I was driving down after work on Thursday and for a short amount of time I linked up with Jason and Misty, but I was due for a gas stop and never saw them again. Things were going pretty smooth, but then south of Lexington the traffic slowed way down. Thankfully this eventually ended and the flow started again. That was until I got a re-route notification. Off of the interstate I went and was on a smaller back road with a conga line of cars and trucks. The route took me through Hot Springs and a lot of tight corners and hills that the trucks did not like. This was a very stressful time and took a lot longer than it normally would have. Eventually I was back on familiar roads and rolling in to town. A quick stop for some beer and supplies, I was finally at home for the weekend. It was great getting rid of some of that stress and catching up with everyone that I have not scene in a long time.
Friday we all got together for a ride. Since Camp Switchback is so close we rode over to the Hub where the meeting place was. We did the big M loop and back to the Hub for some beer and food. We had a big group and it was so much fun riding and hanging out with everyone. I was feeling like I was back at home with my group that I have done so many things with. It had definitely been way too long. We then headed to check in and back to the house to get ready for the next day.
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| The People's Group |
Saturday morning came around early. I was up and getting ready at a good time, but no matter how much preparation I do it always seems like I have last minute things to do. We loaded up and were heading over to the ranger station and shortly after we were at the start finish just before the riders meeting. I tried to make my way over to hear the meeting and get the passport, but Eric changed things up this year and you had to ride all the way up Black to get the passport. So, back to the back of the line to get on the bike and be almost last in to the woods. This was alright with me since I was not going to climb up black very fast, but with the long line of people in front of me didn't make it easier.
It took us over 2 hours and 2300 feet of elevation to get to Buckhorn gap to get our passports. I sat down next to 2 others from our group and worked on making our plan for the day. I had some initial options, but after discussing we were convinced to go clock wise since the first check point was not far. This was one of the routes in my head, so it was easy to be talked in to it and then we might have some company for the day. 30 min later we came bombing down the hill in to the first check point of the day. Here was Chris manning the check point since he was still healing from injury. A pretty quick stamp and drink and we were off toward the next one.
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| Thanks Volunteers |
This one hurt a bit to get. We also lost our company on this section since it took longer for us to climb. Jason started coughing bad at the check point and seemed to be allergic to something there so we didn't stick around long. Once we got back to the road I asked how he was doing and what the plan was. He wanted to get at least 3 and I said if we are getting 3 we are going for 4. They were close enough that I didn't want to go that far out there and still dnf by choice. The intersection of 5015 there was a life saving rest stop with the best grilled cheese and chips that I have ever had. I had to tell myself to do the right thing and not drink a beer. We had a long way to go yet.
It was not too bad cruising down 5015, but it was not all down hill like I thought. I knew the plan that was discussed earlier in the day and just figured that was where we were going. Heading up to the Squirrel check point we saw the other Jason and Ryan coming back down. We had a fair amount of company on and off for this part, but I'm sure we all did not have the same number of check points. When we got to that check point Jason was not doing so well. Laurel Creek did a number on both of us. He sat down a little and made sure to eat and drink and try to come back alive. Eventually he was feeling better or Shrimper was scaring him enough that he was ready to go LOL.
This part was a little better since there was more coasting, but it still had its technical sections. Once we made it to South Mills I was thinking we would have been at the check point, but it was a little farther down the trail than I was thinking. Once we got there we grabbed some more food and was feeling pretty good about having our 4 check points in. I think Jason was feeling pretty good at this point until I said we have 5 hours to get back and still finish. I got a blank look when he asked if I thought that we had that much to go and all I could say is we still have a very long way to go.
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| He is not a fan of Horse Cove |
From here on out we were both pretty drained but still moving forward. After being on Horse Cove for a while I was asked if this was part of the 1.5 mile hike a bike. I didn't want to answer. A little farther down the trail he had his answer as we were hiking up the last 1.5 miles of this trail with a max grade over 18%. This section also had some spots with a lot of bees and he even got stung once. We caught our breath at the top and took off back toward Buckhorn gap. This section was a lot easier to pedal, but with over 10 hours on the legs nothing was easy. I feel like I was moving along fairly good and I was hoping not too hard. I was starting to smell the car and also a little panic about not finishing in time.
Eventually we made it to the gap and caught some other guys we have been going back and forth with since Laurel creek. I think they were feeling just as bad, but they were moving faster. Every time I am on the upper section of Clawhammer I am always amazed at how damn long that section of road is. I don't think we were on it a half hour but it seemed like we went an hour looking for the Maxell turn off. I was so happy to make it to this turn, but then the realization that we now had to climb to the gap settled in. We were moving at a snails pace for this part, but knew there is no stopping.
At this point I knew we would be able to finish unless something catastrophic happened. I wishfully said that we might even be able to squeak it in with out putting lights on. Once we got to the top I didn't wait long and started up black. I was ready to get this over. It was getting dark and I was riding with caution, but still moving along fairly well. Eventually it was getting too dark and no longer safe to keep riding. We stopped and put our lights on and I put my arm warmers on since it was getting colder. Once we had lights it seemed like we had some new energy and it felt like we really bombed the last section of Black.
I can't express how it felt rolling in to the finishing chute after such a long day and knowing we were finishers. 12 hours and 55 minutes, 57.28 miles, 9,078 ft of elevation and most important 4 check points. What made it even better was our group all standing there waiting on us and cheering. With some of them being done 2 hours and up to almost 4 hours sooner. They all could have been back at the house, but I am so happy they were not. That made such an amazing moment even better. Thank you to every one of you!! The cheering and the high fives were the best! I also want to thank Jason and Misty. With out Jason twisting my arm to even do it, I would not have been there. He may not have been happy with all of my route choices, but he stuck with me till the end. Also want to thank both of them for letting me crash with them at Camp Switchback. This place is awesome!! It is definitely on my short list of places to rent when I'm in Brevard. Thanks to Eric @ Pisgah Productions for pushing me past my limits. I was also honored to be a temporary Team Bicycle Face member for the day. Cycling Solutions for helping me have a bike that is a dream to ride. CarboRocket for keeping me moving forward. ESI grips for keeping my hands happy even after hours on the bike. TruckerCo for keeping my tires full of air and my brakes stopping me on the down hills.
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| Happy Finishers |
Here is an Instagram reel done by Misty
Of course with a race like this one will tend to second guess their route choice. In hind site I would have done the Pilot cove check point from the other trail and finished down what we out and back on. I also would have gone stayed on Bradley Creek and done the South Mills check point then the Squirrel check point. We should have finished on Squirrel to the same point we ended up. I know none of these trails are easy and we may have had just as much trouble or even more, but I can't help thinking that not doing Laurel Creek or Horse Cove trail would have been better. Other than those 3 spots I am really ok with what we chose to do. The other direction might have been good too, but that is too hard to really know for sure. I'm already thinking I'd be ok going back again next year and trying to finish in less time. I will definitely need to find some better legs for that to happen. But, I would probably be fine if I didn't.
This was my 7th time at this race. It has been going on for 20 years. A lot has changed over those years. I'm happy to pull my finish numbers above my DNF numbers. I sure wish I would have done this a couple more times between 2011 and 2018. It also crazy to think that half of my finishes were done on a SS.
2023 - 12:56 62nd place open men
2021 - DNF
2019 - 11:07 10th place SS
2018 - 11:33 10th place SS
2011 - DNF
2010 - 13:42 open men
2009 - DNF
#teamcycosol #cyclingsolutions #esigrips #carborocket #hshive #bicyclefacelex #truckerco #peoplesbrew #pmbar #campswitchback
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