Today was the first race in the 6/12 hour endurance mountain bike race series by Chain Buster Racing at Heritage Park. These are endurance races where you try to complete as many laps as possible in the time allotted. In this case it happens that there is only a 6 hour option, but the points go to whichever you do in later races, either 6 or 12 hour.
The course this year was 2 miles shorter than last year, and seemed in my opinion to be much improved. The conditions were great considering all the rain, however Heritage Park is quite full of roots so you have to be on your toes.
Race Review.
Something seemed to be in the air today. The energy was almost electric. People that were normally calm and cool before a race were bouncing around. Seems as if the shining sun after days of rain was enough to get people into the mood to ride. I found myself getting antsy before the race started, and normally that is not the case.
Start and Lap 1
Since today was my first time racing with platform pedals and skate shoes, I was not interested in trying to hang with the big boys at the front of the pack. Instead I chose a spot near the middle to rear of the pack so that I would not burn out to quickly. They skipped the lamans style start, and just had us all on our bikes. As the number of riders was lower than that of last year, this was fine with everyone that I was with. At 10:00 AM on the dot, they started the race. Take note, my first lap is almost always my fastest. One of these days I need to learn to pace myself better.
The first lap included the parade lap which takes you out on the finishing gravel road back to the start, and as usual it was the normal chaos. I ended up passing a good number of people before we got to the trail head, and was having a great time. Turns out I should have moved myself up a bit further in the group. It took almost 2 miles to pass a guy that would come to a crawl at any bump, turn, or obstacle. Once I passed him, the first lap proved to be fun and quick. My legs warmed up and I felt good. There were a few climbs that I jumped off and pushed my bike up, but for the most part I was feeling good.
Lap 2.
Once I made it back to the Gwinnett Area Trail Riders (G.A.T.R.) tent, I stopped to drink half a bottle of Cliff Energy Mix and a Gu gel. I felt great on the second lap as well. While on the second lap, I met up with Fred, a fellow G.A.T.R, and we finished the lap together. Overall I was feeling good, but riding on platform pedals did require more muscle than with clipless.
Lap 3.
At this point there was a fair bit of mud on the bike, and my shirt was starting to get soaked with sweat. A quick change out of the clothes, and then Fred and I headed over to the bike wash to do a quick clean of the bikes before heading out. The third lap was going well till about 2/3′s of the way through. At this point when I went to stand up to climb my quadriceps twinged. Not sure if I had pushed them beyond their limits or if they were about to cramp on me. As a result, I had to be careful standing up to climb, and resulted in walking the bike up most of the longer/steeper climbs. Fred left me behind as he was keeping a faster pace on the climbs.
The next issue that I had was on the last fast downhill section of the course. I took a berm to high, and the top washed out on me. My front wheel and bike went one way, I went the other. Luckily, I only bruised my arm, scratched up my knee and leg, and my hip a bit. It could have been much worse. Not being stuck to the pedals can be a real godsend sometimes. I did find out that I bent my rear rotor, but that was fixed well enough by bending it. Even with the wreck I finished the lap in decent time.
Lap 4
Before heading out on lap four, it was time to refuel. Peanut butter and jelly, snickers bar, Cliff drink, and some nuts. I thought that I felt ok, and Fred agreed to head out with me on yet another lap. Five minutes into it I was miserable. My triceps were sore from breaking, my legs felt gassed, and I was ready to throw in the towel. Fred took off, and I just kept plodding along. Before he headed out, I told him I was done. There was no way that I planned on going on a fifth lap. Somewhere during that loop though the food kicked in. I felt better, and decided that a fifth lap was in the works.
Lap 5
I came into the pits feeling like a million dollars. Now don’t get me wrong, I was sore, bruised, and tired, but I was going to get in my 5 laps. I had almost 2 hours to do it in, and even if I had to push my bike around the course I was going to make 5 laps. I tried to talk Fred into going with me, but he was done for the day. Lap 5 was my victory lap. I had done what I set out to do, and enjoyed the ride. My last lap took just under an hour, and was fun.
Overall it was a great day and a great race. The weather held out and the trail was in great shape for all the rain we had received. I raced in “expert class” and came in 14th out of 15 people. At least I was not last. The next race will be May 1st at Ft. Yargo. Had a good time hanging out with the other riders, could not have asked for a better day.
Permanent link to this post (1053 words, estimated 4:13 mins reading time)
