Sandwich 50 recap

This past weekend i drove out to Rochester for a few days of racing riding and getting dirty. i stayed and raced with drew wilson. I got to Rochester late saturday night. i had hopes of being able to ride the course on Saturday, so i could learn the course and select a proper gear ratio for my single speed. However i could not get work off, so after a long day of work, i headed to Rochester. Saturday night we hung out in the garage and got our bikes and nutrition prepped for Sunday. Sunday morning we made a quick trip over to Perkins for some potato pancakes then headed over to Eastwood. The race enviroment was very relaxed when we showed up. Racers where hanging out and joking with each other. I knew it was going to be a good day.

Shortly after we arrived the race kicked off with a Le-mans Start to the Bicycles, then it was a quick prolog before heading into the single track. I had a very good first lap, the course was quite wet, however i was having no issues getting traction, and my 32x18 gear selection turned out to be perfect for the trail. racers settled into pace quite quickly, and i found my self riding at a very managable pace. i turned out a 44 min first lap. It was about a mile into my second lap that things went down hill for me, as i was just riding along, my front brake pads fell out of my caliper. i did a second 44 min lap with just a rear brake. the going was tough, and down hills were slow and frustrating. but i was able to complete the lap in good time. i got back to the base area and asked if anyone had any pads. no one did. turns out drew had some in his truck but i didnt find out till after the fact. i proceded to move my rear caliper to the front of my bike and rode another 4 laps with just my front brake.

The going was tough but it was managable with just a front brake, however i quickly became fatigued as i lost almost all of my hand strength in my left hand. managing just a front brake for 36 miles wears you out quickly. Thankfully Ron was camped out half way and kept me going with positive encouragement, bacon, and Hams Special Premium beer. i truly could not have done it with our rons kind words and positive attitude. he really kept me going. the beginning of my 6th lap i got my second wind after bonking hard during laps 4 and 5. i picked up the pace and didnt even stop for beer or bacon as i was feeling great. with about a half lap to go, i snapped my chain powering up a climb. i felt completely broken at this point. i was ready to give up. i walked back to camp and was told that if i fixed it i could go back to the point of the mechanical and resume my lap. it was at this point that some other racer kindly offered my his jamis full suspension to complete the race on. i finished almost dead last. But i felt awesome. i had never ridden a length like this before. 50 miles in 6hrs and 15 min. not too shabby for my first race of the season. i was awarded a wonderful prize of the Soppranos Box Set on VHS, sadly i left it in rochester with drew.

after a few hours of rest Drew and i rode down town for a few beers. we ended up logging a 60 mile day. on Monday Luke Boenish came over from mankato and we rode Stagecoach, Luke killed the downhill on his Kona, and i had the worst ride of my life. physically i felt great, but i had no strenght or energy, simple tasks like poping up and over downed logs were killilng me. i quickly became frustrated and fatigued. i crashed harder and more often in the recovery ride than i did during the race.i got to the point were i gave up on biking, i couldnt do it anymore. In all it was about a 70 mile weekend for me. by far the most i have every ridden off road in such a short time period. after a few days of recovery my body is still on the fritz, im still not as stong as i was. but i know now what i need to do to complete a race of that lenght. Im really looking forward to the Minnesota mountain bike series this summer. after this weekend i know that the Minnesota races will be a breeze both physically and mentally for me.