The rain through the summer in northern Wisconsin made
the Chequamegon course wet. The race
organizers announced the course would be changed slightly to reroute a section
off the Birky trail. This was the same
route as was used in 2014 when rain and storms forced a reroute. Based on this information I knew a sub-2.5
hour race was possible (based on my 2014 finish), but also knew a wet trail
could be slower (as was the case in 2015).
On Friday, after we were settled in the condo, we
completed our mandatory pre-ride of the last 5 miles of the course. We found the course wet, but it did not feel
slow. There were a few drops of wet mud
which flicked up, but nothing overly concerning.
I was excited because this was the first Chequamegon on
my new Trek ProCaliber bike. I was
upgrading to 29 inch wheels, no rear suspension, only a double chain ring, all
at about one and a half pounds lighter than my old bike. I was excited to see how my back – and entire
body would hold up without rear suspension on the rough Chequamegon course.
The forecast for race time on Saturday called for a
slight chance of rain, with the chance of rain increasing in the
afternoon. The roads were dry at the
start and the temperature was in the high 50’s.
I was thinking at the start, the conditions were perfect for a good
mountain bike race.
The first few miles are always a very nervous time for me
as we are packed handlebar to handlebar across the hard surface road and the
speed is high. I always try to draft off
other safe riders all the way to Rosie’s field where we say good-bye to the
hard surface. However, the start was
uneventful, I saw no crashes as we made our way through Hayward.
As we began riding the trail I learned it was slightly
soft and fairly muddy. Even
in dry years the Chequamegon 40 course has puddles, many which stretch
from side-to-side. I was working to stay
out of the muddy water but these lines were adding a few seconds with each
puddle. As the race continued I began to
notice the dirt on the exit side of the puddles was getting saturated. It was getting more difficult to control your
bike if you were trying to change direction in the slightest. I also noticed my glasses were getting quite
splattered making it difficult to pick a fast line every time I was in low
light.
Shortly before the OO crossing I caught up to Jeff. As we crossed the blacktop I saw Jeff pull
off. He had picked up a stick in his
rear derailleur and needed to pull it out.
I said something as I passed him, but he was talking to a spectator and
did not hear me. It did not feel right
to overtake him in this fashion, but racing is racing.
I needed fresh glasses badly, but I did not send anything
but lenses worthy of a sunny day with my great support crew. I decided I was better off with the glasses I
had. I grabbed a fresh bottle without
stopping and continued on my way for the remaining 24 miles.
The trail conditions became the main obstacle through the
rest of the race. I successfully
completed so many two wheel slides I began to expect one as I exited each
puddle or wet section. I am sure my
speed was not as high as it could have been because I was a bit tentative in
anticipation of slippery conditions.
Around mile 25 I decided my glasses were limiting my ability to see in
low-light conditions and subsequently my speed for large sections of the
course. On a flat section I put my
glasses on my helmet and decided I could see much better. Within a couple minutes my right eye received
a splatter of mud causing me to ride with one eye and blink quite a bit. I eventually recovered and was able to raise
my speed.
The Fire Tower climb was crowded as normal. I shifted to my smallest chain ring so I
could maintain a high cadence no matter how low my speed would get. Frequently riders will bobble causing riders
behind them to adjust their speed or stop.
If you are unable to slow, yet maintain an adequate cadence, you will
also be off your bike and forced to walk.
Walking is not horrible, but it burns more energy per minute and is
slower than riding. My formula for
successfully climbing Fire Tower is to maintain a one to two bike length
cushion between myself and the next rider ahead to provide time to adjust to mistakes
made ahead of me. There is clearly a best
line to the top. There are other lines,
but they are more rock and root covered with a higher chance of spinning out
and being forced to walk.
I made it to the top, but was forced to stop once. I was able to remount and start pedaling
again, so the time loss was minimal. At
the top I was tired, but still feeling good.
I gave the spectators a small wheelie which made them erupt in cheering. Making it over Fire Tower climb is a big
milestone for several reasons. The first
reason; there are 10 miles remaining, time to go harder if you have anything
left. Another reason, this is the last
big climb of the race. Lastly, there is
a long rocky downhill over the top, so you have to work to get a drink.
In a few miles there is a very loose right turn where you
join the Short and Fat course. This is
the part of the course I pre-ride every year, so I know it well. It also contains a long fast downhill which
is fun. There are a few rolling hills
and then you turn left onto a gravel road.
This road also contains quite a bit of downhill, so it feels fast as
well. When you make the right turn off
gravel back onto forest service double track you know there are only a couple
miles remaining. You also know this
section contains several uphill sections which feel slow. I am usually going as hard as I can and
flirting with muscle exhaustion cramps.
I normally pass riders who are totally blown and rarely get passed. Quite likely, I save too much for the last 10
miles.
There was a group cheering riders on the last hill while
I was out of the saddle pushing as hard as I could. My effort was rewarded with cheers from the
crowd. I heard someone say something
about me not being dirty. I was not
paying attention, but was surprised to hear this comment because I could not
see through my glasses since about mile 25.
I pushed my tired legs all the way to the finish. As I rolled across the finish line I was tired
but relieved. My finish time was
2:39:25 This was slower than my goal,
but (I was trying to tell myself) not bad considering the conditions. As I was trying to reconcile my feelings of
disappointment I saw Jeff roll across the finish line not far behind me. I was happy for Jeff, but still not happy
with my performance. After eating several
donut holes and banana halves, I began to come to terms with my finish
time. Jeff took the opportunity to go
and print out our results. To my
surprise, my results showed I finished 9th in my age group. This is the highest I have ever finished in my
age group, and the first time I have competed in the 55-59 age group. Apparently, growing older has a few perks in
bike racing, if you are still able to throw your leg over the top tube.
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| Brad and Jeff at the finish. |
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