good morning APC riders!
This weekend was the Antelope Peak Challenge, a free race put on by Chad and myself for the last few years.
neutral roll on Willow Springs Road
We had a good crew of at least 20 start the 65 mile, and 4 that went for the big’un, at 115 miles and 3am start. The 65 mile start was a little late and strung out, but we rode as a group to Oracle, so even one guy that was a half hour late caught back on by the end.
Once we hit the AZT, it’s go time. I hit the singletrack first and proceeded to rail it like I was at Fantasy Island. Only problem is that I wasn’t at Fantasy Island. The AZT out here is a different beast altogether, and I was riding too fast and trying to keep momentum where I shouldn’t have.
I scooted off the side of the trail and clipped something — a hedgehog cactus, a yucca? I am not sure. But my tire started spitting Stans fluid, and would seal only if I stopped and jiggled it. Once I started rolling again, it would leak, every time.
I totally deserved it for riding so haphazardly. I started readying myself for eating my own words. Here is the warning I wrote for the web site:
Route caution: There is a high probability that you will get more than 1 flat during the ride. If you are running tubeless or tubes, make sure to plan accordingly with 2-3 spare slime tubes. Sealant is highly recommended in all tubes.
I didn’t have 2-3 spare slime tubes. Didn’t have any actually, just a regular tube, which at this early stage of the catcus littered trail, would be near worthless. I needed to stay tubeless or I was in big trouble.
Thank goodness for tire plugs! I stabbed my tire with the plug, pulled it out and pumped it up to the pressure that held for the rest of the race. Oh yeah!
Jeff Handy, among others, rolled on by as I fiddled with my tire. Jeff gets a gold star for riding from his house, starting at 3:30 am and adding some 40 miles of “warm up.” Way to set an awesome example, Jeff.
Andy Stevenson, crossing yet another deep wash.
Jon Shouse, Jeff Ziemski and Leif Abrell make their way up the next set of narrow switchbacks.
It took a while to catch Chris Grove, and I watched him nail a couple of tricky switchbacks, which is impressive given that it’s his first time out here. This section of the AZT is rarely ridden, and the race is admittedly part ride and part trail work (25 people going through makes a big difference, believe it or not), so a lot of the turns are awkward, filled with rocks that are in just the wrong spot.
People keep asking me what I am training for. It’s often in a derisive tone, as “training” is a dirty word to many mountain bikers. Or, even people who accept training as an acceptable use of time want to know what my target race is, or my goals in general.
“What are you training for?”
My answer: “Life…”
When your life pretty much revolves around mountain biking, I think that’s a fair answer. I don’t have a goal race, and wrote previously that my training plan is so secret that even I don’t know what it is.
But I am training for days like today, when I find myself alone on the AZT, riding a remote and beautiful segment of the trail that feels like visiting an old friend. I find myself with heart and power that I have never experienced before with this old friend. I find myself making the many gasline hills disappear like they aren’t even there. I find myself churning sand and holding my line in big ring, despite Bloodsucker’s many attempts to suck me in.
When is the suffering going to kick in? When am I going to start bonking? (Not any time soon, thanks to a hydration pack full of Carbo Rocket). My tire slips on the crux gasline hill, and my heart skips a beat. 15 minute time bonus is hanging by a thread, and my heart is already pounding from the effort. You can’t recreate or fake this kind of focus and determination to clean a climb, not without the ‘race’ and the ‘bonus’. Love it.
I round the peak and know I am moving faster than any previous APC, and suffering less. GPX tells me I had a half hour less moving time than my previous best, from Tiger Mine to the Peak. Training pays off even more on the graded Freeman and Willow Springs roads. I kick back into “base pace” and watch the miles disappear, where previous years I’ve fallen apart.
I could see Chris Campen’s tracks on Willow Springs (he started the 65 mile at 3am!), hoping I’d have a track to follow on Painter Boy. But there was no sign of a bike tire on the connection over to Painter Boy — no one had been through for a long time. I threw up some flagging, scratched marks in the sand and skidded my tire in a few places. Even with the GPS, and having been through here before, I made a lot of off route excursions, some of which undoubtedly messed up people behind me too. It’s a vague connection, to be sure, but once you hit Painter Boy proper, then later the high point descent on the 24 hour course, you know it was all worth it. I was a little incredulous that I was finishing before 2pm, but so it was.
So yeah, despite not ‘focusing’ on this race, all the road miles and training discipline were already well worth it.
Jeff Z. was next in, but he did not climb the peak, so Nancy came in an hour later, but they ended up with the same time after bonuses.
Wait, that guy’s got a headlamp, and that’s not an OP headlamp. Woah, that’s Kurt, wrapping up the 115 mile, in 12.5 hours. That’s over 3 hours faster than what it took Chad and I do to it last year (we finished after dark!).
A shelled Kurt. He maintains his AZT dominance. Amazing ride, Kurt.
Chad gets his gold star for noticing people going the wrong way from his vantage on Antelope Peak, then going off route himself to retrieve them. First class, personalized service at these AES races!
Dave Benjes got some bonus miles and was pulled back on route by Chad. Krista is in the background, heading out for a couple OP laps.
She also brought APC riders 4 special delivery pizzas, though no one could get her to eat any of it! Thanks Krista.
Jonathan rolled in late, broken spoke clanking and spirits broken. Watch out for this guy in the future, he knows how to dream big.
Jim Helms finished it up before dark and was all smiles. Nice work Jim.
There are so many stories to tell from the day, from Kurt crushing the 115 mile, to Jonesy sticking it out to finish after nearly 20 hours on the bike, to Jeff Handy riding from Tucson to the start and nearly freezing waiting for the race to start, to people accidentally doing loops around Antelope Peak, getting lost and losing blood on Painter Boy and on and on. Stuff like this is what mountain biking is all about! It makes putting on this event really rewarding to see people come back with so much to tell. Thanks for coming out, everyone.
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