Short version -
5:36:xx 8OA - 2nd 40-44 - lots of mud, pain and beer
Long boring version
Alarm went off way too early. 4:40 is just a ridiculous time to get up to do anything for “fun”. Met at KAlber’s place at 5. Yoda and I drove his van as he was riding with his buddy from NH. Starting raining on the drive down. While not excited about racing in the rain, having packed a ridiculous amount of gear [like 3 pairs of sneakers, 2 pairs of bike shoes and every conceivable piece of clothing] I figured I could make it work. Could not see anything on the long turny drive up Mohonk in the rain and fog and figurered it would be a lot of fun to ride down later. Ran into the usual crowd at the Gazebo. Tetsuoni had his kilt on and bagpipes nearby. It was 7:00 on a Sunday morning and there were Kegs on ice. All was right with the world.
I happened to be walking in front of the Gazebo holding my Flag golf umbrella when the national anthem started. Fortuitous but pretty cool.
Only issue I had was that my front brake was rubbing on the borrowed race wheel [thanks again Catskill Mountain Multisport and Tetsuoni] Had it adjust to what I thought was great before the trip down. Was pretty much something I had to live with at that point. Did not seem that bad.
Watched the long course people head out. Always feel bad for them the sorry bastards. Never doing that. Bout 125 in the F1 field. It was for sure seemed like where all the action was.
Decided to go with the trail shoes as it was pretty muddy. ST crowd was front but off center on the line mostly cause Yoda was too tall to stand in the middle. From about the first 20 yards ML took off with a few folks. There was not much of the usual heroics with people going out way too fast. I think the mud had people in a subdued mood, like wow this is going to suck so no rush sorta thing. I ran with Yoda for the fist half and then he put about a minute into me by the end. Pace felt quick but very reasonable. Footing was decent but wet as not that many people had been through at that point. First run was generally uneventful. KDW came into transition right behind me. It felt pretty warm although it was raining HARD at that point. Did not put on a jacket. Yoda, KDW and I all got on the bikes within a few seconds of each other.
The first half mile or so is on dirt. The dirt was mud. It was scary. Had zero desire to crash in the mud within a half mile of transition so I took it easy. Once we turned on to the pavement and started the mile long climb Yoda and KDW took off. Hate freakin skinny guys. This is the file for the climb:
Mohonk climb 1:
Duration: 7:17
Norm Power: 323
VI: 1.01
Distance: 1.013 mi
Elevation Gain: 454 ft
Elevation Loss: 1 ft
Grade: 8.5 % (453 ft)
I did not get dropped as bad as I thought. Being not a huge fan of descending in the rain I took it really easy on the way down Mohonk. I have no desire to ever post another RR with bloody pics in the tag line. Got to the bottom and settled in. Passed the aforementioned friend of KAlber’s from NH at the start of the Minewaska climb as he was on the side of the road. He held his broken chain up. Guess not. I note that after getting a ride back to transition he did a couple of run loops for fun. Interesting choice. About a mile later passed KDW who was changing a flat on the front. Figured that was the last I would see of him. All and all I got around the first loop about exactly as planned. Here in the file:
AZ loop 1:
Duration: 1:37:34
Norm Power: 267
VI: 1.16
Distance: 28.897 mi
Elevation Gain: 2345 ft
Elevation Loss: 2331 ft
Grade: 0.0 % (14 ft)
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 553 230 watts
Cadence: 31 218 87 rpm
Speed: 0 44.7 17.8 mph
Pace 1:20 0:00 3:22 min/mi
Hub Torque: 0 51 11 lb-in
Altitude: 476 1618 910 ft
Crank Torque: 0 767 230 lb-in
VI is huge. Last year I rode it at 1.07. Think a big part of that was not pushing the pedals on the downhills really at all.
Did a pretty quick transition. Went with the muddy wet trail shoes again. They felt like they weighed about a hundred pounds. Tetsuoni told me that I was 3 minutes in back of Yoda and 12 on ML. Ok. As I was running through the gazebo I say KDW getting off his bike. Crap.
Second run was OK. Felt like I was moving pretty well. Conditions on the trail were a lot worse at this point. Had to pay attention to the footing. Almost crashed into the tree on the part before the second plank bridge section. Was “power hiking” the steep section in an effort to keep my heart rate reasonable so that I was able to run pretty fast on the flat and downhill sections. That seems to be a good plan for this course. When I got to the aid station the first time KDW was right behind me and ML was there but passing it the second time. The run course at AZ is a hard to describe helix thing that twists back on itself somehow. I have no clue how and am always really turned around but you go by the same aid station twice. KDW passed me and that was the last I saw of him, well until later when I crossed the line and he was in dry clothes holding a beer anyhow.
I had been dreading running out of the woods and getting back on the bike for the 2nd time. Thought it would be hateful but when I was doing it really did not seem all that bad. The rain had stopped at that point [briefly]. I grabbed the dry bike shoes in transition while the Race Director personally serenaded me on the bag pipes playing If you think I’m sexy. Doubt you will get that level of personal attention at a WTC event?
All seemed well until I started pedaling. It was obvious very quick that something was very wrong. Legs would not turn over. Getting up the dirt hill out of transition was a problem. Had no power at all. The joule was alternating between flashing “weak” and “pussy”. I honestly thought I was having some sort of a medical problem and would have to drop out of the race. Thought there was no way I could make it up the climb. Thank goodness for 34/26 as I managed to get up the climb without falling over. Barely. This is a little longer piece showing the same climb as before so not an exact match but you will get the point:
Mohonk Lap 2:
Duration: 9:23
Work: 138 kJ
TSS: 9.9 (intensity factor 0.794)
Norm Power: 249
VI: 1.02
Distance: 1.03 mi
Elevation Gain: 450 ft
Elevation Loss: 20 ft
Yep. Was trying as hard or harder and working with 75 watts less. A 9 plus minute mile on the bike is a BAD sign. Not good as there was another 2000 feet or so of climbing to come. Started raining hard again out on the other side of the course. Started to feel a little better but it was clear that I was shelled. Thought I might be totally bonked so I took in a bunch of the infinit bottle I had. That might have been it or helped, not really sure. Had what should have been plenty of calories. Tried to stay as aero as possible and get the most speed as possible out of the few watts I had left. The big descent off of Minnewaska was even scarier the second time as the fog was thick. That is usually an awesome view but could barely see the guard rails. Was expecting a ton of people to start flying by me. Never happened. Never saw anyone in the F1 the whole second bike loop somehow. I think they were all near death as well. Rolled up on stillrolling [who was foolishly doing the ITT] with about 5 or 6 miles to go and we provided each other some comic relief on the way in. The second loop took forever which makes perfect sense as I positive split it by 12 minutes with a VI that would kill Lakerfan.
AZ loop 2:
Duration: 1:49:06
Norm Power: 219
VI: 1.15
Distance: 28.879 mi
Elevation Gain: 2454 ft
Elevation Loss: 2728 ft
Grade: -0.2 % (-274 ft)
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 441 190 watts
Cadence: 36 201 78 rpm
Speed: 0 42.5 15.9 mph
Pace 1:25 0:00 3:47 min/mi
Hub Torque: 0 48 11 lb-in
Altitude: 442 1632 838 ft
Crank Torque: 0 863 214 lb-in
Muddy bike
Was thrilled to be off the bike. Although it was raining again at that point and I knew the trail was a mess I decided to go with dry socks and race flats for the final loop. Even took off my soaked gloves and ditched the hat. Needed to be as light as possible. The start of the “run” was ugly. About half way through the rolling meadow section I got the feeling in my feet and started to loosen up a bit. Trail was pretty much disgusting at this point. Thought I was going to lose a shoe in the muck [bunch of people did]. Walked/powerhiked the uphill parts again but was moving pretty good on the flats and down hills. I had not seen anyone since KDW passed me hours ago and figured that if I kept moving well there was no way anyone was going to catch me as anyone who was not near death would have caught me a long time before. Can’t really imagine a senario where someone manages to conserve enough energy to have any zip for the last run loop. When I got near the top of the course the second time I caught a glimpse of Yoda across the hairpin. Because I am a total jackass I yelled “Yoda you skinny F***” or something like that and immediately regretted giving him the warning. Pretty sure that would be in the “what not to do” section of racing tactics. Managed to run with and then catch and pass him as the trail goes behind the Gazebo with about a mile to go. He passed me back on the final steep part. I ran on his shoulder thinking for some reason I could pass him at the very end. That was stupid as well. Should have gone by him on the downhill part and just hoped his will was broken. Anyhow, he out kicked me across the field the last few hundred yards. Had zero ability to go with him. Did not really even care. 5:36:xx.
In serious need of dry clothes
Was very happy to be done. Scarfed some chili, caffeine and a bunch of water. Think I was pretty dehydrated out there. The head brewer from Rhinebeck brewery showed up just about then to supplement the kegs of keegans with their brew. As I am a “friend of the brewery” apparently I rated a glass to drink out of while we waited for the awards which was nice. Turned out KDW passed a few others and was 4th OA with almost perfectly even bike loops his first time seeing the course notwithstanding a flat. He could give ML trouble if he keeps coming back. Had the usual very good time with the gang and the Candian Womens. Hard to beat AZ even on a rainy muddy day.
A few takeaways:
F1 is a hard format. 10 Miles of trail running shreds the legs. Need to plan accordingly if I do this race again. Was very concerned about my fitness level mid race but am now pretty happy with it. Also very happy that I did not reinjure or further injure the achilles thing I have going on. That is awesome. I also did not fall down once all day. That is a miracle as I have been averaging one crash per run loop when the course was dry.
5:36:xx 8OA - 2nd 40-44 - lots of mud, pain and beer
Long boring version
Alarm went off way too early. 4:40 is just a ridiculous time to get up to do anything for “fun”. Met at KAlber’s place at 5. Yoda and I drove his van as he was riding with his buddy from NH. Starting raining on the drive down. While not excited about racing in the rain, having packed a ridiculous amount of gear [like 3 pairs of sneakers, 2 pairs of bike shoes and every conceivable piece of clothing] I figured I could make it work. Could not see anything on the long turny drive up Mohonk in the rain and fog and figurered it would be a lot of fun to ride down later. Ran into the usual crowd at the Gazebo. Tetsuoni had his kilt on and bagpipes nearby. It was 7:00 on a Sunday morning and there were Kegs on ice. All was right with the world.
I happened to be walking in front of the Gazebo holding my Flag golf umbrella when the national anthem started. Fortuitous but pretty cool.
Only issue I had was that my front brake was rubbing on the borrowed race wheel [thanks again Catskill Mountain Multisport and Tetsuoni] Had it adjust to what I thought was great before the trip down. Was pretty much something I had to live with at that point. Did not seem that bad.
Watched the long course people head out. Always feel bad for them the sorry bastards. Never doing that. Bout 125 in the F1 field. It was for sure seemed like where all the action was.
Decided to go with the trail shoes as it was pretty muddy. ST crowd was front but off center on the line mostly cause Yoda was too tall to stand in the middle. From about the first 20 yards ML took off with a few folks. There was not much of the usual heroics with people going out way too fast. I think the mud had people in a subdued mood, like wow this is going to suck so no rush sorta thing. I ran with Yoda for the fist half and then he put about a minute into me by the end. Pace felt quick but very reasonable. Footing was decent but wet as not that many people had been through at that point. First run was generally uneventful. KDW came into transition right behind me. It felt pretty warm although it was raining HARD at that point. Did not put on a jacket. Yoda, KDW and I all got on the bikes within a few seconds of each other.
The first half mile or so is on dirt. The dirt was mud. It was scary. Had zero desire to crash in the mud within a half mile of transition so I took it easy. Once we turned on to the pavement and started the mile long climb Yoda and KDW took off. Hate freakin skinny guys. This is the file for the climb:
Mohonk climb 1:
Duration: 7:17
Norm Power: 323
VI: 1.01
Distance: 1.013 mi
Elevation Gain: 454 ft
Elevation Loss: 1 ft
Grade: 8.5 % (453 ft)
I did not get dropped as bad as I thought. Being not a huge fan of descending in the rain I took it really easy on the way down Mohonk. I have no desire to ever post another RR with bloody pics in the tag line. Got to the bottom and settled in. Passed the aforementioned friend of KAlber’s from NH at the start of the Minewaska climb as he was on the side of the road. He held his broken chain up. Guess not. I note that after getting a ride back to transition he did a couple of run loops for fun. Interesting choice. About a mile later passed KDW who was changing a flat on the front. Figured that was the last I would see of him. All and all I got around the first loop about exactly as planned. Here in the file:
AZ loop 1:
Duration: 1:37:34
Norm Power: 267
VI: 1.16
Distance: 28.897 mi
Elevation Gain: 2345 ft
Elevation Loss: 2331 ft
Grade: 0.0 % (14 ft)
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 553 230 watts
Cadence: 31 218 87 rpm
Speed: 0 44.7 17.8 mph
Pace 1:20 0:00 3:22 min/mi
Hub Torque: 0 51 11 lb-in
Altitude: 476 1618 910 ft
Crank Torque: 0 767 230 lb-in
VI is huge. Last year I rode it at 1.07. Think a big part of that was not pushing the pedals on the downhills really at all.
Did a pretty quick transition. Went with the muddy wet trail shoes again. They felt like they weighed about a hundred pounds. Tetsuoni told me that I was 3 minutes in back of Yoda and 12 on ML. Ok. As I was running through the gazebo I say KDW getting off his bike. Crap.
Second run was OK. Felt like I was moving pretty well. Conditions on the trail were a lot worse at this point. Had to pay attention to the footing. Almost crashed into the tree on the part before the second plank bridge section. Was “power hiking” the steep section in an effort to keep my heart rate reasonable so that I was able to run pretty fast on the flat and downhill sections. That seems to be a good plan for this course. When I got to the aid station the first time KDW was right behind me and ML was there but passing it the second time. The run course at AZ is a hard to describe helix thing that twists back on itself somehow. I have no clue how and am always really turned around but you go by the same aid station twice. KDW passed me and that was the last I saw of him, well until later when I crossed the line and he was in dry clothes holding a beer anyhow.
I had been dreading running out of the woods and getting back on the bike for the 2nd time. Thought it would be hateful but when I was doing it really did not seem all that bad. The rain had stopped at that point [briefly]. I grabbed the dry bike shoes in transition while the Race Director personally serenaded me on the bag pipes playing If you think I’m sexy. Doubt you will get that level of personal attention at a WTC event?
All seemed well until I started pedaling. It was obvious very quick that something was very wrong. Legs would not turn over. Getting up the dirt hill out of transition was a problem. Had no power at all. The joule was alternating between flashing “weak” and “pussy”. I honestly thought I was having some sort of a medical problem and would have to drop out of the race. Thought there was no way I could make it up the climb. Thank goodness for 34/26 as I managed to get up the climb without falling over. Barely. This is a little longer piece showing the same climb as before so not an exact match but you will get the point:
Mohonk Lap 2:
Duration: 9:23
Work: 138 kJ
TSS: 9.9 (intensity factor 0.794)
Norm Power: 249
VI: 1.02
Distance: 1.03 mi
Elevation Gain: 450 ft
Elevation Loss: 20 ft
Yep. Was trying as hard or harder and working with 75 watts less. A 9 plus minute mile on the bike is a BAD sign. Not good as there was another 2000 feet or so of climbing to come. Started raining hard again out on the other side of the course. Started to feel a little better but it was clear that I was shelled. Thought I might be totally bonked so I took in a bunch of the infinit bottle I had. That might have been it or helped, not really sure. Had what should have been plenty of calories. Tried to stay as aero as possible and get the most speed as possible out of the few watts I had left. The big descent off of Minnewaska was even scarier the second time as the fog was thick. That is usually an awesome view but could barely see the guard rails. Was expecting a ton of people to start flying by me. Never happened. Never saw anyone in the F1 the whole second bike loop somehow. I think they were all near death as well. Rolled up on stillrolling [who was foolishly doing the ITT] with about 5 or 6 miles to go and we provided each other some comic relief on the way in. The second loop took forever which makes perfect sense as I positive split it by 12 minutes with a VI that would kill Lakerfan.
AZ loop 2:
Duration: 1:49:06
Norm Power: 219
VI: 1.15
Distance: 28.879 mi
Elevation Gain: 2454 ft
Elevation Loss: 2728 ft
Grade: -0.2 % (-274 ft)
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 441 190 watts
Cadence: 36 201 78 rpm
Speed: 0 42.5 15.9 mph
Pace 1:25 0:00 3:47 min/mi
Hub Torque: 0 48 11 lb-in
Altitude: 442 1632 838 ft
Crank Torque: 0 863 214 lb-in
Muddy bike
Was thrilled to be off the bike. Although it was raining again at that point and I knew the trail was a mess I decided to go with dry socks and race flats for the final loop. Even took off my soaked gloves and ditched the hat. Needed to be as light as possible. The start of the “run” was ugly. About half way through the rolling meadow section I got the feeling in my feet and started to loosen up a bit. Trail was pretty much disgusting at this point. Thought I was going to lose a shoe in the muck [bunch of people did]. Walked/powerhiked the uphill parts again but was moving pretty good on the flats and down hills. I had not seen anyone since KDW passed me hours ago and figured that if I kept moving well there was no way anyone was going to catch me as anyone who was not near death would have caught me a long time before. Can’t really imagine a senario where someone manages to conserve enough energy to have any zip for the last run loop. When I got near the top of the course the second time I caught a glimpse of Yoda across the hairpin. Because I am a total jackass I yelled “Yoda you skinny F***” or something like that and immediately regretted giving him the warning. Pretty sure that would be in the “what not to do” section of racing tactics. Managed to run with and then catch and pass him as the trail goes behind the Gazebo with about a mile to go. He passed me back on the final steep part. I ran on his shoulder thinking for some reason I could pass him at the very end. That was stupid as well. Should have gone by him on the downhill part and just hoped his will was broken. Anyhow, he out kicked me across the field the last few hundred yards. Had zero ability to go with him. Did not really even care. 5:36:xx.
In serious need of dry clothes
Was very happy to be done. Scarfed some chili, caffeine and a bunch of water. Think I was pretty dehydrated out there. The head brewer from Rhinebeck brewery showed up just about then to supplement the kegs of keegans with their brew. As I am a “friend of the brewery” apparently I rated a glass to drink out of while we waited for the awards which was nice. Turned out KDW passed a few others and was 4th OA with almost perfectly even bike loops his first time seeing the course notwithstanding a flat. He could give ML trouble if he keeps coming back. Had the usual very good time with the gang and the Candian Womens. Hard to beat AZ even on a rainy muddy day.
A few takeaways:
F1 is a hard format. 10 Miles of trail running shreds the legs. Need to plan accordingly if I do this race again. Was very concerned about my fitness level mid race but am now pretty happy with it. Also very happy that I did not reinjure or further injure the achilles thing I have going on. That is awesome. I also did not fall down once all day. That is a miracle as I have been averaging one crash per run loop when the course was dry.
