My first "Endurance" Race
December 6, 2014
The original plan was to do the 60 mile ride. I had a light on my bike and a helmet light in my bag, and was planning for the long haul. I knew Browns Ranch was not so hard of a spin.
Starting up the Desert Park trail my mind started to change. The group took off fast, and I did not expect that much of a climb. That much rocks to roll over. That pace! I persevered and kept pushing until the Tom's Thumb trail.
At the base I found myself just a few yards behind John Shilling - who I knew was riding the 60. I thought, great - maybe I won't have to roll alone. Wrong. The HAB (Hike a Bike) skills that guy has are amazing, and soon he was out of view. I turned around and saw Cory and Dennis coming up the mountain about 1/4 mile behind me. I decided to eat breakfast and wait for them to catch up.
The trek to the top was fun with friends. Legs were sore already. The soil was wet and rocks were moist, causing me to slip numerous times due to my worn soles and exposed cleats. We felt like we were above the clouds, the temperature dropped, and the first sense of accomplishment of the day started to sink in. We made it to the top!
The decent started behind a group of 60 hikers. We chatted with a few and all were nice. I rolled down switchbacks that I did not think I would do in a million years when I first saw them on my hike the weekend before, without even getting my tool out to drop the seat. It was a fantastic time!
At the bottom Cory and Dennis pealed off for the 30 mile route and I decided I would continue on with TacoBeer on the 60. We took a quick wrong turn - taco's story of the day - and had to go up a small hill on 128th street. My legs felt it, knowing that Taco is a faster rider than me I decided to throw in the towel and do the 30 instead of getting in over my head. Off to catch Cory and Dennis I went. I lose motivation when riding alone so my game plan was to always be attached to at least 1 other rider.
The decent towards Pemberton was a blur. Fast and fun. The decent down Pemberton was even better! I made sure to give props and encouragement to the few runners I passed, wow - impressive!
Once I turned on Coachwhip I could see Cory and Dennis up ahead again, and then my chain broke. The derailuer cable got stuck in the cage somehow, breaking my chain inside it. It took a while to get the bent link out. I was passed by many during the process and found myself alone again. I got a master link in (finally) and kept rolling, trying to go at a good clip to catch back up to others.
I got to the Sonoran trail and started the agonizing uphill trek. Again I was able to get close enough to Cory and Dennis to see them up ahead, and then I hit a wall. My legs would not pedal anymore, even when shifted into my 42t dinner plate cog. I got off and did some HAB up the Sonoran trail, wondering a little less why there were so many rescue pads! The tight single track was beautiful. I stopped to take a few pics.
The Western loop trail was surprisingly hard - that's all I will say there, but again the sense of accomplishment at the top was similar to that of being up at Toms Thumb.
Then came the sunrise decent. Very few hikers, fork fully open, I let loose and just went. Wow, good times! One of the best things about this even was experiencing stellar trails like this that I don't have other opportunities to ride, being busy and living on the West Side.
On Lost Dog I caught up to some others - MTBPilot on his 29 plus - and another nice guy in a DrunkCyclist jersey. (If you are on MTBR and read this, thank you.)
We pushed each other and worked together up the jeep road climb and down Quartz to the finish, to conclude and absolutely amazing day on the Mountain Bike.
Thank you to everyone I spoke with on the trails and shared stories with in the parking lot after the ride over a few cold ones. This was my first AES event and I will be back for more!
30.3 miles
5065 feet of climbing
Elapsed time of 6 hours, 4 minutes
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