2012 USA Cycling MTB Marathon National Championships

Two years ago I don't think I knew what a "Marathon" mountain bike race was. Then I saw a post race interview with JHK after he won the 2010 Marathon Nat's and he looked more worked than I've ever seen him, with salt stains on his face and saying something like taking a few days, maybe a week off to recover. Must be pretty tough. Then last year Marathon Nat's were moved closer, to Bend, OR, and I put it on my calendar to race but it didn't work out. Well the race was still in Bend this year and I was able to make the trip up there with my buddy Ron Shevock who is crazy and would race it on a single speed.

 I hammer out some pretty long training rides and have done some tough, long races like SoNoMas but I've never done an "official" Marathon MTB race. USA Cycling defines the category as any MTB race between 37 and 62 miles. So actually I guess the Sea Otter two lap course, at 40 miles counts and the 50 mile races I've done at Granite Bay would too. But those don't quite seem to fit the category and weren't ever designated as "Marathon" events. Regardless, I just like riding, and racing, my bike for a long time so I was up for it.

 Ron and I set off to the North on Thursday morning to try and get up there in time to pre-ride the second half of the course before dark. I had never ridden in Bend, or Oregon for that matter, so I had done some research trying to figure out which bike I'd want to race. It came down to a choice between helmet cam videos which showed pretty smooth looking dirt and not a lot of rocks and the advice of 2011 champ Adam Craig advising the full suspension 29er is best because it is bumpy pedaling. I chose to go with Craig's advise and brought the Tallboy equipped with some fast rolling ENVE 29xc wheels and WTB Nano tires.  And I just put on a sweet new Thomson seatpost with the WTB Silverado Carbon to lighten up the bike just a bit more.  As Jen always puts it, "That's grams man!"  :-)  After about 8 hours of driving we pulled into the Wanoga Sno Park lot and geared up for our first pre-ride.

The course would start out on a service road that seemed to go on forever...

 With Mt. Bachelor in view...

But then we got to the good stuff quickly when we diverted and rode the 2nd half of the course...

After a few hours we arrived back at the car.  The analysis of the course could be summed up in a few words: Dusty (really, really dusty!), sandy, bumpy, and fun.  I was really happy I had brought the Tallboy.  And then I was even happier because we found a sushi place for dinner...

Friday morning we headed up the hill again and rode the first half of the course.  As soon as I hit the pedals I was feeling a LOT better than I did on Thursday's ride.  So I was trying hard not to overdo it, but this part of the course was even more fun so it was hard.  It was not as dusty or loose and it wound about in the trees and had some really fun features and downhills.

Ron just before aid station 1 at mile 10.

Railing some turns in the tight trees...

Climbing...

Cleaning one of the bypass obstacle lines near the top of the climb...

 Ron fell off... can you see him?

Catching a little air on the sweet descent...

 Ron totally spun out on the way back down...

So the analysis for this first half of the course was that it was just super fun no matter what bike you were on.  Just fantastic trails!  My Highball would have been OK here, but I definitely wasn't held back by the Tallboy.  There were still quite a few spots where we were climbing up sections with braking bumps and it was nice to have the squish.  

Ron had sliced a sidewall on his rear tire so we found a shop to mount up some new tread and then we cleaned up and prepped the bikes for race day.  Oh and in since we both felt so good for Friday's ride, it must have been the sushi, so we ate there again that night.  If it ain't broke...

And then we got lucky... rain!  While I was in my sushi rice induced comatose sleep, Ron was awakened by thunder during the night and gave me the good news once I became vertical.  Our hope of precipitation was confirmed when we went outside to a damp parking lot and the unmistakable smell of wet dirt after a fresh rain.  Sweet!  When we got out to the race venue I could see that the dirt was nicely tattered with raindrop spots.  This was going to help out so much with the dust.  I got suited up and loaded up my pockets with Hammer Gel, Perpetuem Solids, and mixed a couple water bottles with HEED.  Fueling was going to be so important, well it always is, but especially for such a long race.  Jen's aunt, Judy, had drive down from Idaho to watch and help out with my feeds so I gave her the instructions on what I wanted at which spot.  And to prove I've learned at least one thing this year, here is a photo of me doing more than a "squeeze test" tire pressure check before I roll off on my warm-up!

I warmed up for 20 minutes or so and still felt flat.  It was hard to get the heart rate up to and over threshold.  Dang.  It just wasn't going to be a day where I had that "extra" pop.  Oh well... commence diesel mode! 

We got started and the pace was fast but not a sprint.  Then it picked up a bit as we curved through some sand and up the first climb and a lead group broke away.  We got a little strung out in the middle of the pack as we sped down the first open road descent before turning right onto that long service road.  The lead pack was maybe a hundred yards up or so and I grouped up with a few other riders and we worked together for a bit, and then I just ended up pulling the rest of the way back up to that lead group.  Maybe it was a waste of energy but I wanted to make sure we got back up there.  The road kept at a "false flat" incline for a while and when we got to the next rolling climbs I expected the pace to pick back up again for the leaders but they held back.  It was a nice break and we all stayed together until we made a right turn at about mile 4 and up a loose and sandy road and then they took off.  As I mentioned before, I didn't have that gear, so I had to just watch them go as I kept my pace.  It was going to be a long, long race so I wasn't going to panic.  After this gradual climb the course lost elevation quickly and then I made the turn up the "sandy climb of death."  

This pitch is a 20+ % grade for about 100 yards.  We skipped this in our pre-riding to save energy so I hadn't seen it.  There was some pretty deep sand but the Nano's floated nicely and their continuous center line tread kept me straight.  When it got steep there was a firm line on the right that everyone was taking and I caught right up to some guys but there wasn't room to go around without making a risky pass in the sand.  So I sat in and waited until we crested, saving my energy to make the pass before we hit the switchback turn into the singletrack.  I wanted to pass everyone I could before getting to the singletrack and made it around a group of three, giving me a nice clear view of the trail for a while.  This was "Vista Butte" trail which would gradually climb while generally following the hillside contour.  By the top I had caught another small group of three and we headed down a fast downhill.  One rider made a pass and got away and I was getting pretty held up by the two that were left.  I had no choice but to just sit in and relax until we made the turn to the Ridge Loop trail at about mile 8.  I recognized one of the riders as another CA rider Alex Wild and since I asked nicely, he let me by so I could try to overtake the other rider as well.  I wasn't able to get that done in a safe place, but he was motoring ok and we soon caught some other guys before the last descent down to the first aid station.  

Photo Credit: Lasala Images

Judy was right there for my first bottle exchange and it went off without a hitch.  I continued my "diesel mode" pace as we wound about through the trees of the Swede ridge trails.  We were about an hour into the race now and I was starting to feel pretty decent.  As I slalomed through the trees I decided to back off just a bit after tagging one with my shoulder.  I just grazed it but I didn't want to take any unnecessary risks and end my day so early.  Even after toning down my excitement, I would catch up to people on the steady climbs up the ridge line and I made a few more passes while trying not to expend too much energy with about 40 miles to go.  I made use of a couple of the course splits and that ladder at the top of the climb to gain more ground before the big descent.  Finally at about mile 21 the real fun began.  Right away I was held up but he let me by and I was able to open it up and rail some sweet DH for a bit before catching some more guys.  But this was a group of three and nobody was letting anyone else by.  We were going at a decent pace but with the dust we were a little spread out so nobody was really pushing the issue.  It was still really fun and I tried not to be frustrated with the pace.  Once we bottomed out the trail turned south towards the second aid station on some flat but fun, twisty trail with Mt. Bachelor in view.

It was on this trail though that I began to feel a bit off.  I'm not quite sure what happened exactly but I was just loosing energy and getting a bit of a headache.  I figured I wasn't taking in enough water.  It was right at about two hours, which normally isn't a problem for me, but I tanked the last of the HEED I had with me and when I came in to the second aid station Judy was there for another bottle hand off.  I was focused on the one bottle I'd told her to give me there and I grabbed it just fine, but after I passed I realized that she was also holding out a second bottle for me with her other hand if I wanted it.  I should have stopped to grab it... but I kept my eyes up and powered up the short climb and drank as much as I could before needing both hands on the bars for the fast dirt road descent.  This part of the course was treacherous.  It was technically easy, and just a service road on a gradual decline but you could pedal it and speeds were quite fast.  Combining the speed with loose sand, mental fatigue and the occasional patch of loose, sharp rocks or sticks made it a section not to take lightly.  It would be very easy to flat on one of those rocks, or get off line in the sand and go down while trying to drink.  I slid off line at one point in a corner and had to take it wide and was heading right for some loose rocks which I successfully hopped over while the water bottle dangled from my mouth.  Adding to the task list for this seemingly harmless stretch, was that there was a lot of time that I knew I could make up if I could pedal hard and keep the speed up above 20mph.  I was able to pass a couple before turning down the aforementioned "sandy climb of death" which was now the "sandy DH of smiles."  Not much could be said about this part other than WEEEEEE!!!!  It was fun to just let the sand take me where it wanted, up the bank on the left and back down and around the corner until it ended way too quickly.  I was now on the service road transfer section between the two loops and what were fast and sandy descents five miles into the race were now pretty sucky climbs about 30 miles in.  And I still wasn't recovered from my near bonk.  Thankfully they were short climbs and then it was a very gradual descent on sand down to aid station 3 at mile 32.3.  My plan was to finish my bottle by then and hope they had just plain water to hand out there.  This station wasn't accessible for Judy so I just had to take whatever the neutral support was offering.  I was stoked they didn't just have Gatorade and grabbed a bottle of water before heading into the Dinah-mo-hum trail singletrack.  

I had dialed back my pace to digest everything I had taken in and after a couple miles of the rolling terrain I was starting to feel a bit better.  I climbed up some switchbacks and over a ridge line trail with lava rock patches, being sure to ride straight over the top and not in between to protect the sidewalls of the tires.  I got to a little DH section of switchbacks which helped get my "spunk" back as well at about mile 35.  I slid into a left hander and popped out the other side... standing... pedal pedal SMACK!!!... My left pedal hit a hidden rock in the silt... (begin slow motion)... the bike's rear end picks up and swings right and I start a "helicopter" which is immediately stopped when my seat slams into a tree on the left... THUD... UMPH!!!  The handlebars and stem slam into my pelvis, the left shifter digs into my quad, and I'm over the bars and dive face first into the loose dirt... 

...silence... the dust clears.  I lie there a second and think, "That was spectacularly bad... and I don't feel any pain.  OK."  Still expecting some part of my body to signal to my brain that it doesn't work, I look back at my bike and see the seat completely twisted to the left.  Hmmm... wonder what else is broken, it would be a long walk back from here.  I untangle myself from the bike, get up and pull everything to the side of the trail.  I inspect myself, nothing is torn, nothing is bloody.  Just a little bit of pain starting to set in where the bars hit my leg and pelvis, but everything is operational.  Looking at the bike, everything looks ok except for the seat.  I bust out my mini tool and get the seatpost turned back... oh... hmmm... yeah that's still not right.  The seat post was bent left about an inch and a half and the seat was tilted left due to a broken rail.  Everything was still tight though so I figured I could go on.  The handle bars were also twisted to the right but not too bad.  I take a few swigs of water, a shot of Hammer Gel and a deep breath.  Here we go... just a couple miles more of trail before I was dumped out onto a washboardy service road which would take me back towards the start finish area for aid station 4.  By the time I got there I was out of water again, I had been racing for three hours, partially bonked, recovered, crashed badly and ridden about five miles in the not-so-ideal body position of slightly off to the left and the edge of the saddle sticking up my... Just about every part of me was saying "STOP!!!" I was back at the venue, I had been through a lot already and nobody would fault me for throwing in the towel.  Then I saw Judy there with my next bottle.  I could still pedal, the bike still worked, only an hour left, SUCK IT UP!!  I ditched my two bottles and took on one more for the final loop and decided I hadn't given it my best yet and I would regret it if I didn't continue.  I took it easy up the first climb and then set off on the first descent to catch the five or six guys that passed me while I was picking up the pieces from my crash.  The trail was rolling, windy singletrack that wasn't too tight so I could keep pedaling with constant power.  I closed on one guy really quickly as we approached a course split.  I was going to go right and I called it out, but he was pulling over for me and said "Damn, I could hear you coming!" I'm not sure what he meant by that.  Was I breathing that hard?  I had just found a good rhythm and I dropped him quickly.  The course transitioned from an open meadow into the trees another good climb where I caught two more riders that were fading fast as well.  I got by before a gradual downhill where I was able to maintain some good speed while following another rider.  Finally we got onto the Tiddlywinks downhill and after making a couple more passes I opened it up for the berms and jumps.  I was putting a good gap on when I leaned it over into a left hand berm by my chain had dropped off the inside of the cranks.  Ahh!!  I was a bit hurried trying to put it back on, which actually made the stop longer and a couple guys passed me back.  I finally got it back on and passed one guy back before cresting the final climb on Tiddlywinks.  The last DH is really fun and all natural terrain with the opportunity to launch off of some good sized boulders.  Which of course I did, because fun is smooth, and fun is fast.  I was right on the wheel of a Yeti rider who was tackling the trail at a decent clip and it wasn't worth it to try and pass him.  So we just shredded the long descent together and by the bottom my triceps and back were feeling it for sure.  

We hit the bottom after over 48 miles and nearly three hours and forty minutes of racing and made the turn up the final climb on "Funner" trail.  It would definitely have been funner to ride downhill, especially in this state of fatigue.  But the end was near and I knew I could do it.  

Photo Credit: Lasala Images

The climbing was fairly technical and rocky in bits which made it hurt even more, but I was able to ride everything and even still caught one or two more guys before I broke out of the trees and into the headwind on the final meadow.  I was trying just to keep pushing as hard as I could and not look at the mileage on my Garmin but it was tough.  I knew the course was about 54 miles and I was so close!  The course wound into another patch of trees and I made my way around a sweeping corner to find some cheering spectators... it had to be close.  Sure enough, one more corner and I popped out onto the pavement of Wanoga Sno Park.  The Yeti rider was about 200 yards up so I knew I had no chance to catch him, and there was nobody in sight behind me so I cruised in to the finish, crossing the line for 16th place in four hours and six minutes.  

Photo Credit: Lasala Images

I didn't get my goal time of under four hours, but then again I didn't have a perfect race.  I gave Judy a big, stinky, dirty hug and a huge "thank you" for being my support for the day.  And after a few minutes of zoning out and chugging water I was able to pose and crack a smile.  Happy to be done.

And here's what I had to sit on for the last 20 miles of the race...

Ron rolled in at 4 hours and 33 minutes for 7th place in the single speed category.  Impressive considering he was running way too hard of a gear and really suffering out there.  We both enjoyed some well deserved post race beverage...

And I want to give some HUGE props to fellow Folsom Bike rider (and shop mechanic) Billy Damon who won the 30-34 category and called it the hardest thing he's ever done!

 So after the race we rolled down to Bend to celebrate with the champ.  Some good brews, Elk burgers and sweet potato fries at Deschutes Brewery did the trick!

Sunday morning Ron and I rolled south at dawn and headed home... but with a little "must do" trail detour.  It was a couple hours round trip out of our way, but the "Dread and Terror" section of the Umpqua River Trail was totally worth it.  Even on a bent seat and post!

This is how single speeders "shift"...

 Here we are starting out at Lemolo Lake.

This trail was super fun and reminded me a lot of 2nd Divide Trail in Downieville.  Pretty technical and slow going on the edge of the river, but the views in the clearings were awesome.

 Some dirty bikes ready for the final drive back home...

CA greeted us with a clear day and a great view of Mt. Shasta for our return home.