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| Heading out for the 2nd lap |
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| Chris leading out some Roosters |
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| Covered in dust and poop (don't ask) |
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| I could not wait to get my shoes off; not sure how I feel about that bike |
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
100K Photos
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Mt. Ogden 100K Take Two
Yesterday started early, early, early. I set an alarm for 3 am so I could take my heart burn meds as this has been really bad the last couple of races. Then I dozed on and off for another hour to start eating breakfast--three hours before hand is the general rule. Then it was just getting ready--water bottles/camelbak filled, check weather, dress appropriately, pack up our stuff and load the car.
We arrived at the event site for the Mt. Ogden 100K about an hour before the scheduled start. I checked my rear tire which I had torn on Thursday. It seemed like it may have lost a bit of air over night. Got my equipment ready. Several trips to the bathroom, per the usual. 7:10 they did call-ups which I found a bit embarrassing, but cool too. And the parade lap started.
Things looked and felt good for the first hour or so. I was excited. And then not so much. Things just went awry. I did not descend well as I was nervous about my tire. This allowed the gap to 2nd and 3rd to grow. I never felt really good going down hill. I was not prepared for the climb up Sardine Peak. It was not necessarily that I had no power, but I felt as if I had no energy even though I had been sucking down calories. Hot spots formed under both my feet making descending almost unbearable. So I had nothing. No climbing. No descending. All I could do was (soft) pedal. At the top of the climb on my second lap, things were really bad. Both my quads were on the verge of cramping. I finished my 5th bottle and had it refilled by the incredibly accommodating individuals at the aid station. I took in some water and forced down a much needed gel. With the long descent, this allowed me to get back on top of my electrolytes.
My feet were still on fire and there was nothing but soft pedaling on the climb back to the finish. I had hoped to finish within seven hours, but watched the time come and go.
Chris had started to come back looking for me. I always feel badly when I am so slow he starts to worry. Besides it reiterates how poorly things had gone.
Crossing the finish line I could not wait to take my shoes off. That was all I could think about. As I stepped off my bike into the grass, my right calf seized. I was writhing in pain as ET looked on desperately trying to help. Ugh! I can't complain though about the timing especially since this same calf woke me up from my slumber early Thursday morning. I guess that should have been an omen.
Post race I hobbled around. The course just beat me up. They did the awards later that night during the Royal Bliss concert. That is right. Awards under stage lights. A big crowd. A band beloved band waiting to play. Pretty cool vibe. That Yeti, Steve, at Snowbasin knows how to put on an event. And he is a pretty cool guy, too. Thanks.
We got home around 11 pm--20 hours after waking. Needless to say, I am still pretty wasted.
We arrived at the event site for the Mt. Ogden 100K about an hour before the scheduled start. I checked my rear tire which I had torn on Thursday. It seemed like it may have lost a bit of air over night. Got my equipment ready. Several trips to the bathroom, per the usual. 7:10 they did call-ups which I found a bit embarrassing, but cool too. And the parade lap started.
Things looked and felt good for the first hour or so. I was excited. And then not so much. Things just went awry. I did not descend well as I was nervous about my tire. This allowed the gap to 2nd and 3rd to grow. I never felt really good going down hill. I was not prepared for the climb up Sardine Peak. It was not necessarily that I had no power, but I felt as if I had no energy even though I had been sucking down calories. Hot spots formed under both my feet making descending almost unbearable. So I had nothing. No climbing. No descending. All I could do was (soft) pedal. At the top of the climb on my second lap, things were really bad. Both my quads were on the verge of cramping. I finished my 5th bottle and had it refilled by the incredibly accommodating individuals at the aid station. I took in some water and forced down a much needed gel. With the long descent, this allowed me to get back on top of my electrolytes.
My feet were still on fire and there was nothing but soft pedaling on the climb back to the finish. I had hoped to finish within seven hours, but watched the time come and go.
Chris had started to come back looking for me. I always feel badly when I am so slow he starts to worry. Besides it reiterates how poorly things had gone.
Crossing the finish line I could not wait to take my shoes off. That was all I could think about. As I stepped off my bike into the grass, my right calf seized. I was writhing in pain as ET looked on desperately trying to help. Ugh! I can't complain though about the timing especially since this same calf woke me up from my slumber early Thursday morning. I guess that should have been an omen.
Post race I hobbled around. The course just beat me up. They did the awards later that night during the Royal Bliss concert. That is right. Awards under stage lights. A big crowd. A band beloved band waiting to play. Pretty cool vibe. That Yeti, Steve, at Snowbasin knows how to put on an event. And he is a pretty cool guy, too. Thanks.
We got home around 11 pm--20 hours after waking. Needless to say, I am still pretty wasted.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Super XC
The Utah State Championship Series has concluded. It's in augural year was absolutely successful from a racer's perspective. A huge thanks to the sponsors (especially Ford!), the staff, and of course the volunteers.
This last event was dubbed a super cross country race meaning it was longer. My three laps, 36 miles, took 3:24. And it burned. The legs. The lungs. The heart (and not in a good way). And it was a bit warm, but not bad.
At the start, I had a good view of all that was taking place. I was off the back for the first bit. I knew I did not want to enter the single track last, but ET, LW, and JK were all wheel to wheel. The only place was in front of ET so I took it. I really did not feel I was up to leading the group but feared getting gapped off in the back.
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| In the front early |
We developed a pattern throughout the race. ET would pass me on the climbs and put some time into me. I would catch her on the descents and put some time into her. While this was carrying on, I still feared that LW would catch us/me at any moment. I was constantly looking for her.
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| Behind ET on the climb |
While I have yet to stand atop the podium in a race this year, I was able to take the series win. I look forward to doing this series again next year. Great venues, well run events, pay-outs, and a great end of the year raffle, the USCS is doing things right.
Sunday, August 14, 2011
You know what really...
...sucks: When you get up early to squeeze in a bike ride before your sisters wedding activities only to get set up and start pedaling up the trail and your perfectly tuned bike won't shift. Then you look down and see that the derailleur ate through the cable. And while I want to be mad at the derailleur, or more importantly the engineers who designed it, I have be upset with myself because this is not the first time said style derailleur has done this. Granted it has not happened in months, but still I am at fault for becoming complacent and not checking it periodically. I would like to say lesson learned, but we will see.
...makes you feel bad. When the morning after your sisters wedding reception where you did not get home until late, you make everyone wait for you to start riding because we had to replace two derailleur cables at 5 am in order to try and make it to PC for a 7 am ride. Seriously, sorry Adam, Keith, Bill, Karl and the gang.
...makes you itchy. The weeds! And while you have "weed armor", sometimes you don't know you need your "weed protection" until too late. There are some pretty weedy sections on the way to deer valley on the P2P course.
...makes you think. When your brother who is in town for the weekend, questions why you keep getting up at 5 am on your days off and the only explanation is to explain you want to ride your bike.
...is a lot of fun. Seeing your brother and his family from California for the first time in a long time and watching his cute little girls play with their only boy cousin. And having the whole family together--five sibling, now four in-laws, three nieces, one nephew, and grandma and grandpa together. So much fun! Welcome to the family, Jay.
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| two remaining strands, but not enough tension to shift. |
...could be irritating: When you rush home, grab another bike to ride because you could still fit some kind of ride in, and it is walk your dog down the middle of the road day in Mapleton. Granted some areas don't have formal side walks, but still the middle of the road?
...makes you understand why motorist don't care for cyclist. When you see two "roadies" (I use that term loosely as they were on road bikes and did have helmets, but I am not sure they really were roadies) blow a stop sign while making a left turn when the car to their left was there before them. It started to roll into the intersection and then had to stop again in order to not hit the two of them. Seriously! Seriously? I will roll a stop sign, but not if I am not the first one there. C'mon guys.
...is ironic. When your husband tries to squeeze in a mtb ride on his sister-in-laws wedding day between the activities only to have it cut short when his derailleur eats through his cable half way through the ride. So then he as to ride it as a single speed back to where the family is hanging out between activities--luckily it was mostly down hill as he was stuck in his 11t cog. As he too had become complacent as it had not happened in a while. |
| cable was completely severed |
...makes you itchy. The weeds! And while you have "weed armor", sometimes you don't know you need your "weed protection" until too late. There are some pretty weedy sections on the way to deer valley on the P2P course.
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| Chris modeling his weed protection-arm coolers and long socks |
...makes you think. When your brother who is in town for the weekend, questions why you keep getting up at 5 am on your days off and the only explanation is to explain you want to ride your bike.
...is a lot of fun. Seeing your brother and his family from California for the first time in a long time and watching his cute little girls play with their only boy cousin. And having the whole family together--five sibling, now four in-laws, three nieces, one nephew, and grandma and grandpa together. So much fun! Welcome to the family, Jay.
Saturday, August 06, 2011
A Little Bit of Everything
It is always a good week when the bike love is shared among the fleet. This week I rode my Superfly, my road bike (twice!0, my single speed and my Hi-Fi. And it was filled with ups and downs.
While the fork on my Superfly was getting some TLC from a neighborhood mechanic, with the help of Adam loaning us an adapter I was able to use my spare Reba. It was short lived though. Chris stole it the next day for his Superfly100 as his shock was also in need of some love.
I rode my single speed with the girls on Thursday. It rained and was muddy so it was a good choice, but then we jumped on the road for a bit where it was only ok. It was fun though and I did not have to worry about any chain suck.
Then Keith joined us for a ride on Friday. I let Chris keep the fork and I rode my Hi-Fi. For a "kids" bike it does pretty well. Starting up the road, I was surprised how heavy and slow it was. Maybe the legs were still tired. I thought back to the Mt. Ogden 100K when I rode--I must have felt phenomenal that day. Something wasn't right, but I did not think much of it. It was creaking and we stopped to take a quick look. Nothing seemed to out of the ordinary other than the noise. The down hill was smooth, flowy and cushy on the full suspension. We climbed some more and I still felt slow and weak. On the final descent back to the car something was really wrong. The rear wheel did not spin while pedaling. It would free wheel but there was a ton of resistance with every pedal stroke. Son of a...! Luckily it was almost all downhill. We limped it back.
Today I used Chris Hi-Fi rear wheel and was surprised how good my little bike felt. There must have been resistance from the start yesterday and I just did not realize it. Today I was back to "normal". We met up with Justin, Richard, Branden, Keith, Tim and Jen for a ride. We started in Mill Creek (I have never been there before today) and climbed up and over to Park City above the Canyons, hit Mid-Mountain, climbed up to the Crest and came back. It was a beautifully, fun ride. Four hours or so in the saddle. No uncharacteristic resistance. Perfect riding for the 1X9 full suspension. It was a great day.
Unbeknownst to us (Chris and myself), we lost Richard on the way back. He took a wrong turn and ended up descending the wrong canyon. I feel terrible. Next time we ride, we will have to use the "buddy system". Sorry Richard. Hopefully, you were able to enjoy the trip down.
On the way home, we stopped by Mad Dog Cycles where Travis helped us replace my rear hub body on my Hi-Fi wheel. I have had the replacement part for about a year or so. Given yesterday's ride, it seemed like the perfect time for the fix. The cassette feels good, so we should be back in business.
While the fork on my Superfly was getting some TLC from a neighborhood mechanic, with the help of Adam loaning us an adapter I was able to use my spare Reba. It was short lived though. Chris stole it the next day for his Superfly100 as his shock was also in need of some love.
I rode my single speed with the girls on Thursday. It rained and was muddy so it was a good choice, but then we jumped on the road for a bit where it was only ok. It was fun though and I did not have to worry about any chain suck.
Then Keith joined us for a ride on Friday. I let Chris keep the fork and I rode my Hi-Fi. For a "kids" bike it does pretty well. Starting up the road, I was surprised how heavy and slow it was. Maybe the legs were still tired. I thought back to the Mt. Ogden 100K when I rode--I must have felt phenomenal that day. Something wasn't right, but I did not think much of it. It was creaking and we stopped to take a quick look. Nothing seemed to out of the ordinary other than the noise. The down hill was smooth, flowy and cushy on the full suspension. We climbed some more and I still felt slow and weak. On the final descent back to the car something was really wrong. The rear wheel did not spin while pedaling. It would free wheel but there was a ton of resistance with every pedal stroke. Son of a...! Luckily it was almost all downhill. We limped it back.
Today I used Chris Hi-Fi rear wheel and was surprised how good my little bike felt. There must have been resistance from the start yesterday and I just did not realize it. Today I was back to "normal". We met up with Justin, Richard, Branden, Keith, Tim and Jen for a ride. We started in Mill Creek (I have never been there before today) and climbed up and over to Park City above the Canyons, hit Mid-Mountain, climbed up to the Crest and came back. It was a beautifully, fun ride. Four hours or so in the saddle. No uncharacteristic resistance. Perfect riding for the 1X9 full suspension. It was a great day.
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| Keith, Me, Tim and Jen (hiding/stretching) |
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| Me, Keith, Tim, Chris, Branden |
On the way home, we stopped by Mad Dog Cycles where Travis helped us replace my rear hub body on my Hi-Fi wheel. I have had the replacement part for about a year or so. Given yesterday's ride, it seemed like the perfect time for the fix. The cassette feels good, so we should be back in business.
Tuesday, August 02, 2011
It's Over
The final ICUP race was held at Snowbasin this weekend. This course is brutal but fun. I felt good enough but could not hang with the true locals who got a gap and rode off the front. ET got by me on the climb, but then lost a chain on the descent allowing me to leap frog her. I thought she would catch me on the climb, but she never did. I kept looking over my shoulder expecting to see her right there.
It was dusty! Crazy how it took until the end of July to get that way.
This weekend was also Chris-N-KC's Weekend of Fun. It started on Friday. We got a condo in Huntsville and invited the team to stay with us. A few obliged. We pre-rode the course, had meat for dinner (and delicious broccoli slaw), and then hung out on the deck over look the lake. Beautiful.
Saturday was overcast and really comfortable for the race. It warmed up for awards. And then it was back to the condo for more food, rest, and relaxation. By early evening it was just Chris and me at the pad. We had an opportunity to spend time with Steve Andrus of SnowBasin and the Mt. Ogden race. Pretty cool.
Sunday I realized why I was so beat up from the race. Well, Chris really did. He asked if my fork was working. I assumed it was, but when I loaded it nothing. It did not budge even though it was unlocked. That made me feel a bit better. Now it is getting some much needed TLC from a mechanic.
We also took Monday off work. We had a reatively lazy morning for a work day. The threat of rain had us move our agenda up a bit. A road ride (yes, you read that right a ride on the road) up and over the Alpine Loop. I think it has been almost two years since I have done that. We got some mist coming down AF canyon but that is all for moisture on the ride. I lack trust for skinny little tires, but warmed up to them a bit by the end. We went out for lunch, watched a movie while it rained and then worked on bikes. We are playing musical forks.
This is going to sound weird, but usually I look forward to returning to work after taking a day or two off. Not so much this time. If I could make it happen, this past weekend would have lasted forever. It was just good times all around.
Thanks to all who participated. We are lucky to have such great friends, team mates, and competitors.
I cannot believe the ICUP is over already. ET went home to melt in Vegas. Summer is coming to a close.
It was dusty! Crazy how it took until the end of July to get that way.
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| ET, KB, SK, KC |
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| Kevin, Kegan, Nick, Chris, Jake, Rich |
Saturday was overcast and really comfortable for the race. It warmed up for awards. And then it was back to the condo for more food, rest, and relaxation. By early evening it was just Chris and me at the pad. We had an opportunity to spend time with Steve Andrus of SnowBasin and the Mt. Ogden race. Pretty cool.
Sunday I realized why I was so beat up from the race. Well, Chris really did. He asked if my fork was working. I assumed it was, but when I loaded it nothing. It did not budge even though it was unlocked. That made me feel a bit better. Now it is getting some much needed TLC from a mechanic.
We also took Monday off work. We had a reatively lazy morning for a work day. The threat of rain had us move our agenda up a bit. A road ride (yes, you read that right a ride on the road) up and over the Alpine Loop. I think it has been almost two years since I have done that. We got some mist coming down AF canyon but that is all for moisture on the ride. I lack trust for skinny little tires, but warmed up to them a bit by the end. We went out for lunch, watched a movie while it rained and then worked on bikes. We are playing musical forks.
This is going to sound weird, but usually I look forward to returning to work after taking a day or two off. Not so much this time. If I could make it happen, this past weekend would have lasted forever. It was just good times all around.
Thanks to all who participated. We are lucky to have such great friends, team mates, and competitors.
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| ICUP Pro W Overall: KC, ET, SK (not pictured) |
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| Mad Dog one the ICUP team competition and were pretty stoked |
I cannot believe the ICUP is over already. ET went home to melt in Vegas. Summer is coming to a close.
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