Well, for some reason my camera doesn't want to work so no photos right now. Yesterday morning Greg, Rick, and I left early to head up to Mulberry Gap right outside of Elijay. It rained the whole way up. Once we hit Atlanta it was about 50 degrees but once we arrived in Elijay it was about 38 degrees and raining. We registered, got our gear together and headed over to the pre-race briefing. Eddie and Namrita did an excellent job registering us and giving us all the details of the course.
The course was hard. It started out with a true cross course with a few dismounts and running sections and then ventured outside the parking lot and onto the gravel roads. Once we started the clouds cleared and the sun actually popped out. The roads werent to bad. After a few miles on the gravel we made a turn onto the only paved part of the course. After a few rollers we hit the gravel roads again which were in good condition. We eventually headed the 12 mile climb, what a bitch. It started out gradually and got steeper as it went. About 7 or so miles up we hit the aid station where a volunteer helped me swap bottles and gave me some Hammer Gels and a Hammer Bar. What was funny about the aid station was they said as soon as you head over the climb in front of you(it was steep after the aid station) its all down hill. I thought as I was going up, Eddie said it was twelve miles long not 7. Obviously the volunteer that it was funny to joke around about that. It just kept going up. For me I ended up walking alot of it. One, as we went higher up the mountain it kept getting colder and colder and the once was ice area was now turning to mud. It was like peanut butter, just soaking up all the energy you put forth. A couple of times I thought to myself,man our my brakes rubbing. And two, my legs went through a spell of being alittle tired. I ran into Rick about half way up and we continued together walking and riding where we could. It was pretty cool to notice the temperature change as we went up. At one point you could see the cloud moving right in front of you. Ice and snow were noticed on the weigh up as well. It was great. A couple sections of the climb would go down abit, a teaser of sorts, and then a steep climb would follow. My thought was, just keep moving. The descent down was 7 miles of fast switchbacks and mix of mud, water, and lots of gravel and dirt. On the way down you could notice yourself getting warmer as the temps warmed. It was actually pretty cool. I had 4 miles left after the descent and my legs felt pretty good. Once we got back to Mulberry Gap we hit the most grueling cross course that I have encountered b/c of one steep uphill. A eventually finished. I actually felt good afterwards.
I think my ride time was around 3:49 and my mileage was around 37 miles. I know it seems slow but I haven't quite got my race legs back. I only did one mtb race last year so its going to take alittle time to get them back. My excitement about riding a bike is definitely back.
My bike setup was the Gary Fisher Rig single speed. Gearing was 32/18. I was spun out on the descents but it was good for rhythm climbing. There was some trade-offs. I have alot to learn about single speeds both in riding and gear selections, remember momentum is your friend. Tire choice was the Bontrager XDX and the handled very well. My proto-type LH Thomson seatpost clamp worked flawlessly.
Eddie and Namrita put on a flawless event in my eyes. I hope there will be more slots for next year so more people can enjoy this awesome race. Good course, good people and good schwag.
No comments:
Post a Comment