The Burn - 2 Crucial Errors

The Burn lived up to it's name today. It burned!! My race was okay, but it could have been much better if not for two crucial errors.

Crucial Error Number 1: My pre-race prep was perfect up until last night. I had eaten healthy and slept good on Wednesday thru Thursday night. Last night I needed to get to bed by 10:30 to get 8 hours of sleep and was all set to go until I flipped on the TV for some reason. The movie Clear and Present Danger was on and I managed to get hooked. Why! Why would I value watching Harrison Ford avenge the government's wrong doings in drug cartel ridden Colombia over getting a good nights rest the night before a race? I don't know, but I did! I woke up this morning after a rotten night's sleep feeling well - rotten!

Crucial Error Number 2: As Jo and I headed out to meet Doug we stopped for a bagel on the way. I got a cinnamon raisin bagel with two eggs plain. For an after race treat I ordered a cinnamon sugar bagel with cream cheese. After finishing off the egg bagel I was still hungry so I had ate half of the cinnamon sugar bagel stacked with 1/2" of cream cheese. I'm lactose intolerant and never eat cream cheese. I'll just say it did me wrong... One led to the other. My lack of discipline lead to being tired and not thinking straight.

Jo, Doug and I carpooled to the race where we met Jon, another Phoenix Multisport team member. We set up in on the shores of picturesque Lake Wellington. It was beautiful. Jo took wonderful care of us by wiping down our bikes and heading out on the course to take pictures. Most pictures were taken by Jo.

Lake Wellington

As Doug, Jon and I headed out to warm up I felt terrible. I could have just laid down in the grass and gone to sleep. We didn't ride far, but I couldn't get my heart rate up. I knew as soon as I got my bike the race would be a painful one.

Jo

Doug

Jon

The Burn is done a time-trial format to minimize trail erosion and ensure protection of two endangered species, the Preble's Jumping Mouse and Pawnee Montane Skipper butterfly. This means riders start alone on the course in 30 second intervals. My start time for the 22 mile course was 10:27am. Doug started 4 minutes and Jon started about 30 minutes after me.

Preble's Jumping Mouse

Pawnee Montane Skipper Butterfly

The Start Gate

I finished my pathetic warm up about 5 minutes before my start time and after the last of many cream cheese induced "pit stops" made it to the line at 10:26. As the official counted down I tried set up a positive mindset by being grateful I had the opportunity to race no matter how bad I felt.

Left the start gate at 10:27 exactly. The course headed out of Lake Wellington on a long fire road descent. The fire road was riddled with ruts which were hard to see through the harsh shadows of the trees above. More than once I was surprised by a rut hiding in what I thought was a smooth line. It was an odd feeling starting out a race completely alone. My anxiety level was high as I waited for the guy behind me to catch me on the descent. Luckily the first descent was the only part of the course that didn't favor the Superfly. Overall the bike performed fantastically.

Singletrack Climb

At the bottom of the descent the course made a sharp left turn into a long and steady single track climb feature the only tech section of the entire course. Jo and I rode the trail last weekend so I knew exactly how to manage my output level. I passed her half way up and she snapped a couple pics. I definitely was not feeling well, but that's how it goes with some races so I just tried not to bury myself on the climb. At the top, the course opened up into a long flat followed by a fun, flowing down hill. My poor feelings were made better when I started to catch riders ahead of me.

Alex

Doug

Jon

After the descent the course started the first of two long climbs back to the finish. On the first single track climb I finally felt my form and was able to make up some time. I passed a half dozen riders. On my old bike climbing was nothing but damage control, but on the Superfly I found myself using the climbs to gain more position than anywhere else. This is normal for strong climbers, but new to me.

The Only Tech Section

After a sweet Buffalo Creek single track descent the course dropped out into the same fire road it started on, only this time it was 3 miles straight up hill and I my rotten feelings were back. I just couldn't get my body to go to threshold. Normally if I don't feel well I can at least dig deep in the well and suffer, but not today. It was all I could do to turn the cranks over in a pathetic slow slog to the up finish. It seemed like it would never end. I mentally battled a barrage of negativity by taking in the beauty of my surroundings and by listing all of the things in my life I have to be grateful for. It worked and my long, slow churn up the rutted hill was metaphoric of clawing my way out of my mental pit of despair.

The Burn (literally)

At the top I downshifted and mushed has hard as I could on the short flat to the finish. As I rolled across I was just happy it was over. I ended up in 4th place out of 13 in my age group. Even though I could have done better on more sleep and less cream cheese, I'm happy with my results and left the race with a heightened level of gratitude. After the race Jon came to the rescue buying Cokes and Mountain Dews, followed by burrittos and dips in the lake.

Jo after the Race

Our Crew

Farmer's Tan

The Burn (pre-race)

In my last training update I was debating doing THE BURN, a 22 mile mountain bike time-trail race in Buffalo Creek. The problem was I couldn't afford to take off work tomorrow (Saturday) for the race. Well I just happened to have some vacation time in the bank so I can have my cake and eat it too. Or more appropriately do the race and eat! My start time is 10:27am. Wish me luck!

Course Map (I'll be doing the long course)

Graveyard Trees

I was at the family graveyard last month for a celebration and couldn't help but take a couple shots of these trees. I really liked how the tree's snaking branches complimented the aged granite of the head stones. I used HDR to capture the shadows without bleaching out the highlights. The trade off is a loss of crispness when compared to a normal dynamic range image, but the overall effect warrants it.

Training Update 5-26-08

I tried to get back on track last week riding every day but Friday. I rode both Road and Mountain, balancing increased knee pain with the need to maintain some fitness. The highlight of the week was another Buffalo Creek Ride with Jo on Saturday. It was a beautiful day and we had a great ride, although we were both pretty fatigued and I forgot my camera like an idiot. Argh!! We rode a 25 mile loop covering about half of the course of a race called The Burn. The Burn is a time trial type race covering two loops on Buffalo Creeks epic smooth single track. It takes place this Saturday and I'm very tempted to race it. I think the course suits my strengths and on the Superfly I could do well. The problem is I'm poor right now and am supposed to work Saturday. I could easily drop my trip and do the race, but I might have to eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the next 10 days as a result. My next scheduled race is the Laramie Enduro, an 80 mile race in Laramie, WY, that takes place in late July. I'd like to do a race or two before the Laramie Enduro and The Burn would be super fun. Hmm decisions...

Sunday Jo and I did a quick road ride up Lefthand Canyon and this time I didn't forget my camera.

Here's a choppy YouTube video of our descent.

The Superfly is Superfly!

First impressions (as promised): The Superfly is superfly! I could end the post right here, the title says it all.

The Superfly

I've had the Superfly 3 weeks now and I am amazed at how much it has improved my riding. I can climb at a whole different level than before. Once those big 29" wheels spool up on flats, moderate climbs and descents you can maintain road bike speeds. Today on Marshall Road, I passed 2 road bikers on the Superfly trying to beat an encroaching thunderstorm home. Their shocked, indignant looks as I roared by on my knobby tires was worth a thousand bucks! The Superfly's only real liability is on rocky and loose technical descents. I'm still learning the bike, but my descending has slowly improved. The carbon frame along with low tubeless tire pressures soak up a majority of bumps. 20psi is perfect for technical riding. On most trails if I pick my lines with surgical precision and keep an "active" form, I'm as fast or faster than I was on my old 4" travel Santa Cruz Superlight.

Two Weeks ago Doug and I headed up to Buffalo Creek for the first ride of the season there. Buffalo Creek has smooth, fast single track that carves its way through the high foothills of the Front Range. It snakes through different burn areas of past forest fires treating riders to varied scenery and terrain. Although not technical, it's flowing single track is some of the best in the area. It was the perfect place to get acquainted with the Superfly.

Buff Creek Single Track

After a spirited drive in the M Coupe down windy Pine Valley Road, we started out a different trail head than normal. Doug knows the trails much better than myself so he lead the way. He planned a 20 mile ride with 3 long climbs. On the first climb it was refreshing how light and fast the Superfly felt, even though my knee hurt a bit. At the top of the climb the conifer forest opened up into a recovering burn area. It had been a couple years since the fire and the new growth filled the air with rich smells of spring. Juvenile Columbines and other wildflowers were just breaking ground.

Recovering Burn Area

Columbines and Wildflowers

The trail flowed through the rolling hills along the forest-burn boundary for a couple miles before a three way junction. At the junction there was a strong campfire smell in the air, but when we looked at the map there wasn't a camp ground for miles. I could see smoke just past the junction so we rode over to investigate. We found a huge swath of charred ground with burning hot spots in some areas. I'm not sure if was a controlled burn or wildfire set by lightning the night before, but it was almost out and contained by the road we were on. It made me wonder how many small fires go unnoticed this time of year when the forest is still wet from Spring runoff.

Fresh Burn

Hot Spot

Junction

After the junction our route treated us to a long, fast weaving down hill. I quickly figured out to go fast on the 29er I needed to carve my turns deeper than on a 26" bike. As I gained a feel for the "edge" my confidence and speed improved. It's such a satisfying feeling to carve the Superfly through turns, much more so than my Santa Cruz. Near the bottom of the descent the trail flattened out and I closed the gap behind Doug. I just happened to be looking at his rear tire, about 10 feet back, when it exploded in a spray of mist. The mist was Stan's tubeless tire sealant and the explosion was caused by a 2" gash in the middle of the tread. Dumbfounded, we found the cause to be the remnants of a stick wedged deep in the rim tape of his wheel. We concluded the tire must have been defective as in my 12 years of riding I've never seen anything like it.

Problem

Solution

The problem was that even though he had a spare tube, there was no way it would hold pressure with such a gaping hole in the tire. Doug had duct tape, but it wouldn't stick to the inside of the tire because it was soaked in Stans sealant. I've used dollar bills to fix holes in tires before, but neither one of us had brought any cash out in the woods. As I enjoyed a GU the solution hit me. The wrapper would make a great double layered, water proof bandaid. It worked. Just below us the trail crossed a fire road which was a perfect bail out to Pine Valley Road. The GU wrapper held the entire 8 miles on the pavement back to the car!

8 Miles and Still Holding

When Chickens Fly

Or should I say How Chickens Fly! This was on the Oz Report recently. My apologies to the Hang Gliding readers as they have already seen it, but I thought the non-hang gliders might enjoy.

Photo submitted to the Oz Report by Joe Greblo.

Training Update 5-19-09

I rode twice last week (including today). A 2.5 hour road ride Wednesday and a 3 hour mountain bike ride today. Work and heading to West Virginia to go rafting kept me off the saddle. My knee is hurting in new and different ways so only riding twice was a good break for it. I'm going to get a bike fit on the Superfly soon, hopefully that will yield some answers. Here are a couple Greenbrier Race shots Chad sent me.

Off the Line



Muddy Descent



Andrew Handing me Water at the Feed Zone (Stitched)

South Side

Utah Trip Continued... We woke up early on Sunday to fly the South Side of Point of the Mountain. Adam and I set up the Spectrum while Jeff set up his competition tuned Wills Wing Talon C2. When Jeff first told me over the phone of his custom gray and green stripped color scheme I was skeptical, but in person I was awestruck. The green lit up against the gray sail like a neon light. The clean, knife edged glider in Jeff's expert hands was a sight to behold against a back drop of clumsy lumbering paragliders. Adam and I were amazed at how much energy the glider retained and how well Jeff could fly it at it's limits. Jeff has a great blog post with awesome pics Here.

Jeff Practicing his Superhero Moves

A Paraglider Tormenting his Dog (I guess their good for something)

Jeff after he Buzzed Bill's Tandem

I flew a couple more times, but back pain eventually led me back to Earth. It was frustrating that it hurt to fly, but that was my own fault for not staying in flying shape over the winter. My personal frustrations crumbled under the joy of hanging out with good friends in the place I learned to hang glide.

After flying we stopped for another burrito and more Utah culture shock on the way to the airport. Adam impressed us with an science legend about how a helium balloon will behave in a moving vehicle. He claimed that it would lean in the direction of acceleration or turn instead of opposite it like every other object in the vehicle due to being lighter than air and being displaced by it. Jeff and I wouldn't take him for his word so we headed to the flower store for a helium balloon to test the theory on the way to the airport.

It worked, I'll let the pics finish the story.

Shadow Bit me in the Ass

Utah Trip Continued... Shadow bit me in the Ass, but I had it coming.

Two Notable Point of the Mountain Characters - Shadow and John F.

Shadow and I go back a few years, but I don't think he remembered me from previous meetings at the Point of the Mountain. Shadow is Dan's Australian Cattle Dog. Jeff, Dave, Dan, Greg and I were standing around after Adam had launched. I was riling him up and making him chase me while Adam was benching up above us. Dan said "Don't do that, he'll bite you in the ass."; but I didn't listen and sure enough he bit me in the ass. It hurt. The kind of hurt that doesn't go away, just throbs for hours, but I didn't mind. It was good to hang with the old boy and play a bit. Here's a sequence of Shadow doing 360 aerials and doggy Mctwists.