Maxxis Southern Classic Mtn Bike Race #4, Stump Jump, Spartanburg, SC

Sunday, April 21st, marked the 4th race of the Maxxis Southern Classic Mtn. Bike Race Series at Stump Jump in Spartanburg, SC. I had missed the 3rd race at Tsali because I decided to race 6hrs of Warrior Creek, so I was pretty excited to be back. 

I had my friend, Jim Heckman, ride with me and made a strong effort not to scare him with my horrible driving skills. We arrived with vehicle, bodies and bikes intact, but I was a bit disappointed at how chilly it was outside. The sun was out and shining but there was a frigid breeze blowing. Hmmm...could’ve been worse, I thought...like Charleston...rainy...muddy...freezing. 

We arrived close to 10am with plenty of time to get ready and warm up. The first group was scheduled to go at 11:30am, which meant I would be starting about 15 minutes later. I soon learned that a fellow Charlotte racer was in need of shorts and was super happy that my careful OCD gear packing would come in handy (by the way, I pack back-ups for back-ups so if you ever forget anything, I probably will have an extra. Just come find me). I did a final mental check of “important items”: tube & cartridge...check, snack...check, Garmin...check (and the most important item) chapstick...check!!! 

I pedaled to the start after I finished my warm up, and to my horror, discovered that I had lost my chapstick! Oh well...the show must go on, I thought. The start consisted of a lumpy grassy field and a right turn onto a gravel road with a slight incline. We then had to cross paved road and continue in more tiresome grass before a final turn onto dirt. I was first through the bumpy grass but then my legs started to slow down (without my permission) up the gravel road. Oh great, I thought...it’s gonna be like this...my legs said “peace out”! That was when I got passed, so I was second into the woods. 

I made a handful of mistakes at this race. I took some sketchy lines over roots and up climbs that cost me here and there. Note to self: you might want to preride in the future, Dummy! My most costly mistake was taking the wrong way to the right around a tree. I was so focused on tailing first place that I didn’t see a shorter route over some logs to the left. In an instant we went from 1st and 2nd, to 4th and 5th. Ugh...really, Elsa?!?! Luckily there was a pile up later on, and I was able to slip around and gain 2nd place again. 

My entire 2nd lap was spent trying to chase down 1st place. As I was coming in from my 1st lap, she was going out for her 2nd. This would be the last time I would see her before the end of the race. She was nowhere in sight in the woods. I crossed the finish in 2nd place. 

After pics on the podium, Jim and I headed back to the car. Just as I was about to pull the door shut I see my chapstick perched on my windshield wiper! Some sweet soul had  found it for me! Hey...it’s the little things!!!

Many thanks to: TotalCyclist, Bicycle Sport, Mark Kane, Giordana, Infinit Nutrition, Meg-Art, Carolina Realty Advisors, OTR & Luke Sagur.

6 Hours of Warrior Creek: Day Perfect

Saturday's 6 Hours of Warrior Creek was a sharp contrast to my last 6 hour, the Bootleg Bangout. This time around the weather was perfect and so was the course. A little rain the days just before the race made the course slightly tacky on the first lap but once 350+ racers did one lap it turned into a seriously fast race track. Huge props to the BMCC guys and their efforts in putting on this race. There is no doubt in my mind that this is THE 6 hour race in the southeast, boasting a solid $6,000 purse this year! The TotalCyclist MTB team had a great showing entering 5 different categories. Here are the results for the day:

1st, Singlespeed Female - Sherry George
2nd, Duo Female - Elsa Lee & Andrea Hilderbrand
2nd, Duo Coed - Bonnie Kleffman & Chris Wieczorek
3rd, Duo Male 40+ - Mike Schafer & Kelly Hudson
13th, Singlespeed Male - Scott George

Scott leads the bunch

Scott had a rough day, still hung over from being ill all week while Andrea had to fill in for the injured Casey Bailey. She'll be back soon.

Here's a little about how the day went for Mike and Kelly:

 Kelly Hudson: 

"This was my 3^rd 6WC. The first 2 were plagued with flat tires and a nasty rock garden crash.  So the goal this year was to ride smart and stay outta trouble.  I was riding with a new teammate in the 40+ duo, Mike Schaefer.

I arrived Friday afternoon to find Mike backing his camper in to spot 21, directly across from registration and right at the singletrack exit before the Start/Finish line….perfect!

After a quick tour of the weekends accommodations we were off on an easy lap to check out the trail. With over an inch of rain 2 days before, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Turns out the 13.5 mile with 2958 bermed turns (at last count) trail was in excellent shape except one climb on the back side that was getting runoff from somewhere and would stay slick for the duration. An hour and a half later I was watching ESPN on the flat screen outside while Mike cooked dinner (this would become a theme), so much for roughing it. Mike’s prerace ritual, pasta with spinach and some kinda chicken-cheese-pepper bratwurst meat was delicious. Followed up by a bag of Oreo’s by the fire. 

Kelly plowing the rock garden on a Canonndale Scalpel 1

It was nice to sleep in knowing we didn’t have to drive up or fight the traffic getting into the campground. After breakfast, again prepared by Mike, it was time to tinker with bikes and work on final preparations. Our plan was for him to ride the first lap and we would rotate from there. He had a good first lap and we were holding 2^nd place in our category. My 1^st lap went very well with virtually no traffic, which makes it difficult pacing but no lost time trying to pass. Towards the end of the lap, I noticed 3^rd place catching me on the climbs only to disappear on the descents, this would become a theme as well. 

Bonnie rode smooth all day

Mike’s next lap was solid and still had us in 2^nd. My turn, lots of traffic to navigate which slows the pace but 3^rd place is not in sight so I think we’ve got a pretty good gap. Then the climbs start and voila! Here he comes, no problem, what goes up must come down. Here’s where I have to point out the 3:40 pm cutoff to start the last lap, this will prove to be eventful for us. I finish the lap and make the handoff, with little regard for the clock or how close our nearest opponent is and take my rest. As I’m awaiting the next handoff, I can see Mike exit the singletrack while the deadline clock for the last lap to start hits zero! He doesn’t know it but this will be our final lap, he crosses the line 1.2 seconds behind 2^nd place who passed us coming thru the transition. We finish in 3^rd.

What can we learn from this?

1. RACE SMART: all the hard work and training is wasted if we don’t race smart by having a strategy and executing it, sometimes just riding full bore with no plan works, usually it won’t.
2. CLEAR and EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION are key: this is a rule we live by in the Aviation world. I had the information but failed at clearly delivering it to my teammate to enable him to plan accordingly for the sprint to the line.
3. TREAT EVERY LAP LIKE THE LAST: When the finish line is in sight, all bets are off, GO GET IT.

3^rd place and a successful day! No injuries or mechanicals, felt great all day and scored a cash payout from BMCC. Mission accomplished!

Thanks Schaefer for a great time! Also, thank you to Jason and Paul from BMCC for such a FUN event, to Bicycle Sport, The Infinite Loop and TotalCyclist."

Elsa adding some color to the course

Mike Schafer:

"First it must be stated that the 6 hours of Warrior Creek is a truly awesome event. The race promotors even dialed up perfect weather . It couldnt have been a better day to race bikes as I partnered with my teammate Kelly in the 40+ duo cat.  We decided that I would go first get a good start and then hold steady.

At 10 o'clock we were off and things were going to plan. I found my self in the top 6 heading into the woods after a couple of miles on the road to separate the pack. Feeling good,I held the pace and settled in after 20 mins or so. The course is great fun with burmed turns, rolling hills, flowing single track and some steep punchy climbs. Reaching close to half distance I realized the course was taking its toll on me and I was being reeleed in by a few folks so  i decided to push to hold my position. I took a bad line through a turn and found myself off course. I tried to hurry back up hill to the trail with my bike in tow, but the damage was done. 6-8 riders blew by before I could remount. I was able to rebound a bit and pass three riders before I came through the finish to pass off to Kelly. My teammate took the bull by the horns and ripped off a great lap and placed us solidly in second place in our class.

Mike Schafer: always cool

 Lap two for me and Kelly was uneventful but quick allowing us to maintain our lead for second. As I started my third lap my legs were not happy but as Kelly passed the torch he told me 3rd place was only a few seconds behind. I hit the course and the shifter for the big chain ring and bang i snaped the cable. Oh well my last lap would have to be done in the small ring with what I had left.  I fought the bike and the trail knowing the third place team was lurking and so i kept pushing. As I was halfway into the last climb I looked back down as I went through the switchback and caught a glimpse of our competition coming fast. We came together as we popped out of the woods and hit the road for the 200 meter sprint to the line. I did what i could to jump on his wheel as he started to sprint and as  we crossed the line I was 1 second behind. I knew that Kelly was riding strong and could make up that small disadvantage and bring home second. However it was not to be. As luck would have it we missed the cut off for the final lap by 15 seconds.

So in the end we finished a disappointing third.  It was hard to be down for too long as our team racked up a first, two seconds and a third. What a day and what an event.  I am already looking forward to next year." 

Sherry takes Solo Singlespeed Female

Elsa and Andrea: Duo Female

Bonnie and Chris: Duo Coed

Mike and Kelly: Duo Male 40+

 

 


 All Photos credit to Lynn Willis Photography.

SERC #1, Vortex Trails, Ocala, FL

Pleasant Surprises

Did you ever have one of those dreams that shoots you up right in the middle of a great sleep only to leave your mind busy pondering at the possibility of just a few more zzzzzz’s? Happened to me this Saturday at 3am, the morning I left for the SERC Series opener at the Vortex trails in Ocala, FL. My plans went around and around several times but the short of it is that as of Friday morning, my travel companion succumbed to sickness and I knew I would be traveling alone. I did not have the energy to coerce another sucker into going with me, Ocala is in rural, mid-state Florida and a mere 7.5 hours from my house in Fort Mill. Oh, and the forecast? Rain Sat. and Sun., with a 70% chance of thunderstorms and high wind on Sunday. No worries. Solo road trips are particularly adventurous, right, especially when they begin just after 3am. 
 

Even after buckets of coffee, the first few hours in the car were rough. The early start was nice, though, because I was on the trail for the preride a few minutes after noon. Ha! Perhaps my insomnia at least afforded me a dry preride, as the skies looked foreboding but not quite ready to explode. Registration done, I set out on the trail and began wondering if the preride was even really necessary, except for generally unkinking my body after that many hours in the car. Easy, flat, twisty-turny singletrack between tall trees and Spanish moss was the gist of the first few miles, and I remember thinking that whoever could hammer down the most wattage was going kill this course. Then, out of nowhere, an enormous rock pile. I lifted over it and in a moving trackstand kind of way, pedaled and pushed over without grace. Hmmm. Then a few punchy hills. Hmmmm. Then a few more rock piles. Sweet. Then some jagged, awkward strange things that were not pretty and certainly not conducive to speed. It went on like this for a few more fun miles until it opened up through a field and I could see the coolest dirt jump run! Lucky for me, that was not included in the race, but around and about the XC course was scattered raised structures, jumps and insane obstacles! Fortunately for me, the jagged rocks, punchy climbs and awkward lifts were all the XC racers needed to contend with. This course was a ton of challenge, and a ton of fun! I remember thinking – fun to ride, but fun to race? After a few laps of the 8 mile course, I was done and feeling a bit woozy and tired. I found a spot under a tree to eat the lunch I’d packed, and drove to the hotel to collapse. Heard from some friends I met at the races last year about dinner plans but had to get some sleep. I know I’m tired when I refuse time with fellow grownups just to rest. This mama had a long week!

Race morning I pulled the hotel room curtains; no rain yet. What? Got to the trail and still, dry ground. Warmup, skies dark and threatening. On the line, a 30 second downpour. Just enough to settle the dust on the trail. That was the most rain I saw all day. It was 80 degrees. Things, I decided, could be a lot worse.

The start was a good one for me, with not much distance between the line and the singletrack, I was pleased to be second into the woods. Stayed there for about a mile until I leaned into one of the sandy corners a little too aggressively (so I’m working on cornering, ya know) and clipped a foot out just long enough for Tiffany (3^rd into the woods) to pass me. Bummed, I kept her in sight, but she was taking advantage of my mistake and doing her best to pull away. It worked, but on the second lap I caught up to the woman who was first in the woods (Duffy), and went back and forth with her for a while. After the two of us tried to hold our lines despite the men trying to pass on the most technical sections, I was able to get away and inch closer to Tiffany. Ultimately, it wasn’t quite enough and the punchy nature of the course was taking its toll on my legs. Wind was picking up, and branches seemed to be falling from the tall trees all around me on the trail. This was the interval workout that would not quit! The third lap was all about staying consistent and concentrating on using momentum to get up the hills. Stand and mash, recover, grunty climb, awkward turn, recover. In the end I crossed the line in second place but was thrilled that the weather and the distance did not keep me home for a rainy, cold weekend. I rode warm, dry trails all weekend. I was pleased with my performance and even grateful for the solitude, such time that I never get, on the long journey there and home.

Ice Shower: Bootleg Bangout 6hr Race Report

I'm not a fan of the cold. Ask anyone. Scott George knows this the best. He's seen me get blue lipped on the way down Mt. Mitchell in July wearing a vest and arm warmers. So the thought of doing a 6 hour duo in the rain when the temperature is in the 50s is not something I go for naturally and how I ended up doing just that is really more a function of terrible spring weather and stubbornness to get the season going with some fun. Everyone around here is itching to get on with spring and some racing.

Elsa and I had decided to team up weeks earlier when the weather was nice. I'm sure she would have been content with skipping it had we given it some serious thought, but how bad could it get, right? The forecast early in the week showed 61 and 40% chance of rain. No problem. Then it went to high 50s by mid week. Still, I can hang, that's not bad. By Friday, I knew we were gonna be in for a mess. A forecast of low 50s and 70% chance of rain meant that I brought every winter and wet weather item I had. I even brought WAY too many pairs of socks (learned the hard way at Burn 24 one year). I had a small thought that maybe it would be even worse but put it right out of my head as we sped down I-77 Friday night. It was worse and the hotel didn't help. I'll just say this: NEVER stay at the Radisson there unless you like someone else's pubic hair on your toilet, sludge back up stains in your sink and your room to smell like an ashtray even though it's a non smoking hotel. WTF over.

We woke Saturday morning to decent temperatures (55ish) and fairly clear skies (and by fairly clear I mean think I saw some blue). Getting there was a bit of a challenge. It was tucked away well and as we pulled into a small open area under tall trees at the back of a naval base the whole thing felt a little sketchy, like an illegal form of bike racing or a cockfight. But all that disappeared once we saw some some familiar faces and began setting up. Scott and Sherry were there as Scott was up for solo male as was Mike Schafer. When it was time to change it was a comfortable 50-something and some clouds. Base layer and arm warmers for me. 

Elsa said she'd rather not take the first lap so it was left to me. It started out really fast as some of the local boys hit it from the gun. I was really comfortable for the for 10min or so matching them until the roots and corners started getting in my way. I hadn't ridden there before and it showed. I was riding with Adam Carmical and could tell he knew all the lines. I tried to just follow but things were coming so fast I didn't have time to react. I was off the trail quite a lot and making a bit of a mess of it so I backed it down a little. Guess I was really feeling the months of low speed, endurance lolly gagging type riding I'd been doing all winter. But it was all good; finally time to get some good hard riding in. I finished the lap just out of sight of him and right away went out for another since they were only 8ish miles and I cleared it just a few second over 30min. 16mph = fast course! It was still dry.

It was still dry when I finished my second and Elsa went out. I grabbed some food, a drink and hung out a bit talking with Sherry. Maybe it won't be that bad today, I thought. Then I heard it. Rain drops. They started slow and then bagan to build. By the time Elsa came in it was a good light rain. 15 min later it was full on raining and the temperature had dropped significantly. The plan was for Elsa and I to take very long pulls if the weather got bad, therefore eliminating warmup problems, chills and the like. I put on a vest, raincoat and hat expecting to complete the rest of my laps for the day all at once. When she came back in she was muddy, cold and looked miserable. I took off telling her I was out for 4 laps unless the times got really slow. 

45 and a solid rain = a great story.

The first puddle wasn't too bad. The second was. ICE COLD water hit my feet and ass as the trail was sopping and NO water was draining from it. It was an ice shower for sure. My hands and feet immediately got really cold but my core was alright and I knew that was the big thing. I hit it hard trying to keep my body generating heat and by the middle of that lap I was toasty, well, my core was at least. The trail was getting slick and roots muddy but it was all not too bad. The second lap was worse all around. Colder, wetter, muddier, more slippery and the toasty core I had was starting to diminish. By the third lap in the set (my 5th lap) the course was a mess and I was cold, really cold. Hands and feet were numb and I started to lessen my shifting and drinking because of it. Man, I'm just happy all I had to do for fueling was drink my bottle of Infinit. I've never been happier to not mess with gels or bars or any of that crap!

My laps times were getting near 40min by now and we had just under 2 hours to race when I neared the end of the lap and could see the pit. I slowed and yelled for Elsa to get ready and headed out for the last 10min of the lap. She did not sound enthused. I finished it hard and rode in telling her she only had time for two laps. We then found out that the other duo teams had quit so we didn't have to continue. She was super happy to find out she did not have to go back out, but boy that girl was ready to fight til the end!

Scott and Schafer didn't fair as well (neither did some of the other racers). Those two had started the race with just shorts and jerseys on and didn't add anything once the weather got really bad. They both looked like they getting hypothermia and called it a day about 4 hours into it. Can't say I blame them. I wouldn't have made it one lap in the rain dressed like that! 

Joel Watson took the men's solo category.

Adam Carmical and Rob Corbett took the duo men's top spot. Fast boys down there!

Tripp Patterson + Beer.

 In all it was a great day. Nice trail, great people and terrible weather giving us all a great story. I think I'll be back next year. Thanks guys!

And as always thanks a ton to all our support: TotalCyclist, Kane Training, Bicycle Sport (bikes were great!), Infinit Nutrition, ESI Grips, Carolina Realty Advisers, Meg-Art Pottery, and OTR!

Next stop 6 Hours of Warrior Creek! Should be a great one...

C

Maxxis Southern Classic Series Race #1: Killer 3

XC Race Season has finally arrived, my friends.  Sunday, March 3^rd kicked off the Maxxis Southern Classic Race Series for 2013 with the Killer 3 in Sumter, SC at Poinsett State Park.  The new course, The Knot, is a 7 mile fast flowing single track loop consisting of short climbs, fast descents, twisty turns and a few super fast miles of gravel/sand fire road.  

My TotalCyclist Mountain Bike Race teammates arrived the day before and were able to scope out the race course. I decided to drive down the morning of and was looking forward to the 2+ hour drive to calm my nerves.  Pulling into the park, I glanced at my nifty outside temperature indicator and rolled my eyes…37 degrees.  People who know me know that I detest cold temperatures (anything below 65 degrees).  Still in denial that it was actually that cold outside, I shuffled over to registration.

I reluctantly started the long process of putting my ten thousand layers on…bibs, knee warmers, arm warmers, arm warmers (yes, that’s two), jersey, star socks (yay!), toe covers and everything else.  I was about to start my warm up and noticed that I couldn’t feel my toes.  I swapped out my toe covers for my sock booties, found my teammate and continued the frigid warm up.  Even after a few sprints I couldn’t get warm, and my fingers and toes were still painfully cold.  One last swap of foot gear into my mac daddy neoprene booties, and I was off to the start.

We waited for an eternity for our Cat 2 women’s group to be called to the start line.  I was in an uncontrollable full body shivering state when we were finally told to go.  I gave it my all and took the lead into the woods.  Thanks, Mark Kane!!!  All that Kane training has helped my starts tremendously!  

I kept the lead as long as I could but had to allow a few ladies to pass since I had blown myself out too soon.  I shocked myself at how well I was cornering and taking the turns.  I struggled with it so much last season, but my TotalCyclist coach (Luke Sagur) had me work on this skill all winter.  It was awesome to see it all come together that day.  Thank you, Coach!   

Sandy Marshall from Giordana-Clif Bar took the lead, and I hung on to the lead group.  We stayed this way through the single track but Sandy was pretty far from the rest of us by the time we popped out onto the fire road.  The remaining three of us swapped positions multiple times the entire way to the start/finish.  I was first into the woods again for our second lap but lost the lead once more. 

I started to feel it then…a little sluggishness coming.  I had not been drinking my Infinit like I should have been…didn’t have a chance to even with a camelback on, so I took in as much as I could and waited.  Somehow I fell back to fifth place, but then an angel fell from the sky in the form of a really large man on a bike barreling down the gravel.  I jumped on his wheel and hung on for dear life, allowing myself to recover a bit in time for my third and final lap.  

Slightly refreshed, I went (what felt like) as hard as I could for the last lap.  It paid off because I saw fourth place just ahead of me.  Luckily I had a few guys with me, so with all of us passing a good gap was made.  We all stayed together for the remainder of the race, and I crossed the finish in fourth place.  Not bad for the first race of the season.  

Bonnie Kleffman also had an awesome day on the bike.  She took the win after four laps in the Pro Women’s Category. 

They say that luck happens when hard work meets opportunity. I’m looking forward to many more lucky moments for 2013.  Thank you to all our sponsors: TotalCyclist, Kane Training, Bicycle Sport, Giordana, Infinit Nutrition, Meg-Art, Carolina Realty Advisors, OTR, ESI Grips