It's been a while since we last talked, and I've been busy with a few things. New job with a long commute, car issues, a deck building project, and a mountain bike race. The job is pretty good. The people at HealthPartners are really nice, and the drive is just long enough to get the whole run down on NPR. Both cars are showing their age. I can't complain they've been performing great and I was due for some work. The deck is done and a robin has made a home of a support beam already.
And then there was a mountain bike race. It wasn't so much a race, but more of an endurance challenge. After all, 100 miles off road is nothing to scoff at. The setting was the Chequamegon Forest. The Chequamegon covers well over 800,000 acres of Wisconsin. It contains plants and trees I've never seen before. I think Big Foot , and Jimmy Hoffa are holed up in there somewhere.
It all began on a frigid February evening when I put my internet browsing powers to find mountain bike races in my general area. 15 to 20 mile races are very common, but I was looking for something "epic". That's when I came upon a blog about a 100 mile race in the Chequamegon Forest. It was only a handful of people, with only a fraction finishing the race. I looked at the participants and recognized a few names. All of them were very strong riders and yet none of them finished. My curiosity had me. To register, a person had to send a post card with Name, rank and serial number. I was in.
Time passes, and so does the worst Winter and Spring I've seen in the 20+ years I've lived in Minnesota. 10 to 20 degrees below average WAS the average. Needless to say, my training was hurting. On top of that, I got a new job that required me to commute about 80 minutes each way.
So, the race was approaching. May 21, and I was coming to terms with knowing I was not going to be capable of riding 100 miles off road. But, I still wanted to see this thing. I told myself I'd ride 50 miles and decide at that time what I would do. That was that.
A couple days before the race I was watching the weather for the area. It didn't look good. mid 40's with rain. That's not good for me. My hands and feet go cold just looking at an ice cube. However, I shopped and picked up hand and feet warmers. Picked up some extra bags to attach to my bike for other things. I considered such things as a broken chain, flats, and possibly spending the night in the forest.
The race was on a Saturday and we drove up Friday. We stayed in a lodge call The Lake Woods on lake Namakagon. They ran out of rooms in the main lodge, so they gave us a condo on the water with 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, full kitchen, and a walk out to the lake. Wow, 60 bucks goes far in Cable Wisconsin. Even though the place was extremely comfortable, I didn't sleep well the night before. Not sure what was keeping me up. In the past I'd get worked up for a race If I was actually going to compete, but this was different. I was going to spend the day riding and stop half way. But still I worried.
The morning came and Uma and I went to the lodge for the all you can eat breakfast for 10 bucks deal. Sometime during the meal a dog wondered by our table begging for food. A little while later the waitress yells out, "Who's dog is this?" Turns out the dog just walked into the lodge and went to the dining area looking for a hand out…smart dog.
At this time, I realize that I had forgot to bring a water bottle. How crazy is that? I asked a guy at a table if he could loan me one and he was very kind in doing so. My intention was to put poweraid in the water bottle and put water in the camelbak.
After eating, I finish loading up the packs. I had never used a camelbak before and had to practice a few times to get that right. Also, the weather was warmer than predicted. 65 and overcast. I decided to wear my short sleeve jersey and shorts. I made several rounds in the parking lot making sure the bike was tuned. The Niner has never let me down.
Uma and I make our way to the start. The race organizer is saying a few words. Mostly making the point that you are on your own.
The race starts with a shout, and I watch people on the front take off like they are running a 5k. That's nuts. We start down a gravel road, and at about 3/4 of a mile we hit single track. People are still riding pretty hard. I'm riding very relaxed and letting people pass. The trails are more rocky than I'm used to, and there are some puddles. Over all the trail is in great condition.
My first mechanical issue. With all the rocks, I was bouncing and bouncing hard. The Reba fork was taking it well, but my seat post slipped and I had to stop and pull it up a little. This was within 10 miles of the start.
My second mechanical issue. Again, the rocks. my handlebar bag opened up and I had to stop and pick some of my stuff up and wire the zipper shut.
Now, I must say I was in a hunting mode. I wanted to catch up to those that had passed me because of my "issues". I caught them all and decided to ride with the last couple guys I caught. We were riding pretty much the same pace. I was weaker in the technical areas, but was stronger on the climbs and open areas. It was on a climb when I took the front the guy behind me says, "Dude, I think you have a flat". I looked down and my back tire looked really low. I stopped and checked. Yeah, it was waaay low.
My third mechanical issue. it had to be delt with. Even though I was riding on Stan's No Tubes, the tire was so low that the bike was fish tailing sometimes. I got out my CO2 cartaridge and pumped it up. I could see the white Stan's fluid seeping out pretty good.
I get back on my bike and go after the guys I was with earlier. For a couple miles I ride hard and then get my wits about me. Thinking this is foolish to ride like this. I relax and take it easy. Taking in a lot of water, and thinking man, it's hot today. The cold rain was not going to happen.
My fourth mechanical issue. Somewhere before 20 miles, I was fish tailing again and went down slamming my left arm into a log. I'm not going to lie. It hurt. I got up and checked my back tire. It was barely holding air. I figured at this point the Stan's wasn't going to work and put a tube in, and used my last CO2 cartaridge. It took me a while to change the tire, and a lot of people passed me at this time.
Making it 50 miles at this point was going to be really iffy. I'm having the worst day I've ever had on my bike. I called Uma and told her to meet me at the water stop at mile 30.
I take off. The single track gave way to logging roads. It wasn't long on the logging roads when…
My fith mechanical issue. Another flat, and this time the tire was complete with out air. I had no idea where I was in the forest. It's not noon yet and I'm worried just a little bit. I decided to ride on the flat. I'm now passed by the last remaining people in the race. I'm approaching mile 30 and thinking how glad I am this is over. However, there is nothing at mile 30. Now my mind is thinking…did I pass the water stop? I call Uma and she tells me that she's waiting for me at the water stop…I'm completely confused. I keep riding this bike, and I'm getting pretty pissed off.
I'm thinking, f*cking Stan's! Why did I bring CO2 cartaridges? f*cking tires! Where is the gawd dam water stop?
finally I see Uma at the end of the road, and there is a rider stopped by the car. I ride to the car, and throw my bike in the ditch. I think I scared the other guy. He had a look on his face. I'm not sure what his problem was. He didn't look like he had any mechanical issues. I pulled my bike from the ditch and tossed it in the trunk. The computer said I had 38 miles. When I used to run, people used to get upset when a mile was a few yards too long or short. 8 extra miles on a mountain bike was not cool, and that's all I'm going to say about that.
We get back to the condo, and I take a shower and go to bed. I think Uma took a nap too, but I was so out of it that I'm not sure.
When I woke up hours later, I felt really good. Not sure why, just did. I took the water bottle back to the guy that loaned it to me. Turns out my timing was good. He had just finished and he came in 8th.
Not sure what it all means. Maybe I'd give this race a real go next year. I'd definitely like to go back and ride the trails.
Next purchase is a pump.
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