hey all - just got back from iowa.
check out the site: JEFF KERKOVE BLOG
or: TRANSIOWA BLOG
well, i didn't finish. neither did the race organizer jeff kerkove and neither did hailed moots man curiac.
wind was the culprit of our demise - it was blowing straight north to south with a sustained 22mph crosswind, gusting up to 35mph.
friday i went out for a one hour ride. huge storms were blowing out of the state bringing in a cold front with cold temps and sustained winds at 15mph, gusting to 38mph. i rode some of the roads that we were going to race on just to make sure i had made the right tire selection. the kenda mutano raptors in the 35 version were a good selection, but the winds were horrific. blowing straight north to south.
so i went back after an hour of riding and checked out the weather, wishing for the winds to die down and blow in a more west to east direction.
well, saturday came and i only got one of my wishes - the winds died down to gusts of 35mph. woopie.
raced started fast as some cyclocrosser's set the pace with their skinny tires. this pace soon had the group of 51 splintered. the first group had 4 guys on cross bikes, the next group (which i was in) had about 8 of us.
cross winds caused splits in our group. the road was so gravel covered that there was only about a 2-3 foot section of road you could really ride on so there was no hiding from the wind. sometimes, when i was actually seated on the bike, the wind would blow so hard that it would literally push me across the road 3-4 inches.
so, our group splintered, regrouped, splintered. this must of happened at least a dozen times. then at about 70 or so miles, i found myself alone on the road in iowa. for the next 55 miles, i rode and fought the wind. legs were feeling good, but i was getting demoralized with the constant unrelenting wind.
the first and only check point was at 128 miles. the next "unofficial" check point was a park 50 miles away (at the 180 mile mark) which you had to get to by 10pm because it was at a state park and they would not open the gate to let you in as it closes at that point.
curiac and the only other ohio'ian in the race caught me about 120 miles. i road with them for about 5 miles, and right before the check point they dropped me. they probably came in about 3-5 minutes ahead of me.
the check point was 128 miles. i came in at 11.25 hours. hmmmm.... let's do the math:
128miles/11.25hours = 11.377777777777777 miles per hour
11.377777777777777 miles per hour = slow as molasses
i was honestly expecting to be at this check point in 8.5 hours, roughly. with slight tail winds, a 15mph average would be very realistic. i was expecting curiac, kerkove and myself to be running a very tight race.
that was not to be - i decided to bag it. with my average speed at under 12mph, the constant wind and the fact that i have some races coming up next month, i packed it in. i am pretty upset, but am hoping that this decision will help me in the upcoming month.
good news is that my hands are in great shape (first race i did with disc brakes!) and my legs are feeling pretty good despite a hard 11 hours in them.
next week - 1 road race on sunday and two criteriums on saturday. a few more crit's, and then 3 solo events in may.
humbled by the wind, weary from my travels, but now more determined then ever...
sologoat out.
5 comments:
Dude! What a race. I didn't plan on it being that hard. Myself, Curiak, Fassbinder, and the winner Ira Ryan chatted after the event and they all said that this was was one of the hardest events they have ever done! That coming from guys that have done Great Divide and Iditabike means a lot. Had a ton of great feedback. There should be a version II. Thanks for coming out and see you at the races this year.
How many times did you actually use those disc brakes?
Humbled by the wind? What about the nine men who made it?
disk brakes comment -
the disk brakes on the bike were on it for quite some time as it was the shop owners bike for quite some time, then some of the mechanics road it for awhile too. what i meant to say was that it was my first time racing with disk brakes. they were mechancial avids.
reply on the "humbled" comment-
if you would of read jeff's page, the nine finishers looked like death's hangover. i decided not to take it that far.
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