ChainBuster 3 Hour Race Report

Photo Credit:  Mary Omstead

This race almost did not happen.  The day before, the skies opened up and dumped 1+ inches.  Kudos to the local SORBA chapter for working non-stop (even the day of) to get this trail in shape for the race.  The race was held at the Allatoona trail system.  With the trails being closed for pre-riding the day before, I got there a bit early Saturday morning.  After driving my vehicle through a muddy river (so glad I did not wash her the day before), I registered and then hopped on my bike to ride a lap.

The course was 6.5 miles in length.  Although only 350 feet of climbing per lap, the ups were short, punchy, and always seemed to occur after a sharp turn, so you had no momentum going into the climb.  It was also super tight and twisty with not much passing room.  This would have been a great single speed course.  Unfortunately for me, I only brought my Niner Air 9 RDO as I thought there would be a long flat parade lap that would have put me on the tail end going into the single track.  It turned out that Kenny shortened the parade lap due to a super soggy field.  Grrr!

Tyler Martin calculating the # of brownies to lap ratio.  Tyler Murch deciding if he want to go for 5 laps or finish with just 4 laps, so he can get to the brownies quicker.  And Jeff already stashed 2 brownies away, so he doesn't care.

I knew the start would be crazy and luckily I narrowly avoided a pile up.  Going wide to avoid going down, i lost a few places heading into the single track.  However,  the racers I were behind were a fast bunch, and I was able to ride at tempo.  The first lap was a bit squirrelly as some of the turns were wet and slick.  I was glad to have gotten in a lap prior to the race and knew when and where to proceed with caution.  This allowed me to pass a fair number of racers on lap 1 as they slid off the trail.

I was running Specialized Captain tires. They hooked up in the mud and shed it reasonably well, too.  For the most part, I ran my bike as a single speed, only changing gears in the few flat sections.  Surprisingly, my first lap was my fastest.  Although I could feel the fatigue settle in towards the middle of the third lap, my lap times were pretty consistent.  I did stop after lap 2 and 3 to refuel, probably costing me 20 seconds each time, but I was NOT about to race with a hydration pack.  I will save that for those crazy insane Pisgah all day (and night) romps through the woods.

The race was pretty straight forward to me.  Being in a build period, I was not especially "sparkly,"  but nor was I beat down from the weight room sessions I have been doing.  The legs barked just a little, but livened up when called upon.  I am pleased with where I am now in my training (as opposed to last year when I was recovering from a gluten episode).

Overall Women's Podium

I had a good day in the woods, managed a 1st place, and a REAL set of racing tires, Maxxis Ikon EXO 29'r!  Now this is some rubber I will use.

I like this 3 hour format.. It will fit quite nicely in my lead up to XC Natz in July.  It seems that the older I get, the less time I like spending going around in circles.  I used to love the 12 hour formats in the early 90's, the 6 hour races in the 2000's, and now I am quite happy with only racing 3 hours on a lap course.

I love my SuperSport team!

Snake Creek Gap TT Race Report: The Full Monty

I love maps!

Having spent the first part of 2014 fighting a respiratory infection, my training has been less structured than what was planned.  I was nervous how my body would respond to the demands of The Snake.  Temps were in the upper 20's at the start and I appreciated Paul lending his jacket to me while I waited in line to start.  I was probably about 75 people back.  Not where I wanted to be, but, in the end, it was probably a good thing.

The road leading to the creek was frozen and fast ... and surprisingly, no mud bogs to traverse.  As I settled into a steady tempo, I knew it was going to be a good day.  Funny, I never know how my legs/body/lungs are going to respond until the race starts.  From the time I wake up on race day to I toe the line, there is a nervous energy revving my engine.  Fortunately for me, the diesel was burning clean and the legs were sparkly.

The creek crossing was 4 inches deep.  Half pedaling, I kept my feet dry.  The double track climb up John's Mountain was amazingly dry; there were only a few sketchy muddy spots.  Traffic was heavy, but it kept my RPM's down and allowed for a good thorough warm up.  The same went for the single track over to the forest service road.  I kept my cool, knowing that what energy I did not blow now would be there when I asked for it later.

I had a couple SuperSport Athletic Wear team mates around me.  Tyler Martin just ahead and Randall just behind.  It was motivating to see those green kits ... proud to be racing with a team of good people.  The forest road was closed to vehicular traffic, so I was able to open it up on the descent.  This area had a controlled burn a few weeks ago and the acrid smoky odor was still in the air, but not thick enough where it had any affect on my lungs.

By the time I started climbing up Pine Needle Hill, traffic had cleared and I was in my own little bubble of happiness.  About an hour of racing had gone by and my body was ready to kick it up a notch.  Faith (that's what I call my Niner Jet 9 RDO) was behaving wonderfully.  With flawless shifting and suspension dialed, the trail was as smooth as butter.  Yeah, I name all my bikes ... and I still sleep with my stuffed Dalmation that I have had since I was 4.  You got a problem with that?  Let's settle it on the race course!

The remainder of the first half was in superb condition.  Even the usually muddy uphill leading to the Horn Mountain single track climb was dry and rideable.  Score!  I came into the Snake Creek Gap parking lot at the 1:34 mark.  Not my fastest, but not my slowest either.  I made short work at the pits, swapping bottles and grabbing a gel.

The climb up Middle Mountain is usually a kick in the pants, but today was all about unicorns and rainbows.  Having conserved some energy in the first half, I felt really good.  I slowly reeled in my teammate Tyler on the climbs, but then he would quickly dispatch me on the descents.  This was good motivation for me and kept my mind off any fatigue that might have been slowly making its way into my muscles.

As I came upon the section that I flatted last month, my mantra was "float like a butterfly."  It worked.  A clean run down to the multiple creek crossings.  I caught Tyler on the muddy climb up to "fun" single track.  I goaded him bit, knowing that he had more in him that he was showing.  If the roles were reversed, I would hope that my teammate would do the same.

My bike was pretty clean ... up until this point.

 I rinsed this mud off in my backyard, hoping that it will grow some rocks!

I always look forward to the last technical bit of single track.  Even more so now that I run I-9 wheels.  The instant engagement has allowed me to clean obstacles I have had trouble with in the past and clean other obstacles quicker.

 I came upon another teammate, Lisa, in this section.  She was rockin' the descents, but having a bit of trouble on the steeper climbs.  (I have no doubts that in due time, she will be back to her former mountain goat self).  Even though no words were exchanged, in our own way, we helped each other "get after it."

I opted out of attempting The Wall.  I knew it would be faster and more efficient to just run it and save myself from a potential cramping episode.  Except for a couple sections where I had to run around other racers, everything else was rideable.  I was hoping to catch the coattails of a Big Kahuna on the final pavement descent to the finish, but alas, I was all alone.  So I pedaled, pedaled, pedaled!

I raced it to the finish for a time of 3:32:45.  Not too shabby for not having much of a structured training program the past two months.  Now if I can just finish out the winter healthy and have my Coach break me down and build me up, March should be fantastic!

Schwag!

Snake Creek Gap TT Race Report: The "Lite" Version

Coolest plate ever!

Yesterday, I opted to race the 17 miler.  Due to my immune system's inability to conquer a "wimpy" little cold virus in the usual 3-4 day time frame, I felt that it was wise to not push my luck this early in the season.  And what with starting temps in the 20's and a bottom bracket deep creek crossing, it was a no brainer.

The start of the 17 begins with a 1 mile climb out of the Snake Creek Gap parking lot.  For once, I was grateful to be climbing straight out of the gate.  I was warm in no time; however, the frigid cold air burned my throat and lungs.  Once at the top, my legs came around and I felt good enough to hammer in the big ring.  It is amazing that sometimes no matter how bad (sick) you feel, once you are on the bike, all of that vanishes and a smile comes across your face.

Arond mile 4, I was working my way along the ridge and on a short but fast descent, my rear wheel hit a rock hard enough to know that I probably sustained some damage to the rim.  Sure enough, within 60 seconds, I felt my rear tire get squishy.  Optimistically, I told myself I had just burped the tire, so I gave it a shot of CO2 and motored on.  On the long descent down to the multiple creek crossings, my tire got squishy again.  (insert expletive of choice here, as I think I used all of them)  So I pulled over to assess the damage.  Sure enough, my rim had a dent along with a nice puncture at the tread/sidewall interface.

Has saved me more than once from having to throw a tube in.

As I was working on my fix a flat skills, Zeke stopped to offer assistance.  I told him to go on, but he insisted on staying.  I hated to see his race come to an end, but he told me that he wasn't up to speed today anyways.  I know this not to be the case.  But, as many of you know, Zeke is the epitome of a trail angel.  Two plugs and 5 minutes later (gotta get a helluva lot faster), I was back up and rolling.

Snake bit!

The climb up to the final sag was still frozen and I was able to make good time up to the final single track section.  It was here that I was able to enjoy my Heed slushie and get some calories in for the final approach.  Once I was back in my rocky element, I proceeded to pick my way through the rocks and actually looking forward to The Wall.  Three days ago, I had cleaned it.  I was hungry for a repeat.  If I could do it again, but this time at race pace, I knew I would have a chance of accomplishing it during the 34 in February.  Yes, one of my little goals, 10 years in the making.  

On the descent just prior to the wall, I felt my rear tire getting low.  It was a slow leak around the plugs.  It had been 45 minutes since the repair, so I knew I could finish the race by just stopping a couple times and adding some air.  Whew!

As I approached the run up, I began my mantra:  I know I can, I know I can.  About 2/3 of the way up, there is a rocky outcropping that always gets me:  either my front wheel hits it and I come to a complete stop or my rear wheel spins out.  Well today, I came to a dead stop!  Arrgh!  Not having the trials skilz of Tim Cash, I had to unclip, dab, and push my front tire over, and then I was able to continue motoring on the final 1/3.  So close ...

The remainder of the rock gardens were quite pleasant.  I had the lines dialed in and it seemed mostly effortless.  Aside from the tire, the bike was amazing.  Everything worked, the fork, the drive train, the hubs.  (Last year, I was about ready to have a hissy fit, as my fork and shifting crapped out).

I came acrosss the line in 2:05.  I'll take it.  I am looking forward to redeeming myself on the 34 in February.

Chamois Butt'r's Little Brother and Sister

Everyone knows about world's best chamois cream, but Paceline Products and the Chamois Butt'r line also have a couple other good products as well.  After a solid year of putting them through the works, I can now lavish them with some words of praise.

The Sports Wash is a great addition to the post ride/race clean up protocol.  No water around?  Needing to remove the embrocation?  No worries, just spray liberally to skin and wipe off with a rag or paper towel. With Sports Wash, you have no excuse climbing aboard the podium a dirty mess. It works extremely well at removing embrocation, COMPLETELY, so that you don't have that intense burning sensation on your legs, ALL ... THE ... WAY ... HOME.

Sports Wash contains green tea extract, aloe vera gel, and peppermint. It has a nice fragrance and is non irritating on intact skin.  I would caution its use if you have any road rash or open wounds.

Sports Kit Wash is the go-to cleaner for your high end cycling kits or swimsuits.  It is recommended for handwashing your items, but I have also used it in my washing machine on the delicate cycle.  It does a nice job of removing any Chamois Butt'r residue.  I have also used it as a pre wash, soaking my dirty kits in it, when I didn't have the opportunity of washing them immediately post ride/race.  It won't get heavy mud (think red clay) stains out.  For that, I recommend Progold Degreaser + Wash!  Where I have really noticed its effectiveness is with my swimsuit.  Frequent washing with it has increased the life of my suit; no more "saggy bottom" after a season's use.

So, there you go.  Two more awesome "Made in the USA" products by Paceline Products!

Cholesterol: What the Drug Companies Don't Want You to Know

I want to write about something that is near and dear to my heart.  Last January, after completing my Whole 30, I went to my doctor for my annual exam and bloodwork.  I had just finished reading Robb Wolf's The Paleo Solution and I asked my doc if he could some additional tests.  Instead of just the basic cholesterol profile (total cholesterol, HDL, LDL, and triglycerides), I wanted the full monty (breaks down HDL and LDL into small dense and large fluffy particles, C reactive protein, homocysteine, A1C, and tons of other useful info).

Highly recommend reading this.

After giving what seemed like a liter of blood, I anxiously awaited the results.  Three weeks later, I had a 6 page report in my hand.  My doctor said my total cholesterol was high and suggested I go on a statin drug.  What the heck?  I had just finished up the best "diet" ever, was feeling awesome, was staying on a Paleo diet at this point, and my total cholesterol was 267!  Sure, my HDL was at a very healthy 129, but my LDL was 112.  The report did have a lot more info such as Apo A-1, Apo B, Lp(a), etc., but to me, this was Greek!

The last time I listened to a doctor's recommendation, I had my gall bladder unneccesarily removed and prescribed a pill for inflammatory bowel disease.  So I politely declined the statin script and vowed to learn Greek.  I poured over the web searching for truthful info, but kept striking out.  It seemed like every site supported the use of statin drugs.

Eight months later, I found The Great Cholesterol Myth by Jonny Bowden and Stephen Sinatra while Carly and I were in Books A Million.

A must read, if you value your life.

After reading this book, almost non-stop, I finally could see the light at the end of the tunnel.  My first thought was, "F--- you drug companies and your statin drugs!"  The sentence that immediately captured my attention was, "When the National Cholesterol Education Program lowered the 'optimal' cholesterol levels in 2004, eight out of nine people on the panel had financial ties to the pharmaceutical company."  Nice!

After reading the book, I now understood my test report and all those letters and numbers made sense.  Here are a few key take home points from the book.

The easiest way to know if you are at risk for cardiovascular disease is to walk (shoulders/back straight, chest out) towards a wall.  If your belly hits the wall before any other body part, you are probably at risk.  Pregnant women are the exemption :)

Not all HDL's are good, and not all LDL's are bad.  They can be broken down into the bad small, dense particles and the good large, fluffy particles.  Needless to say I had a ratio of small dense to large fluffies of 0.27.  I got an A+ on that test!

The most important colesterol particle of all, which conventional tests do not focus on, is Lp(a).  Lp(a) is a very small, highly inflammatory particle that is thrombogenic (blood clotting). It is the foundation of plaque.  Once again, I received an A+, as mine was 17 (optimal levels are <30 p="">
Saturated fat raises cholesterol, but it raises the overall HDLcholesterol and the good part of LDL cholesterol far more than it raises the bad part of LDL.  And that would go along with my increase in numbers since I had become Paleo.

As far as conventional cholesterol tests go, the triglycerides are the most important risk factor for heart disease.  And it is sugar and processed carbohydrates that raise triglyceride levels.  My triglycerides went from 84 (pre-Paleo) to 46.  A+ once again, as optimal levels are less than 150. If your insurance only covers the conventional cholesterol testing, then the better way to predict heart disease is to calculate the ratio of your triglycerides to your HDL.  For example mine is 46/129 = 0.36.  If you have a ratio < 2, you ought to be happy, regardless of what your total cholesterol is.  Just to make a point, my husband's total cholesterol is 188, but his ratio is 3.6.  Anything > 5 is problematic.  I really need to talk to him about his convenience store eating habits.

C-reactive protein (CRP) is a marker for inflammation.  Optimally you want to be < 0.8.  Mine was 0.3.

Homocysteine is an amino acid by product that causes your body to lay down sticky platelets in blood vessels.  Normal is < 11; mine was 7.  If this number is high, taking folic acid, vitamin B12 and vitamin B6.

You can change your LDL levels; it is not all genetic.

Lowering cholesterol has a very limited benefit in populations other than middle aged men with a history of heart disease.

Cholesterol levels are poor predictors of heart attacks.  Cholesterol is the buiding block of sex hormones.  It is needed to make Vitamin D.  It is used to make bile acids needed for digestion.  Brain cells need cholesterol to communicate.  Cholesterol is used to fight infection.  And the list of good things that cholesterol does goes on ...

Cholesterol is not the bad guy:  SUGAR is.  Inflammation is at the "heart" of heart disease.  Sugar is highly inflammatory.  Factor in chronic stress and you have a recipe for disaster.

So, after deciphering my lab work, I now feel comfortable with my "high" total cholesterol.  I will continue to eat grass fed red meat, grass fed clarified butter, pastured bacon, and and free range eggs.  I will continue to stay the hell away from food in a box and sugar!  After all, I have no family history of cardiovascular disease; the Williams clan does have pretty good tickers!

And no, I will not be taking any statin drugs just to lower a number that is insignificant to begin with.  Just in case you do not know, statin drugs can cause muscle pain, memory loss, liver failure, and deplete your body's stores of CoQ10 (which is vital to muscle function, including your heart!).  The drug companies will tell you how statins reduce your risk of heart attacks, but what they don't tell you is that it is relative risk and not absolute risk.  Absolute risk is the true reduction in risk whereas relative risk is a big smokescreen that obscures what you really want to know.  It is their way of making their numbers sound really good.  And remember, most drug companies fund their own studies. Fuzzy math, I tell ya!

So maybe these authors are just full of crap, have some vendetta against the drug companies or are wanting to make a buck or two off their book.  Well, I don't think so.  They have a 14 page bibliography of research articles that are not linked to drug companies.

I encourage you to think long and hard before taking any drug.  You have got to be pro active about your health.  A number is just a number; you must factor in history, genetics, environment, and clinical signs.  Unfortunately today, too many doctors just want to focus on numbers.  And drug companies will concoct pills to "fix" those numbers, regardless of what additional problems those drugs will cause.

Screw you Lipitor!  Food is my medicine.

A good website to go to that discusses advanced testing is Health Diagnostic Laboratory.

Double Dare Race Report: Day 2

Total Time:  9:30
Moving Time:  7:35
Mileage:  60
Elevation Gain:  8500ft
Hi Temp:  65
Lo Temp:  21
Food Consumed:  4 strips bacon, 5 Larabars, 4 dates
Fluid Intake:  150 ounces Scratch, 1 5 Hour Energy


5 am came quickly.  After a few hours of fitful sleep, I slowly wormed my way out of the sleeping bag, started the engine, and began the arduous task of putting cold clothes on.  At least I was in my vehicle and within 10 minutes, I was quite toasty.  The advantage to only getting 3 hours sleep was that my body did not have enough time to seize up.

Breakfast consisted of 2 hard boiled eggs, a sweet potato, and a Red Bull.  Then I stumbled out of the car, and grabbed my Camelbak (damn, it seemed to have gotten heavier overnite) and bike, and made my way to the fire.  At 6 am, Eric told us to ride up to Pilot Mountain (Farlow Gap).  There we would receive our passports.  However, teams would be sent off every 30 seconds in reverse order of how they placed on Day 1.  Kym's and Kaysee's team started ahead of us; good to know as I was unsure of where we were after the first day.

As we began our journey up FS 475, my legs woke up surprisingly well.  I had started out in a heavy base layer, jersey, rain jacket, and winter tights.  Halfway up I shed my jacket.  As we approached the top, we noticed bikes without riders.  The volunteer instructed us to ditch our bikes and hike up to the shelter where we would receive our passports.  Legs were NOT happy about that; they wanted to keep spinning.  Mountain goat Lisa went on ahead while I argued with my feet.  By the time I got there she had the passport and map opened.  I love this part of the game.  It is like opening up a Christmas gift from your best friend.  You have a general idea of what you might be getting, but then SURPRISE!

I wanted a smile, but got a "Just take the damn picture," from the Princess.

After 10 minutes, we had the first half of our route dialed in.  We went back to our bikes and then back tracked to the intersection of Farlow Gap and the FS 229 for our first CP.  Then we turned back around to head down the gravel roads to Daniel Ridge.  On our way back up FS 229 (we were climbing), we had to yield to more than I care to count downhill riders.  Ahem, but I DON'T think that is proper trail etiquette.  Any other day, it would have not irritated me so much, but after 85 miles, ???? feet of climbing, and at 7:30 am, my blood began to boil.

Going back down the gravel roads, I made the mistake of not putting my jacket back on.  By the time we turned off to begin the climb up to the intersection of Daniel Ridge and Farlow, I was a popsicle.  Rookie mistake.  It took me 30 minutes to thaw out and made even the flattish section of Daniel Ridge miserable.

The Queen of time management at CP #2.

Warm again, we motored down to the fish hatchery.  We did an out and back on Cat Gap to Butter to gain our third CP at the intersection of Long Branch and Butter.  It was the climb up Butter that my legs died.  I did not even have the power to lift the front end over the water bars and so had to push most of it.  This was about 3 hours into our journey.

My legs were happy to see this CP!

The ride back down to the fish hatchery was fast and furious.  This was a much needed break for my thrashed legs.  We locked our bikes at the hatchery and ran up to John Rock to get our 2 CP bonus.  Run is a relative term.  I started out that way, but then digressed to a shuffle, walk, crawl, and even a hobble.  My foot neuropathy reared its ugly head in the form of electrical type pain in my left foot and then my right IT band joined in the "pain-fest."  Chris Brown, his team mate, and Garth caught up to us.  They did not want to take the lead, so this forced me to keep the pace up ... which was a good thing.

John Rock ... the fish hatchery is right where my left elbow is, 1500 feet straight down!

Lisa and I let the guys go on the way back down.  After what seemed like an eternity, we were back at our bikes, rummaging around for food, when somebody said to us, "Do we know you?"  It was Andrew and Kate ... of Mulberry Gap fame!  They were on their honeymoon and just happened to stroll into the parking lot.  That was cool!  We chatted a bit while changing shoes and base layers, eating, and filling Camelbaks at the fountain (which, BTW, is not near as good tasting as the creek at the bottom of Pilot).

The ride up Hwy 276 to Pink Beds was my low point of the day.  This was, by far, the hardest part of the journery for me.  My batteries were at 5% and Lisa had to slow down as I kept popping off her wheel.  I used this time to eat and drink some more.  I did note that we were at the 6 hour mark and from the days of my racing "hundies,"  I would always seem to have a lull around 6 hours in.

The Pink Beds Trail was new to me and my legs welcomed the flats.  This was the mandatory CP and our 6th CP (including the 2 point John Rock bonus).  We had the opportunity to earn an additional 1/2 CP by hitting a target with a BB gun or each eating 2  pickled eggs or sausages.

Seriously?

Either shoot a piece of shit and hope Lady Luck is on my side ... or die a slow, horrible death.  I took the BB gun.

Maybe if I was cross-eyed, I could have hit the target.

Needless to say, I failed the special test.  However, while I was taking a 5 Hour Energy shot, Lisa tried her hand at the BB gun ... and failed miserably, too.   The section of Pink Beds over to South Mills was tight, twisty, and rooty.  That was NOT what the map said.  It was rather slow-going and arduous ... for a flat trail.  However, while I was negotiating the twists and turns, little did I know that the 5 Hour was slowly rekindling the fire in my legs.  By the time we hit South Mills, I was "go-go gadget" legs!  I flew up South Mills and Buckhorn.  Lisa said it was all she could do to hang on!  Red Bull may give you wings, but 5 Hour Energy gives you rocket engines!

CP #7:  Buckhorn Gap shelter

After grabbing CP #7, Lisa was all about hiking over the Black Mountain Trail to Pressley Gap.  Whoa, Nellie!  I had to reign her in; I told her that would take us AT LEAST 1:15.  I don't think she believed me.  At this point in the game, I was done with pushing my bike.  My left ankle was killing me and my feet were about to go on strike.  Lisa finally relented and we began to make our way down Clawhammer and up Maxwell Cove.  Whoo hoo!  The forest service had recently graded these fire roads and they were uber fast!  I was smiling so much my face almost cramped.  It was here we hooked up with Brad and Matt and rode their wheels up to CP #8 at Pressley Gap on the Black Mountain Trail.  Total time to this CP was 42 minutes

Pressley Gap, 26 hours into our adventure.

We flew down to the horse stables and made our way over to the Bennett Gap Trail. The climb up Bennett was tougher than I had imagined.  Not only was I dealing with a sore ankle, heavy legs, and water bars, but we had to dodge a couple groups of downhillers that were bombing down the trail at breakneck speeds on their big travel bikes.  I don't even think they saw us, and if they did, probably thought we were a mirage.  Who would push their bikes up Bennett anyway?

We grabbed our final CP, #9, at the intersection of Bennett and Coontree.  Once again, we descended Coontree, this time during daylight, and were able to make much better time.  As we began heading back up Hwy 276 to FS 475 to Cove Creek campground, I began doing the math in my head.  We might, just might, be able to go back up and snag the CP at the top of Butter.  A little battle in my mind began to play out:  the competitve side said "hell yea!" while the rational, tired side said "hell, no, I wanna eat the 16 ounce T-Bone that awaits!"

We actually stopped at the entrance to Cove Creek, pulled out the map, and spent a few minutes comtemplating.  The rational side won.  Lisa gave me the biggest hug ever!  And we pedaled up the gravel to complete our soul lifting journey.

17 CP's in 20:30 netted us a 10th place and secured my Queen of Pisgah title.

Smiles, not grimaces!

It took 5 years and plenty of heckling from certain individuals who will be nameless, to get me to compete in this huge undertaking.  My excuse:  I had to wait for the right partner.  This was, by far, my favorite race of the season.  The weather did play a big role, but it was a combination of my fitness, the terrain, the adversity, Eric's evil scheme, and team mate that made for an epic journey.  After 7 days, I am still riding a high.  And looking forward to P36, I think.

Double Dare Race Report, Day 1

Total time:  10:40

Moving time:  8:44

Mileage:  75

Elevation gain:  11,000 ft

Hi temp:  55

Lo temp:  30

Food consumed:  4 strips bacon, 5 Larabars, 4 dates, 1 gel

Fluid intake:  130 ounces Scratch, orange flavor + 1/2 can Red Bull

Creek crossings (wet feet):  0
CP's:  8

Lisa looking at the map one last time before the start.

I worried myself into a mental mess in the two weeks leading up to this final race in the King/Queen of Pisgah series.  The biggest fear, especially after the Wilkes 100K was getting miserably cold ... and wet.  After that it was fretting about the fears of bike mechanicals and not meeting my partner's expectations.  Lisa Randall is the queen of adventure racing.  I knew she would see me through, but I did not want to be a burden to her.  We have been team mates before (2008 TransRockies and 2013 PMBAR), but this was a 30 hour race in what could be brutal conditions.

Saturday morning we rolled into the Cove Creek campground with plenty of time to get ready.  The weather could not have been better ... for Pisgah in November.  Yes, it was cold, but dry.  We readied our gear, checked in, and then prepared our vehicles for the overnighter.

At 11:50am, the soul crushing Eric Wever, began the pre-race meeting.  At 11:57 am, he said that our passports would be awaiting us at Bent Creek Gap.  My mind tried to figure out where that was in the forest.  And then it hit me!  That was at the other end of the map!  Then Eric said that this was a time trial and the first 3 teams would get time bonuses.  We immediately knew we were not in the running.

At noon, the race commenced.  As we began pedaling out of the campground, a bunch of front runners took the Cove Creek trail.  For a moment I contemplated turning around and heading that way, but decided that FS475 to Hwy 276 would be about the same time and a much easier warm up for the long day.

As we began our journey, Lisa casually asked how long was this time trial (read:  slog) going to be.  Oh, about 25 miles.  I wish I could have seen the look on her face!  We hooked up with Kym and Jason and rode their coattails up to FS 1206.  I will take a free pull any day.  Kym was currently 2nd in the Queen of Pisgah; this time spent behind her allowed me a chance to assess their strengths and weaknesses (if any).  As we passed the intersection of Hwy 276 and FS 475B, we saw Sam Koerber and Zack Morrey turning onto the pavement.  I was much reassured as I had picked the most efficient route.

Once on FS 1206, we decided to let Kym and Jason go, as their pace was unsustainable for an all day adventure.  No sense blowing up in the first couple hours of a 30 hour race.  It took us 2:12 to ride up to the gap.  Sam Evans and David Wood made it up in 1:42.  It was great to see Shanna's face as she handed up the passport.

Within 12 minutes and without too much disagreement, we had a general idea of our route.  Lisa had visions of grabbing 6-7 (not including the special tests).  Being a little more familiar with the forest, I was realistic with 5.

1st CP:  intersection of Spencer Gap and Trace Ridge Trails

We both put our rain jackets on for the chilly descent back down FS 5000.  The climb up to our first CP went by pretty quickly and we were off to our next.  We went back down FS 5000 to FS 5001.  We had to dismount and walk our bikes past a group of horses.  Dodging poop piles we made our way up to our second CP.  Lisa gets an A+ on time management.  Every time we stopped she was whipping out the map and plotting, even if it was for only a minute or two.

2nd CP:  intersection of FS 5001 and Bear Branch Trail

Back down FS 5001, we had to bushwhack around the horses.  I managed to get a small pine limb wrapped around my rear derailleur pulleys.  Had it not been for Lisa mentioning this danger, our day could have ended there, 4 hours in.

From there, we decided to go hit the mandatory.  The leaves were thick on Laurel Mountain Trail, making the hike a bike sections very slippery.  Dry leaves + rocks + cycling shoes = potential ankle/knee buster.  This section took us about 1:15 to reach the checkpoint (intersection of Laurel Mountain and Pilot Rock connector).  With darkness approaching it made Special Test #1 quite entertaining.  We chose the hackey sack over eating the jalepeno.

We made the hackey sack toss on the fifth and final try ... at dusk.  We also made the video:  see our 5 seconds of fame around the 2 minute mark.  I am glad we opted NOT to eat the jalapeno, as we had only 12 ounces of water between us.

We opted to do Special Test # 2 as well.  This consisted of running up to Mount Pisgah, 2 miles up, 2 miles down, with a elevation gain of 1700 feet.  The last mile I will call "stairway to heaven."  I felt like I was on a stairmaster; nothing but rock ledge after rock ledge.  However, it was pretty cool to be doing this in the dark.  At the top, I quickly snapped a picture of the tower, as the winds were heinous.  Including the time to change into and out of our running shoes, it took us about 2 hours to grab this bonus.  It wasn't until the end of this run that my feet started to get painful

Mt. Pisgah:  worth 2 CP's

On the way back down, I developed a pretty serious headache, most likely from dehydration.  Luckily, Lisa had some Vitamin I in her first aid kit.  I forgot I had stashed a Red Bull in my pack, so Lisa and I split that little burst of energy.  At this point we were completely out of water, but figured we could fill up at the creek at the bottom of Pilot.  Once I was back on the bike, my foot pain subsided.

Descending Pilot is difficult enough during the day, but take away light and add a ton of leaves and it gets quite interesting.  I checked my ego at the top; after 8 hours and 50+ miles of racing, now was not the time to make a mistake.  Once at the bottom, we took a break to eat and refill our Camelbaks from the creek.  Damn, that was some great tasting water!

It was now 8:30.  Time to buckle down and grab 2 more CP's before heading back to camp.  The ride along FS 1206 went by quickly.  Lisa had let me borrow one of her Lupine Piko's.  What with 1200 lumens, 4+ hour burn time, and ultra light weight, I was really enjoying the night riding.

While on this stretch of gravel, I was able to reflect upon how blessed I was to be able to do what I love to do, despite the hiccups in my path the last few years.  This is what life is about:  living, not just existing.  Fulfilling the passion, testing the mind, pushing the body.  Being able to share the adventure with Lisa just takes it to the next level.  We fed off each other's positive energy.  And when one of us was having a tough moment, the other was able to step up and be that "crutch" to lean upon.

CP # 4:  intersection of Club Gap and Black Mountain Trail

The push up Club Gap was definitely more pushing than riding.  The leaves were DEEP and with all the loose cat head rocks, we both kept spinning out.  Better to conserve energy by walking; this also allowed us an opportunity to eat again.  From there we set out on Buckwheat Knob.  I had not ridden this trail since the inaugural Pisgah Stage Race, but I did not forget the gnarly descent.  By this time I was so tired of walking, I just wanted to let it go on the descent.  Luckily my brain was still functioning and won the battle.  Back to walking ...  Slowly but surely we made our way over to the next CP.

CP # 5:  Saddle Gap on the Bennet Gap Trail

Notice that there is a theme to our checkpoint acquisitions.  I take the pictures while Lisa stuffs her face with food.  Her hummingbird metabolism was having a hard time keeping up with our efforts.  Towards the end she had a hard time taking in enough calories.  I was doing very well with my nutrition.  I am pretty sure that being Paleo while off the bike has allowed me to utilize the diesel (fat-burning) engine to a greater extent so that during hard efforts, I still burn more fat than carbs.  In years' past, when I was a carb junkie, I had to maintain 250 calories/hour to maintain, but this year I have noticed I can race just as hard on 175-200 calories/hour.

Once we acquired our 5th CP, we headed down Coontree and back to Cove Creek camp.  We arrived to cheers and bells and a warm campfire.  After checking in, we headed back to our vehicles to eat and get ready for the midnight special test and Day 2.

This last special test was worth a 1/2 CP.  It involved a 1 mile race around the campground.  All we had to do was participate.  While I was waiting for midnight to roll around, I changed clothing and managed to eat an 8 ounce hamburger, a banana, a sweet potato, and a 1/2 bag of potato chips.  I chased it down with 16 ounces of chocolate almond milk.  Where did it all go?  It did not hamper me one bit during the midnight race.

I managed to get to bed at 1 am for a few fitful hours of sleep.

The weak choose not to suffer. The strong choose pain, trading it as currency for moments of exquisite conquest.