Flagstaff Barn Burner and Cross the Ranch - Cycle

This was a 4 loop course at high altitude just West of Flagstaff ranging from 7300 feet to around 8000 feet.

The first loop started out and because it had been raining there was mud flying everywhere. My bike was covered in mud really quickly and I had quite a bit on myself as well. I rode along well. It was pretty crazy at first. As we went along the roads gradually were dried out and the me lee continued. I gradually moved up through the field for a little bit and then we started descending some to the first long climb. The climb was greuling and lasted for a couple of miles. Then you start descending at a descent speed to some caution signs. As I turned down a sharp left turn it became a very rocky descent. My hands started to burn with pain right away and my biceps felt like they were going to pop out of my skin. When I got to the bottom, a rider by me says "I can't feel my hands." I exclaimed back "I sure can feel mine... like they are on fire!"

The course then went along some easier roads and then turned up the steepest section of the course. My front dérailleur was jammed from all of the mud keeping me from getting into the small ring. The hill was steep and then a short descent followed by some more climbing into a section with some Aspen trees followed by a fast descent with a few rocky spots.

As I neared the barn and the end of the first lap, Tribe Racing 4 man team rider Jake went by and we laid out a nice high five.

The second lap was a lot more settled down as the riders were spread out a little more and there wasn't a me lee feeling any more. I settled in to a nice pace. About 1/2 way through the first long climb section, I felt like I might get a slight cramp so I eased off and span in a higher gear. This helped out a lot. (oh... I got my dérailleur fixed at the barn so I had the small ring now)

I slowed some on the second lap but not too much. First lap was 2:21 and the second would be 2:34 but that also included the stop to get my dérailleur fixed and I grabbed a bottle of Heed/calorie mix while the Landis people fixed it.

On the third lap, I slowed some more... I think it was 2:51... I walked a couple of spots to keep the cramps from coming on and also stopped at the do it yourself aid station. I did feel better at the start of the 3rd loop than I did the 2nd loop. I rode with another rider for a good amount of this lap. We both stated that it was the get to feeling good for the final lap lap. I also got a little ballsier on the descents.

Then rolled around the 4th and final lap. I would go a little faster than the 3rd lap (2:43) and also felt pretty good when I left the barn area. I road for a little bit with 3 guys from Team Vitesse (pretty much teammates with we Tribe racing folk). They were moving a little faster than I felt good at and had started late... waiting out the rain. They were riding with some real good teamwork.

So the course wound on... I eased up a few times to keep the cramps away again on this lap. I was around the one guy I had ridden on and off with since the 2nd loop and another guy who I kept doing a yo-yo back and forth with... I would pass him on the climbs and he would pass me on the descents. Then after the rocky descent section, they both had gotten a little bit in front of me but I cruised on up and road along with the one guy again and we caught up to the yo-yo guy. I was feeling pretty good then and could start to feel the finish as there was about 5 miles left. I started spinning at a high rate in a slightly higher gear and put a little distance on those guys. As I made the left turn to the woods I think they could still see me but I attacked that last steep hilly section of the course. Grinding my way up it, I checked behind me and there was no one in sight. I then did the short descent and began the grind up to the aspens. Near the last part of the final climb, I saw another rider ahead and began spinning faster and passed him what seemed like a few pedal strokes before the descent. I was determined not to be caught in this descent after being passed by people all day in descents. I let any cautiousness go and flew down the more technical part and then pedaled as hard as I could and caught another guy I hadn't seen since the second loop about 1 mile before the finish. I said "hey man" as I went by and he jokingly said "you can't pass me now!" but I kept powering as hard as I could with everything I had left and finished the race with a big smile and a fist pump!

More drinking and eating earlier in the race. I sometimes find myself playing catch up and even though I have gotten a little better at it, so the catch up is not as much, I do slow some because of it.

There was also a lot of wind throughout the day but there weren't too many opportunities to sit on wheels because most of the time I wanted to see what was coming at me. I could have probably done a lot more drafting in some of the sections.

They handed me a PBR in the barn as I crossed the finish. My friend Jake took my bike and we went and chilled at the Tribe camp.


Lack of mountain biking skills. If I could get a bit better at descents and handling the terrain, I think I can get a good bit faster off road.


Redrock really put on a great race/festival. The camaraderie was great too with all of the Tribe Racing peeps that I camped and hung out with. There were some nice riders out on the course too. The course had its challenges and was a little more difficult than described but was a blast.

I am already looking forward to doing this again next year!