Endurance races, ski trips, musings, and adventures on the East Coast.

Saturday, June 7, 2014

Transylvania Epic Blog Stages 5-7

Well, I'm back in Asheville and am starting to, finally, feel somewhat recovered from the week of racing that was the Transylvania Epic. Being sick for 5 days afterward didn't help with that process, but racing first. 

Stage 5, the R.B. Winter stage, was an absolute blast. We'd been told that this one was old school, raw,
Smiling on Day 7 just a few miles from the finish.
A.E. Landes Photography
a bit of a throwback course. I'd also heard it was hard, like soul shatteringly hard. Given the terrain we'd seen in stages 1-4 I was a little scared. Then we raced. I felt awesome almost from the start, and got in with a good group right after the first big descent. We weren't rallying the singletrack very hard, so I got to the front when I got the chance. Then we headed uphill, and somehow I got a gap on most of the folks I'd been riding with all week. That was pretty much the day. I rode mostly solo, save a few miles in the middle with Rob Spreng, who eventually dropped me. The stage was awesome though. Apparently they reworked it, but the flow was great. It was a true race course, and then singletrack was super fun. Plus there were like a hundred pizzas waiting for us at the finish. It didn't even matter that it was freezing cold and on the verge of raining.

Day 6 was the Queen Stage: Tussey Ridge. It was hard, beautiful, mostly fun, and one of those days when I just couldn't get in the rhythm. I had a decent start, but just had little things go wrong all day. Nothing major, but it was a battle to keep my head in the game. And it needed to be, because there were times our tires touched nothing but rocks for 3-4 miles at a time. Seriously, this stage was for real (really, the whole week was, the this one took the cake). By the end I was spent, but I pretty much stayed were I had been on GC etc. I wish I'd had a picnic for Tussey though. It was cool up there - or a least the few glances I got in between choosing my line through the rocks made it seem that way.

For Stage 7  had firm goals for the first time all week: maintain my GC position, and clean the rock garden at the heckle pit. I felt pretty blown when I woke up, and wasn't sure how racing was going to go. Turns out it wasn't so bad. I again got in with a great group for the first 6 or 7 miles, got popped on a climb just before the day's Enduro section, and then rode back and forth with a few folks for the second half of the day. I apparently had enough energy left to clean the uphill rock garden at the heckle pit, and then got to cruise the super fun singletrack all the way back to camp.

I was stoked to be done for sure. Seven straight days of racing was pretty eye opening. Mostly, that my body was still up for racing, charging climbs, responding to attacks, etc. on Day 7. It was a different sense of accomplishment from say a 100 miler, but pretty cool to see it through. Sitting around after the agony of stage 2, making all week had seemed a far cry from certain.

Of course the summer camp atmosphere was fun, and the racing this year was absolutely top notch. There were so many fast guys, and women, that just trying to hang in was a huge battle. In the end, I was really happy with 16th overall.

I drove home just in time to get sick, and then sick again. Apparently racing for a week straight will doesn't leave you with much left over to fight off sicknesses. But, a couple few trips to the doctor later and I'm coming around. Was it worth it, definitely. The whole set-up, the way the stages flowed from one to the next, it was a great race. Thanks to Mike Kuhn and the whole crew for putting on an an awesome event. Hope I can make it again sometime.

Wednesday, May 28, 2014

The Transylania Epic Blog! (Stages 1-4)

­Whew, it's hard to believe this race isn't even half over. I feel like I've already gone through most of the highs and lows I typically hit over the course of a full season – just compressed into a few days. There was the nervous, almost giddy feeling before the 15 mile prolog we did on Sunday. It's always fun to see how you stack up. To be honest, I was hoping I would do a bit better, but that's the trouble with results oriented goals. Turns out, the field that showed here is fast, and deep. More like a national-class race that I was expecting, at least in terms of the competitiveness. I did get to rally a rode section with Justin Lindine though, that was fun. Of course, I was going a bit deeper than he was, and as soon as we got to the woods again he dropped me like a rock, but it was a thrill nonetheless.

Stage 2 was straight up vicious. For sure the hardest 40 mile race I've done on a mountain bike, and I don't think I'm alone in claiming that. It started with a hectic road start, guys were taking all kinds of risks battling for position – to be honest that was the scariest part of the day. Once we hit the trails though it spread out pretty quick, with me going backwards from the lead group. I'd feel shattered, then I'd rally, then I'd feel terrible, back and forth all day. I felt like I was on the verge of catastrophic cramps for much of the day, but somehow they never set in. By the end I was shattered, but I'd taken some time back on some folks who were ahead of me in Stage 1, and I felt pretty solid about the day.

Day 3, man was I happy it was Enduro day! To be honest I felt like absolute garbage when I got on my bike in the parking lot, but as we spun easy up the first climb I started to come around. And the descents were fun! I got into a great little group with Greg Jancaitus, Chris Cyr, and John Burns, wich helped make the day seem fast too. Stages 1 and 2 were pretty XC-ish and peddley. But overall they felt good and smooth. Stage 3 was scary fast, and awesome. Straight down the fall line at a million miles an hour on a 2 foot wide trail with rocks and sticks poking out from the bushes on the sides – sketchy. I let it rip on that one, and probably had my best stage of the day there. Stage 4 was the one everybody was talking about, with a big, knarly rock garden at the bottom. And it was big, and knarly, but it was also pretty much point and shoot. Mostly a whole lot of fun. Stage 5 was sweet too, with some really high speed rocks up high. Unfortunately, I let it go a bit too much there and got a front flat about halfway through the stage. I was able to ride most of the remainder, but obviously at a much slower pace. Bummer. I think I had a chance at top 10 on the day before the flat, but that's the nature of opening it up and taking risks – eventually it's going to bite you. I paid for that a bit, but it was too much fun going fast not too.


Today we hit the road stage, which still had some pretty good singletrack in it, including the infamous Fisherman's Trail, which was pretty much a flat, greasy hike-a-bike today. I was really hoping to sit in with a group on the extended road sections, but it wasn't to be. Instead it was lots of solo riding and the realization that I really only have one speed at my disposal at this point in the week. It's hard to go any pace other than steady and sort of fast. But, I was pretty happy with the result, and most importantly, I didn't feel blown at the end. Three days to go!

Thursday, January 9, 2014

Frozen Onion 2014

Another year and another Frozen Onion to kick off the "race" season. I always love the course at Hubbard Park, it's fun, hard, and you can usually get away with a regular old mountain bike. Usually is works out okay results wise too, which is a nice bonus. So, Nina and I stretched the VT trip out a bit this winter to catch round one of the series (yup, 4, count 'em 4 races this year, all benefitting Moxie Sparks, cool!). The big changes this year were a slightly longer course and an additional lap - at least the temperature had broken into the 20's.


Things were a bit softer than I anticipated this year, and the standard just run wicked low pressure (15 psi or so) move only worked so well. I made everything in warm ups, but not so much in the race.


Mostly though I just couldn't breath. The asthma just wasn't having it Sunday after the first major climb. Not much to do then but dial it back and have fun. Sunday funday was pretty much the revised plan.


Nina crushed it though. I'm actually surprised she didn't cruise on by on the last lap. She was close. She took the win by a bunch, awesome.


A few days later and we're back in NC about to head out for a road ride in almost 60 degree weather. Craziness.