conyers write up - long version

the event - conyers 24 hours

competitors - 7 male solo's

weather - near perfect. rain earlier in the week kept the dust down, temps would hit high's in the 80's, low at 40.

trails - local trail builders SORBA done fantastic work on the trail. a lot of trail sections have been re-routed for the better.



start at noon on saturday. rob l (otherwise known as "vegan rob") lines up next to me - he's been riding well this year, 4th at the DSG and 2nd down at the 12 Hours of Razorback.



the start line - not many teams showed up, but those who did had a hell of a time. if you missed it, you missed a good one. stay tuned as this event is going to get a huge ramp up in promotion for 2008.



the start is always hectic and there is always a few riders who can run like hell, this was no exception. i was about 6th or 7th to the bike - and this is where my mad cyclocross skillz come in handy. cross re-mounts really help make up a lot of places -- you may be a faster runner and get to your bike first, but i can beat most to be the first one pedaling.

by the first section of single track, the field is strung out. i lead out to the first section of single track, then josh takes over. i chase, keeping him in sight.



my pit crew was flawless handling my feeds, lights, clothing and time splits. pits are critical - every second counts in a race of 24 hours.



the dreaded 2nd loop rock section - this section eats rides alive. the bumps are rough and the rock itself holds heat. it could be 85 degrees in the pits - on the rock, it feels more like 100.



2:30am - team pit crew member "cousin it" makes an appearance. i have been fighting off josh lapping me for the past 4 1/2 hours. at 8pm, he was 3 minutes behind me.

he passes me shortly after 2:30am, we go back and fourth until about 4:30am, where he passes me for good.

at this point, we now have at least 2 laps on all the male solo riders - josh and i are in the top 5 overall for the race.



after josh passes me, i go into conservation mode. i change clothes, put on some extra clothing and eat some eggs and soup.

by 9:30am, i am figuring that i'll need to do 2 more laps and i head out. half way through the lap, i meet up with my pit crew and rob's wife. i get the word that rob, josh and a few other riders are stopping - this is their last lap. nobody can make up places at this point.



two years ago, i rode the last few laps of this race with rob. this year, i got to ride with him the last mile.

in dramatic conclusion, we "sprinted" to the end.



competitors for the past 24 hours...



and a fellow rider at the end...



so how did i feel at the end of the day? i think this about sums it up.

overall, the body held up pretty good - other then general tightness and legs feeling like they had some water in them.

and - for those of you not on ergon grips - get some now. this is the first race i've done it 7 years that i could actually feel all my fingers after the end of a 24 hour race. amazing, needless to say.

thanks go out to all my pit crew members and for those who cheered me on during the event. see you again next year...


and the next picture, i just couldn't pass up not posting.

taken by my dad, i would like to entitle this one:

STILL LIFE WITH SOAP:



rock on conyers, SORBA and sologoat fans.

sologoat out