Today is our 2nd Wedding Anniversary! I am extremely fortunate to have crossed paths with a woman who decided she could put up with me....maybe she was sleep deprived due to going through residency but she knowingly (and yes she was sober for anyone who speculates she had to be in an altered state to come to that conclusion) made the choice to tolerate me! A tip of the hat and a big THANK YOU to the wifer!
Now that the Cream Puff is behind me, my zest for training on the bike(s) has somewhat subsided. The other fun ride/race on the radar this year was the Butte 50. The Butte 100/50 has had a growing interest over the past couple of years and the event seem to be drawing more people. Race day was this past weekend (July 31st). I opted for the shorter option and was ready to have a good day on the dirt trails.
The 100 milers started at 6 a.m. and the 50 milers started at 9. The 100 mile course is split into 2 parts...the first 50 mile section that heads North and then back Eest over the Cont Divide...then ties into the 50 mile course that heads South and West (also on CDT). I was up early and decided to go root for the 100 milers as they started their ascent into Elk Park. It was a nice morning and it was great to see a great turn-out for the event.
After some words of encouragement to the racers, I headed back home and got organized to head out for the start of the 50. There were 120 or so riders signed up for the 50 which would make for an interesting start as the course quickly pointed downhill on some washed out, sandy, sketchy double track. A couple of folks were antsy to try to pass which was ill-advised as there was no room and a couple of sections where a barbed wire fence lined the right side of the trail. Despite all the obvious danger signs, some people felt compelled to pass...I saw 3 wrecks on that downhill (none of which looked like much fun). As we rolled downhill, I missed the turn-off for the 50 mile course...the signs were still up for the 100 mile course which is what most people followed...the problem was that it added about 3-4 extra miles so all of us that followed the signs ended up off course...this meant that we got quickly moved from the front towards the back of the pack as there were a handful of folks who went the correct way.
As we headed uphill I was able to gain some ground on the geared bikes and start to reel people in. On the steeper sections I hopped off the bike and walked with the intention of saving the legs for later in the race. We got to a junction and at the junction I saw a group of about 20 riders heading back in our direction...they started to doubt whether that was the right way to go and subsequently went off towards the other direction. I told them that I thought they were originally on the right path as it would link to the Archery range which is where the first Aid Station was. I must not have sounded very assuring as they all took off in the wrong direction. The problem was that this junction was not marked, or the markings had been removed. I continued down what I thought was the right direction...As I would later find out, at least 1/2 of the 50 milers would get lost that day.
I knew that there would be a trail that would spur off to the right to head to the Archery range. I diligently kept an eye open but either did not see the markings or the markings were removed....By the time I got to the Beaver Ponds I realized I had missed the turn - to complicate matters a tree had gone through my wheel and broken a spoke which also caused a flat. At this point I knew my day was DONE...I fixed the bike and took the CDT spur back to the start line in the hopes of at least letting the race organizers know so they could hopefully get markings in place for the 100 milers when they went through.
It was a bust of a day but I ended up at the starting area at Aid Station 5 trying to give the 100 milers some encouragement as they went by...At the end of the day, it is the first race that I DNF'd so given the number of events I have been lucky enough to do, it helps to put it all in perspective.
I dropped off the broken spoke/wheel at the Outdoorsman for repair and now realize that any riding in the short term will have to be on the geared bike....OH THE HORROR!
My mind has now shifted a little from the saddle to the stone (or to be more precise...plastic)! I have managed to boulder two days in a row now. Granted that the bouldering has been on the home wall in the garage but I am hoping that it will prep the tendons for a smoother transition to real rock. I still hope to maintain decent fitness on the bike so as to leverage the legs to enjoy some good longer rides in the Tobacco Root Mtns and also up towards Thunderbolt Mtn area....with a little luck I might even be able to gain some climbing strength back and salvage what would be a very very short climbing season this year.
Now that the Cream Puff is behind me, my zest for training on the bike(s) has somewhat subsided. The other fun ride/race on the radar this year was the Butte 50. The Butte 100/50 has had a growing interest over the past couple of years and the event seem to be drawing more people. Race day was this past weekend (July 31st). I opted for the shorter option and was ready to have a good day on the dirt trails.
The 100 milers started at 6 a.m. and the 50 milers started at 9. The 100 mile course is split into 2 parts...the first 50 mile section that heads North and then back Eest over the Cont Divide...then ties into the 50 mile course that heads South and West (also on CDT). I was up early and decided to go root for the 100 milers as they started their ascent into Elk Park. It was a nice morning and it was great to see a great turn-out for the event.
After some words of encouragement to the racers, I headed back home and got organized to head out for the start of the 50. There were 120 or so riders signed up for the 50 which would make for an interesting start as the course quickly pointed downhill on some washed out, sandy, sketchy double track. A couple of folks were antsy to try to pass which was ill-advised as there was no room and a couple of sections where a barbed wire fence lined the right side of the trail. Despite all the obvious danger signs, some people felt compelled to pass...I saw 3 wrecks on that downhill (none of which looked like much fun). As we rolled downhill, I missed the turn-off for the 50 mile course...the signs were still up for the 100 mile course which is what most people followed...the problem was that it added about 3-4 extra miles so all of us that followed the signs ended up off course...this meant that we got quickly moved from the front towards the back of the pack as there were a handful of folks who went the correct way.
As we headed uphill I was able to gain some ground on the geared bikes and start to reel people in. On the steeper sections I hopped off the bike and walked with the intention of saving the legs for later in the race. We got to a junction and at the junction I saw a group of about 20 riders heading back in our direction...they started to doubt whether that was the right way to go and subsequently went off towards the other direction. I told them that I thought they were originally on the right path as it would link to the Archery range which is where the first Aid Station was. I must not have sounded very assuring as they all took off in the wrong direction. The problem was that this junction was not marked, or the markings had been removed. I continued down what I thought was the right direction...As I would later find out, at least 1/2 of the 50 milers would get lost that day.
I knew that there would be a trail that would spur off to the right to head to the Archery range. I diligently kept an eye open but either did not see the markings or the markings were removed....By the time I got to the Beaver Ponds I realized I had missed the turn - to complicate matters a tree had gone through my wheel and broken a spoke which also caused a flat. At this point I knew my day was DONE...I fixed the bike and took the CDT spur back to the start line in the hopes of at least letting the race organizers know so they could hopefully get markings in place for the 100 milers when they went through.
It was a bust of a day but I ended up at the starting area at Aid Station 5 trying to give the 100 milers some encouragement as they went by...At the end of the day, it is the first race that I DNF'd so given the number of events I have been lucky enough to do, it helps to put it all in perspective.
I dropped off the broken spoke/wheel at the Outdoorsman for repair and now realize that any riding in the short term will have to be on the geared bike....OH THE HORROR!
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