Cyclocross Season Update!!

I have really been enjoying the cyclocross season so far.  Cross is just so intense.  Unlike endurance or even cross country mountain bike races where you must hold back a little bit at all times in order to maximize your speed over the entire race (2.5hr - 10hr), in cross you are basically going nearly as hard as humanly possible the entire time.  It is just SO INTENSE!  It is the essence of racing.  The only reason to hold back a little in cross is so that you have more control and you don't crash out.  Many times I find that I need to slow down just a tiny bit so that I can go faster overall.  However there are always sections of a cross course that are not technical and in those sections I find that I am going as hard as I possibly can.

Going as hard as I can on the road section at DCCX.  Photo by: http://www.nofilmphotography.net

Cross is about power, speed, and cross specific skills.

I have never been a strong of quick rider... my strengths are in my endurance and relatively lighter weight but those don't help me much in cross races.  Therefore recently I have been working hard to get stronger and faster.  I have been focusing my training on strength and speed specific exercises exclusively with no regard for endurance or being light.  I am actually hoping to gain a few lbs of muscle in order to increase my strength (hopefully not any fat though!)

Riding at the mud at Tacchino, the most fun race of the year so far!  Photo by: http://www.nofilmphotography.net

So far my season is going really well.  I have been getting stronger and faster each week.  If I can stave off 'over-training' and 'over-racing' myself by adding in the appropriate rest time I think I will continue to improve until the end of the season.

I was able to stay with the leaders for 3 laps at South Germantown before getting dropped.  Photo by: http://www.nofilmphotography.net

My #1 goal is to be a contender at the local races.  So far MABRA has been dominated by the SEAVS/Haymarket team.  I just want to be able to keep up with those guys.  Even if I can't beat them in the end.. I just want to be able to stay in their group for more than just the first 1-3 laps.  I want to be able to make them work for their wins :)  Hopefully I will get there this season, but if not, I will get there eventually!!

All my results so far can be found at Crossresults.com

Highway To Heaven (Ilchester Time Trial)

Highway To Heaven (Ilchester Time Trial)

Strava Datas

Full Results

Adam Driscoll - 3:30 - 1st Cat 1/2

Patrick Blair - 3:31 - 2nd Cat 1/2

WE DEFENDED THE HILL!!

Adam and I race this race every year.  Adam usually gets 1st or 2nd in the Cat 1/2 and I usually have to race the Cat 3 race.  This year, however, because of new USAC rule changes they allowed me (a Category 3 Road Racer) to race in the Cat 1/2 race!  I got to race with the 'big boys!!'.  

The 1st - 3rd place road racers in the MABRA BAR Standings were at the race to get their BAR points.  These guys are fast!  I was so happy to have the opportunity to go up against the best of the best local road racers on a course that suited my strengths as a climber (not a sprinter or road racer).

Racers start from a stopped position from a racing block at the bottom of the hill.  A race volunteer holds the racers in place on the block 30 seconds before their start.  Racers go off in 1 minute increments.

photo by No.Film Photography

photo by No.Film Photography

I was literally screaming and grunting with pain at the finish, I blacked out a lil, and I lost my peripheral  ision for about 5 mins after the race... love that hill!
Joe Bank, fellow AFC teammate, estimates that at my weight of 140lbs that my average watts on the climb were about 412.... I am hoping to get a power meter for 2014 so that I can start training with power and learning more about my cycling.

Adam was the last to go in our category and I was the second to last.  Right in front of me was Dan Wolf, who joins us for our Westside World ride every week.  We go up Ilchester as part of that ride every Wednesday, so to say we know this hill well is an understatement.  This is our home court!  We can't let these guys beat us here, on our hill :)  

We watched the other guys go up "The Wall" section of Ilchester and they looked really really fast!

I was feeling super fresh.  With the birth of my son, Grayson Patrick Blair, on July 30th I have switched my training from 15+hour weeks to 7+hour weeks of high intensity training.  This type of training fits much better with my family and I think it might have the side affect of increasing my speed / power.  I am hoping that is the case because those are my weaknesses and if I can increase them I will be much better off for the upcoming cyclocross season.

Going up the hill I felt great.  I was able to go extremely hard the entire time.  The first section is 18-20% grade and I flew up it, after that it levels off for a short bit, and then another steep pitch.  I think I slowed a little on the 2nd steep pitch but then I really dug deep for the finish... it is a good thing I did because there was only about .2 seconds difference between me and 3rd place!!

In the end I set a new Personal Record on the hill by 9 seconds!  I think this is due to the super light weight Cannondale Evo that I recently got from The Hub and my new training.

Check out this awesome video by No.Film Photography

2013 Patapsco 100!

1st in the Overall (riding on the Single Speed)

Finishing Time: 10hr 17min (laps about: 3hr 12min, 3hr 25min, 3hr 40min)

Strava Datas

Dirtwire.tv Coverage
Photos by Ty Long and Jerry Jackson
Full Results

Video at the finish by Dirtwire.tv's Thom Parsons... man I am dirty.

This was the 1st annual Patapsco100 bike race!  Presented by Adventures For the Cure in partnership with MORE and lots of help from Old Line Velo.  As usual all the proceeds for this race go to the charities that we support!  We expect this race to be a massive fundraiser for us in the future and this year it was our biggest fundraiser for the year (totals coming soon...)

Oh man what a fun race!!  It was so hard but I was having fun the whole time.  The course was never boring.   It is by far the best course in the universe ;)  Super challenging and 10hrs seemed to go by in no time at all.  

I did a pre-ride of the course 2 weeks before and I did it pretty easily in zone 1 with about 3hr 10min rolling time.  I missed a few sections but I figured that on race day I should be able to do 3 hour laps... Ed Dixon (course designer), and AFC team members The Goat and James Dull all said I was crazy and I would never be able to go that fast on this course... haha man were they right!!  wow.  I don't even think the best in the world could do this course in 9hrs.

Although I was wrong about my overall time I was not wrong in going out for the 1st lap well below my abilities and holding back a significant amount.  I knew it was going to be a long / hard day (just didn't know how long it was going to be) and I knew that if I went too hard early on that I might not make it to the finish.

I had originally registered for the single speed division but the week of the race I realized that I am super focused on racing against Kevin Carter, Rob Spreng and Chris Michaels and since they were all in the Open division I knew I had to switch categories.  Lance Byrd and I were both on our Single Speed bikes and if he could win the SS division and I could somehow win the Open on my Single Speed it could be a double AFC win!!  It was our dream scenario.

Greg Capelle, Jed Prentice, myself, Chri Michaels at the start

The start was to go from the Pickall Registration / Finish area straight down a super steep (think Ilchester) road, on a neutral (non-race mode) rollout, make a 180 degree turn and then start the race going back up the hill!!  Oh boy!  After the climb I was behind Jesse Kelly going into the single track and he was behind my 3 rivals who were already pushing the pace and getting a gap.  

I reminded myself again "let them go... you can't hold that pace and hopefully neither can they."  I scooted around Jesse but I didn't attempt to latch onto the leaders.  After a few more minutes I realized that my buddy Greg Capelle was right behind me.  The leaders got out of sight and no one could be seen behind Greg.  He and I rode together until the 1st major river crossing just before the 1st aid station at mile 17.5.  I told him that the 3 guys ahead of us were super fast but that I was hoping that at least one of them would crack and we could pick up the pieces.  It was super fun riding with Greg, it was the only time I had anyone to ride with the entire race... after mile 16 or so I was solo, but sometimes that is better.  It is easier to keep a proper pace when riding by yourself and the course was just so fun I didn't mind at all.

Photo by Jerry Jackson

Just after Greg and I separated I passed Kevin Carter at about mile 18.  He had broken a chain and was on the side of the trail fixing it.  I was super happy to move into 3rd.... on advantage of a SS is that you have a chance of fewer mechanicals!!  SS!  yay!

Towards the end of the 1st lap I started to doubt myself... bad thoughts were creeping into my head that I would never catch the leaders.  I was only at mile 33 and we still had 6-7 hours of racing left but still...

At the 33mi aid station they told me I was very close to the 2nd place racer!  This gave me a bit of a boost!

Just after the aid station at mile 35 Kevin Carter is BACK!  Oh man!  So upsetting.  He flew by me like I was standing still.  With still 6hrs of racing left (or more) I didn't even consider following him.  Again I just hoped he could not possibly keep that pace on this course and I settled back into my own rhythm.  

At about mile 40 I caught Chris Michaels!!  Oh man!  My strategy was working!  He was a broken mess when I passed him.  Trying to keep up with the superstars Rob and Kevin had taken a heavy toll on him.

Photo by NoFilm Photography

For the remainder of the 2nd lap I was completely solo.  I had to run almost all of the steep hills to keep my heart rate down.  32x18 gearing was the wrong tool for the job on this course.  I should have gone with 32x19 or even x20!!  I could have climbed a lot more of the hills on the bike.  However running up the hills is almost as fast (and sometimes faster) and I can keep my heart rate and overall exertion lower by doing so.

Just before the end of the 2nd lap I see Bill Wheeler cheering me on from the side of the course on the road at Dogwood!  He tells me that the leader is only 30seconds ahead!  I am confused by this since there should be 2 riders ahead of me but regardless I get super pumped by this news and I start going a little faster than I should be.

I pass Rob on the climb up to the Finish of lap 2!!  He looks pretty good/solid but I am climbing a lot faster. He tells me he has not seen Kevin... that must mean Kevin has DNF'd or I passed him at an aid station and didn't realize it.

Getting some much needed help from Adam and others at the end of lap 2 

At the end of lap 2 Adam and Thom tell me that Kevin is out due to a crash and broken collar bone!!! UGGGG... worst news ever.  Not only do I not get to race him but he is injured... so upsetting.  I did not want to beat him like this.  I would give anything to know if he could have kept his monster fast pace or if I could have caught him on lap 3... ug.

Now I am in 1st overall with only Rob to fend off.  I don't think anyone else is near us.  After exerting myself too much at the end of lap 2 (by accident) I paid for it at the start of lap 3.  I started to overheat badly.  The only thing that saved me was dousing cold water on my head at each water stop.  Our volunteers are awesome!  The Hub Bike Shop lubed my chain, people were helping me get food, refill my bottles, and pouring water on my head at all of our aid stations!  This saved me!  

I was rejuvenated and able to finish the 3rd lap relatively strong.  The entire time I was super scared Rob would catch me.  

1st place at this race was a big goal of mine for this year!  To win this race was like a dream for me.  To top it off Lance was the 1st place Single Speed!  Double AFC wins.  I can't believe it!  My finishing time was 10hr 17min... wow... long day.

For updates on this race and announcements for 2014 Patapsco100 (which will happen) be sure to 'like' us on the Patapsco100 Facebook Page. 

Men's Open Podium

Lance 1st place Single Speed!  With his sons Mason and Myles!

Thanks to Adam Driscoll and Ed Dixon who were race directors with me for this event.  Big thanks to all our sponsors.

The Hub finish line with Greg Rittler and Alain Philippe finishing the 66 Duo 

Stoopid 50

1st Single Speed, 7th Overall

Full Results (coming soon)

Strava Datas

I woke up way earlier than I needed to.. as usual the morning of a race.  I just get so excited!  I love waking up in my own bed, traveling overnight to races is really not my thing, I need to remember that for future racing seasons.

For pre-race calorie intake here we go... 2 bowls of oatmeal piled high!  1 PROBAR (peanut butter), 1 bagel with jelly, 2 cups coffee, 1 GU with caffeine (on the start line).  Not quite as much as normal but my stomach was not feeling great for some reason so I held back a bit.

My dad drove to the race with me and while I raced he volunteered!  It was a great fathers day!

I started with 2 tubes, enough food to last the entire race (2x PROBAR, 2x PROBAR Fuel, 3x GU gel, 2 other granola type bars) 1 bottle water, 1 bottle Cerasport.

Starting line pic taken by my dad

I was not sure who would be my competition at this race.  My goal was to go for the overall win and get the SS win in the process.  I heard there was a guy named Chris who might be fast but other than that I really didn't know who was in the race.  Most races post a Confirmed Riders list on bikereg.com but this race did not have that.

From the start I stayed up front in 2nd or 3rd position for the 2 or so miles up the road/gravel hill that had only a slight incline.  Every year this is not very fast, but at the end everyone puts in a big effort to get into the single track 1st... after the first 5 or so people enter the single track there is always a huge bottle neck.

I was so happy that I was easily 3rd into the single track. I did not have to put in a huge effort and I felt very comfortable with my position.  In less than 1 mile I dropped my chain :( :(  This was super bad!  Not only did it take me 6 whole minutes to figure it out and get it back on but I was also now in about 100th place in the middle of 6 - 7 miles of SUPER skinny single track (trees brushing you on both sides) and no where to pass, but I also left my TULEBAG and flat fixing supplies... I will never see those again.

For the remainder of the single track I passed when I could but when I could was not very often.  I was nice and said pleaseeee and thank you but still I didn't get very far.  I was even behind a guy wearing sneakers and baggy shorts for about 10 minutes!  oh man... not good.

"Well maybe I can still win the Single Speed... Almost for sure I won't be able to catch the geared leaders but I am going to do my best!"

Soon after I left the single track there as a HUGE 20-30 minute climb up a mountain!  So fun!  After the climb on the descent I finally caught the 3rd place (finished 2nd) Single Speed racer by buddy Thom Parsons of DirtWire.tv!!!  Thom is the man and he has been getting faster every race he enters this year!  We chatted for a bit and he told me that Topher who as sitting in 1st SS was just a minute or so ahead.  I went ahead and caught him quickly on the next uphill.

Photo by Shenandoah Mountain Touring.. on one of the final climbs I think

Topher told me that he thought he was 1st SS but he was not sure.  So I put my head down and set it in my mind to catch the next SS guy.. if there was one.  Topher was riding with his hands off the handle bars on a flat section, while I was full out on the gas.  Haha.. he crushes the downhills but it was obvious that his heart is just not in it when the rocks turn to road and you have to Time Trial to the next section of super fun trails.  He is definitely his own guy.

(post race DirtWire.tv interview with Topher)

The rest of the race was full out Time Trial mode.  Head down.  Zone 5.  Push the pace and never ever let up.  In these situations I find that daydreaming helps.  There were so many times that I could not see anyone in front of me so I would daydream that the 1st place geared group was only right over the next hill... "just keep going and u will catch them"

This race is definitely one of the most fun races and I put it as an A priority race every year.  One day I will win this race!!!!  It is a life goal of mine :).  It will take some luck to not get any mechanicals or flats but one day I will win it.

After all the climbing and awesome single track was done I made it to 1st in Single Speed and 7th overall.  I could not believe it when I crossed the finish line and Dan Wolf had finished a few minutes ahead of me in 6th!!  Wow!  That guy had a super awesome race!  Congrats to him!

2nd place was Kevin Campbell who I beat by a hair at Michaux Maximus earlier this year... not that I could have beat him again but at least I could have been close!  ah what could have been....  NEXT TIME!!!

I highly recommend this race to anyone who wants a super challenging course that is well marked and well supported.  Chris Scott and Shenandoah Mountain Touring puts on the best races hands down.

 

(post race DirtWire.tv interview with Chris Scott)

Mohican 100

2nd Single Speed and 4th Overall
Full Results

Strava Data
DirtWire.tv Coverage

Cycling News Article

100 mile mountain bike races are really hard....  They are an epic adventure every time but man they take a toll on you (at least they take a toll on me).

I drove to the race with fellow friends/racers Jed Prentice, Mike Tabasko, and Danny Atkins.  We left on Friday and the race was on Saturday.  We arrived at the course at around 4pm and we did a short pre-ride and then had an awesome pizza dinner at a local spot.  Teammate Greg Rittler joined us!  It was so good to have a great meal before a big race.  Even after the meal I ate an additional PROBAR and a brownie!  I slept like a baby..

The next morning the race started off with a bang!  Once we leave the town there is a really steep climb up a road before we make a left onto the totally awesome 20-30miles of fantastic single track!  My plan was to go out hard and stay with the leaders.  At about 1/2 way up the climb I heard bike crashing hard behind me. I didn't look back because when something like that happens keeping your eyes forward and staying under control is the safest thing to do.  After the race was over I found out that Jed and Mike were both unfortunate enough to get caught up in the accident... luckily they both were still able to finish with great results.

Video of the crash

I avoided the accident and was into the single track with the leaders.  Ron Harding (one of the main single speed competitors) was with me but when someone crashed in front of him I scooted around the accident and avoided being slowed down.

After a few miles I found myself in a great group with Rob Spreng, Kevin Carter, and two of the 100k racers.  There were only 2 riders ahead of us Mike Simonson and another 100k racer.  Mike was about 3 minutes down the road.  I was feeling pretty good and on most of the climbs I would gap our group a bit, but they would always catch back up on the downhills.  It was great following Rob Spreng on the single track.. he is the undisputed champion of the most technical mountain bike races around (Michaux Series)!  I was probably going 5x faster by following his lines through the trails!

thanks to Butch Phillips for the photo 

Just before aid station 2, Spreng asked me how I was feeling.  I told him that I feel great and since I am basically with the fastest geared racers there is no way a single speed racer will be catching me.  As long as I keep good with my nutrition (1 PROBAR per hour + Cerasport + GU) I should be fine!  Then we hit some road climbs and I got a small gap, unintentionally, then out of no where Gerry Plug (single speed racer) shoots past me.  I immediately speed up and catch his wheel.  He is really moving and I can hardly believe that us two single speed racers are sitting in 2nd and 3rd overall with only one geared racer about 3 minutes ahead of us... that is not right.

I talk to him for a bit and he is definitely feeling good.  I figure this is going to be a really fun race between us!!  I stay with him until aid station 3 (he is doing all the work on the front and didn't seem to mind... that is a bad sign for me since if he was tired he would have asked me to pull).  At aid 2 I needed to get some air in my back tire, that gave him the few extra seconds he needed to escape the aid station with a 100k racer before I could leave.  Rob Spreng was back with us and he left the station with me about 30seconds or so behind Gerry and his 100k racer.

I figured that with Spreng working with me to catch back up that it would not be an issue ... that was not the case.  Gerry and his guy seemed to be increasing their gap ever so slowly and we were definitely not getting any closer.

At aid 3 Spreng and I could still see Gerry in the distance.  Aid 3 is the spot where the 100k racers turn back and we continue on so now Gerry would be by himself with Spreng and I working together (kinda).  However it didn't work out too well for me after that.  Leading up to aid 3 was a pretty good climb and after aid 3 was more climbing.  I left Spreng and was now chasing Gerry by myself.  Somehow just a bit after aid 3 I missed a turn!!  It was perfectly marked and there was no reason for me to miss it... it cost me 4-5 minutes and Spreng got ahead of me.  After the turn it was all road and rail trail so it was impossible for me to close the gap to catch back up to Spreng and even more impossible to catch Gerry (who was flying even on the flats with his single speed!!).

I finished the remainder of the race by myself.  It was tough... there was nearly 11k feet of climbing in total and a lot of the climbing was very very steep.  I was super tired at the end but I was able to ride hard the entire time!

I finished just a little behind Spreng for 2nd SS and 4th overall.  Just behind me Mike Tabasko who I carpooled with finished for a 4th place in the Open division and Ron Harding was only a few minutes behind me with a 3rd place in the SS!  He was closer than I thought!

Post race interview with Thom Parson of DirtWire.tv

I highly recommend this race/course to anyone who wants to try out 100mile racing... Ryan O'dell really puts on a great race at Mohican 100.

Mountain Massacree

6th Place Cat 1/2/3

Race Results

Strava Data

This was my first (and probably only) road bike race this year.  USA Cycling gave me a free Cat 4->3 upgrade awhile ago when I earned my Cat 2->1 upgrade in cyclocross!  This was great because it enables me to race in the Cat Pro/1/2/3 road bike races whenever I get the chance.  

I could not resist going to this Mountain Massacree race!  Looking at the elevation profile I expected little team tactics, and a race that was something similar to AFC's Wednesday Night Westside Worlds training ride but much much harder... and that is exactly what I got :).  The course was 3 laps with a Cat 3 and Cat 4 climb per lap, followed by a finishing section that was about 4 miles up a Cat 1 climb.

I am not a season road biker by any means.  I understand all of the rules and proper etiquette of road bike racing but the strategies at this high level are not something I have a ton of experience with.  Based on that I decided that my strategy would be to follow Jake Sitler.  Jake is a very fast rider, I have raced him in MTB and cross, I know that he rides like I do... he likes to go hard and make people work for it.  I figured that following him was my best chance for a good race and great result.

Right off the start we are going uphill and someone shoots off the front!  haha!  Oh man this is exciting!  Jake goes with them as well as a few others.  I am caught off guard and the pack of 6 or 7 guys is already down the road without me!  I sit there for a bit and think to myself... "what would Adam and Lance say if I go home and tell them that right from the start these guys got away and we never saw them again!"  I would be so embarrassed.  So I went to bridge back up to them, of course I brought he entire pelaton with me... a more savvy road racer would not have done that.

We were back together and this time I told myself I would not let Jake get away like that again... since I wanted to stick to my strategy.  Soon after that and before any of the major climbing even started Jake attacked and I went with him.  We got a gap with a few others and I asked him "hey.. so are we like going to try to stay away now?" (haha yea I don't know what is going on).  He is kind enough to enlighten me and tells me that "no I am waiting for Nick Waite (yea he raced in the Tour of California).  We all feared Nick at this race so this sounded like a good strategy to me.  Now I knew I had to stick with Jake, but I especially had to stick with him if he was with Nick since that would mean they would be attacking with the purpose of escaping and not coming back.

Soon after that we were all back together with the main field and going up the 1st of 2 major climbs.  Going up this climb I find that I can climb with these guys without too much trouble.  I stay near the front and we are going very fast, but the entire pack stick together for this lap (for the most part).

On the 3rd lap is when things start to get crazy!  Once we get past the feed zone Jake makes an attack and I follow.  A few come with us, maybe 3 or 4 at most.  We try to get a rotation going but the other guys don't want to work so Jake just attackers over and over until it ends up being him, Shawn (Battley racer), followed by myself going into the 1st climb.  I try to keep their wheels but they are both ahead of me.  I decide I need to settle into my own pace if I am going to survive.  I climb fast, as fast as the 2 in front of me, but not fast enough to catch them.  I can see that there is a solo racer behind me, Dan.  I am climbing just a little faster than him but he catches me on the downhill/flat sections.  Shortly after the 2nd climb he catches me.  When he does he tells me that there are 3 very fast guys coming from behind and they will catch us very soon.  I thank him for the info and prepare myself for when they arrive so that I can latch onto their momentum.

They hit us hard just before the super steep descent to finish this 3rd lap.  I am able to latch on.  Scott Giles is doing ALL the work.  He is racing for Team Bike Doctor and it is obvious that he is working for his team mate Ian Spivak who is also with our group.  Ian is a great climber and if Scott can get Ian close to the 2 that are down the road (Jake and Shawn) then Bike Doctor might get the win!  Scott is a machine... I am at nearly max heart rate on the downhill just trying to stay in his draft.. it is truly incredible.

Just as we finish the 3rd lap and start the 4mile uphill to the finish we nearly make contact with the 2 in the breakaway.  We are sooo close.  Scott finally lets off and moves to the back, his job is done, Dan takes a pull, Ian takes a pull, and then it is my turn.  It is hard to remember what happened at this point.  I know I took a short pull and I think that was what ended me.  A smarter racer would have not taken the pull.  I was in no position to pull.  I was at my limit.  After I pulled through I was not able to latch back onto the group of 3 and so they continued on without me.

I had already spent so much time above my threshold (see below from my strava data) that I was pretty much spent.

	Range	Time in Zone	Percent
Z1 - Endurance	0-120	18:00	10%
Z2 - Moderate	120-134	23:32	13%
Z3 - Tempo	134-141	13:28	8%
Z4 - Threshold	141-147	18:54	11%
Z5 - Anaerobic	147+	1:44:09	58%

I regained my composure and I continued up the hill solo... constantly worried that Giles or the pack of the rest of the riders in the race (probably being led by Nick Waite) would catch me on the final climb.  I did not go slow but I did not go fast enough to catch any of the guys who just left me.  I dug deep all the way to the finish and crossed the line with a respectable 6th place!

Crossing the finish line.  Picture enhanced by James McAndrew

Best road bike race ever!  If all road bike races were like this I would almost certainly be a convert... but unfortunately they are not all this fun and MTB is :)

Wildcat 100

2nd place SS
Strava Data

Results
MTB Race News Article
Greg Rittler's Report

I was watching the forecast all week and it never changed much... 60-80% chance of rain all day long but at least the temperature was to be 60-70 degrees so I figured I could handle that.  Below that would have been extremely hard, I race great when it is super hot but when it is cold I am weak and pathetic.

The race was in Rosendale, NY and my dad agreed to drive with me :)  He tried to talk me into going there the day before and spending the night but I always race better and feel better when I just go there the morning of... haha so I got up at 12:30am and we started driving to the race at 1:15am (4.5hr drive)!  Oh man these 100milers area always an epic adventure.. best sport ever!  Only bad thing is that I left my Cerasport bottles in the frig... man that was a bad move!  I had to rely on water only for the race.

Once we arrived we met up with AFC Teammate Greg Rittler who was the only other AFC'er racing this one with me.  He was kind enough to get my race packet and drop bags the day before. I was ready to race at 6:10am and the race did not start until 6:45am.... it is good to be early.  I also kinda love 100s because I don't have to do a warm up before the race, I mean who needs to warm up when you are going to race for 7-9hrs?  For a cyclocross race the warmup is super important, but it is always such a pain.

I lined up on the front row along side Kevin Carter (who has beaten me the last 2 times we have raced), Seamus Powell (SS a super star mountain biker who was definitely the favorite for the SS win), Ron Harding (SS), Christian Tanguay (who usually wins these races overall), Matt Ferrari (SS), Mike Montalbano (SS), and 250 or so others.

My dad shot this video of the starting line

At the start I never go too hard or too easy.. you want to be in a good position before you hit the single track but you don't want to go out crazy since it will be a long day and you need to save that energy.  I just kept my eyes on Ron Harding since I knew he was my biggest competition in the Single Speed (SS) category other than Seamus, but I figured Seamus was probably in a whole different league.. and he was.

Ron, Ferrari, Mike, and I entered the Single Track with a whole mess of geared riders, while Seamus was just a bit ahead with the select few of the fastest geared riders.  I never saw him again after that.  The Single Track was so much fun!  It was pretty impossible to pass and a lot of the riders were crashing often which made it slow going but it was so fun and so early in the race that I was not worried about it.  Afterall I was next to Ron, Mike, and Matt who I considered my main competition.

Matt and I separated from Ron when a geared rider crashed in front of him and he got tangled up in the wreck.  He had to stop to fix his bike and that was that.  Later he told me it took him nearly 20minutes to get going again.

There were 2 major hill climbs on this course.  I planned to attack each as hard as possible since I knew they would be my best chance of winning.

After the first hill Matt was still with me.  He was riding incredibly strong and it got me very worried that I would have a very hard time escaping him.  Before the 2nd (biggest) hill at mile 45 there was this AWESOME area of single track that lasted for about 10 miles.  In that section I was finally able to get away from Matt and then I attacked the 2nd hill with everything I had.

Wildcat 100 (1st 3rd) from Douglas Nikkila on Vimeo.

(video of the super fun single track at mile 40ish)

From then on I never saw another racer from the 100mile race.  I passed a lot of the 60mile racers but never another 100.  I thought that there were more guys in front of me but actually at that point I was in 5th place overall!!!  I had no idea until after the race was over that I was that high up.

The course was super duper awesome.  It was not very single speed friendly with all of the rail trail but the single track was beautiful... muddy... but beautiful!  It rained all day long but I kinda like it when the conditions are bad, unless it is cold which it wasn't.

At the very end of the race they sent us into 4 final miles of single track after passing right next to the finish line.  I could see 60mile racers there, hanging out, eating food and having a party... It was crule and unusual punishment to send us back out for another grueling 4 miles of crazy muddy and technical trails.  I wanted to sandwich soooo bad :( To make things worse I had Kevin Carter breathing down my neck.  I did everything in my power to hold him off!  I quickly downed another GU and 1/2 a PROBAR to give myself and extra boost of energy haha.  I would not let him beat me in the last 4 miles!! NO WAY!  I gave it everything I had and I was able to finish 3minutes before him, just barely.

These races really are an adventure.  Just finishing is a huge win and accomplishment!

I ended up 2nd in the SS and 5th overall!  One of my major season goals was to score a 5th overall at an NUE race on my single speed bike.  I could not believe it when I saw the results.

Michaux Maximus

1st place in Single Speed Category (4th fastest time of the day)

Strava Data

Results

I went to this race because it is one of the hardest (most technical) races in our area or maybe even in the entire country!  I went to this race to prove to myself that I can handle it, like a real mountain biker.  I went to this race to get better, because my technical abilities are my biggest weakness.

I had a great time!  This race was just crazy.  There were huge rocks, medium rocks, little rocks, roots, water crossings, cliffs, and some stuff that was just so crazy that I had to dismount and run but that I know some of the best guys were probably riding.  It was a true challenge and I loved every second of it.

I do not recommend this race to anyone who is new to the sport.  Practice for a year or two and then do this race to see what you are made of.  I almost never crash, because in general I err on the side of caution over going fast, but at this race I endo'd (went over the handlebars) 4x and crashed more times than I can count.  It was hard for me to type on the keyboard at work today because my right hand is swollen.  Oh man it was a fun race!  

Lance, who I train with, and I drove to the race together.  Both of us had aspirations of conquering this race that had (in previous years) conquered us.  We were equipped with Maxxis Ikon tires with extra Exo Protection.  They only weigh 570 grams and they are crazy durable.  Neither of us got a flat, which is an incredible feat at this race where flats are abundant!  

Maxxis Ikon with Exo Protection!

At the start there were about 15 or so SS racers.  The geared racers had a 1minute head start on us, it was my goal to catch as many of them as possible.  There was a long stretch of gravel road before we hit the trail.  Montana Miller took it out crazy fast on the gravel and separated myself, Topher, and Lance from the rest of the group instantly.  It was only the four of us when we hit the trails.  The first section of trail is a crazy rocky climb that is very long.  I was going too fast and I had to dismount / remount 2x on this trail but luckily the other guys were having as much trouble as I was.

Lance crushing the climb

sunglasses worked great!

 Eventually another racer from the group that started 1 minute behind us (geared 45+) passed us.  I thought he was a SS at the time so I was quick to get on his wheel and in doing so I got a sizeable gap on the rest of the SS racers, leaving Lance, Topher, and Montana to battle it out.  When I realized that the guy had gears I relaxed a bit and I was happy to have gotten away from the SS field.

From there I picked off a few of the geared guys who started ahead of me and was pretty much riding solo for most of the race.

I ended up finishing right behind the 4th place geared racer (Kevin Campbell) from the category that started 1 minute ahead of us, that means there were only 3 guys (Rob Spreng, Brandon Draugelis, and Keefer) who had a faster time on the course!  Oh man I have a lot of work to do.  Those guys are just so much better on the technical rocks than I am, I will get better and hopefully I will be closer to their times next time we race on a course like this!!

Lance finished 3rd in the SS not far behind Topher who placed 2nd!  So happy for him!  He crushed it!

Next race is Wild Cat 100 on Saturday.  My first NUE of the year... oh man!

Endurance MTB Racing Setup

For my endurance mountain bike races I always like to carry two tubes.  I do not want to get caught out in the middle of nowhere asking people for a spare tube because I already used my 1st one.  Usually if you have to resort to fixing your second flat you are pretty much out of the race at that point, but I always want to finish... DNFs are the worst!  So I carry a second tube just in case.

I just got the new Hypalon Series Straps from Backcountry Research!!  And they are incredible!  There is NOTHING that will be moving my tubes out of place... those things are basically glued to my bike.

My setup maximizes speed/ease/availability for getting to my tube and equipment for fixing my flats while at the same time keeping everything in order and secure while riding even over the rockiest/bumpiest terrain.

Setup is as follows:

1) If I get one flat I will grab the tube/CO2 that I have strapped, using the TUBE TOURNIQUET, to my top tube.  It is right there and it is super easy to access for a quick flat fix.

2) If I happen to get a second flat I probably won't be in quite as much of a hurry since my race will be pretty much lost at that point.  I will take the tube/CO2 that I have strapped, using the RACE II, under my seat.

3) I will be keeping my multi-tool, tire lever, tire inflator, and probably my car key in a TULBAG, that I will keep in my middle back jersey pocket for quick and easy access!

This is a winning setup!  :)

Greenbrier

2nd Place (racing on SS in the Geared Marathon Category)

Strava Data

Full Results

I really wanted to race in the Cat 1 Open category but it did not start until 2pm and I had to be home for a cookout with my family, so I opt'd for the Geared Marathon category starting at 9:30am and lasting for 4hours!  When I went to register I was SUPER HAPPY to find out that Kevin Carter was registering as a 'day-of' because he missed the online registration.  He STOMPED me at Bakers with his fancy gears on a super fast/flat 13hour course but with the epic climbing at Greenbrier I knew that I would be closer, I didn't expect that I could beat him but I knew I could at least make him work for it (hopefully).

At the start Kevin did his normal (albeit strange) start of waiting for the field to take off and leaving a few seconds later.  I need to ask him what his logic is behind that kind of start?  I took the hole shot (meaing I was the 1st into the woods coming off the start line / open field) into the woods.  From there I kept a steady pace up the 1st 1/2 of the course, which consists of 3 major climbs.  Nearing the top of the 3rd major climb I looked back the field was no where in sight... except for Kevin of course...

Thanks A.E.LANDES for the picture

At the top of the 3rd climb he caught me.  He took the lead on the downhill after that.

I was able to hold his wheel through the technical rocks at the bottom of the climb, near the end of the 1st lap.  He stopped just after the rocks, right before the start/finish, to adjust something on his bike.  I kept going, through the start/finish and hammering up the climbs again, hoping to stay away.  After all the climbs he was back on me and he lead the downhill again.

I stayed with him through the start/finish and he stopped for a water bottle just before we entered into the woods again.  I hammered the climb, but again he caught me towards the top.  This time when we hit the rock garden (3rd lap) I bobbled a little, he took full advantage of that and got a 30second gap immediately!  That was the last I saw of him.

For the rest of the 9 laps there was a ton of traffic from the Beginner and Sport races that started while we were on the course, so I always had company.  I enjoy cheering on teammates and other racers... it is so fun!  It was a really beautiful day.

In the end I lost to Kevin by about 6 minutes.. he was 3:57 I was 4:03.  My lap times were pretty consistent and I was able to keep a pretty fast pace without slowing up too much throughout the day.  The first few laps when lapped rider traffic was not an issue it was much easier to keep a fast pace.

Here are Kevin and my lap times:

	Kevin	Patrick
Lap 1	00:25:04.68	00:24:34.52
Lap 2	00:25:01.47	00:25:32.76
Lap 3	00:25:35.33	00:25:57.55
Lap 4	00:25:45.35	00:26:57.27
Lap 5	00:26:04.25	00:27:23.68
Lap 6	00:26:29.34	00:27:38.47
Lap 7	00:27:28.40	00:27:53.41
Lap 8	00:28:41.55	00:28:27.11
Lap 9	00:27:32.72	00:29:10.38