2019 Gravel Grovel Swim

If you have read my previous post about Gravel Grovel you would probably be wondering how much gears had helped me for this year. Well, you will have to check back next year and see if you have any more luck knowing that answer than I do. As much as I would really like to give this race a good run with a geared bike, this was not the year. First of all to give it really a good run I would have to be riding stronger than I was this year. I didn't get the training done leading up to the race like I would have liked and was not as strong as I should have been. Also as the race was getting closer and I was keeping my eye on the weather, it was looking like a very high chance of bad weather. I figured I needed to just take the bike that can handle the worst weather out of all the bikes and changed to the SS class.

Is it that time already

It is getting the time of year that I normally start doing a lot more gravel rides. I usually get some Gravel Grovel recon rides in and start wondering what kind of finishing time I can get. This may be the first year in a very long time that I have not rode any of those areas recently. This year is full of a lot of unusual things. Before I get in to all of that, I need to start a few weeks farther back.

After the BT Epic I was pretty run down and had some aches from the hard effort. I didn't have the motivation to get out as much I needed. I also ended up doing something I didn't think I would do, I bought a full suspension geared bike. I was not expecting to do that at all, but this year after PMBAR I could not help from wondering how that kind of bike would be a lot more enjoyable for that area. Some things ended up happening so that all the stars aligned and there I was, an owner of another new bike.

The new toy

I ended up taking ownership a few days before the O'bannon Woods Adventure Ride. I figured if we were going to ride the AHT, then why not take my new ride and see what it was all about. I did get a couple minutes on it in the yard to get some things adjusted, but didn't really spend much time on it. I have never been to this event, but I have been to the area a little and heard that the event was a good time. I got there a little late on Friday and could only check out a little section of trail. Saturday the event ride was around the park and stuff. The group I was with wanted to check out the AHT. It didn't take me very long to remember how rocky this trail could be and how many hike a bike sections there were. The new bike was riding pretty good, but I was having an issue with my back brake and basically ended up riding most of the day with only a front break. It sure made some of the sections pretty interesting.

It turns out that the brake pads were completely worn out. I tried to put new pads in, but I could not get the pressure to build and make the brakes work. So much for a nice new bike. Someone was nice enough to loan me his bike for Sunday's ride. Saturday's ride kicked all of our butts, but it seemed like everyone wanted to go back and give the AHT another go, but this time add a little more of the sections we didn't' ride. My loaner bike was a hard tail SS. Not anything I wouldn't have been on anyway if I didn't buy the FS bike. I was still worn out and the trail was even harder than the day before, but I didn't do too bad on the SS. I didn't climb a couple hills that I would have with my eagle and I was missing the FS on some of the rocky downhills, but it was still a great day.

Thanks Blake!!

So, after the event I went back home and tried to get the brakes to work. I tried a lot of different things, but never could get them to work very well. The next weekend I had planned on heading up to the Story area to get a good gravel ride in, but with the weather being good enough for trail riding and not getting much interest in joining me, I figured I would head back to O'Bannon and get another good trail ride in while it was good. I ended up stealing a caliper from my Spot to get it back up and rolling. I went to do some of the AHT again, but I skipped some of the harder sections. I will say that with both brakes working, this bike was a lot of fun. Eagle also was pretty crazy at what I could climb. It was another big, fun day.

Now this leaves me sitting in the another strange position for the year. I no longer had a working gravel SS that I normally ride for Gravel Grovel. This had me thinking about all the times I would ride my Speedster gravel bike and wonder what kind of time I could get at GG on it. But, I just didn't feel right not riding the SS. I had been contemplating this for the last month or so, but always ended up telling myself to just ride the SS. With this bike now only having 1 working brake, I figured I might as well see what the whole geared thing is all about and if I can get a good time on it. I know there are several gravel road sections that are not really the greatest on a SS and a couple of the climbs really hurt too. Now I am signed up in a different class than normal, riding a different kind of bike than normal and not even staying in the cabins like I usually do. I am not sure what I think of all that. I can only hope that no matter what bike I actually end up riding, it is a good day and I can have a fun time. I am sure that no matter how I ride, there will be at least some good times had. Guess we will see soon.

2019 BT Epic

I have wanted to check out the BT Epic for a few years, but it just never seemed to work out for me. It was brought up for this year and I found a taker that was interested in going. So, I made sure and was ready to sign up when the event opened since it normally sells out pretty quickly. This is a 50 mile race that uses the Berryman Trail and the Ozark Trail for the route and starts and finishes out of the Bass River Resort. The race is open for 650 racers and did sell out very quickly.

We headed west on Friday morning. Made a quick stop at our weekend house and then headed toward Bass River to get our packets and go for a ride. The house was pretty nice for a 20's themed place, but hope you don't want use a tv or a microwave. The trip over to the start area was not too long. We decided to ride the loop at the end of the race since it was about the right distance. After the long road climb and gravel road section, we hit the trails. It was a pretty fun loop with plenty of rocks and switch backs to keep you on your toes. After we finished the loop, we headed up the start hill to where it drops in to the trail section. I was definitely second guessing my 32x19 gearing choice, but I was going to stick with it.

2019 Fools Gold 60

This weekend was this years Fools Gold race. There was some changes from last year. They added some trail to the race and made it a 60 mile race and not a 55 mile race. I am all for more trail and less gravel if possible and 5 more miles didn't sound like a big deal. I ended up heading down with a few other guys. We were sharing a house any way or should I say garage. A little more on that in a minute. The E squared group headed to Evansville Friday morning to join the other two riders. Some were running a little later than planned (including me), but it was really didn't make a huge difference. After doing some bike jenga on the rack, we finally got 4 bikes and all of our gear loaded up. Then the train that included Butch, Bob, E2 and myself rolled on out of town.

The trip down was long and included some standard traffic issues at Nashville and Chattanooga, but overall was not too bad. We did have some mapping conflicts that routed us down some back roads, but it did lead us to the house even if it looked like we might not be heard from again. When we finally found the house/garage, it was behind another house and looked pretty sketchy. We found our way in and it actually turned out to be not too bad inside. Guess that's why they say don't judge a book by its cover. After getting unloaded we headed toward the course to get a little ride in.

2019 Kentucky Six

I was really disappointed when the Tri-State 6 hour series was dropped down to only one race and then even more sad when that race was cancelled. I tried making the trip up to the John Bryan 6 hour to fill the gap, but as soon as we checked in to the hotel the race was cancelled for weather. When I saw this race show up on the schedule and I didn't really have any conflicts, I knew I had to attend this race. I was just hoping the weather would cooperate. I don't think they expected the number of people interested in racing to be as good as it was and they had to put a cap on the number of entries. Good to see other people still want this type of race to happen too.

The only real thing I didn't care for was the fact that the race was on Sunday. This was not a deal breaker since the race was fairly close to home, but it does make me drive home after the race. I headed over Saturday afternoon and got there in time to get a good spot for the pit tent. The other racers in the group showed up and we went for a lap to check the trail out. It had been a couple years since I have been here. The course was different then the last race. It was a pretty fun loop with a plenty of variety. After the ride we headed to The 857 Taproom and Grill to eat and re-hydrate. It was a real nice place and good service.

Hanging out for the rest of the evening was fun and I even got a pretty good night sleep. I came in to this race with very low expectations. I am not riding as well as I was last year and had really slowed down a lot since Lumberjack. I have been trying to get back in to the groove and get stronger, but my legs have just not been responding. I also knew there were some really fast guys signed up for the SS class, so even if I was riding well, it would take a great day or a mechanical on their part to beat them. I was really just here to support the ride and get some good training in for Fools Gold and BT Epic.

Photo credit: @lauralou644

The morning moved along pretty quickly. I made my coffee, ate breakfast and did the last minute things to my bike to get ready. As normal on race mornings it seems like you have a ton of time only to be running around last minute to get to the line. Since I was running a little late to the racer meeting, this unknowingly put me in a great place to get a good starting position. I didn't want to be in the front row, but I did want to be fairly close to it. I know my bike of choice can be an issue on the wide open prelude lap, but I also wanted to be right behind the fast guys when we hit the trail so I can minimize the conga line.

I am so out of tune with you

Since the Lumberjack my riding has not been the greatest. I took some easy weeks and not enough riding to help get me here. It is yet to be determined if this is a good thing or not, but currently I can't see the good in it. My legs are not very strong at all and my heart rate/lung capacity seems like I have taken half a year off. I am always tired and really struggling to get moving. I have been trying to motivate myself to be more motivated, but that is not very easy.

I have done a little bit of bike work that has been needed, but always have more I could do. I have been watching some of the tour and the Wold Cup MTB races have helped make me want to be motivated, just getting out the door has been the hardest part. Back in the end of 2016 I started using song titles for my rides. I had been trying to use better titles than just "afternoon ride", but when some friends were doing this I figured I might as well follow along. I have a lot of thoughts and songs that go through my head on rides anyway, so it should not be that hard. I was surprised at how many times in a ride I would think I have a good title for the ride and then do something completely different by the time I was done.

I was recently thinking about all of the lyrics I have used and wondered how many times I have duplicated the same one. I found a pretty easy way to export my list and sort them to see. It turns out that I used lyrics for almost 350 rides and only had 7 lyrics that were duplicated and couple of those were not exact copies. I will say that is a lot better than I thought. As I looked through the list, it was nice to actually remember most of the rides and what made me use that lyric for the title. I don't think a title of "afternoon ride" would spark the same memories. So for fun I am listing the lyrics below hoping to keep sparking memories and helping me find motivation to keep moving forward.

$2 When I’m hard up
A bigger better slice is what you like
A couple more shots of whiskey and I’m going down to englewood
a little messed up but we're all alright
Ain’t lookin for nothin but a good time
All I can say is that my life is pretty plain
All I want to do is put a drink in my hand
All I wanted was a Pepsi
All we are is dust in the wind
All who wonder are not lost, but some are
And everybody hurts sometimes
And I have been drunk now for over two weeks
And I just got a message sayin that hell has frozen over
And I just want to be alive while I'm here
And I'm 'a keep my pants saggy
And its gone daddy gone
And now that Saturday’s all gone
And that's the way we get by
And the tiny ship was lost
And there will always be stop and go and fast and slow.
And these ashes are all I got left
And you still don't like to leave before the end of the show
Answers don’t come in any one direction
Are you dead or are you sleeping
As we all do under its gaze, the yellow moon on the rise
As we roll down this unfamiliar road
Bangin ho’s and popin pills
Blame it on that simple twist of fate
Busted down in Baton Rouge
But every junkie is like a setting sun
But maybe just a half a drink more
But the heat came 'round and busted me for smiling on a cloudy day
Call me stupid call me sad
Can't you see that is is just raining? Ain't no need to go outside
Cause a rolling stone gathers no moss
Chasin down a hoodoo there
Circle songs and sands of time
City maps and spinal taps
Climbing up on the mountain, heartbeat pounding, reckless as a cyclone
Crunch like nuts in the mouths of squirrels
Dear Abby, got a problem
Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a cage
Divided sky, the wind blows high
Do you have the time to listen to me whine?
Does this thing still work?
Don’t you know I’m loco
Easy like a Sunday morning
Eight days a week
Even though the moment passed me by, I still can't turn away
Ever wonder if it’s all for you
Every time that wheel goes around your bound to cover just a little more ground
Fairly easy ride my ass
Fighting for a lost cause
First awake will stoke the coast
Flies in the Vaseline we are sometimes it blows my mind
Friend is a four letter word
Full of broken thoughts that I cannot repair
Give me things that don't get lost
Got a little change in my pocket
Got my toes in the water and my ass in the sand
Guess it’s better than nothing
Half my heart is in havanna
He had a black eye he was proud of
He said you'd like to at least make yourself happy though
Hello darkness my old friend
Hello me, it’s me again
Hey wake up, your eyes wern't open wide
How can you have any pudding if you don't eat any meat
How many subplots you got swimming through that mind
How's it go again?
Humidity is rising (uh rising), barometer's getting low (oh low, girl)
Hung over on the dresser with my brain leakin
I ain’t got no body
I am not who I want to be. I probably will not ever be
I am so out of tune with you
I attack with love, pure bug beauty
I can barely see the road from the heat comin' off of it
I can't swim so I dog paddle
I did it all for the biscuit
I didn't know that the words you said to me meant more to me than they ever could you
I don’t mind you coming here and wasting all my time
I don’t remember you looking any better but then again I don’t remember you
I don’t want to live like this, but I don’t want to die
I fake it so real I am beyond fake
I focus on the pain, the only thing that's real
I got a bug in my margarita
I got a pocket full of quarters and I'm heading to the arcade
I got guns in my head and they won't go
I hear that train a comin
I hope I've got a little more time, I hope somebody lends me a dime
I hurt myself today To see if I still feel
I just can't find the time to write my mind the way I want it to read
I just toss that ham in the fryin pan
I keep my eyes wide open all the time
I kind of wanna be more than friends
I like me better when I’m with you
I love the dirty things you do when I have control of you
I love you like a fat kid loves cake
I made the bus in seconds flat
I might be freakin or peakin but I rock well
I must inquire, Wilson. Can you still have fun?
I need the crack of the whip I need some blood in the cut
I smell sex and candy here
I stroked the fattest dimes at least a couple of times
I walk the line
I want to breathe in the open wind
I want to love you madly
I was dreaming when I wrote this so sue me if I go too fast
I was riding down the road one day and someone hit a possum
I’d rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy
I’m going down town in a dead mans clothes
I’m just waiting on a friend
I’m still running against the wind
I’m the ice cream man. Stop me when I’m driving by
If I only had a brain
If the thunder don't get you then the lightning will
If you can’t be with the one you love, love the one your with
If you come on to me, will I come home to you?
If you find yourself standing at the end of your line
If you get lost, you can always be found
If you go straight long enough you will end up where you were
I'll confess this you're my tragedy
I'm an alcoholic, middle fingers in the air
I'm back in the saddle again
I'm down, digging through my old muscles looking for a clue
I'm in deep with this girl but she's out of her mind
I'm just sitting here watching the wheels go round and round
I'm learning to fly, but I ain't got wings
I'm not an addict (maybe that's a lie)
I'm not sure who I am
I'm out on bail, the checks in the mail
I'm still running against the wind
I'm stuck in Folsom Prison
In the time of chimpanzees I was a monkey
Inside my hope is fading
Islands in the stream, that is what we are
Isn’t it ironic
It didn't feel like the wrong time or place
It feels good for the first time in a long time now
It never rains in Southern California
It seems I found the road to nowhere
It took four years, three months, two weeks and a Sunday
It’s tricky
It's another day, another chance to throw it all away
It's as simple as something that nobody knows
It's getting hot in here
It's gonna have you begging pretty please
It's hittin rock bottom smoke 'em if you got 'em
It's nobody's fault but my own
It's not a habit, it's cool, I feel alive
It's so noisy at the fair but all your friends are there
It's the way you cling to the road when the wind tries to shove you
I've changed my mid so much I can't even trust it
I've dreamt about you every night this week
I've said what I'd said and you know what I mean but I still can't focus on anything
Just nod if you can hear me
Just turn around now you are not welcome anymore
Let's ride, ride how we ride
Life handed us a paycheck, we said, "We worked harder than this!"
Life is too short to last long
Long as I remember the rain been comin down
Long distance drunk
Looking for legs in all the wrong places
Loose your face, loose your name then get fitted for a suit of flame
Making the best of the worst day kind of night
May the wind take your troubles away
Mean old levee taught me to weep and moan
My brain's the burger and my heart's the coal
My get up and go must have got up and went
My hell comes from inside, why fight this
My thoughts were so loud, I couldn't hear my mouth
New boot goofin
Night falls on all our decisions. All our plans and all ambitions
No more tears
Nobody's fault but mine
Nothing shakin on shake down street
Nothing to see here but sparklers, fountains and snakes
Now what do we have here an outlaw and his beer
Now you make the scene all day, but tomorrow there'll be hell to pay
Occasionally glancing up through the rain
Oh baby you, you got what I need
On a life boat sailing home with our drunken hearts and our tired bones
On my hands and knees, I will roll, roll, roll
on their knees the war pigs crawling
One eye on the open road
Open up my head and let me out
Out of gas, Out of road, Out of car I don't know how I'm going to go
Paint by numbers morning sky looks so phony
Pirate ride
Please don't make any sudden moves you don't know the half of the abuse
Pretty sure I saw the devil on a porch swing as we rode into hell
Psycle therapy confirms that I am not right
Put me in coach
Radar Lovins
Raindrops keep falling on my head
Rat in a drain ditch, caught on a limb, you know better but I know him
Reluctantly crouched at the starting line
Riding down the road one day someone hit a possum
Ripple in still water
Rocking Robin goes tweet tweet tweet
Run me around and make me hurt again and again
Run me out in the cold rain and snow
Runs like a junkyard dog with a brain of bras
Sad songs and waltzes aren’t selling this year
Same as it ever was
Say hello 2 heaven
Secret Lovers that's what we are, we shouldn't be together
Set the gearshift for the high gear of your soul
She ain't no ball and chain
She F-N hates me
She goes in and out and in and out and in and out
She holds a smile like someone would hold a crying child
She is fast and thorough and sharp as a tack
She pulled her dinner from her pocket
She smiles when the pain comes
She takes a swing but she can't hit
She's a butcher with a smile
She's got a whole lot of reasons, she can't think of a single one that justify leaving
Shove me in the shallow water before I get too deep
Singing in the rain
situation number 4, the one who left you wanting more
Slip sliding away
Slow and low, that is the tempo
Slow down everyone your moving too fast
Slowride, easy, slowride, sleazy
Snot rockets in flight, afternoon delight
So many roads to ease my soul
So where are you? It's bee a little while
Some beach
Some day you will ache like I ache
Some of them want to be abused
Someone do me a favor and pour me some Jaeger
Someone else came out to win her, and I came out in second place
Someone told me long ago, there's a calm before the storm
Sometime we will find that these are the best of times
Sometimes I'm angry that I feel so angry
Sometimes you get lost
Stacking up problems that are so unnecessary
Still I burn this earth and fire
Stop, collaborate and listen
suddenly i'm not half the man i used to be
Summer Lovin it happened so fast
Suns coming up I got cakes on the griddle
Sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy
Take me to the river
Take your economy car and suitcase
Talking shit about a pretty sunset
Tangled up in blue
That is the sound of the men working on the chain gang
That the winds had swept me Wilson's way
That’s all folks
That's why I say hey man nice shot, nice shot man
The chocolate starfish and the hot dog flavored water
The empty bottle was half empty
The future is in the palm of your hand
The good times are killing me
The heart cracked, double down dreamer
The moment ends
The more you chase the cat the more it bites and scratch
The noose is hanging, at least you won't die wondering
The rain is gonna come, oh it surely looks like rain
The senoritas don't care-o when there's no dinero
The sun will come out tomorrow
The tires are the things on your car that makes contact to the road
The truth is I just don't stand a chance
The way you do the things you do
The whole damn situation could have been avoided if I only shut the window
There are times when you can beckon, there are times when you must call
There is an emptiness in side her
There might be a little dust on the bottle
There's some good points, some bad points
There's vomit on his sweater already, mom's spaghetti
These shorts are made for walking
These walls are paper thin and everyone hears every little sound
They did the mash, it was a graveyard smash
They paved paradise and put up a parking lot
They really want you, they really do
They'll stone you and then they'll say good luck
They're always having a good time down on the bayou
This is a long drive for someone with nothing to think about
This is my message to youhoohoo
Those kicks were fast as lightning
Ticket to ride
Time to take her home her dizzy head is conscious laden
To a little dive bar in Dahlonega
Too much trippin' and my soul's worn thin
Trying to play me like my name is Sega
Two bottles of bud light and a can full of whoop ass
Two hands on the wheel
Two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl
Wash uffitze drive to firenze
We all have some place to go
We are all just prisoners here, of our own device
We have cluster flies alas
We have to keep this traffic flowing and except a little sin
We sit here stranded, though we’re all doin’ our best to deny it
We’re going to party like it’s 1999
We'll all float on all right
We'll make great pets
Well take what you want from me. You deserve it all.
Well we sat on the edge of the river, the crowd screamed, "sacrifice the liver!"
Well, the lampshade's on fire when the lights go out
Were all stars now in the dope show
We're better when we're together
We're high above but on the floor
We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl
We've all seen a man at the liquor store beggin' for your change
What have I become
What part of yourself can you afford to loose
What time is it?
What we have here is a failure to communicate
What's my name again?
Wheels keep on spinning round, spinning round and round
When something's going wrong, you must whip it
When the bottle gets empty, lord it sure ain't worth a damn
When will these ideas really be my own?
When you dig my grave, can you make it shallow so that I can feel the rain
When you only have a hammer everything looks like a nail
When your hot your hot, when your not your not
Where is my head? Where are my bones?
Who cares about the clouds when we’re together
Who stopped the rain
Wish I knew you when I was young
With a horn that's honking like a mariachi band
Woke up, fell out of bed
Won't you come and see me queen Jane?
yesterday all my troubles seemed so far away
Yo so I continued to a1a Beachfront Ave
You cant get the chicken or the stuffing
you gotta have dreams to make it all worthwhile
You have to fight for your right to party
You hurt her but you don't know why
You know we need oxygen to breathe
You only answer perhaps, perhaps, perhaps
You turn the screws
You’re my #1 the reason I'm still up at dawn
You're the reason I've run out, Run out of metaphors
You've lost that lovin feeling
Zipping through the forest with the curdling fleas

2019 Lumberjack 100

If you have not read the post on the day before the race and would like to, you can find it here.

Saturday morning came around earlier than I would have liked, but that is pretty typical. Most nights I don't really sleep that well and this night I woke up a few times. Every time I woke up, it was still raining. This was not exactly what I was hoping for. I normally can ride in the mud pretty good, but I didn't really want to ride 100 miles in the mud. After sleeping as long as I could, I finally got up and moving. Made my typical breakfast and had some coffee. My stomach didn't really like my breakfast and I didn't eat all of it. I could have used a little more coffee, but it was all gone and I didn't feel like making any more. I got everything ready and loaded up. I was feeling more anxious than normal and not really sure why. I know it was going to be a hard day, but I didn't really feel a lot of pressure on my self. I just tried to relax as much as I can and go with the flow.

We headed out to the venue. Once we got there we needed to take our coolers and pit gear to the pop up tent. Since we parked in the overflow lot, it was a little bit of a walk. It probably would have been a good idea to try and drive over to drop everything off. Once we got over to where the tent was, it took us a minute to find it. The rest of the group dropped it off the night before and we were not sure exactly where it was. After I got everything set up I headed over toward the bathroom line. The line was very long and I didn't really feel like I had time to wait. I headed back to the car to get ready the rest of the way. Then I headed back to the start area. I hoped the line would be smaller, but it really was not and I just had to hope I was good enough.

Photo credit: Rob Meendering

I headed up toward the front group. I thought I might be a little too far forward, but I figured I would get dropped enough on the road and wanted to be as far forward as I can when I hit the woods. It was cold and still raining. I was wondering if I had too much on or maybe not enough. Looking around I could see all kinds of different clothing choices. It seemed like I was about in the middle of the choices and figured I would be good enough. There was a few announcements that I didn't really catch and then off we went. I tried to go as fast as I could with out completely blowing myself up. I found a few wheels to jump on and felt like I was doing as good as expected.

After the road section we jumped on a fire lane kind of section. It was still pretty fast. I was getting passed by some riders, but I felt like I had a small group I was keeping pace with. I also didn't feel like I dropped too far back, but it is really hard to tell. As we hit the trail section the group I was with was riding at a good pace for me. I had a few people I would pass and there was also a few that would pass me. I didn't really feel like anyone was holding me up or making work harder than needed. There was a couple climbs that I had to take at a slower pace that I would prefer, but nothing I was too worried about. I just kept the pace up the best I could with out over doing it.

Somewhere along here Dustin came up on me. He rode behind me for a little while and eventually I was worried I was going too hard and he went around. I tried to hold his wheel the best I could with out hurting myself. I was a little worried about going too hard. Either I was going too hard or Dustin was taking it too easy. I didn't figure I should have been riding at his pace. But, I'm still not sure if I was going too hard or not.

Photo credit: Rob Meendering

We came through the pit area together. I think he got ready and left before me. I tried to keep moving and leave as quickly as I could. The end of the first lap was a little hard on my legs. I started the second lap taking it a little easier and trying to recover. I walked a few more hills, but still felt like I was moving at a constant pace. Not too far in to this lap I was really feeling it. I must have gone too hard the first lap. Lovins caught me along this section and I jumped on his wheel and tried to keep up. I kept hurting more and more and feeling really run down. It didn't take me too long to start to feel like I really needed to make that bathroom break I wanted to do in the morning. I figured I was pretty close to the rest top just before mile 20 and could go there. The rest of this section of trail was not very pleasant. I was really needing to make it to the rest stop as quickly as possible. I was hurting very bad and not riding very well.

I was just about to the point I was going to just stop and I saw the leis hanging from a tree and knew I was right there. I had to let Lovins go and try to take care of myself. I made my stop and took in some pickle juice and coke and took off as quickly as I could. I immediately felt better and started to roll along at a better pace. The lap still felt like I went very slow, but I was getting faster near the end and was starting to feel better. I still hurt, but was improving. I rolled in to the pit area after the second lap, grabbed a new bottle, drank some Mt. Dew and took off as quickly as I could.

Photo credit: Rob Meendering

Feeling better at the end of the second lap than I did after the first, I started the 3rd lap in a little better head space. I was still tired and walking the steep sections trying to reserve as much energy as I could. On the first double track sections a pair of women came by me and I jumped on their wheel. The pace was rolling well and I was dong good enough hanging on. I think they felt like I wanted to pass in the trail sections, but I was just happy to have some wheels to help keep my pace up. There was a small group that formed and we rode together for a good section of trail. As we hit the rest stop, I wanted to make a quick stop to get more pickle juice and top my bottle off. I didn't take too long, but I was too slow to keep with the group. I was on my own again.

It didn't take too long and I found a couple more people to ride with. The pace was still moving good and the sections I was walking, I was really not going any slower that the rest of the people around me. I guess I was walking at eagle pace. Toward the end of the lap I could really tell the end was near. I picked up the pace and was riding pretty well. I was really hurting and just ready to be done. The last section took a little longer than I remembered it would, but eventually I was in the section that was all down hill to the end. Finally I came in to the last little bit before the end. It was awesome to see Lovins standing there cheering me on and giving my a high five. I rolled through the finish line and just like that I was done. I ended up finishing in 9:19 and in 19th place SS.

I hung out a minute talking with a couple friends and then made my way over to the beer tent before heading to our pit area. I tried to put a couple things away and sit down for a minute catching up with everyone. It didn't take me very long before I was really wanting to get changed. Then I headed up and got in line for my awesome pizza. A couple more beers and hanging out with everyone making sure we were all done and ready. Eventually we headed back toward the house, but not with out making a stop for some more pizza and ice cream. The rest of the night was full of aches and pains with a good amount of beer an laughs.

Sunday morning we were up pretty early so we figured we might was well start the long journey home. The trip was long, but not too miserable with rain on and off. We eventually made it home and I was back in the real world just with a lot more parts of me hurting. Looking back I am really torn at how to feel. Before the race I would have said that to finish under 10 hours would have been considered a success. With how well I rode and how bad I felt second lap, I can't help but think that I could finish in under 9 hours. That kind of feels unreal to me. 9 hours just sounds so fast for me to be able to ride 100 mile race. I don't understand why this race is so fast. Even if I would finish in 9 hours or less, I still have a ways to go to make it anywhere near the podium. SS may be ded, but the class is not lacking on talent.

Last year after the Mohican I was not sure if I would ever do another 100 mile race. After the Lumberjack this year I would easily say yes to doing this race again. I am not sure if I will next year yet, but out of all the options for a 100 mile race, this one is right up there. I will have to make that decision sometime early next year. Until then I will just have to try and figure out where I am falling down on my training plan and try to finish the year off riding strong. I am not sure exactly what is in store for the rest of the year, but I am getting closer to making some of those decisions. Hope to see you at the next one.