tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-89183905757976745122024-02-07T07:12:01.958-05:00Pfun with PflugRacing Stories and Cycling Fun with Gerry Pflug.Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.comBlogger106125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-33874901015408610952017-10-18T10:32:00.000-04:002017-10-18T10:39:03.401-04:00Where is Gerry?<br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Let me preface this blog post by saying that racing bikes
has been very good to me and I have no regrets about dedicating 38 years of my
life to doing it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cycling of all kinds
will always be a passion of mine and the memories of the many races I have done
over years will stick with me forever. I would also like to say that if racing
bikes makes you feel content and happy in life, then the words I’m about to
write may not make much sense to you; however, please don’t think this means I
don’t respect your decision to continue racing. Believe me, I completely do understand
how cycling can take on so much importance in life.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">From the brief paragraph written above, I’m sure the sense
of where I am going with this post is clear and evident, but I still would like
to explain to all my racing friends how my decision to step away from racing bikes
was reached and that is the main reason I am writing this post.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It seems to me that giving a proper response
for all to read is the best way to announce my departure from racing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’d rather be upfront about why I left
cycling rather than to leave people wondering, or having untrue rumors spread.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">First, let me say that my health is completely fine and I feel
better physically now than I ever have. My exit from racing bikes is not like
it was at the beginning of 2015 when I announced my retirement from cycling
because of having an extremely painful lumbar back disc herniation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By doing yoga, I completely cleared-up that
back issue. My continued daily practice of doing yoga also helped heal a second back issue I suffered this past winter
after falling hard to the ground on a training run when I unknowingly ran over
a section of snow-covered glare ice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, there are no health issues like this keeping me from competing now. As a matter of fact, on the morning of the last race I did, Whirlybird, I remember
thinking to myself how my body felt amazingly good as I was getting ready for
the race.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This time my decision to leave the racing scene is a completely unforced and
self-made mental decision to quit. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The decision I made about racing came to me while I was competing
in the Whirlybird cyclocross race.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had
an eye-opening and existential experience during that race about the meaning of
life and how much of life’s energy I have put into cycling over the years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not certain what brought on these thoughts,
but I do know that these thoughts totally took away the super-competitive drive
and focus I typically have during a race.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The start of the Whirlybird race was not a good one for me
and I soon found myself riding about 20 riders behind the leaders.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Over the course of the first lap and a half,
I moved my way through the mass of riders positioned in front me and eventually
placed myself into a position where I was close enough to do a super-hard effort to bridge the gap up to the six or seven leaders of the race who
had moved about 5-10 seconds in front of me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But, for some reason, I had no urge to make such a painful effort.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead, I was completely content just riding
along with Kevin Justice and watching the race for the lead develop from
behind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During the remaining laps of the
race, I had many thoughts go through my head about racing in general, why I did it, and what it
all meant in the whole scheme of life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What I didn’t think about doing during the race was trying to go faster, or winning, which is something I have never experienced before while racing. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">By the end of the race, my mind was convinced that racing
was a completely egocentric activity and that it served no meaning in life
other than to make me feel stronger, faster and better than others. The more I thought about it, racing and trying to win races is nothing more than self-promotion and embellishment of the ego. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not sure why this vision was not clear to
me in the past, but it all feels very selfish to me now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was fairly certain as I crossed the finishing
line that I had just finished my last bike race.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course, I pondered these thoughts extensively on my 4+ hour drive home, but came to the same conclusion.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">In the past, winning used to have meaning and purpose to
me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Over the past couple of years, however,
winning has had less and less meaning and it has now finally reached a point where
I find no importance in it at all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m
certain that my move into trying to be more consciously aware of who I
really am as a person is part of this decision.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span> I initially started to do yoga for the physical reason of
rehabilitating and healing my back, but it eventually took on a more spiritual meaning to me,
which then led me to doing regular meditation. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
have no doubt that the peace I now feel and my overall feeling of being content
and happy with life is due to practicing regular yoga and meditation. In addition, at the
beginning of August, I made another big move of switching to a purely Vegan diet. I think
making this change has also helped bring me more into focus with the essence of
my true spiritual self and has played a role in making this decision.</span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">My level of stoke about racing this season was super-high
before the season started and was even higher after I won my first cross race
of the season at Granogue, so I must admit that I do find how quickly and suddenly this
decision to stop racing was made as being strange.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All I can say is that this
decision feels right and it feels good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again,
please don’t think I’m passing judgment on the choice anybody makes in
regards to racing bikes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am in no
position to judge you or the activity of racing in general.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m made this decision because it feels right
for me. I want to live a sustainable and completely fulfilling life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cycling, at least the competitive side of it,
just does not fit into this new picture I have of life.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I wish you all peace, happiness, and the best of wishes for
whatever life brings your way. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Happy Trails - Gerry</span></div>
Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-79080634194495499772016-09-07T13:54:00.000-04:002016-09-07T13:54:30.963-04:00Gravel, Rocks, Roots, Grass, Corn and the Lauf Grit<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzD2DSvtsGo8nrKIZCzda0TKuJgWHc0Na4FP6kyQmIzLz7tRRk0VeyF93p-sHJmxQo9Y8UvxTA4xQkb2BfoYn2s2xPevvccHumh_QEaQTF0F45d2vRJOtwjpCFIKUbkc_QbgZK4M6LIJ4x/s1600/FullSizeRender+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="352" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzD2DSvtsGo8nrKIZCzda0TKuJgWHc0Na4FP6kyQmIzLz7tRRk0VeyF93p-sHJmxQo9Y8UvxTA4xQkb2BfoYn2s2xPevvccHumh_QEaQTF0F45d2vRJOtwjpCFIKUbkc_QbgZK4M6LIJ4x/s400/FullSizeRender+%25281%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hammering in the drops with the Grit!</td></tr>
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About two months ago, I put a <a href="http://www.laufforks.com/lauf-grit/" target="_blank">Lauf Grit</a> on my cyclocross bike. During the past two months, I have ridden it on a variety of different surfaces that can be experienced during a cross race. I've used it on the paved roads, gravel roads, on rock trails, taken it over root covered trails, did extensive testing in the grass and have even ridden it over ears of corn... I was very excited to try the Grit and see how it rode because I have been very happy with using the Lauf TR29 on my 29" mountain bike for the past three years. Before I received the Grit, I assumed that it would ride very similarly to the TR29, but with less travel. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that the ride of the Grit is completely different to that of the TR29. It was clearly evident to me that the Grit was custom designed to be on a cyclocross bike and not for a mountain bike.<br />
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Don't get me wrong, I do like the ride of the TR29 on my 29er, but it would have way too much flex to use for racing cross. The TR29 does a great job at absorbing trail vibration and taking the harshness out of a ride, unlike the rigid forks I have used on my mtb's so often in the past. I like using the TR29 on my mtb because it doesn't add much weight to my bike and it absorbs enough of the trail vibration to give me more control over my bike. I also find that it reduces the amount of arm fatigue I feel during longer rides. When I initially installed the TR29, I didn't like how it couldn't be locked-out, but I soon found that I got used to the constant flex of the fork when I was out of the saddle and that this flex didn't negatively affect my speed. Some of the TR29 reviews that I have read say that the Lauf TR29 doesn't do a good job at absorbing big hits. While it might not do the best job at sucking up big impacts, I do know that it does a better job at absorbing these hits than a rigid fork does and I think this is a better comparison to use rather than comparing it to a fork with 120mm of travel. The Lauf is meant to be a light weight, maintenance free suspension fork a rider can use to enjoy and have fun on the trail without adding all the weight and mechanical wear experienced when using a standard mtb suspension fork. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnI5YsrFd1sRQzhZoHwWu1XJhbtCZ3bizR6xgzStP2JmGcAwU7zaYyyDNASpirMz3kb1CLB4YvQPSMx7tdEkGO905cejrDMtO7QpuUgwiaJo_e4_5SRmcPVfk7YKM-33VWHwmsDZGy0rk2/s1600/B6951957-D3E0-4EFA-AF20-6933C6EF008E.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnI5YsrFd1sRQzhZoHwWu1XJhbtCZ3bizR6xgzStP2JmGcAwU7zaYyyDNASpirMz3kb1CLB4YvQPSMx7tdEkGO905cejrDMtO7QpuUgwiaJo_e4_5SRmcPVfk7YKM-33VWHwmsDZGy0rk2/s320/B6951957-D3E0-4EFA-AF20-6933C6EF008E.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">No flexing from the Grit on this steep climb!</td></tr>
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When composing this post, I thought giving my opinion about the TR29 first would help the reader better understand how the Lauf Grit compares to the TR29 and would also give the reader a better understanding of my overall view on the use of suspension on mtb's and cross bikes. Simply put, I am a minimalist who likes to keep my bike simple, but I can definitely see the value of using suspension to increase the speed, control and comfort of a bike. I believe all of the Lauf forks do a fine job at making a bike ride smoother and they are absolutely more maintenance free than any other suspension fork out there. And, like all the other Lauf forks, the Grit seems to do an almost perfect job for its intended type of riding. I am 100% convinced that the Lauf Grit has made my cyclocross and gravel rides faster and more comfortable. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8gtmBw7CFgpPYy2omXMTDyKmpSYxdJ8aZa_pjN3PCfv85MQzpLJeGVvoPzA1e4PoJShuTJmt6IBE8porCkcWiJup-xIm0v_elpPVfcGakKYdtsiQ3xwTKDG2pb3mzkrpT-edORBMthwPo/s1600/E71AEB4E-F4AE-4B53-AB13-1B4ED01B2ED4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8gtmBw7CFgpPYy2omXMTDyKmpSYxdJ8aZa_pjN3PCfv85MQzpLJeGVvoPzA1e4PoJShuTJmt6IBE8porCkcWiJup-xIm0v_elpPVfcGakKYdtsiQ3xwTKDG2pb3mzkrpT-edORBMthwPo/s320/E71AEB4E-F4AE-4B53-AB13-1B4ED01B2ED4.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
As I mentioned above, the Grit does not ride like the TR29. It is much stiffer and also has less flex: 30mm compared to 60mm. When I get out of the saddle to sprint, or climb a hill, I can hardly feel any flex at all coming from the Grit. This was a very welcomed surprise to me and once I experienced it, I knew it would be a great fork for cyclocross racing. To me, a suspension fork used on a cyclocross bike doesn't need to have the ability to give a super plush ride. Instead, it needs to be light, nimble, and to give the rider more comfort/control when riding high-speed over variety of rough terrains. Even though it is stiffer than the TR29, the Lauf Grit does an amazing job at absorbing front end vibration when riding over gravel, grass and other terrains. It almost makes these surfaces feel like a paved road instead of the rough surfaces they are. I have also noticed how well the fork corners in and out of tight turns. Again, this is another important aspect of racing cyclocross and the Lauf Grit is very good at carving precise turns. It even does a better job at going through turns than a rigid cross fork does if those turns happen to have roots, ruts, or corn to go over. Yes, I said corn. The first two cross races I did this year actually had a few ears of corn fall onto the course and the Grit absorbed the impact from those big ears of corn very well.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiGCIz1uoAAIHmBZojYiyRqeAyx7KsQa1X4Fr37dvzdx9K4o-RLof-lprhuSayqYQy7RbZQpdPmb-79d0DO-TIxNsp1gFYYP3cSnJVTsLp1IWPtpbN0Hg8_J0aAgty1IivCFCvFLQ70xIl/s1600/6343C13C-1330-4FD2-9CCA-0FAE70683116.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiGCIz1uoAAIHmBZojYiyRqeAyx7KsQa1X4Fr37dvzdx9K4o-RLof-lprhuSayqYQy7RbZQpdPmb-79d0DO-TIxNsp1gFYYP3cSnJVTsLp1IWPtpbN0Hg8_J0aAgty1IivCFCvFLQ70xIl/s320/6343C13C-1330-4FD2-9CCA-0FAE70683116.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Corning through the roots of Granogue.</td></tr>
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I'm sure there are many cyclocross racers out there who think that using a suspension fork in a cx race is not necessary. Some may even say that using a suspension fork for CX takes away from the tradition of the sport. I heard both of these arguments back in the early nineties also when front suspension was first added to mtb's. It is now hard to find a mountain bike that does not have front suspension included on it. For the most part, I will say that innovation is good for bikes in general if it can help a rider be faster, smoother and not add a significant amount of weight to a bike. The Grit does just this for me and after spending a couple of months riding with it, I'm not sure I could go back to racing on a rigid cross bike again. When I ride my singlespeed cross bike, which does not have a Grit, the vibration I feel while riding off road seems so much more intense now. I'm actually to the point where I think adding a Grit to my singlespeed CX bike would also be a good idea. Yes, I do like it that much!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi88jVOdLnn9Oa26UGCasgUKkpVAd2BWRPqcxKD0XDntz3P-rLAqCy1OGO1kE-8yq684ODh0Ie7t5OPtq0qSmEMKajRGObgzpAXHHR5kXCyf-P-tgJxK9_nhbTJMfvqA3Bi91oT8PLV9I-N/s1600/FullSizeRender.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi88jVOdLnn9Oa26UGCasgUKkpVAd2BWRPqcxKD0XDntz3P-rLAqCy1OGO1kE-8yq684ODh0Ie7t5OPtq0qSmEMKajRGObgzpAXHHR5kXCyf-P-tgJxK9_nhbTJMfvqA3Bi91oT8PLV9I-N/s320/FullSizeRender.jpg" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Going over the barriers.</td></tr>
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The Grit does add about 400 grams to my cross bike, but I do not feel like riding with this extra weight slows me down in any way. I also found that this extra weight on the front of my cross bike helps to balance the weight of my bike between the front and rear end. This balanced weight seems to be helpful in keeping the front and rear wheel level when I dismount and carry the bike over barriers. <br />
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I may be the first CX racer you have seen using the Lauf Grit, but I guarantee you that as more riders try this fork, more will be realizing the benefits of using the Grit on a cyclocross bike. If you're interested in trying the fork sometime, please feel free to give mine a try when you see me at one of the many cross races I will be attending this season. I know you will like the ride of it as much as I do!<br />
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Happy Trails - Gerry!</div>
Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-57250541319751599272015-12-23T08:59:00.000-05:002015-12-23T20:00:23.950-05:00Not My Last Dance<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzfxIIamycyJPU4L83EUiw7rTt-L9vrxggia9FqRbmhg3cjxI7HIsIxPrsP-Jc4t72RdXTcUZo-e0MH2lEYEQsuu0AGv-ocaUhaH9VAEpesJfsD58MlmmlC9Q2L_OW95r0BGmOZVGvmGX8/s1600/States1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzfxIIamycyJPU4L83EUiw7rTt-L9vrxggia9FqRbmhg3cjxI7HIsIxPrsP-Jc4t72RdXTcUZo-e0MH2lEYEQsuu0AGv-ocaUhaH9VAEpesJfsD58MlmmlC9Q2L_OW95r0BGmOZVGvmGX8/s320/States1.jpg" width="320"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Credit: Mike Briggs</td></tr>
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If you read my last blog post, which was written about a year ago, I reported to everyone that I was retiring from competitive cycling. At the time I wrote that post, I was still experiencing extreme pain from my L4-5 herniated lumbar disc and competitive cycling seemed like it would never be possible for me to do again. Additionally, my mind and body were worn out and the only thing I wanted was to be well again.<br>
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Luckily, I found an awesome physical therapist, Dr. <a href="http://www.osptainc.com/farmington.html" target="_blank">Justin Deskovich</a>, to help me through this difficult time. I listened to what he said and followed his recovery plan religiously. Still, after doing about a month of rehab, I wasn't experiencing any quick or noticeable results, so I decided to see a neurologist about my disc herniation and get his opinion. The neurologist claimed to take a conservative approach to treating his patients; however, when he saw me, I was told the only way I would ever live pain free and function normally again was to have a laminectomy and discectomy surgery as soon as possible. Surgery was then set for ten days after this appointment.<br>
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Immediately after that appointment, I had a bunch of pre-surgery medical tests completed and then contacted Justin to let him know about my decision. He spoke honestly to me about the surgery, what I might experience, and also compared how my recovery through only doing physical rehab would be verse going through surgery. After listening to Justin, reading the lengthy surgery disclaimer I signed in the neurologist's office, and doing further research online about this surgery, I decided to delay it and give Justin's rehabilitation program more time. Looking back at this situation now, I can't even believe I gave surgery any consideration at all and I have no regrets of not going under the knife.<br>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0F8ZaosqlH38p5LNSbq8Dt6-ziSEATmVgKOlbwWxlzMY18E-VRUeA_YYAWNvjDAOMhX22SqmMlDk4RlxGIg_xhka7nBSwHdAfsOg13tADBD2lPirpfaWXRpXmCaZ7VS-nqR9j95v6q3t_/s1600/CXbarriers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0F8ZaosqlH38p5LNSbq8Dt6-ziSEATmVgKOlbwWxlzMY18E-VRUeA_YYAWNvjDAOMhX22SqmMlDk4RlxGIg_xhka7nBSwHdAfsOg13tADBD2lPirpfaWXRpXmCaZ7VS-nqR9j95v6q3t_/s320/CXbarriers.jpg" width="241"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Credit: Dennis Smith</td></tr>
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During my injury recovery, I was completely off my bike from mid December until mid February. When I finally started riding again, it was on my trainer and only for short periods of time, like 10-20 minutes a day with very little resistance. The first couple of rides were pretty scary because my left leg didn't seem to remember what to do and it was difficult for me to get on and off my bike. I've always been a very active guy and being so limited in my movement was discouraging and frustrating to me.<br>
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Deciding to not have surgery was an incredibly difficult decision to make, but after doing about another month of rehab, I started feeling much less pain in my left leg and began regaining strength in it too. I was so happy to finally be able to walk normally again and assume most other daily postures and activities without discomfort. From this point, my progress seemed to really take off and by the beginning of April, I was well enough to discontinue my PT sessions. I have, however, continued to do the exercises Justin taught me until this day because I never want to experience the pain of having a disc herniation again.<br>
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I can't say for certain when I started thinking about racing my bike again. Riding my bike has always been a passion of mine and for some reason I inevitably start thinking about racing when I'm out riding. The first race I did was the ABRA Mountain State Dirty Double gravel stage race, which was held on May 16th-17th in Rowlesburg, WV. I did the race mostly because I was curios to see how my back would feel after doing tough race efforts and to see how much top end fitness I had loss from doing a lot less riding. Surprisingly, I felt pretty good during the race and ended up with a third place finish in the singlespeed class, even after I had a long delay trying to repair a major mechanical issue - my pedal fell off. After doing the gravel stage race, I waited until the middle of June to do my second race: The Big Bear 2x12 duo mtb race in Bruceton Mills, WV. I teamed-up with my buddy Scott Benson and we raced our fatbikes in the 35+ vet class. This race also went pretty well and it felt good to ride fast through the woods again.<br>
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But, after doing these two events, my racing appetite was pretty much satisfied. They were fun and all, but I still wasn't feeling a big urge to return to the level of racing I once did. I was just happy getting out for short rides of between 1-2 hours each day and doing other activities like running, stand-up paddleboarding, and yoga. My body was actually feeling stronger than ever from mixing-up my workouts and spending much less time on my bike.<br>
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I think it was this feeling of being stronger overall that gave me thoughts about racing again. I also knew that I needed a change from the endurance type of racing I had focused on so intensely before being injured. Cyclocross racing seemed to be a perfect fit for my new racing aspirations. Cyclocross races are shorter in duration, have a shorter season, and CX is also one of my favorite disciplines in the sport of cycling. I was excited about focusing my racing emphasis on cyclocross and began training specifically for the season at the end of July. I was also excited about going into cyclocross season with fresh legs from not doing a long and hard mountain bike racing season.<br>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ6xnSbmKeug2g1H1q4faiwE_e1JiKmmgB78GDal-w315YF4ZF5ZDvh8lETVO9lUOOIpiS8rEkQHv_UzstVHcYdf5uQ4PD0zHcNk0tyt6y16uSukVi34qQdl8P9R_PtWdI5aa_Yde4PvaJ/s1600/CXturn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ6xnSbmKeug2g1H1q4faiwE_e1JiKmmgB78GDal-w315YF4ZF5ZDvh8lETVO9lUOOIpiS8rEkQHv_UzstVHcYdf5uQ4PD0zHcNk0tyt6y16uSukVi34qQdl8P9R_PtWdI5aa_Yde4PvaJ/s320/CXturn.jpg" width="320"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Credit: Kevin Dillard</td></tr>
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By the time the first CX race arrived at the end of August, I felt like my body was ready, but I had no idea how the race would go after doing only two races all year. I wasn't having any issues with my back while training for CX, but I was concerned with how it was going to feel when I had to put out the super-hard efforts required to do well in a cyclocross race. Of course, there was also the thought of what might happen if I was involved in a crash during the race sitting in the back of my mind too. I can't begin to explain how surprised, happy, and alive I felt after I won that first race. <br>
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Overall, my season continued to go well. I ended up with a handful of wins and landed a spot on the podium at most of the races I did. I decided to spend the majority of my season traveling east to do either the MAC or PACX cyclocross race series most weekends because these races have deeper fields and also gave me the ability to score better points than what was available at local races. But, by mid November, all the traveling started to wear me down and it was begin to kill my strong desire to race. This feeling kept me at the local ABRA races during the last part of November and the beginning of December. Taking a break from traveling got me pumped-up to do the final MAC race of the season and for the up-and-coming USAC Cyclocross Nationals.<br>
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I absolutely thought my dancing days were done last December when I announced my retirement from cycling. My successful rehabilitation from my herniated disc and the ton of fun I had doing cyclocross races this season has changed my mind about leaving competitive cycling and it feels good to now report that I have not yet done my last dance. I'm not exactly sure what my racing will entail for 2016, but as of now, my plan is to primarily focus on cyclocross racing again. This post wouldn't be complete without giving a big thanks to <a href="http://dirtyharrys.net/" target="_blank">Dirty Harry's Bike Shop</a> in Verona, PA for being my sponsor for the 2015 cyclocross season - thank you, guys! I also need to thank Justin Deskovich for helping me fight through my pain without having surgery.<br>
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Happy trails and see you at the races, my friends! - Gerry<br>
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<br>Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-9573925362863980752015-01-06T10:37:00.000-05:002015-01-07T13:00:57.242-05:00Out with the old and in with the new...<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8MKbInOl9Sij9NeNuZ8DkoLqdR3awDOeP-0MAG8_4turVaTPMnLS5VXAGSBHqEsncUTvduef5vqoePazveCB8j4zzG7zjEmVYj8WQcHy4JXFxIHubtaTAA_tpBhrAy7p90FklhvKQc2Re/s1600/peace+(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8MKbInOl9Sij9NeNuZ8DkoLqdR3awDOeP-0MAG8_4turVaTPMnLS5VXAGSBHqEsncUTvduef5vqoePazveCB8j4zzG7zjEmVYj8WQcHy4JXFxIHubtaTAA_tpBhrAy7p90FklhvKQc2Re/s1600/peace+(2).jpg" height="400" width="312" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peace!</td></tr>
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After not updating my racing blog since August, I've finally found enough motivation to write some words I feel worthy of sharing with my friends and fellow racers. To me, it seems like the beginning of a new year is the perfect time to look back at past experiences and to share new adventures, especially after not writing for such a long period of time. Interestingly enough, this new writing of mine may also be the last time I write a blog post about racing my bicycle.<br />
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Probably the best place to begin this post is by writing about the racing I've done since my last blog post. After doing the Hampshire 100 in August, I finished out the National Ultra Endurance Series (NUE) by doing the final two races of the series: the Shenandoah Mountain 100 and the Fool's Gold 100. With my singlespeed category win at Hampshire, I was in a unique position going into the next two races of having a chance to be the first ever rider to stand on two separate NUE Series final podiums in the same season: the open men and singlespeed categories. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT93Z00dPz0RgxkpvtjaFNGdSDHhFTnsY3d6qw_GZi6BegME46gMArtDWgQoxELcevRfmXCtDpei0RyVXx-8hx2Ss5MDeD6XX-ceijbRHTHN1FWiEOCfHDDXN8qM2KH5Tx0TGoLcA04_4L/s1600/NUEfinal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT93Z00dPz0RgxkpvtjaFNGdSDHhFTnsY3d6qw_GZi6BegME46gMArtDWgQoxELcevRfmXCtDpei0RyVXx-8hx2Ss5MDeD6XX-ceijbRHTHN1FWiEOCfHDDXN8qM2KH5Tx0TGoLcA04_4L/s1600/NUEfinal.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The NUE final podium for the open men class.</td></tr>
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My race at Shenandoah went well for me in the singlespeed category and I finished second there to fast SS man Gordon Wadsworth. This gave me a lock on taking third overall on the NUE Series singlespeed podium position, behind Gordon and AJ Linnell, and allowed me to direct my concentration for the Fool's Gold race to the open class. By taking fourth in the open class at Fool's Gold, I was able to move into the NUE Series third overall podium position for the open men category (behind Jeremiah Bishop and Tinker Juarez) and achieved my goal of being the first person to stand on two separate NUE Series podiums in the same season. This feat coupled with my five consecutive overall NUE Series SS category wins may be enough to get me into the NUE Series Hall of Fame one day,...haha.</div>
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Next up on my 2014 racing agenda was to start my season of cyclocross racing and to also complete the last two races of the American Ultra Cross Series: Iron Cross and the Gravel Grovel. Cross season started very well for me and I took a double win at the first ABRA Cyclocross Series race in Point Marion, PA by winning the SS and Masters 40+ classes. As in previous years, I was really looking forward to racing cyclocross during the fall season and was pleasantly surprised that my legs responded so well to the shorter effort racing demands cyclocross requires after competing in such a long endurance MTB season.</div>
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For whatever reason, the snappiness I felt in my legs only a week earlier did not come around for the much longer Iron Cross Ultracross Series Race. Perhaps it was due to the cool temperatures of the day; but for whatever reason, I didn't have the power to continue riding with a fast riding Mike Montalbano that day. Once it became apparent that Mike was gone, I settled into racing for second place and knew finishing in this position would give me a virtual lock on winning my third overall American Ultra CX Series title (One in the 40+ Masters Class and two SS titles). Unfortunately, my race for second place at IC became a lot more difficult when another rider slammed into the back of my bike as I slowed down to take a turn off a fast gravel down hill road onto a trail. I went over the bars and hit the ground hard, cracking my helmet and suffering pretty severe road rash. I also noticed I had pain in my hips and ribs after getting back on the bike, but I continued racing hard to eventually take second place in the SS category.</div>
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I learned the next day the pain I felt in my ribs was being caused from cracking a couple of them on my rear mid-thoracic area. The pain was significant enough to keep me off my bike for a bit and definitely too much for me to consider doing any cyclocross races soon. I did not think too much about my hip and lower back pain at the time because I had also felt this pain after the two hard crashes I had while racing at the Lumberjack 100 and the High Cascades 100 earlier in the year and it subsided each time. </div>
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My crash at Iron Cross solidified the thoughts I was having most of the year about racing my bike in the future. All year long, I was thinking 2014 might be my last serious year of racing and the pain I felt from this crash was enough to convince me that the time was right to move into a semi-retirement mode of racing. With this in mind, I gave notice to the Rare Disease Cycling Team that I would be resigning from the team at the end of the season.</div>
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However, after not racing for three weekends and somewhat recovering from my crash, I decided to do a local CX race in Blairsville, PA called the Coal Town Cyclocross Race. It was a small event and I thought it would be a good way to test my fitness and also test my feelings towards the sport I've done for the past 34 years. I must admit that it felt great winning the race, even though it was just a small event. Around the same time, I was also contacted by a new team interested in having me join their ranks, which gave me about the same sponsorship deal I had racing with the Rare Disease Team. Additionally, I was talking with Jake Wade and Dan Rapp about changing up our endurance racing by using fatbikes in the NUE Series and starting an unrecognized NUE fatbike category for us and other riders interested in doing something different. All these recent developments renewed my interest in racing again and suddenly I was excited about racing in 2015.<br />
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The day after doing the Coal Town CX Race, I decided to move a heavy log stuck in the river which adjoins my property. To do so meant I had to first wade through very cold water, which was over my knees, to position myself in a way that I could attempt to move the 50 foot, 3 foot in diameter log. I bent over without bending my knees and started pulling-up on the huge log. I immediately felt a pop in my back and was almost stuck in the bent over position I used to lift the log. But, being the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tv3RgbA2UTo" target="_blank">Happy Idiot</a> I am, I re-entered the water two more times to eventually get the log to move and continue its trip down the river.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNRWncANOjVxhKhfuYkVYmNk842tx1hykRyVxoJpRv3Rq60ZfvEzL0pcn2VIcQYHZFc9tm8itIgJiqVZfgWg4djAyAGScGAvDosc6j37pJMvRub8_ZgjV5jWZlOcyJUDL6QEDfO-IUu3t_/s1600/finalABRA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNRWncANOjVxhKhfuYkVYmNk842tx1hykRyVxoJpRv3Rq60ZfvEzL0pcn2VIcQYHZFc9tm8itIgJiqVZfgWg4djAyAGScGAvDosc6j37pJMvRub8_ZgjV5jWZlOcyJUDL6QEDfO-IUu3t_/s1600/finalABRA.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The final ABRA CX race and my friendly battle with Travis.</td></tr>
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By the time I walked back to my house, I knew something was messed up in my back. It didn't feel like anything major and actually felt like my back did after my crashes at Iron Cross, the High Cascades 100 and the Lumberjack 100. I took it somewhat easy for two weeks, but felt well enough to do the final ABRA Cyclocross Series Race in Pittsburgh. I took a third place finish in the singlespeed race and a second place finish in the masters race, so I assumed my back injury was nothing major and decided it was okay to travel to Indiana State the following weekend to do the final race of the American Ultra CX Series.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi91iLh4-1pds6VILiDegdQYjdRPf6eJ2DXB1EC0nErcXSzkG-zbpCvXHVg69Gj3Fk18ORiE0igBiDSsS4rG1efh33jSTgP6jWJjOktT9ze92Y5AS-lLztulh95N2Bt1zDKHpZFLh5ckm_G/s1600/GGcategoryWINNERS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi91iLh4-1pds6VILiDegdQYjdRPf6eJ2DXB1EC0nErcXSzkG-zbpCvXHVg69Gj3Fk18ORiE0igBiDSsS4rG1efh33jSTgP6jWJjOktT9ze92Y5AS-lLztulh95N2Bt1zDKHpZFLh5ckm_G/s1600/GGcategoryWINNERS.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The open woman, male and SS GG winners.</td></tr>
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Dan Rapp and I decided to do our trip out to the Gravel Grovel Ultra CX Race together, as we did last year. Dan and I had a good trip out to the race and we both raced well. Dan finished third in the race and second in the series, and I took the race win and the overall American Ultra Cross Series win. Needless to say, these fine results got me even more stoked for continuing my racing into the 2015 season.<br />
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But, as my luck of 2014 would have it, my assumed "insignificant back injury" took an awful turn for the worst during the long seven hour drive home from the Gravel Grovel and by the time I got home, the muscles in my left leg and lower back were so tight that I could barely get myself out of the car and walk into my home. The pain was so severe that night I also couldn't sleep. I should have known after this pain continued for more than a week that I was dealing with something more than just a muscle issue. But, I didn't, or maybe I refused to believe that there was a more serious issue causing an almost constant pain in my leg. I just couldn't understand how in such a short period of time I could go from winning a race, with no issues of pain during the event, to feeling like I'd rather have my entire leg amputated rather than continue feeling the pain I was experiencing. Yes, the pain was that bad and I can best describe the sensation I was feeling to what it would probably feel like to have my leg crushed in a the rear hydraulic trash compactor of a garbage truck over and over again.<br />
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Being in my state of denial about what was causing the pain, I used my typical methods of healing by continuing to ride, receiving massage and getting acupuncture. I was also consuming large amounts of ibuprofen. None of these things gave me relief from the pain and I'm quite certain now that the riding I continued to do the first two weeks only made my issue worse.<br />
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This never ending pain eventually got so bad that I finally decided to visit my racing buddy, Scott Benson, at the ER where he works. He took some X-rays, a CT scan and gave me a couple of prescriptions to help me along until I was able to see an orthopedic doctor he recommended to further evaluate my injury. My trip to the ER was made a bit more pleasant when I was surprised to see the smiling face of Betsy Shogren who was also working there. Being cared for by friends, especially friends that understand my level of fitness, definitely made this ER visit a good experience.<br />
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The orthopedic doctor I saw ordered an MRI, since the X-ray and CT scan taken at the ER had negative results, and also referred me to an excellent physical therapist named Justin Deskovich. This PT listened to how my injury occurred and then did some quick physical examinations and was quickly able to say I was showing signs of a <a href="http://www.spine-health.com/video/herniated-disc-video" target="_blank">herniated lumbar disc</a> at the L5 level, which was compressing a nerve exiting my spine. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBX8nI86kbARzV9ZCqY8Wta3xYvLbR8UFvn2qi8t118BQX-vGn-Fu518Qm0M9kpjaCpdx4tUhwIdlrbE76C43dftcFkuSwxweuQNcbAscX8QNjB8xapArO4utr4hOesT0Xe9h5YfW8x9Mi/s1600/L5Hern.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBX8nI86kbARzV9ZCqY8Wta3xYvLbR8UFvn2qi8t118BQX-vGn-Fu518Qm0M9kpjaCpdx4tUhwIdlrbE76C43dftcFkuSwxweuQNcbAscX8QNjB8xapArO4utr4hOesT0Xe9h5YfW8x9Mi/s1600/L5Hern.jpg" height="207" width="320" /></a></div>
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An MRI I had on 12/23/2014 confirmed what my PT had told me earlier and I felt relieved to finally know what was actually causing my pain. My guess is that the nasty crashes I had this year, along with my core strength being decreased, from two separate incidents of breaking my ribs this year, weakened this area of my body enough to cause the herniation when I pushed the log stuck in the river. The minor symptoms of this injury I was initially experiencing did not completely materialize until I aggravated the herniated disc and nerve even further by sitting with bad posture during my fourteen plus hours of driving getting to and from the Gravel Grovel Race along with doing nearly four hours of hard singlespeed racing.<br />
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My PT had the same injury some years ago and has been great in helping me recover, but I've learned there is no quick or easy method to heal from this type of injury and that it will be sometime before I can completely resume the active lifestyle I'm used to living. The last thing I want to do now is rush back to racing this year and take the chance of causing my injury to get worse. Once I learned exactly what my injury was, I've given a lot more thought about racing bikes and my future in general over the past couple of weeks . After doing much consideration, I've come to the final conclusion that it's time for me to retire from competitive bike racing.<br />
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I feel good about this decision. I've had a blast racing my bike over the past 34 years; have made some great friends; and can also say I'm proud of the race results I've accumulated over the years. This doesn't mean I'm going to stop riding my bike. I love the freedom and sense of adventure I feel when I ride too much to ever give up riding. It may be a few months until I can ride again, but I assure you I'll be back at it as soon as possible. I'm just not interested in being faster than the other guy anymore and feel like the time has come for me to just go out and enjoy the ride.<br />
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Before I end this post, I want to thank a few folks that have played an important role in helping me race over the years. First, I'd like to thank my family and especially my wife of 22 years, Tracy, who has done so much to allow me to race my bike. I've had a lot of support from many sponsors over the years, but the support I've been given the last five years while racing for the Salsa Cycles Factory Team and the Team CF/Rare Disease Cycling Teams was vital in helping me race so well, so I definitely need to say a big thank you to these guys. Specialized Bikes and Lauf Forks were also very important sponsors and supplied me with equipment that has without a doubt helped me win races.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilJGM3P8MPF7NmCgwbf1i-gSqGvQOMgqMyrXOfdAjBw4YQvAVZ92UvTXVlw8kzgUsQ5uL0ws0T8u9bc_5cmoUhJdo4rl117VmaehLwopQguHiS6chWdBEQRaEZyI-7K-IfFQyVC_tAPUtr/s1600/BH.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilJGM3P8MPF7NmCgwbf1i-gSqGvQOMgqMyrXOfdAjBw4YQvAVZ92UvTXVlw8kzgUsQ5uL0ws0T8u9bc_5cmoUhJdo4rl117VmaehLwopQguHiS6chWdBEQRaEZyI-7K-IfFQyVC_tAPUtr/s1600/BH.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'll be doing plenty of this again soon!</td></tr>
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It's been a <i>pfun</i> ride, but I'm looking forward to my new future of just riding a bike without racing it! What I'm most bummed about right now is that I won't be able to enjoy my winter sport activities of skiing and fatbike riding until next winter. The only physical activity I'm able to do right now is walking and even that induces pain after doing about two miles in distance. I will eventually heal enough to ride again and when I do, please come and join me for a scenic and fun ride somewhere in the Laurel Highlands.<br />
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Enjoy your ride, my friends! Happy New Year and Happy Trails... Gerry<br />
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Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-85388942523728349402014-08-21T21:10:00.002-04:002014-08-21T22:28:26.678-04:00Variety & The Hampshire 100<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS9xsefVpfiGevxB-9oasX0NRYCxKDiEZT0S8j8g8xhdI3n8B2cBYi8jl6KhbidLxHhEzElO8D0Pw5pLND4fH4OWqEfiM-bmvH3ps62LL9OUCApsOW_kXcWW61gliAg7OZU36_BADq9VI3/s1600/hampLOGO.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS9xsefVpfiGevxB-9oasX0NRYCxKDiEZT0S8j8g8xhdI3n8B2cBYi8jl6KhbidLxHhEzElO8D0Pw5pLND4fH4OWqEfiM-bmvH3ps62LL9OUCApsOW_kXcWW61gliAg7OZU36_BADq9VI3/s1600/hampLOGO.jpg" height="320" width="320"></a></div>
I decided to change things up for the Hampshire 100 and race in the singlespeed class, instead of racing my geared bike in the open class. Not racing my singlespeed since the Cohutta 100 has been an interesting change for me, but I've got to admit that I felt more at home racing on a SS bike again. In addition to my change back to a SS bike, the 2014 edition of the Hampshire 100 had some of its own changes in store for the racers this year.<br>
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I've done the Hampshire 100 the past two years and it is always a hard 100 mile race, but the new course layout made this race even tougher than it was in previous years. Most of the 100 mile racers had finishing times about an hour slower than previous years. The slower times were due to a few issues including: the removal of about 10 miles of rail-to-trail, the addition of some very freshly cut trail, and the course receiving over 3 inches of rain a couple of days before the event.<br>
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At the beginning of the race, Dan Rapp was able to get into the single track a head of me and put a little time between himself and the rest of the SS field. I was eventually able to catch him after exiting the first section of new trail with the help of another singlespeed racer, Will Crissman. From that point, the three of us worked together until we were caught by a group of geared riders that also contained singlespeed rider Ernesto Marenchin. This occurred at the end of a long rail-to-trail section and before heading up a steep and loose climb about 20 miles into the race.<br>
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Upon getting caught by this group, Dan Rapp and I increased the pace by running and fast-walking up the climb and only Crissman followed. The next split in the singlespeed race came on the powerline climb, which was mostly another hike-a-bike section. On this part of the course, Crissman was not able to run/walk as fast as us up the hill and he fell from the pace Dan and I were setting. From that point, Dan and I rode together at a fairly steady pace until the aid station at around mile 50. I was able to leave the aid station a bit quicker than he was, which gave me an opportunity to put distance between my fast singlespeeding competitor and friend.<br>
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I was certain Dan was going to bridge back up to me, so I kept my speed high as possible, which quickly moved me past three other open class riders and into fourth place overall. I never saw any other singlespeed racers after leaving Dan and managed to hold-on to my lead for the rest of the race to take the win. After doing the past five NUE Series Races on a geared bike, it felt good to be back on a singlespeed again. It has been said that variety is the spice of life and this has certainly been true for my 2014 NUE Series race season! <br>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It always feels good to give a victory salute!</td></tr>
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Even though the course was much tougher and finishing times were significantly slower than previous years, it was still a fun race and definitely interesting to ride. The cool thing about doing these 100 mile NUE Series Races is that each course is a little different and has its own feel. They have different ways of making a rider suffer: some with long climbs, others with high altitude, and others with soft, freshly cut trail, like at the Hampshire 100. The challenge is to do your best at the race no matter how the conditions happen to be. <br>
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I can't end this post without saying a big thank you to the race promoter, Randi Whitney, and all her help for making the Hampshire 100 run so smoothly and be a great 100 mile race experience! To see how awesome this race was, check out <a href="http://dirtwire.tv/2014/08/hampshire-100-nue-11-highlights/" target="_blank">The Hampshire 100 Video</a> by Thom Parsons of Dirtwire.tv.<br>
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Happy Trails... GerryGerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-86096092957747533382014-08-01T09:47:00.003-04:002014-08-01T19:00:52.963-04:00The 101<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I simply named this post the 101 for two reason. First, and most obviously, it is about the Wilderness 101 NUE Series race I did on July 26, 2014, in Coburn, PA. Secondly, this post was named the 101 because it is the 101st post I've written for my Pfun with Pflug Blog Page. And, really, the Wilderness 101 back country mtb race can be recognized with just the use of 101 because it is one of the original 100 mile mtb races in the country and a true east coast epic!<br />
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It's hard for me to believe that I've written 101 posts about my racing experiences just for this blog page. In addition to this page, I also used to relay my racing experiences on another blog called <a href="http://spkgoaters.blogspot.com/2010/01/nothing-new-here.html" target="_blank">Two Mountain Goats</a> and I wrote 65 posts for that blog. One day, when I'm not racing any longer, I'm sure it will be interesting to read over all of the old posts to remember the racing I once did. Looking back at my 34 years of racing now, I kind of wish my blog writing would have started before 2007. With that said, I can only recommend to other racers to start writing about your experiences, even if it something you write privately for yourself. <br />
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So, I've written enough about my past blog posts and it's time now to write my current race report about how the Wilderness 101 went for me this year. The initial pace of the race seemed to be slower this year due to the pack being on Jeremiah Bishop watch. Rob Spreng and I were riding at the front of the pack and I told him to roll off the front to see if he could get a gap. My plan worked and Rob was able to get a nice little gap. Soon after this gap was created I bridged up to him and then we were joined by Keck Baker, Andy Gorski and Anthony Grinnell a few seconds later. Our group worked well together and stayed clear until the top of the rocky climb after aid station #1, about 20 miles into the race. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Riding the Three Bridges Trail with Anthony Grinnell</td></tr>
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Once we made it to the top of that climb, we were joined by Christian Tanguy, Bishop and Gordon Wadsworth. Our newly formed lead group stayed together from that point until we hit the big climb between aid station two and three, at about mile 42. Christian splinted the small group with his power and speed up that climb and only Baker and Bishop followed him. I rode alone in the race from that point until aid station #5, where I caught Grinnell, which moved me into fifth place.<br />
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Overall, I had no issues during the race. I had no crashes, my Specialized Epic and the <a href="http://www.laufforks.com/" target="_blank">Lauf Fork</a> work very well over all the rocky terrain and up all the long climbs. Before the start, and even during the first half of the race, I was certain my finishing time would be seven hours or less this year, considering my 2013 time on a SS bike was 7:14. I did notice during the race that my legs were still tired and sore from doing the High Cascades 100 only a week earlier. I've raced back-to-back hundies many times over the last five years, but it seems like my body just isn't recovering as quickly as it used to do from these hard efforts. Interestingly enough, my open class finishing time from this year was 12 minutes slower than my W101 singlespeed race time from last year. My guess is that my slower time was either due to still being tired from doing the High Cascades 100 the weekend before the W101, or maybe because I'm just faster on a SS bike.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Open Mens Podium</td></tr>
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At the end, it was very cool to see team Rare Disease Cycling taking three of the top five positions on the podium with Christian in third, Rob in fourth and me in fifth. No words can describe how awesome the Wilderness 101 race is. Chris Scott does a fantastic job with his races and the W101 is no exception. There is not a race promoter out there that does a better job with his course layout, course markings and aid stations than Chris does with his races. The W101 has always been one of my favorite 100 mile mtb races and this year was a great experience as well. Many thanks also need to be given to all the volunteers that help Chris make this race a top notch event!<br />
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Happy Trails... GerryGerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-65194292731631600752014-07-24T09:12:00.000-04:002014-07-24T09:12:30.811-04:00High Cascades 100<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I traveled out to one of my favorite places to ride a mtb, Bend, Oregon, this past weekend for the seventh race of the National Ultra Endurance Series, The High Cascades 100. I've done this race three other times, but was not able to do this race last year. I was very excited about traveling to Bend this year not only to do the race, but also to ride a bunch of the sweet Bend single track. I'm just amazed every time I go to Bend at how much mtb riding there is to do there and how well groomed the trails are. I've always made this race trip a few days longer than other trips, so I can spend more time enjoying this incredible network of trails.<br />
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I was so psyched about riding the trails in Bend that I almost forgot about the 100 mile race I was there to do, but I didn't let the race keep me from also doing some good rides before and after the race. I was able to ride the Bend goodness for three days before the race, the day after the race, and of course, on the very well laid out High Cascades 100 course on race day. All the rides were pretty awesome and made my trip a great vacation break from work.</div>
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My race, however, could have gone a lot better. It wasn't awful, but I was certainly expecting to finish better than I did. I'm sure there are things I could have done to have a better race than I did, but I've got to say the competition was pretty quick and would have made this race difficult even if I did have better luck. If I could change one thing about the mid-summer riding in Bend, it would be the elimination of all the dust. It effects my vision, my breathing and makes riding a little tricky. </div>
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To avoid as much dust at the beginning of the race as possible, I took an early flyer on the paved road section before the beginning of the dusty trails. My attack to get away from the group occurred a little earlier than I had planned, but I don't think this effected my race much. Once I got away from the pack a couple of miles after the start, I rode for about seven miles alone before being caught by the fast leading group of six riders in the woods. I then rode with this group for a couple of miles, but found the dust being kicked up from the trail to be not very agreeable. Not only was it hard to see the trail in front of me, but it was also difficult for me to breath in the dusty air. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Aid #4, only 28 miles to go!</td></tr>
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I decided it would be best to not ride in the dust of this group for much longer in order for me to have my best race, so I slowed my pace a bit and watched the lead group ride away from me. This is always hard to do and does mess with my mind a little, but I couldn't deal with the dust anymore. From this point in the race, I went back and forth with a couple of other riders, but basically rode by myself for the remainder of the race. Riding alone is something I like doing. It allows me to just enjoy the ride and not worry about what others are doing. Being alone in race allows me to just focus on the trails, my riding and enjoying my time on the bike.</div>
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By checkpoint #5, at around 80 miles into the race, I had moved into sixth place overall. I was feeling good and didn't even stop at the checkpoint, so that I could hopefully maintain my position into the finish. Unfortunately, I crashed hard a short distance after the checkpoint on a loose sandy section of a downhill and fell back to ninth place. I lost a few minutes because of the crash, but also lost more time after getting back on my bike after the crash. My body was sore and I was having a difficult time trusting the soft, dusty trails I was riding, since putting too much trust and speed in them earlier is what had caused my crash.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finishing a little battered, but not broken!</td></tr>
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I was able to muster enough strength, however, to hold my ninth place position into the finish. It wasn't the position where I expected to finish the race, but I still had a smile on my face when I crossed the finishing line. How could I not be happy after getting to ride some incredible trails on such a beautiful day? Sure, my crash hurt and made the last 19 miles a little uncomfortable, but I've learned to accept, over my many years of racing, that crashing is an inevitable part of bike racing. Like I've said before, if you don't crash, then you're not going fast enough!<br />
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Before I end this post, I've got to say thanks to Mike Ripley and all the people that helped him put on such an incredible race. The aid station help was great and the whole racer experience was a good one. Next up for me is another one of my favorite NUE Races the Wilderness 101 coming up this weekend. I hope to see you there, my friends...<br />
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Happy Trails... Gerry<br />
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Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-16496558162315741572014-07-03T14:04:00.002-04:002014-07-03T14:24:32.713-04:00Riding the Bull at the Tatanka 100<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTVDF8S6G5X5LrO5s5oLKnTXvRQpeubtvpgjGlSpGGa43fLr3MKDHvCKh63yqjrkuBH6ruKN6EdDgJk6_THGhPw4a-MqDrPSde7Nj_wpxbCeTPCXJjrnI_l7ki9_vcYiW2rOQ4-T17moFm/s1600/TatankaBULL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTVDF8S6G5X5LrO5s5oLKnTXvRQpeubtvpgjGlSpGGa43fLr3MKDHvCKh63yqjrkuBH6ruKN6EdDgJk6_THGhPw4a-MqDrPSde7Nj_wpxbCeTPCXJjrnI_l7ki9_vcYiW2rOQ4-T17moFm/s1600/TatankaBULL.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a>Ride the bull is the motto for the sixth stop of the National Ultra Endurance Series, the Tatanka 100, which was held in Sturgis, SD this past weekend. This race motto fit the course conditions perfectly this year because there was nothing easy about doing Tatanka. The Tatanka 100 course was made even more difficult than usual with heavy rain falling the night before and during the race, which made the trails muddy and slick. <br />
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After doing this difficult course last year on a single speed, I was very excited about riding it with a full-suspension geared bike this year. I was certain my ride time would be faster than last year because I figured the long steep hills on the first part of the course and the 22 miles of flat bike trail on the second part of the course could be ridden much faster with the use of a geared bike. I thought there was a chance of possibly beating the eight hour mark and winning the gold ring for being the first person to do so. But, while standing at the starting line in poring down rain and with the temperature only being 55 degrees, I knew that eight hour winning time would go unbeaten for another year. </div>
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The cold, wet start of the race did not initially take away from the speed of the race. A group six riders, including me, was able to breakaway from the other brave riders starting this race in miserable conditions. I stayed with this group until we entered the single track and then I backed my speed off a bit. I decided going at my own pace would be a better way to conserve energy for later in the race and my legs were still feeling a bit tired from doing the Lumberjack 100 the weekend before this race. It's always hard to let other racers out of my sight, but I knew the race was going to be a long one and I didn't want to burn through all my matches this early in the day.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Riding along with AJ and D-Rapp early in the race.</td></tr>
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Once I started riding the trails, I was shocked to see how much worse the conditions were from when I rode on them Friday morning. Many of the steep hills I was excited about riding on my geared bike were so muddy that I could not even ride them with gears. As the course continued through the mud, muck and deep fast flowing streams we had to cross, I was beginning to think my single speed bike would have been a better machine to use for the race this year. In addition to my drivetrain being covered in mud, I could tell my brake pads were wearing quickly from the extra grit and I wondered if they would last until the finish. </div>
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When I got to checkpoint #2, I saw Tinker Jaurez standing there because he had worn through his brake pads and could not continue. I was also given the time splits for the other riders in front of me, which motivated me to ride harder. For some reason, however, it just didn't seem like my pedaling stroke was right, or that I was able generate any power. I figured out a bit later that my seat post had slipped almost an inch from where it is normally placed, so I stopped and adjusted it and immediately felt better. I don't know how long I was riding with my seat in a lower position, but I did know that my pedaling felt way better and was now riding faster.</div>
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Around mile 45 or so, I went off course when I missed a turn. Luckily, after riding about a mile, I realized there were no tire tracks on the ground and I quickly turned around to make my way back on course. During this time, the sun had finally come out and I was starting to feel warm. The heat felt good on my cold wet body and I am sure this is another reason I felt like riding faster. A few miles after getting back on course, I moved into third place overall when I caught Drew Edsall. </div>
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When I got to the 50 mile checkpoint, I removed my rain jacket, had my chain lubed and was told that second place was only a few minutes a head of me. Hearing this news and knowing that the toughest part of the course was over only encouraged me to ride harder. I finally moved into second place at the beginning of the Michelson Trail when I caught Matt Woodruff. </div>
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The Michelson trail is a recreational gravel bike trail that climbs gradually to the highest point on the course. It makes up just over 20 miles of the course and was very brutal to ride this year because of the driving head wind. I had to go into full-on time trail mode to keep on pushing myself to go fast. I was very happy to make it to the 75 mile checkpoint and to put this section of the course behind me.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A shot taken shortly after the 75 mile checkpoint.</td></tr>
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Shortly after leaving the checkpoint and entering the trails again, it started to rain hard. I left my rain jacket at the checkpoint where I removed it because I thought the rain was over for the day. I was beginning to regret that decision. The cold heavy rain was making me shiver and I couldn't wait to start descending the mountain to warmer temperatures and finally end this hard day of riding. </div>
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At around mile 83, I climbed up a long hill and when I got to the top, there was a split in the trail. Neither direction was marked and I started to panic, thinking I had missed another turn. I stopped and looked around and then saw the race leader, James Meyer, coming towards me. He stopped and said we were off course and needed to descend the long hill I had just climbed. As we headed down the hill we first ran into single speed racer AJ Linnel, then Drew Edsall and then Matt Woodruff. We told them the course was mismarked and they all turned around. The five of us made it back to the last course marking we saw and discussed things. James Meyer had the course GPS file loaded on his Garmin and it was telling us to go down a trail marked with a "W", meaning the wrong the way. <br />
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The group then decided to follow the directions being given on Meyer's Garmin, but also decided that we should change the mixed-up course markings, so other riders would not make the same mistake. A short while after getting back on course, Drew Edsall recommended to the group that we should all ride to the finish together and maintain our placing prior to going off course. Everyone agreed with him and a gentlemen's agreement was made to keep the pace up, but to finish together. <br />
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It felt strange to not be racing into the finish, but I do think it was the best choice. From the point where the course mistake occurred, I doubt if there would have been any change in the finish anyway. The course is very fast from that point and mostly downhill, which would have made it very difficult for any time to be made-up on riders ahead. It was actually kind of nice having some company during that part of the race too. It was such a long and hard day, of mostly riding alone for me, that I enjoyed being part of such a good group of people.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi3Myxwixr7mEblAolbCe0sK5MkON18_AcWO_XBYWMuauqn7YJRCRwr3uPP8xE6xBsRK9bX6_BwigjyBrrP0BSAGLpFQrciugzsUCNY_cDJ8WEggu-UvlbxACv2i7EGSbMQH6Ix0PRiSQN/s1600/podTANANKA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi3Myxwixr7mEblAolbCe0sK5MkON18_AcWO_XBYWMuauqn7YJRCRwr3uPP8xE6xBsRK9bX6_BwigjyBrrP0BSAGLpFQrciugzsUCNY_cDJ8WEggu-UvlbxACv2i7EGSbMQH6Ix0PRiSQN/s1600/podTANANKA.jpg" height="331" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You've just got to love the irony of the podium shot having blue skies!</td></tr>
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Even though the conditions for the Tatanka 100 were super tough this year, I still say this race was awesome to do. The trails are challenging and fun to ride and the race promoter, Kevin Forrester, and all his staff/volunteers do a great job at putting together a great race. I must say a big thank you to everyone that helped all the riders make it through this difficult day of racing! Tatanka!!!<br />
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Happy Trails... Gerry</div>
Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-55758949959205124682014-06-25T14:06:00.003-04:002014-06-25T15:59:27.616-04:00The Lumberjack 100 2014<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;"> This past weekend I did the Lumberjack 100 NUE Series Race for the sixth time. On my first two attempts, I used a geared mtb and then I did it three years in row with a singlespeed mtb. I missed this race the past two years due to other obligations, but finally made it back to Wellston, Michigan this year for the 10</span><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 9px; vertical-align: super;">th</span><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;"> anniversary of the race. I returned to the race with my hardtail Specialized Carve, a Lauf Suspension Fork, a 1x10 drivetrain and a desire to finish the race with a time of less than seven hours. I’ve been close to breaking the seven hour threshold on all of my LJ100 attempts, but could never quite get there. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">My last three LJ100 races were completed on a singlespeed mtb. Lumberjack is a pretty good course for a singlespeed, but I was pretty certain that my fastest time on the course could be achieved on a geared mtb. I also added my unique <a href="http://www.laufforks.com/" target="_blank">Lauf Suspension Fork</a> to my ride, as opposed to the rigid forks I’ve used at the past few LJ100 races. I also gave some thought to using my full-suspension Specialized Epic at the LJ100, but thought that I didn’t need that much suspension for the fast single track making up the LJ 100 course. Overall, my Carve was a pretty good ride, but looking back at things now, I think the Epic would have been even a faster bike. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">For those of you not familiar with the LJ100 course, it is pretty much an all tight single track course, on a 33 mile loop, which is completed 3 times. The race actually starts with a mile or two of pavement before heading into the woods and there are a couple sandy fire roads mixed-in with all the tight trails, but I would say at least 95% of the race is single track. To change things up a little this year, the race promoter, Rick Plite, reversed the direction of the course. The change in direction seemed to make the climbing easier and also seemed to be well liked by all the racers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">The start of the race was not super-fast. I stayed near the front until we entered the parking lot at the trail head and then threw an attack to get the hole-shot into the single track. I was surprised my attack worked and that I was leading the race. I wasn’t planning on going for the $200 KOM preme, but decided to give it a go with my good position. My thoughts of winning the preme were quickly erased, however, when Jorden Wakeley came around me at the base of the hill with a couple of other riders. I then rode the rest of the climb in recovery mode, wondering why I wasted so much energy leading out everyone for the preme. I should’ve known better than doing that.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 19.166667938232422px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><a href="http://www.jhkunnenphoto.com/p966097423/e28c78a41" title="IMG_7624"><img alt="Jack Kunnen Photography: Lumberjack 100 2014 &emdash; IMG_7624" src="http://www.jhkunnenphoto.com/img/s12/v181/p684165697-3.jpg" height="387" width="580" /></a> Getting the Hole Shot!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">After Jorden won the preme, he just kept going and my teammate, Christian Tanguy, was in hot pursuit. That left me in a chase pack with about seven other racers. The pack was moving along at a good clip, but not quite as fast as I wanted. So, I made my way to the front and started setting a faster pace for a couple of miles, hoping my pace would split things up a bit. The fast and flowing trails were not very good for splitting things up, but the crash I had shortly after going to the front sure did spit me off the back of the pack.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 19.166667938232422px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><a href="http://www.jhkunnenphoto.com/p966097423/e83890b4" title="IMG_7921"><img alt="Jack Kunnen Photography: Lumberjack 100 2014 &emdash; IMG_7921" src="http://www.jhkunnenphoto.com/img/s5/v129/p137924788-3.jpg" height="387" width="580" /></a> The lead chase group going into Aid Station #2</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">At my last two attempts at the LJ100, I’ve crashed hard by catching my pedal on two different hidden tree stumps. Both of those crashes slowed down my race and were probably a big reason I did not finish faster than seven hours. I can’t tell you how shocked I was to be flying over-the-bars a third time this year by also having my pedal catch a third hidden tree stump. This time my crash occurred about five miles into the 100 mile race. It did cause some pain and mechanical issues, but I’m lucky that nothing more serious happened to me or my bike.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">After my crash, I took a quick inventory of my body parts and everything seemed to be attached, so I jumped back on my bike and immediately noticed that my handlebars were pointed in one direction and my saddle in another direction. So much for staying with the chase group, I said to myself. I quickly straightened my bars and saddle, while I watched other riders pass. Once my repairs were completed, I jumped back on my bike and gave chase and unexpectedly caught the chase group within a few miles. Of course, putting out this effort wasted more valuable energy than I wanted, but I knew it was a necessary expenditure.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">After recovering from my chase for a couple of minutes, I decided to go back to the front of the group to pick up the pace a bit. In retrospect, I probably should have just chilled out a bit longer, but that’s easier said than done when my adrenaline is flowing. So with our pack cruising along at a good clip, I started feeling pretty good about the race again. My good feeling about the race quickly changed, however, when I attempted to shift into an easier gear on one of the last few steep climbs before end of the first lap and I heard my chain go into the spokes of my rear wheel. Apparently, my earlier crash had also bent my rear derailleur, which caused my derailleur to over shift. I was then once again forced to do another repair and watch the other racers ride away from me.</span></div>
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I was able to catch back up to the lead chase group about two miles into lap number two. From this point, I decided to slow my pace a bit and just ride tempo with this group. I needed to recover from doing another hard effort of chasing and I was hoping the accumulation of miles would start taking its toll on the group. But, the new course direction and mild temperatures did not seem to be as harsh as usual and the size of the lead chase group did not start falling apart until the end of lap number two. Eventually, the only remaining riders in the group were Gordon Wadsworth, Jan Roubal, and me. </div>
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Throughout the race, Gordon didn't seem too concerned with getting away from the lead chase group. He basically stayed at the back of our group and moved up when someone fell off the pace. With a couple miles to go until the finish of the race, Gordon threw a hard attack. Jan and I didn't respond to it because we knew he was not in our category and because the steep hill we were riding up at the time was a difficult place for accelerating quickly. Once Gordon got his gap on us, Jan and I played a little cat and mouse. Finally, I made a move at the top of the last big climb before the race finish. I got the gap needed, but Jan was able to close the gap on the final fast descent. Since I was still in the lead, I decided to lead out the sprint and increased my speed to 26 mph heading into the finishing area. I hoped this speed would be enough to hold off Jan until the finish, but it was not. I couldn't match the final effort given by Jan and I came across the finishing line in fourth. I was still happy with my ride, however, because I was finally able to break the seven hour finishing threshold for a 100 mile race, with a time of 6:47.</div>
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<a href="http://www.jhkunnenphoto.com/p966097423/e185d83c0" title="IMG_8340"><img alt="Jack Kunnen Photography: Lumberjack 100 2014 &emdash; IMG_8340" src="http://www.jhkunnenphoto.com/img/s6/v141/p408781760-3.jpg" height="387" width="580" /></a> Losing the sprint for third place to Jan Roubal.</div>
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It is no surprise that the Lumberjack 100 celebrated 10 years of existence this year. It is an incredible 100 mile mtb race and a ton of fun to ride. Thanks to Rick Plite and his large group of volunteers for doing everything necessary to make the Lumberjack 100 an awesome experience for me and all the other racers.</div>
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<a href="http://www.jhkunnenphoto.com/p966097423/e303e8295" title="IMG_8055"><img alt="Jack Kunnen Photography: Lumberjack 100 2014 &emdash; IMG_8055" src="http://www.jhkunnenphoto.com/img/s7/v164/p809403029-3.jpg" height="387" width="580" /></a> The podium for the open men class, minus Tanguy.</div>
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Happy Trails... Gerry</div>
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Thanks to Jack Kunnen for sharing all the photos used in this blog post!</div>
Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-27129972091325065112014-06-10T16:57:00.001-04:002014-06-10T21:27:10.241-04:00Change, Change, Change & the Big Bear 2x12This past weekend I traveled a short distance south from my home in Pennsylvania to Hazelton, WV for my fifth attempt at competing in the Big Bear 2x12 Duo Team MTB Relay Race. I've enjoyed doing this race in the past and have won it with different teammates during each of the past four years. After winning the race with my Team Rare Disease Cycling Teammate, Rob Spreng, last year, we planned on doing it together again this year. But, as my year of change would go, winning the singlespeed race at Big Bear for a fifth consecutive year would not materialize this year for me.<br />
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The main reason I did not compete in the singlespeed category was because Rob was unavailable on the date this race was scheduled this year. I didn't learn about his unavailability until two weeks before the race, so I had to do some fast scrambling to find another partner. I asked a couple of fast singlespeed guys I knew, but could not find anyone available. After realizing my singlespeed teammate options were limited, I became aware of the completely different option of racing in the coed category with my fast female racing friend and Rare Disease Cycling Teammate, Cheryl Sornson.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Churtle doing her thing on the trail!</td></tr>
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Unfortunately, Cheryl was not completely sure she'd be able to race at her top level after doing a week of racing at TSE, but she said that she would try. I told her that she could wait until the Wednesday before the race to let me know for sure, which was the day before registration closed. On Monday, Cheryl sent me a text saying she had caught the dreaded bug known as the TSE Stage #9 Plague that had spread among many of the racers attending TSE and was feeling pretty ill and fatigued from it. Thinking I might need to find another teammate for Big Bear in a rush, I set-up a tentative plan with another fast teammate of mine, Cole Oberman. Cole said he was willing to race, if needed, but was also feeling a bit drained from his hard TSE effort and the Stage #9 Bug. Luckily, when Wednesday came around, Cheryl said she felt like she would be ready by Saturday and so we decided to register our coed duo team.<br />
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The Big Bear 2x12 consists of two riders doing a relay on a technical twelve plus mile course. Expert racers do three laps and Sport racers do two laps of the 12 mile course. The course is an absolute blast to ride and it definitely does keep a riders attention focused on the trail a head. Our strategy going into the race was to start fast and keep our speed up until we built up enough of a time gap on the other teams to ride more conservatively. <br />
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Since I was racing in the coed open class this year, instead of the singlespeed category, I decided to use my Specialized Epic geared bike. I figured using a bike with gears and having full suspension would be the best way to keep pace with the other fast coed teams doing the race. Plus, with using a bike with multiple gears at my past three races, I actually felt more at home on the Epic than I did on my singlespeed bike. But, to keep with my recent theme of change, I decided to take off the Specialized Brain front suspension fork on my Epic and use a <a href="http://www.laufforks.com/" target="_blank">Lauf Suspension Fork</a>, which I had been using on my Stumpjumper singlespeed, but had not had the chance to use at a race yet.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The painful start of the BB2x12</td></tr>
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The Lauf Fork has a pretty amazing ride. It's is super light at 990 grams, requires no maintenance and has a very lively ride. I wasn't sure how the Lauf Fork would feel on a full suspension bike, so I made the switch a few days before doing Big Bear and was immediately impressed with the responsiveness it gave to the ride of my Epic. I thought the quicker responsiveness I felt with the ride of the Lauf would be perfect for the tight and twisty trails on the Big Bear race course. Also, because of the more than ample tire clearance given by the Lauf, I was able to ride a big 2.4 knobby tire on my bike, which only added more control to my riding and more protection from the rocks I would be hitting during the race.<br />
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This race starts by ascending a gravel road climb that definitely put the hurt to me early. I wasn't quite ready for the race to start so fast and also had a bit of trouble clipping into my pedals, which was probably because I didn't think the race would actually start when and the way it did. With my slow start, I went into the single track a little further back than I wanted. The pace being set at the front was super fast and I decided to calm myself down and not go too crazy chasing rabbits. By the second part of the first lap, my legs finally started to feel like they were ready to race and I was able to finish the lap as the second rider overall into the relay tent. This fast ride set-up Cheryl for a clear track on her first lap.<br />
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Cheryl also had a fast ride on her first lap and by the beginning of my second lap, our team had a six minute lead on the second place coed team. Cheryl and I continued to ride well on our next two laps and were able to maintain our lead until the finish. It's great when a race goes as planned and no issues come up during the race. I'm sure the preparation that Cheryl and I put into doing this race was a big help in getting the win, but I'm sure having a little good luck at a race is always a bonus too! Getting a win always feels good, but after changing my racing category, changing teammates, changing to a geared bike, and changing suspension forks at the last minute, this win felt really good. I can say now that all of these changes were good and I'm happy with how things turned out!<br />
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Endurance racing seems to be the type of racing where I do my best, so doing this race was a bit of a shock to my system because of the fast pace that is needed on each lap. I'm more like a diesel engine that likes to warm up slowly and then continues to ride at a fast, but steady pace. This race was more like doing three cyclocross races in a row with an hour of "rest" in-between each lap. But, I'm sure that the endurance I have did help in keeping my speed high throughout the entire race. I definitely saw the times of a few other expert teams slow down later in the race, which was probably because of the riders having less endurance training.<br />
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On a final note, I need to say thank you to Mark Schooley, Don Parks, Big Bear Lakes Camp Ground, WVMBA and all the volunteers for putting on this great event and making it a very well organized race. I know it was a blast for me and the others racers I saw at the race who said they had a great time too. <br />
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Happy Trails... Gerry<br />
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<br />Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-39333309642222451962014-06-03T21:45:00.001-04:002014-06-03T22:05:14.605-04:00The Mohican 100 2014<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwAFdn0YeUSZsS2E6sdtZSjkJ7J7ox9fQGp5ABOOLhDaX7DT0HVDekushmVbBfTbJ0WhOdkRJrrnAnJAP1u42OjSD7Z3OdmzcNp2_G4EilN4Ie4ThURgSOCS0WwiBxfLJx-A06niy2l_Ow/s1600/mohicanLOGO.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwAFdn0YeUSZsS2E6sdtZSjkJ7J7ox9fQGp5ABOOLhDaX7DT0HVDekushmVbBfTbJ0WhOdkRJrrnAnJAP1u42OjSD7Z3OdmzcNp2_G4EilN4Ie4ThURgSOCS0WwiBxfLJx-A06niy2l_Ow/s1600/mohicanLOGO.png" height="320" width="249" /></a>Ultimately, the goal of almost every cyclist who races is to win, especially if the same event was won previously. I must admit that after winning the Mohican 100 last year, I really wanted to win it again this year. I knew it would not be an automatic win because nothing about winning a 100 mile race comes automatically or easily. But, I did know certain steps could be taken that could be very helpful in giving me the best race possible. One decision I made, for a little more advantage, was to do the race on a bike with multiple gears rather than on a singlespeed bike.<br />
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My decision to do the Mohican 100 on a geared bike was not an easy one. Racing singlespeed bikes has been good to me and I do love the simplicity of a SS. But, I've got to say the ride of my full-suspension Specialized Epic with the SRAM xx1 11 speed drivetrain is so incredible. The Epic just makes riding a whole lot more comfortable and faster for me. Additionally, I found that riding my singlespeed was a lot more difficult after my rib injury occurred three weeks before the Mohican. I found that sitting and spinning up a climb was a lot easier with my injury than standing up and pulling on the bars of my singlespeed to get up any sort of hill. So, with all these issues at hand, the Epic was made my bike of choice over the SS.<br />
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My decision to use gears was solidified even more when four days before the race I started to suffer from symptoms of a respiratory infection. First, I just had some sinus congestion and a runny nose, but the infection soon moved into my lungs and I was painfully coughing up mucus. And, with my cracked rib still healing, it was like a painful punch in the chest every time I tried to expel some mucus from my lungs. On Friday morning, my conditions were so bad I started to wonder how I was even going to race the next day. I did know that I was now even more happy about making the choice to use gears because I was going to need all the help necessary.<br />
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Amazingly, however, when I woke up on Saturday, my energy level didn't feel too bad. I was still painfully coughing up yellow mucus chunks the size of small animals, but at least I wasn't feeling too drained. I did my normal pre-race routine of drinking a cup of coffee and eating a bunch of French toast to fuel up for my long day of racing a head. I arrived at the camp ground about an hour before the start, but somehow just barely managed to make it to the starting line before the crazy-fast start would roll down Main Street in Loudonville. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihs2X1Vl381O1xUjLFXfu4MkB3PEYm9uNHmvVNosmWvkrliGXaLaWovocAjOPmEw4oR3trSZdWXoKbfh2DEVMb5VkyVEVzyMPl4M2OKlmC1-G1LI5bzl-Cday3vbMUGfgaq5qmCTEnEeAv/s1600/Mohican100start.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihs2X1Vl381O1xUjLFXfu4MkB3PEYm9uNHmvVNosmWvkrliGXaLaWovocAjOPmEw4oR3trSZdWXoKbfh2DEVMb5VkyVEVzyMPl4M2OKlmC1-G1LI5bzl-Cday3vbMUGfgaq5qmCTEnEeAv/s1600/Mohican100start.jpg" height="216" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">600+ riders rolling down Main Street.</td></tr>
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The first few miles of the race were new this year because of some issues with riders poaching trails on private property apparently. I liked the new start and thought it allowed the race to calm down a bit before entering the woods. I guess there was an issue at the bridge crossing for some riders further back in the peleton, but it was not an issue at the front. Luckily, I made it into the woods as one of the top ten riders and my plan was to just ride as smooth and consistently as I could to stay near the front of the race until the trails exited onto the roads leading to checkpoint two.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGXJAYRML_3o3st-0Wzlhbelt2hRqI-7Fztju0jEe8xs_HROL8tDseuoahp9cLpHzAfIlR-dXArKfKv57stzLzQ65ySnyVumwmiCsZqVKU5r4_TZ4G5ioO86gMg9h_Zvk3p9XLz4mLXYAD/s1600/mohicanTrail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGXJAYRML_3o3st-0Wzlhbelt2hRqI-7Fztju0jEe8xs_HROL8tDseuoahp9cLpHzAfIlR-dXArKfKv57stzLzQ65ySnyVumwmiCsZqVKU5r4_TZ4G5ioO86gMg9h_Zvk3p9XLz4mLXYAD/s1600/mohicanTrail.jpg" height="320" width="284" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On the trail with Gordon in hot pursuit.</td></tr>
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My plan seemed to be working and I actually moved up a few spots before hitting the road and by <br />
checkpoint #2 was riding in the third place position overall with my singlespeeding friend Gordon Wadsworth riding along with me. We pretty much rode everything in the first 50 miles together, which I thought was an impressive feat for Gordon since he was using a singlespeed. After Gordon and I went into checkpoint three together, we somehow got separated when he started to follow the 100K instead of the 100 mile course markings. Initially, I thought my direction of travel might be wrong, until I arrived at the turn for the long, hard and unforgettable grassy climb off Wally Road.<br />
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After being separated from Gordon, I rode by myself from checkpoint 3 until the finish. During this time, my Rare Disease Teammate, Christian Tanguy and Tinker Juarez were leading the race. I was getting times from the checkpoints saying the gap between us was about 10 minutes. I figured it would be hard to make up that time by myself, but I continued chasing hard anyway. During the second half of the race and my pursuit of the two in front of me, I definitely noticed how nice it was to be able to shift into a big gear on all the fast sections and also into an easier gear on all the steep climbs. There were so many times I questioned my sanity for ever attempting these sections on my singlespeed bike.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZzG7VpuWytbdJQFptq3YWyuYaf-dq4w2REIELySoHNwS7s6q9BjAmA27YI-DHerOPfSJOh5RsvFhvPcrTRgwaTCnBLPHb7A5je9NM5Uxw4HPmRsFzKhFPbVMBax2fmGKdvwnLFRYQAm0y/s1600/mohicanPodium.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZzG7VpuWytbdJQFptq3YWyuYaf-dq4w2REIELySoHNwS7s6q9BjAmA27YI-DHerOPfSJOh5RsvFhvPcrTRgwaTCnBLPHb7A5je9NM5Uxw4HPmRsFzKhFPbVMBax2fmGKdvwnLFRYQAm0y/s1600/mohicanPodium.jpg" height="256" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
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Well, the rest of my race was pretty uneventful. Christian finished in first place, Tinker in second, and I came in third. The first thing I noticed at the finish was how less taxed my body felt doing the race with a geared full-suspension bike over a rigid singlespeed bike. I also noticed the next day my body felt like it was ready to go again instead of feeling pretty beat and tired. I may not have gotten the win I wanted at the Mohican, but I had a blast doing the race and getting a chance to experience the course in a somewhat different way. I've decided change is good and I'm excited about trying the other NUE courses on a bike with gears this year.<br />
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Happy Trails... Gerry<br />
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Thanks to Butch Phillips for the photos above!<br />
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<br />Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-32457415203028909342014-05-19T13:30:00.001-04:002014-05-19T13:30:12.692-04:00The Wayne Ultra 2014<div>
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This past weekend was jammed packed with cycling events. I was having a hard time deciding between doing a number of races including: The Mountain State Dirty Double Ultra CX Stage Race, the Pisgah 111k, the Greenbriar Regional MTB Championship, the OMBC Mohican XC Race, and the race I finally chose to do, the WVMBA Wayne Ultra MTB Race in Wayne National Forest near Marietta, OH. I guess the main reasons I chose Wayne over the multitude of other choices was because it was closer to home, only a one day commitment, held on a great course and finally because it always pays top riders pretty well. After completing the event, I can certainly say that my choice was definitely the best one for me.</div>
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The Wayne Ultra course is 98% trail, which is true tight and twisty single track requiring a rider to use a lot of concentration to keep his bike on the trail because of all the technical features. These trails are never boring and are super fun to ride. And, just because this course is in the state of Ohio, don't think for a minute that it has no climbing. My Garmin showed 5200' of elevation gain over the 40 mile distance of the race. </div>
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With all the rain our region received over the past week, I definitely thought the trails were going to be pretty muddy on race day. But, overall, I was very surprised at how good the trail conditions at Wayne were. There were some muddy spots here and there and traction was an issue on some of the steeper climbs, but the course was not the mud fest I expected after the record setting rain that fell on Thursday. The conditions did require a little extra concentration at times, but this only makes the course more fun in my opinion.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A nice photo, but had a tough fall and break in getting it!</td></tr>
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To add to the difficult trail features at Wayne, I had the pleasure of competing at this race with a broken rib I suffered from a fall I took on Thursday. How did I break my rib? Well, if you're one of my Facebook friends, I'm sure you've seen one of my many waterfalls pictures posted there. I have a strange obsession with finding and taking pictures of all the waterfalls in the area where I live. While riding a trail in the heavy rain on Thursday, on my way to work, I heard the roar of a waterfall I had yet to view. I decided to climb down a steep ravine to get a better view of it and when I did, lost my footing. I was about to tumble a good fifty feet to the creek below, but was fortunate enough to catch a tree at the last moment. Unfortunately, the small 4" thick tree I caught with my hands was dead and snapped off when I grabbed at it. As a result, my momentum continued forward and my chest went directly into the broken off stump. This impacted knocked the wind out of me and caused instant pain to the ribs on my right side, just below my sternum. </div>
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I've broken ribs before and I am very familiar with the pain this injury causes. When I got back on my bike and continued to feel the pain, I knew one or more of my ribs had cracked. Interestingly enough, my ribs actually hurt less riding than when I do regular activities like coughing, laughing, blowing my nose or getting in or out of bed. Don't get me wrong, there is still pain when I'm bouncing around on my bike, but I guess this is something I expect from riding hard. It's not normal to have pain when doing the everyday mundane activities of life, though. </div>
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With my new injury, I decided to take the initial miles of single track at the Wayne Ultra a little more cautiously than I typically would at the beginning of the race. Meanwhile, two other riders, Justin Pokrivka and Ryan Miracle, were pushing the pace hard. I was pretty content to continue riding a steady pace with John Proppe and two other riders during this time. Eventually, though, I became more comfortable with the jolts of pain in my ribs and decided it was time to push the pace a little faster to see how my body reacted. When I came to a split in the course for the long and short distances, I asked a race volunteer how far back I was from the leaders. He said about two minutes. </div>
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It's hard to make up time on the tight single track at Wayne, but I continued to push my pace and eventual caught Ryan Miracle. He let me pass quickly and I then began my chase of J-Pok riding on a rigid SS bike. Since I was using my Specialized Epic with gears, I figured that small amount of time could be made up pretty quickly. Sure enough, when the trail exited onto a couple miles of gravel and paved road, I was able to increase my speed to about 23 mph and reel in my friend. J-Pok and I then rode together for quite a while, before all the long and steep climbs started to take some wear on my singlespeeding friend. I know at times the 34x42 low range gearing on my xx1 drivetrain felt like a little much on this tough course. I'm sure the 36x21 Justin was using had to hurt!</div>
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Anyway, once I was clear from Justin, I rode a fast but conservative pace to the finish to take the overall win. J-Pok continued riding strong, placing 1st in the SS race and second overall. Jim Mayuric was the next open class rider to finish, followed closely by singlespeeder Don Powers. Again, it was pretty cool to see such a strong showing from Pittburgh Area riders at an out-of-town race.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mens Open Podium</td></tr>
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Definitely put the Wayne Ultra on a list of races to do. The course was well marked, the trails were well groomed for the event and overall, the race was a lot of fun to do. It's a shame there were so many good races happening on one weekend because I really was torn on which race I should attend. As I wrote earlier, though, I absolutely think the best choice was made when I decided on doing the Wayne Ultra!</div>
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Happy Trails... Gerry</div>
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Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-32673183344622586202014-05-12T14:51:00.000-04:002014-05-12T18:17:40.609-04:00The Beast!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9tsUeT5oHGK9hajpZ9Z-7NuG-x-0W0P0IGayP3DvIWmoEcwAjwqsdFvQRAr1_9GGwWoUsBQXGkniBCGF0axYzR1BD-QQaheMUdDqeUP8jiDOArG-6lq938N67XBgMkbM0FhyXmoZT-PgX/s1600/6hrbradyslogo.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9tsUeT5oHGK9hajpZ9Z-7NuG-x-0W0P0IGayP3DvIWmoEcwAjwqsdFvQRAr1_9GGwWoUsBQXGkniBCGF0axYzR1BD-QQaheMUdDqeUP8jiDOArG-6lq938N67XBgMkbM0FhyXmoZT-PgX/s1600/6hrbradyslogo.png" height="320" width="246"></a>I did a local endurance MTB race this weekend in Beaver Falls, PA, which was named The Beast Six Hours of Brady's. And, just like when I did this race last year, it was without a doubt a true beast to conquer. I kind of think it's funny how I travel all over the nation to race, but find some of the toughest courses in my back yard. I'm sure this is why there are so many fast racers coming out of the Pittsburgh, PA area.<br>
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So, anyway, the Beast was a timed raced based on the total number of laps completed in six hours of racing on a mostly single track course. The lap distance was approximately 7 miles long and had around 1000 feet of climbing per lap. After suffering pretty badly on the course last year, I decided to use my Specialized Epic for the race this year and was so happy with my decision. Using a full suspension bike with gears is not my typical choice, but I must say that having the ability to shift and having a bike with suspension to absorb all the bumps is something I'm beginning to like more and more. Maybe my age is finally beginning to catch up with me? It did seem weird for me to not be on a singlespeed bike at the beginning of a race. Others must think it is strange too because I definitely heard more than a few people say, "You're using gears, Gerry?" </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMdnf-T7jvU1OurmB0zLv8t1d6KdYRJHmRQQSAhXWr-7dhO8N4oEm_H7ImPwJ7SUZjPBE7XwZCVhFRyiueiVrCwHg3OZY5J8IjttPjGJV55VjR_DBnB8y8QuxR1Q2xGuvB1hpk3b3wpknG/s1600/bradysDRY2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMdnf-T7jvU1OurmB0zLv8t1d6KdYRJHmRQQSAhXWr-7dhO8N4oEm_H7ImPwJ7SUZjPBE7XwZCVhFRyiueiVrCwHg3OZY5J8IjttPjGJV55VjR_DBnB8y8QuxR1Q2xGuvB1hpk3b3wpknG/s1600/bradysDRY2.jpg" height="320" width="211"></a>The Beast starts and travels on a rough gravel road before entering the singletrack. It was so nice to be able to power along this stretch by shifting to a harder gear. The use of these gears allowed me to get the hole shot leading into the trail and made the first long climb almost a breeze to ride. My teammate Rob Spreng and I got a nice gap on this first climb, before I let Rob by so he could do his thing on the trail. Rob rips the singletrack as good as anyone I know and following his lead for the first three laps was a blast. But, eventually, the fast trail riding pace being set by Rob was a little more than I felt comfortable with doing in a six hour race, so I backed off the speed a bit. </div>
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The cool thing about racing on the Brady's course is that it never gets boring even though it is a multiple lap race. There are enough technical features on the course to keep it interesting and fun, even during a six hour race. To make things even more interesting this year, Mother Nature decided to change the course from fast single track conditions to very slick and muddy conditions about halfway through the race. Once the conditions got bad, I backed my speed down a bit more because I didn't want to make a stupid mistake and lose the lead I had. I was still the second solo rider on the course at this time and was first in my age class.</div>
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With two laps to go, the singlespeed race leader, Joe Malone, caught up to me and we got to ride together for a while. It was interesting for me to compare what I was able to do on a bike with gears to what Joe could not do on his singlespeed. It made me wonder about how much time I could gain if I used a geared bike at an NUE Series Race and how my overall finish at these races would be affected. I will admit that this curiosity has entered my mind many times before, but recently has been at the forefront of it. I'm thinking now might be the time for me to put my singlespeed racing on a temporary hold. Change is good and after winning the NUE Series Singlespeed Championship the past five years, doing 100 milers with a geared full-suspension bike sounds very inviting to me. I'll definitely be giving this idea some more thought.</div>
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But, my mind will think of things like this during a race lasting for six hours or more to help me pass the time. Having Joe along for the last part of the race was a big help too, especially with the conditions seeming to deteriorate more and more with each passing lap. By the end of the race, my bike and body was completely covered in mud and I was absolutely ready for the finish. I took the masters win by over a lap and finished as the second placed solo rider behind Rob, but most surprisingly, beat all the duo teams except for one: the Mihalik/Gorski Team. It must have been the bike I was riding....</div>
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Thanks to Chris Miceli and his volunteers for putting together a great race. It's always great to have a quality local event to attend and this race was certainly top quality in all ways! Also thanks to Mike Briggs for his camera work and for taking the photos used in this blog post.</div>
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Happy Trails...</div>
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Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-48571953190893601012014-04-28T08:32:00.000-04:002014-04-28T08:32:16.961-04:00The Cohutta 100 - 2014<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOxsHXuf-wtvxqN4w0SVFEcsFBG46I26DOrCYHFmNLW4dNQrsjXNAlj6LGkNGREp-LXVBVjd8x-kayPgKWz_vr_S1oCtZYre19QQcwy9z1dq56t8wBssPyQ1YrWFG0MOaijkHg7EqLA8oA/s1600/cohuttaLOGO.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOxsHXuf-wtvxqN4w0SVFEcsFBG46I26DOrCYHFmNLW4dNQrsjXNAlj6LGkNGREp-LXVBVjd8x-kayPgKWz_vr_S1oCtZYre19QQcwy9z1dq56t8wBssPyQ1YrWFG0MOaijkHg7EqLA8oA/s1600/cohuttaLOGO.png" height="320" width="286" /></a>As I laid awake in bed trying to forget about the itching caused by the poison ivy rash spreading about my body and watched the hours counting down on the clock, I knew the second stop of the National Ultra Endurance Series at the Cohutta 100 in Ducktown, TN was going to be a tough challenge. You'd think after 35 years of racing one type of bicycle or another the nervousness I feel before doing a big race would be almost nonexistent by now, but my mind never seems to rest before these events and my constant desire to itch wasn't helping matters. My sleepless night ended at 4 AM when my alarm went off and the reality of doing another 100 mile off-road race, without any meaningful amount of sleep, stared directly into my eyes. I've conquered these sleepless night demons before, however, so I put on my game face and lined-up with 250 other riders at 7 AM to do my best at winning a 5th Cohutta 100 singlespeed event.<br />
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Surprisingly, even with little to no sleep, my legs felt pretty good on the paved road climb leading to the first section of single track. My travel companion to the race and teammate, Rob Spreng, set a fast tempo on the climb, which allowed me to get into the trails about 20 riders back from the lead. I was able to keep my pace fast enough to eventually catch back up to the front of the race to join Rob and Jeremiah Bishop. During this time, only one other singlespeed racer, Gordon Wadsworth, was able to ride with me, which is exactly what I expected from my SS friend.<br />
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By the time the single track ended and the long section of rough gravel roads began, the lead group was whittled down to five riders, including Gordon and I. Strangely enough, the pace being set at the front was not super fast like it was in previous years when I've done this race, probably because Gordon and I were watching each other and the geared guys were watching Jeremiah. But, eventually, two other geared riders joined our group and that was enough to make the pace speed-up on the endless climb leading to checkpoint #3. This increase in speed dropped two riders from the pace and again left Gordon and I with three geared riders in the lead group and no chasers within view. <br />
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Our group was riding well together and we all basically cooperated at efficiently keeping up the speed. The group was riding so well together that we even all agreed to stop at the same time for a pee break. But, I knew in the back of my mind that this cohesiveness to work as one unit would not last much longer. It was just a matter of time before the attacks began. Our last section of group fun was in the single track between miles 50-60. Jeremiah led our group through this section of trail and it was an absolute blast to ride it faster than I had ever done before this attempt.<br />
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I was pretty certain the long climb out of checkpoint #5 would be the game changer of the day. Sure enough, Jeremiah increased the pace and our group began to splinter. I had no intentions of trying to match the pace being set. The past experiences of riding this climb stored in my mind told me to be conservative and save my energy for later in the race. Additionally, I felt the fatigue of not getting a proper nights rest starting to creep into my body. It was hard watching the four other riders pedal off into the distance, but I knew going my own pace was my only chance at staying near the front of the race.<br />
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By the top of this brutal climb, I saw no riders in view behind me or in front of me. I was all alone and riding <br />
my own race, which was fine by me. I felt like my pace was consistent and I did my best to keep moving along at a descent clip. But, by the time I got to checkpoint #6, I learned that the rider directly in front of me was five minutes up the road. I later learned that this rider ahead of me was a geared rider and not my SS competitor, Gordon. I didn't give up hope of catching Gordon at this point, but I knew a gap of over five minutes would be tough to make up in less than 25 miles.<br />
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Before the last section of single track comes at the finish of the race, there are some pretty long climbs that switchback on their way going up the hills. I would look up and down the road at these times in hope of seeing another rider, but saw nothing. By the entrance of the last section of trail, there was a tent set up and staffed with race volunteers. They informed me that 7 miles remained in the race and that I was in fifth place overall, still about five minutes behind the rider directly in front of me. I was happy to hear this news and was going to give me best at bombing the remaining miles of single track to the finish.<br />
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Not very far from the this tent at the 93 mile marker there was a "T" intersection in the trail with no arrows, only a piece of course marking tape laying on the ground across the trail on my left side. I hesitated for a minute at this intersection, but decided to go right because the tape seemed to be blocking the trail to the left. My decision also seemed to be right because the course had earlier come from that direction at the beginning of the race. I descended for a while and then climbed even further before coming to a gate blocking a gravel road with no course markings in sight. I realized then a turn must have been missed and I figured it was a single track trail I had passed that was used at the beginning of the race, so I rode back to it and started riding this single track trail backwards. When I saw mile 100 appear on my Garmin, I knew this choice was also incorrect and I began to feel overwhelmed with frustration. A short while later, I eventually came across a group of riders standing in front of course marking tape. They gave me directions of how to get back on course and to the finish. <br />
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I caught a bunch of riders in the last few miles of single track and hoped that I might still be the second SS racer across the finishing line, but the thirty minutes of time I lost while doing my bonus miles of racing was apparently enough to allow two other SS riders to get in front of me. I would have been completely content with a second place SS finish at Cohutta because Gordon was absolutely the stronger rider of the day, but I must admit that dropping those finally spots at the end of the race definitely felt like a big slap in the face. After having a day to think about things now, I guess finishing fourth in my class is not too bad considering the circumstances; it's just a bit disappointing and hard to swallow after riding so well for the first 93 miles of the race.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMfH2l35rdUMWac9uIUucPq2lOzRDCTawDU9ocmldNKrmRVTfA86E4y-bwcFdJsOy1oB0ab-jTdDhbHz6mpJUYo6HItmuPL3zg0oK3B-eE5PNvQGCwira5FP6XgaeL4gqOtGXORKqUgIKS/s1600/lotion.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMfH2l35rdUMWac9uIUucPq2lOzRDCTawDU9ocmldNKrmRVTfA86E4y-bwcFdJsOy1oB0ab-jTdDhbHz6mpJUYo6HItmuPL3zg0oK3B-eE5PNvQGCwira5FP6XgaeL4gqOtGXORKqUgIKS/s1600/lotion.jpg" /></a><br />
But, there will be good days and bad days. And, overall, I've had a pretty good and long lasting string of luck to help me win many races over my many years of racing. With the right preparation and little more luck, I'm sure my winning ways will return. Until then, I'll continue applying Calamine lotion, hope for a few good nights of sleep and keep riding my bike.<br />
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Congratulations to Gordon for taking the SS win, to Jeremiah for taking the overall win, to my teammates Rob Spreng and Andrew Dunlap for their fine finishes in the open race, and to my teammate Roger Masse for taking second in the 50+ race.<br />
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Happy Trails... Gerry<br />
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<br />Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-7034137032396575892014-04-15T16:27:00.000-04:002014-04-15T16:44:02.156-04:00Leesburg Baker's Dozen 2014<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I did the Leesburg Bakers Dozen 13 hour mountain bike race in Virginia this past weekend. This was my third trip to the race and my second attempt at doing it solo. Deciding to do the race was a last minute decision for me this year because I have a hard time committing to an event months before the race date anymore. And, with Bakers usually selling out wicked fast, I didn't even consider putting it on my race calendar until the Wednesday afternoon before the race when a friend, Mark Liti, mentioned on Facebook that he was selling his entry. Why not, I thought... After confirming my entry into the race, I quickly made plans and arrangements to drive down to Leesburg, VA to do this mostly single track race that started at 9AM Saturday morning and finished 13 hours later at 10PM. <br />
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The last time I raced here solo was in 2011. I actually preregistered for that event and it turned out to be a wet and dreary race day, which is probably why I haven't registered for it again since then . I used a geared bike for that race and battled with Rob Spreng for much of the day, before he got the best of me and took the solo win. This year I changed things up by using my singlespeed Specialized Epic xx1X1 to race the solo SS class because I almost never ride geared bikes anymore and I wanted something comfortable for this race. I've got to say the Epic xx1X1 was spot on and absolutely the perfect tool for the job. The weather for the race was also much more pleasant than it was in 2011. In fact, the weather this year was just about perfect as could be on race day.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is Louis. He's usually a great little dog.</td></tr>
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My wife joined me on my trip down to Leesburg and we brought our dog, Louis, along with us. Louis has been to a few local races, but has never traveled to an out-of-town race during the 9 years he's lived with us. He is a friendly, smart and overall pretty mellow dog and I didn't think having him along would be an issue. As it turned out, he was pretty freaked out about being in a hotel for the first time. Of course, having the ice machine and one of the main hotel entrances just outside our room door did not help matters much. Every time Louis heard ice falling into the machine or heard people entering the hotel, he'd give a little bark. It was just enough to keep me up all night. But, I've raced many of the NUE 100 milers on little to no sleep in the past, so I didn't let my lack of sleep mess with my mind too much. I was too stoked to be riding on some sweet single track trails to dwell on being tired anyway.<br />
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Doing Bakers is like going to a large mountain bike community meeting. It was cool seeing a bunch of friends I don't get to see often and also having so many racers hanging out together all day. While standing at the starting line, for instance, I was able to catch up quickly with some friends I don't get to see often enough. It was also cool to ride and chat with different racers on the course and share how our individual races were going. I know time passes much more quickly when there's good conversation happening. Of course, it always great to hear words of encouragement being passed by other racers and those helping in the pits. Adding to this experience was the large contingency of riders from the Pittsburgh, PA area making their way to Baker's. All the PGH folks kind of grouped together in a little tent city and helped each other out. This is where my wife and Louis helped me get through my miles also. Thanks to you guys (especially Chris Miceli and Dan Depenhart) for letting her hang with you there. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyk82XNgByZzaWz2qmsTH6U6Igcw4fJgMvOlI445rIT2VL0yQ-i5_Vm97S21W0r0z-31WbuLOoynJpiA-82aY_ZIhuVrqjTTtB58fWdDp8TF8_UMjW4kecqqoPlidzih8bP9FU69yWJIjZ/s1600/LBD3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyk82XNgByZzaWz2qmsTH6U6Igcw4fJgMvOlI445rIT2VL0yQ-i5_Vm97S21W0r0z-31WbuLOoynJpiA-82aY_ZIhuVrqjTTtB58fWdDp8TF8_UMjW4kecqqoPlidzih8bP9FU69yWJIjZ/s1600/LBD3.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a>I didn't really have a game plan set in stone for my race, but I did want to start somewhat fast to avoid the early trail bottleneck and to keep my eye on the front of the race. After doing a few semi fast laps, my goal was to remain consistent as possible with my speed without wasting too much energy and doing my best to keep my bike and body safe. Overall, I've got to say that I felt pretty good overall, especially considering I was basically doing the race on no sleep. But, around mile 100, I started to feel my fatigue coming and I found myself wishing this was only a 100 mile race instead of race based off of time and distance.</div>
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Since I'm pretty accustomed to endurance racing and riding through pain, I just kept my thoughts positive and tried to enjoy the trail that I seemed to have ridden over a million times already that day. I started doing lap count downs and did my best to continue eating, even though my stomach really did not feel like consuming much. At the end of lap 15, I took a little longer break and ate some rotisserie chicken my wife had bought from an onsite vendor. It seemed to settle my stomach a bit and definitely gave me some more energy to jump back on my bike for the next three laps.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLI7QLz3TNGCjGP7u90oAqSUPfocnP3y_SIJkLw1ZidTdVqEVTqf2ZeC8ELp5WmPTa5T1-cMULSCyAR3Mnl2WsB7CI5fN6mXeNWTRy0irERcY287zQoQGG6t6eLHraSOQN-vHidxa-X2Uu/s1600/LBD4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLI7QLz3TNGCjGP7u90oAqSUPfocnP3y_SIJkLw1ZidTdVqEVTqf2ZeC8ELp5WmPTa5T1-cMULSCyAR3Mnl2WsB7CI5fN6mXeNWTRy0irERcY287zQoQGG6t6eLHraSOQN-vHidxa-X2Uu/s1600/LBD4.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a>My last two laps were in the dark and I used a small bicycle commuter light for my racing light. It wasn't the brightest on the trail, but I'm used to using it from when I commute to work in the dark on summer mornings and I've never had any issues with it. It only has about a 2 hour burn time at the brightest level, so my only goal for the last two laps was to finish them before my battery died. My light and body held-out for the final two laps and I finished 18 laps and 147 miles of riding about 15 minutes before the 10PM last lap cutoff. My wife was there waiting and told me that the second place rider, Paul Tarter, was more than a lap behind and that I did not need to do a 19th lap, thank God. But, I found out later from my buddy and the solo winner of the open class, Jake Wade, that I might have been the overall solo winner if I would have gone back out. Oh well, I am happy with my result and was even happier that I was not required to do a 19th lap. It felt much better for me to head back to the hotel and take a "quick" (20 minute) shower to come back to life somewhat before the bonfire lit award ceremony started than it would have doing another lap.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBAkoDOGdDUah3MeApl29KNfgHGzcKouASrAwOivwNkOo01gibXMmjWvj4CoCjoHTMRIFa8WyGDsFVub5xueog0jocXEp3joFqktA-iQqmioTAxUFZuhQvqxN1YZ6BdGBb47uEKlnMNypV/s1600/LBD1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBAkoDOGdDUah3MeApl29KNfgHGzcKouASrAwOivwNkOo01gibXMmjWvj4CoCjoHTMRIFa8WyGDsFVub5xueog0jocXEp3joFqktA-iQqmioTAxUFZuhQvqxN1YZ6BdGBb47uEKlnMNypV/s1600/LBD1.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a>I've got to say that I was definitely pretty spent after finishing Bakers. It made me remember why I haven't done one of these type of races since 2011. It was fun experience and all, but the 100 mile endurance race is more my thing. And, after this experience, I'm not sure how the 24 hour solo guys do what they do. I'd much rather do one big loop or a couple of big loops and see different sights rather than going around and around in circles over and over again. I was definitely going a bit stir-crazy out there. But, I will admit that my mind and body already seem stronger from riding all those miles and I'm feeling ready for my next race, the Cohutta 100. <br />
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On a final note, I must say congratulations to all my Pittsburgh friends who also did well at the LBD including: Lauren & Tim Mould - 1st Mixed Duo, Rob Spreng & Jim Mayoric - 1st Duo Men, and Don Powers & Joe Malone - 2nd Duo Men. I also need to thank my wife for helping me suffer through all those miles a lot less.</div>
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Happy Trails...</div>
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Also, thanks to Gary Ryan for the racing photos!</div>
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Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-35734092085464689212014-04-05T14:21:00.001-04:002014-04-05T17:42:01.705-04:00Salsa Vaya Ti - Up for Sale!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><b>- SOLD SOLD SOLD SOLD SOLD -</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: red;"><b>Sorry, this bike is no longer available for sale.</b></span></div>
Okay, first off, please excuse my spammy use of this blog to promote the sale of my Salsa Vaya Ti. Using this medium just seemed like the easiest way to write and show everything about the bike. Let me also say that this is one awesome bike and it's hard for me to let it go. But, it needs to find a new home where it will receive adequate use and attention. I almost always ride my SS mountain bike and, for this reason, my geared bikes are not used often. In total, this frame may about two months of riding on it. Some of the parts were also used on other bikes at one time or another and other parts are nearly near. Overall, the bike is in race ready condition and is ready for your next gravel adventure. Please email me directly at <b>only1gear@yahoo.com</b> for any questions or comments about this bike. Thanks for looking!<br />
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<b><u>SPECIFICATIONS:</u></b></div>
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FRAME - Salsa Vaya Titanium 56cm</div>
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<a href="http://salsacycles.com/bikes/archive/2012_vaya_ti" target="_blank">(Click here for more information about the frame & the geometry)</a> </div>
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FORK - Trigon Full Carbon - (<b>OR</b>...the original Salsa Vaya steel fork, which was never used, or mounted )</div>
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HANDLEBARS - Salsa Cowbell 3 - 46 width</div>
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STEM - Thomson X2, 31.8, 100mm length</div>
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CRANKSET - Control Tech Shield Carbon 175 length</div>
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BB - FSA MegaExo</div>
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WHEELSET - Stan's NoTubes Alpha 340 rims laced with DT Swiss Spokes 28 Hole 3x</div>
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HUBS - XTR with upgrade ceramic bearings</div>
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TIRES - Clement X'plor MSO 700x40, which are currently mounted to the rims with presta tubes.</div>
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BRAKES / LEVERS - TRP Hylex - Hydraulic road brakes - ( Only 3-4 rides on them and are like new)</div>
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ROTORS - XTR Centerlock</div>
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SHIFTERS - SRAM S500 Bar con style - (like new, added at the same time as the TRP's) </div>
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CASSETTE - Shimano Ultegra 10 Speed 11x28 (last longer and shifts better than SRAM, IMO)</div>
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CHAIN - SRAM PC1031</div>
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FRONT DERAILLEUR - SRAM Force</div>
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REAR DERAILLEUR - SRAM Rival</div>
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SADDLE - WTB Laser V Titanium Rails</div>
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POST - Salsa Alloy</div>
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SEAT POST CLAMP - Salsa</div>
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<u style="font-weight: bold;">PRICE</u> - New retail pricing on this bike would be around $4000. I am planning to list it on Ebay on Monday 04/07/2014 at around noon with a starting bid of $1900 and a buy it now price of $2500. But, my special friends and family pricing, if purchased before it is listed, is $1800 + the actual shipping price if the buyer is not close enough to meet in person. You will not be disappointed in this machine!</div>
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Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-73302371789847090482014-03-25T09:28:00.000-04:002014-03-25T09:35:14.699-04:00Barry-Roubaix Awesomeness<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM7bnBPD-JQPha_SBiws2p46T6gWxxhb2kWTnzZHY2u864Mwt1SjzTY3vda56NdpnTxMg5l-ZSgsDUdhgE68UnRCYw-3X75zla4Q_o6Xce7ANoqgeTkAASxv4JU_kMIGVkT9NEg2CjhVCx/s1600/BRX+logo+Founders.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM7bnBPD-JQPha_SBiws2p46T6gWxxhb2kWTnzZHY2u864Mwt1SjzTY3vda56NdpnTxMg5l-ZSgsDUdhgE68UnRCYw-3X75zla4Q_o6Xce7ANoqgeTkAASxv4JU_kMIGVkT9NEg2CjhVCx/s1600/BRX+logo+Founders.png" height="153" width="400" /></a></div>
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This past weekend I traveled to Hastings, Michigan to do the Barry Roubaix. This race was the second stop for the American Ultra Cross Series and it was a good one. The Barry Roubaix was first held in 2009 and had around 300 competitors that year. The race has now grown to a size of nearly 4000 participants from all over the United States. An event this big can be hard to manage for a race promoter, but Rick Plite and all his helpers put together a great race and everything seemed to go very smoothly from start to finish. </div>
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<a href="http://www.snowymountainphotography.com/Sports/Cyclocross/BarryRoubaix2014/i-sd7BR9w/0/L/Barry-Roubaix%25202014%2520422-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.snowymountainphotography.com/Sports/Cyclocross/BarryRoubaix2014/i-sd7BR9w/0/L/Barry-Roubaix%25202014%2520422-L.jpg" height="241" width="320" /></a></div>
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The course used for the 62 mile length of the Barry Roubaix does not have the climbing and rough surfaces like most of the American Ultra Cross Series Races do, but that doesn't make it an easy race. Basically, it is one big loop on mostly hard packed dirt roads, with about 2700 feet of climbing. This year the course conditions were a bit soft from the snow melt and recent rain, but overall it was still pretty fast with my average speed being 19 mph on a singlespeed. </div>
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I worried before the race that there would not be enough challenge to the course to cause any separation in the large field. I found out soon after the start that my early thoughts about this race were wrong. What the course lacks in big climbs or technical features is replaced with its requirement for pure speed and a constant power output to maintain forward momentum. Additionally, I found out it was important to stay at the front of the race because of catching groups of slower riders and other road hazards causing splits to occur in the pack.</div>
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During one such circumstance, in the first couple miles of dirt road, one rider crashed directly in front of me while negotiating a large mud bog spreading across the road. I did not hit him, but had to completely stop to avoid impact and was then immediately surrounded by a large group of other racers from behind me. I managed to work my way out of the chaos, but a meaningful separation had occurred in my race group and I knew it was imperative to regain contact with the lead group if I wanted to place well. I first bridged up to my ultra cross 40+ geared class race buddy, Ron Glowczynski, and then managed to close the remainder of the gap to the lead group, which had three other SS racers in it at the time. Soon after rejoining this group the pace picked-up again and when I looked over my shoulder, our group had no immediate chasers in view.</div>
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<a href="http://www.snowymountainphotography.com/Sports/Cyclocross/BarryRoubaix2014/i-rnKVRw6/0/M/Barry-Roubaix%25202014%2520368-M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.snowymountainphotography.com/Sports/Cyclocross/BarryRoubaix2014/i-rnKVRw6/0/M/Barry-Roubaix%25202014%2520368-M.jpg" height="320" width="208" /></a>I noticed that one SS rider in the lead pack with me was hammering at the front on a cross bike. I rode behind him for a bit and noticed his gear was a bit stepper than mine and I wondered how he was going to push it for the entire race. I've always raced with the "spin to win" philosophy in regards to my gear selection for my SS and it has seemed to work for me so far. Eventually, I noticed this strong SS rider, Lucas Seibel, was beginning to fade from pushing his huge 44x16 gearing and I also noticed that no other SS riders were in the dwindling lead group.</div>
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Meanwhile, I was feeling surprisingly fresh with my 40x18 gear choice and was just waiting for the pace to increase leading into the final miles of the race. Of course, my speed on such a fast course was somewhat limited by having only one gear and I was completely at the mercy of the pace being set by the lead pack. I did try making a few moves alone, but couldn't keep my pace high enough on the flats to stay away permanently. Luckily, I had the help of a few friends in the front pack to keep the pace fast including: Ron G, Jake Wade and Garth Prosser. Without the help of these guys, my race would certainly not have been as easy as it was.</div>
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I noticed a few miles before getting to the paved road section leading back into town that Lucas had fallen out of the lead group, along with many other riders. From that point, I was able to ride comfortably into the finish and enjoy my victory without the fear of being caught. It felt good to get my second American Ultra Cross Series win of the year this past weekend, but I'm not ready for a rest yet and will be looking forward to doing another long, hard and hopefully well organized event like the Barry Roubaix soon. Also, I cannot end this post without saying congratulations to my Team Rare Disease Teammate, Stephanie Swan, for her big win at Barry Roubaix!</div>
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Happy Trails... Gerry</div>
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Thanks to Snowy Mountain Photography for the photos!</div>
Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-8714884765529348152014-03-18T22:37:00.000-04:002014-03-19T05:38:54.607-04:00Squish, Wind, and Buffets <div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ_hQaOtyrKhsdgEfqQuWWNiWA5ZwrEvDnlwSRBIvAL_YhyphenhyphenAz-eQXSlvIpww3q-UPUJRTuijYY_junrduTqwnj_79ABceBquRfl893b6zXdeRLnLKM_LLeyOsZc_1YbP3m1slg2s0fXR0Z/s1600/true+grit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ_hQaOtyrKhsdgEfqQuWWNiWA5ZwrEvDnlwSRBIvAL_YhyphenhyphenAz-eQXSlvIpww3q-UPUJRTuijYY_junrduTqwnj_79ABceBquRfl893b6zXdeRLnLKM_LLeyOsZc_1YbP3m1slg2s0fXR0Z/s1600/true+grit.jpg" height="262" width="320" /></a>My National Ultra Endurance Series racing
season started this weekend at the very windy True Grit 100 race in Saint George, Utah. I traveled out to Saint George with my friend and fellow singlespeed competitor Ernesto Marenchin. We flew into Vegas, rented a car and drove to our hotel in the middle of the Arizona dessert, just below Utah, on Wednesday Night. This hotel location was chosen because many of the hotels in Saint George were either completely booked, or cost a bit more than I wanted to spend. This choice turned out to be a good one because it also gave me quick access to the bordering Nevada Town of Mesquite and the grand breakfast, lunch and dinner buffets located within the town's three casinos there.<br />
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Even though this race is a bit shorter than
the typical 100 mile length of a NUE Series race, at a distance of 84 miles, the
finishing times are not very fast because of the technical terrain this
course covers. Last year I arrived at True Grit prepared to do the race with a full-rigid singlespeed bike. Luckily, my friend and former teammate, Cary Smith, loaned me a suspension fork for race day, after I learned how technical the trails actually were during my pre-ride of the course. With my course knowledge from last year, I decided to make my ride even more comfortable this year by trying to make my geared Specialized Epic into a singlespeed bike. </div>
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The True Grit 100 race course is comprised mostly of single
track trails and some rough jeep roads.
In my opinion, it has the most technical course in the NUE Series, which
is the main reason why I decided to make my Specialized Epic xx1 geared full-suspension bike
into a squishy single speed bike for this race.
After completing two days of riding on the course, I
was very happy with the creation of the soft and forgiving ride of the bike I have sinced named the xx1X1 Epic. I must admit that I was
a little concerned about climbing over 10,000 feet of elevation gain over the
84 miles distance of the race with a squishy bike, but the Epic didn’t feel any slower on
the climbs and it was absolutely faster on the fast, rough descents. Overall, I think it was the perfect bike
choice for this race.</div>
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The most technical sections of this course are two separate
trail loops called Zen and Barrel Roll.
Last year riders were required to do four loops of Barrel Roll, but we
only did two loops of this difficult section on the course this year. I think this change made the course flow
better and a lot more fun to ride. In
addition, the new section of trail added to the course this year called the Lower Bear Claw - Poppy Trail was about four
miles of super fast and pump track like single track that was an absolute blast
to ride. These course changes along with
better course markings and race volunteer assistance at the checkpoints made the
True Grit 100 a much better race this year.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/bFPOtPkivgM?feature=player_embedded" width="640"></iframe><br />
Watching this video from the 2013 race will give you a good view of the technical True Grit 100 riding.<br />
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But, even though the course was made a bit easier with two laps of Barrel Roll being deleted, Mother Nature decided to add her own element of difficulty to the course by making the wind super strong on race day. It was reported that wind gusts blew at 50+ MPH on race day and the National Weather Service even issued a wind warning to the area. I've got to say that riding into that head wind was brutal! It was even bad when trying to navigate my way through technical rocky trails at a slower pace because the wind would actually push me off my chosen line through the rocks. On the other hand, when I was able to ride with the wind it was hard to ride any slower than 20 MPH because the blowing wind was like having a turbo booster on the back of my bike.</div>
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Another change that happened this year was the starting time
for the race. It was pushed back to 8AM
instead of 7AM, which allowed for more light and also for the temperature to
warm up a bit. But, one change I didn’t
like with the starting time of the race was that open men were separated from masters, women and singlespeed racers by 7 minutes. This meant singlespeed racers, and the other classes, could not use
the fast draft of the open men at the beginning of the race and also had to
deal with catching slower riders pretty early in the race. As it turned out, though, this was much less of an
issue than I expected it to be and probably did make the start of the race much
safer.</div>
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With nobody to use for a draft at the start, I decided to
set a fast tempo right from the gun to see who wanted to come with me. This fast start gave me a gap over the other
riders pretty quickly, so I kept pushing myself to see if I could stay
away. Well, I stayed away alone for about four miles or so until the single track climbing started. I was then caught by the racer I knew who would be my biggest
challenge of the day, AJ Linnell. Once
AJ caught me, we ended-up riding together for the majority of the Zen
Loop. By the end of Zen, I had a small
gap over him and decided to push my pace back up again on the climb out of the checkpoint to create as much distance as I could between us.</div>
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It was a good thing I created this time gap because before
entering the Barrel Roll Trail I felt the need to stop for a quick “nature break”
and also started having issues with my gut feeling bloated and tight. To alleviate this feeling, I grabbed a bottle
of plain water at the Barrel Roll checkpoint and decided to ride a conservative
pace over the rough Barrel Roll Trails.
Of course, the thought of tearing the sidewall of my tire, like I did last year on this trail, made my decision to ride more conservatively during this time an easy one. No reason to blow my race by getting a stupid
mechanical, I thought to myself.</div>
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With my pace slowing a bit, I started to catch glimpses of AJ
during the last part of the Barrel Roll loop.
Luckily, my slower pace and water drinking over this time span made me
feel well enough to start riding fast again, so I put my pace into hyper speed (helped by the crazy wind) on the fast trails leading back to the Zen checkpoint. Before
actually arriving at the checkpoint, there are a two longer climbs on the course and I thought for certain that I’d see AJ
coming up from the rear. When I never
saw him chasing, I began to wonder if he had flatted or perhaps taken a wrong
turn. I wasn't sure what had happened,
but I knew my pace could now be taken down to a more conservative effort,
especially over the most technical sections of trail where a little bad luck
could erase my lead. I did learn at the end of the race that AJ went off course for a couple of minutes, which is why I he disappeared from my view so quickly before my second passage through the Zen checkpoint</div>
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The remainder of the race went as planned and I never did
see another SS competitor. I did,
however, catch a ton of geared riders and moved myself pretty far up in the
overall results, even with the seven minute starting deficit. Racing without a competitor in view on a
course like this is a lot more "relaxing". I
can ride fast where I want and ride smarter when I think it would be wise. I followed this plan to the finish and was
very happy to take my first NUE Series Race win for the year. And, I’m quite certain every win is
going to be an important one with all the fast riders competing in the
singlespeed class for the overall series win this year.<br />
<br />
Happy Trails... Gerry<br />
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Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-78129990358005579612014-02-25T07:14:00.000-05:002014-02-25T07:14:05.487-05:00Testing 1, 2, 3...<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4yLejEPAds0rtcNoP6V7YVzq9h7D4f7qVOqgJ_YdpNhMpVa81zXgY_d2CFWd8J7PJIlqZFdAkZvbm41eZ2QgEJatGrSSF4Tvl5lg_33vsKfILp6BbQNg11lJyZeGnQYZ2jZIc1fE6ByvL/s1600/SCX14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4yLejEPAds0rtcNoP6V7YVzq9h7D4f7qVOqgJ_YdpNhMpVa81zXgY_d2CFWd8J7PJIlqZFdAkZvbm41eZ2QgEJatGrSSF4Tvl5lg_33vsKfILp6BbQNg11lJyZeGnQYZ2jZIc1fE6ByvL/s1600/SCX14.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a>I decided to start off my 2014 racing season in pretty much the same way I ended the 2013 season by doing an <a href="http://www.ultracx.com/" target="_blank">American Ultracross Series</a> Race. There used to be a time when my racing season started more gradually by doing some local road racing before any meaningful races were attempted. But, over the past few years, the Southern Cross Ultracross Race has been my first race of the season. Starting the season off with an important race is certainly a good way for me to test my legs, bike, and other new Team Rare Disease equipment, but I never feel quite prepared for this early start of the racing season. <br />
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The Southern Cross Race is roughly a 50 mile race loop with about 6700 feet of elevation gain, on a mix of mostly dirt roads, some standard grass cyclocross course stuff, and some pavement. Overall, it's a nice mix on a variety of surfaces to make this race interesting, challenging and fun. This was my fourth attempt at doing this race, so I was pretty certain of what to expect. But, the crazy weather of this winter had me guessing a bit about what the course conditions would be like this year, especially with the Dahlonega, GA area receiving a good amount of snow about a week before the race date. <br />
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All racers are somewhat concerned about course conditions, but singlespeed racers have to consider the conditions a little more closely to make sure the right gear ratio is used. I assumed the recent snow fall, the melt of it from warm temperatures arriving the week leading up to the race, and a couple days of rain were going to make the course soft and slow. However, when I did my pre-ride of the first part of the course on Friday, I discovered it was a lot faster than I expected. As a matter of fact, the course was so much faster I decided to use a bigger gear ratio than I used the year before, even though I was using a MTB this year instead of a CX bike.<br />
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I've pretty much determined that cross bikes are more exciting to use at ultracross races, but mountain bikes are safer and probably faster over. And, after the limits of my cross bike were tested and beat in the final mile of the race last year, I was certainly not going to make the same mistake of using a CX bike this year. I went from using 700x35 tires on my SSCX bike last year to using 29x2.2 tires on a SS MTB this year. I was happy with the change and my finishing race time was over 4 minutes faster than last year because of it, in my opinion. The biggest difference I noticed was being able to relax more on the fast gravel road descents, not only in riding position, but also mentally because I wasn't as stressed about getting a flat tire. Interestingly enough, it is a good thing I didn't have to worry much about getting a flat tire because about 7 miles into the race I realized that my CO2 cartridges were not in my jersey pocket, but were left back at the car. If I would have flatted, my means of inflation would have been to beg for a pump or CO2's from passing riders. I'll chalk that mistake up as not being completely prepared for the first race of the year... man, that was stupid of me!<br />
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With this race starting on a pretty tight and technical cyclocross type of course, I decided to get out in front early to avoid being stuck behind any crashes or other mayhem. Surprisingly, this plan went so well that I was actually the first rider to the top of the first run-up and then also the first to exit the cross course riding onto the roadway in front of Monteluce Winery. I sat up a bit after making it to the road and waited for some geared riders to help pull me along this super fast section of the course. I was joined by a small group of about ten riders, which included only one other SS rider, Dan Rapp. The paced picked-up a bit on the road, which caused Dan and I to spin like crazy to stay attached to this group. Dan sat up and said to me, "Man that was hard." I nodded, but didn't feel the same way. So, I decided to go a little faster and attempt to close a small gap forming quickly between us and the top geared riders. I was able to close the gap, but Dan fell behind.<br />
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I was liking my bigger gear ratio choice and it definitely helped me stick with the lead group longer than I was able to do last year. But, eventually, I made a decision to let this fast geared group ride away from me about 9 miles into the race. It was at this point that the serious climbing started and I thought it would be wiser to ride the climb at my own pace rather than push myself a little harder than I wanted at such an early point in the race. In previous years, I've ended up catching other riders that have fallen-out of the lead group on this big climb and this year was no different. But, what was different this year, was that I caught the overall winner of the race last year, Brian Toone.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/R27BvnIvdU8?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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An awesome video of the 2014 Southern Cross Race from Jayson O'Mahoney.</div>
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Brian is a fast guy and I knew riding with him for rest of the race would be a big factor in helping me win the SS class if I could hang with him. Interestingly enough, Brian was not climbing as fast as usual, so I did my best to give him some assistance on the climbs. I knew the favor would be returned on the faster sections of the course and it was without a doubt. Thank you Brian! Not only did Brian give me a ton of help, but it's also better to have a friend along to make the time pass a little faster during the race.<br />
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Brian and I ended-up riding the rest of the race together. We saw a couple other geared riders out there, but I never saw another SS rider after Dan fell off the early fast pace. Feeling like my time gap over my SS competition was pretty good, I was able to ride the long, fast descents a lot more cautiously and this gave me some piece of mind about not having any method of tire inflation stored away. But, I did have some stress when I heard a loud cracking noise come from my rear wheel about 25 miles into the race, which was immediately followed by a clanging noise. I immediately knew the noises heard were caused by a spoke breaking on my rear wheel. The broken spoke continued to make noise off and on throughout the race, but my wheel never went abruptly out of true, or gave me any other trouble, so I didn't stop to make an attempt at fixing things. The last thing I wanted to do was lose Toone's wheel and waste time trying to fix a non-issue mechanical.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUIZDoIOHzeW2EjkAb1iGMaNe_6j6SgbwmtA5vxXE5_b2u4ZVEBkwtCliNbyhsUxqNFzO9b9VhwTa9PGz4jzbD45Ut0X4O7xy3ovvCncwT6V5ss4OWj372Cp9hHDVP2Iqs3LNBUYJXbhEo/s1600/SCXpod.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUIZDoIOHzeW2EjkAb1iGMaNe_6j6SgbwmtA5vxXE5_b2u4ZVEBkwtCliNbyhsUxqNFzO9b9VhwTa9PGz4jzbD45Ut0X4O7xy3ovvCncwT6V5ss4OWj372Cp9hHDVP2Iqs3LNBUYJXbhEo/s1600/SCXpod.jpg" height="239" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The 2014 Singlespeed Podium</td></tr>
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By the end of the race, I ended up finishing the race in 3 hours and 11 minutes and as the first place SS rider, about 13 minutes faster than second place. My result, the performance of my carbon Specialized Stumpjumper SS bike, and my overall race preparation made me feel like I had passed my first test of the season. Doing this race also put my mind back into race mode and got me thinking more about the season a head. Before doing Southern Cross, I was less concerned about riding and more concerned about getting new snow for skiing and fatbike riding. Now, I'm ready to ride and race! My next test, and it's going to be a much tougher one, is the first NUE Series Race of 2014, the True Grit 100, in St. George, UT. <br />
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Happy Trails.... GerryGerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-61660238788530862142013-12-04T09:48:00.000-05:002014-01-14T08:02:40.835-05:00The Gravel Grovel and The Finish of 2013<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN9wAOLuvII3hSsFpwXx5N7Oci_Y4-sey3X3sNrS0v0EN54dNa3KGP_Eo4aqnbPF4uuQO-fiSega-ITqCUVSfxvNauRTX_AwuxcmykQAyf5nKcFm5z-GNktR1tOTQdZ3hQRe78R_zjJaMe/s1600/2013+Gravel+Grovel+Tshirt+Logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN9wAOLuvII3hSsFpwXx5N7Oci_Y4-sey3X3sNrS0v0EN54dNa3KGP_Eo4aqnbPF4uuQO-fiSega-ITqCUVSfxvNauRTX_AwuxcmykQAyf5nKcFm5z-GNktR1tOTQdZ3hQRe78R_zjJaMe/s320/2013+Gravel+Grovel+Tshirt+Logo.jpg" width="181" /></a>Racing this fall season has been pretty awesome for me. In addition to doing La Ruta, Iron Cross and Three Peaks, I've been able to do local cyclocross races every weekend in very pleasant racing conditions. But, even with the good weather and races, I brought an end to my cross season a bit earlier than usual this year with my finish in the <a href="http://www.abraracing.com/" target="_blank">ABRA Cyclocross Series</a> the weekend before Thanksgiving. My body was telling me it was time for a break after starting my racing season in February at the first ultra cross race, Southern Cross, and I decided it would be best for me to rest in December. I finished the ABRA CX Series with an overall win in the 40+ Masters Class and a second overall in the Singlespeed Class. I was happy with these cross results, since I missed one weekend of doing the series while I was away racing in Costa Rica. But, even with the end of my cross season coming early this year, I still had one final goal for 2013 and that was to win the final race of the <a href="http://www.ultracx.com/" target="_blank">American Ultra Cross Series</a>, the<a href="http://indytriple.tripod.com/gravelgrovel/" target="_blank"> Gravel Grovel</a> in Norman, Indiana.<br />
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Since I had already completed the four necessary races to qualify for the American Ultra Cross Series Championship, my finishing position at the Gravel Grovel really did not matter, as long as my friend and fellow singlespeed racing competitor, Dan Rapp, did not win the race. For that reason, I had to leave home directly after eating Thanksgiving Dinner to protect my series lead. Ironically, I traveled to the Gravel Grovel with the only person who could beat me in the series. I jumped in Dan's car on Thursday night and we began our travels to Norman, IN. We left on Thursday because neither of us thought it would be a good idea to drive the entire distance the day before the race and we also wanted to do a pre-ride of some of the course on Friday. Overall, our trip to Indiana went fine and we had our normal good flow of communication to make the time go by quickly. <br />
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With smooth travels, we arrived at the race venue exactly when we had planned, at around 1PM Friday afternoon. Once at the race venue, we decided to use the cue sheet for the race and attempt to drive some of the course. Well, with the course being unmarked and some of the gravel roads not being named, we were only able to find about the first 7 miles or so of the course. After getting turned around quite a bit for about an hour, we decided to park the car and jump on our bikes. Strangely enough, it seemed as if we found the course easier by bike than by car.<br />
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Initially, our ride went very well. We got to ride and learn the first true off road section of the course and open up our legs a bit from the long drive. I also learned that I would need to select a larger gear if I wanted to do well at the race, so I chose to use a 39x19 instead of the 39x20 I had planned on using with my <a href="http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bikes/mountain/stumpjumper/stumpjumper-carbon-29-singlespeed" target="_blank">Specialized Carbon Stumpjumper SS</a> 29er and the 29x2.0 tires I had mounted. Unfortunately, the hour ride we had planned was abandoned when we made a critical error of not just turning around and heading back to the car at a fork in the trail. Instead, we decided to continue riding in the woods until we came to the next gravel road. We assumed by doing this that we could get back to the car by taking a series of left turns quicker than turning around and heading back from where we came. This theory would have worked just fine if we would have found a left turn to take; however, we didn't and stubbornly continued riding north.<br />
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Eventually, we came to an apparent dead end at a large lake. The dirt "road" we were on seemed to cross the lake, but we could not tell how deep it was in the middle and with the temperature being only in the mid thirties, neither of us were too excited about trying to cross the lake, but we also did not want to turn around and re-ride the somewhat muddy road we had just traveled. Additionally, with over an hour of ride time logged, neither of us thought it would be a good idea to ride at least another hour to return to the car.<br />
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So, using a half-pedal technique, I rode across the lake in at least 8 inches of water and broke a line through the thin crust of ice to get to the other side. I thought Dan was right behind me when I did this, but saw that he wasn't when I got to the other side. I told him it was okay to ride and he followed. The trail conditions seemed to be muddier than the other side of the lake and I was hoping we would soon find a solid riding surface, which we did after riding for a couple of miles.<br />
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Once we were on a solid surface, we took a left turn, like we had planned, and rode up a long gradual climb, which ended at a three-way intersection. My guess was to turn left again and go south, but I decided to look at my i-phone to see where the left turn would take me because we had now been out for 1.5 hours and I was beginning to slightly worry about getting back to the car at a reasonable time. Well, when I saw where we were on the map and that there was no quick way back to the car because all the roads ended at the north shore of the lake, my slight worry increased almost immediately. Not only did we have to find another way around the lake, but we were also dealing with the temperature dropping and the coming of darkness. Needless to say, things were not looking good, especially after we rode on pavement for another 45 minutes and were not getting much closer to where we needed to be.<br />
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Luckily, Dan was able to contact his Toasted Head teammates Jake Wade and Scott Green and arrange for them to pick us up. After we arranged the pick-up, we continued to ride south for another 45 minutes on paved roads, mostly so we could stay warm, but also because there was no easy way for Jake and Scott to get to where we were. I can't explain how glad I was to finally see those guys and how grateful I was for the ride they gave us, especially since they had come to get us immediately after completing their non-stop 14 hour drive from home. In total, Dan and I rode 37 on/off road miles in three hours, which is certainly not a good thing to do before an important race. Since we both started our pre-race riding adventure with only one bottle of water and did not dress properly for the dropping temperature, we are lucky things worked out like they did. Our misguided Friday ride also completely messed-up all of the plans we had set for preparing for the race, but Dan and I dealt with it fine and agreed that at least we were both in the same situation. <br />
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We arrived at the starting line about an hour before the race. Jake and Scott arrived earlier because of Toasted Head's commitment to supply wine to the podium finishers, which they had to deliver to the race promoter. Upon our arrival, Jake said that there was a really long line for racer check-in and that it might be better for us to wait, so Dan and I did as much as we could to get ready for the race before deciding to jump in the never-shrinking line. The delay we experienced in the registration line only left us with about ten minutes to put on our race numbers and do everything else necessary before the race started, which meant we did not get in any type of warm-up ride. Of course, this all could have been avoided if we would have picked-up our stuff the night before the race like we had initially planned, but decided not to do because of our misguided pre-ride.<br />
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Luckily, the race did not start too fast and I was able to get my legs warmed-up on the mostly flat five miles leading up to the first major climb. I shot up the climb and made contact with the lead group, as we turned onto the gravel roads on top of the ridge. From there, the pace really picked-up and I was unable to match the speed being set on the fast gravel downhill portions of the course with my singlespeed. I ended-up a few groups back from the leaders with a couple of geared guys and two singlespeeders, but D-Rapp was not in the mix with me in this group. Once we left the pavement and went into the woods, about 10 miles into the race, Dan came up from behind and caught us. He immediately went to the front and continued his fast pace up the second major climb of the day. I was able to climb with him, but the other two singlespeeders lost contact on the last steep portion of the climb.<br />
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From that point, there was a long gradual descent through the woods that lead to some fast and flat paved and gravel roads. After a couple miles, Dan and I ended-up in the second group of racers on the road about a minute behind the overall leaders at the turn around in the town of Story. One time before this turn in Story and another time after it, Dan had a slight lead over me because riders in front of me allowed a gap to form in the paceline. Fortunately, I was able to bridge back up to Dan and the group each time this happened. After the fast road section, the course turned left into some awesome single track trails and I went to the front of the group to see if I could get a gap on Dan. He hung right with me through the single track, but everyone else in the group was gone. <br />
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From that point, Dan and I pretty much rode together until around mile 45 or so. We rode a pretty conservative pace and basically kept our eyes on one another. With Dan needing to win the Gravel Grovel to take the overall series win from me, I decided it would be best for me to sit back and watch him rather than continually pushing the pace hard. I would then increase my pace on every section of the course where I thought I'd have an advantage, like in the trails and on the climbs. But, Dan hung with me each time the speed was increased and I began to wonder if the race might come down to a sprint finish between us. I'm not much of a sprinter, though, so this is not the end I wanted to have. And, with no other singlespeed racers in our view to finish ahead of us, I could not let Dan finish in front of me to take the race and series win.<br />
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In situations like this, any small problem can cost a race win. I knew riding smart and conservatively was the best thing to do, but I also knew that some type of action was necessary to create a gap between us. One action I took could have cost me the race. I decided to bomb a downhill trail portion on the course, but crashed in a muddy rut when doing this and landed on my side. I was not injured, but my stem and handlebars twisted to the left quite a bit from their usual straight ahead position. Dan briefly stopped and asked if I was okay when I was on the ground. I said yes, but made no indication to him that my handlebars were messed-up. Once we were out on the road again, I thought about stopping to correct my bar position because it was not very comfortable for riding, but knew Dan would get a time gap on me if I did. So rather than correcting the problem, I decided to ignore my off-center handlebar position and continue riding with Dan.<br />
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It didn't seem like I was going to be able to put the time gap over Dan that I wanted to do before the finish, but I continued to attack up every climb there was, even the smaller ones. On one smaller climb, at about mile 45 or so, I was able to get a small 10 foot gap on Dan before the climb became more of a false flat gravel climb. When I looked back and saw the gap, I realized it was pretty insignificant, but decided to continue riding hard anyway to make Dan work harder to catch me. The next time I looked back the gap had increased, so I decided to go into full-on time trail mode. A short while later Dan was out of sight and I knew the race was mine to win if I could just maintain my fast pace to the finish. <br />
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Keeping my pace high was pretty easy to do even though I was all alone because I was certain that Dan was probably working with a couple of geared riders to catch me. When I got away from Dan, Garth Prosser was not far behind us and I caught and passed Dan's teammate, Jake Wade, about 15 minutes later. The thought in my head of the three of them working together to catch me definitely made me push myself to stay ahead. But, I later learned that Dan was only able to ride with Garth for a short period of time before Garth lost contact with him and that he never did catch Jake. By the end of the race, I took the win by about five minutes over Dan, which also secured my overall series win.<br />
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The Gravel Grovel course was a blast to race. It had a bit of everything and a lot of gravel, like an ultra cross race should have. Of the five ultra cross series races I did this year, three were done on a cross bike and two on a mountain bike. Interestingly enough, the two races I won (the Hilly Billy and the Gravel Grovel) were on a mountain bike. It's a lot of fun, and a completely different experience, to do these races on a cross bike, but I do think mountain bikes are faster and safer to use overall. For this reason, I think doing these things with a mountain bike instead of a cross bike is the best choice. But, if a rule was put in place for the mandatory usage of a cross bike in all series races, then I'd be completely fine with using one because the playing field would be equal between all riders. These ultra cross events, and gravel racing in general, are become very popular, so I doubt that instituting such a rule would decrease the registration numbers by very much. I am quite certain, however, that it would make the races a lot more interesting.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1KlwwP8caBQPHX_35IV1t-bsu8ZQaH3EsyDDk7vzyla9A_z99pvxgnOTF9KS6HLmDdf8lli4ygqKkPY0pprOOwzuSKytT4ohagPRpJTBv-E0HoKi2GZpmtJTb5rgkOe5JA3Op1qJRUFSC/s1600/GGpodium.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1KlwwP8caBQPHX_35IV1t-bsu8ZQaH3EsyDDk7vzyla9A_z99pvxgnOTF9KS6HLmDdf8lli4ygqKkPY0pprOOwzuSKytT4ohagPRpJTBv-E0HoKi2GZpmtJTb5rgkOe5JA3Op1qJRUFSC/s320/GGpodium.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">D-Rapp, me and Scott on the overall ultra cross podium. </td></tr>
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Well, that's a wrap on my season and this ultra long blog post. It has been a blast racing this year and I'm already excited about the 2014 season and the adventures to come. I'm very pleased with how my racing went in 2013, especially considering all the changes that occurred in my life this year, like buying a new home, switching teams and changing positions at work. Having less change in 2014 should make next year a bit easier, but with the number of fast singlespeed riders always increasing (like my fast SS friend, D-Rapp, joining the SS ranks), I'll still have my work cut out for me. Speaking of change, if you haven't heard, Team CF will be racing under new colors and will now be called Team Rare Disease. See you all in 2014!<br />
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Happy Holidays.... Gerry<br />
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<br />Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-35824507111835543272013-10-31T21:21:00.000-04:002013-11-01T05:42:24.652-04:00Vamanos!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMWR8sYRhJtFhlK8lv6chmRscZ8K3cckZ-oN0rJPC7kmqKK3H2ctBf0yg-k4v2uem6TAE_rtZIVGPIEKf2FBmib9f_bDziP5hu0CzcaQmRSaVMMCNwxyf_Z7alakKG8m3dBkqmy5ZvvFc7/s1600/la+ruta.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMWR8sYRhJtFhlK8lv6chmRscZ8K3cckZ-oN0rJPC7kmqKK3H2ctBf0yg-k4v2uem6TAE_rtZIVGPIEKf2FBmib9f_bDziP5hu0CzcaQmRSaVMMCNwxyf_Z7alakKG8m3dBkqmy5ZvvFc7/s320/la+ruta.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Heading up just about any climb at La Ruta de Los Conquistadores and I was almost certain to hear a group of locals, known as Ticos, yelling, "Vamanos, Vamanos!" The translation of Vamanos to English is the verb go. And, I feel so fortunate that I was able to go to Costa Rica last week to constantly and energetically be pushed over the race course with the word vamanos echoing in my ear while doing this epic race. It was an experience like no other I've ever had on a bike and was truly an adventure over the beautiful country side of Costa Rica.<br />
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La Ruta de Los Conquistadores is a multiple stage mountain bike race held for the past 21 years in the country of Costa Rica. It starts on the Pacific west coast of the country, in the town of Jaco, and over a three day period of time, crosses the entire country to finish on the Caribbean coast in the town of Port of Limon. During this three day journey, the race goes through a variety of terrains and climbs over many long, steep hills. Racers travel over dirt roads, paved roads, trails, railroad tracks, and river crossings, but practically see no single track. This lack of single track does make the race less technical than some of the US mountain bike stage races, but the lack of it doesn't make La Ruta any easier.</div>
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Make no mistake, La Ruta is one tough race. I personally think this is due to the large amount of climbing and elevation gain found on the course and the variety of conditions encountered over the three days. Of course, since I did the race on a rigid singlespeed bike the 23,000 + feet of climbing done over the 182 or so miles we rode made things even a bit tougher for me. I was initially torn between using my full suspension Specialized Epic with a 1x11 drivetrain or using my Specialized Carve singlespeed for La Ruta. But, in the end, I picked the singlespeed because I thought the course was going to be really muddy after watching the weather forecast the couple of weeks leading up to the race and seeing previous videos of the race. Unfortunately, the course was actually pretty fast and had very little mud, which made my singlespeed a much slower choice than I thought it would be. This wouldn't have been a problem if there was an actual singlespeed class, but there wasn't and I had to make do with my one gear while competing against the other geared riders in my UCI 40-49 age category.</div>
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Overall, though, I really didn't mind riding my singlespeed. It is my bike of choice for training at home and it is usually what I use for racing anyway. There is a lot to be said about being comfortable on a race bike and I was certainly comfortable on my Specialized Carve. About the only place I really missed having my Specialized Epic was on the long rocky descent on day #2 and the long fast and flat last 50 miles on day three. Using the Epic on these sections of the course would have been a huge advantage and probably would have subtracted at least 15 minutes from my overall time. But, I'm not going to look back or question the use of my singlespeed because it worked perfectly for me and still put me on the podium for my age group. I'm not sure if another singlespeed rider has ever cracked a podium finish at La Ruta, but it now has been done if it has not been done earlier.</div>
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Even though the race starts on Thursday, I decided to arrive in Costa Rica on Tuesday morning. Arriving a few days early was a nice way to get used to the area, build my bike and just relax after making the trip. I stayed with my CF Teammate Cheryl Sornson at the race hotel in San Jose on Tuesday and throughout the trip. It was nice staying with someone I knew and have raced with in the past rather than being roomed with an unknown person. On Wednesday, all the racers travel to Jaco for registration, a riders meeting and to prepare for the early Thursday morning start of the race. Jaco is a small, but beautiful, beach town and seemed to be a perfect place to send off the riders for their journey across Costa Rica. As I rode out of the beach town, I wondered what craziness would be encountered.</div>
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Day 1 - After discussing the course with riders who have done La Ruta previously and seeing the race <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This large Boa was found on the course on day #1.</td></tr>
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course elevation profile, I knew the first day would be difficult. This day includes the infamous long and steep first climb, the jungle section and big road climb in the middle of the course. Mixed in with all this climbing were some very fast descents and some very warm temperatures to add to the difficulty of the day. Even though I wanted some nasty mud to make my singlespeed faster than the geared bikes I was racing against, I was very happy to go through the somewhat dry jungle conditions. I can't imagine how hard the the jungle section would be if it was wet because the trails were certainly tricky enough without having the serious mud issues this year. All in all, my singlespeed bike worked very well for all the climbing on day 1 and took me to a third place finish. </div>
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Day 2 - Riders are bused back to San Jose after completing day #1 for the night and then were transported by bus again in the morning to a starting location at Terramall. Yes, it actually is a shopping mall, if you're wondering. The race ended up starting 45 minutes late because of the insane traffic on the streets surrounding the mall. I was happy about the later start because I needed to go over my bike before racing on it again and was also having some stomach issues that seemed to be coming from what I was eating and drinking. Fortunately, after the race started, my stomach would come around and I would feel well enough to put the hammer down. These issues would return again for the last day of racing. The climbing on day two is ridiculous. The entire stage is only about fifty miles long, but the first 28 miles of the race go straight up and took me about three hours to ride. From that point, the course heads down on some very rocky jeep roads about halfway down the mountain, before becoming very fast on twisty paved roads. Having a suspension fork on the rocky section of the downhill would have been so nice and even I questioned my sanity for not having one part way down the hill (or should I say volcano). </div>
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Day 3 - Out of all the days, I thought day 3 was going to be the most difficult to do on a singlespeed. The course climbs over 4000 feet in the first twenty five miles and then gradually descends towards the finish at the Caribbean coast. I knew if I had any chance of doing well, I would need to use a big gear to keep up with the other riders after the climbing was over. My decision to use a big gear hurt me pretty bad over the climbs, but it seemed just about right for the fast fifty miles leading to the finish. The best part about day three is the multiple bridge crossings that seem to be synonymous with doing La Ruta. I think everyone who does La Ruta for the first time has a bit of fear about going over these bridges before arriving at them. But, as sketchy as they were to cross, I've got to say they were not that bad and I actually learned to cross them pretty quickly. Probably the hardest part of day three for me was the heat of the afternoon. I think by the end of the race, I felt hotter than I ever have on a bike and definitely was close to having heat stroke. But, even with having my trouble with the heat, I still had my best finish of all three days and took the stage win for my category. I would never have guessed a singlespeed could win day three when I viewed the elevation profile.</div>
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Overall, doing La Ruta was an incredible experience. The race promoter, Roman Urbina, told me it's better to treat La Ruta like an adventure rather than a race because it is so tough. I did my best to follow his advice and concentrate on how I was riding rather than on how others around me were riding. I think using this strategy helped me stay out of trouble and kept my body from being pushed past its limit. Before the race started, I told myself that my goal was to finish on the podium in my class. I'm so happy to report that I did accomplish this goal on an unfamiliar course against many unfamiliar, but friendly faces. Receiving a La Ruta Conquistador Trophy was definitely a highlight of the trip, as was making many new friends and seeing many new sights.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My new Toucan friend at La Paz!</td></tr>
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Rather than leaving the very next day after the race for home, I thought it would be best to stay another day in Costa Rica to properly pack all my belongings and also see more of the country. I traveled with a group of friends to the high rain forest at the <a href="http://www.waterfallgardens.com/" target="_blank">La Paz Waterfalls</a>. Here, I was able to see many of the wild animals native to Costa Rica up and close as well as take a leisurely stroll through the jungle. Coupled with the stop at a coffee plantation, it was a perfect way to end my trip to Costa Rica.</div>
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I cannot end this post without thanking the National Ultra Endurance Series and Roman Urbina for giving me the opportunity to do La Ruta. It was an awesome adventure that I will not soon forget. I will look forward to the day that I might once again be lucky enough to hear, "Vamanos, Vamanos!" as I race up one of the steep hillsides in Costa Rica.</div>
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Happy Trails... Gerry</div>
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Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-35206182096759112752013-10-01T21:28:00.000-04:002013-10-01T21:28:52.688-04:00Iron Cross and No Luck<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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One of my favorite races to do each year is Iron Cross. I've done well at this event in the past, but I've also had some spats of bad luck there. I was hoping this year would be a good race to help me erase my current string of bad luck race results, starting with my misdirected race at the Fool's Gold 100 at the beginning of September and my flat tire at the Three Peaks USA race last week. Additionally, with Iron Cross being the next to last race in the American Ultra Cross Series, I needed to have a good race to maintain my series lead.<br />
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Three years ago I was the first rider to the top of the Wigwam run-up at Iron Cross with a good lead over the next rider in the race until I got my first flat tire of four that day. Obviously, I was a bit frustrated after those flats on that day of racing. But, I think the level of frustration I felt was even a bit higher this year because I didn't even make it through the first trail without suffering a flat tire. Flatting at the beginning of a race is pure torture to me. It is so hard to stand on the trail side and watch every single rider pass me, while at the same time knowing that the leaders are getting further away with each passing minute.<br />
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I tried to stay calm during my clumsy repair of my difficult to change rear flat tire. But, my calmness did no good in helping me speed up my repair time and I was soon the very last place rider, including even the racers doing the 50K course. When I jumped back on my bike, I knew there was a lot of work to be done and I knew it would be a long day in the saddle. I decided almost immediately to just ride as hard as I could and consider the race as more of a training day for La Ruta de Los Conquistadores than an actually race. I knew thinking like this would help ease the frustration I was feeling and get me through the day.<br />
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One good thing about being in last place is that there is always someone to chase down. This motivates me to push harder and make an attempt to catch the rider in front of me. And, overall, my chase seemed to be going pretty well early-on. I was catching tons of riders and eventually caught the leaders of the open women class and my Team CF Teammates, Cheryl and Selene, on the Wigwam run-up. I knew these fast ladies started two minutes behind the 100K men and that made me feel like I had at least made-up a little time on my category of racers.<br />
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But, at about the same time I was starting to feel good about where I might finish for the day, I was beginning to have serious issues with my steering. It was very difficult to turn my handlebars and when I did attempt to steer the bars, they would need to be forced back to the straight ahead position. This made descending at 50+ mph on the gravel roads real tricky and it was even difficult to climb out of the saddle with this mechanical issue. It felt like metal was rubbing on metal and I feared that maybe the steer tube on my fork had cracked. This made me a bit nervous and I started to think that maybe it would be best if I just took A DNF for the day when I arrived back at checkpoint two, which was also the start/finish line and the beginning of the third part of the course.<br />
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At checkpoint #2, however, I learned that I was the sixth place rider in the large and fast singlespeed field. I decided to push forward with a very close eye on my fork and headset. I eventually caught a couple of more singlespeed riders, including another teammate of mine, Roger Masse. It's always good to see a friendly face in a race and it also felt good to know that only three other singlespeed riders were ahead of me. <br />
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Not long after seeing Roger, I soon saw Stephan Kincaid climbing ahead of me. I eventually caught up to him and saw that he was in pretty bad shape from being involved in a crash earlier in the race. Stephan was still riding hard and was sticking right with the hard pace I was trying to set. It felt good to actually be racing with someone rather than just chasing down the next guy in front of me, so I was enjoying Stephan's company and hoping we would soon catch the two remaining singlespeed riders: Matt Ferrari and D-Rapp.<br />
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But, as my luck of the day would have it, I suffered my second flat and had to watch Stephan ride away alone. Fixing all these flat tires the past couple of weeks must have made me a little quicker with this repair because it seemed like I was able to get back on the bike a lot quicker this time. So, I started my chasing chore again and one-by-one I started to catch the riders ahead of me. But, this time I only had less than 20 miles to catch the remaining riders instead of 67 miles. I worried that there might not be enough time or miles left in the race to move back into third, so I dug deeper than I have in a long time to make up my lost time.<br />
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During this time, I kept my eyes focused ahead for other riders, but never saw the Stan's Notube kit of Stephan. I began to wonder if he might have taken a wrong turn or abandoned the race due to his crash injuries or bike issues. But, after catching the new third place singlespeed rider, Matt Ferrari, I learned that Stephan had moved into second and was still ahead of me. When I caught the next rider ahead of me and asked how far ahead the NoTubes rider was, it was a little difficult to hear him say Stephan was about 4-5 minutes ahead, especially with only a few more miles of racing to go until the finish.<br />
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But, I powered-on anyway and put all my remaining energy into climbing the last climb as fast as I could. My legs ached and not seeing anybody ahead made my effort seem pointless, but then I caught a glimpse of Stephan through the trees and suddenly the pain I was feeling seemed to vanish. It was hard to pass Stephan when I did catch him because I knew he had suffered badly to finish this race after his crash. Hearing his kind words as I passed didn't make my pass any easier. He is a true sportsman and I have a lot of respect for him and his difficult race that day.<br />
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I did not have the race I wanted to have at Iron Cross, but I am happy with my riding and how I was able to overcome the issues of the day to finish as the second placed singlespeed rider. I've come to realize over the past couple of weeks of racing how lucky I've been over the years. I'm usually a pretty lucky guy when it comes to racing and I guess it's hard to understand this until things go bad a few weeks in a row. Hopefully, my spell of bad luck is done for a while now and I can go back to my winning ways.<br />
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I'll be doing some regular cross racing the next couple of weeks before heading to Costa Rica for La Ruta and then finishing out the year with more cross racing and the finial American Ultra Cross Series Race, the Gravel Grovel in Indiana. As it stands, I still have the lead in the series with one win and three second place finishes, but if D-Rapp can take the singlespeed win at the final race, he will be the series SS champ. My luck over the past couple of weeks sure has made racing interesting lately and it looks like the championship race will be just as interesting.<br />
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On a final note, I've got to say thanks to Mike Kuhn and all of his help for putting on a fantastic race. This year's Iron Cross course was the best I've ever ridden. Oh, and if you're curious to see what the course was like this year, checkout Jayson O'Mahoney's race video below. It definitely gives some good views of the course offerings!<br />
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Happy Trails.... Gerry<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/cnyW-5m0ito" width="420"></iframe>Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-53208540054586043412013-09-25T14:19:00.000-04:002013-09-25T14:19:01.050-04:00Three Peaks USA Ultracross<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This past weekend I raced the Three Peaks USA Ultracross event in Banner Elk, NC. It was my third time doing this event in as many years. For the most part, the course has continued to use many of the main trails and roads, but each year a few sections are either removed or added to the race. Each year this race has become a little less technical and more cyclocross bike friendly; however, I still think using a 29er mtb is the best choice for the job. <br />
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Over my past few years of doing these ultra cross races, I've switched between using a CX bike to a MTB many times. My finishing times are always faster and I think there is a lot less risk of getting a flat tire or having a mechanical when a MTB is used instead of a CX bike. Even though I know a MTB is usually the best choice for doing ultracross events, I decided to pick a cross bike for Three Peaks. I made this choice because I thought the course changes this year would make the cross bike a faster option. I guess there is also a part of me that feels like these things are just more fun to do on a cross bike. I do know that racing these events on a CX bike is a completely different experience than doing them on a MTB. But, unfortunately, my decision to use a CX bike at Three Peaks might have been the main reason that I finished the race in second place instead of first in the SS category.<br />
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I'm pretty sure if I used a MTB set-up with tubeless tires, I would have not had a flat tire about 25 miles into the race and probably could have stayed in the lead until the finish. But, instead of having a trouble-free ride, my 700x35 tire/tube choice pinch flatted and I had a hard time replacing my flat tube. The first issue that slowed down my repair was removing the wheel from my horizontal dropouts SSCX with disc brakes. This bike is not as quick as a bike with verticle dropouts because I have to loosen my rear disc brake caliper, remove my chain from the front chainring and also from the rear cog in order to get the wheel off the bike. Of course, these things also need to be tightened and replaced after fixing my flat tire. The next issue I had was when I went to put air in my tire with my C02 cartridge. For some reason, the inflator I was using would not expel air. After trying to get it to work a few times, I finally remembered that I had a spare inflator in my seat bag and was able to get it to work. In all, I lost at least 7 minutes doing this simple repair and I knew it would be difficult to catch the new leader of the race, D-Rapp.<br />
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Nevertheless, I chased hard and was actually having a good time catching each rider that had passed me while I attempted to gain some of my lost time back. I did catch a lot of riders during this time, but was unable to catch my friend, Dan. Even though I did not win the race, I was happy with how my legs felt and also had a lot of fun riding the tough Three Peaks course. It was also cool to see Dan take the well-deserved win, since he has been having some knee pain issues lately and wasn't sure how the day would turn-out for him.<br />
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I'm excited to be doing the grand daddy of all ultra cross races, Iron Cross, this coming weekend and I'm hoping to have a little better bike luck there. This is one of my favorite races to do because of the variety of terrain covered. I've used mountain and cross bikes at this race in the past and know that a MTB would probably be the best choice, but I'll be racing on my SSCX again and pushing the bikes limits on the technical descents in Michaux State Forest. I know it's not the smartest choice, but I think it will be the funnest!<br />
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Happy Trails... GerryGerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-13889501777022542402013-09-09T08:15:00.000-04:002013-09-09T08:41:56.663-04:00FOOLS (without the apostrophe)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqBjQdrdadOfCiGgUDvZ2XnjFQBJptpJbhF-e-0C26lYqZmvdfIgYnpvjjshGCqt9twSxRRoxvNBDZmZtPPUln81OFnaJ0e0GEmv5YauGUazRWlKTc3iuOgqgaK12k9chhIlrBZQ2ntqaX/s1600/FGicon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqBjQdrdadOfCiGgUDvZ2XnjFQBJptpJbhF-e-0C26lYqZmvdfIgYnpvjjshGCqt9twSxRRoxvNBDZmZtPPUln81OFnaJ0e0GEmv5YauGUazRWlKTc3iuOgqgaK12k9chhIlrBZQ2ntqaX/s200/FGicon.jpg" width="200" /></a>My wife and I left a few days early and stopped in Asheville, NC for a couple of days before traveling to Dahlonega, GA for the Fool's Gold 100 National Ultra Endurance Series Final Race. It was just the break I needed to recovery from the hard block of training I did to prepare for this race. Up until the weekend before the race, I was pretty certain the Fool's Gold Race was going to be used to determine the overall NUE Series Singlespeed Champion between AJ Linnell and me. But, as it turned out, I locked-up the overall series win before the race even occurred because of AJ's finish at Park City. Nevertheless, I wanted to have a good race at Fool's and was looking forward to some good competition.<br />
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I've always enjoyed doing the Fool's gold race. I really like doing the climbs and fast flowing single track that this course has to offer. And, since I've done this race four other times, I'm pretty familiar with the course. With this previous course knowledge, I decided to start the race with a fast tempo like I've done in the past. It was enough of an effort to immediately cause a separation in the field and I found myself riding with only four other riders: Drew Edsall, Dereck Treadwell, Michael Danish and Jim Vandeven. Eventually, Dereck and Mike were able to put a 20-30 second gap on me and the others. But, since neither of the riders ahead were SS racers, I decided to stick to a more comfortable pace at this early point in the race.<br />
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After climbing for a couple more miles, AJ was able to bridge-up to our group and Jim fell off the pace, but there were no other racers in sight when I looked down the hill. Unfortunately, things soon went very wrong when we came to a point in the course where some FOOLS had changed the course marking arrows to the wrong direction and used pink course marking tape to confirm the wrong turn was correct. I knew from previous editions of this race that the course should go left instead of right, but thought it was a new course change. I hesitated for a moment before giving 100% commitment to my choice of direction, but was soon in full race mode again. <br />
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What made matters worse was that I was familiar with the road being descended because it was also used in the Southern Cross Race, which is another race promoted by the Fool's Gold race promoters. This made me even more certain the switched course arrows were correct. Additionally, and for whatever reason, AJ was no longer riding with Drew and I any longer and I thought this was my chance to put a time gap between us. After Drew and I stopped seeing pink ribbon, he kept asking if I still thought we were headed in the right direction. I said yes and we continued to descend at a fast pace until we ran into Dereck and Mike climbing back up the hill.<br />
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I can't tell you the sick feeling I had in my gut when I saw them coming towards us and saw nobody behind us. But, I was still convinced, or at least being very stubborn, about the misdirecting course markings being correct; and, after Drew and I stopped to have a conversation with Dereck and Mike about our direction, the four of us descended down the mountain even further. Eventually, after not seeing any type of course markings at any intersection, even I gave up on our direction of travel being correct and we began the long climb back up the mountain. <br />
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As we were climbing back up to the course and running into other off-course riders, I couldn't believe that someone would maliciously and intentionally change course markings and do it so convincingly. I cannot understand the thought process of the person that did this act and what they would find so funny or gratifying about ruining the race of so many others. Anyway, once I made it back to the actual course and realized I was now at the back of the 50 mile race group that started 30 minutes behind the 100 mile racers, I lost my desire to continue racing and began riding at a more moderate pace.<br />
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My wife was at checkpoint two and I was sure she was probably worried about where I was, since my estimated arrival time had long ago come and gone. With this in mind, I knew continuing my ride to at least checkpoint two was necessary, so I could update her on my status. I figured she would also be able to give me a good idea about how far behind I was from the race leaders. It was fun to ride the trails with Dereck and Drew en route to the checkpoint, but the slower lap traffic we encountered only convinced me more that making up any substantial amount of loss time would be difficult to do. <br />
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At the checkpoint, my wife confirmed that I was at least an hour off the pace of the leaders. Hearing this news was the final nail in the coffin for me and I decided to not continue the race. Instead, I pulled off my number plate and rode the remainder of the first loop, minus the Bull Mountain Trail, to the finish. Riding the deserted trails back to finishing area helped clear my mind of the frustration I was feeling, but it was so hard to do at the same time. It is never easy for me to quit anything, especially a race where I wanted and felt I could do very well.<br />
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It was even more difficult to be at the finishing line and watch all the other 100 mile riders finish. Most impressive of all these finishers was the overall winner of the race, Michael Danish. Seeing him win the race after being so far off course with me was very impressive. His finish also made me think that maybe I should have pushed-on. But, as they say, hindsight is always 20-20 and I'm happy with the choice I made. I definitely learned over the years that it is sometimes better to save the legs for another day and another race when things are not going as expected. And, with two big ultra cross races (Three Peaks and Iron Cross) only weeks away and the rest of cross season around the corner, I don't think an eight plus hour hard ride would have done much good.<br />
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I'd also like to say congratulations to all the finishers of the Fool's Gold 100 and in particular to the fine group of singlespeed racers that managed to be in the top five overall: including, AJ Linnell, Ernesto Marenchin and Dwaye Goscinski. Singlespeed racers have done very well overall this entire year in the NUE Series and I'm sure this trend will continue. I'm very lucky that this race was not meaningful for me to capture my fifth straight NUE Series SS Championship because I know that winning future championships will not be easy with the fast group of guys doing these races. See you at the races next year, my NUE Series friends!<br />
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Oh, and to the FOOLS that sabotaged the course markings, go find something productive to do with all the free time you seem to have!<br />
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Happy Trails... Gerry<br />
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<br />Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8918390575797674512.post-5285080453306348892013-08-20T22:21:00.000-04:002013-08-20T22:22:39.064-04:00Live Free and Bike<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_8KonFBXY-RhBlsXwogYyKpsZHw5TX6HML0NDFd-IBodc8YA_52HmcXOcZ7qdhPKSwM19UBfgMDNGGuj3s6OsZIh9RWZvODWOzgqorApUb-DMd2c7nGykHb9V46sBoMVpNNUM4U90pQX5/s1600/hampLOGO.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_8KonFBXY-RhBlsXwogYyKpsZHw5TX6HML0NDFd-IBodc8YA_52HmcXOcZ7qdhPKSwM19UBfgMDNGGuj3s6OsZIh9RWZvODWOzgqorApUb-DMd2c7nGykHb9V46sBoMVpNNUM4U90pQX5/s320/hampLOGO.jpg" width="320" /></a>In 1809, General John Stark, a Revolutionary War Soldier from New Hampshire, declined an invitaition to a Battle of Bennington reunion because he was ill. Since he could not make the event, he sent a letter with the quote "<i style="background-color: white; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19.1875px;">Live free or die: Death is not the worst of evils." </i>to be read for the toast. New Hampshire later used part of this toast for their State motto: Live Free or Die. I like this State motto because of how it shows strength and doesn't try to hide behind a more politically correct use of words. I also like how the twelvth race of the NUE Series, The Hampshire 100 in Greenfield, NH decided to partly use this motto for their race logo. Yes, freedom and bike riding go hand-in-hand for me, my friends.<br />
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Not only does the Hampshire 100 have a cool logo, but they also have one awesome 100 mile mtb race. The Hampshire 100 has a good mix of trails to make it a tough and interesting course. Additionally, the race is organized very well and also does a great job at supporting all the riders before, during and after the race. And, for having one of the smallest field of riders, this race has one of the best/deepest payouts. I think other NUE promoters should considering using this type of <a href="http://www.efta.com/PDF/2013/cash%20prizing%20grid.pdf" target="_blank">payout structure.</a><br />
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After getting my fifth NUE Series Race win at the Widerness 101 at the end of July, I almost thought about not doing the Hampshire 100. I started to think that there was more to lose than there was to gain by going. But, then I remembered the fun I had at the race last year and also decided that doing another 100 mile race before the Fool's Gold NUE Series Championship Race would be good "training." As I have said before, there is no way to replicate racing and I knew that I needed to keep racing in order to be fast at Fool's Gold in September.<br />
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The Hampshire 100 is not a friendly singlespeeder course, at least at the start. The race begins on fast dirt/paved roads and rail-to-trails before leading the riders to a few very steep and technical climbs. The course then becomes pretty friendly to singlespeed bike use when it goes into mostly double and single track trails during the second half of the course. After looking at previous race times, I decided to use a gear that was way too low last year. It was okay for the second part of the course, but caused me to lose a ton of time on the fast stuff. Learning my lesson from last year, I decided to use a much stiffer gear this year and I've got to say that I liked the course a lot more with the harder gear. I also added a suspension fork to my bike this year and I'm sure these two changes are what allowed me to ride a faster time this year.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look at that Team CF contingency at the starting line!</td></tr>
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With the use of a higher gear, I was able to hang with the lead pack until the first long, steep and technical climb, which was about 20-25 miles into the race. I even helped take some pulls at the front of this group because I didn't see any other SS racers in the small pack of about ten riders and I wanted to gain as much time as possible on the others racing in my category. After I was dropped from the lead group, I was caught by my teammate Jesse Kelly and a couple of other guys. Unfortunately, this group did not stick together too long and I soon found myself riding alone.<br />
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I rode alone for a long while and towards the end of the last lap was starting to dread the the fast section of course at the start of lap number two. But, as I entered the finishing area, I saw another rider ahead of me. I was hoping to catch a draft from this rider after the transition area, so I made a fast pit stop at the start/finish line area to pick-up my waiting CarboRocket fluids. My pace on the fast roads didn't slow down much because my bigger gear allowed me to keep moving faster than last year, but I still wasn't going as fast as I could with having the assistance of a geared rider with me. I kept looking over my shoulder, but saw no one around to assist me. <br />
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On a section of course that runs along side of a railroad track, there was a bridge that required a mandatory dismount off the bike. After I got across this section, I decided to stop and take a leak. Not only did it feel good to do that, but I also saw another rider coming across the bridge just as I finished my business. What a great time to stop, I thought to myself, as I prepared to give chase. After he crossed the bridge, I jumped on his wheel and caught an awesome draft. Even if I could not actually draft on a lot of the stuff we rode, I was certainly riding faster by having a geared rider with me.<br />
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Eventually, there was another one of those long, steep and technical climbs on the course that required me to push my SS bike. It was at this climb, about 80 miles into the race, where I was left to ride alone once again. This time, however, I at least had 100K riders in front of me to catch. I always enjoy the hunt of chasing riders in front of me down, even if they are a lap behind and in a different race.<br />
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The next twenty miles went well and were a lot of fun. I didn't see anyone chasing me, so I rode at a comfortably fast pace. I didn't want to take any unnecessary risks, but at the same time, I set a personal goal before the race to beat an overall finishing time of eight hours. Keeping this pace meant I had to go over 26 minutes faster than I did last year, but I knew it was possible with the bigger gear I was using and having this goal kept me motivated throughout the entire race.<br />
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Watch this 13 second video to get a feel of what this course is like.</div>
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By the end of the race, I was able to finish seven seconds ahead of my eight hour goal to take the singlespeed category win. It was certainly a perfect way for me to keep my focus on winning a fifth straight NUE Series Championship. I also had the chance to put a few new parts to the test during this race. I switched over to <a href="http://www.xpedo.com/products/pedals/mtb/84/m-force-8-cr" target="_blank">Xpedo M-Force 8 CR Pedals</a> a couple of weeks ago and have raced on them twice. These pedals are great! They have a positive engagement and release; spin super smoothly; and definitely held up to abuse of the New Hampshire rocks this weekend. I also raced on a pair of mtb tubular wheels/tires at the Hampshire 100. The only thing I can say about this experience is to give the comparison of the feeling I had switching from riding on tires with tubes to a tubeless set-up. Yes, it's that noticeable! After doing this race on tubulars, I can now understand why many of the World Cup racers are using them.<br />
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Team CF had a great showing at this race with four riders finishing in the top ten overall: Christian Tanguy in second, Rob Spreng in fourth, Jesse Kelly in tenth and me in seventh overall. Way to go team! Also, I cannot end this post without saying thanks to race promoter Randi Whitney, her support team and all the volunteers that made this race so good! Remember to Live Free and Bike!<br />
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Happy Trails... Gerry<br />
<br />Gerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16809029090580983646noreply@blogger.com5