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Battle the Bear - CycleMountain Biking


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Lakewood, Colorado
United States
Rocky Mtn Endurance Series
50F / 10C
Overcast
Total Time = 2h 26m 21s
Overall Rank = /
Age Group = 30-39
Age Group Rank = 37/41
Pre-race routine:

Picked up my number, got my stuff together and rode around a little bit
Event warmup:

Not much, just some easy back and forth riding on the road.
Bike
  • 2h 26m 21s
  • 30.16 miles
  • 12.36 mile/hr
Comments:

Fun course and race. Originally I was going to to this more as a training-type ride so I kept the pace pretty easy. we had a big wave, I've never had so many other riders around me to start which was a little intimidating but I seeded myself toward the back & just let everyone go. It meant I was dead last in my wave when we got to the single track about 1/4 mile in, but I just chugged along at my own pace& hoped I might be able to catch some people later on. Pushed a little harder than I should've at some places on the first lap, especially when later waves caught me. It was easy for people to get around me though so not too stressful. Eventually I started catching a handful of people but non of them were in my wave which was a little frustrating since my only real goal was not to DFL. I was starting to get tired starting the 3rd lap but I got a boost when I saw a group of guys just ahead as I passed the start/finish and I knew that I wasn't totally by myself behind everyone after the XC'ers finished, and it looked like a few of them were actually struggling a bit. Finally got by a couple of people from my wave and set my sights on a guy in a Green Mtn Cycles jersey ahead who I could tell was hurting on the hills. He managed to stay 50-100 ft ahead though and I had trouble closing the gap. Got stuck behind a kind of timid descender going down the dam, but got around him and caught up to a good size group and managed to get myself on the Green Mtn guys wheel going up Mt Carbon. The group splintered a bit on the descent and I got held up behind someone just for a bit which allowed the Green Mtn guy to get back to 100 ft ahead or so. There wasn't much climbing left so I tried to push the effort a bit to get to him, but I couldn't close the gap on the flats and he ended up getting me by about 30".
What would you do differently?:

If I was going to race I should've done that from the beginning instead of taking it out at an easy pace and letting everyone get away. I was tired but climbing ok at the end so I might've been able to do better if I hadn't dug myself a hole before I decided to trade some distance for intensity (training wise it should've been a longer ride). That said, I've found mtn bikers tend to be more on the badass side of things and I just don't have the fitness currently to keep up with a lot of those guys. For example, I didn't beat a single guy in the 50-59 age group! I should've been better about nutrition and treated it more like a race than a training ride (for example, no camelback) if I wanted a better placing. In the end though, I just need to ride more.
Post race
Warm down:

Got some food and beer. I was chilly though so I didn't hang out long.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Don't have the fitness at this point.

Event comments:

Kind if expensive, but lots of racers and fun.




Last updated: 2013-05-06 12:00 AM
Biking
02:26:21 | 30.16 miles | 12.36 mile/hr
Age Group: 37/41
Overall: 41/
Performance: Average
1st lap: 46:53 2nd lap: 49ish 3rd lap: 50:30ish
Wind: Little
Course: Loop around BCSP. 4 climbs per lap - mostly in the 1st 2/3: 1st - short but steep, 2nd med/short, steady, 3rd - shortish, medium, 4th - longer, medium. Overall fast and non-technical, lots of places to pass (or in my case, be passed).
Road:   Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Average Hills: Below average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Not enough
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
Good race? Ok
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 3

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2013-05-06 9:22 AM

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