and that's why I ride a one speed on the mountain ;-)

Since I was riding a 29 inch wheel, the gear-inch conversions are closer to a road\track bike than a standard mtn. bike with a 26" wheel.

So the "gear ratio" for my two extreme gears was:

44/12 = 3.67 ratio OR 106.1 gear-inches
44/34 = 1.29 ratio OR 37.5 gear-inches

typically I run:
32/19 = 1.68 ratio OR 48.8 gear-iches. Hard, but do-able for expert level races, but insane for 100 mile races ;-)

Any who, I figured, the hard gears isn't what killed me in the hills last year, it was the spinny-ness on the flats, so I biased my gears to big bigger and give me an advantage on the road\flat\dh sections:

My thinking....
44\26 = gives me my typical 32/19 ss gearing. So with 44\30 and 44\34 I would have to "easier" gears for the hills and a plethora of hard gears ( 44/23 - 44/12) for the flatter stuff. Well that was plain dumb, especially since all the climbing was pretty much up front, with a road spin back from Fairfax to SF. Just as a gauge, a typically granny\granny setup, with a 29" wheel, gives you: 22/34 = 0.65 ratio and 18.76 gear-inches and on a 26" mtb wheel thatz a 16.8 gear-inch.


Seriously, the race was long enough and I went hard enough in the beginning that there were a lot of steep sections where I was walking. The downhills were fun, cause I chose a 29er mtb with suspension, disc brakes and some selection of gears! However, even the downhill experience was completely untainted. Once again, not being a wise man and learning from people's mistakes, I did NOT run a chain-guide for my single chainring setup. So I must have thrown my chain at the very least 20 times. Fortunately, I got faster at it and I race 'cross so I can remount pretty quickly ;-)

All i all, really, really hard time. Lots of mental battle fought, nausea from who know why, maybe going to hard in the beginning, not enough rest, I don't know. All I do know, is that it took about 70 miles before I started not feeling nauseous?! And no damnit, I'm not pregnant...err...that I know of ;-)

Murphy's put on some really sweet events and some really hard challenge your soul types of events. The first Enduro was really hard...lot's of miles, lot's of unknowns, lots of hills and only one speed, but I had a lot of fitness and so that evens the playing field both physically and mentally. This year's enduro took the cake for insanely hard and diabolical!


There were a few times, when I just felt I couldn't get enough air and I stopped and either laid down or leaned against a tree, closed my eyes and took ten deep breaths, rallied my spirits and pushed on. I was also fortunate to have paired up with my buddy Erik(TWW), whom I've raced with and ridden with. I swear, if Erik hadn't waited for me to put my chain back on 20 times and waited near the top of hills for me, the mental difficulty of this event would have been almost 90% worse. For me part of it was that we had an unspoken team established and I didn't want to let him down and I'm sure part of it for Erik was that he knew he would save more time getting back through Fairfax and SF with me in tow, rather than going it alone, but he was also not "racing" it, but rather out getting some training miles. Whatever the reason, I'm indebted to Erik and want to thank him profusely!

As always, the event was well run, the maps were awesome, the checkpoints were very strategic and the volunteers AWESOME! They were willing to give you a pep talk, get you water food, I tried to get them to put on some chamois butter but they drew the line there ;-)

The map was this beautiful, color, glossy, double sided 11x17 print...it was sooo glossy that in my morning grogyness I thought they were laminated and slipped into my rear jersey pocket, well protect from flying out by my camelback. Lo and behold, when I pulled it out to read it on the way up to CP1(East Peak lookout)...I had in my had one gigantic spitwad....dooh! Thatz what the large zip-loc bag in my backpack was for...oh well, once again Erik to the rescue with his map...whew! Thank you to Jenny O and Sean for volunteering!

As we exited the East Peak checkpoint I was laughing diabolically. Erik asked me what was up and I said I knew this descent from having ridden it with my buddy Josh C. This rocky ass fireroad, Eldridge grade, would be awesome on a mtb and I felt sorry for the poor suckers on 'cross bikes. I said let's show these 'cross weenies why a mountain bike was the correct weapon of choice for the course. Sure enough....we ran into 5 or 6 rides with flat, those that weren't on cx bikes were on mountain bikes with skinny tires. Don't get me wrong, I mean no disrespect, I paid my dues on the flat for rockin' 29 inch mtb tires, 2.1 Motoraptor up front and a 2.1 Prowler in the rear.

We collected a few riders who had flatted and rode together up to the Pine Mountain entrance after making a left on the fireroad. We had Evan(RalleyCat), DFL Dan, Christon, Erik, myself and I wanted to say may a couple more but my mind is blank now as it was then ;-) We made our way to CP2, which was situated some wherez on the Pine Mountain Fire road...strategically, so you couldn't take a shortcut up San Geronimo ridge to CP3 ;-) Damn it! Here we found Jason and Lee, chillin' in a grassy meadow! While I layed on the grass resting up, Jason rode my bike around, checking out the 1x9 and reminding me that the rear end was having some problems shifting ;-)

CP3 was the intersection of San Geronimo Ridge and White Hill Fire road, typically part of the Pine Mountain Loop and the Appetite Seminar, so it was sorta familar territory. There we found Brooklyn and some other volunteers(sorry mind was fried!). We got our bearings and took off quick towards CP4 which was rumored to have water! Supplies were gettin' low!

There were two time bonuses, one was a Tamarancho loop and the other was a ride out the the Radio Towers above Lucas Valley. Before the beginning of the race I already knew I would do the two times bonuses 'cause gosh dang it, I was going do the Enduro justice and do the whole kit and caboodle. Somewhere along the line I talked Erik into the same thing.

CP4 was really cool. It was the first CP where you the option for a time bonus and as such it became the nexus for riders crossing paths. We were in need of water, but only Cliff bars were available at that point, so after scraffing a bar we shot off on the loop. I started fast and excited and soon the fatigue set in and then i was just crawling along and then I ran out of water. Shite! Fortunately Erik saved me with some water. After our lap CP4 had water...thank you, thank you!

Some riders were there before us and skipping ahead, some riders were there while we were re-fueling for the loop and some riders were there after we completed the loop. We saw the Mouse-kateers at this checkpoint, which raised my spirits, Paule, Chris, Russ, and Tommy T. Meanwhile, Sasha, Erica and Nancy? were tending to our needs, all worried about why I was laying on the ground ;- I'm ok, I just need to rest! OH yea and somebody had beef jerkey which was pretty magical! Thanks!

So with the first time bonus in our legs, Tamarancho loop, and then arriving at the Sir Francis Drake intersection from the B17 extension trail of Pine Mountain. We were spit out at the base of Gunshot, which if you've ever been up it on a geared bike, it's a helluv a grunt even in your granny gear and that was only half way up to the CP5. I already knew I was screwed with my gears and then we still had time bonus two which we could opt for once we hit CP5. We were deliberating doing this last time bonus because, you essentially added on another few thousand feet of climbing before heading home on Sir Francis drake and then wiggling back to the bridge. Then Murphy made a comment that none of the faster guys before us opted out of it. Well, it was decided, we're sticking to the plan and doing the whole shebang!


We hit CP5 and I literally collapsed on the god damn ground to rest. My buddy Ed Lagrando was their to heckle me and jump start my spirits, while he and Joel captured my agony on film.They told us only a few people had gone off to do time bonus two. At this point we already knew we were doing it, it was just a matter of getting some food, water and rest before taking off. It was a daunting task to see the Radio Tower a whole valley away :-(While we were fueling, Tommy T, Chris and few others were around.

And we're off. As we are hitting' some pretty high speeds, easily 30mph, I'm starting to second guess or choice to descend all this fireroad, to climb up another double-track to the Radio Towers and then double back to go home. As we 'cross the rode and headed up to the Radio Towers, I felt good about completing both time bonuses and it was about the only thing that kept me going. I paused in a grove of tree to rest my head against a tree while still clipped in. I took a few deep breaths, enjoyed the shade and continued on.

We could see one person snaking their way up to the Towers and we ran across another person coming back. The checkpoint was really quite a prettty grassy knoll. The lovely checkpointers were Ryan+friend, Arena and some other peeps whom I'm totally blanking on. We waved hello and they said go circle the Towers and come back to get checked off, some how I knew they were going to say that and continued over down and up the small climb to the towers.

Upon return, we had a pseudo Mexican fiesta, Margarita Cliff blocks, corn torilla chips and salsa. It was at that momement that I could a glimmering flicker out of the corner of my eye. The sun was getting low in the sky and the angle of the light was just right to make the bottle of Knob Creek look like it had descended from the heavens. Since I'm on the wagon, I had the true sense of knowing what hell will be like ;-) And off went, bidding our goodbyes and giving thanks. We were almost home free, now to climb all that god damn fireroad we came down to get here!

Finally, cresting CP5, I felt elated, knowing it was pretty flat from here back to Murphy's crib. Meanwhile, one of the volunteers(sorry forgot her name) got me some cheese and bread which pretty much saved my life at 65 or 67 miles into this EPIC! Joel and Ed snapped some more pics, why I blabbed on deliriously about who knows what? As we were getting ready to rock'n roll we picked up Kentaro and Justin.

Both these cats were crushing it with us in the lead group for as long as I can remember. They eventually separated from us. Justin I think we kept catching due to his flat on a cx bike and also to the fact that he couldn't bomb the rocky shite like we could...mtb win again ;-) Kentaro on the other hand had been crushin' it on a 26" cannondale hardtail and was getting tired of riding alone I suppose.

We took off down the fireroad and we lost poor Justin as soon as we started bombing down hill; Kentaro, Erik and I were all on mtb's! We made our way out to Sir Francis Drake, after getting a little bit twisted around, then pacelined our way back thru Fairfax, San Anselmo, Ross, somewherez around Larkspur or Ross, we came across Julie Bates, Liza, May Woo and Kaitlin. I yelled hello and gave Jules a nice little push. She's battling back from injury #507 and she'll still out there whoopin' it up on the 70 mile version of the Enduro! Yea!

Erik was a monster pulling at the front. We tried gettin' somewhat organized to do some rotations, but with all the Stop signs, stoplights and general fatigue it was just too complicated and Erik, like a big German diesel, would be back up front!

Finally, we cross the bridge, we wiggle thru the Presidio and we see Kentaro fall off. We can see he's fiddling with something about 100ft away. I say to Erik.,"lets do one final make sure Murphy's house is indeed the final checkpoint." Much to our dismay, it wasn't on the big map....it was actually on the small piece of paper that was given out at the beginning of the race which tolds us where to pick up the "big map" or manifest for the race. We'll I counted ourselves fortunate for 1 having kept the little scrap of paper and two for knowing where Murphy and Emily's crib was...wheew! Kentaro made his way to us and was like, I 'm bonking, we made sure he had food, a map and knew where he was going. Then I said, follow us. He stayed with us until we turned on two California as we wiggled over to the last stop. The slight uphill on California and we lost him. Erik and I continued on feeling confident since we knew he had a map.

We roll-up, it's fairly dark, I'm checking to make sure it's the right place and yup, sure enough, the green subarua wagon is parked outside. I yell to Erik this is it man! In we go. Toss our bikes down and somebody tells us to go check in with THE Sheila Moon. We walk back and find her by the fire. I collapse in front of the fire and proceed to sleep with my head propped up on my camelbak ;-) Not really, I was so tired I couldn't sleep, but from my prone position I handed Sheila my checkpoint card and was warmed by the fire.

It felt so good to be done!

For the full Enduro(two time bonus included), Erik and I tied for second, but seriously Erik was top dog for fitness, I just brought survival skills and navigational skills.

And here's somemore numbers:
92.2 miles,
~12,000ft of climbing
10hrs40mins elapsed from the start
and according to Strava only 9hrs and 7 minutes of riding! So either all my rests added up or I was walking to slow for the Garmin to register ;-)

And the GPS track....
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/27616549

Pictures will be forthcoming I'm sure....

Thanks for reading,
Isaias

http://sfenduro.blogspot.com/2010/03/results.html

Roadie crosses over to mountain biking for a day

Cool Mountain Bike Race
3/13/2010
2 laps ~20ish miles
open SS 35-99
3rd place

First I digress....As most of you know I'm not really a roadie, but I play one on TV. Seriously though, I got into cycling because of mountain biking, but in the last few years I've become intrigued with road racing. Some dirties may wonder why bother? Well, it's really frick'n hard. I've done everything from being a competitive expert mountain bike racer, geared and singlespeed. I've raced endurance events where I logged over 100 miles and 18,000ft of climbing. Yet I've had no "real" success on the road. It's takes a lot of fitness, but also a lot of finesse. The strongest rider doesn't win. The strongest, smartest rider wins.


Any who, the point of the digression is I've been training really hard since October of last year. I miss 'cross season because of the knee injury incurred at SSWC09 in Durango. And in year's past I'd been close to some top 10's as a Cat4 on the road. So this was my year to properly train for a winning road season. All this amounts to the fact that I've not been riding my mountain bike a whole lot, because 200 miles a week is easier on a road bike ;-)

Mountain biking is where my roots are and so I always come back to it for fun and relaxation. Sure I'm still racing, but it's just a different scene from road racing scene. In my plan for roadie domination this year, I wanted to make sure not to burn out. Out in Caly we got a long season, starts in Feb and goes till September! Since I want to be competitive on the road for the duration of road season, mountain biking is my outlet to stay fresh.

I'd ridden my Swift the day before to make sure everything was dialed in. Last minute tweaks, adjusting my new Ergon grips and new Wolverine rear tire. The last time I rode it was probably about a month ago! And now I find myself lining up at Cool in the Open SS 35-99 class, ready to throw down. Being that the category is open, I know that I'm up against pros for the top spots. I push that thought out of my mind and focus on the task at hand, the start.


The categories ahead are going off in waves, Pro men\women, expert men and women. While we are waiting I'm nervously chatting with people, man it really has been a while since I've done a mtb race! I keep peeping my Garmin and see that my HR is getting elevated the closer our group moves to the starting line. We get the 30 second head's up to start and I force myself to take a deep breath and get ready for the pain I'm about to experience.

The whistle blows, I drill it and am out front with two other guys. They take a weird line, which makes me think I'm off course, I slow a bit and they merge back onto the course. We racing down pavement to double track which leads into a small hill and then a descent, followed by some rolling stuff. The hills are really not much, but at race pace my HR is pegged and I'm breathing hard. I keep the two leaders insight and dig to stay close. I can hear somebody breathing down my neck, but I focus on the guys ahead of me. We start catching riders from the previous waves. On the first real hill, I'm so red line I'm not actually able to climb much of it 'cause I'm totally redlined, it's muddy and there are riders from the previous wave strewn all over the hill, some walking some riding. Any who, I dismount quickly and begin jogging. I can see the leaders pulling away at the top of the hill. I'll get them I repeat to myself and hoof it up the hill passing people left and right. Sometimes it's just faster to run a section....both cyclocross and single speeding teach you that ;-)

One guy passes me, he's on gears no prob. We hit a flat section then another climb, one ss guy gets buy me. Hell no...he make it to the top of the hill before me. We crest the hill he eases up I 'cross hop onto my bike and drill it passing him to never see him again. For that matter, nobody else every passed me. Which meant as I made my way through more of the field, I was pretty much in no-man's land for most of the race. I kept passing geared riders hoping I would see some single gears but nothing. Finally near the end of the lap somebody yells to me on a hill, good job, keep on your gear, the leaders are about a minute up.

A minute no problem, I can close it. And then I'm no man's land from pretty much the second lap. I think to myself "shit, I've been going hard for a long time, am I gonna cramp, can I do this." The negative self talk started to bring me down, then I realized I gotta short circuit this shit and focus on the race. Joie, my partner, has been reading this book "Mental Training for Peak Performance," admittedly I though it was kinda hokie and a bunch of psycho-babble. But I happened to pick it up and read a bit a few weeks back and part of the book was about this exact thing. It said you should think about positive things, smile and focus on the task at hand.

So I did, I thought of Joie, who's been so supportive as I rehabbed my knee after injury last September. She' s been my biggest supporter and the biggest inspiration as she is so motivated and dedicated to training. She even created a training schedule for me! And I'll be damned if it didn't work. I thought OK, let's see what my HR is at, it's too low, I got ride at tempo and attack the hills. I don't know how far back my competitors are and I don't know how close the leaders are. This was my strategy and I kept picking people off, but never saw the leaders till the end of the race.

Turn's out it was an old friend Chris and some other fast dude. They finished like 10 minutes ahead of me! Chris and I used to race expert together and well I got phat and he went pro ;-) I was happy with my result. No cramping, although they were close. My hammy were whispering to me. The previous day's track workout taxed the hammys and well riding a singlespeed mtb taxed the same muscles. I finished the race and was like whew. My lungs felt great, what really hurt and was tired were my legs.

I got on the podium, which is always awesome, but more importantly I learned an important lesson on the mental fortitude required in any type of racing!

So I'm ready for some more mountain biking, but my focus is road this season. But it's funny you know, getting on the podium on my mtb has made me more hungry for the road!

Up next, Murphy's Enduro Numbero Dos and then the Big Sandy. Yes I know, there both mtb-ish races. We'll sortuv, the Enduro is mixed terrain and 90+ miles. Any way you add that it's a lot of good, fun miles. All to get ready for Copperopolis domination.

Last but not least, I'd like to thank Sam of Singular Cycles for believing in me and thinking I was worthy of a bike sponsorship. Sam had asked me to be a test rider and racer on the dirt side of things for Team Singular. I'm happy to say I'm happy to throw down on the dirt to help promote the Singular brand in the US. Sam is based in the UK. On the road side, I'm still happily a Mouse and plan to bring some glory to the pavee side soon!

Cheers and Thanks for Reading.

SS - poetry and revelry

I know this from a few weeks ago, but I just finished watching it and it sure made me wish I could pedal my damn bicycle on the dirt!

yee haw soil saloon!

20090926_6415

20090926_6415
Originally uploaded by Bici Girl

when you can't race 'cause you busted your knee, at least you can always be a dirtbag and give money feeds

Urban Outlaw #1 - Year 15 dfL

09/09/09 Race#1

DFL Urban Outlaw race celebrated it's 15th anniversary last nite, also the first race of the season. For those unfamiliar with the series, let me expound on series name: cyclo-cross dress race series. In order to avoid the exorbitant $5 racing fee, you can don your best cross dressing outfit! A huge thank you to all the major players on the DFL squad for organizing these sweet race and providing refreshments after wards. The courses border a bit more on the jungle-cross side of things(more technical) vs the euro style(more grass), which makes them that much more fun for me, but then again I am a mountain biker!

I'm usually looking forward to these early races to test the fitness I've gained from a full season of road and mountain bike racing. However, this year training's not been so good for too many reason to list, but alas I've had a fun year of bike riding! So come the first race of the series, my 7th year at it, I was looking forward more to the camaraderie and fun of seeing all my friends dressed up and riding as hard as they can for an hour then race tales after wards over a cold beer. It always fun to catch up with peeps whom you haven't seen since the last 'cross season and what better way to do it than all dressed up in your sunday's best,er maybe your sister's sunday's best ;-)

Last year there was a huge bottle neck before the real action started, so it was decided that we would do a Le mans style start. We essentially had to run what seemed to be forever, cause I suck at running, but in reality was only about 100meters, to our bikes. Keep in mind that this is a huge mass start of about 100 people with abilities ranging from first time riding a cross bike to seasoned pros!

Pics from Scotty Paz.
and
Pic from Plattyjo.

and more pics from DFL photographic historian Mizz Pamela Palma

After receiving some instructions about being nice to each out on the course somebody yelled go and we were off. Hoof, hoof, hoof, god I really hate running, huff, puff, god I really suck at running. Whew. OK, I'm done, kidding. I scramble to find my bike, grab it and start running with it over my head to find an open spot to put it down and mount it.

Since the DFL races tend to border on the more technical,I usually choose to race a mountain bike. To keep it somewhat fair, I rock a single-speed and usually with mountain bike gear of 32:19 on a 29er. I think a typical 'cross gear would be more like 42:17. So I'm spinning out like a mofo, lungs are searing, hear is throbbing as I try to pick my way thru people. I'm so anaerobic that I have to remind myself that this IS a cyclocross race and that I should be passing people not settling into a good pace. About 15 minutes in, I find my legs and my racing wits and start attacking. There are quite a few steep run-ups that can be ridden,even on a ss, but you need a clear shot at it. I tried cutting around people to get a clear shot, but inevitable somebody got in the way and i had to dismount or just fall over ;-)

As we went around and around, I started to get a feel for where I should pass people so that I could take advantage of the descending ability of the mountain bike and also to have a clean line of attack for the climbs. I did this for a few laps and then I really thought I would stop racing at one point, because although my feet were pushing the pedal I had no power left. But I heard friends cheering and heckling and thought just keep going you'll get a second wind and i did, I eventually got 3 or 4 winds ;-)

I was quite happy to see that although I was in a great amount of pain, I was able to recover and keep attacking. More importantly...I was not lapped by the leader! yea!

Good times! Or better yet from the title of popular cyclcross video, pure sweet hell!

It hurts so good! Next up is the Livermore Series race. Which I will also be doing on the Singular Swift singlespeed. I'm gonna man up, however, and put a 17 tooth cog on to give me 32:17, which will give me a few more gear inches.

Merco 2009 - first suffering of the year!

Merco Crit and Road Race Report -2009

I've gone over and over the races in my head for the last couple days. It makes my adrenaline flow each time I revisit the last few moments of each race. I also beat myself up a lot for not being fit enough to carry my team mates close enough to the line, but at the same time I have to be realistic. I knew coming into this first race weekend, that my fitness would not be ready for a win until the May time frame. So I did my best to play a supporting role.

I also realized how perfectly everything must flow together in order to execute pre-defined tactics. Road racing is as much about tactics as it is about have a base amount of fitness. As I said, I knew my fitness at this stage in my training was decent, but not great. Therefore I had to rely more on tactics for this go around of racing.

Sat-
For the crit we had Ryan, Jeff, Ed, James and myself. The plan was to get Ryan to the line protected enough to take the sprint. I knew I had to be efficient in the early part of the race so that I could help to ramp the pace at the end. For the most part I followed my friend Lloyd around the course. I did so because I know he's pretty sneaky and efficient about moving around within the pack and always staying near the top 15.

For the most part this worked for me. With three to go it was getting squirrely, as expected. Coming thru the start finish I moved near the front and then after the chicane I move to third wheel on a group the was setting tempo and stringing out the pack. We did this for about a lap, on the second time around I could sense the pack was getting ready to surge so I move to the front to keep up the temp and pulled for a lap.

The effort was taking it's toll and as we came around for the final lap I was gassed and as the pack was swarming me, I saw Jeff dragging Ryan up to the front for the final go around. I managed to grab back on to the pack and that's about where I finished. Nothing spectacular, but I felt that I put in the one good effort I had in me to keep it safe during the final laps.

Personally, I felt much more comfortable in the pack. I sucked wheels like a mofo and took turns in the middle of the pack even though it scared the shit out of me at first. As the race progressed, I felt more comfortable riding shoulder to shoulder with peeps. Not too bad for my first race of the season.

Sunday-
For sunday we had a larger crew: Josh, Ryan, Sam, Hank, Paul, Ed, Jeff, Nick and Liam. The plan was to keep Josh, Ryan and Sam protected so that Josh could be led out for the Win!
First lap was pretty uneventful. I worked on moving around the pack and chatting with people. The plan to get Josh to the front in the final lap was to start stringing it out as we made the left off of Cox Ferry road and onto the left-right-right-left of Keyes road.
So the second time around people were waiting for the Mice to do something. I also felt like when we were riding in the pack that peeps were purposely boxing us in. I had to work pretty hard to get out of the shelter of the pack.
At about mile 37 attacks started happening and the Mice took control. I remember seeing Hank, Paul and Nick go after stuff. I could tell the pack wasn't letting it get away as they accelerated to swallow the break, so I stayed in the pack saving my legs for the last few kms. As one attack after another was swallowed I realized that we would have to get decent positioning even before Cox Ferry road. By the look of my HR profile there were 4 surges before Cox Ferry.

Once on Cox Ferry there was a few more surges and the biggest hill. This is really when I knew the Mouse would have to take control well before the turn off of Cox Ferry onto Keyes road. I remember Sam saying something about take control or something to that effect. At that point Hank, Paul and myself started driving the pace at the front. Things simmered down and we reintegrate with the pack.

Then another surge takes place. I'm by Ryan's side and he asks me to let him out of the pack. I do and then follow his wheel. He goes to the front and set a fierce tempo, I let him know I'm on his wheel and to let me know when to take my pull. He continues on and then I take my turn then a few Paul or Hank. At this point the pace is high and am frick'n redlined and all I know is we have to keep the pace hi. I wonder to myself, how many more surges do I have left in me?

The pack is still pretty much together. Before the turn onto Keyes road and I know we have to be moving up. I starting calling to the Mice and charge to the front. I believe it was me and another couple folks we were first through the turn. I'm unbelievably in the hurt locker and looking for somebody to take a pull. Can't remember who it was, but somebody did and I'm resting a bit. The pack starts coming back together and before you know it the 1k sign marker is coming up. I'm positioned ideally for the final left hander before the final hill. I hear Ryan or Sam say go now. Already in the hurt locker I dug deeper than I can remember and entered the pain cave and drilled it. We made the left turn safely as I merged onto the wheel of one of the godspeed guys. My vision is blurred and i'm sitting and churing as hard as I can to keep moving. We hit the hill and I completely and utterly implode. I'm standing, grunting, swaying the bike to keep moving up hill. I'm swarmed by the pack and I only hope the Josh, Ryan and Sam made out of there.



I finish the grunt up the hill and spin as fast as i can to recover and then stand to sprint, but nothing comes out. All I could do to cross the finish line was to stay standing and use my weight to mash each pedal stroke to help me cross the finish...whew. That was about one of the hardest efforts I can recall putting out!

Josh, Ryan, Sam....I'm sorry I didn't have the tiny bit of juice to get us up over that last little hill. Damn it! I'm pretty sure you guys would have gone 1-2-3.

After beating myself up quite a bit I realized that road racing is about racing as a team. And that getting tactics to pan out as planned is really difficult. But on the bright side, we had a plan and we were so god damned close. The fact that Josh, Ryan, Sam and I were in the right position near the end is awesome. That hasn't really happened for me before.

Now I know that it is only a matter of time before we get the Mouse train dialed in. Not only that, but we have quite a lot more new mouse horsepower this year: hank, paul, liam, ed and nick! I'm proud and excited about this effort and it's only the start of the season!

Nice work fellas! Ladies you rock and the results speak quite loudly!

evil_dirty_xmas_elf

evil_dirty_xmas_elf
Originally uploaded by javabob

Happy Holidays from Santa's Evil Elf ;-)

DFL GGP 2008