Very good ride. The hills were tough but I was cruising along nicely. About 10mi in I started having some minor shifting problems, but didn't think too much of it (I have had this issue before and recently bought a new front derailleur but haven't put it on yet). So around mi 10 I get to a really big hill (and I am in top gear after just going downhill), and my bike refuses to down shift. So I am stuck in my highest gear trying to get up this huge hill. Couldn't do it. Ended up hopping off and having to spend a few minutes checking my bike and getting the chain in the low gear. I wish I had checked things a little better.

My goal was to do 25mi, take a rest break then finish the last 25. I got to the 25mi rest stop in good condition. Spent about 5min eating and drinking then got back on the road again. I am starting to have more and more difficulty changing gears as the ride went on. About 2mi after the pit stop, I hear a loud clanking noise coming from my front gears and my chain came off. I couldn't fix it while riding, so I hopped off to take a look. It is then that I notice that I am MISSING 3 (out of 5 total) screws/bolts that hold my two front chain rings together and where my pedals attach to those chain rings. And the two that are left are loose. I could not continue to ride. I just had my bike tuned up last week and the mechanic must not have checked/tightened them properly. I won't be going back to him anymore

Anyway, had to sit on the side of the road for about 5-10min before a SAG wagon came by and picked me up. Luckily they had a mechanic at the next rest stop about 8mi away. Got to the mechanic and he happened to have some of those bolts and got me squared away. By that time I had gotten about a 20min break so I really pushed hard the last 10mi. There was one huge hill with about 9mi left...I would say about 80% of the people I saw had to get off and walk it. I was proud that I was able to make it up.

I am happy with my overall time considering all the hills and really had a good time despite the mechanical issues.

Check and double check all the bolts on my bike.

Some light stretching and rehydrating.

Ended up seeing several friends during and after the race so did some chit-chatting, ate some really good BBQ, and just hung out after the race. Race was sponsored by a local brewery so lots of free beer after, but i did not partake. I just can't seem to drink after a really hard workout. Oh well, used my ticket to get my friends more free beer! :)


The bike! :)


Great race overall...my only nitpick is that the race started and ended in this small town. That is not the issue, but for some reason the organizers decided not to have any police or anyone else watching this one major intersection. They had them everywhere else on the course. Not sure why they choose not to have someone there. Seemed dangerous.