Boondoggle Forty 5

The Boondoggle Bike event in itself is an amazing thing for me to see. This is what bike racing needs. Grass roots feel events that don't cost you an arm and a leg and can still pull in some serious talent. For an event that some might thing is not big enough for them, just look at the list of names showing up at the starting line. This field seems just as deep as any NUE race at least as a percentage of racers. Last year was the first year for the Forty 5 race. I really wanted to attend, but that weekend just didn't work out for me. I will say that at the time, it didn't seem like that big of a deal, but after the race was over I could tell that I really did miss out on something good. There was no way I was going to miss out on this years event.

This race was going to be a little change for me. Becky was going with me and we were camping. I felt like I was packing to be gone for a full week. I wanted to make sure I had everything I needed and anything that Becky might need, so the car was pretty full. Living the van life would have been really nice for this one, but we made it work just fine. We headed down Friday afternoon hoping to get settled in and go for a little ride. We got away a little later then I thought we would, but it still was not that late. We rolled in to the Sheltowee Camp and got set up.

Once the tent was up we got our things ready for a ride. It has been a little bit since Becky has gone for a mtb ride so there was a couple little set up things that needed to be adjusted. I rolled over to the check in building and got my packet, dropped it off at camp and rolled out. Right as we pulled on to the road from camp, Becky's crank arm fell off. Doh! I had borrowed the cinch bolt a little while back, but thought the arms would have been tight. I guess not. We headed back to camp, I found the parts and tools to fix the problem. I decided it might be a good idea to put some tools in my pocket and then we were off.....again.

She was a little rusty, but she rode great. The bike did hit the ground a couple of times, but nothing too bad. Just kind of slid out on a couple of the wet corners. We checked out part of the lake trail and came back to camp on the road since it was starting to get dark. It was a nice hour ride. I got to see a little of the trail and more importantly I got to ride with my wife again!! I am hoping this trend will continue and increase in frequency.

By the time we got back, the Bushong's were at camp. We loaded up to head to town for a bite to eat. The Wrigley Taproom and Eatery was the choice. It took a little time to get there since we were pretty far in to the woods, but it was worth the trip. The food was good and they had a good selection of beer. I ended up getting the Gavel Banger IPA, mainly because I thought it said Gravel Banger on the board. But, it turns out that it was pretty dang good. Then we headed back to camp and got ready for race day.

Race morning I was up and moving. I thought I was doing good with getting ready, but it never fails that it is time to warm up and I still have a few things to do yet. I run back and forth between the car and picnic table trying to figure out what I needed and what I forgot. Eventually I was ready to roll out and we went for a spin. I ended up loosing everyone and then as I rolled around I would also run in to a lot of people that I know and would want to talk with them. Not ideal for a warm up, but I didn't really have that high of expectations. 

After a few announcements that some apparently didn't listen to, we rolled down the road to the bottom of the dam. From there we stopped and lined up at the start line. I was about mid pack and didn't get too excited when the race actually started. I was rolling along at a fair pace for the gearing I had. Not as fast as I wish I was going, but the legs didn't really feel like I should be pushing any harder. Towards the end of this road I was rolling along a little better. I grabbed a wheel or two to help pull me along when I could. By the time I made it back to camp the legs were feeling better, but I was already pretty far back in the pack.

I made the turn in to the woods and was feeling a lot better. It seemed like several of the people I was rolling up on were having a little trouble with the trail section. This was my happy place. I was rolling well and made several passes. The whole trail section was a lot of fun. I was riding well in this part and my gearing was not an issue like it was on the road. I passed a lot of people, but figured I was still pretty far back in the pack. But, just as quick as the fun came I hopped out on to the dam. I was now back on the road and it was pretty flat. This was worse then the start, but the view around the lake was very nice and made it seem a little better. Then the road section seemed to carry on for a very long time. I had a hand full of people pass me back on this road section after passing them in the woods. I am not completely sure, but I felt like I was still on the positive side of being the passer versus being the passee.

After spinning my brains out for what seemed like forever, I finally made a turn at an intersection. It seemed like maybe thing would get a little better. Not too far down the road I hit some gravel. This section was better, but there were still several spots that were too flat that I was spinning out. I tried to grab all the wheels that I could, but I would eventually not be able to hang or the road would point up and I would end up pulling away. I passed the rest stop and kept rolling on. There was a pretty good sized climb or so in this stretch. I was reeling in some more riders the more the road pointed up. The hill was hurting, but catching riders helped me stay motivated and on the gas.

I then turned on to the famed Middle Ridge road. I knew with the rain we have had that this would be muddy. I was riding well on this section and passed more people. This section was not very easy to ride, but I put everything I learned in the 90's to use and didn't have many issues more that a slip or two. I came rolling in to the down hill section pretty hot. I was still on the gas and was probably going faster than I should have been, but I just kept the momentum rolling and picked the best lines that I could. I did see a few lines I was glad I didn't take.  There was a big rock overhang at the bottom. I wanted to stop and take it all in, but thankfully I was still hammering the pedals and just kept going.

Another good climb and some more gravel and I came rolling in to the check point again. I really didn't need much, I just topped off my one bottle and took in some coke shots to keep me going. I was in and out fairly quickly and with short work I was heading down the road again. This section was not as flat so I was rolling okay, still not as fast as I would have been with a bigger gear. I had a couple people pass me on this section, but not near as many as the previous road section. I think there were just enough climbs to help me out. But then I found myself taking a right and on to the road. I had a pretty good idea of what was coming and just tried to keep the best pace I could. I did find a wheel to hop on before the dam, but I could not keep the pace the whole way and had to let them pull away. I was looking forward to the trail section again, hoping I would have the legs to go as good as I did on the way out.

My legs were starting to feel it. Overall I was riding well, but the short, steep climbs had them hurting a couple times. There was a technical climb that I spun out on, this sent a shock to the legs and instantly were hurting. I was really hoping I didn't over do it. I just found the groove the bike liked and tried to be a little smarter on a couple of the harder sections. I did end up passing a couple more people, but the more tired I got the more I started looking over my shoulder fully expecting someone to be there. Thankfully I never saw anyone and kept pushing. I knew the end was near and I should be able to hang on to where I was. As I came out of the woods I was very ready to roll down the hill to the camp but they were all telling me to take a left. Another climb!! I really didn't save a lot for it, but with all the people there was no way I was going to get off and walk now. The finish line was closer than I expected and was able to pull a little wheelie to celebrate all the hard effort.

In the end I rolled across the line @ 3 hours and 39 min finishing in 9th in the SS class and somewhere in the low 50th place overall. Not exactly where I would have liked to finish, but with everything being considered it was not too bad. I was not feeling very strong going in to the race and that also made me stick with a gearing selection that was probably too low. The road sections were not very easy for me with that gear, but I tried to make the best of it. I was however, very happy with how I rode all the other sections. In the end I still need to be a lot faster. I know the amount of talent at this race was pretty high, but I really should be trying to race with more of the people between me and the front. I really only have myself to blame. I should have put in smarter work.

Overall this race was exactly the kind of race I thought it would be. It has a grass roots feel, but still put on very well. The price is crazy affordable and with all the good people to hang out with, how can you go wrong? The race sold out, was approved for more racers and then sold out again. I see this race selling out again next year. If you come back, you need to try and book a place at the Sheltowee Camp. This camp ground was awesome!! The owner even brought us some wood to burn just because. I know I plan on attending if at all possible. The only thing I need to figure out is if there is a gearing combo I can manage for both sections of the route or I need to just bring the bike with gears. I know that is not really what I want to do, but the older I get, the more gears and a FS bike sounds like a good idea. Yeah I can't believe I said that. Hope to see you next year! Thanks to Peggy Smith and everyone who I got pictures from.