friday found us in wisconsin, and making it to wausa by 1:00.
we quickly set up our base camp and began the process of prepping for the race - this meant tinkering withe bikes, getting the gear sorted out and making lists for the shopping trip into town.
one dude brought his segway, equipped with off-road tires, to the event.
once we sorted out our gear, had lunch, and bought our groceries, it was off for a pre-ride of the course. the loop was either 14 or 15 miles in length (i can not remember) and contained a variety of terrain - rocks, roots, wood chips (f*#k the wood chips), logging roads and miles and miles of singletrack.
(pre-ride pictures)about 2/3's of the way through the course we came across third of three water stations, except this one also served beer - god bless them. the big difference between this event and the 24hours of adrenalin people is here they are much more relaxed and are willing to have fun with event. during the race two of the water stations were party sites, complete with loud music and enthusiastic supporters. the signature event on the second water station was an optional jump, complete with runway lights, which brought howls of support if you took the ramp (except when i did it - seems like everyone was concerned with a rider who was in need of technical assistance and i received no love as i lamely propelled my self off the earthen ramp - sigh).
it was an early rise on saturday morning because there was last minute items to get ready, a quick trip into town for breakfast, and we needed to pick-up our timing chips which we were to wear on our ankle during the race in order to record our times (i forgot to put my on for one lap when i changed shoes and socks - but the timers were cool with it and they gave me credit for the lap any ways)
dallas' morning did not get off to such and good a start as he woke up with a migraine headache and spent his pre-race hours tossing his cookies followed by trips to the can for expulsions of a different kind. the poor guy was doubtful for the start of the race, but after many advil and watching paddy get on the segway (he knew the guy who owned it) and taking off down the road only to crash into the fence (picture i wish i had) dallas bucked-up and managed to get himself to the start line in time.
this was my first running le mans start for a race. so far i have been lucky in all my other 24 hour events and i have never had to pull this duty as other riders on my teams had their names drawn over mine, but being a solo rider means this could not be avoided. it was not as bad as i thought it would be except i almost got on the wrong bike as there was another redline near where i left mine (about the bikes at this event - it seemed like 29er singlespeeds almost outnumbered the more conventional bikes. wow. a lot of people down there are riding the 29er - the revolution is gaining momentum).
(you can see the blu et orange of paddy's uniform in this shot)youtube video - i think the last person you see is dallas, the dude was hurting
the first lap was done and now it was a matter of settling into a routine of getting food, liquids, clothing changes, and bike tune-up for the next 22+ hours. it totally rocked have luc and drew there as support. they were always making sure i had what i needed; fresh water bottles, bike tune ups (luc rules), food, morale support and anything else i needed. their services made this event much easier and i can not thank them enough.
because i was actually racing there was no time to take pictures of the event (well, if that isn't stating the obvious), but drew managed to get this shot and the following video.
paddy's streak of good luck continued when his feet blew-up big time. the dude could barely walk when i came in and he pulled out (temporarily) of the race. when he finally got back on his feet - literally - he pulled support duties for dallas and i over the next 10 hours which was much appreciated. in fact, i got to use paddy's stadium lighting system at night and what a difference that makes, you can actually see freaking much everything and ride almost as aggressively as you do in the day. unbelievable, and i need to thank paddy for the this - it made the night time much easier.
(luc continuing his support duties)night time came and it became a different ball game. this is were the mental part of the racing comes to the front - you're wasted and you know you need to go out again and again and again (hopefully). it was at this time that the physical part of riding a rigid bike really began to take its' toll. my arms were dying because of the relentless pounding. the rest of the body was also beginning to wear out, but it was the lack of strength in the arms that were starting to slow me down the most.
(dalla vs the pepperoni stick)12 laps later and i knew that i only had one left in me. this allowed me to spend more time in the chair and think about nothing but how good sitting in a chair real feels (i would not say the same about 10+ hour car rides home). dallas, the endurance machine he is managed one more lap after he finally got enough calories in him to go out for one more for a total of 14 laps and a fourth place finish. as amazing, paddy somehow managed to pull his shoes back on and do two more laps, the last one almost being his fastest - most impressive. shona knocked off 7 laps in 12 hours and finished 2nd in her event which was most impressive as this was her first race like this - way to go shona.
(dallas post-race)
(shona at the podium - another story)this event was excellent and i am looking forward to going back next year. learned a ton and know what to expect for future events. thanks again to the crew that went out - it was a blast
results should be up sometime.
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4 comments:
results are up at itimingdotcom
Nice. Maybe next year.
sounds like y'all had a good time out there and raced well!
Just looking at those night pictures of you and Dallas brings back fearful memories of my nighttime riding experiences... I'm with the dr: MAYBE next year.
congratulations!
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