Fluidride Cup #1 6/28/09 Race recap by Derek DeYoung

2009 Fluidride Cup #3 at Mount Hood

Last weekend was the Fluidride Cup #3 at Mount Hood, OR. The TAI downhill team had good results, with all the riders placing in the top 5. Ann Davis won her race in the women’s open beginner class. Mitch Davis followed in his mom’s footsteps, getting a first place finish. It’s always fun to win, but he’s probably ready for a little competition…as he was the only person to race his class, 15-18 beginners. I raced in the 14 and under Sport class, and had a good race run on my new Transition Blindside, placing 4th due to a crash that added a fair amount of time to my run.

I had ridden Mount Hood before for the finals at the end of last season, but the upper mountain was closed due to chairlift issues resulting from the heavy snow, so the new addition to the course was something to look forward to. On Saturday, I ate a quick breakfast and then rode down to the lifts for registration, and then went up for my first practice run. Armed with a new bike and a new Leatt neck brace, I was ready and stoked to ride. Surprised by the almost instantaneous rock garden on the new top section, I held on and let the bike plow through. I am still amazed at how well a DH bike can plow through, over, and around almost anything you point it at. Practice seemed good for everybody on the team, with no injuries or mechanical issues. Later that evening, we met up with the Mitch and Ann for dinner in Government Camp. We decided on a small but promising looking pizza joint, and famished, sat down for what would become a very very long wait. Starving and sore from the days riding, I sat there for hours until finally our food came. Thankful once the long wait was over, I dug in and almost instantly felt better.

With a good nights sleep and a good breakfast, I was ready to race. After watching the pros come down for their qualifying run and then the next few categories, I headed up to the top. The sport course took off down the new top section that wound its way down the face of the upper mountain. The mountain proved early that it wasn’t out to play games, starting off with a gnarly rock garden at the very beginning of the course. From there it started down what I guess used to be an old fire road that volunteers had recently turned into a trail. This was a very fast section of the course, and the combination of a newly built trail, loose dirt, rocks, and high speeds made for a sketchy but fun ride. From there it ran into the old course, going down a gravel road for a short while, then making an abrupt 90 degree turn in loose gravel. Right after that turn, you started back on a normal trail that wound itself down the main face of the mountain. The beginners stayed on this trail the entire way down, and the sport riders veered off to the left into the only non-fun section of trail on the whole mountain. After climbing up a ladder bridge, you had to pedal and pedal for what seemed an eternity after the fast trip down from the top. This was over soon enough though, and you then took off into the trees for some much needed downhill. The first section was filled with slightly rooty and rocky berms and off camber jumps and turns. Then the sport and expert courses met for the last, but in my opinion, most fun part of trail. There were multiple gaps and step downs, and then it turned into the lung-popping homestretch.

Unfortunately, the senior DH racer on the team, Chris Bentley, was unable to race due to an injury to his calf that he received at the last race at Dry Hill. We wish Chris good luck in recovering and hope that he is well enough for Nationals in Colorado later this month. All in all, the TAI team had a very successful and fun outing at the 3rd Fluidride Cup.


-Derek DeYoung

More photos can be seen here

Race Results:

Cat II Men 0-14
4 Derek DeYoung

Cat III Men 15-18
1 Mitch Davis

Cat III Women 0-18
3 Cheyenne Smith

Cat III Women Open
1 Ann

Methow Cycle & Sport Mountain Challenge Race Report 6/21/09 by Russ Moul

This is my third year of racing and third trip to Winthrop. All I recall of my impressions from the first year is “what a brutal climb” and “what a sweet decent”. Last year was more memorable. Standing at the start line waiting for our start I heard a disturbing sound, “pssssst”. I commented to Vince that someone was not going to be too happy. Turns out it was me! I was flat before we entered the singletrack. I was running tubeless, so I just aired the tire up with a cartridge, gave it a spin, and hoped the Stan’s would seal it. During the race, I stopped once more before leaving the lower loop to air up, using my last cartridge, realizing this would have to hold – it did. Nothing like adversity to make your ride hard, I was sure I would finish at the back of the pack. I remember struggling up the climb and tearing down the descent; I finished third and was tickled.

Would this year be better? Winthrop is among my favorite courses, it is technically challenging, has a tough climb and rippin’ fast decent. Long climbs are my nemesis so Winthrop is definitely a challenge for me. The weather was cooler this year, overcast, and threatening to rain, so there was no worry of overheating.

This year I got off to a clean start and entered the singletrack in fifth position. At the bottom of the first little downward grade, I was able to move into fourth. I was now on John Roberts’ wheel, he has been beating me all year, rolling through the forest. My strategy – stay on John’s wheel until the climb, then stay close enough that I can overtake him on the descent – I’m a better descender. About a half to there-quarter mile into it, I’m thinking “this pace isn’t that fast, I can definitely push this”, so I called “on the left” and passed the three riders in front of me in one fell swoop. I was in the lead. The trail through the woods has its share of narrow sections and tight abrupt turns and a few big dips to get through. If you can find the flow, you can carry a lot of speed through it and its really fast. I got in my big ring and found the flow. Now, I’m thinking “put time on them, you need a buffer before you hit the climb”. At this point I’m riding well and passing a lot of riders in categories that started before us. Every time I pass someone I’m thinking “that is one more they will have to get around too”.

The section of trail beside the lake is pretty much the same as last year. There are three places where a fair portion of the trail has slide down to join the lake, how refreshing. At this point I’m determined to maintain my pace so I just look past the narrow spots, if you ignore it, it can’t hurt you can it? I pass a single speeder just as we begin the gentle climb up from the lake. Part way up the climb Mr. Singlespeed passes me. Now I’m thinking, “crap, starting to climb already, they have to be closing in”. I make it a point to push uncomfortably hard to stay with Mr. Singlespeed, I stay with him until we enter Magpie. I ask Mr Singlespeed if he is fast on the descent, he pulls off to the right and says, “Go”. I did. I hammered through Magpie, having pre-ridden it Saturday I knew exactly what to expect.

Next thing I know I’m passing through the registration area, the climb looms ahead. Starting up the single-track climb it isn’t too bad yet – I’m still pushing hard enough that I’m uncomfortable. Mr. Singlespeed and I trade places a few times; when he is in front he is pushing me to work hard – good. Next we hit the road climb, I can see about seven riders as I hit the road. I begin to gain on them – all of them. I’m climbing as strongly as I ever have. At this point Mr. Singlespeed pulls past me and I’m beginning to anticipate getting back on the singletrack. I make it a mission to get past all these folks before we hit the single-track. I get by them all – I can’t believe I’m climbing as well as I am. Soon the hard climbing begins. Mr. Singlespeed and I trade positions a couple times. It starts to sprinkle on us; nothing serious. Later I learn the experts got treated to a pretty good rain in this same spot. Eventually, it gets steep enough that Mr. Singlespeed dismounts and I pass him for the final time. The climb is through nice tree cover, rather scenic, "was it this long yesterday?"

Finally, I arrive at the last stretch of road and it is short. Then the 180-degree turn on to the single-track 45-degree climb up the side of the hill. This is a tough climb, but if you pick your head up you can see down on the road. Mr. Singlespeed is entering the single-track a bit behind me and I can’t see anyone else. At this point there is still some tough climbing remaining but it isn’t that far. Now I’m thinking, “get to the top, then descend fast, but not stupid fast, and you’ve got this.”


People may recall from last year the last of the climb, up the “down hiller section” that is terribly loose. This year there is brand new trail (raked in on Saturday) that switchbacks around this. The turn of the switchback has a steep step up in it. I dismounted for this and pushed my bike over the “bump” and up on to the second leg of the switch back. Still no one on my tail – “stay calm don’t do anything stupid.” Now I’m cresting the top, it is all downhill from here. The top part of the decent is loose steep section after loose steep section. There is one I remember particularly well. A steep entry in to a tight right turn with a tree on the right as you approach the turn. I came into this a tad fast and in an attempt to slow a little more planted my front wheel firmly into the loose dirt. It feels like endo time. I save myself the
humiliation of an endo by smacking my knee firmly against the tree. "Ouch, that's going to leave a mark." Now I’m thinking “what where you saying (to yourself) about don’t do anything stupid?” Back on the bike and before I know it I’m on the old road, this is way fast. Then it is back on Magpie, still working hard, there is always someone chasing.

Then, its over. My first Indie Series win!
~Russ Moul

Many, many more photos complements of Joel can be found here

Recap of Placings:

Jr Boys Beg 11-14
2 Jackson Burklund
3 Keegan Fitzpatrick

Jr Boys Sports <18
5 Erik Beattie

Sport Women 35+
7 Jenn Sinclair

Sport Men 35-44
5 Henry Shaw
16 Chris Liebsch

Sport Men 45+
1 Russ Moul
7 Francisco Pons

Expert Men 35-44
1 Pat Fitzpatrick

Expert Men 45+
2 Vince Haag
9 Allan Beattie

Open Men
1 Matt Lynch

Bavarian Bike & Brew Fest 06/06/2009

Last year was my first season mountain bike racing, and one of my most memorable races was at Leavenworth. This is the point in the series where we get into REAL mountain bike racing. Last year I flew down the downhill portion of the course with almost reckless abandon having never even pre-ridden the course. I almost paid for that naivete when I launched off a sizable water bar and landed a front wheelie at speed that was only millimeters from becoming an endo. I survived my one lap in tact unlike another fellow racer who decided to leave the relative safety of his bike and pummel the hill with his body ending his season. That did leave an impression on me and made me rethink my racing strategy. My new tactic coming into the race this year was to pound the uphill half of the course and take it easy on the way down to avoid ending up in traction. This strategy seemed even more sane to me when my group was delayed from starting for about 45 minutes while 2 beginner women were carted off the hill and taken away in ambulances.

The course was finally cleared to go, the weather was great with the sun beaming down on us in a friendly way; not baking us too much. The call to start came over the walkie-talkie and we were off. Some 50 yards up the dry, rutted, dusty fire road I came to the first obstacle. Joel was perched on the side of a hill a few feet above the course trying to catch the attention of TAI riders. I quickly averted my eyes surely saving myself from a nasty fall into a rather deep rut. My energy levels seemed good as I ground my way up the first couple miles of the climb. I was in my happy place when all of a sudden from out of no where, Francisco came blowing by with a "HEY CHRIS!" Jiminy Christmas that guy has been getting faster with every race. I asked him what took him so long. He responded by quickly pulling out of sight.

With the fire road gone we got into single track with the hill sloping up to our left and down sharply to our right. Coming around the backside of the hill the sun got more intense and no longer seemed so friendly. The course snakes its way up to the top without any switchbacks. At the top of the course there is a short flat section, maybe 1/2 a mile long. As I got to the end of the flat section, I heard short, loud tweets from a whistle near the water station right before the start of the downhill section. The watering hole came into sight, and sure enough, there was a referee decked out in his uniform, blowing his whistle and animatedly swinging his arm in circles directing riders down the trail.

The downhill started with a little creek crossing, then it continued down more hard packed single track with lots of swoopy turns (nothing too tight), a few more stream crossings, and of course a few water bars thrown in for good measure. About half way down there's a clearing that offers fantastic views of the valley below. I stuck to my strategy and took it easy going down. I made a point not to hold anyone up by getting off the trail whenever anyone came from behind. At one point about 1/3 of the way down I got off my bike to let a longer train of riders go by. Across from me was another rider doing the same thing. When the last rider came by I noticed he did not rush to get back on his bike. I asked if he was ok. He said no and held up a hand that was cocked at a funny angle due to a broken wrist that was red and swollen. I told him I'd let the crew at the bottom know he was hurt. Off I went again even more determined to go slowly. At about the half way point I came across someone with a walkie-talkie and relayed information about the injured rider. Not much later Bob came blasting by. I gave my usual "HEY BOB" as he disappeared leaving me to eat his dust.

At the bottom of the hill the single track ended at the fire road we started on. As I started my second lap, there were about 6 riders in view slowly chugging up the hill. I kicked into high gear and blew by the riders. I kept up a good pace and caught back up with Bob about 2/3 of the way up the hill. We stayed together for about 5 or 10 minutes before he got tired of my chatter and once again left me in the dust. I ended my 2 laps with an average lap time of 57 minutes, 2 minutes faster than my time for 1 lap last year. I am very pleased with this time considering my slow descents. I am happy to say that no TAI riders (as far as I know) broke any bones this year. However, there was a fair amount of carnage among other riders with at least 9 serious injuries. The moral of the story....know your limits, pre-ride, and be safe...relatively safe, bike racing isn't exactly without risk, which is one of the things that makes this a fun sport! ~ Chris L.

The course was an 8.6 mile loop with 1800 ft of elevation gain in the first 4 miles then 1800 ft descent back down to the start. Beginners raced 1 lap, sport 2 laps, and experts and open 3 laps.

Recap of Placings:

Jr Boys Beg 10 & under (1 lap)
4 Daniel McGee

Jr Boys Beg 11-14 (1 lap)
6 Jackson Burklund
7 Keegan Fitzpatrick
15 Aaron Agudo

Beg Men 35-44 (1 lap)
7 Troy Hopwood
13 Jeff Osborne

Jr Boys Sports <18 (2 laps)
6 Erik Beattie

Sport Women 35+ (2 laps)
12 Jenn Sinclair

Sport Men 35-44 (2 laps)
5 Henry Shaw
32 Bob McGee
36 Chris Liebsch

Sport Men 45+ (2 laps)
5 Russ Moul
11 Francisco Pons

Sport Single Speed (2 laps)
13 Gavin Spomer

Expert Men 35-44 (3 laps)
2 Pat Fitzpatrick

Expert Men 45+ (3 laps)
1 Vince Haag

Open Men (3 laps)
5 Matt Lynch

24 Hours Round the Clock - Karyn Abraham's Race Report

I decided to celebrate my 31st birthday in an unusual way-by riding my bike in circles for 24 hours! I’ve wanted to try a 24-hour race for a long time and decided this was the year to do it. I had no idea what to expect…maybe that was a good thing!

The weekend started innocently enough…that is, until we hit the 20-mile backup at the pass. Duh! We finally rolled into Spokane around 10:30pm and set up camp next to the VanderWaal family RV. I barely slept that night- was it from anxiety or the constant squeaking of port-a-potty doors? The morning of the race was pretty relaxed- my husband Eric installed a new computer for me and we even had a pancake breakfast courtesy of Aaron’s mom.

At noon the gun fires and we’re off to run a short loop. The first lap was fun and hectic as the relay riders sprinted for the front of the pack. I was tempted to hop on one of their wheels but remembered I was only supposed to do a 1:30 lap. The second lap was faster but I noticed that I wasn’t drinking nearly enough (no surprise). I swapped out my bottle for a camelback in between #2 and #3 and it turned out to be a huge mistake. Between the heavy pack, the hot temps and my busted fork I started to get crabby fast. My left elbow was really starting to hurt and I was losing my grip on the handlebar. I shall refer to lap 3 as “the dark ages”. I returned to camp on the verge of tears and wondered why the heck I signed up for this. Thankfully Eric found someone to adjust my fork and the next few hours of riding were much more enjoyable.

I found my second wind after the sun set…in fact, I think everyone did. Sometime after dark a few teenage boys streaked the course and I was definitely awake after that! After I finished #7 I realized that my goal was only two short loops away. #8 and #9 were relatively quick and then I rewarded myself with a nap. I gave Eric strict orders to wake me up after an hour. At 5am the conversation went something like this: “Get up!” (Eric) “Go away!” (me). I stumbled out of the tent at 7am, putzed around camp for an eternity and then rolled out for another two laps. #11 was brutal…I found myself on the verge of tears again and knew this was the end. I came in around 11am and immediately consumed an entire bowl of fresh guacamole. Yum!

I ended up in 7th place, which is better than I had expected. However, next year I'll be sure to scan my chip at noon on the nose so I don’t drop down in the rankings (5th place was only two minutes ahead of me- ugh). Overall I'd say this was a fun, well-organized race and I can't wait to do it again next year :)

I want to give a shout out to the fine folks at GU Energy…I don’t know what I would have done without my Tri-Berry gels! I also want to thank Ann for being my personal hair stylist and cheerleader :)

24 Hours Round the Clock - Vince Haag's Race Report

24 Hours Round the Clock
May 23-24, 2009


The 10th annual 24 hours Round the Clock started with a bang. Really. It was a blank, but standing next to the starter with his .357, it was still startling! After months of training for this race as my “A Race” in my training plan and logging 1,000’s of miles, we got to start… with a run… OK, it was only about 600 yards, but give me a break! OK, enough whining, the run got people spread out and with the prospect of riding solo around a 15 mile course for the next 24 hours, it wasn’t like I was in a huge hurry to sprint to the front.

As we discovered the day before during the pre-ride, the course was fast! It had plenty of relatively smooth single-track connected by a few miles of gravel or abandoned roads and one stretch of pavement. The latter due to the local power company letting out too much water the week before and flooding part of the course called “Little Viet Nam.” Interestingly enough, interspersed within all that smooth singletrack were quite a few rock gardens and technical sections. There was definitely enough to keep you awake and on your toes (or your face if you are not careful as Aaron Vanderwaal, former Sega teammate, can attest to.) As I caught up with him on the first lap, his nice new white Mafia Racing kit was covered in dirt. He begrudgingly admitted that his new, larger, front rotor had MUCH more stopping power than he was expecting. The first time he got to really try it was on a very technical, rocky descent called “Devil’s Down”. Fortunately, he was not hurt too badly but had to endure the entire race with a bruised palm. Nevertheless, he finished with a great race coming in second in the “Under 39 Men Solo” category (aka, Young Kids).

Russ and I shared a pit and a pit crew. What a HUGE difference a great pit crew makes! We had my friend Darren as our chief mechanic and he took absolute care of our bikes during the race. We left each and every pit with a freshly wiped and lubed chain. Over the course of the race, both Russ and I broke a spoke and needed our spare wheels installed, I had a couple of cassette issues that needed fixing, and the lights at night; all of which Darren competently took care of. While Darren took care of our bikes, Russ’s sisters and daughter (Linda, Elaine, Sandy and Stephanie) took care of our feeding and supplements (endurolytes, ibuprofen, etc) needs. My wife and daughter were also there for racer moral support and to support the pit crew. We left each lap with fresh food and clean chains. HUGE benefit to a tired racer!

Russ had a fabulous race. He was a machine through the night, churning out lap after lap with very consistent times. He reports that the night laps were great for him. He really enjoyed riding alone in the dark. One thought on that, with over 500 registered riders representing 157 teams and solos, you would think that there would always be somebody around, but I can’t tell you how often it seemed that I rode for several miles all by myself. Once I wondered if the race had been called off or if I was lost. Of course that was at 3AM, so I wasn’t too coherent. Anyway, Russ exceeded his lap count goal and finished with the same lap count as last year’s winner! 18 laps! There was one other solo rider with 18 laps and ties are broken by time-to-complete, putting Russ in third place overall with second place in the “Over 40 Men Solo” (aka Old Guys). A VERY impressive finish for a first time 24 hour racer!

I have done one other 24 hour solo race so I knew a little bit what to expect (and was therefore more stupid than foolish for doing this). I knew I was feeling fit and strong and was confident that I could place well in my age group if everything went well. Well? Everything went fantastic. I already mentioned my pit crew and my training. My feeding was great with only a few stomach problems during the race, but not enough to slow me down. I did 100% Hammer Nutrition using Sustained Energy and Perpetuem for my primary fuel, finally falling back to Hammer Gel for the last 4 to 5 hours. The only solid food I had was a bowl of instant oatmeal around midnight and almost left it on the side of the trail later. I had decided to put down a few fast laps to start, then back off. The first 3 laps were respectable at just a few minutes over 1 hour each. At that point I knew I needed to slow down, and settled in to a nice steady pace throughout the rest of the race. Towards the end, the only really frustrating part of the event came to light. The timing crew was having problems. My pit crew could not get a clear answer to any questions regarding positions of Russ or I. Towards the end, you really want to know where you are if you are racing for a placing. I didn’t know for sure where I was positioned until 40 minutes before the end of the race. At that point, I found out I had 18 laps completed and was first in the Old Guys group! I also found out I was in first Overall but the guy in second could come in and get another lap for the win. So of course, I had to go get one more lap! 19 was painful, but very sweet, knowing I was doing it for the overall win.

A few other random thoughts:
- It was very well run event. It was obvious that they have been doing this for a few years.

- The “Woodstock” theme this year was cute with sections of the course named after Woodstock era songs, but I don’t know if I’ll ever be bold enough to wear the BRIGHT RED tie-die event T-Shirt in public!

- There was a 12 year old boy doing the Solo event! What an inspiration. I called him “the Little Solo Dude” and when I passed him around 8AM, he said he was probably done because his front fork was getting kinda stiff. Great kid!

- There were lots of familiar faces from the local race scene there. Wick was there providing support in the tent all night and some swag for the raffle. I even see his name on the racer list! Many racers from our area and in particular, a 2 man team and their pit crew from Cucina Fresca who gave me great cheers and moral support every time I rode by. Thanks guys! They took second in the 2 person teams, by the way!

- Of course the TAI team was well represented with Russ and I, Karyn Abraham finishing 5th (I think), Allan Beattie finishing very respectably in a tough 5 person 200+ “Old Guy” division, and others I apologize for not knowing about. Ann tried to introduce me to someone somewhere around lap 16 but I was a little out of it at that point!

- Speaking of Ann! Yeah!! Big shout out to her and her moral support to Russ and I, and the whole TAI contingent, but also to “her” racer Deb Romaine. Deb, had a great race too! I saw her many times on the course and she always had a great attitude! Way to go Deb!

- Team TAI – Mr Heater was a BIG hit with my pit crew, thanks Joel!

- After 2 ½ days, I am just now getting feeling back in my toes… Russ says the same about his hands.

Whidbey Island Mudder Race Recap -5/17/2009

Short and sweet race recap...

No mud, but plenty of dust and hot conditions for this location. Sue Burklund and I counted 4 broken chains, not sure how many more there were that we did not see.

Jeff learned a valuable lesson on how listening to the screaming crowds to get some air may not be the best race tactic...can we say "Pinch Flat."

Henry opted to race in the Expert category today instead of waiting around for the Sport's race at 2pm and rode a fine race at the longer distance.

Gavin also decided not to wait until 2pm to race, and opted instead to race his singlespeed in the beginner category and discovered the beginners are mighty fast.


Here is the link to the photos Joel took Mudder Photos

Whidbey Island Mudder Addendum

The sun was shinning at the Whidbey Island Mudder last Sunday. TAI had an excellent turnout with Troy, Bob, Chris and family, Joel, Jackson and family, and Henry all camping out the night before. Thankfully for the fire dept., we were not camping together. There were lot’s of other important TAI folks there too, who are listed in the race results below.

Beginners completed 2, Sport 3, and Expert 4 laps of about 6 miles each. The course was exactly the same as in preceding years: plenty of rolling single-track punctuated with some SCREAMING descents that ask racers an age old question. “How much speed can I carry into this fast corner without the bike sliding out from under me?” At the Whidbey Island Mudder the answer was- lot’s of speed! Yeee- Haaa!

Yes the course included the unique, tall sand hills which are the remains of the old plans to make a golf course on the land. With temps in the low 70’s and dry, conditions were ideal for speed. It seemed all the racers in my group managed to take advantage of the fast conditions except me. Nonetheless, I really enjoyed the added distance the Expert class provided. I especially enjoyed the benefits of the extra resistance/ strength training I got when a spoke broke in my rear wheel. I may have been defeated by 20 others racers, but darn it, I felt like a Catholic after confession after my race. Mashing my wobbling rim across the grinding brake pad for two was cycling penance.

I want to publicly thank Bob McGee for allowing me to sleep in his luxurious RV the night before the race. The morning pancakes were killa too. Also, Bob brought the largest and loudest cowbell in the world. Bob McGee rocks, and so does his cowbell. That bell inspired dozens of Sport racers to mash it down and get it done! No one wanted to sit near me when I had the cowbell. I hope it was just the obnoxious the bell.

This was my first race this season using GU. I want to make a short commercial for GU. Thank you GU. One or two packets during the race made all of the difference with my endurance. Strength was not gained with GU (of course), but stamina and endurance were certainly improved. If you didn’t pick up a box this year, get one next time. Don’t forget to eat them with lots of water.

There was great attendance and team camaraderie at Whidbey, but I would love to see all who weren’t there at Leavenworth. You know who you are. Obviously it’s impossible to be at all the races- I hate it when work and family get in the way of riding and racing. We’re all busy. Congratulations to all who raced.

Yours in the Quest,

Henry


Jr Boys Beg 11-14
7 Jackson Burklund
8 Keegan Fitzpatrick
10 Aaron Agudo

Beg Men 35-44
2 Troy Hopwood
6 Gavin Spoomer
11 Jeff Osborne

Sport Men 35-44
17 Bob McGee
27 Chris Liebsch

Sport Men 45+
3 Russ Moul
7 Francisco Pons

Expert Men 35-44
21 Henry Shaw
23 Pat Fitzpatrick

Expert Men 45+
1 Vince Haag

The Tucker Classic Race Report-May 3, 2009

Some stories seem to repeat themselves. I was asked to share my experience at the Tucker Classic @ South Seatac anyway:

I got a strong start working out on the bike this year. February was great. Then came March. Blame it on a sinus infection, or perhaps the constant snow and rain, but whatever the excuse, I worked out on the bike 3 times that month including one trainer ride. Keith told me no problem; I could get in racing shape in a month. I had 3 weeks maybe that would work. I actually remember very clearly knowing I could prep for Junior High Track in one week. It turns out that Junior High Track was a long long time ago. Who knew?

With my euphoric pre-race wisdom, I decided I should race single speed. After all it’s all I have ridden for the past 7 months, so why not? I even put on my fast new Schwalbe 29 inch Racing Ralph’s for the occasion. I also decided to use a single water bottle cage for the race, but I thought ahead and brought another that I sat at our tent to grab as I went by. After all, even though I hoped it would be shorter, the race could go as long as 90 minutes so I had better prepare.

The race start was perfect. The sun was out, the temp was probably around 60. The road start was even up hill so I wouldn’t be spun out on the single speed. I dropped into the single track at about sixth out of eight single speeders, right behind my old cyclocross friend Jason. We tore it up and before the first half lap was over we were working our way through the general sport class that had started in front of us. I passed Jason and kept reeling in geared riders through the first one and a half laps, then I felt it: Just a little twinge of cramps, but a very bad sign at only one third of the way through the race. I tried to pedal in smooth circles, but by the end of the second lap I knew I was in trouble. I slammed down my NUUN, and a GU, but the cramps were on. I picked up my spare water bottle from Joel and ate my second GU, but it didn’t matter. I was in trouble. On the third lap I cramped up so bad on the little root climb that a spectator asked me if I needed help. I did! He caught my bike and I fell to lean against a tree. My left leg was locked straight. I pushed with all my might on the back of my knee for what seemed like 30 seconds before I could get the darn thing to bend. Finally it did and I thanked the guy, grabbed my bike and started hobbling up the trail. I was in strict mode of walk the hills, spin the flats and downhill sections. It felt like I was alone for a while, then another single speeder I had passed earlier, caught me and blew by. Then on the back side with the berms, Jason caught me and told me to jump on his tail. I tried, but the legs wouldn’t do it. He thought we were on the last lap. I prayed he was right, but I thought I knew better even though we had been going for over 90 minutes already.

I kept seeing Jason in front of me until we hit the little jump coming back into the infield. Something was wrong and he was in the bushes. I had flash back of the Steilacoom cross race where he went down in front of me and broke his ankle. It was nasty. I hollered back at him and he said he was "ok."

I hit the finish line and indeed had another lap to go. Joel came to my rescue with some more GU and Shot Blocks. I’m not sure Shot Blocks are a good idea when out of liquid, but I would have tried anything at that point.

I limped out the last lap just stubbornly wanting to finish and driven on by the fact that I didn’t want to drop out with my second grade daughter watching. I think I finished 5/8 in Sport Single Speeders with a time of 1:57, my second longest ride of the year, and my longest race ever!

I’m writing this on Tuesday, and I can barely walk. The stairs are especially treacherous. I need both hands on the railing to safely make it down. Tonight I’m going to try a Cinco de Mayo cure involving lots of limes.

It was a blast to hang out with the team again. What a great bunch. Thanks for all the support! -Nick Valison

Recap of Placings:

Jr Boys Beg 10 & under (1.5 laps)
5 Daniel McGee

Jr Boys Beg 11-14 (2.5 laps)
3 Keegan Fitzpatrick
4 Jackson Burklund
5 Harry Shaw
9 Aaron Agudo

Beg Men 35-44 (2.5 laps)
7 Jeff Osborne
DNF Troy Hopwood

Jr Boys Sports <18>5 Erik Beattie

Sport Women 35+ (3.5 laps)
11 Jenn Sinclair

Sport Men 35-44 (4.5 laps)
12 Bob McGee
19 Chris Liebsch

Sport Men 45+ (4.5 laps)
2 Russ Moul
9 Francisco Pons

Sport Single Speed (4.5 laps)
5 Nick Valison

Seniors 55+ (4.5 laps)
1 Allan Beattie

Expert Men 35-44 (6.5 laps)
1 Mike Gile

Expert Men 45+ (6.5 laps)
1 Vince Haag

Expert Single Speed (6.5 laps)
8 Jim Albright

Open Men (6.5 laps)
4 Matt Lynch