tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-48764885030078333882024-02-19T02:25:12.421-06:00Mark Gullettdropping bags of hammers since 2009Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.comBlogger125125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-53968240718535606522012-05-09T13:41:00.000-05:002012-05-09T22:36:31.263-05:002012 Smithville 8 Hour Adventure Race Report<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This weekend was the <a href="http://www.bonkhardracing.com/" target="_blank">Bonk Hard Racing</a> <a href="http://www.bonkhardracing.com/races/smithville/default.asp" target="_blank">Smithville 8 Hour</a> adventure race in Smithville, MO. I've done several adventure races over the last few years, with the same core group of people; Luke, Jamie, Dee, Jesse and Sara. They're all good athletes, but our races have been for fun more than for winning. We push ourselves but don't get too hung up on results or being lost and wandering around in the woods for hours - our motto is personal achievement over competitive achievement.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'd asked Jamie about doing Smithville as a 2 person team in March. Then, a couple weeks before the race Jason Bettis asked if I'd race with his team; Dynamic Earth/Team Fusion. A competitive team, a team that's won, and a team where I'd have to work really hard to keep up. Also a team I wanted to race with. So I told Jamie the situation and he said "go for it".</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Dynamic Earth/Team Fusion team I decided to race with consists of Jason Bettis, Shawn Gates and Ashley O'Reilly with Jason as the navigator.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jason and I traveled to Smithville together while Ashley and Shawn drove separately. It worked out well because it gave us a chance to talk about racing and I got a pretty good handle on how Jason approaches it. He's obviously an excellent navigator, based on his previous racing results, but as the leader of the team (the person saying which way to go is "leading"), he's not going to get in someone's face, tell them to suck it up and push harder. He's a lead by example kind of guy.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The packet pickup was at Dynamic Earth where they had a 50% off sale on all apparel and shoes in honor of the race. MUCH APPRECIATED! The maps were included in the packet so it would give us plenty of time to go over them and still get a good night of sleep. That was pretty cool.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Friday evening, the team got together and went over route choices and how we would work as a team. I hoped to bring some strong biking ability to the team as I expected to be the weakest link on the run and in the boat. To even things out, we decided to utilize tow straps on the biking legs, pair me with Jason in the boat, and have Ashley, the best runner, carry the passport on the trekking sections. That setup would allow me to pull when possible on the bike, be in a boat with a skilled paddler and just have to keep up when on foot. The order of the disciplines would be: run > bike > paddle > bike > run > ???? (probably bike). I figured we could win.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Saturday morning we were up at 6. We got ourselves ready, loaded the cars and headed to the bike drop. Weather-wise the day was shaping up to be a warm one. There were a few clouds and some fog early but the high was going to get around 90. Hopefully we'd be finished before the heat got too bad. I decided to carry 100oz of water/perpetuem with another 24oz on my bike. I drank less than that at the Branson AR on a warm day so I thought it would be enough.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.northlandtrails.org/maps/smvmtb.htm" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://www.northlandtrails.org/maps/smvmtb.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Official park trail map</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The bike drop was at the "Smoke and Davey" trailhead on the north side of the Smithville Lake park, with all the mountain bike trails. We positioned our bikes near where we expected to emerge from the woods and headed to the race headquarters at the SBC Trailhead on the south side of the park. We arrived to find lots of people milling around.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Once I saw all the other teams, I finally started to get that <i>race</i> feeling. It's kind of a nervous energy where you know you're going to be busting your ass for hours and you just want to get going. I've always thought that waiting for a race to start is the worst part of racing. Once they say go, you stop thinking about what <i>could</i> happen and you start doing it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After a short pre-race meeting and the Star Spangled Banner where I swear I was the only one singing, Gary yelled go and we took off. The first section was a run to the bikes where we needed to collect three checkpoints along the way.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ridge Runner/Downhill Bikes Branson (Dathan Atchison, Kindall Combs, Lullel Hickman and Melisa Lemus Mckay) led out on the run followed closely by Team Kuat (John Bradley, Beau Mooneyham, Doug Assenmacher and Anna Assenmacher). I could tell that Ashley, who is an amazing runner, wanted to be up there with them, but we stayed back a bit in order to keep the team together. I think a tow system for the run would have been helpful since we were running on a greenway trail and could have used Ashley's strength to get us a little closer to the front. In reality though, we got the checkpoints and arrived at our bikes in pretty good shape, with only four teams ahead of us and within a minute or so of the lead.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.bonkhardracing2.com/PhotosSV2012/cp3-cp16/100-1153.html#previous-photo" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://www.bonkhardracing2.com/PhotosSV2012/_Media/100_1153_med.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heading out from TA1</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After a quick transition, we were on the bikes and on the road. We immediately joined together using our tow system of retractable dog leashes attached underneath our seats. It was Ashley's first time being towed and she was hesitant and a little nervous on the gravel road turns, but did really well. I think on every turn I heard "Ok guys, nothing crazy here!".</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The first bike leg was probably only four or five miles, but within minutes, we started reeling the other teams in. I just can't say enough about how beneficial the towing system is. When I was on the front, I was digging pretty deep to catch the teams in front of us but when I started to slow down, Jason would jump to the front so I could draft and recover. The teamwork was excellent. There was one mishap where Ashley's tow strap got tangled in her rear hub and broke, but it wasn't a big deal and she just had to be at the end of the train from then on. We got all the checkpoints and on the last downhill leading to the paddle transition area we were able to catch Team Kuat who had moved into the lead. We pulled into the TA just ahead of them.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Going from bike to boat</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The paddle leg had all of the checkpoints on the banks of the lake arranged in a big circle. Since only one person would need to leave the boat to punch the passport at the checkpoints, Jason made the call for everyone to keep their bike shoes on except me, since I'd be the one doing the punches. We had a quick transition and after carrying our boats to the water we were in just behind Kuat.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We went the same direction as Kuat so we could try to keep up with them. Wild Hares (Scott Stopak and Justin Hankins) were right there as well and we ended up getting most of the CPs at the same time. Kuat was a little unbalanced in their boats at first with John and Doug getting ahead, but swapped it around after a CP in order to even things out and keep within the 100 ft rule. They are blazing fast but with Jason coaching my paddling technique we were able to hang with them. After making the circuit around our little section of the lake, we pulled our boats out at the same time. That had me really stoked because I expected with my weak paddling we'd be killed on the boat leg, but we were right there with the leaders and I was still feeling great, plus we were getting back on the bike!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.bonkhardracing2.com/PhotosSV2012/canoe-ta-3/img-2417.html" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://www.bonkhardracing2.com/PhotosSV2012/_Media/img_2417_med.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wild Hares, Kuat and us finishing the paddle leg</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After a quick gear check where they asked to see our multi-tool and spare tube, we were out on the road a little behind Kuat with Wild Hares in the mix as well. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The second bike leg was pretty short and after a few minutes we got to the next transition area to the orientering course, which was the make or break section of the race. We went the opposite direction of Kuat and Wild Hares because we didn't want to be thrown off by being around other teams. The course was a mix of really dense wooded sections and open cornfields. By this time of the day, the heat was really coming on so even though we could move faster in the cornfields, I really preferred the woods because of the shade.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jason was nailing the CP's and Ashley was running and jumping through ditches and creeks in order to punch the passport while I was doing my best to hang on the back of the pack. I was feeling the effort from the bike and the heat and was struggling to keep up on foot. About halfway through the course I ran out of the 100oz of water I was carrying. They had water at the transition area but for some reason I didn't think to refill before starting the trek. Luckily for me Jason had a full bottle that he gave me and it got me through until I could refill back at the transition area.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.bonkhardracing2.com/PhotosSV2012/trek-ta-1/imgp1513.html" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://www.bonkhardracing2.com/PhotosSV2012/_Media/imgp1513_med.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look at all that water</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The only scary part of the trekking leg was when we came to a deep ditch in the woods with a tree fallen across it. I'd guess it was about 15 feet deep and 10 feet across with sides that were straight down. The tree wasn't that big, about 8" diameter. As soon as we got there Jason jumped on the tree and ran across to the other side. Once there he yelled "Tree's solid!" and kept going. So Shawn gave Ashley a steadying hand and she went across followed quickly by Shawn. My heart was in my throat as I jumped out on the tree, took two steps and leaped to the other bank. Luckily I made it but I was WAY out of my comfort zone on that move.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As we came in after getting all the trekking CP's Kuat were getting on their bikes and heading out; we were the 2nd team in. Jason got the next set of checkpoints which were pre-plotted and it turned out this was the final leg of the race. We were to bike back to the Smithville Lake park and ride trails to the finish line. Awesome!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.bonkhardracing2.com/PhotosSV2012/trek-ta-1/imgp1505.html" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://www.bonkhardracing2.com/PhotosSV2012/_Media/imgp1505_med.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hard working volunteer</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The ride to the park was short and I towed the entire way. I was feeling really good and I thought we had a chance to catch Kuat and take the win since they only had a couple minutes lead. Unfortunately, they were far enough ahead that we couldn't see them up the road and I think that put my team out of chase mode and into survival mode. We were all tired but I think if we could have seen Kuat we would have had the motivation to chase them down. But we didn't.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When we got to the trail, the first section had some slick rocks and roots and Ashley took a spill early on. That made her ride cautiously instead of attacking the trail like she should. I rode behind her for awhile and she's a good mountain biker. I think she needs to trust her skills more and go right at the technical stuff. If you're hesitant, you'll have problems.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At the end we got to the finish line about 6 minutes back from Kuat but 30 minutes ahead of Wild Hares. A 2nd place overall that close to the front is a great accomplishment and I'm really proud of my team. Everyone was strong and we worked really well together. I didn't mention Shawn in this report very much but he's a solid all-around racer, plus his humor keeps everything light on course which when your tired is a welcome relief. I'm happy I got to race with them and I'd do it again anytime.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.bonkhardracing2.com/PhotosSV2012/finish-line-1/img-1217.html#previous-photo" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://www.bonkhardracing2.com/PhotosSV2012/_Media/img_1217_med.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Post-race I'm all smiles!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The team that really surprised me was the 2 person male team Wild Hares. They were good on the bike and were good on the paddle. Their only weakness seemed to be on the run. They took 3rd overall which is great, but if they get their running together they'll be on the top step of a lot of podiums.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Water was a little chilly</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After the race we jumped in the lake for a cool-down. It was a great way to end a great race. Congrats to Kuat for giving us more than we could handle. You were fast at the end of the race and that's what it takes to win. Good job.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Gary and Ellen, owners of Bonk Hard Racing once again put on an excellent adventure race and as usual pulled in a ton of swag for the racers. Thanks for sponsors <a href="http://kuatracks.com/" target="_blank">Kuat</a> and <a href="http://dynamicearth.net/" target="_blank">Dynamic Earth</a> for supporting the sport.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.bonkhardracing2.com/PhotosSV2012/around-hq/dsc04099.html" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://www.bonkhardracing2.com/PhotosSV2012/_Media/dsc04099_med.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spoils of racing</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Second place netted me 75% off a future Bonk Hard race and a nice Osprey pack.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lessons learned from this race;</span><br />
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<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Form over effort on the paddle. I've had races where I worked much harder and gone much slower than I did at Smithville. Thanks to Jason for the guidance.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Carry enough water. I should have refilled when I had the chance. I've got to stay on top of my water. It's critical. Again, thanks Jason for giving me your water.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tow whenever possible, even when you think you're all going the same speed. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Take advantage of strengths and minimize weaknesses and mistakes. Having me pull on the bike and having Ashley as the rabbit on the run were the best way to use our strengths. We had very few mistakes and that made the difference.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's nice to be on time for the race start and I loved getting the maps earlier in the day Friday. Sleep is good.</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.bonkhardracing.com/races/smithville/results.asp" target="_blank">Here's a link to the results</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">*UPDATE* <a href="http://www.bonkhardracing2.com/PhotosSV2012/" target="_blank">PHOTOS ARE UP! </a> I've grabbed several for this post, hopefully that's okay.</span>Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-8517915231187356552012-04-04T15:37:00.001-05:002012-05-10T10:21:26.860-05:002012 Ouachita Challenge Race Report<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last weekend was the 12th running of the <a href="http://www.ouachitachallenge.com/index.html" target="_blank">Ouachita Challenge</a> in small Oden Arkansas. I've done the race the last 2 years, and it's one of the hardest endurance mountain bike races in the midwest. 60 miles of gravel, road, huge rocks and some of the sweetest bench-cut single-track I've ever ridden. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I came into the race this year unsure how it would go. I've had some success there in the past with 9th and 6th place finishes, but so far my results this spring have been mixed. Add in the hottest temperature for me this year and who knew what would happen.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I stayed with the family in an awesome secluded cabin about an hour from the race HQ. I try to turn my "bigger" races into mini-vacations since I don't really go on vacation. Luckily I have an understanding and supportive family.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was able to pre-ride Big Brushy (the first trail section of the race) on Saturday, and the trail was in great shape and I felt pretty good so I hoped Sunday would go well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My strategy going in was similar to last year; try to hit the trail near the front, survive the rocky first half of the race, have someone to work with on the road between the Ouachita Trail and the Womble, and make my race on the Womble. I've said it before; I'm not a good technical rider. I'm sketchy in the rocks and not fast on the downhills, but I can climb relatively well and have good endurance. I have to play to my strengths and the first half of OC just emphasizes my weaknesses. Make it to the Womble would be my mantra.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My Kuat teammate Cale McAninch was doing the race, and lucky him, he got to sleep in the Kuat van instead of a cabin (that's me posing, not Cale). I really hoped we could ride together until the road section in the middle of the race since he's a strong road rider, in addition to a great mountain biker. It was his first OC and chances of us riding the same pace for 20+ miles were slim, but that's what I was shooting for.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The race starts with about 8 miles of pavement/gravel to the Big Brushy section of the Ouachita Trail. Last year it was pretty mellow. This year was not. I ride a 1X10 and was spinning as fast as I could on the flats and could barely hang onto the back of the lead group. I don't know what the deal was, but people were in a hurry to get to the trail.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There's a long climb right before the trail, and as I made my way up it looked like there were about 20 people in front of me. I passed a few people and found Cale on the way up. I jumped on his wheel and rode with him to the top. Then, right before entering the trail he passed 2 people and they got between us. So much for riding with Cale. In a few minutes he's gone and I'm doing my best to avoid rocks and keep from wrecking. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I got passed by a few people on Bushy, passed a few others and popped out to my support crew after about an hour feeling pretty good. Blowout mountain, the next trail section was the hardest of the day. I start that trail feeling pretty confident about myself and my riding ability, but by the time it's over I feel like I'm not a "real" mountain biker and I'm unclipping at the first sign of a rock garden. The shear size and number of them just beat me into submission. But I survived it, refueled at the aid station and started making my way up Chalybeate Mountain. The climbing is what defines this section for me, and while I was making up some time from all my hike-a-bike on Blowout, I also had my only mechanical issue of the day. The zip tie that holds my derailleur cable to my frame near the rear derailleur broke which let the cable flap around, snagging on my shoe as I pedaled. I fixed it by using one of the twisty ties from my number plate, but it kept coming undone and I had to stop several times to re-do it. Frustrating, but of all the things that could go wrong, it was pretty minor. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Check out the sweet new Kuat Kit's. Coming soon to a store (or <a href="http://www.shopatron.com/products/category/10064.0.1.1.110162.0.0.0.0" target="_blank">website</a>) near you!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I was fiddling with my bike I was jockeying back and forth with <a href="http://www.cornbreadblog.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Corey Godfrey</a>, a guy that I've ridden with at some point during my 2 previous OC's. When we popped out on the gravel road for an 8 mile ride to the Womble I told him I'd like to work together so we could make good time on the road. I told him I didn't think he would get much benefit drafting off me since he's at least 6'6" and I'm at most 5'7", and he said; "gravel's my thing". So I jumped on his tail and he proceeded to pull me to Sims, where I got a bottle hand-up, waited for me to catch back on, then pulled me to the Highway 298 aid station. Along the way we caught another rider who was happy to have a draft.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I can't say enough how awesome it was to have Corey to draft off of from the OT to the Womble. We were flying and I was recovering the entire time. As we approached the Womble trail Corey said to go on because he was starting to cramp, so I took off, feeling as good as I'd felt all day. I was sitting around 16th place but soon started catching riders who were having issues with the heat.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">About 5 miles into the Womble I caught up to Brandon Melott and Cale. Brandon was on a single-speed. Cale was cramping and having heat-stroke symptoms so after riding with Brandon and I for awhile, he pulled over and told us to go on. Brandon was riding well and it was good to ride with him, but when he pulled over at a road crossing to re-fuel I went on. I wound up catching a couple more people, then as I was coming off the Womble for the ride back to Oden I caught up to Andy Gibbs, a St. Louis rider I've raced against many times. It was his first OC and he'd burned a few too many matches early on and was running on fumes. I would have been content to finish the race with him, but on the last gravel climb of the day, he said he was blown and I went on by myself. I wanted to finish in under 5 hours so I put my head down and rode hard to the finish. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I ended up crossing the line at 5:01:52 in 8th place. Much better than I expected for most of the day, so I'm pretty happy with the result.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's a link to my <a href="http://connect.garmin.com/activity/164302062" target="_blank">garmin data</a> for the day, and here's a link to the <a href="http://www.ouachitachallenge.com/Results/2012OCRacecombined.html" target="_blank">official results</a>. There are TONS of photos out there from the day, so if you're interested, look <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/arkansasoutside/sets/72157629720743565/with/6891585268/" target="_blank">here</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.267558869998711.68399.127550417332891&type=3" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150777661732814.458690.507517813&type=1" target="_blank">here</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The weekend was awesome, and the race, as always, delivered. I may never crack that top 5 but I'll keep coming back and trying.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Big thanks to the friendly/helpful volunteers at the aid stations and road crossings, and of course to my support crew for keeping me moving. </span>Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-30403004917315674112012-02-22T14:29:00.002-06:002012-02-22T15:12:08.745-06:00New Gear<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">2011 was a year of upgrading my bike. Now that I've got it how I want it I think 2012 is going to be a year of upgrading my gear. Yesterday I bought 2 items that I've been lusting after for awhile. The first is a pack, the second is a pair of shoes. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I've got several packs and several trail running shoes. I like most of them but I haven't got any that I love. My favorite current pack is an <a href="http://www.ospreypacks.com/en/product/multi-use/talon_11" target="_blank">Osprey Talon 11</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It's pretty light, is roomy enough and if you snug down the straps it will stay in place while you run. I hate a bouncy pack. What I don' t like about it is the waist belt. The pockets are too small for much more than a couple gels and hard for me to open one handed. Having the pack tightened enough it to keep it from bouncing gets uncomfortable after awhile. So I end up loosening the straps and running with my hands holding the shoulder straps in place. Not a good position when you trip and fall in the woods. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">My favorite current shoes are <a href="http://www.salomon.com/us/product/xr-crossmax-neutral.html" target="_blank">Salomon XR Crossmax's</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I run on pavement more than trial (unfortunately), and these shoes work well for both. What I don't like is the weight and tread; kinda heavy and not enough traction in the woods. Good enough for most training but not what I want when I'm wearing them for hours and want to go as fast as possible.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">My upgrades are both Salomon products; I'm a fan. The first is a new pack that I read about when they came out with it last year. It was a small pack (5 liter) so didn't really suit my needs, but I loved the design and hoped they'd come out with a larger version. For 2012 they have. Its the <a href="http://www.salomon.com/us/product/advanced-skin-s-lab-12-set.html" target="_blank">Advanced Skin S-Lab 12 Set</a> (quite a mouthful). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The idea is that there is no waist strap, and that the pack fits more like a vest than a typical backpack. the weight is more evenly distributed and there are multiple chest straps so there shouldn't be as restrictive as what I've been using. Plus BIG side pockets. It was expensive, but it's gotten great reviews and I can't wait to try it out. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The second product is a lighter pair of trail shoes, the <a href="http://www.salomon.com/us/product/speedcross-3.html" target="_blank">Speedcross 3</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">While I intend to just use them for occasional trail running and adventure racing, I love the aggressive tread pattern and the weight will be an improvement over the Crossmax. Again, I'm looking forward to trying them out.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I'll post up some reviews once I'm able to get some miles on them.</span>Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-44818027034120563442012-02-22T11:00:00.000-06:002012-05-09T22:37:09.556-05:002012 Bonk Hard Chill - Küat Ünite<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last weekend I participated in my 6th adventure race; the <a href="http://www.bonkhardchill.com/bhc06/" target="_blank">Bonk Hard Chill</a>. It's an annual race that takes place in the Lake of the Ozarks region, and this year it was at <a href="http://mostateparks.com/park/ha-ha-tonka-state-park" target="_blank">Ha Ha Tonka</a> state park near Camdenton. It's an area I've been wanting to explore but for some reason never had, so this was a great chance to check it out.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Leading up to the race I intended to compete in the 4-person co-ed division, but my teammates were doing other things, so Jesse and I signed up for the 2 dudes class. It's not the "premier" division, but a lot of people sign up for it and the competition is always pretty good. Jesse would be the navigator, I'd be the rabbit and I honestly just wanted a clean race where we got all the checkpoints and didn't spend hours wandering around in the woods wondering where the heck we were.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We drove to Camdenton Friday afternoon and checked out the park. It was hilly and looked to be a great place to host the race. We walked some trails around an island, checked out a balanced rock and climbed 300+ steps above a spring. I wanted to do more exploring but also didn't want to wear my legs out the day before the race, so we decided to cut our scouting trip short and head to Osage Beach to have some dinner with the <a href="http://hoosierdaddies.com/" target="_blank">Hoosier Daddies</a> at <a href="http://biggysatthelake.com/?gclid=COzmnt2LsK4CFcIDtgodVCviSQ" target="_blank">Biggies</a>. It was right next to the official Chill hotel, the Quails Nest where most racers were staying. We however weren't staying at the Quails Nest because we got a good deal at a Day's Inn in Lebanon. A little further drive but a dollar saved is a dollar earned, right?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anyway, dinner was good, I ate too much as usual before a race, and afterward we headed to <a href="http://oz-cycles.com/" target="_blank">Oz Cycles</a> in Lake Ozark for racer check-in. Oz had quite a few items marked down and their entire rack of <a href="http://www.swiftwick.com/" target="_blank">swift-wick</a> products were 30% off. So I got some <a href="http://www.swiftwick.com/performance-trade-sleeve-10992-prd1.htm" target="_blank">arm warmers</a>, <a href="http://www.swiftwick.com/aspire-twelve-10813-prd1.htm" target="_blank">compression socks</a> and <a href="http://www.swiftwick.com/aspire-two-9870-prd1.htm" target="_blank">regular socks</a>. Good stuff.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Next we headed over to the gymnasium at the elementary school next door. There we were given instructions for the race, some swag was tossed around, an Oz Cycles donated Kayak was raffled and we were given our maps and check point coordinates. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We made it to the hotel in Lebanon around 10 and after plotting the checkpoints and preparing our packs for the race we were in bed by midnight with a 4am alarm set. You never get much sleep the night before an adventure race.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After what felt like a few minutes sleep, we got up at 4. I made my usual pre-race meal of oatmeal with peanut butter and brown sugar and drank some coffee. Then we donned our spandex loaded the car and headed to the race. The woman at the checkout desk at Days Inn gave Jesse a funny look when he turned in the room key, but I'm sure she's seen weirder sights at 5am. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When we got to the park it was chilly outside, but not freezing. There was a bike drop where we left our bikes near the entrance to the park and then we were able to find </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">CP0 (</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">the race HQ) without getting lost. In the past that has been an issue, so in my mind it was shaping up to be a good day. I got a little cold standing around waiting for the race to start, but they had hot coffee for us and before I knew it it was 6:30 and Gary was saying "GO!" .</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jesse and I took off with the 100+ crowd, running through a field on our way to CP1. We stayed near the front and was able to avoid the bottleneck of punching our passport at the first CP. Gary put two flags up to help speed thing along which was a great idea. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I love running with the crowd at the start of the race. There's so much energy. I'm full of adrenalin and it feels like I'm just bouncing along on top of the world. You've got to enjoy those moments while you have them because they don't last forever.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We quickly made our way to CP2 which was at the bottom of some fairly slippery steps at the entrance to the River Cave, then back up the steps and up a hill to CP's 3 and 4. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With the running I was heating up, and the
fleece I put on while waiting for the start was too much. I took it off after CP3 and felt much better.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On our way to CP5 the crowd was starting to thin and we catch up to the Stinging Nettles team of Jason Elsenraat and Paul Freeman. Jason is the former owner of Bonk Hard Racing and I figured they were the top 2-person male team. We chatted a little about pack technology and helmet restraint before Jesse and I started to move up. The next team we encountered was WOAH consisting of Sunny Gilbert and Emily Korsch; presumably the top 2-person female team. As we approached them we noticed they were unintentionally shedding weight by dropping various nutrition products on the road. We yelled at them but they ignored us. When we caught up they said they thought we were heckling them. I'm not sure it's a good idea to heckle someone ahead of you, but they got their stuff back and we would end up see-sawing with them for most of the race. At one point Jesse said he felt bad because he couldn't keep up with them, but I told him they were pretty bad-ass and we were doing well to be around them. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">CP5 was the transition to canoes and after a few minutes on the water Jesse and I were regretting the decision of leaving the 4 piece kayak paddles in the car. There was a headwind and as we struggled to keep the boat straight we watched several teams with kayak paddles pull away from us. Boating is my weakest link in adventure racing. It can be fun when you're on a fast moving river where you have to pay attention in order to keep the boat upright. But when you're on a lake, or a wide river like the Meramec, it becomes something you just have to suffer through. This could be because the only time I'm in a canoe is during races. Anyway we traveled a few miles to CP6 where we disembarked and headed up to Bridal Cave for CP9. From there we went into the cave with our bike helmets and headlamps for CP8. This was one of the neatest parts of the race. Luckily we were one of the first few groups to get there so there wasn't much traffic in the cave and we were able to move fairly quickly. I love cave tours and I'm going to go back and use the free tour family pass I received with my race packet. I want to be able to look around.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After the cave it was back to the boats and on our way to CP10 which was on a dock near where we originally put in. Then we continued on a few more miles to CP11 and the end of the boat leg at the Spring parking lot at Ha Ha Tonka. I've got to say I was glad to be finished with paddling. I think Jesse and I got better at keeping the boat on a fairly straight tack and were going a decent speed, but it wasn't fun.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After a quick bathroom break Jesse and I headed up the steps above the spring to CP12, then on to a cool natural bridge that had CP13 underneath it. From there it was a short run to the bike drop at CP14 where we would transition to my preferred mode of transportation. We got to do a little token off-road riding on our way to CP16 and CP17, but from there all we'd see would be gravel and pavement. It's a bummer we couldn't use some of the nice hiking trails around the park for the bike leg, but I guess Gary couldn't get permission for that.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">CP's 18 to 29 are kind of a blur to me. There was a lot of riding; at least 25 miles. Most of it was on gravel roads and the CP's were hung from signs on the side of the road. There was 1 decision that had to be made though. All CP's from 1 to 18 had to be done in order. But 19 to 24 could be done in any order. They were all positioned in a big loop so we decided to make the trip around the longest portion then do a quick out and back on the short section before CP25. It was the same route WOAH chose and we ended up riding with them most of the time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">CP25 was a manned CP and was pretty awesome because although we had to stop for a gear check, they had a HUGE tub of little debbie pastries (and water) that we could dig into. After 6 hours of perpetuem it looked like food from the gods. I ate a honey bun and two oatmeal cream pies and they were delicious! I could have hung out there for awhile but soon we were back on the bikes and hitting CP's 26 to 29. CP29 was the last known CP, and there we were supposed to receive instructions for the remainder of the race. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It turned out to be a transition from bike to foot and we had 9 more CP's to find before the end of the race. The transition area was at the old post office at Ha Ha Tonka and we had a covered pavilion with tables we could use to plot the remaining 9 CP's. I took the time to change into some dry socks and eat some beef jerky but after 10 minutes or so we were off running in the woods. We were in the top 5 overall teams at that point and I hoped we'd be able to hold on and finish strong. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'll get it out of the way; orienteering is hard. It's one of the things I love about adventure racing, but I hate that it always screws us because we aren't that good at it. But, each race we have done better and this was no exception. We went straight to a few of the 9 CP's, made it to the vicinity of a few others where we had to wander around until we found them, and basically followed foot prints for the others. We had a couple of mis-plotted points that cost us some time, but our real problem was not finding each CP quick enough. I'd have liked to have finished the final portion of the race in 3 hours, which I think we are capable of, but we took 4.5 hours to do it. That dropped us to 14th place overall and 7th in our division which isn't bad, but with our strengths in the other disciplines, is a little disappointing. On the positive side, we DID find all of the CP's (yeah!), Jesse and I learned more about navigating, we had a great time and the post race BBQ was delicious. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The results from the race are <a href="http://www.bonkhardchill.com/bhc06/results.asp" target="_blank">here</a>, pictures are <a href="http://www.bonkhardchill.com/bhc06/photos.asp" target="_blank">here</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This was Gary and Ellen Thompson's second race since taking over the helm of Bonk Hard Racing, and they did a wonderful job. The course was fun and challenging and the event was very professionally run. Their volunteers were friendly and helpful and did a great job. We are lucky to have such a wonder regional AR promotion company in Bonk Hard Racing. I appreciate what they put into the races and I look forward to doing more of their events. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My next adventure race is in <a href="http://www.offroadfixation.com/off_road_fixation_1_002.htm" target="_blank">Branson</a> on March 17. I don't know who I'm going to team up with yet and it's a week after the <a href="http://www.dltmultisport.com/off-road-events/off-road-mountain-bike/spa-city-6hr-mtb.html" target="_blank">Spa City 6 hour</a>. I'd like to do Bonk Hard's next event at <a href="http://www.bonkhardracing.com/races/lbl_challenge/default.asp" target="_blank">LBL</a> on the 24th, but it's a week before <a href="http://www.ouachitachallenge.com/" target="_blank">Ouachita Challenge</a> and that's packing a lot of endurance events (as well as travel) into a pretty short time frame. </span>Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-64058007596499758912012-02-02T17:02:00.000-06:002012-02-02T19:11:18.163-06:00Heroes<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Everyone has heroes. People they look up to and try to emulate. I have several people that I admire for different reasons and while none of them are perfect, they all have several qualities I aspire to. Here are some of them in the context I think of them and in no particular order. (all the pictures are stolen from facebook so please forgive me)</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">John Bradley </span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I know John as an Adventure Racer. Most of what I've learned about the sport came from him. He's intense but approachable. He has always been willing to share the knowledge he's gained from years of racing and I love talking to him about it. He's the ultimate competitor that wants to win but at the same time want's you to do well. I've been on many runs where I've not really been into it and thought about cutting it short. Then I think, "I bet John ran 20 miles this morning". So I keep going. He's an inspiration and unknowingly a motivator.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Dwayne Goscinski</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I've been a fan of Dwayne long before I knew him. When I first started racing mountain bikes he always stood out as someone to watch. To me, Dwayne is the ultimate mountain bike racer. He's good, but that's not what makes him special. It's his constant smile and the way he engages everyone around him. He loves to ride his bike and you can tell he wants you to love it as well. He's a great role model.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Team Trail Monster (Jim and Wendy Davis)</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Jim and Wendy would be the first to tell you this; they are not your prototypical athletes. What they've got they haven't come by naturally. But what they are in my opinion are adventurous souls. They love the outdoors and they are great ambassadors of the active lifestyle. They've worked hard for what they've got and it's paid off. I look forward to each time I get to see them. </span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Luke Kuschmeader</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I really admire Luke for everything he's accomplished. I think of myself as a dreamer. But Luke is that and more. He puts his dreams into motion and makes great things. He's also an athlete. I've done adventure races with Luke and I've seen him when he's hell-bound determined and when he's stopped caring. The former made me want to follow and the latter made me want to pick up the slack. I've seen him push himself harder than I thought he could and it somehow made my effort easier. I'm glad I know Luke and can't wait to see what he comes up with next.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Jesse Livingston</b></span><br />
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Jesse lives a life a lot of people dream about. He's been more places and done more things than I'll ever do. Anytime I have a whim to go ride or to some race Jesse is always up for it. He's a lot of fun to be around and if I were to go on a wilderness trek, I'd want Jesse to be my guide. <br />
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</span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>John Penny</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">John is a motivator. I don't know if Tony Robbins is still around, but John could take his job. I've worked with John for a few years outside of my regular job and when I sometimes feel like there isn't enough time to get everything accomplished that I want to get done, he gets me going. As a result I think we've created some pretty good stuff. I'd love to have John's drive. LETS GO! </span><br />
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</span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Of course there are others and I wish I had the time to document all of them. But I was thinking about this subject while working out today and these are the ones that came to mind. We all touch peoples lives. Sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. But these people have been a good influence and make me want to be a better person. I figure that deserves some recognition. </span>Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-20819714670836846422011-09-28T23:10:00.003-05:002011-09-28T23:11:19.144-05:00Berryman 36 Hour Adventure Race<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This weekend was the 11th running of the <a href="http://www.theberrymanadventure.com/index.asp">Berryman Adventure Race</a>. I entered the 36 hour co-ed "elite" division with teammates Luke Kuschmeader, Jesse Livingston and Sara Parrish as Kuat Unite. <a href="http://www.shop.kuatracks.com/Unite-T-Shirt-Unite-T-Shirt.htm">Unite</a> is a charity effort by <a href="http://www.kuatracks.com/">Kuat Racks</a>. They were inspired to do something by the tragedy of the Joplin Tornado earlier this year. The Unite mission is to help victims of catastrophes around the world. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This was my 5th adventure race and first 36 hour. I had gotten a lot of good advice from some exceptional and experienced people leading up to the race, but really didn't know what it was going to be like. I've raced with Luke several times but it was the first with Sara and it was Jesse's first adventure race.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I could give a blow by blow account of the race but that would take a long time. Instead I'll just highlight a few of the highs and lows from our 30 hour adventure.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Best Moment Mentally: </b>On the last trekking "O" section over 24 hours into the race, I was tired but was mentally in the game. I was focused on getting checkpoints and even though we were climbing some insane hills I was having a great time. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Best Moment Physically: </b>Anytime on the bike. It's my thing and I love riding. Even though I lost my front brake due to worn pads in the pouring rain within the first 4 hours of the race, it didn't really effect my riding. I felt strong on the bike and looked forward to each biking leg of he race.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Worst Moment Mentally:</b> The first trekking "O" course consisted of 16 checkpoints in the area around the Berryman Campground. There was an 8 hour time limit and for every 5 minutes you went over the cutoff it would cost 1 checkpoint. We started this section of the race in the dark at 3am and initially struggled to find many of the checkpoints. We eventually got into a grove and as we neared the cutoff we decided to try to squeeze 1 more checkpoint in before heading back. We were all running out of water and that last checkpoint took longer to find than we expected. With about 20 minutes to go we took off on a run trying to get back in time. During the run Jesse was cramping so Luke dropped back to give him a tow. We ran as hard as we could but ended up getting back 3 minutes past the cutoff, costing us that last checkpoint we worked so hard to get. As I sat at the transition area, getting ready for the next bike leg I was really down. I was thirsty, tired and mentally exhausted. I didn't know if I even wanted to continue. I kept my mouth shut but if someone on the team had said they wanted to quit I probably would have gone along with them. After about 3 miles of riding we came to a creek where we could restock on water. At that point my outlook had changed and once again I was enjoying the experience and looking forward to continuing. The lesson here is don't dwell on the bad feelings. It will change. Just keep moving and it will get better.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Worst Moment Physically: </b>Although I was tired many times during the race I can't really pin down anytime I felt bad physically. No cramping, no chafing, no blisters. Never got very cold and didn't bonk. That was pretty cool.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Scariest Moment: </b>The 2am canoe leg was unreal. The water was moving pretty quickly and there were lot of obstacles in the water. Rootballs, downed trees, and other canoes. To top it off there was a thick fog coming off the water that greatly limited visibility. I was super nervous and Luke was nodding off in the back of the boat. Eventually I calmed down when I realized we could paddle hard enough to avoid everything and actually enjoyed the float.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Biggest Surprise:</b> Jesse's and Luke's calmness under fire. Navigating an adventure race that covers as much ground as the Berryman 36 hour is no easy task and it's easy to lose your bearing and get frustrated. Each and every time there was any uncertainty about our location and where the next checkpoint was, they regrouped, determined the best course of action and got us where we needed to go. I'd race with them anytime. I also can't neglect to mention Sara's pure strength. She impressed me over and over with her prowess on the bike and positive attitude. She's tough. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Bottom Line:</b> Jason and Laura are expert adventure race promoters. They dot all their I's and cross all their T's. My team had a great experience this weekend and we'll be back for another Bonk Hard race. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.theberrymanadventure.com/results.asp">Here's a link to the results</a>. </span>
Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-75103959915254567042011-05-17T15:00:00.001-05:002011-05-17T16:29:47.549-05:002011 Syllamo's Revenge race recap<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I do quite a bit of racing and I usually put everything I have into each race, but for me there are 3 big races a year. Races that I really look forward to and want to do well at. They are the <a href="http://www.ouachitachallenge.com/">Ouachita Challenge</a>, <a href="http://syllamosrevenge.com/">Syllamo's Revenge</a> and the <a href="http://btepic.com/">BT Epic</a>. They are all 50+ mile endurance races on some very tricky and challenging trails. Of these races I've had my <a href="http://www.syllamosrevenge.com/Results/2010overall/2010overall.html">best result at Syllamo</a> and this year I feel like I'm doing my best riding, so I entered this weekend's race with high excitement and expectations.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This year the Syllamo's Revenge was held alongside a new <a href="http://www.usmtb100.com/">NUE Series</a> event the <a href="http://www.syllamosrevenge.com/Syllamo125k/syllamo125k.html">Syllamo 125k</a>. They would be starting an hour ahead of us and racing the same course, but repeating a couple sections at the end in order to get the longer distance. I had considered signing up for the longer race, but honestly, the 50 miles of SR are enough, and last year I didn't want to go any further. I was a little uneasy how the earlier race would effect the trails for us, but everyone would be racing in the same elements so it really didn't make any difference.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> The race is near Mountain View Arkansas and I planned on getting a cabin nearby but with 500+ people converging on the area the closest I could get (where dog's are allowed) was a room at a nice place in Calico Rock, the Cedar Rock Lodge. It was about a 40 minute drive to the Blanchard Caverns Campground, the start/finish area of the race and very clean and affordable.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We made the drive to Calico Rock early Friday, and after checking in and unloading some stuff made the trip to Blanchard Springs Campground so I could pre-ride the first 5 miles of the course. The ride was great, with mostly dry trails and I felt really good. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Next we drove into Mountain View to pick up the race registration packet and then headed back to Calico Rock for some excellent pasta at <a href="http://www.donquixotes.net/">Don Quixote's</a>. I had the seafood pasta and there was enough for two meals.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Saturday morning I was up at 4:30, ate a big bowl of oatmeal and drove to the race, getting there in time to watch the 125k race start at 7. Then I rode up the long hill towards Blanchard Cavern to warm up my legs. On the trip back down I noticed a strange wobble feeling in the lever for my rear brake. It had a feeling like my rotor was bent and the lever was pulsating. It had never done that before but I didn't think much of it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I started the race on the front line and made it to the climb up blanchard road to the singletrack in pretty good shape. I didn't go all out on the climb since my goal was just to enter the singletrack in the top 10. In the following picture I'm the 3rd from the right:</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://commiebiker.smugmug.com/Mountain-Bike-Racing/2011-Syllamos-Revenge/i-hNJc79J/1/L/MB13383-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://commiebiker.smugmug.com/Mountain-Bike-Racing/2011-Syllamos-Revenge/i-hNJc79J/1/L/MB13383-L.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">A group of 5 broke away a little but were only 30 or so yards ahead. Cale McAninch passed me and I reached the trail behind him around 6th place. The pace on the trail was pretty good and on one of the rocky climbs that came after a sharp turn Cale, on a rigid singlespeed had to walk a bit so I passed and he got in behind me. I got in a group behind 3 riders with Chris Renshaw and Noah Singer in the pack. We got away from Cale for awhile as we cruised the fast flowing benchcut trail, but when we started some of the slick rocky descents Cale caught back up. Overall I felt like we were riding faster than I had the previous year and I was definitely working but I was thinking I could maintain the pace for awhile.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">About 10 miles into the race on a downhill I went to grab some brake and my rear brake lever went to the bar without slowing me down. I tried pumping the lever but that didn't work, so I pulled over to see what was wrong. Cale said that 90% of braking is the front wheel, which is true, but on slick muddy rocks, you need some rear brakes. I fiddled with the various adjustments on my XX brakes but couldn't get them to work. There simply wasn't any feeling at the lever, I could pull it to the bar without any resistance.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">For the next 4 miles to the first checkpoint I did the best I could but had one crash were I went over the bars and hit my leg pretty hard on some rocks, and was passed by a couple people. Here's a picture of me about a mile from the checkpoint:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">When I got to the checkpoint I was really disappointed. I'm not a great technical rider and I was really struggling on the downhills without a rear brake. Plus the big downhills were still to come. So I decided to call it a day and DNF the race. I just didn't think I could do it without getting hurt. Then, Jim Davis (the same Jim Davis that aired up my tire at <a href="http://www.markgullett.com/2009/10/berryman-epic-recap.html">Berryman</a> a couple years ago) who was at the race supporting his wife Wendy (and everyone else), offered to let me (no told me to) ride his bike for the rest of the race. I was hesitant but willing to give it a shot. Then as he was setting the seat height for me he stripped the bolt on his seatpost collar. I took it as a sign. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I ended up hanging out at the aid station for awhile and it was pretty neat. I've never been at one during a race for more than a few seconds. The racers get a ton of support from friends, family, volunteers and total strangers. You see a lot of emotion from total joy to fatigue induced suffering. People battle mental and physical demons during these races, and they don't always win, but most of the time they do.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I ended up giving a ride back to Blanchard to RIM promoter Doug Long. It was good getting to talk to him. He has done all of the SR races and this was the first time he had to withdraw. I could tell it wasn't an easy decision, but one he had to make. He'll be back.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I'll be back as well. I need to work on my downhill skills to have a chance to win these races, but I think I can get better. Maybe riding the rough motorcycle trails at Chadwick would help.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The weekend wasn't a total loss, I got to eat some good food, see some great sights and talk to lots of great people. The race didn't go as I'd hoped, but everything else did.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The pictures in this post were taken from <a href="http://commiebiker.smugmug.com/Mountain-Bike-Racing/2011-Syllamos-Revenge/17068132_cdtfVS#1292658013_VTtZWgX">THIS</a> gallery. There are hundreds of pictures from the race there. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Now I just need to get my bike fixed because I've got the <a href="http://www.greenwayrace.org/">Ozark Greenways Adventure race </a>Saturday and <a href="http://www.unitedindirt.com/?page_id=652">6 Hour Indian Camp Creek race</a> Sunday. </span>Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-48401630334266212922011-05-17T10:35:00.003-05:002011-05-17T12:36:36.970-05:002011 Greensfelder Challenge race recap<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Last weekend (5/7) was the <a href="http://www.drj-racing.com/">DRJ</a>/<a href="http://www.gorctrails.com/">GORC</a> Greensfelder Challenge at Greensfelder county park near Eureka Mo. It's part of the <a href="http://www.unitedindirt.com/">UFD</a> East series and the proceeds from the race benefit GORC, the St. Louis trail building organization. I've done the race the last couple of years and it's always a great event that brings out a lot of the St. Louis mountain bike racing community.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I had <a href="http://www.syllamosrevenge.com/">Syllamo's Revenge</a> the next weekend, which is one of my biggest races of the year, so I entered this race with a goal of putting out a nice solid effort without breaking anything or injuring myself in the process. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I signed up for the endurance class which is a race where you do as many laps as you can with a 3 hour cutoff. If you start your last lap before the 3 hours you can finish that lap. With a lap distance of just over 7 miles I figured it would be a 4 or 5 lap race.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">At the starting line I was surprised how many people had signed up. There are usually 9 or 10 that do the endurance class at series races, but there were over 25. That's either a lot of people preparing for Syllamo's Revenge, or endurance racing is getting more popular.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The race started with a pretty fast pace and when we hit the trail I was sitting in 4th with Aaron Fader, Dan Miller and Jeremy Bock in front of me. When we got to the first long rocky downhill I nearly wrecked so I backed off to get my bike under control and I lost the leaders. But on the subsequent climb I was able to catch back up to Jeremy. That repeated many times. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The trail on the first lap was pretty good. A little muddy but not bad. On the second lap it was pretty bad. The rocks and some of the climbs were slick and where there were leaves mixed with the mud it would get packed between the tire and chainstays. But the sun was out and on each subsequent lap the trail was getting drier and drier. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Here's a picture of me coming through the start/finish area:</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_d0qdNRAMK20/TcbqElCKvmI/AAAAAAAAHkI/veZx3nMrD30/s640/IMG_2376.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_d0qdNRAMK20/TcbqElCKvmI/AAAAAAAAHkI/veZx3nMrD30/s400/IMG_2376.JPG" width="266" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">On the second lap I saw Dan Miller on the side of the trail fixing a flat. He had cut the sidewall on his rear tire in the rocks. That put me in third. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">There was one section of the trail with an uphill rock garden that I couldn't ride, so I had to push the bike for 20 yards or so. On the third lap I caught up with Jeremy right before this section. We both walked up the hill and as I jumped on my bike at the top I noticed my front tire was flat. The bead was still on the rim and I couldn't see any stans leaking out so I figured I'd just burped it. So instead of putting in a tube I just filled it with air using the CO2 canister I was carrying. That allowed Jeremy to get away once again.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Then about 15 minutes later as I was making a hard turn I realized that my front tire was going flat again. Upon inspection I found a small hole in the sidewall of the tire about a half inch from the tread. I didn't have enough CO2 to fill a tube so I just aired the tire back up hoping it would get me to the start/finish area where I had several CO2's and tubes. The thing is, I had a <a href="http://www.genuineinnovations.com/tubeless-tire-repair-kit.html">plug kit</a> in my pocket that I bought for just this situation and it would have fixed the sidewall hole, but I've never used it before and I forgot all about it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I limped to the end of the lap and on the final climb the tire was pretty spongy, but ride-able. When I got to my table I put a tube in my tire and was passed by Jason Zoll and Mitch Johnson. Now I was in fifth. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The wasted time of airing my tire twice and putting a tube in meant there wasn't enough time for a fifth lap, so I headed out on my fourth and final lap with the goal of riding hard and having fun. It was the best lap of the day. The trails were in great shape and I was feeling good. About halfway through I caught up with Mitch, and he let me by on a climb. I rolled through the finish in fourth pretty satisfied with the day.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">After the race I ate some delicious BBQ provided by GORC and got to talk with several people I hadn't seen in awhile. Good times. <br />
</span>Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-14073709740761681662011-05-04T11:25:00.004-05:002011-05-04T11:42:37.546-05:00Toasty Waffles Training Race #1 recap<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Yesterday was the first of a series of 4 training road races put on by <a href="http://www.stjohnscycling.com/main.php">St. Johns Cycling Team</a>. I don't own a road bike, have never really ridden one and of course have never done a road race, but with the encouragement of friends (*cough* Jesse!) decided to try one.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I was hooked up with a really nice road bike by my friends at <a href="http://abcycle.com/">A&B Cycle</a>. The bike was a new <a href="http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/SBCProduct.jsp?spid=52900&scid=1001&scname=Road">Specialized Tarmac SL3 Expert Double</a>. Here's a pic:</span> <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/225585_2039591747940_1188684419_2539695_5102023_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/225585_2039591747940_1188684419_2539695_5102023_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The race course was an 11 mile loop around fellows lake north of Springfield. To get used to riding the bike I decided to ride to the race venue with Jesse and Jared. It was only about a 20 minute ride and would also serve as a good warmup. There were 2 classes at the race, A would do 3 laps and B would do 2. I decided to do the A race. I'm obviously not on the same level as everyone else in that class, but my fitness is pretty good and I like to race against the best so figured what the heck. I knew most of the people there since many of them also mountain bike, and I wanted to see what the draw is for road racing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">There looked to be about 20 or 25 riders in the class. The start of the race was pretty casual. We headed out in a clock-wise direction on the loop and the first section of road was straight with some small rolling hills. We were riding in a large pack about 3 wide. I was somewhere in the middle. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">After a few minutes the pace picked up a bit but and we went 2 wide. After the first turn it became more of a pace-line with people pulling for a few seconds then dropping back into the line. There was a lot of conversation going on and I was getting a lot of good advice from several people. I took a few turns at the front and it was amazing the difference in the effort between being behind someone and being on the front. It seemed like the whole idea was to conserve as much energy as possible. Nobody would pull long enough to wear themselves out. On the first big climb Peter broke away from the group and for some reason I started chasing him. I got about halfway between him and the pack and once we crested the hill I was soon caught by the pack and Peter also fell back in. It was just wasted effort. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I spent the rest of the first lap with the pack cycling through the pace-line. It was funny because when I peeled off the front I would have to float alongside the whole line and get on the back because there where no gaps to rejoin. At one point as I was near the back trying to get back to speed to rejoin the group I got a little push from Ryan McCormick (Skip) which got me going again. The second lap was more of the same. I felt pretty good and couldn't help wondering when things were going to break apart. We were 1 big group of riders and I knew there were several people there that could ride away from us and not look back.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">About halfway through the second lap there was a crash at the front of the line. I didn't see it happen but heard a couple guys bumped wheels and went down. Nobody was hurt and we all slowed down to let them catch back up. Not long after I was at the front of the group riding next to Brad Huff when I jokingly said I could have ridden my mountain bike. Big mistake. He pulled away and soon everyone was passing me. I was working pretty hard to pick up the pace and when Bud Hogan rode by he told me to keep it smooth. But keeping it smooth didn't help. I drifted off the back and despite my effort couldn't rejoin the group so I could rest a little in the draft. I struggled as everyone slowly pulled away. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">At the end of the first lap a few people dropped out, and I saw that Skip had dropped off the main pack as well. I worked to catch up to him and when I did we started taking turns pulling and were able to speed up a bit. Then I noticed that Ryan Meschke had also fallen off and we soon caught up with him. The 3 of us worked together for awhile but on the next big climb with Ryan leading the way we noticed that Skip was drifting back. We kept going, rotating every 10 or 20 seconds. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">As we neared the end of the lap Ryan asked how we were going to finish. I said I didn't care and he suggested we ride up the last big hill together which ends within sight of the finish and then sprint it out. That sounded good so I agreed. The last climb was pretty slow and I just tried to save energy. At the top I said "Let's Go!" and took off. Ryan fell in behind me. Then about 30 yards from the finish he swung around but I had used up my energy and couldn't hold him off. He passed me before the finish. Rookie mistake.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">After the race my legs were cooked. Mainly my abductors and upper hamstrings. I must not use those as much mountain biking. I decided to catch a ride back to town with Lori instead of ride back with Jesse and Jared. I'm glad I did the race. It was a pretty big eye opener and I had a good time. If I can secure another bike I'll be back. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://connect.garmin.com/activity/83363239">Here's my garmin data from the race</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I'm not sure who won the A race but Jared won the B race and will be sporting the yellow jersey next week. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">On a side note, the Tarmac is an amazing bike. I rode it into work today and I'm going for a ride at lunch. It's so much more efficient on the road than my epic. Makes road riding seem fun.....</span>Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-91219741182823257272011-04-06T17:27:00.003-05:002011-04-08T22:33:34.088-05:002011 Ouachita Challenge recap<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This weekend was the 10th annual Ouachita Challenge. It was my second time doing the race and coming off a solid effort at the spa city 6 hour 3 weeks ago I hoped I'd do well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The race was Sunday, so Saturday morning I got in a nice hour and a half ride on the womble trail. I felt really good, like I was floating over the trail. When I crossed one of the gravel roads I came upon a couple of women that gave me a confused look. When I said I was pre-riding the trail they said the race wasn't using the trail I'd just left. It was going to come from the road and enter the trail on the opposite side I was riding. I was a bit confused since I'd ridden that trail the previous year, but I continued on, eventually turning around and heading back to the cabin. For the afternoon I was planning on riding brushy mountain, which is used at the start of the race, but I decided against it so I'd be fresher on race day. Instead I did some sight-seeing. That is such a beautiful area.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Saturday evening I went to the pre-race dinner/raffle and looking at the race course I found out the reason the volunteers I'd talked to that morning said I wouldn't be riding the eastern part of the womble. They changed the course and weren't doing the section from the previous year that went on the other side of Ouachia lake. They were sending us through sims and doing more of western part of the womble. Looking at the map it seemed significantly shorter than the previous years course, but you can never really tell since the scale of the maps have the trail looking like a straight line when they are never straight.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Sunday morning I woke up at 4:45, unable to sleep due to the nervousness and excitement for what lay ahead. The start time for the race was 8am so I spent my time eating a huge bowl of oatmeal with peanut butter, banana, raisins and maple syrup. Then prepping my bike for the race. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Eventually we drove to the elementary school that is the staging area and start/finish of the race. I knew the race would have a several mile rollout before hitting any singletrack so I didn't worry about warming up. I just rode around talking to people I've met a various races and then positioned myself on the front row for the start. Actually I positioned myself where the start line would eventually be. I was the first one there but once I planted myself next to the tree people starting riding over to claim their spot. I ended up between 2 very good riders, one of which recognized me from spa city. On my right was <a href="http://aaronelwell.blogspot.com/">Aaron Elwell</a> from KS and on my left was <a href="http://918xc.blogspot.com/2011/04/ouachita-challenge.html">Chris Renshaw</a> from OK. Chris finished 3rd at spa city (I was 6th) and Aaron has beaten me several times, most recently at the KC Cup race at Swope Park last September. Behind me was Chris Ellis from KC who beat me at the Tour de Tick last year. Other notables I've raced against were <a href="http://cornbreadblog.blogspot.com/">Cornbread</a> from NE, <a href="http://noahsinger.posterous.com/">Noah Singer</a> and Hap Seliga from AR to name a few. I love racing against talented people and I was surrounded by talent. It was going to be a good day.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The race started with a different route to Brushy than last year. We still had to ride behind a gentleman on a recumbent bike for a half mile or so, but we weren't on HWY 88 which meant we could take up the entire width of the road. When we were given the go ahead to race I was hugging the center line sitting about 3 rows back in a huge mass of riders, with 2 or 3 on either side. It was like I was in a vacuum being pulled forward. We were going about 20mph on asphalt and I was coasting as much as pedaling. It was a pretty cool feeling. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">When we made the turn to gravel the pace didn't really pick up any and I was worried the crowd would be too big once we reached the trail, so I rode to the front of the pack and started to ride away. Of course they weren't going to let that happen so everyone caught up to me and I jumped back in the draft. We were now racing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">There were 2 lines of riders, one in each lane of the narrow gravel road. There were a few short hills and people were jockeying for position on the rough gavel in the center of the road. As the lead of each line changed you would see that side surge ahead but overall we were staying pretty equal. I was feeling pretty good sitting about 10 spots back when we came to a pretty big hill and the paceline fell apart. 2 riders broke away charging up the hill. The first one was Wiley Mosley from TX and Elwell was on his heels. I made a small break with 3 or 4 other riders chasing them. I figured the start of the singletrack must be near and didn't want to be behind too many riders when we got there. After cresting the top of the hill Wiley continued to ride away and Elwell dropped back to join our small group. On the next big climb you could see the volunteers at the top signaling the start of Big Brushy trail. Elwell took off and when we got to the trail I was in 4th. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Charging up that climb left me pretty winded, but Brushy didn't let me off the hook because it also starts with a climb. To make it better there's a nice little rock garden at the top of the initial climb that you get to negotiate while drooling on your top tube. Overall Brushy isn't that technical, but there is lots of climbing, some steep descents and lots of rocks lining the trail. I was passed by a few riders and passed a couple others so when I rolled into the first aid station to swap bottles I was sitting in 5th. Several people didn't stop and flew past me. I would see them often on the next section of the course; blowout mountain.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Blowout mountain is what the Ouachita Challenge is all about. Big climbs, screaming descents and crazy rock gardens. My racing style is about 1 thing; consistency. Don't go too fast at the start, don't go too fast on the descents, keep a steady tempo on the flats, try not to slow down as the race progresses and climb as fast as I can. I felt like I was riding well on blowout mountain. I'd pass a few people going up hill, get passed going downhill and ran across a lot of the rock gardens. On one of the downhills I pass Elwell as he's fixing a flat on the side of the trail. I knew I'd be seeing him again soon. Then near the end of Blowout, as I was going down a hill my left pedal struck a rock and it threw me into a tree on the right side of the trail. My shoulder slammed into a tree and it felt like I broke something. But I didn't and the pain went away. I refilled one of my bottles at the aid station between Blowout and Chalybeate Mountain then started on the longest sustained climb of the day. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Since the race last year I switched my bike to 1x10 gearing with a 38t front chainring, so while the biggest gear in the back is a 36t, I don't have a true "granny" gear where I can slowly spin up a hill. While I won't say I flew up Chalybeate I rode pretty well having to stand several times to keep my momentum up and relieve some of the burning in my legs. After that big first climb Chalybeate is a pretty fun trail. There are more hills but they aren't bad and the trail flows really well. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Next was about an 8 mile road ride with a strong headwind that lead us through Sims and on to the womble (where I'd seen the 2 ladies the day before). That road section was pretty tough. It would have been nice to be in a group to have someone to draft off of, but there was no-one in sight so I tucked down to get as areo as I could and rode hard. At Sims I swapped bottles and continued on. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">When I finally got to the womble I said hello to the volunteers, put the offered zip tie on my handlebars and took off. Womble is a great trail. It wasn't as effortless as it had felt the previous day, but it was still pretty fun. Pretty soon I was caught and passed by Elwell, then not long after saw him on the side of the trail again fixing another flat. He looked pretty frustrated. As I rode on I was having fun, but I had this nagging feeling. I was feeling good and I know I was riding faster than I had the previous year, but I was sitting in 9th place, the same as last year. I felt like I should be in a better position. Then while I was contemplating life, I was caught by Cornbread. I didn't try to run from him. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Endurance racing is weird. Most of the time you aren't racing anyone but yourself. You are alone in the woods and you just go as fast as your skill and fitness will allow. All kinds of thoughts go through your head. When you're feeling good it's all fun, when you're fatigued or injured it's all bad. Climbing starts to suck and descents start to be blurry. But on the rare occasion you see another rider, all that goes away; you're racing someone!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I hate running from someone during a race, I'd much rather chase. When you're running you feel your own fatigue and in your mind the other person is feeling awesome. When you're chasing you can see if they are struggling or not and you can attack appropriately. Maybe you need to let them go and hope to see them again, maybe you need to hang onto them and push them out of their comfort zone until they tire enough to want you to pass them and go away. Maybe you should try to blow by them and get out of their sight so they think you're feeling good. That's what makes the racing fun. I like to push myself and see what I'm capable of, but I like the competition just as much.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">When cornbread passed me I hung on. I rode behind him for awhile and at the top of the biggest climb on the womble he pulled to the side of the trail. I'm not sure if he was cramping or having a mechanical issue, but I took the advantage and rode away as fast as I could. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Pretty soon I started catching other riders who were all having cramping issues. I was tired but physically fine so I was pretty happy to be moving up. Then right before leaving the womble I caught up to Noah Singer. As we popped out onto a gravel road I wasn't sure if there was more trail or if we would have road the rest of the way. I told Noah that I'd just passed 3 people and he said "well lets put some distance on them". So I jumped to the front and he drafted behind me. Then after a couple minutes we traded places. He was riding pretty hard so I told him to not dig too big of a hole and let me pull every couple of minutes. Then before we could switch we rode up on another volunteer directing us to singletrack. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I rode behind Noah for awhile and then he pulled over and told me to go on. I think he was cramping. It was a pretty hot day, over 80 degrees and lots of people were cramping. When I passed him I rode hard to get out of his sight and soon popped out on a gravel road where the volunteer said it was 10 miles to the finish. I didn't believe him since I was over 50 miles in at that point, but I was sitting in 5th and wanted to be done with the race. So I rode on the last big climb of the race, a big switchback road, on one of the turns I saw someone behind me. I attacked that hill, rode past the water station and soon couldn't see the rider behind me anymore. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">When I got to the pavement I knew there were only a few miles to go so I tucked down low and tried to ride fast. I looked over my shoulder and someone was about a hundred yards behind me. Crap, just like last year. I pushed harder, looked again and he was closer. Pushed harder looked again and he was right behind me. It was Elwell again. As he passed me I told him I wasn't going to fight him for it (as if it would have made a difference). I said he earned it. So I cruised to the finish in 6th covering 60 miles in 4:57. 7 minutes behind the winner Wiley Mosley. I'm happy with that.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">After the race I ate some pizza, hung around, and had a good time. Thanks to all the volunteers that support this race and the racers. They are amazing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.ouachitachallenge.com/Race2011.htm">Here's a link to the results</a>, and <a href="http://connect.garmin.com/activity/77091596">here's a link to my garmin data</a> from the day. I saw several people taking photo's during the race so if I find any galleries I'll update this post with a link.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> I had a great time and will hopefully be back next year.</span>Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-34530121404849175842011-03-28T11:02:00.001-05:002011-03-28T11:08:28.634-05:00Commuting<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I live only 2 miles from work and I've always driven to work. I tried commuting by bike a couple years ago but it didn't seem worth the hassle for only 10 minutes on the bike. Then, last week while running around the neighborhood I wondered why I don't just run to work. It would be a good way to start the day and I'd be able to easily add 20 miles a week to my training load. Plus it wouldn't add much time since there is a lot of stop and go when I drive. I decided to give it a shot. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">There were a few things to consider. First was my boat anchor of a laptop that I need to take home each day. It's a 17 incher and is pretty heavy. Luckily when I remove the water reservoir it fits perfectly in the <a href="http://www.rei.com/webservices/rei/DisplayStyle/814398?source=gpla&cm_mmc=cse_froogle-_-datafeed-_-product-_-814398&mr:trackingCode=46C815C2-B849-E011-AFD7-001517384908&mr:referralID=NA">CamelBak H.A.W.G NV</a> that I bought last year for the Hut to Hut ride from Durango CO to Moab UT. It's a good pack with a waist strap that I can tighten enough to keep it from bouncing around while I run. The other thing to worry about was clothing. The dress code at work is pretty casual, but I don't think I can get away with wearing running shorts and dri-fit tee's all day. But I don't want to change clothes when I come and go. The idea for the commute is to be hassle-free so I'll stick with it. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This weekend I bought a few pairs of <a href="http://www.rei.com/search?search=kuhl&cat=4500008&cat=40005464&hist=query%2Ckuhl%5Ecat%2C4500008%3AMen%27s%5Ecat%2C40005464%3AMen%27s+Pants">Kuhl pants</a> that are light and comfy enough to run in and look good enough to work in. I also got a <a href="http://www.rei.com/product/795023">Mountain Hardware jacket</a> for rainy days. I think I need to get a few lightweight shirts for this summer, but equipment wise I am good to go.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This morning was my first run to work day and it was really nice. Took about 15 minutes and with the cool temperature it felt really good. My only problem was that I ran to the door and as soon as I walked in I started sweating. I think I'll have to walk in the last block or so to allow a proper cool-down to prevent that. I'm pretty happy with the idea but we'll see how this works out.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span>Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-57894459169595681482011-02-14T14:20:00.000-06:002011-02-14T14:20:12.268-06:00Training<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It's that time of year where I try to build my fitness up for the demands of a full season of endurance racing. On Saturday I did 12 laps on my mountain bike around the 5 mile loop at Wilsons Creek National Battlefield. To me it's a great place to train when the trails aren't ride-able. It's a one-way paved loop with minimal traffic and has a great elevation profile. It starts with a mile or so that's mostly downhill, followed by about a half mile gradual climb, then a short steep climb followed by a couple miles of flat road. Then another gradual climb, quick descent, followed by bloody hill which is a LONG hill that starts gradual, gets steep, levels for a short section then goes back up with a pretty tough climb at the top. That's followed by a couple rollers before the end of the loop. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I guess the point of this post is to offer a bit of advice to others that are thinking about getting into endurance riding/racing. You will get to a point when you're riding hard where you're weaknesses will rear their ugly head. It may be soreness in your lower back, it may be burning in your quads or hamstrings. It may be all of the above. The thing is when you get to that point, don't stop. For me this weekend it was around 2 and a half hours. Riding the bike got uncomfortable and I wanted to stop. But I just backed off a little, and kept going. Eventually the pain went away. It always does. Then I sped back up.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Riding through the discomfort will make you sore and you have to make sure you give yourself time to recover afterward, but each time you do this you'll be better. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Don't think about how something is going to feel. It will hold you back. When you're on the bike focus on the moment, do the best you can right now and above all, don't quit. You'll deal with the future when you get there. </span>Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-68156779793661474582011-01-03T17:08:00.031-06:002011-01-03T20:27:24.531-06:00One year on the Epic<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2755/4389457029_fdf776755f_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2755/4389457029_fdf776755f_b.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I've had my 2010 Specialized S-Works Epic for just over a year, and figured I'd do a fairly in-depth review. I decided to buy the bike after a test ride at the 2009 Burnin' at the Bluff race. It was a relay style race and I was able to take the demo bike out for a lap. I fell in love. After demoing a few other brands I decided to get the Epic because nothing else made me feel as good.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I did 27 races this year on the epic, from short track distances to 60+ mile marathons. I've also put slicks on it and did a fair amount of training on the road. So I've got a pretty good feel for this bike.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://gallery.me.com/markgullett/100008/Matchmaker%20X%20vs.%20OEM/web.jpg?ver=12674768230001OEM/web.jpg?ver=12674768230001" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://gallery.me.com/markgullett/100008/Matchmaker%20X%20vs.%20OEM/web.jpg?ver=12674768230001OEM/web.jpg?ver=12674768230001" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I made very few equipment changes to the bike right off the bat. I put Crank Bros Eggbeater 4ti pedals on it and ESI "Racer's Edge" black grips. After cutting the sidewall of the rear tire on my first ride, I switched the tires to Schwalbe. I went with a a 2.4 Rocket Ron on the front and 2.25 Racing Ralph (with Snakeskin) on the back. I set them up tubeless with Bontrager stems (for the removable core), the Specialized rim tape and Stans sealant, a very fast and reliable setup. I also got a set of SRAM Matchmaker-X clamps for the shifters and brakes for the cleaner look and adjustability. Even though they weigh a few grams more than separate clamps, I like it better.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Early in the year I would experience lower back pain and a burning sensationafter about 3 hours of racing. It would hurt so bad that I'd have to either ride with one hand so I could sit up or if there was a gravel or paved section, ride without my hands on the bars. After a few seconds of sitting up, the pain would go away for awhile. I think it was a combination of the more extended riding position than I was used to and lack of core training on my part, so I spent some time doing exercises on a medicine ball and lots of riding. The pain disappeared in mid-April and hasn't been an issue since.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The best feature of the bike is the brain suspension setup. It provides a stiff and stable pedal platform on smooth ground but goes fully active in the rough stuff. I've been on road rides and had several people say they couldn't believe the bike doesn't bob when standing for a hill climb. I keep the brain set to full firm on both the fork and shock and love it. At high speeds I can feel a little vibration on the front when going over small rocks, but I've gotten used to it and don't notice it any more. I've taken the bike to the shop for service of the suspension 3 times, according to its maintenance schedule. I think it was $50 for the in-shop services, and I don't know what the third one is since I haven't gotten it back yet. In my last ride before the Castlewood Adventure Race, I blew out the platform on the rear shock. It still functioned fine, but was fully active like a normal shock. I went ahead and rode it in the race on December 4th and took it to the shop on the 6th. They sent the parts to Specialized and are supposed to get them back today.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The bike came with a SRAM XX 2x10 drivetrain which is really nice; great, crisp shifting, even under load. But over time, I realized that I never used the small chain ring in front so decided to switch to a 1x10 setup. Dropping the front shifter, cable, housing, derailleur and inner chain ring took over half a pound off the bike. <a href="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs282.snc4/40463_1578158212390_1188684419_1717364_801766_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs282.snc4/40463_1578158212390_1188684419_1717364_801766_n.jpg" width="149" /></a><br />
But I couldn't find a chain-guide that would fit the bike. The seat-post mounted type wouldn't work because it has a curved oval seat-tube and the bottom bracket mounted type wouldn't work because it has a press-in bottom bracket. <a href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4088/5076083701_00628f9f6d_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4088/5076083701_00628f9f6d_b.jpg" width="200" /></a>So I got creative and crafted several home-made chain guides out of steel, Plexiglas and aluminum but none of them worked very well. I would drop my chain on the rough downhills. I took the bike to the shop where I bought it to get some opinions on why the chain kept coming off and they noticed that my front chain ring was pretty worn, and that there was a bit of a grinding in the bottom bracket. They replaced them both (under warranty) but I kept dropping the chain during races. In August I was talking to Travis Donn from KC who rides the same bike and he said it was my rear derailleur. He said he was dropping his chain (with the stock XX setup) and his shop replaced his rear derailleur with a new one and that fixed it. He said it keeps more tension on the chain. I ended up buying an XX mid-cage derailleur and an MRP 1.x chain guide that I built a DMD (the spot the front derailleur bolts to) mount for out of aluminum. The combination of those have solved the problem and I haven't dropped the chain since.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">At my last cross-country race of the year, the Slaughter Pen Jam in Bentonville Arkansas, about an hour and a half into the race, I broke one of the rails on my seat. It was a Specialized Phenom SL with hollow titanium rails and the right side snapped behind the seatpost mount. The trails there are really fun with lots of short climbs and dips and it broke at the bottom of one of the dips. I usually try to come off of the seat and hover when riding through those, but there were so many of them I was just staying seated. Even though I still had about forty minutes of riding left, I was winning the race so I just kept going. It made my rear-end a little sore because I was riding on my left cheek, but it wasn't painful. The next day (a Monday), I took the seat into the shop and I had a warranty replacement in my hands on Friday.</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/hs472.ash2/74574_1705730841626_1188684419_1989087_812291_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="148" src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/hs472.ash2/74574_1705730841626_1188684419_1989087_812291_n.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">About a week after getting my new seat I was riding in St. Louis on the flood-plain section of the Chubb trail. It's a twisty trail with banked turns and lots of dips through drainage ditches. On one of the banked turns I felt and heard a sound like I'd hit something, then felt my rear tire rubbing the frame. When I looked down I saw that I'd snapped non-drive side chain stay.</span><a href="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/hs580.ash2/150252_1715816173753_1188684419_2006099_7132022_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="148" src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/hs580.ash2/150252_1715816173753_1188684419_2006099_7132022_n.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> It was a clean break right in the middle. Luckily there were some hikers walking by that were parked less than a mile away and they offered to drive me to my car. It saved me a several mile hike. The next day (Monday) I took the bike to the shop and they had already heard about my problem and had contacted Specialized about it. I picked up my bike up with the replacement chainstay on Friday, and the shop had also replaced the suspension pivot bushings because they noticed they had some stiction.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">One place the bike really shines is on long gradual climbs. With just a little extra effort you can fly up a hill without downshifting. But something that still makes me nervous is the feeling of descending rough trails on such a light bike; it doesn't have that confidence inspiring solid feel of a heavier bike.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Over the course of the year I've tried several different tire combinations, and I think my three favorite are: </span><br />
<ul><li><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Race setup: Rocket Ron front and Racing Ralph rear</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Dry hardpack: Specialized Renegade front and rear</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Muddy: Continental Mountain King</span></li>
</ul><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> There's a lot more I could say about my year on the bike but figured I'd just break it down to strengths and weaknesses:</span><br />
<ul><li><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Strengths: lightweight, climbing, comfort (after getting used to it), quick acceleration, awesome warranty </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Weaknesses: high price, minor rear flex on high-speed turns, stuff breaking after an admittedly hard year of use</span></li>
</ul><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Overall I'm really happy with the bike. I'd like to test ride the new 2011 S-Works Epic 29er to see what the difference is, but I've ordered a Specialized Roval carbon wheelset that I'll hopefully get next month. I also plan on switching to a singlespeed front chain ring, maybe a Rotor, so I plan on getting another year of racing out of it. </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4125/5076681648_8fe9c261ea_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4125/5076681648_8fe9c261ea_b.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-81610130757639940652010-12-31T20:33:00.001-06:002010-12-31T20:34:57.927-06:00Another year<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">2010 has been a great year, exceeding my expectations in many ways. This was my first full year of mountain bike racing and I did pretty well against some excellent competition. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The highlight as far as racing came pretty early in the year with my 3rd place finish at Syllamo's Revenge. That was the result of some very hard off season training, some early distance racing and a lot of luck. I rode about as well and as hard as I could and it paid off.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The highlight for riding was the Durango to Moab Hut-to-Hut trip in July. It was an amazing experience with an awesome group of people. I plan to do a detailed write-up of the trip, but needless to say, I'd do it again in a second. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I did my first adventure race this year, the Castlewood 8 Hour in early December. I raced in the 4 person co-ed division with Luke Kuschmeader, Jamie Wynne and Dee Anne Sheridan. I loved it and I'm looking forward to doing more of them. We're planning on doing the Bonk Hard Chill in February. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">2011 will be a mix of mountain bike and adventure racing. I'm doing a lot of running right now which cuts into my time on the bike, but I really enjoy it and it's necessary to do well in AR. I also hope to travel more and ride in more parts of the country. I got a taste of riding in Colorado and I want more of that.</span>Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-71521126087536158772010-12-23T23:46:00.001-06:002010-12-23T23:47:57.003-06:00AMBCS<a href="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs069.snc4/34801_1769495515703_1188684419_2115758_6606748_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs069.snc4/34801_1769495515703_1188684419_2115758_6606748_n.jpg" width="297" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Man, no posts since RIM? Pretty sad. I've got several saved as drafts but I haven't found the time to put up anything halfway coherent. Anyway, I got a pretty cool package today. Turns out I finished 2nd in the 30-39 class of the Arkansas Mountain Bike Marathon Series and they sent me a nice plaque. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The series consisted of the Spa City 6 Hour, Ouachita Challenge and Syllamo's Revenge. I did fairly well in the Arkansas races, so it's no surprise I plan on doing all of them next year. </span>Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-3389716768227522152010-08-16T01:30:00.005-05:002010-11-19T23:40:29.200-06:00Rapture In Misery recapOn Thursday last week I decided to head up to Trenton MO for <a href="http://www.heartlandrace.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=22&Itemid=37">RIM</a>, a 6/12 hour mountain bike race that's part of the <a href="http://www.heartlandrace.com/">Heartland Racing Series</a>. I'd never ridden the trails at <a href="http://www.mostateparks.com/crowder.htm">Crowder State Park</a> but I'd heard it was a really fun race and I hadn't done a long (for me) mountain bike since since Syllamo and figured it was time since I've got some long ones coming up. I felt bad because there was a party on Saturday that I had been planning on attending, but I really wanted to race and that desire won out.<br />
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I arrived at the park a couple hours before the race and saw Zdenek and Adam from St. Louis. They were both doing the 12 hour solo but I signed up for the 6 hour and saw I'd be racing against <a href="http://onthebikeagain.blogspot.com/">Jeff Winkler</a>, <a href="http://aaronelwell.blogspot.com/">Aaron Elwell</a> and <a href="http://pyrocrank.blogspot.com/">Travis Donn</a> among others. I had my work cut out for me. The pre-race rider meeting was full of warnings about the various trail hazards which was a little unnerving. When they are talking about the "bone yard" and "widow maker" it doesn't sound good. The trail was roughly 9 miles per lap and Jeff won the race last year riding 8 laps. <br />
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The weather was hot and humid but nothing crazy. I really felt as long as I stayed hydrated it wouldn't be an issue. Before the race I noticed that my right quad was kind of sore and massaged it a bit trying to losen it up. I figured it would be fine once I got on the bike.<br />
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The race started with a short run which wasn't very fast and I was sitting in about 6th when we hit the trail.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs092.snc4/35948_427821444556_590594556_4697895_1703738_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="221" src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs092.snc4/35948_427821444556_590594556_4697895_1703738_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>I made my first mistake early on. Jeff was right in front of me and I rode the first lap on his wheel at his pace. I know that in order to do well I have to ride my own race and not worry about other riders until the latter stages of the race, but in the excitement and wanting to do well I figured I needed to hang on to someone that I knew would be in contention for the win. It didn't feel that fast but there was no recovery that lap. I was pushing pretty hard the whole way. The course has a technical rock garden early in the lap (the "bone yard") some steep non-technical climbs that last a few minutes but overall the course is relatively flat. Unfortunately I had to ride hard on those sections to keep up. The downhills were a bit slick from rain the night before so there was no relaxing there either. I finished the first lap in 48:47 sitting in third, grabbed a fresh bottle of water/perpetuem and headed back out.<br />
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I had dropped off Jeff's pace by the second lap and tried to settle into something I could maintain for the long haul. Unfortunately the damage from riding out of my comfort zone for too long the first lap had been done and even when I backed off I wasn't able to recover and get my breathing under control. Travis passed me on the last significant climb of the lap as I was spinning in my granny gear. I was really struggling and just didn't have the energy to do antyhing else. The second lap wasn't very fun and I finished it with a time of 53:54.<br />
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My third lap was hell. On the first real climb I had to drop to my granny gear right off the bat and about halfway up my right quad seized with a cramp. I had to get off the bike because of the pain but it hurt if I tried to straighten or bend my knee so there was no relief. I must have looked bad because another rider climbing behind me asked if I was okay. I just had to wait a bit for it to go away. When I got back on the bike I realized I was sweating like crazy and I couldn't catch my breath. I rode a mile or so until I got to the aid station that's about halfway through the lap and I just got off my bike, went over there and ate a couple cookies and drank some water. It was frustrating watching riders fly by. A few other people stopped (including JP Brocket) complaining of cramps so I wasn't alone with my issues, but I felt didn't make me feel any better. I eventually started back up but at the base of the climb where Travis had passed me the previous lap I just stopped at the bottom and leaned up against a tree. That's the first time I've ever gotten to a hill where I just didn't feel I could make it to the top. I was exhausted and I think I officially bonked. I eventually finished the lap with a 1 hour 13 minute lap time but as I crossed the start/finish line I told them I was taking a break and went and sat down. I figured my day was over but I didn't say that, I hoped that I could keep going since I've never quit a race.<br />
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As I was sitting in my chair sipping a diet Dr. Pepper I saw Jeff and he came over to chat. The heat had gotten to him and he was already showered and cleaned up. He offered me some encouragement but he said his shower felt really good. I was tempted to throw in the towel but instead just sat there and rested. JP had stopped after that lap feeling like I did and while we were talking he suggested I drink some pickle juice to help with the cramping. At that point I was willing to try anything so when his son brought me a big cup I downed it. It actually tasted pretty good. Watching people ride by didn't.<br />
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After sitting for over an hour I decided to get back on my bike and finish the race. I felt better so I figured I'd go out, ride a nice easy pace and just try to have fun. I don't know if it was the pickle juice or the relaxed pace, but that was a really fun lap. The trails were great and I was feeling fine. I didn't cramp at all. With the break time included my lap time was 2:11:26.<br />
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I only had time for 1 more lap so I went back out riding like I had the previous lap and again, it was pretty fun. I stopped at the aid station to eat a cookie and chatted with the guy manning the station for a minute or so. He was a really nice guy and I know everyone that stopped appreciated him being there. I ended up finishing my last lap in 1:05 which landed me 14th in my class. I was glad that I got back on my bike and my reward was a pretty sweet t-shirt that I'm sure I'll be wearing proudly.<br />
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While I was hurting, Zdenek was putting the pain on everyone else in the 12 hour solo. It was his first 12 hour solo race and he won by almost an hour completing 12 laps. He was a machine out there and it was very inspiring.<br />
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Aaron Elwell won the 6 hour solo and actually came in 2nd overall counting the teams. Travis Donn had an awesome 6 hour debut coming in 2nd. He raced a very smart race and if he keeps doing the distance events he will do very well. I hope he does the BT Epic later this year.<br />
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Overall I think Heatland put on a great race at a great venue. It was so cool to be able to shower after I finished and the atmosphere was up there with the best race experiences I've had. I'll be back next year for sure and hopefully I'll do better. I've just got to remember to ride my race and not get sucked into the competition early on. As Travis said it's much more fun catching people than getting caught.<br />
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Here's a <a href="http://www.moto-tally.com/hsp/Results.asp?EY=2010&EID=1&OC=C10&vT=LT">link</a> to the results, and below are some links to photos I've found:<br />
<br />
<ul><li><a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/cowtowncycling/RaptureInMisery#">http://picasaweb.google.com/cowtowncycling/RaptureInMisery#</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/album.php?aid=197383&id=626878517">http://www.facebook.com/#!/album.php?aid=197383&id=626878517</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/album.php?aid=198302&id=590594556">http://www.facebook.com/#!/album.php?aid=198302&id=590594556</a></li>
</ul>Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-37046877122853992882010-08-11T17:44:00.000-05:002010-08-11T17:44:17.467-05:00Wheels of Fire<object width="428" height="266"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/gIUSnhWe8gk&hl=en_US&fs=1?rel=0&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00&hd=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/gIUSnhWe8gk&hl=en_US&fs=1?rel=0&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00&hd=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="428" height="266"></embed></object>Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-72139315807803752132010-08-11T16:27:00.000-05:002010-08-11T16:27:51.095-05:00Springfield Dirt Crits Race 2 reportThis weeks race was a bit kinder to me. I came in feeling pretty fresh after taking Monday off and I think it helped. <a href="http://flavors.me/indiefab#_">Ryan</a> was there taking pictures and all the ones in this post are his. <br />
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The number of racers in both the beginner and open classes are growing which is great to see. Once the weather cools off a bit I expect it to get even better.<br />
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Leading up to the race it looked like my competition from last week wasn't going to make it. Neither Cale or Jerred were there. Then about 5 minutes before the race was set to start Cale pulls up, registers and gets in about a minute of warmup before toeing the line. He had been on the road for most of the afternoon and was rushing to make the race. I was glad he made it.<br />
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At the start I was thinking I could take advantage of Cale's lack of warmup and try to push the pace and see if he would back off or burn too many matches early. I got the hole shot and rode as hard as I could.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/37710891@N04/4881092478/sizes/l/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4079/4881092478_e6f7cf2402_b.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
I stood up on the climbs to keep my speed up and I was feeling pretty good. Cale stayed on my wheel the entire first lap. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/37710891@N04/4881093410/sizes/l/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4095/4881093410_2164996404_b.jpg" width="265" /></a></div><br />
On the second lap at the top of a climb coming off of the bat cave trail Cale passed me but I was able to hang on and kept him from getting away. He would put some distance between us on the flats and descents, but I would catch up on the climbs.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/37710891@N04/4881095380/sizes/l/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4102/4881095380_7c9f436210_b.jpg" width="265" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/37710891@N04/4880487019/sizes/l/in/photostream/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4122/4880487019_8671d69a2b_b.jpg" width="265" /></a></div><br />
On the forth lap I went around Cale at the top of a hill right before we entered the bat cave trail and I just went for it. I was feeling the fatigue from the 20 minutes of hard riding but felt like I could keep the pace up. When I looked back at the bottom of the hill near the start/finish line I could see that he wasn't hanging on. After the fifth lap I couldn't see him behind me and they called out there were only three laps to go. At that point I just tried to cruise and not make any mistakes.<br />
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The last 3 laps went by pretty quickly and I ended up finishing 8 laps in about 43 minutes. 2 minutes faster than last week.<br />
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Luckily Ryan was not at the finish line taking photos. About 20 feet from the start/finish line there is a mound that the trail goes over. I decided I'd try to catch some air since there was a nice size crowd standing around, but unfortunately I'm not that good at catching air. Somehow after the jump I got tilted to the side and I biffed the landing. I had to walk my bike across the line. At least I got some good laughs.<br />
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My nephew Trevor wasn't able to make the race because of work but he's planning on being at the next one in two weeks. Hopefully it will be a bit cooler.<br />
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There won't be a dirt crit on the 17th. Instead everyone will be at the <a href="http://www.stjohnscycling.com/wafflerace.php">waffle road race</a>. I might have to put the slicks back on my bike.....Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-33574650509220359842010-08-03T23:55:00.004-05:002010-08-04T00:16:54.910-05:00Springfield Dirt Crits Race 1 reportTonight was the first race in the <a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/event.php?eid=139758479379649">A&B Cycle Dirt Crit series</a>. I've been looking forward to it since I first heard about the series in June.<br />
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I'm not a really fast rider, but I can hold a decent speed for a long time. These crits are a chance for me to work on that weakness. Plus racing is fun.<br />
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The format for the Men's Open class is 30 minutes plus 3 laps. The course was a little more technical and hilly than other dirt crits I've read about and each lap was approximately 1 mile.<br />
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When I arrived at Sac I discovered both of my tires were flat. They each had a gash in their sidewalls. I tried to patch them on the outside hoping it would be enough for the Stans to seal them but after a pre-ride lap they were both near flat again. So I put in tubes hoping I could avoid the thorns.<br />
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I took my Stumpjumper FSR to the race because my nephew Trevor said he was willing to ride in his first mountain bike race. He did well and ended up winning the beginners class. He said he had a good time and he'll be back next week. <br />
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At the start of the race I got the hole shot and was in the lead when we reached the singletrack. Right after that <a href="http://www.stjohnscycling.com/cyclist.php?ID=6">Cale McAninch</a> wrecked behind me when his crank hit a stump. It created a bit of a gap between me and the field but he closed that gap before long. I was riding as fast as I could near my redline and couldn't pull away. I finished the first and second laps with Cale on my wheel and on the 3rd lap he passed me. I tried to stay with him but he just pulled away.<br />
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I felt like I was riding well so I just tried to maintain what I was doing and see what happened. With 3 laps to go <a href="http://www.stjohnscycling.com/cyclist.php?ID=7">Jerred Brackett</a> caught up to me. Now I had a race. I rode the last 3 laps as hard as I've ever ridden. I was able to hold him off until the last turn about 20 yards from the finish. It was a banked turn and when I came out if it for some reason I started coasting. I don't know why but I did. He got on it and before I knew it he was next to me. I tried to speed up to hold him off but he had the momentum and beat me to the line by half a wheel. It was an awesome finish. My mistake cost me but I learned a good lesson.<br />
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Cale won by a pretty good margin. It's going to be tough but I'm going to work hard to try to give him some competition in the coming weeks. <br />
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This was so much fun and I can't wait until next week.<br />
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Here's my Garmin data from the race (note the 101% max heart rate):<br />
<iframe frameborder="0" height="548" src="http://connect.garmin.com:80/activity/embed/43082020" width="465"></iframe>Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-50162382839313425342010-07-14T14:14:00.002-05:002010-07-29T12:03:25.093-05:00Springfield Dirt CritsOkay boys and girls, it's official. The Springfield dirt crits kick off on Tuesday, Aug 3 at Sac River trails. There will be 2 classes: beginners and everyone else. Beginners will race for 20 minutes plus 1 lap and everyone else will race for 30 minutes plus 1 lap. The course will not be technical but that doesn't mean the race is going to be easy. You will get a great workout and you will have a great time!<br />
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The racing will be every Tuesday evening and will run for 8 weeks! <br />
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Starting times and entry fees to follow. <br />
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Tell all your friends!<br />
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UPDATE: There is a <a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/event.php?eid=139758479379649">facebook page</a> with more information. Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-84822235629217621092010-07-12T16:00:00.002-05:002010-07-14T23:52:52.546-05:00OMBA Caramba recapThis weekend was the OMBA Caramba mountain bike race at the Sac River Trails in Springfield MO. The race is part of the <a href="http://mwftcs.com/">Midwest Fat Tire Series</a>. It was pretty cool because most of the Springfield bike community pitched in to support the racers; <a href="http://www.springfieldbicycle.com/">Springfield Bicycle</a>, <a href="http://abcycle.com/">A&B Cycle</a>, <a href="http://queencitycycles.com/">Queen City Cycles</a>, <a href="http://cyclesunlimited.net/">Cycles Unlimited</a>, <a href="http://www.sunshinebike.com/">Sunshine Bike</a> and <a href="http://www.kuatracks.com/">Kuat Racks</a> were out in force.<br />
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I've been looking forward to this race for a long time. Several years ago I learned how to mountain bike at the park and one year ago I did my first XC mountain bike race there which got me hooked on the sport. I really wanted to do well and have been training on the event's course for the last couple months. I was probably more nervous coming into this race than any I've ever done. I've done more important races but I wanted to win this one more than any of them. <br />
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We got some rain in Springfield on Thursday which was just what the course needed. It had been so dry that the trails were getting pretty dusty and the corners were getting a little loose. It's a trail system with few straight lines and if you can't carry your speed in the corners then you'll wear yourself out quickly and feel like you're fighting the trail. <br />
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I knew going in that the 8 mile laps were going to take over 40 minutes and with the heat I didn't think one bottle of water+heed would be enough for each lap, so I took my folding table out onto the course at the 4 mile mark and set it up next to the trail with 3 bottles. That meant I would get a bottle at the start of the lap and another at the middle of the lap. I would not be dehydrated and could save weight at the same time. <br />
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I was hoping for a great turnout with a field like we had at the Mo State Championship games in St. Louis a few weeks earlier. There are a lot of really fast guys in St. Louis but they have so many races on their home turf that they don't have to travel to race and many of them don't. But a handful did show, like Tim Kakouris (who won Brommelsiek 2 weeks earlier), and Rock Wamsley. Travis Donn and several others made the trip from KC and Dan Miller from Columbia. Also my Revolution Cycles Racing teammate Jeff Yielding made the drive from Herman. Some of the Springfield notables in attendance were Cale McAninch and Brad Huff. I think there were 15 or so total Experts that signed up.<br />
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At the starting line I was between Tim and Dan. When we took off the 3 of us were at the front and Tim let me take the lead heading into the singletrack. For me that was huge because I know those turns so well I can ride them without braking and I didn't want anyone in front of me. I hit the first section of switchbacks pretty hard and was at the top of the hill by the barn in about 8 minutes. I was winded but I knew there wasn't anymore climbing for a few minutes. On the steep climb to the outer loop I lost Tim and I was alone for the rest of the first lap. I just rode everything as fast as I could trying to take clean lines and gaining as much time as possible. It was pretty cool because Beau and PJ were at the junction by the barn where we passed by twice per lap. They were there to give out water if anyone needed it and they were cheering me on like crazy.<br />
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Near the end of the lap on the turn that leads to the levy trail, I took it at full speed really leaning into it. For some reason my rear tire washed out and it caused me to oversteer. I laid the bike down but not before running into a tree. The tree struck the head tube on my carbon fiber bike and it scared the crap out of me. Luckily it didn't do any damage, so I jumped up and ran up the hill to the top of the levy. Unfortunately there were people there taking pictures so I felt a little embarrassed and wanted to say "I can ride that section, I really can!". I finished the first lap in 41:14 which was the fastest I've ever recorded. <br />
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On the second lap I continued to ride hard and built up a couple minute lead. Then on one of the turns about 25 minutes into the lap as I was really leaning the bike I rolled my front tire off the rim. That's a testament to how well the rocket rons hook up. I run a fairly low pressure on the front (about 20psi) and that tire just sticks like glue. So I flip my bike over, pull the wheel off, check for thorns, find one, pull it out with my teeth, take the stem off the rim, put the CO2 together and hit my only spare tube with some air before putting it in the tire. As I'm doing this Travis, Cale and then Tim ride by. They each offer me some encouragement. After getting the tube in the tire I re-seat the tire bead in the rim and fill it with my remaining CO2. Luckily the tire holds air so I put the wheel back on, stuff everything in my pockets, flip my bike and off I go. In 4th place.<br />
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I used my only tube and CO2 in the repair so if I flat again I'm done for the day. I ride the rest of the lap as hard as I can without further incident and finish it with a time of 49:51, so I figure I spent at least 5 minutes on the repair.<br />
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At the start of the 3rd and final lap there is a long straightaway with a gradual climb and I could see Tim in the distance. I didn't know if I could make up much time but my goal became trying to catch him. I was feeling pretty good but I had to focus on staying on the trail in the corners since I couldn't risk another flat.<br />
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I caught up to Tim right where I set up my table with the water bottles. I followed him for a while and when we got to a hill climb I made my move and passed him. I rode as hard as I could to get out of his sight and he didn't try to hang on. Then, about a mile later I saw Travis. When I caught up to him he pulled to the side of the trail to let me pass. He said Cale was only 30 seconds ahead and asked where Tim was. I said about 30 seconds to a minute back and took off to try and catch Cale. We were getting near the end of the lap but there was a section of tight twisty singletrack just ahead where I usually ride pretty fast and I thought I could catch him there.<br />
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I was right and I caught up to Cale about 2 miles from the finish line. He sped up to hold me off and there weren't any good passing places so I followed him for a while. I didn't want to have to sprint to the finish so right before the section with the drop, I hit it hard and made the pass. It was a little sketchy because right after I passed I had to cut him off to avoid a tree next to the trail. I apologized for the move and got a little worried because the effort made my left quad twinge with a small cramp. I rode hard to keep him from hanging on but couldn't go all out because I didn't want my leg to seize up. After a few minutes I looked back and he wasn't there so I slowed a bit and just focused on finishing. On the last climb before the finish line the cramp on my left leg flared back up and my right one started talking to me as well. It was worth it though because I won the race. My time for the 3rd lap was 45:26 for an overall time of 2:16:40.<br />
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As usual the post-race festivities were fun and since there was a big raffle just about everyone stuck around. I had an awesome day and even though I would have preferred not to have had the stress of the flat, I'm glad I was able to come back from it. Granted I had a HUGE home field advantage knowing the trails so well, but I'm very happy to come out on top.<br />
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Ryan and everyone did a great job with this race. Made me proud.<br />
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When I find any photo galleries or official results posted online, I'll update this post with links. <br />
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I'm going to miss the next couple races on my schedule because I'm leaving Friday for the seven day <a href="http://www.sanjuanhuts.com/bike_huts/d-m/index.html">Durango to Moab Hut to Hut</a>. It should be an epic journey. <br />
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My next xc race will be 8/8, the <a href="http://www.unitedindirt.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5:cxl&catid=7:leages&Itemid=8">Trailblazer Blitz at Spanish Lake</a>. <br />
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There's some great news on the Springfield Dirt Crit front, but it deserves it's own post. More to come.....<br />
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UPDATE: Queen City Cycles has posted some photos on Facebook.: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/album.php?aid=191633&id=67598378356">http://www.facebook.com/#!/album.php?aid=191633&id=67598378356</a><br />
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UPDATE2: Tyler Meinecke found some great pictures from the event. Here's me at the drop:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_cJbvOmp7KXw/TD47uEjKVoI/AAAAAAAAA_k/5z-1Vvr86hY/s1600/66a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_cJbvOmp7KXw/TD47uEjKVoI/AAAAAAAAA_k/5z-1Vvr86hY/s400/66a.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><br />
Check them out: <a href="http://fattireseries.blogspot.com/2010/07/july-11-2010.html">http://fattireseries.blogspot.com/2010/07/july-11-2010.html</a> Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-84695219998623843512010-07-10T15:19:00.000-05:002010-07-10T15:19:25.049-05:00OMBA Caramba trail updateJust left sac and the trails are perfect. The sun is shining and the trails have been groomed. <br />
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Its going to be a great raceMark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-5685530669822948882010-07-09T16:46:00.000-05:002010-07-09T16:46:41.725-05:00OMBA Caramba trail conditions updateFrom <a href="http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=708866760">Ryan Meschke (via facebook)</a>:<br />
<blockquote>Omba course is looking good. It should be a good time. Let people know there is a free kids race at 11am. There will be burgers, brats, drinks, etc..</blockquote>I'll be riding out there tonight and will post about the conditions; it's been so dry and dusty lately that the rain yesterday should have helped pack things down a bit.Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-48647805829856985282010-07-07T14:02:00.000-05:002010-07-07T14:02:03.537-05:00OMBA Caramba rumorWord on the trail is that Springfield's own <a href="http://www.velobios.com/riders.jellybelly2008.huff.htm">Brad Huff</a> will be competing in this weekends OMBA Caramba at Sac River trails. That still leaves 2nd place unaccounted for, let me know if you want it.<br />
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Come get some!Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876488503007833388.post-34952161334356392232010-07-01T11:41:00.001-05:002010-07-01T11:49:19.924-05:00OMBA Caramba infoI know all you die-hard racers are chomping at the bit, scowering the interwebs looking for scraps of information on the upcoming (July 11th) <a href="http://mwftcs.com/raceinfo/event-info">MWFTCS</a> OMBA Caramba mountain bike race at Sac River trails in Springfield MO. Well, rest easy because I've got you covered. The secret is out and the course has been marked and although I'm not supposed to let the "out of towners" know what the exact route is, I'm going to break the silence and help you prepare yourself mentally and physically for what is going to be a true test of your mountain biking mettle.<br />
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Last night I went on an after-dark reconnaissance ride carrying my trusty Garmin 500 (I was patted down at the gate, you don't want to know how I got it in there), riding extra slow to make sure it recorded every twist, every turn, every elevation change and each time I dodged a tree. Many spiders were killed in order for me to get this for you so here is the map:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4102/4751827469_36090c989d.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4102/4751827469_36090c989d.jpg" width="343" /></a></div>Here is the elevation profile (yes, that's FEET):<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4082/4752506698_2e4975291b_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="163" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4082/4752506698_2e4975291b_b.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>The lap distance is 7.25 miles (or 11.69 kilometers) and you can count on it taking about an hour to complete for beginners (if they make it at all), and 40 minutes for expert (not counting tire changes and resting periods) with sport somewhere in between. The race will have Beginners do 1 lap, Sport 2 laps and Expert has to suffer through 3 laps. <br />
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Oh, and either load your tires with Stans or bring lots of tubes. The thorns are out in full force. <br />
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Don't say you weren't warned.<br />
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If you don't hear from me again then Scott or Ryan reads my blog. Luckily I think I'm safe with that.Mark Gulletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03145233332091496117noreply@blogger.com4