It was a good event though with a good showing from all the local hard-men/women of the area. It is pretty funny but we are now getting more looped into the 'scene' and running into more and more familiar faces each time out to these suffer-fests. The scene is such a great scene in the sense that everyone seems super friendly and very supportive. The events are not really 'competitive' in nature only because you are really racing at your own pace (unless you are a freak of nature and can race these events).
The course profile was as follows:
I was not exactly tapered for this event as I had put in two long back to back rides on Sun/Mon prior to race day....then again, it was on the agenda as a fun ride and not as a ride to hammer....Sean O from Butte also made it down although he made a wise choice and decided to ride gears.
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| heading into the final 7 mile loop of the first 25 mile loop |
The course included between 8,000-9,000 ft of elevation gain over the full course and generally felt like a pretty fast course. It was not ideal for a single speed set up as there were 3-4 mile climbs on paved road where it would have been nice to be able to push some big gears...although those moments made it a great time to fuel up and re-load for the upcoming climbs. There was also a steep & punchy climb coming out of aid station 1 that was just mean to single-speeders.
There were 2 aid stations - roughly about 12 1/2 miles apart which worked out well. Hammer was there and provided bottle swaps at the aid stations so all you had to do was roll in, ask for Water, Heed, or Perpetuem and they would just swap your bottles out for you. It was easy in, easy out. Apparently I was still a little dehydrated as I started to cramp the last 7 miles of the race (a not so uncommon theme for many others thanks to the heat)
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| at the finish |
The course proper was a 25 mile course. There was a shortie start loop that was intended to spread everyone out before the first long downhill section...it was very successful in jacking up my heart rate to around 170!!! My red-line threshold is around 165 so I was pinned right off the bat and it stayed there for about 20 minutes until we hit that downhill...WOW! Once the start loop was behind us it was on to a really fun downhill on Mill Creek trail where it dumped you on the dirt road where you linked into the paved road climb...the climb was about a 900 ft climb and then you hung a louie onto some double track descent which was scary fast!!! but FUN! At the bottom of the descent you hit the first aid station and prepped yourself for the long grinder climb of about 1,500 ft back towards the starting area where you linked a really fun 7 mile loop of single track that took you back to the starting line.
It took me 5:47 on the singlespeed and there were some hike a bike sections on that steep climb out of aid station 1 (Bustle Creek)...ouchie mama
The race swag was great...it included a hat for finishing, a tech t-shirt, a pair of socks, and a beer mug!! The beer mug was promptly put to use later that evening with the meal and brew that were provided as part of the entry fees.
The area is amazing! There is some great scenery with some really good riding all over the place. It is accessed via Driggs (Idaho) and you can see the Tetons from the lesser common west-side which provide great views and really good access via the Targhee National Forest. The town of Driggs is small (population 1,100) but it has some good options for eateries which include good Thai and some great Oriental/Fusion...mmm .mmmm.mmmmmmm
Later in the week, while on vacation, I picked up the local Jackson newspaper and there was a picture of the race start on the front page! It featured Rebecca Rusch but you can see my mug in there too...Rebecca crushed the race...she did it in 4:32...which was good enough for a 3rd overall finish (inlcuding the men). She rode really strong considering the week prior she put in a huge effort to set the new Leadville 100 mtb women's race record.
more on the vacation and pix to come on upcoming blog posts...
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