tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7898413039289627912024-03-21T19:09:37.744-07:00Kelly KlettKelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.comBlogger54125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-6976820978655883402014-06-23T05:27:00.000-07:002014-06-23T05:27:12.345-07:00Hilly Billy RoubaixWhat could be better than spending countless hours exploring, training and racing on two wheels? The obvious answer is.. spending countless hours exploring, training and racing on two Industry Nine Ultralite Carbon wheels which are attached to a beautiful <a href="http://www.kishbike.com/" target="_blank">Kish Fabrication</a> titanium frame hand-crafted for you and only you.<br />
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This past Monday I became the proud owner of such a frame. With the realization that racing singletrack is nowhere in my immediate future, I decided to have Jim build me a frame which would eat, sleep and dream gravel. By combining my gravel racing experience with Jim's extensive frame building knowledge, a one of a kind gravel racing frame was born.<br />
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As it turns out, there would be no learning curve for this new bike. A few days after completing the build I found myself atop the Ti steed ready to tackle one of the toughest gravel courses I have encountered on what would turn out to be a very wet day. The Hilly Billy is a 72 mile race which highlights some of the nastiest mud, gravel, and potholes that the Morgantown, WV countryside has to offer. With rain showers the week of, the night before and the morning of the race, the course would be about as ripe as it gets.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Mike Briggs<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Mike Briggs<br />
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As always, the race start was fast but felt very reasonable. As soon as the first few climbs were encountered, a group of maybe ten or so formed and pulled away from the rest of the field. The group was split once again as we navigated a road, path, trail, river that resembled a bog or a swamp or something of that nature. The mud holes were relentless and quite tricky to navigate due to the unknown depth of the holes and the slickness of the mud. I witnessed much carnage during this section as it seemed the mud holes where trying to devour anything that passed by. With my focus on staying upright, I lost contact with the lead group but once open road was found and with the help of Garth Prosser we were able to bridge back up to everyone but the lead two.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Mike Briggs<br />
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Photo Cred: Mike Briggs </td></tr>
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It was about 50 minutes into the race when I started feeling the discomfort in my lower back. It was an hour and 10 minutes in where it became bad enough where my race turned into a ride. Being that I was laid up completely two weeks ago, along with the demands of this particular course, I knew that there was a strong possibility I would encounter some problems. I also knew that this would lead to me thoughts of a DNF and general negativity. I had put a lot of thought into this scenario prior to the race so I was mentally prepared. Prior to making the trip to WV I had decided that I would race as hard as I could until my body told me otherwise. Then my focus would turn from racing to having fun while riding with friends.<br />
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It's difficult to flip the switch from being competitive to just riding along. Dealing with the mental aspect of making that decision coupled with the negetivity which accompanies the pain has been the most demanding part of racing for me. This time I was fortunate enough to fall into the company of a group of three including Dan Rapp, Crystal Anthony and Geffrey Moy. The four of us stuck together for the next three hours more or less spending a large chunk of that time riding at a pace resembling a casual group ride rather than a race. It felt strange to be off the throttle and just cruising but it was all I could do and all I wanted to do. Much to my amazement, we were never caught and ended up catching a handful of riders as we neared the end.<br />
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With a few miles to go, I was with Geffrey and one of the riders we caught when the attacks started. I tried to play along for a bit but just couldn't overcome the pain long enough to hang in there. I watched as the two rode off to battle it out on their own and once again found that "just have fun" pace to finish it up. All in all, 7th in the open and 11th in the overall is not too bad. It never gets any easier when time and time again I have the fitness to be challenging for the top step but pain holding me back which I can't overcome. This often leads me to question why I continue to train and race when its a crap shoot whether or not I'll be able to perform to my ability. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Mike Briggs</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Mike Briggs<br />
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I guess the short answer is.. it makes me happy. I love the training process and I enjoy getting to push my limits and more so my competitors limits while racing. For now I am trying to accept that I may not finish as well as I'd like or where I know I can each and every race and I may even DNF here and there which is ok. I'll continue to train and I'll continue to race. Some days I'll be in the front of the pack and others I'll be a little further back hopefully with a group of friends just enjoying the ride. After all, what could be better than spending countless hours exploring, training and racing on two wheels?<br />
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If you're wondering how the Kish rode, I'm having trouble coming up with words. The only word that comes to mind right now is perfect. Thank you Jim for putting me on such a phenomenal bike! I am looking forward to spending countless hours on this bike and am proud to represent Kish Fabrications.<br />
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Thanks once again goes to JR, all of the volunteers and everyone else involved in making the Hilly Billy what it is.<br />
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Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-18136995522064819512014-05-19T15:44:00.004-07:002014-05-20T05:09:09.346-07:00Mountain State Dirty Double RoubaixThis past weekend I traveled up to Rowlesburg, WV for the first running of the Mountain State Dirty Double Roubaix. The event consisted of two stages, each around 36 miles with the second stage containing about 1500 more feet of climbing than the first. The race began and ended both days in the town park which nestled up to the Cheat River. The town park is also where we were camped for the weekend.<br />
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The night prior to stage one, was cold. Being that my buddy Jeremy and I were not quite prepared to be sitting around in the cool weather, we decided to poach a fire seen blazing in the distance. While sitting around the fire discussing how cold the night was, we were each handed a shot of strawberry moonshine to help us warm up. Anyone who knows me, knows that I don't drink... anything. Being in this awkward situation and not wanting to be rude, down the hatch it went and was instantly reminded of why I don't drink.<br />
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After warming up a bit, it was time to tuck in for the night. I did so with a burning in my stomach that I hoped would go away by the morning. I had a great night sleep but woke up with an uneasy stomach. Much to my displeasure, my stomach would continue to be unsettled for much of the day. Lucky for me, this did not cause any "issues" while racing other than some discomfort.<br />
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As we rolled out of town heading out for stage 1, I led the group into the first 6 mile climb. As I was riding a conservative pace wondering if anyone was going to throw out a challenge, Ron Glowczynski came flying by like I was at a standstill. Game on! As I gave chase, Michael Mihalik decided he wanted to play as well. The rest of the field quickly fell back while Mike and I rode side by side with neither of us giving an inch to the other. As we topped out on the climb, a glance rearward confirmed what we already knew. It would be just the two of us from here on out.<br />
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Not knowing anything about Mike, I tried to get a feel of what kind of rider he was. I took notice of his labored breathing on the first climb and also noticed he was on canti-brakes. I quickly came up with a game plan of testing his handling skills on the first rough downhill and following that up with an attack on the next substantial climb. I pushed the pace in the rough stuff around mile 12 and as I came around a sweeping corner, I was inundated with a section of large chunky gravel. My speed was too high and tire pressure too low. Thud... pssst...spray...shit! As I stopped to assess the flat, I could only watch as Mike disappeared in the distance. With the amount of sealant that came spraying out, I decided to not take any chances and proceeded to install a tube and pump it up rock hard. As I was tending to my flat, Ron came by followed shortly thereafter by Gunnar. After a stopped time of 4.5 minutes, I began my chase.<br />
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I had hopes of catching Gunnar, then working together to chase down the leader. After 15 minutes of chasing I finally caught Gunnar only to find out he was on a singlespeed.. damn. I continued chasing with Gunnar in tow and that is how we remained as we crossed the line. I was impressed to find out that Mike had finished five minutes ahead of me meaning that I had not cut into his time at all. Ron finished a few minutes ahead of me but was racing in the 40+ category. Fine riding by all.<br />
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Day 1 was in the books and it was time to figure out how I was going to make up the five minute deficit in stage 2.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnzmGjDlHroguc0feg2wUEy5EiZ8O92eogu-OJtLpV0v3hrcQQVtWENIcBaKHMRPsmF6XovfJ2-ZbThdcfSeVtc7EdYzPnB1B5IpvSTgrPhLAKtrgkQ9ym3SGihhfHpttJolCleL3K-1g/s1600/CCBC4EC9-44DA-4CA8-A34E-D6A09C79CEEE-7887-0000132B4E5EAAFB_zpse5bb12e6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnzmGjDlHroguc0feg2wUEy5EiZ8O92eogu-OJtLpV0v3hrcQQVtWENIcBaKHMRPsmF6XovfJ2-ZbThdcfSeVtc7EdYzPnB1B5IpvSTgrPhLAKtrgkQ9ym3SGihhfHpttJolCleL3K-1g/s1600/CCBC4EC9-44DA-4CA8-A34E-D6A09C79CEEE-7887-0000132B4E5EAAFB_zpse5bb12e6.jpg" height="306" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stage 1 Podium</td></tr>
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Stage 2 started much like stage 1 as Ron shot off the front with a huge grin on his face. Again Mike and I were in pursuit and this time we were joined by John Cotter who was only racing the second day. Ron and John opened up a gap on the initial climb leaving Gunnar, Mike and I to fend for ourselves. A quiet duel (minus the gasping for air) was unfolding between Mike and I and I felt like I was on the losing end. I found myself falling off Mike's wheel and then surging back, over and over. I wanted to back off but knew it was not an option. After the initial climb, I was able to recover and the three of us closed the gap on the lead two. We were a group of five for only a minute when John jumped off the front. We were all <span style="background-color: white;">fine </span>with letting him go as it was likely we would reel him in later.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgev2OgLU_kwu02VQVuTEpUK0vOHh0A41fFsKqgiSG-kA-bPHyWNzp_IofID4-AqJPmKK3dZcDtl68Ew8abNj7qme7OzKmI9JA1ZmRzltZ3ydsZz2Hs9dTfFs8bHE2TxMcIOxOU-jR-aM0/s1600/1BA3CD9C-A0FD-44C0-BB0A-BD9D9371D83F-7909-0000132D41FF1926_zps767c4763.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgev2OgLU_kwu02VQVuTEpUK0vOHh0A41fFsKqgiSG-kA-bPHyWNzp_IofID4-AqJPmKK3dZcDtl68Ew8abNj7qme7OzKmI9JA1ZmRzltZ3ydsZz2Hs9dTfFs8bHE2TxMcIOxOU-jR-aM0/s1600/1BA3CD9C-A0FD-44C0-BB0A-BD9D9371D83F-7909-0000132D41FF1926_zps767c4763.jpg" height="255" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Ron G. (Yes he was snapping pics while racing)</td></tr>
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As the terrain became loose and steep, Mike and I were able to put a gap on Gunnar and Ron. It didn't take long to catch up with John on the next climb. As the three of us descended the following gravel road, I heard someone behind me fussing and the familiar sound of a rim on gravel. Was this my opening to put time on Mike? Nope. John was the one with the flat. Mike and I continued side by side. Matching each other on whatever obstacles we encountered. It was very apparent that we were evenly matched and neither of us were going to break. With around ten miles to go, Mike came up with an interesting proposal. He mentioned that I was riding well and deserved the stage win. He said that he was not going to attack.<br />
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Rolling on borrowed tires, tubed, with very high pressure, it was unlikely that I could push the pace enough on the remaining descents to cause Mike to flat. On top of that, I would rather not win a race in the final few miles due to my competition suffering a mechanical. I agreed that Mike's plan was a good one as we rolled on at a comfortable pace just fast enough to not get caught. It was a different way to end a race but it was welcomed and enjoyable.<br />
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Of course, no podium in WV (at least where Gunnar is present) would be complete without a sip of whiskey. Thanks for putting me on the spot Gunnar... my drinking days are over!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4RsyFGb11laJDPUJIakyq9tEv9Lx2Q4I8ccR7LEb5u-85FGeDhyphenhyphenoIUJrHerS4eAtfyUsY7rh2ttVT1RnvuTKToR6xKIgGBEanUTD-yCjWrjWMeRFjbS-qpG3ARY7Sg9Fc2nmxQvFJots/s1600/A5DB3A4C-0096-406E-BD2A-094B4DC28D75-7887-0000132B587FD59F_zps1dfb4dd5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4RsyFGb11laJDPUJIakyq9tEv9Lx2Q4I8ccR7LEb5u-85FGeDhyphenhyphenoIUJrHerS4eAtfyUsY7rh2ttVT1RnvuTKToR6xKIgGBEanUTD-yCjWrjWMeRFjbS-qpG3ARY7Sg9Fc2nmxQvFJots/s1600/A5DB3A4C-0096-406E-BD2A-094B4DC28D75-7887-0000132B587FD59F_zps1dfb4dd5.jpg" height="265" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stage 2 Podium</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEmqRMe2Njf98Uw7E9GXrX0mw0DEQMUsd8m7p2x4tbUrfzwxvIY3P1QAdlC1tioVre1Foqovm5_GUqnEASnkVHprZo1e0JQIekF-jg6QtR3GD9TMNDxS4g9tsIMjd1Fv9MGf2MpG8s43o/s1600/CCBC4EC9-44DA-4CA8-A34E-D6A09C79CEEE-7887-0000132B4E5EAAFB_zpse5bb12e6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEmqRMe2Njf98Uw7E9GXrX0mw0DEQMUsd8m7p2x4tbUrfzwxvIY3P1QAdlC1tioVre1Foqovm5_GUqnEASnkVHprZo1e0JQIekF-jg6QtR3GD9TMNDxS4g9tsIMjd1Fv9MGf2MpG8s43o/s1600/CCBC4EC9-44DA-4CA8-A34E-D6A09C79CEEE-7887-0000132B4E5EAAFB_zpse5bb12e6.jpg" height="306" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Overall GC Podium</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIg3pwmmJZyur_xo4-bU1FlREedfKJhdsNRgURVkm1c_mkNkRmwOTQw0y2KqQ7XO71rBp8eJlrS06NukaHAIsundZnPWq6riGbDVS68N9fgVsolHmcB46diAtRmVPDcrjEiHXOqo1s7E0/s1600/710F75EF-0AB8-4C02-B640-82206B6F0E4B-7909-0000132D4F722092_zpscbf1436e.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIg3pwmmJZyur_xo4-bU1FlREedfKJhdsNRgURVkm1c_mkNkRmwOTQw0y2KqQ7XO71rBp8eJlrS06NukaHAIsundZnPWq6riGbDVS68N9fgVsolHmcB46diAtRmVPDcrjEiHXOqo1s7E0/s1600/710F75EF-0AB8-4C02-B640-82206B6F0E4B-7909-0000132D4F722092_zpscbf1436e.jpg" height="320" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Had a great time hanging out with Mike L. and Lexi</td></tr>
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JR Petsko and all of the volunteers did an incredible job putting on this race. Everything went smoothly from check-in to the final podium. The course was marked flawlessly and there were marshals at just about every intersection keeping us safe while passing along encouraging words. I hope to return to this event next year and hope that many others will put it at the top of their list.Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-72293269695730248262014-03-24T07:47:00.002-07:002014-03-24T07:47:30.269-07:00Love Valley Roubaix<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
This past weekend, I opted to pass on the Barry Roubaix for something a little closer to home. Being that the Love Valley Roubaix is promoted by <a href="http://www.bluemountainrevival.com/" target="_blank">Blue Mountain Revival Productions</a>, I knew that it would be an event that should not be missed.</div>
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The LVR begins and ends in a tiny town near Statesville, NC that goes by the name of Love Valley. The town is unique in that it looks like it is straight out of the old West. A narrow dirt road takes you back in time with a board walk/porches standing under buildings that are straight out of an old western movie. A walk down the dusty, horse travel only road leads to the Silver Spur Saloon AKA registration.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-rnmIxnBOR61PbPDsZCDvxEKxdTKGHXnw2sF1to-ZqPR5b7HytYz2WzZ3xMsmXSCQuZ2bFMm9lLECQ56ekMv9xNEkFa3axYgsrRpVzMtgdmFJpYuAdLzylip5gQllhtBn9HU6SLn71aY/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-rnmIxnBOR61PbPDsZCDvxEKxdTKGHXnw2sF1to-ZqPR5b7HytYz2WzZ3xMsmXSCQuZ2bFMm9lLECQ56ekMv9xNEkFa3axYgsrRpVzMtgdmFJpYuAdLzylip5gQllhtBn9HU6SLn71aY/s1600/1.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Eric Wever</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ1rPpba8vvVfyi4oC9twpV_cLFxTEJc6yJH3_qma7GbnzRuoMzvaf9o-p3HUfrOSuridNmP-4aLeNdva13YMsccjFGKD615BoIn9MZfYr32ugniZoUmXZhxyETJJhggMtddnyxzqAb_E/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ1rPpba8vvVfyi4oC9twpV_cLFxTEJc6yJH3_qma7GbnzRuoMzvaf9o-p3HUfrOSuridNmP-4aLeNdva13YMsccjFGKD615BoIn9MZfYr32ugniZoUmXZhxyETJJhggMtddnyxzqAb_E/s1600/2.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Eric Wever</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzE24KCDqVMfCRQ65lLMsMBOo9HrR_9ZpjGOSn7C8AKKOBqaT_D9C3Ib-Y2MqmxFKuOGCumF5VYKwTzcdG7RnfV-ZZ3RUHa4suWXpKxVgXg8IlCFsW-F7jEeikFYghnYKCTkB8hxeMQ0g/s1600/3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzE24KCDqVMfCRQ65lLMsMBOo9HrR_9ZpjGOSn7C8AKKOBqaT_D9C3Ib-Y2MqmxFKuOGCumF5VYKwTzcdG7RnfV-ZZ3RUHa4suWXpKxVgXg8IlCFsW-F7jEeikFYghnYKCTkB8hxeMQ0g/s1600/3.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Eric Wever</td></tr>
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Lining up in the middle of town, I didn't recognize many faces but by the looks of it, I was surrounded by a strong field of roadies. As we rolled out, the rain drops began to fall which would signal the cold conditions that would follow. It took all of a few minutes to confirm that I was indeed surrounded by roadies and this was going to be a road race. I tried to sit back in the group and play "the game" but I just couldn't wrap my head around the idea of sitting up when I came to give it my all and test out my fitness. I lead the group up the first climb and tried to up the pace but people were content to sit back. I didn't have any idea of what lay ahead but I did know it was way to soon to go solo.<br />
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About 15 miles in, at the base of what appeared to be a significant climb, I decided to attack and see if anyone was willing to come along. Much to my surprise, there were 10 or so riders who stuck with me. We once again settled into the routine of three or so riders taking pulls while the rest sat in the back. While sitting third wheel, the three of us missed a turn which would prove to be a huge mistake. Realizing the error immediately, we got back on course and I proceeded to chase with all I had into what would turn out to be a long climb. I closed the gap but had payed the price. An attack was made on the climb (around mile 30) and I couldn't respond. My legs were done and groin cramps were the confirmation.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX65NmXiPaEJ70ZfYAUkLAu2LCJgLzB_K1l39rI-uJXEbqMk5JNFy49qHzHkd-skYrEZeWdNwb8UjH1tnOoAwSVHtMRwrjhTU9FZiNIeU5DyFWwN0xnCbGZEgfuZEX1fZQAxrswOt8iRw/s1600/4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX65NmXiPaEJ70ZfYAUkLAu2LCJgLzB_K1l39rI-uJXEbqMk5JNFy49qHzHkd-skYrEZeWdNwb8UjH1tnOoAwSVHtMRwrjhTU9FZiNIeU5DyFWwN0xnCbGZEgfuZEX1fZQAxrswOt8iRw/s1600/4.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Daren Wilz</td></tr>
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From there on out, I found myself in survival mode, hoping to not get caught by any groups that were behind me. The dirt roads had turned to mush which made the riding quite interesting with muscles that were cramping under any sustained power. I finished up in 2:45, 6 minutes behind the winning time, 8th overall and 5th in the 30-39 category.<br />
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Once again, I was schooled by some excellent roadies. If I want to do well in races like this, I have to accept sitting in as being ok and a smart tactic. I do think that I would have stayed near the front if the turn wasn't missed and I hadn't had to chase so hard to regain the group. The final sketchy downhill would have definitely been in my favor with my mountain bike setup. I'm assuming that the "players" knew the course and the attack at mile 30 was all part of the plan. I can see how having course knowledge and a plan can really work out well if played out right. Maybe next time I find myself in a "road" race, I'll sit in more and race smart but then again probably not.<br />
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As a side note.. it was so cold out there that about half of the field DNF or DNS. I ended up only being able to shift with my palm for the last 15 miles. I could not undo the buckle on my helmet after the race. It took me 30 minutes to get my clothes off while laying in the back of a warm car and I shivered non-stop for an hour after the race. Maybe next year, changing after the race should be included as part of the race!Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-40368121678062573642014-02-24T09:39:00.000-08:002014-02-24T09:48:48.608-08:00Southern Cross Race ReportAs I mentioned in my previous blog update, I spent the off season working on gaining speed for the shorter races I will be participating in this season. My training leading up to the season opener was about as flawless as you can get. I worked with <a href="http://lwcoaching.com/mountain-bike-training-plans/mountain-bike-endurance-training/#50milepr">Lynda Wallenfels' 50 Mile Mountain Bike Race - Personal Record Plan</a> which kept me motivated through the winter months and in turn helped me get in the best shape I have been in yet. Unfortunately, my 11 week string of "perfect" training came to an end with my last "pre-taper" ride. As it turns out, I came down with some kind of cold/sinus issue and on that final training ride, it was evident that I was indeed battling something. I was pretty bummed in the week leading up to Southern Cross but did everything I could think of to lessen the severity of the cold.<br />
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Southern Cross would be a little different for me this year, as I would be racing gears for the first time in the GA mountains. The plan was to run in the lead group this year which meant that utilizing the aid station drop was not an option. Opting to minimize weight, I mixed my bottles heavy and carried less fluid than normal. The temperatures were going to be high for this time of year so I knew that things had the potential to get interesting late in the race as my fluid intake would be less than usual.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Got to rock the <a href="http://www.tfkt.org/">TFKT</a> kit one more time as well as the Carve.<br />
Toasted Head Racing kits are on the way and looking sweet!</td></tr>
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I had a less than stellar start and found myself dropping way back in the grassy cyclocross style opening section of the course (I think I was in awe waching my <a href="http://toastedheadracing.wordpress.com/">Toasted Head Racing</a> teamate Jake Wade take the holeshot). As I popped out onto the paved road, I was in no man's land with the lead group already pulling out of sight. It was frustrating knowing that I didn't make the lead group once again but I knew once the climbing started I would begin reeling some of them back in. As I was absorbed into the chase group, and the climbing began, I found that I was not gaining time as expected. I was working hard, too hard and could not shake the group I was with. At this point in the race I knew that I wasn't firing on all cylinders but continued to give it all I had in hopes of finding myself later in the race. I will admit that working as hard as I was and not being able to drop guys at will on climbs was really messing with my head. Was it because I had a cold? Was it because I was riding gears? Was it because I don't stand nearly as much on the geared bike? Was it because I didn't get out to train on hills this winter? Am I just slow?</div>
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It wasn't until after the first major climb where I was able to gain some separation from the group I was with. This happened to take place on the first descent. What? I am generally slow and quite cautious while descending. It must have had to do with me being on a mountain bike while many others where on CX bikes. Whatever... Since it was apparent that my climbing ability was sub par, I was getting dropped by anyone I would reel in and my competitive mindset had abandoned me, I decided to use the perfect course conditions to practice my descending. <br />
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Within the last ten miles of the race, the lack of fluid intake started messing with me. Not only did I not carry enough fluids, I had been rationing as if I were going to run out and had way too much left at this point. I had really skimped on my nutrition and wouldn't you know muscles started balling up left an right. I didn't really care much as I was so far back in the field but I still didn't want to get caught from behind. As it turns out, I made up enough time on the last descent that I was able to soft pedal the last little bit of the race without getting passed.<br />
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My time this year was 3:20 which was about 30 seconds slower than my singlespeed time from last year. I ended up 14th overall and 11th in the Open cat. This is not how I envisioned my first race of the season going and leaves me with some questions and doubts. Can I chalk this up to a cold? Did I lose my ability to climb? Is this just where I'm at fitness wise? For a mediocre time, why did it hurt so bad? Is it good to have these questions and doubts after a stellar off season? For me, it's a great thing because the doubts I will use for motivation and the questions will be answered throughout the remainder of the season.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm taking my bike and going home.</td></tr>
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As always, the best part of the weekend was being able to spend time with old friends and making new ones. It was great seeing teammates on the start line, on course, and finishing strong. The weather couldn't have nicer, the course couldn't have been tackier and the race couldn't have been run any better. Thanks for all you have done for racing in the Southeast Eddie and Namrita and thanks to the volunteers and sponsors who helped pull off a great event.<br />
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<br />Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-12907588994557182852014-01-15T06:27:00.003-08:002014-01-15T06:27:52.039-08:00All Kinds of NewI usually don't blog unless I have a race or trip to write about. I haven't raced or taken a trip since last October, so why the blog update? The reason is change. This off season has brought about a lot of change for me and the upcoming season. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://toastedheadracing.wordpress.com/">Toasted Head Racing</a></td></tr>
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As most of you who will be reading this already know, I have joined an incredible new team. <a href="http://toastedheadracing.wordpress.com/">Toasted Head Racing</a> is comprised of athletes focused on competing in most disciplines of mountain biking and cyclocross. The team will be heavily focused on the National Ultra Endurance series and the American Ultra Cross series, as well as teammates competing in the likes of Dirty Kanza, Trans Iowa, Trans-Sylvania Mountain Bike Epic and the Breck Epic. If you have never heard of Toasted Head Racing before, I assure you that once the season gets underway, you will quickly become familiar with the THR family.<br />
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As tough as it was to make this decision, I have decided to stick to gravel and only gravel this season. I will once gain be on gears and focused on the <a href="http://www.ultracx.com/">American Ultra Cross</a> series as well as the <a href="http://www.pisgahproductions.com/events/brmc/">Blue Ridge Monster Cross</a> series. Fortunately, ultracross races seem to be gaining popularity and are popping out of the wood work. I am keeping my eyes open and will be adding races to my schedule as the dates become available. Unfortunately, I will not be participating in some of my favorite races and formats this year such as PMBAR, P111k, Double Dare and the NUE series.<br />
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With the change to my racing format focus, I have spent this off season specifically training for the 3-4 hour time frame which will encompass most of my races. This means that I have spent more time than in years past working on higher intensity efforts which I hope will result in greater speed in these gravel races. I have been feeling great on the bike and I am noticing positive changes in which I am looking forward to testing out at <a href="http://www.55nine.com/southernx.html">Southern X</a> on February 22.<br />
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Another change that I am excited about is in the stable. The Epic has moved on to the frigid North and the Carve will be dismissed once it's replacement arrives. In due time, my stable will once again be full however this season I will be racing on a Cannondale. After spending some quality time on a proper CX bike, I decided that there was no way a drop bar bike was going to work out for me. My new gravel rig for the upcoming season will be the F29. I have several changes in mind from stock in order to turn this bike into the perfect gravel grinder however, I'll wait until everything is built and working before disclosing those changes. Being that I still enjoy getting out on singletrack and have the hopes of one day returning to racing on singletrack, I will also be getting some time in here and there on the Scalpel. With those two bikes at my fingertips, I am ready for the many hours I plan on spending in the saddle this year.<br />
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As you may have noticed, I have many new sponsors this year. Please take a minute to have a look through the links on the right and if you get the chance please support them and pass along a good word. These companies make great products and just as important are great people who support and promote the sport. If you would like to learn more about Toasted Head Racing you can follow the blog, check out the roster or member bio's <a href="http://toastedheadracing.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">here</a>. While you're at it, check out our Facebook page and "like" us <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ToastedHeadEliteRaceTeam">here<span id="goog_101122482"></span></a>.<br />
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See you on the gravel!Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-89128299674309193652013-10-07T04:51:00.000-07:002013-10-07T04:59:15.471-07:00Wilson's RevengeAs anyone who reads this blog knows, my main goal for this season was dismissed before the season even really got started. My focus was based around trying to become one of the top singlespeed riders in the NUE series, which then changed to aiming for top tens in the Men's Open division of the NUE. Prior to the first NUE of the season, I knew that racing the singlespeed this year was out of the question. After the first NUE race of the season, I pretty much knew that competing in the NUE series or any races containing singletrack was out of the question. I worked through a lot in the off season, made gains in my fitness and needed to find something that would make it all seem worthwhile.<br />
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Thanks to Cam Fraser of <a href="http://www.bluemountainrevival.com/" target="_blank">Blue Mountain Revival Productions</a>, Eric and Erinna Wever of <a href="http://www.pisgahproductions.com/" target="_blank">Pisgah Productions</a>, and Andrew Stackhouse of <a href="http://www.pirateraceproductions.com/" target="_blank">Pirate Race Productions</a> I was able to channel my focus into a series of gravel races called the Blue Ridge Monster Cross Series. These three race promoters put their heads, events, as well as a large wad of prize money together and the result was a series that is sure to attract a cult following in the upcoming years.<br />
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The Blue Ridge Monster Cross Series consisted of four ultracross races based out of different venues in Western North Carolina. To be eligible for the series, a racer had to start all four races in which their top three results would be added up. The lowest point total would determine the series winner.<br />
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Wilson's Revenge was the fourth and final race in the series. Going into the race down two points from Devin Clancy, I knew that a win was the only chance I had to overtake the top spot in the series. Being that Devin is "very good at bikes" I also knew that he would have to have an off day for me to gain two spots on him. On our drive out to the venue, the Brown Mountain Beach Resort, I told Vanessa that I had a feeling that tomorrow was going to be my day. I don't know why I felt like things were going to go my way, but I just had a good feeling.<br />
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The race started with a long flat dirt road section. As we were rolling along at a casual group ride pace, Brian Rogers jumped off the front to get everyones blood flowing. We were still bunched up in a large group when I noticed Devin rubbing his right hamstring. Not sure of what was going on, I took the opportunity to spike our pace a couple of times. If he were having issues with his leg, this tactic may or may not have some sort of affect later in the race. All doubts of Devin's condition were erased from my mind as he bolted on the first major climb of the day. I gave chase and within minutes it was just the two of us. It didn't take long for him to dance away making it look easy in the process. There was nothing I could do, as he climbed out of sight.<br />
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I crested the top of the climb solo with Devin out of sight and no sign of anyone behind me. Thoughts were spinning in my head and after just getting schooled in climbing 101, I knew the only chance I had at catching Devin was to wait for help. I slowed up until I was caught by Garth and Andy Applegate. While explaining my plan to Garth, he stated that it was pointless to try to work together as the course would not allow it... not what I wanted to hear.<br />
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Garth and I were pushing hard when we encountered a section described as a "hike-a-bike". Knowing that our selection of bike should have the advantage on this section over Devin's CX bike, we continued with our aggressive pace. While picking our way through the rocky rutted out climb I caught a glimpse of white up ahead. It was Devin and he seemed to be having difficulty with something. As I approached and asked if everything was alright, he mentioned something about breaking a spoke. Part of me wanted to stop, help him out and continue on together, but I knew that in this particular situation I needed to use his misfortune to my advantage. I bolted with Garth in tow and Devin not far behind.<br />
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Using a singlespeed technique of spinning and tucking I was able to gain speed on the downhills fast. It wasn't long until Devin had dropped back and it was just Garth and I once again. Knowing that Devin will never give up, we rode hard. Knowing that Devin had some sort of mechanical, it was important to push the pace thus causing Devin to ride his equipment hard. Garth and I were feeding off of each other to see how much faster we could go. At times it seemed like we were teammates and other times it seemed like a duel. It was apparent that we both wanted the overall win and it was on.<br />
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Around the 30 mile mark I heard the dreaded "fuck, I have a flat" come out of Garth's mouth. After asking if he had a tube and air, I went darting off down the doubletrack solo. I couldn't believe what had happened on the course so far and once again I had the feeling that it was my day. I quickly cleared the thought from my head and focused on riding smooth, picking fast lines and protecting my thin tires. At this point there was about an hour left in the race. I knew that anything could happen at any time and there was plenty of time to be chased down by Garth, Devin or how about the always fast when he doesn't have multiple mechanicals, Brian Rogers.<br />
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Finding it more difficult to keep up the frantic pace solo, I found myself taking lots of looks over my shoulder. It was with three miles to go that I saw the yellow jersey of Brian. I had just made a 180 degree turn from gravel to pavement into a steep hill. Brian was a couple hundred yards back and was charging hard. Figuring the route would finish up with this pavement stretch and with Brian on a CX bike, I almost conceded. Thinking about what Devin taught me earlier in the day during climbing 101, I stood on the pedals and gave it everything I had. Upon cresting the hill, the pavement took a turn down. Shit!! This is not going to end well for me. Spin, tuck, spin, tuck. As I entered the venue, I looked behind me, Brian was nowhere to be seen. I looked in front of me, again no Brian. I had taken the overall win and Brian was taking the second spot. Two points and the series win!<br />
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Standing around the finish line watching rider after rider come in, bits and pieces were being put together as an incredible story of determination was unfolding. Devin had broken a spoke when Garth and I came upon him. His wheel was so out of true that he had to unhook his rear brake in order for it to spin and when it did, it rubbed his frame with each revolution. He worked his way back into second passing Garth on the side of the trail. Knowing that I was just ahead, he gave chase with only his front brake on gravel descents where speeds of 40+ were obtainable. Chasing hard, he had a high speed wreck ripping off his rear derailleur along with plenty of skin. Bloodied up and broken, he rigged his bike up singlespeed and continued to crush it till the end.<br />
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I hate winning a race and especially a series due to someone else's misfortune. Devin was clearly the better athlete this season. He trashed his bike and body trying to claim something that was rightfully his. He had no excuses, negative comments or self pity after the race. All he had to say was "I only know how to go all out" and "that's racing".<br />
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As we hear time and time again, "things happen for a reason". If I hadn't had the back injury creep up on me, more than likely I would not have raced the Blue Ridge Monster Cross Series. All of the changes I made in order to deal with my circumstance was welcome. Gears, full suspension, now a CX bike... who would have thought. Thanks to the series, I met some outstanding people who are not only competitors but friends.<br />
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Thank you Cam, Eric, Erinna, and Andrew for putting in the time and effort that it takes to organize and promote these events. Each of you have your own style which is appreciated and each of you do an impeccable job. These races not only gives us racers a chance to push our minds and bodies to their limits but it gives us the opportunity to meet increadible people who unknowingly inspire those around them.<br />
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<br />Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-88654020422463104662013-10-01T09:01:00.001-07:002013-10-01T09:03:35.288-07:00Hellhole Gravel Grind Stage RaceThis past weekend I travelled to Cordesville, SC with my buddy Jeremy for the Hellhole Gravel Grind Stage Race. The HGGSR consisted of a Prologue along with two 65 mile stages which took place in and around the Hellohole Swamp in the Francis Marion National Forest. In the race description, it was noted that the forest is named for the revolutionary war hero Francis Marion, who was known as the British Swamp Fox. He used the swamps, creeks, and forest areas to ambush and hide from the British and was depicted in the movie "The Patriot".<br />
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Upon arriving to the forest, Jeremy and I took a spin around the 6 mile Prologue course. The dirt was smooth and the route was flat... very flat. A couple miles into the course I realized that the 1x10 Carve SL with 1.8 Rengades was not going to be the right tool for this particular race. I mentioned to Jeremy it seemed as if I had brought a knife to a gun fight. Little did I know at the time, but that statement would end up as the perfect descriptor for the racing ahead.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Saw lots and lots of this..<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jeremy warming up for the Prologue</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Brian Fancher<br />
Jeremy killing it on course..</td></tr>
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For the Prologue, we were set off solo in 30 second increments to complete the six mile loop. A time bonus would be given based on finish times and would be factored into the GC (overall) times for the entire race (all of the stages combined). My goal for the Prologue was to catch and pass as many people as I could. This proved to be more challenging than expected as I found my legs heavy and the carrot fast. Around the four mile mark, I was caught and passed by the rider who started behind me (Zachary Kratche). As he passed, naturally I hopped on his wheel. After 30 seconds or so of drafting, this guy start spouting off to me. "What the Fuck are you doing on my wheel, get off my fucking wheel, get the fuck off". Wondering what the hell this guy's problem was, I pulled up beside him and asked why he was such an asshole. His reply was "don't you know you're not supposed to draft in a fucking time trial?". My response was along the line of "if I had a road racing background, don't you think I'd be on something other than a mountain bike for a race like this." For the record, I have never ridden in a road group, participated in a road TT or payed any attention to road racing. I know nothing about the rules or tactics of road racing.<br />
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Prior to the Prologue, I had reviewed the rules and afterwards I went back and double checked... nope, nothing in there about drafting. After completing the prologue I watched as the remaining riders came in. I took notice of Nathan Smith who was sporting aero rims as well as a time trial helmet. It then occurred to me that some of these guys may be taking this racing thing seriously. I ended up with the seventh fastest time in the Prologue while the ever so pleasant Zach took the top spot.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our "digs" for the weekend. KOA comfort.</td></tr>
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The following morning a mass of riders rolled out to begin Stage 1. The stage would consist of 65 miles and would also include single day racers as well as 32 mile racers. It ended up being a tad confusing as no one knew who was in what race. Being on doubletrack for much of the start, there were two trains which made for some interesting times with riders back and forth between the two. It was tough figuring who might go off the front and if someone went, I wanted to be in position to make the break as well. Sure enough a few miles in, Zach and Ken broke off the front and with a little guidance from the group, I decided to stay put. The idea being that with just the two of them out front, they would wear themselves out and our group of twelve or so would work together to reel them back in. That was the thought anyway but that was not how it played out.<br />
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Our group did not work together, not in the least bit. There were a few of us that would take pulls while everyone else decided to sit in and save their legs. We were a very dysfunctional group and little did I know at the time, it was all part of the plan. As the two flyers faded, they came into sight. As we pulled closer, Miles and Chris jumped around the group and off the front. With ~25 miles to go and not knowing what was going on, I decided to stay put in the larger group hoping that we would soon start working together. Chris and Miles caught and passed the two flyers while Zach and Ken were absorbed into our group.<br />
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Now would be the time to work as a group to reel in and overtake Miles and Chris right? Not the case. Zach and Ken sat up in our group and everyone else was happy to sit in. Sonni (who was in the 40+ Cat.), myself and Nathan were taking pulls trying to get a chase group formed but the rest of the riders just sat there. Sonni fell back to chat with the group and found out that Zach and Miles were teammates and this was all part of the plan.<br />
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Upon finding this out Sonni, Nathan and I gave chase with a few other in tow who were just there to be towed. Our effort was pointless as too much time was lost getting caught up in the game and Miles and Chris were long gone. I was able to edge out Nathan in a sprint finish while Sonni got me by a wheel. I finish third on the stage and claimed third spot in the GC while Miles and Nathan were first and second respectively. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Jeremy Morgan<br />
Men's Open Stage 1</td></tr>
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Stage 1 was very frustrating for me. I had the legs to be out front but by being naive to what was going on out there, I had missed my chance. I had gotten schooled and I was not going to let it happen again. Even though I didn't have any teammates with me at this race, I did have a few friends. Friends who are very good on the road. I asked for advice and a loose game plan was formed. Knowing that I have a strong endurance background, my buddies where going to go off the front early taking huge pulls in an attempt to get the group wore down while I sat in saving the legs.<br />
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Stage 2 was another 65 mile loop on fairly smooth dirt roads like the first day. There was however one 3-4 mile singletrack section about two miles into the loop. All was going as planned. I had two buddies at the front of the pack, I was sitting on their wheel, Miles and Nathan were just behind me and then it all fell apart. My two buddies and I missed the turn onto the singletrack section while everyone behind us stayed on route. As we were hauling ass in the wrong direction a marshal on a motorcycle chased us down and made us aware of our mistake. As we looked back towards the missed turn, not a single rider could be seen. We were the only ones off course and I had a sick feeling that my day was done.<br />
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Not being one to give up, I entered the singletrack on a mission. I was going to bury myself taking advantage of "the knife" I was riding and was going to work my way back up to the front. Fortunately for me, other racers seemed to know what was going on and my calls for passes were heard and granted. As I approached Zach, I had a feeling that he was all too aware of where I was and would have no problem blocking me to aid his teammate. I came up on him trying to push his pace. When the bobble came, I proceeded to work by. Once I had the leaders in sight, it was a huge relief. I sat back taking the time to recover and soon Nathan, Myles, myself as well as one other guy on a mountain bike exited the singletrack in the lead with no one in sight behind us.<br />
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We rotated through the pace line each taking quality pulls. All of us but the guy on the mountain bike. He just sat on for 25 miles not taking a single pull. Miles and Nathan took turns dropping back to chat with this guy and he assured them that he wasn't playing games. Sure enough there came a point were he dropped off leaving the top three in the GC together to battle it out. Even though Miles and Nathan didn't appear to be on the same team, they were both local. I knew that this would not play in my favor and more than likely there was nothing I could do to make a jump in the GC. This did not mean that I wasn't going to try.<br />
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Each time I began a pull, I would shift to a harder gear allowing me to stand. This would cause a bit of sudden acceleration which means Miles and Nathan would have to work a tad harder to regain my wheel. If I could wear them down enough, I might be able to make an attack stick within the last five miles. This tactic also gave my body the chance to use my muscles a little differently delaying the onset of issues that might pop up due to being in one position so long.<br />
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At one point Miles fell out of rotation causing me to take an extra pull. Was this a mistake on his part or part of the plan? I still don't know. Not knowing the route or how much farther we had to go, it was difficult to decide where to attack. Typically I would attack on a climb but there were zero climbs to be found on this course. I decided to use the traction of my mountain tires and attack in a turn. The attack was on, a gap was made, but with two of them chasing it was useless. They were back on my wheel in no time.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Brian Fancher<br />
GC Leader, Miles and I</td></tr>
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They waited for me to take a pull and just as I was finishing up the two of them darted around and attacked together. I clung to their wheel and once they figured out that I was not going away, they gave up. Thinking we were just about to the finish, I attacked in a turn once again, got down on my bars in an aero position and began grinding. Looking back, I had a gap but looking ahead it was straight road as far as I could see. I let up and once again we where three.<br />
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The next attack was clever but I was waiting for it. I was once again taking a pull when I reached for my bottle. While I was taking a drink, the two of them attacked together. The problem was that Miles fell off. I was able to dart around him and chase Nathan down. It was here where I took the opportunity to let them know that I do training rides solo at a good clip sometimes for 200 miles and that I could play these games all day long. Realizing that these attacks were useless and the finish line was fast approaching, the attacks subsided and preparations were being made for a sprint finish.<br />
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As we rolled through the pace line, I stayed out front for long periods of time hoping to see a familiar piece of road indicating the finish would be near. I wanted to be in the front coming into the last turn in order to get a jump on the two CX bikes with the paved finish. As we came into the familiar turn we jumped on the pedals accelerating from a few miles an hour to 30 in an instant. I jumped out front while Nathan closed the gap and Miles fell off. As we made the right turn into the finish, Nathan tried ducking in on my left side. As I made sure that didn't happen, I heard Nathan yell something in response to move I had just pulled to claim the stage win.<br />
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Upon asking Nathan what that was all about, he informed my that in road racing you must hold your line in a straight sprint to the finish. I guess it was a good thing that the finish was not straight and I didn't sign up for a road race. After all, who would bring a mountain bike to a road race?<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Jeremy Morgan<br />
Men's Open Stage 2</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Men's Open GC</td></tr>
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Even though there were lots of aspects of this race which were new to me. I really enjoyed spending time with Sonni and Nathan on the first day and rolling the second day with Miles and Nathan. Those guys were strong and a pleasure to be around. This was the inaugural year for the race and I do have to say that the organizers and volunteers did one heck of a job. If you are a road racer looking for some dirt or a mountain biker looking to try something a bit different, you should check this race out. Just be prepared to make friends and spin, spin, spin as the only hills you will see in the Francis Marion National Forest will be covered with ants.Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-89155245080822579542013-09-24T05:07:00.000-07:002013-09-24T05:11:10.230-07:00Three Peaks USAThree Peaks USA race is a 55 mile ultracross race held from the top of Beech Mountian which includes ~8000ft of ascending and is hosted by <a href="http://www.pirateraceproductions.com/" target="_blank">Pirate Race Productions</a>. This was the fourth year of the race however this would be the first for me. A few days prior to the race, I had a peek at the participant list and discovered that this race would include the most competitive non-NUE field I have lined up against this year.<br />
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I don't usually have much drama to deal with heading into races, however this time was a little different. V and I were all packed up and ready to hit the road when I decided to split some wood for a fire later in the evening. As I was finishing up, I got distracted and ended up whittling my left pointer finger down to the bone with the hatchet (kind of like peeling a carrot). We opted to visit the urgent care rather than the ER which proved to be a smart choice. When I explained to the doctor that I needed a sturdy fix because I was racing the next day, she gave me "the look" and said just as long as you don't bend it. The only problem with not bending my left pointer finger while riding would be the use or lack there of, of my front brake. After thinking things over, I decided that during the race I would rely on my middle finger to provide the front braking power.<br />
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V and I got to Banner Elk a little later than planned. It rained most of the way out but we were lucky to find a lull in the rain to set up the tent. Because of our later than planned arrival coupled with the wet conditions, I decided to skip my pre-ride which I usually use to spin out the legs. Instead, we worked our way up Beech Mountain for registration and followed that up with a nice meal in Banner Elk at the Frog and the Monkey.<br />
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At the race start the next morning it was cold, very cold. I always race warm so when it's cold, I have trouble figuring out what to wear. I went with my normal kit with a side of arm warmers. A last minute experiment with my brake situation revealed that my middle finger may not be as reliable as I thought. This meant that it's freshly stitched up counter-part may have to take on the bulk of the workload. I planned for such by adjusted the lever throw way out taking some of the bend out of my finger while squeezing the brake.<br />
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The start was a neutral roll out down hill. It was cold enough that most of the guys including myself were shaking causing some death wobble. Luckily the speed was slow so no concern there. As the lead vehicle pulled away, the race was on. Within a mile or so, I could tell that something wasn't right. My perceived exertion was high, my heart was beating out of my chest, I couldn't breath and there was minimal power output. I tried, but couldn't manage to hang onto the lead group or the chase group. I sent out a search party for my legs but they were nowhere to be found. I tried using my high cadence legs, slow grind legs, out of the saddle and hammer legs, I even tried to use the legs of others with no luck. It didn't take long before I was dropped from the third group, left alone with a mind that would not stop troubleshooting.<br />
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Was I getting sick? Was it the lack of a ride the day before? Was it the cold weather? Was it the elevation? Could my finger be getting infected? Why is my stomach upset?.. Maybe I am getting sick.<br />
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I still have no idea what went on out there but whatever it was almost convinced me to call it a day 30 minutes into the race. No matter what I did, I couldn't keep on any of the groups coming by and I felt horrible. I got very discouraged and was in a dark place but would not let myself quit. I knew that a good finish was out of reach but wanted the satisfaction of pushing through.<br />
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In the meantime, the course was more rough than I was expecting which was providing a challenge with the beat up finger. I had adjusted my lever throw out so far that I was having trouble reaching it. On top of that, there was no way to keep from using my finger or to keep from bending it. I had to use it and there was no way around it. There were times where I was a bit worried that I had ripped some of the stitches out however the lack of blood convinced me that everything was ok. I tried to take it as easy as possible while using the front brake and eventually started slowing sooner than normal in anticipation of turns or sketchy terrain which seemed to work well.<br />
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Late into the race, three hours to be exact, I found myself in the company of lead singlespeeder Daniel Rapp. We crossed paths at the base of our final "peak", a 10 mile climb to the finish. It was here where my body finally started working as a unit and the first time in the race where I felt like I could work my legs. For nearly an hour, we set ourselves on cruise control catching and passing rider after rider. Knowing that time was running out had me wishing that this climb would continue for another hour so I could continue to work my way back up the field. <br />
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Crossing the line just shy of four hours, I learned that on that last climb, I had worked my way into 8th overall and third in my age category. Even though the race did not go as planned and I am a bit disappointed in whatever went on out there, I am happy that my finger stayed in one piece and that I was able to get in one good climb out of three. <br />
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I am glad that I was finally able to make it out to this race as the course was beautiful, easy to follow and provided plenty of challenges. Thanks to all of the volunteers as well as Andrew Stackhouse of Pirate Race Productions for taking the time to provide us with another event that I will look forward to adding to the schedule time and time again. Also thanks once again to <a href="http://www.bluemountainrevivalproductions.com/" target="_blank">Blue Mountain Revival Productions</a> for setting the benchmark for timing with a system that is accurate while providing instant results.<br />
<br />Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-92213064339288121682013-09-16T08:00:00.000-07:002013-09-16T08:00:26.865-07:00Pisgah Monster CrossThe Pisgah Monster Cross Challenge would be the third race in the <a href="http://www.pisgahproductions.com/" target="_blank">Pisgah Productions</a> King of Pisgah Series and the second race in the Blue Ridge Monster Cross Series. With only one race remaining in the KOP and two in the BRMC, I was hoping for a good result at the PMCC.<br />
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Last year, the PMCC course was ridden in the counter-clockwise direction which meant lots of climbing from the start. I prefer climbing over any other aspect of riding so naturally I prefer to get right to it. This year the race opened with a six mile section of flat pavement as the course was navigated clockwise.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: <a href="http://www.bluemountainrevival.com/" target="_blank">Blue Mountain Revival Productions</a></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Eric Wever</td></tr>
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From the start, I found myself out front of our long neutral roll out. I decided to keep my spot instead of pulling out and risk getting dropped back into the mass of riders. Once we hit the first climb of the day leading to Glouchester Gap, Sam E., Sam K, Tristan and Devin skirted around me and gunned it. This was the group that I wanted to stick with but after two failed attempts to bridge the gap, I knew that I needed to settle into my own pace.</div>
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As we began the long climb up 215, a group of six formed with Garth leading the chase. Early on, I found myself getting dropped, putting out a big effort to close the gap and then getting dropped again. This was not a good sign and figured that I would pay for those efforts later in the race. This happened about four times and after bridging up for the final time, Garth and I proceeded to pull away from the rest of the group in full on chase mode.<br />
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At Aid #1, I took on two bottles as Garth blew by the aid requiring him to turn around. I wasn't sure if I should wait or set out solo so I just gunned it. I had a feeling that I might not see Garth again but he put in a huge effort as he was on my tail in no time. As I stood on the pedals to match Garth's pace, my right calf revolted and I knew that I had the back off for a bit. As I watched the gap grow, my thoughts shifted from chasing the lead group to holding off those behind me.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Brad O Allen<br />
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Photo Cred: Brad O Allen </td></tr>
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With much of the course being pavement, I decided to run a 38c tire which is the narrowest tire I've ever been on. I put a couple of rides in on these tires prior to the race but could not test them in loose gravel which was encountered in the last third of the course. Once I hit the 5000 descent, I knew I was going to be slow but after almost washing out twice in the first couple minutes my pace had me looking over my shoulder often. As I turned onto 1206, I caught a glimpse of Garth at most a minute up the road.<br />
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I gave it all I had on the climb up to Yellow Gap knowing that this could be one of the last chances to make up time on anyone who may have fallen off the lead group. I wanted to stand and hammer but my tire choice and road conditions wouldn't allow it. I settled in with a grinding cadence and only managed to catch a couple of recreational riders on the way up. Not long after Yellow Gap, I caught a glimpse of another rider. I figured it was another non-racer but as I closed in, I realized it was Sam K.<br />
I was hoping that the two of us might be able to close the gap on Garth but as I began the last chase of the day, it got quiet behind me and Sam was nowhere to be seen.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Brad O Allen</td></tr>
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I was unable to catch Garth on the 477 descent and came in a minute behind him at 4:11 and 5th overall. Sam Evans once again showed us what fast looks like with a time of 3:50.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Mom!</td></tr>
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I would like to thank Eric and Erinna once again for giving us the opportunity to come play in a place as beautiful as the PNF. As always, the course was seamless, the volunteers were on point and friendly and the experience was one of a kind.</div>
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What could be better than spending the weekend in the PNF? Spending it with your wife, dog, parents and capping it all off with a ride with my favorite riding partner!</div>
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Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-82284976970365758202013-08-27T07:42:00.001-07:002013-08-27T07:42:32.510-07:00Blue Mountain Revival's Savage CX Race ReportA lot has happened since the last time I put up a blog post. V and I had a fantastic trip to CO. CB was amazing as always and we finally were amongst the wildflowers while they were peaking. I managed to squeeze in an MRI which revealed a bulging disc in the L5/S1. The cause is still unknown and the treatment.. well there doesn't seem to be any. I did go ahead and get an epidural steroid injection which seemed to make things worse. I'm not sure what the next step will be but I am planning on taking a month or two off of the bike starting immediately after Double Dare. Maybe with some time off the bike and a primary focus on strength training, things will start to shift around.<br />
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This past weekend I traveled to Nebo, NC for the first race in the <a href="http://www.pisgahproductions.com/events/brmc/" target="_blank">Blueridge Monster Cross Series</a>. With 50 miles of gravel, a 17+ mile climb right out of the gate and sponsors like<a href="http://www.industrynine.net/" target="_blank"> Industry Nine</a> and <a href="http://www.44bikes.com/" target="_blank">Fourty Four Bikes</a>, this would not be one to pass up. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.bluemountainrevival.com/">www.bluemountainrevival.com</a></td></tr>
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One thing that set this race apart from others was the venue. Pulling into the venue, I noticed kids, lots of kids. I learned that the race was being staged out of the <a href="http://www.southmountain.org/Southmountain%20History.html" target="_blank">Southmountain Children and Family Services</a> community. Southmountain is the site of an orphanage that dates back to the early 1900's. The orphanage is still standing however the area has been transformed into a foster community which contains homes for children to live in normal family situations while still having access to the benefits that institutional care provides. I also learned that some of the proceeds from the race would be donated to the community. Upon learning this, I knew that Cam Fraser of <a href="http://www.bluemountainrevival.com/" target="_blank">Blue Mountain Revival Productions</a> was a class act and we were in for a fantastic event.<br />
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Going into this race, I had some uncertainty about where I stood fitness wise. I had not raced since Hillybilly and had no idea what to expect. Looking around at the start line I noticed that I was in good company. With the likes of Sam Evans, David Wood, Brian Rogers and many others who I didn't recognize, I knew that this was going to be a fast ride.<br />
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With a long climb and some steep pitches less than a mile into the race, it didn't take long for the field to break up. Sam took the lead while taking two with him. I fell back into the next group of four which included David and Brian. We worked our way up the climb trading places here and there but remaining tight until hitting some descents. With Brian leading the way, we managed to pull away from the others in our group and set out in hopes of chasing down the three out front. It was something else watching Brian rail the gravel on his CX bike. It was apparent that Brian had more skills on his drop bar bike than I did on my mountain bike.<br />
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Not long after dumping out on pavement, we caught a glimpse of the guy in third. Unfortunately he caught a glimpse of us and took off. We kept our pace constant knowing that eventually we would gain some time on the solo rider. It took a while but we eventually caught Philip Short who had fallen off of the lead group. This all happened around the second and final aid station. I had planned to refill a bottle here but apparently Brian and Philip had not. As I stopped, they continued on. I was able to fill half a bottle before I decided it was time to go. Lucky for me as it turns out, the next section of the course was rough, overgrown (even though it had been mowed) and downhill. Being on my Specialized Carve with 1.8 Renegades, I knew that this may be my only chance to catch, pass and put a gap on these guys.<br />
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The downhill was very rough and my back along with my hands let me know. Here I was getting beat up on my mountain bike and the two guys I was trying to chase down were on CX bikes. I couldn't believe how fast and smooth they were. I managed to squeeze by both of them before the course turned into doubletrack. I knew that this section would be critical so I decided to attack. I quickly learned that it was useless to attack as Philip wasn't going anywhere. Shortly before exiting the doubletrack, we came upon the second place rider who was tending to a flat.<br />
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Philip and I knew that Sam was way out front and our chances of catching him were slim. We decided to work together in order to increase the gap we had on Brian and maybe close the gap on Sam. As we took turns taking pulls, Philip mentioned that there was a rider 200 yards back. Sure enough Brian was putting together an incredible solo effort. We continued to work and Brian continued to close the gap on us. As we encountered a slight downhill and flat, we drilled it. This was enough to increase our lead on Brian and start focusing on how this was going to finish out.<br />
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With twinges in my quads and hamstrings on both legs, I had been hurting for a while. Philip seemed to be managing and in my mind was stronger at this point. As we made the left turn which was our indicator of 1 mile left to the finish, I gave it all I had and didn't look back. I expected to see Philip come flying by me at any second but that never happened. As I turned into the Southmountain community I had a look over my shoulder and saw Philip 100 yards back. He must have been hurting more than he led on. As the finish line came into sight, so did Sam Evans. He was standing under the canopy sipping water with a bored look on his face. He had shown us all how it's supposed to be done by finishing about 12 minutes prior.<br />
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If you couldn't already tell, I really enjoyed this race. Everything from the atmosphere, venue, promoter, course, course marking, volunteers, competition and even the trophies were top notch. If you get the opportunity, I would highly recommend participating in a Blue Mountain Revival event. The next race in the Blueridge Monster Cross series is the Pisgah Productions Monster Cross. I am looking forward to seeing how this course rolls backwards. See you there!<br />
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Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-70113544503505754022013-06-27T06:49:00.000-07:002013-06-27T06:49:31.527-07:00Hilly Billy Race ReportEven with the setbacks that I had been experiencing this season, I have been determined to put my fitness to good use. With the NUE series or any races with singletrack out of the question, I decided to focus on the American Ultra CX series, Blueridge Ultra CX series as well as finishing up the King of Pisgah Series.<br />
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Since I raced the first race of the AUCX on the singlespeed, I figured that I should go ahead and race the remainder of that series on the singlespeed. I pulled the gears off of the Carve and turned it into the single that I enjoy riding so much. I have recently replaced my Quarq power meter with a Stages that I can easily swap from bike to bike. I have always liked racing by feel without having any numbers in front of me including time. For the Hilly Billy, I mounted up the power meter just so I could document some data from the race.<br />
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I had good company, so the drive up to Morgantown, WV passed by rather quickly. We stayed in a hotel the night before the race which was a nice change of pace. Being that most of my races are fairly long, they start early in the morning. Since the Hilly Billy was only 72 miles of pavement and gravel, it started at 10:00. This gave us ample time to get ready the morning of the race but standing around in the sun at the venue waiting for the start had me wishing for an earlier start.<br />
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After a five minute spin prior to the start, I decided that the gearing I was running may be too tough to push on the steep hills in the area. I was able to bum a larger cog off of another singlespeeder but was unable to make it work without adding some links to my chain. I decided to not risk a weak chain and put my 18t Endless back on.<br />
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As always, the pace was fast from the start. Once we found gravel, it was confirmed that I would have my work cut out with the gear that I was mashing. I found myself caught up in a rather large group, almost at a standstill, on a steep pitch in loose gravel. After some weaving while spitting rocks, I was able to work out of the mass of riders and onto some open road.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Mike Briggs</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Mike Briggs</td></tr>
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I was feeling great until the 50 minute mark but once the muscles started tightening in the back, I knew I was in for a long ride. Just like many times before, the discomfort that I was experiencing was enough for me to know that my race was over. My spinning, tucking and drafting turned into just spinning as it hurt to much to tuck. I took the opportunity to stretch my back out on every downhill wishing my problems would all just go away. I started asking other riders if there was an easy bail out option and was unable to figure one out.<br />
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When I arrived at the aid stations, I took time to stretch off of the bike. I thought that this might help some but it did not. A car ride back to the start/finish at each aid station would have been ideal but I just couldn't get myself to ask.<br />
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I spent much of the afternoon going back and forth with a dozen or so other riders. I was determined to not walk any of the course (even though it may have helped me) and would pass them on the climbs. I don't know how they could climb any slower than I was as I found myself almost at a standstill over and over. I would then get caught on the flats being that I was just spinning my gear out and coasting. Eventually I think the heat along with flats took many of these riders out because I found myself passing people with no one passing me back.<br />
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I was relieved to see the final grassy climb which meant the finish was near. I was hoping on finishing somewhere in the 4:30 time frame but ended up with 5:00. The course seemed like it would be tough even if I were feeling good. The hills were not long but they were steep and many were loose. They also kept coming for the entire race. After racing on a few courses similar to this one, I can say without a doubt that I much prefer climbing for many miles at a time.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Mike Briggs</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Mike Briggs<br />
The face kind of sums it up.. discouraged.</td></tr>
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The quality of this event caught me off guard. It was fantastic! There were a ton of volunteers positioned at every turn on the course as well as at the aid stations and many of them were dressed up as Hillbillies. I hope to be back at this event next year and maybe I'll be able to get Vanessa to join me dressed as a Hillbilly.<br />
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Even though I have been working endlessly at trying to figure out my back issues and have put time in with several medical professionals and countless hours in the gym, it seems like the smart thing to do is take a break from racing. I still really want to finish out the King of Pisgah series with Monstercross and Double Dare but I'm not sure that's going to happen. Right now my focus is on getting to the bottom of this so I can heal up and come back strong next season.<br />
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I am currently in the process of trying to schedule an MRI. The scan may allow us to get a better look into what is going on and hopefully come up with some effective ways to treat it. The timing of all this is not the best as I leave on Sunday for a month of riding in CO. As of now, it's looking like I won't be scheduled for the MRI until I return. I am taking some bikepacking gear along with me and the flowers are popping right now. I can't wait to spend some quality time with V in a town we both have come to love. Crested Butte here we come!<br />
Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-56856800235674644182013-06-27T05:20:00.003-07:002013-06-27T05:20:45.128-07:00Mohican 100 Race ReportIt's been a while since my last post. Let's get caught up. On the weekend of June 1st, I traveled up to Loudonville, OH for the Mohican 100. I took the Epic along for this race and was looking forward to racing my first NUE race with gears and suspension. <br />
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Unfortunately, I was unable to enjoy the luxury of the squish and gears due to my back acting up soon after the start. Less than ten miles into the course, I was so uncomfortable that I had slowed to a crawl and was pulling over to stay out of the way of people actually racing. The plan was to bail at the first aid station however I just couldn't do it. What if I gave my back some time to work things out and it got to feeling better? It didn't happen. I don't know why but I also rode by aid #2. By the time I made it to aid #3, I knew that it was pointless to push on. I had been barely turning over the pedals since well before aid #1 and each revolution was just as painful as the last. I finally pulled out at aid #3 and rode the 10-15 miles of pavement back to the venue.<br />
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The ride back was a nice stretch of road along the Mohican river. With all of the people floating, kayaking, and grilling on pontoon boats, I was thoroughly entertained. I didn't count, but there must have been a couple dozen places to camp along that road. It looked like a great area to spend a weekend.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yes there was a little bit of mud..not too bad this time.</td></tr>
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As luck would have it, my traveling partner had also DNFed due to a hip injury sustained in the P55k. We showered up, grabbed a bite to eat and hit the road for our 10 hour drive back home. This was my first year at the Mohican and I have to say that it was a very well run event. The venue was nice, the course was well marked, the food was good, and the volunteers were very helpful.<br />
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After my experience at Mohican, I decided that the 100 mile format is just too much for my body at the moment. Honestly, I think that racing period is just too much for me right now. Even though I enjoy taking the trips and being at the races, I am too uncomfortable while on the bike to find any enjoyment in the race itself. I have decided to sell the remainder of my NUE entries and have restructured my season to include nothing but gravel grinders. Can I make it through the season by staying off of singletrack? We'll see.<br />
Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-41462128529555690422013-05-21T08:49:00.002-07:002013-05-21T09:21:07.149-07:00P55k Race ReportAfter finishing up with the 111k, I made sure to spend ample time working on recovery. I found that my hamstrings just above the knee were quite sore. Coming off of a singlespeed, I am still not used to spending so much time in the saddle. I attribute this to the soreness of the hamstrings. To place more emphasis on the quads for the 55k, I went ahead and lowered my saddle just a tad. My back remained very sore throughout the evening and had me wondering what the morning would bring.<br />
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In the morning, I awoke to guess what... more rain! I also awoke to no soreness in the back (how does that work?). Even though I felt as if the P55k was going to be more of a ride for me than a race, I went ahead and took up a spot in the front row. The start today had us going straight up Black Mountain to Turkey Pen. The pace was quick and I found myself in the same company as the day before. Once again, we dropped the rest of the pack rather quickly and once again, the threesome of Sam K., David W., and Sam E. pulled out of sight. As I hit the hike-a-bike on Black, I kept peering over my shoulder expecting to see a train of riders but instead saw no one.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Eric W</td></tr>
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Turkey Pen was just flat out treacherous. I am usually confident in most situations but my confidence took a big hit as a result of getting rocked twice the day prior. I was so tentative on the greasy downhills that I almost lost it a few times. I found myself at about the halfway point of TP when Morgan Olsson appeared behind me out of nowhere. I let him pass as I didn't want any witnesses to my rattled descending skills. I was able to bridge up to him on a few of the climbs but as the descents became longer, he was gone.<br />
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At one point on Turkey Pen, the trail was so slick and greasy that I decided to get off and walk. As I was walking, I slipped which caused me to turn my ankle and fall, sliding downhill with my bike on top of me. I had a sharp pain in my ankle and my first thought was that I had just broken my ankle while trying to be cautious. After some more sliding and riding, I made my way out to aid station #1 and it was apparent that I was dealing with some sort of sprain and not a break. Needless to say, my nerves were pretty rattled and I was questioning my ability to ride a bike.<br />
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With all of the walking that I had been doing, I was expecting all kinds of people to catch me. After all, there were people racing the P55k who did not race the 111k the day before. It was only a matter of time before being overtaken. I continued to look over my shoulder while navigating Bradley and knew that if I made it to 5015, I could more than likely out climb the others behind me. I made it to Yellow Gap with no one in sight and continued to keep a steady pace knowing that I needed any gap I could get as the descent that destroyed me 24 hours prior lay just ahead.<br />
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I did not clean Pilot nor did I try. When I got an uncomfortable feeling, I dismounted and walked. It happened more than I'd like to admit but I made it back to 1206 without incident. As I rolled through the last aid station of the day, I asked how far behind the person was behind me at the previous aid station. I was told that Garth had been just a couple minutes back. With how cautious I was coming down Pilot, I knew that he could be on my heels at any second. I proceeded to put the hammer down, picking the smartest lines I could find and standing where ever I could.<br />
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As I approached Black Mountain for the final time, I knew that the difference in being caught or not might depend on climbing versus hiking. As I climbed stuff that I had never even attempted when conditions were dry, I was amazed at what the mind can make the body do under certain circumstances. I descended off the top of Black cautiously and I was almost down to Pressly when my front tire slipped into a washed out gully sending me over the bars just to keep me humble. I passed through Pressly Gap where Clay was ringing a bell and cheering. Not ten seconds went by and I heard the bell again. The sound of that bell was enough motivation for me to climb my way out of Pressly ensuring that I would not get caught.<br />
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The pace I was now carrying was a little faster than I was comfortable with but by no means did I want to get passed in the last couple miles of the race. While making my way down the non-tech but very slick final section of Black, I noticed a rider just up ahead. As I approached, it was apparent that Morgan had no idea I was behind him. The first thing I thought of was gaining enough speed so I could attempt a pass leaving him unsure of what just happened. Morgan had out ridden me for the entire day and he deserved to finish ahead of me. I did let him know that he had company and had better get rolling and roll he did. We flew down the remainder of the course and he was able to out sprint me by a wheel. Come to find out, Morgan thought that I was Garth who was racing in the same category as him. Sorry to mess with you like that, but it sure was fun! No one came in until 10 minutes after Morgan and I meaning that Clay passed out with the bell in his hand or was just messing with me.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Eric W</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Vanessa</td></tr>
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My finishing time for the 55k was 5:24. This put me in 4th in the Open and 5th overall on the day. I think that this also means that I am now sitting in fourth just ahead of Garth in the King of Pisgah Series. My legs felt better today than yesterday and my back felt great (I sure can't figure that one out). The <a href="http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bikes/mountain/epicfsr" target="_blank">Epic</a> took a beating this weekend but performed flawlessly. I've already said it once, but the bike is phenomenal. The conditions experienced over these two races could destroy bearings of lesser wheels however after pulling off the hub on my <a href="http://www.industrynine.net/" target="_blank">Industry 9 Torches</a>, I found happy bearings.<br />
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As always, a huge thank you goes out to Pisgah Productions as well as all of the volunteers, cheerleaders and Brados out on the course.Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-69349293292844421932013-05-21T07:13:00.002-07:002013-05-21T07:13:07.068-07:00P111k Race ReportAs I sit here this morning with my foot propped up icing my ankle, I notice how mangled my legs look. They are littered with cuts, scrapes, bruises and welts which will in time become scars, Pisgah scars. As I recall the events that led to this thrashing, I can't help but crack a huge smile which in turn causes my jaw to ache from my temple down to my chin. Some people may look at me and think that I spent my weekend being tortured. To some, the races that Eric and Erinna Wever of <a href="http://www.pisgahproductions.com/" target="_blank">Pisgah Productions</a> promote, may be a form of torture but for me these races provide an opportunity for a sense of accomplishment and happiness.<br />
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The week after PMBAR, I was supposed to travel up to New York for the Wildcat Epic. With my experience at Cohutta the week prior to PMBAR, I decide to skip the Wildcat in favor of rest. In the week leading up to the 111k, I went on a few easy rides which left me a little uneasy about the upcoming events. Even with ample rest, my legs seemed to remain fatigued. I think that this may be because this year I am continuing to strength train while "in season". <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.pisgahproductions.com/" target="_blank">Pisgah Productions</a></td></tr>
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The P111k would be my first time racing in Pisgah where I didn't have to carry a huge pack filled with survival gear thanks to the four stocked aid stations on course. This race would also be one of the first times that I would be racing solo in the PNF. This meant that I could push myself as hard as I wanted without worrying about strategies that come into play when racing with a partner.<br />
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I woke up the morning of the 111k to the familiar sound of rain. Being that this seems to be a theme this year, I knew exactly what I was in for. As we arrived at the venue, we were greeted by huge puddles as it continued to pour. The race hadn't even started and we were soaked to the bone. The start consisted of a short section of pavement followed by a long gravel climb. As we began the climb, I found myself in a group of three others which included Sam K., David W., and Sam E. We quickly put a gap on the rest of the field and it wasn't long until I watched the three climb out of sight.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Eric W.</td></tr>
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As I came up on Turkey Pen from the top of Black, I was told that I was two minutes off of the lead. About half way down the TP trail I caught a glimpse of Sam E. just ahead. He would remain within sight until the first check point where I was able to get out just ahead of him. Not far into Bradley Creek, Sam showed back up, dropped me on a descent and would not be seen again until much later in the day.<br />
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As I made my way up the 5015 climb to aid station #2, I found myself dealing with a significant amount of lower back pain which in turn was beating me down mentally. My mind was telling me to pull out of the race at aid #2 but in order to stay in the running for the King of Pisgah point series, I could not take a DNF. I was not in good shape pulling into aid #2 but as I pointed my bike down 1206, I knew that I was going to do what it took to push to the finish.<br />
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Nothing too exciting happened until I was descending Pilot. I have ridden this trail many times in all kinds of conditions. I have cleaned this trail most of the time and have never had much trouble with it. Well.. on this trip down, that all changed. I manged to clean all of the switchbacks down and was feeling good. Coming off the back side of a log that I had ridden without incident many times, I stuck my front tire into something. As my rear was coming off the ground, I tried to unclip but found myself stuck in the pedals. Sure enough, I hit the ground hard head first while remaining clipped in and tangled in my bike. I ended up in a pile of rocks which hit me hard on both sides of the spine just above the hips. I was hurting bad. As I got back on the bike I could not clip my right foot in. I was now in the infamous rock garden with one foot clipped and the other swinging freely when it happened again. I put my front tire in a hole and catapulted over the bars again landing hard in the rocks below. This time my bike came at me with a vengeance nailing me with a pedal? in the side of the head, putting a nice sized dent in my helmet and smashing my jaw into the rocks. At this point, I thought my race was over. I wasn't sure if I could even get up or gain enough composure to ride. All I remember thinking was that I was going to get passed by Garth on a technical downhill and give up a spot.<br />
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As I sat on the side of the trail to collect myself, I noticed that my right cleat was moving freely. No wonder why I couldn't clip or unclip. It took me a minute to figure out that I needed to take off my shoe and dig the dirt out of the allen holes in order to reset my cleat. Once back on the bike I crept down the remainder of the trail that I once had no fear of. Feeling lucky to not have been seriously injured and remaining in the fourth position, I made my way through aid #4 and grinded my way up South Mills and Buckhorn. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Brado</td></tr>
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It was within a couple miles from Black that I came upon Sam E. taking in some gel on Buckhorn. As I approached, he mentioned that he was not doing so well and then proceeded to ride away from me. I was able to keep within sight of him on the hike-a-bike to the top of Black but I knew that it was going to be impossible to overtake him today. It was apparent to me that he was a well-rounded rider and I was completely rattled when it came to descending Black. I crept down black without any issues and crossed the line in 7:17 which put me in fourth in the Open class and fourth overall.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Can we do it again... please!<br />
Photo Cred: Eric W.</td></tr>
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My legs felt like they were in good shape after the race but my body was more beat up than it had ever been from a single ride. With the heavy hits that I took crashing my way down Pilot, I was wondering if I was even going to be able to move the following morning let alone race the P55k. The P55k is also part of the King of Pisgah Series and I would have to finish the P55 if I wanted to remain in the series.<br />
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Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-68695701292151654482013-05-08T06:52:00.001-07:002013-05-08T06:59:58.238-07:00PMBARThe Pisgah Mountain Bike Adventure Race has to be one of the most interesting races on the planet. It takes place in the Pisgah National Forest and has no set course. A passport including mandatory and optional checkpoints is handed out at the beginning of the race. Each two person team constructs a route which will ideally lead to the most number of checkpoints in the least amount of time. This year there were 7 CP's with 4 being mandatory and a total of 5 were necessary to finish the race. A 1 hour time bonus would be given to each additional CP after the first five.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.pisgahproductions.com/" target="_blank">Pisgah Productions</a></td></tr>
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In order to do well in this race, ideally both team members would have extensive knowledge of the forest, have excellent bike handling skills, a desire to hike with a bike, and a significant amount of endurance. I was excited to pair up with Mark Sackett for this year's race as he is well versed in Pisgah and is as gritty as they come (even more so now). Even though he had been giving me fair warning about his lack of fitness due to injury and burnout, I was a non-believer; we were in it to win it.<br />
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Upon receiving our passports, Mark began dreaming up a route while I kept an eye open for any new surprises in the rules. We were one of the last teams to head up Black Mountain which meant that there was a lot of passing and slow going until we hit the first CP on Clawhammer Mountain. We continued down the back side of Black and the rest of the day was free of traffic.<br />
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Down Buckhorn we rode to South Mill River and Squirrel Gap. We picked up the CP at Squirrel and Cantrell before heading to the Bradley Creek / South Mills River CP. Since 5015 was off limits, we decided that we would brave the numerous chilly creek crossings on our way to 1206 and Laurel Mountain. Up Laurel Mountain to the CP at Sassafrass Gap and then onward to the top of Pilot. It was on the hike-a-bike on Laurel that Mark had the idea of changing our route from 6-7 CP's to five. At the rate that we were moving, it made no sense to pick up the 6th or 7th CP to gain a minimal time bonus. For all we knew, we could end up losing time.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioj6_tFUGx1YXD1U7H9XW8wAZHiD_yzsaXRHE0AgOnMvGkPle9xWiBKJboptURcncfSjmsXtix_tYvt6qnvdNFr1JdC7QTtVxuLgMRlfkC5BdB-gNQDc3HZVNsTdMQR_SG8YsDrPkYe7k/s1600/935279_10200634719463340_169453403_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioj6_tFUGx1YXD1U7H9XW8wAZHiD_yzsaXRHE0AgOnMvGkPle9xWiBKJboptURcncfSjmsXtix_tYvt6qnvdNFr1JdC7QTtVxuLgMRlfkC5BdB-gNQDc3HZVNsTdMQR_SG8YsDrPkYe7k/s320/935279_10200634719463340_169453403_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Brad O (Thanks!)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Brad O</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Brad O</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Brad O</td></tr>
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At that point, it was on to 1206, 477, Club Gap, and Avery out and back. After picking up our fifth CP, we found ourselves with a decision. Should we have a Clawhammer, Maxwell, Black finish or just a Black finish? We decided to push up and over Black and arrived at the finish around 8.5 hours after the start. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I can't say enough good things about <a href="http://www.wolftoothcomponents.com/" target="_blank">Wolf Tooth Components</a> chainrings. Flawless...</td></tr>
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Even though the weather was nothing to get excited about, there was no major drama on the day. Mark had not been lying about his fitness however he continued to move forward all day with no breaks and zero complaints. Consequently, I was feeling good and had plenty of time for breaks which lead to a pretty relaxed day for me. I didn't push myself as there was no need to. As a result, my legs did not take a beating and I am now able to squeeze in a little more training prior to the P111k and P55k.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lack of traction was rough on the singlespeeders.</td></tr>
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I did receive my Specialized S-Works Epic frameset on the Tuesday prior to PMBAR. I put a little over an hour of fireroad riding on it prior to the race. I was able to hit Sycamore the day before the race but the real test came during the event. All I have to say is that this bike is phenomenal and if you don't own one, you are missing out. The Brain on this thing works incredibly well. The rear is stiff while out of the saddle and plush on the descents. The geometry is spot on for me and the bike handles like none other. Let's just say that the conditions this past weekend were pretty nasty and with minimal time on this bike, I had 100% confidence in the entire setup. Don't even get me started on how well the Fast Trak/Renegade combo worked out, how the <a href="http://www.dumondetech.com/dumonde/products/bicycle-2/" target="_blank">Dumonde Tech</a> Original lube kept my drivetrain shifting smoothly all day or how sweet the new <a href="http://www.industrynine.net/torch/" target="_blank">Industry Nine Torch Trail</a> wheelset is. Needless to say, this bike sure has caught me off guard. I can't wait to take the governor off and see what this setup can do at the 111k.<br />
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Speaking of my new I9 Torch Trail wheelset. I mounted them on my bike the night before PMBAR and the first miles that they saw was during the race. I did feel a little guilty about taking such a nice wheelset out in the kind of slop that was experienced on Saturday. My feeling of guilt disappeared once I returned home and was able to assess the condition of the wheels. They remain perfectly true and upon pulling the rear hub with my hands, I found zero grit or moisture inside the hub. I'd say that the new seals found on these wheels work quite well. I was able to pull my hubs apart wipe and re-grease them in less than 15 minutes. Now that design is the work of a genius.<br />
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Interesting fact.. the weather was cool and wet enough that in 8.5 hours of riding/hiking I only consumed about 60oz of fluid (out of my bottles anyway). I sure am glad that I doubled up my dose of <a href="http://new.eletewater.com/about/products/" target="_blank">Elete CitriLyte</a> allowing me to take in enough electrolytes with only three bottles of fluid.<br />
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Thank you once again Eric and Erinna of Pisgah Production for giving me the opportunity to take part in some of the most fun that can be had on two wheels.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: Eric Wever</td></tr>
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Thanks to Jake at Industry Nine for the last minute handoff of the 9mm QR endcaps which popped on by hand and allowed me to race the new wheels on Saturday.<br />
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Thanks to Aaron and Jason with Specialized/Dumonde Tech for allowing me to come over to the "dark side". I appreciate everything that you have done to help me get on a Specialized.Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-32950845435535510462013-04-30T23:38:00.000-07:002013-04-30T23:38:17.238-07:00Cohutta Race ReportVanessa and I always enjoy the drive over and down to Cohutta. We end up traveling through Waynesboro where we stop at the rest stop and have a picnic each year. Not long after that, we find ourselves in the Nantahala Gorge which is very scenic to drive through.<br />
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When we arrived at the Thunder Rock campground, we were greeted by my parents who arrived the day prior and picked out the perfect campsite. I am glad that they decided to join us for the weekend as it is always nice to spend time with them. When my mom is around, we can be assured that a good meal will be served. The chicken stir fry was delicious.<br />
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The week leading up to the race, the forecast had been calling for rain coupled with cool temperatures. Just like everyone else, I was puzzled when it came to figuring out what attire I should wear on race day. As I was sound asleep in the tent, I was awaken by the pitter patter of rain. As the rain continued, it intensified and my motivation to take the start line seemed to get washed away. I was unable to fall back to sleep as I lay there listening to the rain still trying to figure out how to suit up for the day ahead. I decided on knickers, a short sleeve jersey and arm warmers. This would prove to be the perfect choice for me as I was mostly comfortable for the duration of the ride.<br />
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Instead of riding to the start as usual, I hitched a ride and proceeded to wait for 7:00 to roll around. Being that this was my first NUE series race on gears, I decided to take a spot in the front row and lined up next to guys who have some serious 100 mile speed. Even though this race starts with a climb, I found it much easier to stay at the front with gears. The bike I ended up choosing for this race is one that I spend a lot of time on. The problem is, I only ride this bike on roads and gravel. I have had it on singletrack a few times in the past and was not a fan of how it handled. This had me a bit nervous on how well I would handle the slick singletrack on this particular bike. Because of this, I waived some folks by just prior to entering the singletrack and this included <a href="http://pfunwithpflug.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Gerry Pflug</a>. <br />
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As it turns out, Gerry was able to hang onto the back of the lead group while I found myself in a trio which fell back. This was just fine with me as it gave me a chance to feel out the bike while not feeling any pressure. It didn't take long until I felt like I needed to try to reconnect with the lead group and shortly after asking for a couple of passes, I was on my way. I managed to reconnect with Gerry and follow his lead until we caught up to Garth, Luke and a couple others. Somewhere within the first half hour of the race, I managed to pick a horrible line through a root lace causing my wheel to get laterally torqued which resulted in burping my tire. Not wanting to stop so early in the race, I decided to take a chance and ride on the low pressure. I happened to ride on this tire the rest of the race and upon finishing discovered that I was running on 15psi.<br />
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As soon as we hit a few singletrack climbs, Gerry and his rain pants dropped our little group like we were sitting still. A few minutes later the most entertaining part of the race took place when Garth decided that he would show us how to wash out at high speed in gravel. This was followed with howling that seemed to last forever and surely scared off anything and anyone in the vicinity. Not ten minutes later Garth came flying by and took the rest of our group with him. I would end up spending the rest of the race pretty much solo using the time alone trying to figure out how to ride with gears.<br />
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To make a challenging day even more interesting, my front brake decided to completely die only a couple hours into this event. I swear I looked at my pads prior to leaving home but I guess I didn't look close enough. They were gone and my rear brake was catching about 1/2 inch from the bars. Being that I didn't feel like trying to use a tiny allen wrench with shaky hands to adjust the lever throw, I just let them be and rode accordingly.<br />
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Nothing too interesting happened during the remainder of the race. Here are a few things that stick out in my mind.<br />
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It was very difficult to see most of the day due to mud splattered glasses. I would like to have taken them off but that wouldn't have worked out too well.<br />
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I met Jesse Kelly who I rode off and on with. He was riding a bike which included a dropper seatpost, a fender, and looked like a tank. He was able to drop me at will while climbing which left me very impressed. What really impressed me is that guys of his size are usually not climbers and here he was dropping me 90 miles into a race.<br />
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Trying to grab cookies out of my jersey pocket while riding through a swamp with minimal braking ability can prove to be challenging and can put one into a tree rather quickly.<br />
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I was sitting in 12th place leaving the last aid station and managed to lose two places in the last 15 miles.<br />
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My nutrition was spot on for this race thanks to my carb blend mixed with <a href="http://new.eletewater.com/" target="_blank">Elete</a>. There was no bonking, upset stomach, cramping etc...<br />
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The <a href="http://wolftoothcomponents.com/" target="_blank">Wolf Tooth Components</a> chainring that I installed the day before the race performed flawlessly. I am very impressed with this ring. It is definitley the way to go for a 1x10 setup.<br />
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Vanessa and my parents volunteered at aid station 3/6 for the day. When I rolled up both times, all I had to do was stop and 10 seconds later I was off with full bottles and rinsed glasses. You guys make the best pit crew. Thanks for spending your day working in the nasty weather to make my race as well as many other racers day a little smoother. I heard that my mom was a little confused on how the whole drop bag thing worked. If anyone was missing a Payday out of their drop bag.... she now knows that the drop bags are not for the volunteers.<br />
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I finished in 9h 28m which was about 45 minutes slower than last year. I ended up 14th in the open class and 17th overall.<br />
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It is tough to crawl out of a warm tent knowing you're going to be soaked, cold and riding in slop all day however once on the bike all of the worries disappear and the adventure begins. I really enjoyed how the Cohutta 100 played out this year but.. it would be ok with me if it were warm and dry next year.<br />
<br />Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-34646493319589252602013-04-25T06:31:00.000-07:002013-04-25T06:32:21.551-07:00Changes and the SeasonWith the start of the NUE season just around the corner, I figured it would be a good time to let you know what I've been up to. First off, I had a blast in the off season working through a couple of <a href="http://lwcoaching.com/" target="_blank">Lynda Wallenfels</a> training plans. I managed to stay extremely motivated which in turn has led to some great fitness gains. Unfortunately, the back problems that I experienced around Fools Gold last September have been hanging on all winter long. This has limited my training to almost all road and even with the lack of singletrack, I still am having some issues while riding pavement. I have spent countless hours searching for possible triggers and have worked with some great people in the process.<br />
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My first visit was with Dr. Greg Combs of <a href="http://www.velosmart.com/" target="_blank">Velosmart Performance Labs</a>. While working with Greg, we discovered that I had some pelvic asymmetry issues going on. This asymmetry presented itself as a raised anterior rotated right hip. This also resulted in a 0.5" functional leg length discrepancy. It appears that these asymmetry issues may have led to me dropping my right hip during the pedal stroke resulting in compressive stresses be applied to the lumbar segment as well as possible muscle imbalance.<br />
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After showing me a method of "resetting" my pelvis, Greg showed me some movements to work on that would help my glutes, which may have been inhibited, fire again. We made some major changes to my bike setup which opened up the hips to allow a more effective movement of the hip flexors. Greg also referred me to Dr. Staker. Dr. Staker is a chiropractor who has worked with many cyclists and athletes in general. He specializes in the Active Release Technique (ART) which is something that I had read about and wanted to look into.<br />
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My first visit with Dr. Staker was an eye opener. The x-rays of my spine revealed that I had a severely compressed L5 vertebrae (almost bone on bone at one point) as well as a tilt to the left starting at my L4. No wonder why I am in pain when I ride.<br />
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I continue to actively work with Dr. Combs and Dr. Staker as well as a PT and have already seen some difference in how I feel day to day. I am spending a fair amount of time in the gym trying to strengthen my posterior chain as well as working on hip mobility.<br />
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The million dollar question is how did my body get this messed up? My latest theory is that I had some sort of injury to my iliacus muscle/tendon on the right side. This may have led to a dysfunctional movement while on the bike which in turn led compressive forces being applied to the spine and muscular imbalances.<br />
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What does this mean for my season?<br />
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We are about to find out! Cohutta is this weekend, followed by PMBAR, Wildcat Epic, P111K and the P55k. That is 5 races in four weeks. For now, my focus has shifted from being competitive to seeing if I can even finish Cohutta. My back is so hit or miss that I'll have to take things day by day and week to week. I have registered for 8 NUE series events this year and I am really hoping that I can make it to all of them. If things don't end up working out with the hundies this year, I do have a backup plan that involves shorter distances and all gravel.<br />
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With all of that said, I have move to a new team this year as well as a new bike. I am excited to be joining a great group of guys with the Specialized/Dumonde Tech team. With everything that has been going on, I have decided to hang the singlespeed up for now in favor of racing a Specialized S-works Epic, with gears and everything. It appears that my new ride is being held hostage somewhere so it will not be making the trip to Cohutta. You will instead see me on something shiny and non-Specialized. I am hoping to have the new whip built up for PMBAR.<br />
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No matter what happens good or bad this season, I am going to try to not take time on my bike for granted. I will be focusing on the positives and I sure as heck will be enjoying the ride!<br />
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<br />Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-71617141322566063532013-02-18T15:44:00.002-08:002013-02-18T15:44:36.122-08:00Storm Mountain Bike Marathon 2013Every January, Charlie Storm of <a href="https://www.stormendurance.com/ses/" target="_blank">Storm Endurance</a> puts on a training race at Governer's Creek in Sanford, NC. The race starts with a paved uphill sprint before dashing into 6 miles of singletrack, 30 miles of very flat dirt and paved roads and finishing with the same 6 mile single track loop.<br />
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I participated in this race last year on the singlespeed, was fourth out of the woods and hung with the lead group until we were overtaken by guys who switched to cross bikes for the road portion. I then proceeded to get dropped, missed a turn and ended up adding about six extra miles to the ride.<br />
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This year I was tempted to race gears to have a better chance of not getting dropped on the road. A couple days prior to the race, I decided that it would be better training if I raced the singlespeed. My goal was to get out on the road with the lead group and not get dropped. If I could do that then there would be no way for me to get lost.<br />
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It was quite cold the day of the race. Upon pre-riding about 50 feet of the singletrack, I turned around and was glad to be on the singlespeed. I would not want to put my geared bike through the torture that was about to ensue. There appeared to be snow, ice, water and mud on what would usually be nice hard pack singletrack. This was going to get sloppy.<br />
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I lined up in the front row next to Bob Moss, a fast local singlespeed rider who does well crushing huge gears. As we approached the singletrack Bob was able to duck in front of me in around the 6th position. I had planned on getting into the singletrack first with the hope of dropping him prior to the road section. For now I just had to sit back and wait for a mistake. The singletrack was so sloppy and slick that the number one priority became staying upright. My thoughts quickly turned from staying with the lead group to just not getting injured.<br />
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It wasn't long until I saw the bobble that I was waiting for and I was able to slip past Bob. Once I had him behind me, I was able to reconnect with the lead group while putting a gap on Bob and the rest of the field. As the six of us in the lead group popped out onto the pavement, I glanced back and was happy to have no one in sight. I had a good group to work with consisting of Charlie Storm, Byron Rice, Wes Richards and a couple other guys who were unknown to me. If I could hang on with them until we hit the woods again, I might have a good chance to take the overall.<br />
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Well... that didn't work out. Within 5 miles, I was spinning all alone. This course is extremely flat and it is a huge disadvantage to find yourself on it alone. On a particularly long straight away, I notice a pair a ways back. Every time I turned around they were getting closer. Once they finally caught up, I was very surprised to find a geared guy with Bob Moss right on his wheel. As Bob and I chatted, we must have picked up the pace because the geared rider that was with him fell off immediately. Bob and I spent a few miles together and before I knew it he also dropped off. I waited a few minutes before looking over my shoulder but when I did, there was no one in sight. I took this as a sign to run and so I got the hamster wheel a crankin'. <br />
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I knew that Bob was running a harder gear than I was and when we were together I noticed him standing on any kind of incline. I used this to my advantage as I was trying to build as big of a gap as I could on him. Everywhere where I figured he would be standing, I sat and ground it out. I knew that this approach would get me the precious seconds that I was looking for. There were long sections of gravel road that were covered in ice all the way across. It was quite unsettling to be tucking on icy downhills while not being able to see much out of my mud splattered lenses. Half of the time I didn't know if I was on ice or dirt.<br />
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On the final road section prior to the singletrack, a look over my shoulder confirmed that there was no immediate threat. Instead of trying to make up time on the lead group, I decided to shut it down in the sloppy singletrack and ride cautiously. If Bob were going to catch me, he would have to be moving pretty good while keeping it upright. I just didn't see it happening. As I approached the finish, I caught a glimpse of a rider on another section of singletrack in the woods. No.. it couldn't be! It sure was.. Bob had made up a lot of ground and was an unknown distance behind me. I went into full on race mode and finished up strong not knowing if Bob was right behind me or if was he just on a parallel section of trail a ways back. As it turns out, Bob had been flying. He finished up only two minutes behind me.<br />
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I was the first singlespeed across the line with a time of 2:52. Byron took the overall win with a time of 2:45 and I ended up 6th overall. <br />
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I had a blast riding in such nasty conditions but I sure am glad that I left the gears at home. When I got home, the bike got stripped, drained, cleaned and re-lubed. For good measure and because with I9's it's simple, I pulled apart my rear hub to have a look. As expected everything was perfectly clean and dry in there. I am very please with all of my equipment for surviving a torture test like that.<br />
Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-89326258894923564812012-09-17T08:55:00.000-07:002012-09-17T08:55:55.901-07:00Pisgah Monstercross Challenge Race ReportMy NUE series schedule this year started in April with a huge lull until late summer. This meant that I would be racing the NH100 then two weeks later race the SM100 with the FG100 the following weekend. With the inaugural running of <a href="http://www.pisgahproductions.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=89&Itemid=165">The Pisgah Monstercross Challenge</a> the weekend after Fools Gold, I had decided that it may be best to sit it out and rest up. After the body mechanical I suffered at Fools Gold, I knew that there was no way I would be attending the PMC even if I wanted to.<br />
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Upon returning home from Georgia, I paid a visit to Dr. French of <a href="http://www.drcraigfrench.com/">Chiropractic Wellness</a> who discovered that I had a "locked up" L5 and a "twisted and tilted" sacrum. He made some adjustments and sent me on my way. Immediately after my visit I was able to stand straight and the pain was replaced with soreness. I began thinking the PMC was a possibility and toeing the starting line became my goal for the week. My follow up appointment on Thursday was positive but I was still a little out of whack. I felt great Thursday evening but the soreness returned on Friday. If my pre-ride was any indication for how the race would go, it wasn't looking good. My lower back was extremely sore and I was experiencing tightness under my shoulder blades.<br />
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The morning of the race was crisp and the weather forecast looked promising. I lined up with my buddy Tom near the front of a large mass of random bikes most of which were cross or road bikes. We had both chosen to race on mountain bikes as that is all we own. With lots of gravel and pavement ahead of us we wondered how we would fair with our slow rolling rigs. Since I don't own many tires, I decided to keep my normal 2.4 Racing Ralph on the front and threw a Stans Crow on the rear.<br />
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The start was flat and fast. It only took a few miles for the gravel to turn into an extended climb where Tom and I proceeded to work our way back towards the front of the field. I was able to break away with a group four cross bikes and it wasn't long until we were out of sight. Once we hit the flat section of 1206, I was dropped and spun on solo. I immediately turned around expecting to hitch a ride with the next group but there was no one in site. As luck would have it, one of the three who dropped me popped off the back and he was kind enough to pull me to Yellow Gap. Once we hit the loose descent my huge tires became favorable and I was able to let it rip without too much concern.<br />
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Going into this race, I had an idea of how it would play out. This idea involved being towed on the flats, downhills, all of the parkway, and all of 276 to the finish. Yeah.. that would have been ideal but it just didn't work out that way. Once reaching the climb on 5000, I proceeded to be dropped by Isaac who would work himself back up to second place overall... impressive! After chatting with Wes for a few minutes, he fell back on the climb and I found myself alone for the rest of the race. I was passed by Sam (after he flatted twice) and one other guy on the parkway but saw no one else on that long lonely stretch of pavement. The views up there were gorgeous as always. I made sure to take in the scenery and spent plenty of time reminiscing about the how much fun Vanessa and I had bikepacking along this same stretch of road earlier in the year.<br />
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Riding on the parkway was tough. The grade of the hills was menacing. It was steep enough where it was straining my back to stay seated and not steep enough to stand. I spent much of that time wishing that the road would turn up so I could get into a good standing rhythm. I spent most of my time on the parkway looking behind me. How could I make it this far into the race without being caught by a huge group of skinny tires? I knew they were coming and was baffled as I made it to the 215 descent with no one in sight. My tires sounded like a monster truck railing the pavement at 40+ mph. With all of the tucking that I had done thus far in the race, I was not too thrilled to be tucking for 7 miles straight. This was by far the most painful part of the race.<br />
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As I approached the climb up 475, I caught a glimpse of two riders behind me. At this point, I felt as if I might be doing well in the overall and decided to see if a top 10 was possible. I knew that I had an advantage over the two cross bikes descending 475 and had to put lots of time on them in order to outlast them on the long flat paved finish. Once I reached the flat pavement of 276, I looked back and I was alone. Could I spin/tuck my way to the finish without getting passed? I tried so hard but apparently riding a singlespeed at 30+ mph on a flat is still not enough to hold of two guys on skinny tires working together. With less than two minutes before crossing the finish line, I was caught and passed by these two. I was happy to see that one of these two was the guy who pulled me on 1206 early on in the race. I was also unable to hold off one other solo who made a pass less than 30 seconds from the finish.<br />
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As it turned out, I won the singlespeed division with a 4:28 but missed the top 10 in the overall by three spots. I was so close! I tested my back out early on in the race and continued wondering if and when it would lock up on me. It was sore but stayed nice and loose the entire race. I am relieved to hopefully have that little episode behind me.<br />
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I can't say enough about any of the races that Eric and Erinna put on. They are always affordable, organized, and unique. Everything from check in, timing, food, atmosphere, and volunteers are top notch when <a href="http://www.pisgahproductions.com/">Pisgah Productions</a> are involved. If you haven't had the opportunity to have a Pisgah Productions experience, you are really missing out. Thanks Eric and Erinna!<br />
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I would like to thank local Asheville company <a href="http://www.endlessbikes.com/">Endless Bikes</a> for providing me with an array of cogs to keep me guessing what I should run until race day. The 19t proved to just right for 70 miles of gravel and pavement.<br />
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Congratulations to my buddy Tom for his 5th place singlespeed finish and to his wife Cheryl for cranking out 70 Pisgah miles on her mountain bike!<br />
<br />Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-6137909713215805592012-09-11T06:54:00.001-07:002012-09-11T07:05:14.542-07:00Fools Gold 100 Race Report<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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After my poor performance at Fools Gold last year, I had been eagerly awaiting another shot at putting together a good run on the Dahlonega, GA course. This year the FG100 was the final race of the NUE series and was a good opportunity to gain some points in the overall series standings.<br />
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After finishing up Shenandoah a week ago, I decided to stay off the bike for a few days in prep for FG. Wednesday evening I took a casual spin to get the legs moving and everything felt fine. It wasn't until after the ride that I noticed that my back was extremely sore. Once I got home, I found myself hunched over in a riding position while trying to walk. After stretching I felt marginally better but I was still more or less hunched over. To make a long story short, I was still hunching on Thursday and was a little better on Friday.<br />
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After wondering what was going on with my back and contemplating whether to line up or not, I decided to give the race a go. Things felt ok for the first ~8 miles but soon after, my back started locking up again. Somewhere around mile 30 I began having muscle spasms which just added to the fun of being permanently hunched over. Moving along with a combination of walking and riding, I made it to the mile 40 aid station where I decided to call it a day.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Cred: <a href="http://www.regularjoephotography.com/">regularjoephotography</a></td></tr>
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Pulling out of a race is always a tough decision and it is hard not to regret it. I could have willed myself to the finish but it would have taken a long time and would have been extremely painful. I know that I can finish a 100 mile race so there was nothing for me to prove by finishing. I was and am still unfamiliar with whatever is going on with my back. Not wanting to risk a permanent or long term injury, the only smart option in my mind was to pull out.<br />
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I do not like to finishing the NUE series on this note but I am satisfied with the progress that I have made this year. I can see that I am slowly working my way up the ladder and that gives me motivation to work hard in the off season to try to get another rung closer next season.<br />
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I had an appointment with my chiropractor yesterday and found out that my L5 was locked up and was either caused by or causing my sacrum to be tilted and twisted. He was able to get me straightened out and walking normal again. I hope that my muscles accept the adjustment and continue to remain happy. <br />
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Thank you Eddie and Namrita of <a href="http://www.55nine.com/">55Nine Performance</a> for all your hard work in putting on this race. Also thanks to all of the volunteers who do an excellent job assisting us out on the course.Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-23597324120105717432012-09-05T07:29:00.001-07:002012-09-05T07:29:19.898-07:00SM100 Race ReportThe <a href="http://www.mtntouring.com/mountain/htm/shenandoah_mountain_100/page_sm100.htm">Shenandoah Mountain 100</a> was my first hundred mile race two years ago. My goal back then was to simply have fun and finish. Last year, the SM100 was my fifth hundred and it was the first one in which I would be able to compare results with the year before. I had a good race finishing with a time of 8:50, besting my previous time by an hour and ten minutes. I have continued to learn and improve with every race so for the SM100 this year, I was shooting for an 8:15-8:30 finish time.<br />
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In years prior, the SM100 course had been bone dry and in pristine condition. After completing my short preride Saturday afternoon, I could tell that the course this year had the potential to be quite challenging. With rain in the days prior to the race and more scheduled for race day, I was looking forward to the extreme weather and trail conditions that we were likely to encounter.<br />
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The start of the race is fast as it is on a flat paved road. Once we hit some rolling terrain, the large mass of riders began to break up and I was able to identify some of my competition. I found myself trading places with Watts Dixon, Ben Barnard, and a few other unknown singlespeeders. At the first steep climb, I was able to work through a maze of geared riders and lose contact with Watts and Ben.<br />
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After this point, I don't remember too many details about the race. Maybe it's because I spent a large part of the day alone or maybe it's because the weather/trail conditions got nasty out there and I loved every second of it. Here are some random bits that stick out in my mind..<br />
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- Riding for an hour or so with Lance Pope who was pushing a huge gear. We were discussing his gear choice and the trail conditions wondering if he'd be able to finish. He matched me on every climb until I was able to beat him out of an aid station. I never saw him again but he did finish.<br />
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- My glasses were useless. They hung on my helmet or hid out in my pocket for the entire time. This made being in the tuck position interesting as sand and dirt were streaming off my tires directly into my face.<br />
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- The skies opened up a couple times and it rained hard.<br />
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- The fireroads were soft but not too bad. The most difficult part of the course was the "meadows" slog which was a long continuous climb in deep, slick mud. There were many sections that were like riding in a stream. There was no telling how deep the puddles were going to be so it became a game of pick one and hope it wasn't going to put you over the bars.<br />
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- There was mud everywhere out there. Everything was super slick so I was just hoping to stay upright.<br />
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- The Twizzlers that I keep in my jersey pocket were wet and covered in mud/sand all day long. It was wonderful eating grit all afternoon.<br />
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- There were a couple of long flat sections out there where I was all alone. I didn't catch anybody and no one caught me. I kept looking back hoping for a train of riders but had to ride these sections solo which was slow and monotonous.<br />
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I was able to keep a constant pace and felt great all day. I finished up with a time of 9:01 which was slower than my targeted time but good enough for 5th place singlespeed. I gave it all I had, felt great and thoroughly enjoyed the ride.<br />
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The conditions encountered out there were like a torture test on the equipment. I have to thank <a href="http://www.grassrootsbikes.com/">Grassroots Bikes</a>, <a href="http://www.squirtlube.com/">Squirt Lube</a>, and <a href="http://www.endlessbikes.com/">Endless Bikes</a> for keeping my bike running smooth and performing flawlessly. <br />
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Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-1308421053866420022012-08-21T14:26:00.000-07:002012-08-21T14:26:05.715-07:00Hampshire 100 Race ReportVanessa and I drove up to New Hampshire to race in the Hampshire100 which was a new addition to the NUE Series this year. Niether of us had been to NH before so we were both excited to get the opportunity to take in new sights. The limited data available about the course made gear selection difficult. I chose to run the good all-around gearing of 32/19. After all, my polished 19t <a href="http://endlessbikes.com/">Endless Cog</a> was looking too clean and wanted some action. I was under the assumption that the course would one of the easier NUE Series races that I have participated in. My assumption couldn't have been more wrong.<br />
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The race start was a little different than most NUE races. The start was staggered with the "open" racers off first followed by the masters, women, and singlespeed classes. This start seemed to work out just fine for the singlespeeders as the race opened with a ~20 section of very flat, fast road and rail trail. The singlespeed field seemed to be as stacked as one gets for a NUE race and I found myself dropped by 8-10 of them very quickly. I was able to work my way into several groups along the flat section of course and kept the pace just above comfortable.<br />
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For the first 30 miles or so, I found myself trading places with another singlespeeder who I was unfamiliar with. I introduced myself and found out that I was riding with AJ who should have been one of the front runners. After yo-yoing for a few hours, AJ decided that he had some place to be and took off. As it turns out, he hadn't been feeling all that great in the beginning of the race and ended up working his way all the way back to third.<br />
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For the rest of the initial 65 mile loop, I found myself riding pretty much alone. I eventually caught and passed another singlespeeder who stopped at one of the aid stations that I declined. I rode hard to put in a gap so that I could take a leak without getting caught. I was successful in doing so but was caught and passed not long after. I never saw this guy again and as it turns out, he took 7th by less than 30 seconds.<br />
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Coming into the last ten miles of the first loop I was feeling quite spent. I wasn't bonking but was just wore out. The course was turning out to be much more challenging than I had mentally prepared for. I was ready for rocks, roots and rolling terrain. There were plenty of rocks and roots but the difficult part for me was dealing with the soft singletrack and steep pitches. Even the doubletrack was littered with rocks which made it ride more like singletrack. I do not like walking anything while racing but for this race, I found myself off the bike often. There were many climbs that were just too steep, soft, or loose to climb on the singlespeed. As I was passed and easily dropped by another singlespeed, I was mentally done. I tried to think of an excuse to use for a DNF at the 65 mile mark however I couldn't come up with one.<br />
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While rolling through the pits, I noticed that the singlespeed that had passed me in the last bit of singletrack only had 30 seconds on me. He disappeared in the wooded connector to the road and once I made it to the road, he was out of sight. I was impressed that he could put that kind of time on me so quickly. I spent the rest of the race working hard wondering why I wasn't catching this guy. It turns out that I had passed him in the pits as he stopped to refuel.<br />
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Since I was still gassed and on another long flat section of road, I was just spinning a comfortable pace. It didn't take long until a group of three including Dan Kotwicki and Vicki Barclay caught up with me. I was going to let them go as I didn't think that I had it in me to spin the RPMs that would be required to latch on. I decided to give it a go and they ended up being just what I needed. It was almost relaxing hanging on to this group and we were cruising much faster than I was as a solo. Once we hit the punchy doubletrack climbs, I had to part ways with the group in order to keep my momentum. It wasn't long until I was solo once again.<br />
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Dan worked his way back up to me and pulled for a long time. At times it was all I could do to keep his wheel but I knew I might fall apart if left alone. We were joined by a third who was interested in taking a wheel but would not take a pull. This did not sit all that well with Dan so he increased the pace until we both fell off. I was able to keep sight of the guy in front of me and used him as motivation to keep riding hard. I crossed the finish line in 9:09 and 8th singlespeed. I had hoped for better placing coming into this race but was unaware of the talent that I found myself racing against.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spent a little time on course with Vicki today.</td></tr>
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The course ended up being the toughest NUE 100 course that I have seen so far. This race taught me to not underestimate any race and be mentally prepared for anything. The conditions encountered on this course was a chain's worse nightmare. There was lots of mud, hub deep water/mud holes, loose wet soil and sand. Thanks to <a href="http://www.squirtlube.com/">Squirt Lubes</a>, my chain was running smooth and quiet the entire race without a re-lube.</div>
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The race was very well organized with excellent food before/after the race, plenty of aid stations, lots of great volunteers, accurate course marking and just a great vibe overall.<br />
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Thanks to Vanessa for seamless bottle hand-ups, driving us most of the way home, and finding joy in sleeping in the back of a Ford Focus at service plazas on the way to and from the race.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yeah.. we just slept in the back of a hatchback!</td></tr>
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<br />Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-29591654901653483162012-07-30T09:01:00.001-07:002012-07-30T09:01:30.224-07:00Wilderness 101 Race ReportThe week leading up to the <a href="http://www.mtntouring.com/mountain/htm/wilderness_101/w101_body.htm">W101</a> was all about recovery. I spent lots of time stretching, foam rolling, working trigger points, eating, and hydrating. I got out for an easy spin on Wednesday in which I discovered twinging with the slightest effort and still lots of soreness. This had me wondering if I should even make the 8 hour drive up to PA for the Saturday race. I woke up on Thursday feeling much better and Friday morning, I felt great.<br />
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I kept my pre-ride short with very few efforts and much to my surprise I had no tenderness in my legs. This was great news but I was still unsure of what to expect come race time. Knowing that my legs might be playing tricks on me, the game plan for the race was to take it very easy through mile ~80 and if I still felt good then I would turn it on as best I could. I decided that I would not get caught up in the race and that I would be happy with whatever my time was as long as I finished.<br />
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Saturday morning, we woke up to cloudy skies and dampness in the air. The forecast was calling for the temperatures to rise into the low 80's with a chance of thunderstorms. It had rained the day prior so the course was bound to be slick in places and soft in others.<br />
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The neutral roll out was calm for the first couple of miles and once we hit the first climb of the day it was game on. I was able to keep my breathing and HR under control just as planned. As I watched the masses pass and drop me, I tried to not let it get to me. I knew that the difference between finishing or not might come down to whether or not I could overcome the desire to be competitive. As we were climbing, I was waiting for that first sign of soreness or twinge to take place in my legs but neither happened.<br />
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I found myself with lots of opportunities to draft including one pace line of six singlespeeders. I fell in for a short period of time and pulled out as I started detecting soreness from the fast cadence. From that point on, I decided that I would not indulge in any more drafting until late in the race. Once again, it was difficult to watch the pace lines drop me like I was sitting still but I knew what the consequences might be.<br />
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The middle section of the race was uneventful. I continued to ride a casual pace which really felt too slow but it was nice to get the chance to experience the ride. I had plenty of time to take in the views, talk with fellow racers, as well as volunteers and just have a great time in general. The singletrack was a bit slick and took a lot of focus as it is littered with rocks. I took my time and was able to pick mostly clean lines while remaining in control and without taking many risks.<br />
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Most of the day was spent playing tag with several friends. I would catch and drop them on the climbs only to be caught and dropped on the flats and downhills. Interacting with people I knew all day helped make the miles fly by. Before I knew it, I was rolling up to Aid Station #4 which meant that there were only ~30 miles to go. As I rolled into the aid station, Vanessa had everything I needed ready to go. We had a clean transition which was followed by a long loose, rocky doubletrack climb. This climb had me worried as picking the wrong line would mean putting down power in order to recover. Up until this point my legs were holding out fine. I had some soreness in muscles that cramped the week before but no twinges so far.<br />
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The climb flew by. I managed to pick great lines and worked a smooth effort to the top. Once at the top with the legs in excellent shape, I decided to see what they had left. I picked up the pace and also picked up the sight of another singlespeed in the distance. Knowing that we were headed into an extended rocky doubletrack descent, I made it priority number one to catch the fellow singlespeeder prior to hitting the rough stuff. Lucky for me, the terrain was challenging enough that I was able to mount a surprise attack before he had any idea what happened. There was enough jarring going on while descending that my tube and CO2 managed to wiggle clean out of my Awesome Strap and deposit themselves on the trail. My initial instinct was to continue on with no way to fix a flat which is what I did. Not long after this point, I was kicking myself for making such a stupid decision. For one, I was so far back that taking a minute to gather my things would not matter in the end. Two, the rocks in PA can be brutal and will strike when you least suspect it. Three, I don't get this stuff for free.<br />
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On the last extended climb of the day, I got a glimpse of another singlespeeder just ahead. It brought a smile to my face as I love reeling people in on climbs. It great to watch the gap get smaller and smaller as the rider out front begins to struggle while continuing to look over their shoulder. My favorite part is building up the effort right before the pass so that I can fly by hopefully crushing their will to chase.<br />
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Well, that is not the way it played out this time. I worked hard to close the gap but the gap remained the same. I knew that this guy was running a harder gear than myself so I was expecting to see him hit a wall. Nope. He crushed the climb and once on the flats, he crushed those too. I soon found a geared rider to work with and we gave it a go. I got within striking distance once again but when we hit the fisherman's trail I decided to protect my tires on walk the nasty rock gardens in which he rode. As I popped out on the final rail trail section of the day the singlespeeder that I had my sights on was gone.<br />
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I rolled across the line with a time of 8:14 and 11th place singlespeed. I finished the day with zero cramps or twinges and very strong legs when I kicked it up late in the race. It was different to take a "casual" approach to this race but it lead to a very enjoyable experience.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKtAnvG2pg1kTA3XR0VpqqKL-jmIsKmGlbDfnv4t8GcYJHyUt07PSoADxsld97eZX0_4Hq1hkH3u5Eul1To9ZAyQKa6mK3-pfudzE3u2TPvxcjn1rByo-HS8NIHu8kTtmcVXaI_ERlIBg/s1600/483298_4333124816466_2097902271_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKtAnvG2pg1kTA3XR0VpqqKL-jmIsKmGlbDfnv4t8GcYJHyUt07PSoADxsld97eZX0_4Hq1hkH3u5Eul1To9ZAyQKa6mK3-pfudzE3u2TPvxcjn1rByo-HS8NIHu8kTtmcVXaI_ERlIBg/s320/483298_4333124816466_2097902271_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-69964415964679539882012-07-24T11:43:00.002-07:002012-07-24T12:08:40.087-07:00ORAMM Race ReportKitsuma was buff and fast. I am nowhere near buff and my cautious pace was being threatened by the geared rider who was yo-yoing on and off my wheel. As the Kitsuma descent spit us out on pavement, the rider who had been in hot pursuit of my wheel pulled along side me and said "Congrats man, you did it". As he pulled away, I knew that I hadn't done anything until I crossed the finish line. Even though there were only a couple miles left in the race, I was in bad shape and in danger of becoming a useless pile of cramp with nothing I could do about it. My ride had seemed anything but fast and I had been expecting an attack all afternoon to which I would have had no answer. Lucky for me, I was never challenged and there was no sprint finish. I rolled across the finish line much like I had spent most of the race... alone. It was not until that point in the race that I knew my mind had outplayed my body and I had indeed finished <a href="http://www.blueridgeadventures.net/oramm/">ORAMM</a>.<br />
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I had some difficulty coming up with a goal for ORAMM this year. I don't like to set goals that I don't have much control over such as beating so and so or finishing in a certain place. Because of this, I decided that I was comfortable with the idea of breaking the 5 hour 30 minute mark which has not been done before on a singlespeed. Was it possible? I wasn't sure but I told myself it was. I was looking forward to having an epic battle with some of my competition in which the pace would increase and the times would drop. Instead of playing it safe, I geared for the record and told myself it was all or nothing. Little did I know that I would get caught up in an epic battle that would lead to an all or nothing effort. The battle that I found myself in took me by surprise and did not involve any of my competitors; it was far worse than that. The battle that I was engaged in was between my mind and my body.<br />
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The race started off with a nice slow neutral roll out this year. I knew that I wanted to be towards the front of the pack once we hit Kitsuma for the first time, so I let <a href="http://teamdicky.blogspot.com/2012/07/the-real-deal-oramm-2012-race-report.html">Dicky</a> show me the way. At some point prior to Kitsuma Dicky must have stopped for a beer because I could no longer feel his presence. This meant that I was now the first singlespeed into the singletrack. I hate being in the first position early on in a race because I get scared. When I get scared I run. When one runs early on in a race like this, they tend to get tired and bad things can happen. Before I could run, I was hit with the initial steep punchy climbs of Kitsuma. These climbs had me very very worried about my gear choice for the day.<br />
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I took it easy on the Kitsuma descent as I really had no choice. I stuck to the riders in front of me and tried to not to do anything stupid. At one point I was asking for a pass which is just plain silly at those speeds. As they declined, I thought to myself that there was no need to take any risks and that I could use those guys to draft once we popped out on the road. Once we hit the road, I drafted. Once we hit the bottom of Star gap, I popped.<br />
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I have no idea what the heck happened to me out there on Sunday. Everything was calm and controlled. The race had just started and my legs were strong. My nutrition plan was right on track and I hadn't even felt the burn of an overworked muscle yet. All I know is that once I saw Wes Dickson and hit the small climb on the dirt, my legs started to get twinges. "It's way too early for this" I thought to myself. "There is no way 5:30 is going to happen. I may be lucky just to finish now." Just as I was talking myself out of the race, I took a look at the "5:30" that I had taped to my stem and it was all or nothing from that point forward.<br />
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Unfortunately the twinges turned to full on cramps on my way up the switchback climb. I was unable to put down the power needed to clean some of the more challenging sections so I had to resort to walking. Each time I would stand on my pedals, my quads would cramp. If I sat down and tried to spin, my hamstrings would cramp. Sometimes the cramps would be in one leg and not the other and sometimes the cramps would play with both legs at the same time. During the race I had every imaginable combination of leg cramps possible. The calves eventually joined in on the fun and they must have invited the muscles in the groin because they showed up to the party as well.<br />
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The paragraph above pretty much sums up my day. I should just end the blog post there but I had so much fun out there that maybe I should keep it going.<br />
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Once I made it to the extended double track (Jarret Creek??) I was a complete wreck. I would usually start getting my spin/tuck on but there was no way that was happening today. First off, I couldn't turn the RPMs required to take advantage of the spin/tuck and second, if I had put myself in the tuck position there is a good chance that I would have been stuck in it for the remainder of the race. Instead of focusing on my goal, I was focused on my legs and the fact that it was only a matter of time before I succumbed to the DNF. Even though I was still moving forward, my riding was suffering. All I can say is that I'm glad I was on double track because I was all over the place and quite sloppy. I kept waiting to hear Dicky's bell or at least the sound of geared riders flying past me but neither happened. <br />
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I can't really recall much about the Curtis Creek climb but here are a few things I do remember.<br />
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*Being happy that I was getting to climb because I was cramping even from light spinning. Might as well be doing something that I enjoy.<br />
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*Telling myself that a 45 minute climb is a piece of cake and the grade on Curtis is easy.<br />
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*Yelling "Curtis Creek is my Bitch" while wondering what was going to cramp next.<br />
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*Since I was all alone, I was making up ghost riders on my wheel in hopes of gaining some motivation. Each time I would want to get off the bike, I would use this tactic and it worked every time.<br />
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*Telling myself that if I can make it to Heartbreak, my legs can get a rest and maybe the cramps won't come back.<br />
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*Telling myself that there is no way that I am going to be able to hike up to Heartbreak.<br />
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*Wondering what else in my legs could possibly cramp up.<br />
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*Wanting to quit over and over and looking at that "5:30" on my stem.<br />
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*Mumbling about 5:30 to myself while passing another rider only to have him tell me that we were way off the 5:30 mark.<br />
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*Wondering when I was going to get to the point when I couldn't will my legs to move any longer.<br />
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Once I finally made it to Heartbreak, I decided that I needed to take a nice controlled approach to the descent as any bike ejection event could possibly leave me unable to move. That is exactly what I did. I had a nice clean run down Heartbreak without getting caught by any other riders which I thought was a good sign. As I attempted to remount my bike after the railroad crossing, my groin cramped and I was unable to lift my leg over the top tube. I shuffled down the trail to find a level spot and figured out that if I tipped my bike to lower the top tube, I could swing my leg over it.<br />
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As I approached the last fire road climb leading us back for the second loop of Kitsuma, I gave myself a pep talk. I don't carry the time with me because I like racing by feel. Based on the rider's comment back on Curtis Creek and the lackluster performance from my legs I felt like my goal of 5:30 was unreachable. For all I knew, five hours and thirty minutes may had already passed. I took one look at my stem and I knew what I had to do. I hunkered down and laughed as twinges turned into cramps. I had ridden this far in an unbelievable amount of pain and nothing was going to stop me now. I would stand for a couple of pedal strokes and when my quads/calves cramped, I would sit. I would spin until my hamstrings/quads/groin whatever would cramp and then I'd stand. I repeated this process while catching and dropping several geared guys. It was amusing to me that I hadn't been passed by a single rider since before navigating Star Gap and here I was cramping my ass off all day and still picking guys off.<br />
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I kept telling myself that if I could make it to the top of Kitsuma that I could still win this thing however I was fully aware that my race could be over at any second. Once I hit the pavement, one of the geared guys that I had just passed came by and I worked the best I could to hold his wheel. As we approached Kitsuma he motioned me by with the encouraging words of "do your thing". I told him that I would have to walk my way up and wasn't sure if I could even walk. I took the lead and put all of the power that I could muster into my cranks. I don't know how this happened but I managed to climb the initial Kitsuma climb with just heavy twinges and zero cramps. It seemed like the more power I put down, the better my legs felt. I was going to pull this thing off! Not so fast. After the false Kitsuma summit, there are a couple more climbs. Again I tried to power up these climbs but once again my legs revolted. I found myself off my bike unable to walk. Every muscle in both legs were solid and I couldn't bend them the least bit. I managed to tip from side to side making a waddling motion down the trail.<br />
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My entire race came down to this moment. Had I put forth all of this suffering only to lose in the last few miles of the race? Was this it? Is this how it's going to end? I reminded myself that I had a goal. It was not to win, it was to beat that damn time that I had written on my stem and waddling wasn't going to cut it. I took a look at my stem one last time and the sight of those three numbers gave my mind the final push that it needed. My legs gave in as they knew that they had been beat. Once again my cranks began to turn down that buff Kitsuma single track.<br />
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I crossed the finish line with a time of 5:36:18 which took the top singlespeed honors and a top 20 overall finish. I was short of my goal by 6 minutes and 18 seconds. I will be back and my stem will read 5:30 once again.<br />
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<br />Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-789841303928962791.post-36241977446316507652012-07-24T08:20:00.001-07:002012-07-24T08:26:19.199-07:00Road TripVanessa and I headed out West once again this year. We decided to add a couple new destinations to the mix as well as a few favorites. This time instead of flying, I loaded up the truck and drove on out. I was able to get a little bikepacking in on the Colorado Trail before picking Vanessa up at the Denver airport.<br />
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From Denver, we headed North to ride the trails in Kurt Gowdy state park and then worked our way over to Jackson Hole, WY. We spent a few day riding in the land of the Tetons as well as a day of sightseeing in Yellowstone.</div>
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Next up was Park City, UT where we rode the Mid-Mountain and Wasatch Crest trails. After having a great time with some Park City locals, we drove South and then West which landed us in our favorite place on earth, Crested Butte, CO.</div>
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We spent five or so days in Crested Butte. In addition to riding all of the classics, I sought out and conquered as many extended climbs as I could find. I was extremely happy to be in the land of big hills as we don't have any at home and I love to climb. We also indulged in daily ice cream at the new ice cream joint in town (Third Bowl). With flavors like salted caramel, chevre with candied lemon, chocolate cherry bourbon, and avocado with candied ginger how could you not eat this stuff on a daily basis. The fourth of July parade was quite a spectacle and the best we've seen.</div>
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On our trek back towards Denver, Vanessa dropped me off at the top of Monarch Pass so I could pay a visit to a "friend" who I hadn't seen in a couple of years. It was my pleasure to spend a few hours getting reacquainted with the Monarch Crest, Silver Creek, and Rainbow trails. The weather was perfect and the trails were rippin'.</div>
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As always, it was sad to leave CB but it was nice to spend some time back in Denver with our friends Luis and Lima who graciously took us in and fed us quite well. I took the bike out one last time on the Colorado Trail near Copper Mountain with Luis and <a href="http://goatshell.blogspot.com/">Jeremy</a> and had an absolute blast. </div>
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I would have to say that this was our best trip yet and I am already looking forward to planning the next.<br />
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If you aren't tired of looking at pictures yet or if you want to kill some more time at work, check out the link below. We came home with around 800 pictures from this trip. Our camera batteries failed us so please excuse the quality as most of them were taken with my shaky hands and phone.<br />
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<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/klklett1?feat=email">Trip Pictures</a>Kelly Kletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05228444521736852995noreply@blogger.com2