Monday, June 24, 2013
West Gulch Fire from the Colorado Trail
I haven't had time to recap our quick journey from this pas weekend. Our goal was to ride from Silverton to Buena Vista, but due to the location of the West Gulch fire and our lack of familiarity with the area, we bailed. We spent all day Friday riding parallel to the smoke billowing off of the fire. A couple of times we contemplated heading back to Silverton. We ended up making it through segments 22 and 23 (a little stressful at times) and towards the end of daylight, we took a jeep road into Lake City and spent the night there. I will be adding more to this story later, but the pictures from this day are amazing. Thought I'd share...
Sunday, June 16, 2013
Bailey Hundo Recap
Bailey Hundo. Check. Now this is my favorite Colorado mountain bike race…so far. The course was awesome. The staff was so helpful at all the aid stations. Everything about the day just went well.
The day started at 4am. I quickly loaded up the truck and was in Bailey, geared up at 5:30am. It was a chilly start as my thermometer read 42 degrees. My teeth chattered as I was getting dressed up and took a couple of spins around the street. I wasn’t too concerned with where I started from in the pack, so around 5:55 I strolled to the back of the start line and waited for it all to begin. 3-2-1 go, we are off.
The first 7 miles is a rolling dirt road, so there is plenty of time for the shape of the race to be established. There were 48 starters in my category and I’d guess ~300 starters (216 finished) total. After the first 7 miles we turn onto the Colorado Trail which becomes all single track for the next 50 miles. When I turned onto the singletrack, I’d guess there were around 30 riders in single file that set our pace. I didn’t see any passing as the pace was fast. For me, I was going harder than I had wanted to, but you can’t really ride your pace in a pack on singletrack. I stuck with the pace and the 30 of us dwindled down to 10 or so. At this point we passed through the first aid station and most of the racers stopped. I had packed enough water and food to make it to aid 6 at around 60 miles, so I was able to keep moving for the first 5.5 hours. I had 6 bagels, 6 shot blocks, 2 cups of cashews and 118 oz. of water.
At around 90 minutes into the race I was all alone. I finally found my pace and got comfy on the bike. I knew it was going to be a long day and probably hot later on, so I tried to save as much energy as possible for then. From the 90 minute point until I reached aid 6, the race was super fun!!! There was 1 tough climb in Buffalo Creek that seemed to take me a while. I was riding well, eating right and feeling good.
I was thinking in my head I could make it to the river (aid 6) by 11am which would give me the best chance to ride sub 9 hours. However, my timing was off and I didn’t reach the river until 11:30am. I took my first break of the day. I quickly filled up my water, ate gobs of watermelon and threw back a 12oz can of coke. As I got back on the bike I ate a handful of cashews and started wondering if sub 9 was possible.
For the next ~15 miles I had no idea what to expect. It was the only portion of the race route that I have never ridden. From aid 6 you following a dirt road which turns into pavement all the way to Deckers. There was a slight tailwind and in this section I could really feel the difference on the new wheels/hubs. I got down on my Ergon grips and made up some really good time as I was doing 23-25 mph all the way to Deckers. In Deckers, we turn right, however I went left. Thankfully some guys whistled and I realized I went the wrong way. So from this point all the way to aid 8, it was steep and hot. It was pavement for about 4 miles and then steep jeep road. There was a jeep that had almost slid down the mountain. The jeep was high centered on the edge of the road calling for a tow I had assume. I asked him if he wanted to hook his jeep up to my bike and I’d tow him out, but for some reason he said no. Oh well.
At aid 8 I am tired and hot. The thought of sub 9 seemed distant, but from aid 8 to the finish is the exact ride I had ridden 2 weekends ago so I knew what was ahead (I always seem to be able to ride harder when I know what’s in store for me). I thought if I could find a little giddy-up I could do it. I filled up my water, drank another 12oz coke and got back on the bike. I think it was a combination of the little adrenaline spike and the coke because at 7 hours and 15 minutes in, I giddy’d-up. I passed around ~25 racers and felt strong all the way to Bailey. At around 8:15 I knew I had sub 9 so I just rode strong to the finish.
I finished 15/48 in my category and 83rd overall. This weekend we are riding from Silverton to Buena Vista. The endurance gained from the Hundo will surely get us ready for this weekend.
The day started at 4am. I quickly loaded up the truck and was in Bailey, geared up at 5:30am. It was a chilly start as my thermometer read 42 degrees. My teeth chattered as I was getting dressed up and took a couple of spins around the street. I wasn’t too concerned with where I started from in the pack, so around 5:55 I strolled to the back of the start line and waited for it all to begin. 3-2-1 go, we are off.
The first 7 miles is a rolling dirt road, so there is plenty of time for the shape of the race to be established. There were 48 starters in my category and I’d guess ~300 starters (216 finished) total. After the first 7 miles we turn onto the Colorado Trail which becomes all single track for the next 50 miles. When I turned onto the singletrack, I’d guess there were around 30 riders in single file that set our pace. I didn’t see any passing as the pace was fast. For me, I was going harder than I had wanted to, but you can’t really ride your pace in a pack on singletrack. I stuck with the pace and the 30 of us dwindled down to 10 or so. At this point we passed through the first aid station and most of the racers stopped. I had packed enough water and food to make it to aid 6 at around 60 miles, so I was able to keep moving for the first 5.5 hours. I had 6 bagels, 6 shot blocks, 2 cups of cashews and 118 oz. of water.
At around 90 minutes into the race I was all alone. I finally found my pace and got comfy on the bike. I knew it was going to be a long day and probably hot later on, so I tried to save as much energy as possible for then. From the 90 minute point until I reached aid 6, the race was super fun!!! There was 1 tough climb in Buffalo Creek that seemed to take me a while. I was riding well, eating right and feeling good.
I was thinking in my head I could make it to the river (aid 6) by 11am which would give me the best chance to ride sub 9 hours. However, my timing was off and I didn’t reach the river until 11:30am. I took my first break of the day. I quickly filled up my water, ate gobs of watermelon and threw back a 12oz can of coke. As I got back on the bike I ate a handful of cashews and started wondering if sub 9 was possible.
For the next ~15 miles I had no idea what to expect. It was the only portion of the race route that I have never ridden. From aid 6 you following a dirt road which turns into pavement all the way to Deckers. There was a slight tailwind and in this section I could really feel the difference on the new wheels/hubs. I got down on my Ergon grips and made up some really good time as I was doing 23-25 mph all the way to Deckers. In Deckers, we turn right, however I went left. Thankfully some guys whistled and I realized I went the wrong way. So from this point all the way to aid 8, it was steep and hot. It was pavement for about 4 miles and then steep jeep road. There was a jeep that had almost slid down the mountain. The jeep was high centered on the edge of the road calling for a tow I had assume. I asked him if he wanted to hook his jeep up to my bike and I’d tow him out, but for some reason he said no. Oh well.
At aid 8 I am tired and hot. The thought of sub 9 seemed distant, but from aid 8 to the finish is the exact ride I had ridden 2 weekends ago so I knew what was ahead (I always seem to be able to ride harder when I know what’s in store for me). I thought if I could find a little giddy-up I could do it. I filled up my water, drank another 12oz coke and got back on the bike. I think it was a combination of the little adrenaline spike and the coke because at 7 hours and 15 minutes in, I giddy’d-up. I passed around ~25 racers and felt strong all the way to Bailey. At around 8:15 I knew I had sub 9 so I just rode strong to the finish.
I finished 15/48 in my category and 83rd overall. This weekend we are riding from Silverton to Buena Vista. The endurance gained from the Hundo will surely get us ready for this weekend.
Friday, June 14, 2013
Bailey Hundo Eve
 | ||||||||||
| New wheels are ready! |
 |
| DT Swiss Carbon Hubs |
It's the eve of the Bailey Hundo. A mad last minute scramble to get things in order. I am very excited. It will be an interesting race with ~12,000 of elevation gain in 102 miles. My goal is sub 9 hours...maybe sub 8.5. I am simply going to keep doing what I have been doing and find my comfy cadence and be consistent with it. I don't plan going hard often. To make things even more exciting...I will be making a maiden voyage with my new wheels, tires, and hubs. :) Yea! I went with the Mavic 717's, the DT Swiss carbon hubs with ceramic bearings, and the XKing continental tires. Just rolling around the neighborhood I can feel a major difference. More after the race!
Monday, June 3, 2013
Money in the Bank
If you recall, last
weekend we missed the FSR-211 turn that would have led us to Wellington
Lake. So, the plan this weekend was to start...almost-over, and do it
again. Therefore, around 7am on Sunday morning we were rolling from
Kenosha Pass to Waterton Canyon via the Tarryall detour. This time we
weren't going to miss the FSR-211 turn!
The starting temp was 32
degrees, so I elected to bring my larger backpack due to the amount of
clothes I had anticipated shedding throughout the day. The first ~50
miles of the ride was exactly what we had navigated through the weekend
before so we were making better time by knowing the correct route to
take. Plus, we were much lighter w/o our camping gear. By the time we
arrived to Tarryall Reservoir (23 miles), we were an hour ahead of last
weeks pace and feeling fast. We grabbed a quick bite and continued on.
At 40 miles we found the turn we had missed the week before and stopped to pat ourselves on the back! We had a quick kodak moment before we set out. We had ~35 miles of fire road to conquer before we would arrive at Wellington Lake. There was a lot of scenery. This route was taking us right through the Hayman burn area and it was miles and miles of burnt forest. I gained a new perspective of just how large that fire was. However, the bare forest was full of very unique rock formations that made several miles go by. We had an excellent view of Pikes Peak for most of the ride.
At 40 miles we found the turn we had missed the week before and stopped to pat ourselves on the back! We had a quick kodak moment before we set out. We had ~35 miles of fire road to conquer before we would arrive at Wellington Lake. There was a lot of scenery. This route was taking us right through the Hayman burn area and it was miles and miles of burnt forest. I gained a new perspective of just how large that fire was. However, the bare forest was full of very unique rock formations that made several miles go by. We had an excellent view of Pikes Peak for most of the ride.
We finally hit FS560, the last turn
at mile 70 that leads us into Wellington. We had discussed what we were
hoping to eat at the little convenience store. The thought of an ice
cold Coke and potato chips fueled my burst of adrenaline. We rolled up
to the store and it was closed. Instead, the next best thing presented
itself. It was a water faucet with cold well water and a hose. We spent
20 minutes at the hose cooling down, showering, drinking cold water, and
playing with the deer. At this point however, we were a little behind
our anticipated scheduled. It was ~2:30pm and we had segments 1, 2,
& 3 to traverse.
By 3p we were back on the Colorado Trail after the 7 hour / 76 mile detour. The trail is fun and it was apparent. Brian was leading a mad charge through segment 3 as we were making up some time ripping through the turns. Segment 3 passed quickly.
We stopped near the fire station on the west end of
segment 2 for a quick bite and then continued on. Again, the single track
felt good and was fun. We made it to the Platte River just as the
odometer passed 100 miles. However, the biggest climb of the day was
just before us. The climb out of river valley is steep for about 3 miles
of switchbacks. At this point the total time, distance, and probably the
little extra energy we expended through the last 2 segments were taking a toll. We arrived at the Platte feeling tired and hungry. Still
craving a Coke, I had asked some hikers if they had any soda's. They
were super nice and said if they would have had any they would have
given us some. Oh well, worth the try. Sixteen miles to go!
Segment
1 was somewhat of a blur. I have ridden this segment so often and the
fact that I was so tired I felt like it went by quickly. Just as I
crossed the Colorado Trail head above the damn, my Garmin's batteries
were done, symbolic of what my legs were also telling me at that point,
we are done! We rode to the Wateron Canyon trailhead where we met Cindy
and Shelby who had cold orange soda's!!! Sooooooooo good!
All
in all, it was a good day to test the body and stress it just a tad
more in prep for doing this multiple days in a row. While not the most
fun ride, it was certainly money in the bank!!
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