I had been so busy prepping for Cohutta, that I wanted to make sure I have some fun cycling time now. This weekend, my son and I did a big ride. He just turned 6 but has been riding for over 2 years now. We rode 17 miles round trip to Target and back. It took us almost 3 hours counting stops at Target, Walmart and McDonald's for lunch. He was a real trooper, though the distance did wear on him near the end. It was fun teaching him that big shopping trips can be done by bicycle with a little planning --- you don't need to jump in the car to head across town. It built his confidence knowing he can ride a long ways too.
Later that day I went out with Laura for our first ride together since last fall. The weather's been so lousy that she just hasn't wanted to ride much this year. I took my SS mountain bike and she took her cross bike; we headed out for rolling/hilly gravel. I was surprisingly quick on that bike. I could easily hold 16mph on the flats, I could tuck in behind her and draft at 20-22, and I found that I was climbing a whole lot faster -- she just didn't have her climbing legs after having been off the bike all winter. We finished our ride with a spin on the bike path. All was well until I picked up a mondo thorn and flatted. I had no change kit and so I walked for a while until Laura finished the ride and came back to pick me up in the car. Bummer.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Cohutta 100 Race Report
Executive Summary
The 2011 Cohutta 100 Race was last Saturday, April 30. It was a beautiful day starting out with temps about 45 and warming up to the low/mid 80s. Though there had been winds and tornados in the area less than a week before, the two days prior to the race and race day itself were all beautiful and sunny with a light breeze. I followed my prerace strategy of starting a little faster but not pushing it too hard in the first third which was mostly rolling single track. The "big climb" turned out to pass uneventfully but I was not prepared for the severity of the ridge top climbs. They were both steeper and especially longer than I had thought and they were lots of work. The middle 65 miles of the course was all fire road and almost all of it was up and down. I stopped regularly but the heat made it difficult to want to eat enough. I started to suffer from leg cramps around mile 80 and it stuck with me throughout the remainder of the race, especially in the last 10 miles which was very tough. I felt like I could have pushed the pace more, but the cramps came on as soon as I started to raise the effort level. I finished in 9:21 which was about 50 minutes faster than W101 last year. But I know I had sub-9 hours in me and left a little disappointed that cramps kept me from reaching that milestone. I came in 68th place in the Men's Open. Maybe about 80th place overall (300 riders?).
Generally I love gravel fire road climbs, but I must admit that this was getting old fast. Speaking of getting old, I wasn't catching loads of people on these climbs like I have in the past. Yes, I was going by people, but not hoards of them. I imagine it was in part due to my strategy of just starting out much faster. So all those people I was catching last year were already well back and I was in the mix of athletes who could all climb like me anyway. That and I can could probably stand to lose a few pounds.
Cramps
Last year in W101 I suffered from severe leg cramps in the last hour or so of racing. I had a similar fate this year, but perhaps just slightly earlier in the race. And these were more frequent and more severe. On at least 4 different occasions I had to stop completely and scream in pain as I tried to get my legs to release. Once was in sight of the finish line (literally). It was majorly frustrating watching people go by me that I had worked hard to pass and put time into, only to have them go floating by while I convulsed helplessly on the side of the trail. I really think it is nutrition related. I think I need to eat and drink more earlier in the race especially. It was so hot that my stomach was a bit upset and I really didn't feel like eating anything. Also the drop bags were filled the night before instead of the morning of, so I couldn't put my big sandwich in there like I did last year. So I never really had a big calorie intake during the race. And warm PB&J just didn't sound good.
I was also reluctant to stop to eat. I mean I was working hard to pass people and put time on them, last thing I wanted to do was pull over and stop to eat for a few minutes. I need to attach a feed bag to my front handle bar and stuff it with food so that I can graze during the race.
Summary
Last year in W101 I finished with a clock time of 10:07 and a ride time of 9:07. I had exactly an hour of stop time (food at rest stops, a broken cleat which cost 20 minutes, and cramps which cost 5 minutes). My goal this year was to cut my rest time by 40 minutes and my ride time by 30 minutes. That would get me in just under 9 hours. My clock time this year was 9:21 while my ride time was 8:48. I lost about 10 actual minutes of being stopped on the road while waiting for cramps to abate, but I lost much more than that by dialing the pace back over the last 25 miles. I really felt like I had extra go in my legs but I couldn't elevate my effort without cramping. I could have easily managed sub 9 hours had I not cramped.
I've got Breckenridge 100 next in mid July. To be honest, the elevation is so brutal that I just want to finish this event rather than race it. It will likely take me 11 hours or more. I'll have to eat and drink more carefully too. Two weeks later I've got the W101 and will be looking to race that one and come in well under 9 hours. Later in September is SM100. I've got about 2.5 months before my next event. Busy work comes at just the wrong time to be building up for mid July, but I'll have to manage.
The 2011 Cohutta 100 Race was last Saturday, April 30. It was a beautiful day starting out with temps about 45 and warming up to the low/mid 80s. Though there had been winds and tornados in the area less than a week before, the two days prior to the race and race day itself were all beautiful and sunny with a light breeze. I followed my prerace strategy of starting a little faster but not pushing it too hard in the first third which was mostly rolling single track. The "big climb" turned out to pass uneventfully but I was not prepared for the severity of the ridge top climbs. They were both steeper and especially longer than I had thought and they were lots of work. The middle 65 miles of the course was all fire road and almost all of it was up and down. I stopped regularly but the heat made it difficult to want to eat enough. I started to suffer from leg cramps around mile 80 and it stuck with me throughout the remainder of the race, especially in the last 10 miles which was very tough. I felt like I could have pushed the pace more, but the cramps came on as soon as I started to raise the effort level. I finished in 9:21 which was about 50 minutes faster than W101 last year. But I know I had sub-9 hours in me and left a little disappointed that cramps kept me from reaching that milestone. I came in 68th place in the Men's Open. Maybe about 80th place overall (300 riders?).
The Course
The course is very lovely. After a brief and gentle road climb, there is a 15 mile section of single track. It is well built and lots of fun but there are very few legitimate passing opportunities. Only towards the end of this single track section does the road begin to climb substantially and then you can scoot by a few guys. For the most part, you can't really pass anyone but that was ok with me as I wasn't interested in pushing hard at this point and the stream I was in was moving fast enough.
The long climb up to aid station 2 went by much faster than I had thought. I was definitely thinking there was a lot more to the climb when we crested the top and rolled down in to aid #2. It wasn't nearly as steep or long as I was expecting. Maybe a little anti-climatic even!?!
After aid #2 began a series of ridge top climbs. From the profile I was expecting about 5 of them each in the range of 200-300 feet vertical. No way. These were monster climbs that each took 15 minutes or more and they were very steep. One after the other, relentless. The "big descent" didn't seem quite so big either, but I can't complain as the "big climb" matched its unimpressiveness. I will note that the descents were rather tricky. These were not let-er-loose fire roads. They had many turns and there was loads of loose gravel. There was always an issue of skittering off wide on a turn or losing your front wheel in a bad lowside maneuver. Lots of braking and lots of intense concentrating, downhills were more work than they should have been. Someone dumped lots of new gravel on many of the descents which only made them that much squirlier. There was a fair deal of car traffic on the course and you never knew what was on the other side of one of those blind turns on the descent, so you had to keep it tame. Still, I didn't get dropped or passed on the descents so I guess my ability was adequate for my skill level.
The course ends with about 10 miles of single track. The profile shows a big climb here but I didn't sense it. Yes climbing, but nothing like the fire roads before. I wished I had fresher legs because I felt like ripping it but my cramps kept me at bay (and on the side of the trail in several places). The "Thunder Express" was very nice, but not the magical experience that everyone billed it up to be.
My Strategy and Fitness
Generally I love gravel fire road climbs, but I must admit that this was getting old fast. Speaking of getting old, I wasn't catching loads of people on these climbs like I have in the past. Yes, I was going by people, but not hoards of them. I imagine it was in part due to my strategy of just starting out much faster. So all those people I was catching last year were already well back and I was in the mix of athletes who could all climb like me anyway. That and I can could probably stand to lose a few pounds.
I did feel stronger overall. On grades of 3% - 7% I was rocking it. Passing lots of people. Grades of 12% or more (and there were lots of them) I seemed to be grinding away at the same rate as everyone else. I think the SS climbing workouts I've been doing have helped build strength, but maybe cost a little in tempo.
Last year in W101 I suffered from severe leg cramps in the last hour or so of racing. I had a similar fate this year, but perhaps just slightly earlier in the race. And these were more frequent and more severe. On at least 4 different occasions I had to stop completely and scream in pain as I tried to get my legs to release. Once was in sight of the finish line (literally). It was majorly frustrating watching people go by me that I had worked hard to pass and put time into, only to have them go floating by while I convulsed helplessly on the side of the trail. I really think it is nutrition related. I think I need to eat and drink more earlier in the race especially. It was so hot that my stomach was a bit upset and I really didn't feel like eating anything. Also the drop bags were filled the night before instead of the morning of, so I couldn't put my big sandwich in there like I did last year. So I never really had a big calorie intake during the race. And warm PB&J just didn't sound good.
I was also reluctant to stop to eat. I mean I was working hard to pass people and put time on them, last thing I wanted to do was pull over and stop to eat for a few minutes. I need to attach a feed bag to my front handle bar and stuff it with food so that I can graze during the race.
Summary
Last year in W101 I finished with a clock time of 10:07 and a ride time of 9:07. I had exactly an hour of stop time (food at rest stops, a broken cleat which cost 20 minutes, and cramps which cost 5 minutes). My goal this year was to cut my rest time by 40 minutes and my ride time by 30 minutes. That would get me in just under 9 hours. My clock time this year was 9:21 while my ride time was 8:48. I lost about 10 actual minutes of being stopped on the road while waiting for cramps to abate, but I lost much more than that by dialing the pace back over the last 25 miles. I really felt like I had extra go in my legs but I couldn't elevate my effort without cramping. I could have easily managed sub 9 hours had I not cramped.
I've got Breckenridge 100 next in mid July. To be honest, the elevation is so brutal that I just want to finish this event rather than race it. It will likely take me 11 hours or more. I'll have to eat and drink more carefully too. Two weeks later I've got the W101 and will be looking to race that one and come in well under 9 hours. Later in September is SM100. I've got about 2.5 months before my next event. Busy work comes at just the wrong time to be building up for mid July, but I'll have to manage.
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