Jason Ranoan, the race promoter, was fantastic. This was one of the most well run and fun endurance races I've ever done. About 3 weeks ago just before I registered for the race, I noticed there were a lot of singlespeed categories for both solos and teams. I asked Jason via a local forum post if he was planning on having a women's solo SS category and I got the best response ever:
I would love to support as many singlespeeders as possible. We just haven't had any women singlespeeders. If you would like to come down and compete, I will make a women's SS solo category. We have already included singlespeed categories for all others.
Ok well, talk about getting yourself into hot water. Now that I opened my big mouth, I figured I'd have to put my money where my mouth was. So, I registered. Now, it was time to get my bike ready. Thanks go out to the guys at Mike's Bikes who were able to order me a 22 tooth cog in record time. I also made some handlebar and stem adjustments that they were able to help me with.
January 20th crept up on me... where did the month go? Yikes! On race day, my stomach was a bundle of nerves. It usually is before a race. Juan kept trying to keep me calm by saying "you are just going on a really, really, really long ride". (Yeah, but I want to win). I chowed down on some food and made sure I was hydrated while Juan took one last look at my bike to make sure I was ready to ride all day. A quick rider meeting to get all the rules and then it was off to the starting line. I positioned myself in the back because I knew the parade lap was fairly flat and I did not want to get caught up in burning out my legs by spinning too much so early in the day. The key to winning (or merely surviving) an endurance race is to pace yourself.
Lap 1-ok, not so bad. The parade lap thinned out the 80 or so racers on the course and we were off on some double track. I have a habit of talking to anyone and everyone so I found I quickly made some new friends. They included Jim (his first solo), Ian (a local racer) who gave me the rundown on what the next 10.5 miles would bring... lots of climbing, and another SS solo guy on 29-inch wheels (he was running an even easier gear them me!). Around mile 2, the pain began. We went up for about 3 miles, nothing too crazy technical, but up nonetheless. "I want gears" was going through my head. Oh well, too late now for gears. It's time to stand up and climb. At the top of the climb, there was a huge fluorescent sign that said "summit-Good Job Racers". Phew! Then, came some fun, fast, flowing sections. One warning sign of impending baby heads caused somewhat of a traffic jam but, after that, more fun stuff. Then, there was some more climbing and more fun down hills. Two, ridiculous, hike-a-bike sections came between miles 8 and 9 and finally it was 1.5 miles to go before I could refuel.
Transitions-I kept most of my transitions to about 5 minutes. a PB&J sandwich and some green tea kept me going. On the course it was GU (yum-o). Laps 2, 3, and 4 were fairly uneventful. More climbing, more fun, flowing singletrack and more talking to other racers. I got lots of kudos from the other SS racers and even from the guys on geared bikes. I saw Jason on the course a few times and he kept telling me how strong I looked.
Out for lap 5- I had about 30 minutes before I needed my light so Juan put my light on for me and stuck the battery in my back pocket. Wow, more than way into the race. I was getting tired but was still coherent which is always good. Juan told me I was in first place. Yeah! Great! Ok, not so great. There weren't any other crazy women in my category so, technically, I could have done one lap and won. I figured I could be done now and sitting comfy in a chair enjoying a beer or I could go out and race and do what I came to do. "Last lap," I kept telling myself. The sun was going down so I decided to turn my light on. There was no need to miss a line and do something stupid this far into my day. I finished my fifth lap and pulled into the transition area. I was done. No, actually I wasn't. It was too early. As much as I wanted to call it a day I knew I wouldn't be happy with myself not pushing myself that much more and going out again. Juan handed me a handful of Oreo cookies and I was off. 6 laps was my goal. Ironically, my last lap was my fastest (I was worried that my light battery would die). I even entertained another until I realized I would miss the cut off time and my lap would not count.
Race results are finally posted, woo-hoo! I've been constantly checking and results are they are finally posted. It is a great feeling knowing I went out there and rode my best. Although I had the first place win in hand after 1 lap, I rode more than some other solo riders (both men AND women) on geared bikes... 6 laps, 63 miles. It was more than I have ever done on my SS. Like I stated at the beginning of this race report, it is more than just getting on the podium. It is more about pushing yourself and riding the best that you can... and especially about having fun! Next time, I'm doing no less than 7 laps!
