Training Log Archive: silkychrome

into work. blustery!

ride in the dark and cold.

EZ jog

Specialized demo truck at LV for a night ride. i got hooked up w a 2015 Fate Comp, their women's specific carbon hardtail, size M. i wasn't that crazy about the components but excited to try my first ever WSD mtb. in the parking lot, it seemed TINY. i almost asked for a L, but Brian the rep told me to just stick w the M bc lots of women aren't used to riding WSD.

anyway the first section of singletrack was rough...wayyyyy too much air in the tires combined w slick leaves had me uncomfortable and dabbing a lot. at a regroup i let a bunch of air out and that made things lots better.

then we had a nice gradual climby bit and i had a ton of fun. not sure if it was the bike itself, or just having snappy legs, but things were rocking. later on in the singletrack the Specialized truck driver was asking me what i thought and all i could think of was "it's like riding a pony!" so that's what i told him. i felt like the bike had tons of giddy-up out of the turns, was really stiff/responsive/quick, and just felt very lively...like a pony. not as dependable/steady as my more horse-like SegSlayer, but a blast to ride.

into work. bikes are awesome!

home. cold, but i brought a LS shirt and gloves.

also sold my (old) car! whoop! travel money for next year!

into work.

EZ home. it was cold.

EZ spin home. 75F in Oct. mmmmmmmyay!

Event: BT Epic
 

BT Epic. new course this year. drove down early Sat AM w Maria. perfect weather conditions and fall colors, i was almost sad that we "had" to race it, i really just wanted to ride EZ and enjoy the day. but, racing is fun too. lined up w EK and then was promptly left in his and hundreds' of others dust on the opening gravel climb (but i liked it).

right away i knew legs were ON but i could feel some CV fatigue still. caught Struckman's wheel about halfway up and worked hard to stay there bc i knew he would pick good lines in the singletrack. was rewarded w a great carrot to chase to Harmon Spring and then Brazil Creek. i was with several other people but everyone was pretty great about passing/being passed. tons of recent trail work done on these sections so cornering was a bit loose which slows me down a lot, i hate washing out and am excessively cautious to avoid it.

Struckman waited for me at Brazil and then we set out again to Berryman CG. more chasing, and i was super stoked to be riding well. came thru Bman CG, swapped bottles, and got ahead of Struckman going north. stayed ahead til Beecher Spring where I stopped to get water, it was hot and i was worried about cramping. i had double-nuuned all of my CR333 bottles but still needed to be careful. relished the miles after Beecher, that is where SS Kate and I had our showdown at OT100MTB and I was stoked to be feeling good, climbing well, just a total different mindset from last time. finished up the lap w DBD talking my ear off but I didn't mind, i was trying to ride a bit easier to keep something in the tank for the next OT section.

cramped a tiny bit on the climb up to gravel but shut that down quickly w EZ spinning, water, and e-caps. super stoked to get back on the OT, 2mi downhill was amaz0rs. then "triple trouble" aka "3 sisters", still in fantastic headspace and i passed a ton of dudes struggling w cramps. SUCH a difference from the last time i rode this!

ditched my camelbak at Bass and rode up the paved climb for the final loop. once into the singletrack, i was BLOWN AWAY by how beautiful the woods were. WOW. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1020528814... i just wanted to stop and sit in the picture-perfect Missouri Ozarks postcard...but not really since legs were still feeling good. was mostly alone for this which was exactly what i wanted. then i crashed kinda hard out of nowhere and it hurt. got moving again and had a strong feeling it was Noah's doing. this (and accumulated 4wks racing fatigue) made me super emotional and fought back tears for the last 4 miles or so. hard to shred singletrack and cry at the same time! finished in 5:22 which was 5min faster than my pre-race prediction. britty just 1min ahead of me but i never saw her up there, probably a good thing!

SPLITS (compared to 2013-2012 where applicable)
Bass to Brazil = 1:03 (1:11) (1:17)
Brazil to Berryman = 1:03 (1:07) (1:10)
Berryman to Harmon = 1:19, making the lap of berryman 2:49, def a PR
Harmon to Bass = 1:05
West Loop = 0:52
TOTAL 5:22

2012: 9th/94th
2013: 8th/98th
2014: 6th/107th

http://www.unitedindirt.com/wp-content/uploads/201...

C • Congratulations! 6

course marking, race lead-out, and later tear-down for Moonlight Madness. love it when I get to log work hours :).

EZ jog mourning the loss of my green cascadeeahs (well, 1 of the 2 pairs I own). i blew out both sides of both feet at Perfect 10. so now it's onto the Lone Peaks w SFOE insoles. they were ok.

legs feel great and no niggles from Perfect 10. CV system, however, is still heavy and fatigued from October's onslaught of racing. interesting to note (maybe only to myself) that in both 2012 and 2013 i was largely burnt out by late Oct, this year I can feel I'm tired but plenty of mojo left to tackle the 3 remaining races on my schedule. life is good!

into work. so autumnal.

EZ ride home after pint night. Jake just rebuilt rear hub, fixed headset creak, and fine-tuned shifting on the SegSlayer. also we swapped in a rear tire w Spesh's GRID sidewall so hopefully holds up good this weekend.

i could get used to this. chat w friends in the morning over coffee and breakfast, then an EZ ride to work in stunningly perfect weather. woohoo!

into work. so beautiful!

EZ recovery spin on gravel and some OT w Erl and Andrei. got a flat on the rear tire after riding "recklessly" downhill (Andrei's words). bummer since that tire was brand new 1 week ago.

Event: The Perfect 10 Rogaine
 

Perfect 10 10hr rogaine w Jeff.

shared nav. 8th overall. http://www.bonkhardracing2.com/results/perfect10/2...

C • Upset? 5

hey, legs. remember how to do this? good, bc we have 10hrs on tap for Saturday.

sun! sun! sun!

back home after spending extra time getting the swap tent sorted.

into work. really crappy weather the past few days has coincided nicely w some time off, but it feels good to be back on the bike. ran into C-Cash just as I was getting to Alpine!

Burnin: http://silkychrome.blogspot.com/2014/10/race-repor...

had a work HH so got a ride there and then rode home. great night, beautiful sunset, nice to see big orange again!

Event: Burnin at the Bluff
 

Burnin aka rematch of OT100MTB between me and SS Kate. not that i made any huge mistakes at OT100MTB, but fear of losing again made me revamp my normal race plan - some small changes to nutrition and pit set-up, and different tires. and a better strategy.

LAP 1, 1:30 (includes Le Mans run start)
Kate got out first on the bike and was GONE. i was really nervous and rode like it - not smooth at all. finally started to get some focus and flow towards the end of it.

LAP 2, 1:28
found out i was less than 5min back so quick pit and out. rode WAY better and just soaked in CBL in all its autumnal glory. made the rock garden!! enjoyed myself immensely. got on Heather's wheel for the last 5mi or so and it was perfect, she was picking great lines and the pace was aggressive but not crazy. she kept me honest. saw Kate leaving the pit when i came in.

LAP 3, 1:31
knew i was closing the gap so stayed steady and caught Kate at the rock garden. but my strategy was not to pass her so early so just rode 30sec back for the rest of the lap. left groin cramped a lot climbing back up to campground so she gained a minute or two while i dealt w that.

LAP 4, 1:31
loaded up on e-caps and nuun from various sources and rode out, the goal being keep riding steady and not let cramps get any worse. made my way around the lake and caught Kate at the rock garden again. kept my usual distance back but she flatted at the bottom of the campground climb. i stopped, asked if i could help, she said no, so i left. still had to baby my legs on the climb. made it to the top in 6hrs flat, v proud of my even pacing so far. turns out i would have won women's 6hr solo.

LAP 5, 1:34
on a MISSION!!!! pushed as hard as i could while trying to keep cramps away and take in more fluid/salt to shut them down for good. felt super motivated and rode well. Dwayne and Peat lapped me and that just added to the fun, happy to hold them off for 50+mi.

LAP 6, 1:37
beginning of uncharted territory for me at CBL - previous "PR" was 5 laps in around 9 hours. no news on a split back to Kate but i just kept doin my thing, riding as clean as possible and stayed motivated. finally got cramps to go away. super stoked to finish 6 laps this year in the time it took me to do 5 in 2012.

LAP 7, 1:43
started at dusk, lights on by Enough boat ramp. took a while to get comfortable w light-dark transition which was weird. crashed hard on the downhill side of the trail and started to panic that Kate would catch me. this was when things started to break down, but i kept reminding myself to dig deep and make up for OT100MTB and, in a way, USARA. every time a light would catch me i would pray for a male voice. made it to the top w 1h40m remaining - barely enough time for me to complete a lap if i had to. i didn't want to do it. so i played the waiting game by the timing tent and after 15min when Kate didn't come in, i figured i was safe and called it.

so, 1st 12hr solo girl, my second buckle, official time 10:53:44, new women's record (previous was 7 laps in 12:36). Kate finished 7 laps as well in 11:15. would have been a completely different race if rocky33 had made it...next year!! Peat and Dwayne took home 1st/2nd place for 12hr solo boy for a Team Noah sweep. loved sharing the trail with just about all of my favorite mtb peeps/jerks. as usual, super fun post-race. we burned things and ate other people's potatoes. and corn.

C • Congrats! 8

EZ and surprisingly "fast"

EZ into work. rainy. saw JZ's van outside The Hub so stopped in for a chat w him and Gino :)

full-body hives attack at 9pm. worried that it's from the pork i ate for dinner at around 6pm.

C • Oh, man 2

5th overall! distances mostly on, times guesses.

PROLOGUE (CP1, 1.5mi, 0800-0915)
trek up WISP mtn, WW swim relay, trek down WISP mtn
we decided our order would be Jeff (excellent at reading WW) > David (needs time to put in contacts) > me (didn't need time to change clothes after). i did the trek up already in my full-sleeve wetsuit bc it takes forever to put on and i didn't want to be rushed/sweaty legs. the trek up kinda hurt my calves but we powered thru. Jeff made up a bunch of spots on his swim leg and advised going face-first (against RD's advice) and then swim around the large eddy at end. David went and survived but did not enjoy. i went, putting in right w KP but got stuck in first eddy...stupid! went face-first and thought that was good. my strategy was to focus on breathing OUT before each drop and the breathing in would take care of itself. it did. lost my helmet in the second wave, just ripped clean off, but the WW staff let me finish, thanks!! ran down the mountain while taking wetsuit off which resulted in running like a T-rex for a few hundred meters. RAWR!! we went straight up and straight down the ski hill, prob not best route.

also i REALLY hope someone took a pic of my teammate's wetsuits bc they are amazing.

BIKE 1 (CPs 2-6, 10mi)
TAd into bike stuff and got out. spun up the KOM climb, about 90% there i hear BOOM!!! my rear tire had blown off!!! it did this the night before for the first time ever and now again. i think it has just reached the end of its useful tubeless-life. we wiped off as much orangeseal as possible, put a tube in, and carefully aired up. it held. we completed the KOM climb and got into the WISP doubletrack/trails w CP0, Odyssey, Odyssey Masters, and Rev3 Masters. we weren't especially efficient on these trails, even descending on the wrong side of a spur, but David kept making good corrections and we kept pedaling. singletrack, wheee! then we had some paved roads and on each speedy descent i was terrified that my tire would blow off again and i would die. but it held. pedaled back into the WISP TA on roads feeling good.

short run and PADDLE 1 (CP 7 and 10, 1+4.5mi)
grabbed our paddle stuff and got out. we took roads the whole way to the put-in, afterwards i keep seeing pics of a bike path shortcut, where was this?! put-in w Odyssey Masters and were slightly disheartened at the fierce wind and seeming ease at which Odyssey Masters paddled away from us. they are so strong!! we had planned to go to the trek first, and the headwind confirmed that choice. it took us about 1:15 to paddle the 4.5mi, David got soaked in front and v cold.

TREK 1 (CPs 11-15, 5mi)
went roughly CCW. David was still freezing and the most wigged out i've ever seen him. i was v concerned about the rest of the race. eventually we got up to normal speed but it was painful. took the road to CP11 and got stopped w NSPIRE by unmarked PP and an angry landowner. we chatted w him for at least 5min, trying to sooth him and get on our way. eventually he turned nice and told us about a trail back to SP land which we took. i gave him a payday bar in thanks which he seemed to appreciate. the rest of the trek went well and on the road run back we got into a big discussion about 8 and 9, the farthest out paddle CPs. Jeff and I were adamant that we go get them, especially now that the wind had died down. David was adamant that we skip. it was tense, but honest/respectful convo and eventually we all agreed to skip. as Jeff said "at the end of this race we're either going to be idiots or geniuses, but we're gonna do it as a team".

PADDLE 2 and short run (CP 16, 4.5+1mi)
we zoomed back to WISP. i was personally so angry about our decision to skip but tried really hard to put that aside and just paddle. kept reminding myself of 2013 CPT Nats when this same painful decision had a happy ending. by chance, Stephanie met us at the take-out w news that our tracker wasn't working, and Carrie on the phone. Jeff got to talk w her and i took Stephanie's timing as good cosmic sign. i was further encouraged by seeing CP0 and Odyssey back in TA, having made the same gamble.

BIKE 2 (CPs 17-27, 43mi)
it was raining. we had a longish road ride north to a cluster of 4 CPs. we were all on tow and could barely see. sucky traffic on the road but at least the shoulder was wide. we went 18-20-19-17 w CP0. CP0 snuck ahead on 17 when we picked a wrong junction, and Odyssey had an altogether different and much superior route. saw Tecnu on our way out of the trails. then another longish road ride to 22 and 21. we put lights on somewhere in here. caught CP0 in New Germany SP where we had a heck of a time figuring out the trail system for 24 and 25. not clean at all thru here but we got 'em. then 26 cleanly, then into 27/TA around 10/10:30.

TREK 2 (score-o, 10mi??)
i changed bottoms (tri shorts > 3/4 tights and rain pants) and headed out into Savage River SP. cold but warmed up quickly. first 2 CPs were delightful and i loved running that skinny ridge. then JJ "saddle" was hard, we had to attack twice, but got it. carefully descended into HH then onto DD/GG/EE/FF, not quite sure which order we took those in. my light died unexpectedly and i did about half of the trek w 35 lumens from David's back-up light. i also had a rough time w nutrition, the last third of the trek was on a sugar roller coaster w periods of high HR/dizziness and then low energy. not the best situation for team speed. jogged the road back to TA after getting CC and max points.

BIKE 3 (CPs 28-32, 25mi)
ate a whole bag of pepperoni back in TA and felt much better. added a dry LS shirt and jacket for the ride. all 3 of us had a hard time regulating temp in the early miles of this ride, as the sun rose and we climbed a large hill. on top of it the wind hit and temps dropped. brrrr! toes froze but everything else was manageable. we kept expecting top teams to pass us but they never did, victory! David allowed us to hike-a-bike a little into CP 29 which helped a ton. then 30 and 31 and back into WISP around 1000.

TREK 3 (CPs 33-36, 5mi)
back at WISP, the volunteer told us "you are currently in the lead"...ha! we knew better. went 33-35-34. i got slow and internally whiny on the way to 34, my feet hurt. thought we heard voices in the woods at 34 but never saw anyone. "ran" the road back to the finish line, i desperately wanted to cut thru golf course but Jeff thought it was PP so we went all the way around and finished at 1300 exactly.

after we finished we hung out waiting for other teams to check in. we ended up 5th after Tecnu, Bushwhacker, and Untamed cleared and DART-nuun only missed 1. overall i would sum up our race as steady. we didn't do anything hugely stupid (mistakes here and there but nothing more than 20min i think). we didn't do anything hugely amazing. but we never really locked into "race mode" where there was any maintained sense of urgency...the early skip gave us a huge cushion for the remainder of the course and we proceeded to click through the rest of the CPs at a steady but not blazing pace. being honest here - after the race i am regretting missing that sense of urgency (and i do feel responsible for a lot of it w bonk during score-o and hurty feet on last trek). even if it wouldn't have changed the results i feel like we had a better race in us. that being said, it was a much better effort than last year, AND there are a lot of teams who would kill for 5th place at nats so...trying to conjure up a sense of gratitude :)

i do want to mention something about the pre-race rankings - mayer22 said that i have made Alpine Shop a force to reckon with. while i agree that we have become more competitive in 2013 and 2014, we wouldn't be anywhere close to that without the previous 10 years of race experience that Jeff and David have with Carrie. most of our success in the last 2 years has been built on the previous 10, of which i had nothing to do with. i consistently lean on these guys' experience and we are really much better together than apart.

one more thing, HUGE shout-out to team Strong Machine, they are a wife-husband-father team from Madison, WI. we met these guys at Plot/Pedal/Paddle earlier this year and saw them again at Thunder. they are a team that "gets it" and we've chatted w them several times swapping tips and stories. they came to nats and won the Dave Boyd Spirit Award for helping another team with a bike mechanical. very proud of them!!

C • Great job! 13

C • Shorty 3

C • Castlewood? 2

Event: USARA Nationals
 

wheeeee! leaving for MD tonight!