Breck 68 Race Report by Matt Leonard
A few months back, I noticed Isaias had posted a note about some race in Breckenridge Colorado. I took a look, and thought like it looked like an awesome course. After a quick call to see how serious he was, I was in. I mentioned it to Katie and it seemed like within minutes her mom had booked an eight bedroom house in Breckenridge and the whole fam damnily was coming for a family vacation.(Katie’s parents, brother, sister, and six nieces and nephews all live near Boulder.)
So, here I was, busy with life wondering how I’d ever manage to race my bike 68 miles, at an average altitude of ~10,500 feet, and climbing approximately 9000 feet. I tried to squeeze in a ride here and there, but with moving and trying to find new daycare for Alex, I wasn’t left with much free time. Mid-July came pretty quickly, and reality was setting in. I borrowed a bike box from Paule and Julie, got a brief tutorial on how to properly pack a bike, and with a few last minute panic moments, I was ready to go. Unfortunately, earlier in the week, Isaias and Joie got some bad news and were unable to make it out to CO. A quick email to Ty and I had a fill in for a racing buddy.
We arrived in Breckenridge at around 4:00 on Thursday, and I quickly assembled my bike and headed out for a ride. I looked at the maps, and planned on doing the first 5 miles or so of my first loop, then cutting the course to the last 5 miles or so of the 35 mile loop. A quick spin over to the start finish and I hit the single track. I went up, then up some more, then up some more. It was really nice swoopy single track, if I’d been descending. I climbed from 9,600 ft up to about 10,500 feet, the first peak of the race. After about 20 minutes dealing with shortness of breath, I warmed up, settled in and felt like come race day, I’d at least finish my first loop. I hung out at the abandoned mine with some new friends from Park City, Utah and Springfield, Missouri. After some chatting about the race, I bombed down the fire road, and then took a left to cut over to the end of the course and head back in to town. On race day, I’d take a right and ascend a rocky double track trail up to 11,500 ft.
On Friday, my brother in law rented a bike and we headed out to the start of what would be my second loop of the race. We climbed pavement for a half mile or so which would be part of the course, then jumped on to some more fun single track which gradually gained elevation. After a few miles, we hit pavement, which turned in to fire road, which turned in to rocky double track with creek crossings, then up, up and more up. We turned around after about a total of 5 miles or so to head back and meet up with Ty. But after two days of preriding, I was feeling good, even though both days it took about 20 minutes for my lungs to warm up.
Race Day: After an evening of carbo loading at the local brewery, Ty and I rolled out around 8:30 to the race to go check in. With a 10AM start, we had a lot of time to kill. But it gave us a chance to take it all in and watch the first 75 people roll through the start/finish who had started at 6AM for the 100 mile race. Those masochists added about 30 miles and another 4000 ft of climbing to the beginning of our 70 mile race.
Just prior to our 10 AM start, Ty somehow without me knowing snuck up to the front row of the neutral start. We rolled out of town casually and climbed up the pavement a few miles to thin the group out and then dove in to the single track climb I’d preroad Thursday. The atmosphere was calm, since we had 65+ miles to go together, so the group rolled along casually. Once we crested the first peak at 10,500ft, I bombed the descent passing 5-10 people. We began our first climb of the day to 11,500ft. Fire road qhickly turned in to rocky double track, which had people walking near the top. Once the trail flattened out, it was rolling single track as we rode at 11,500 ft for a few miles, and then started a mean fire road descent. After a long descent, I opted to skip the first aid station and began climbing again in some nice wooded single track. At this point I was feeling tired, but good.
Once we crested the next peek, somewhere around 2 hours in, we started an awesome semi technical descent. At this point I caught Ty, and we started passing people left and right. At some point I passed him since he was on his single speed, but I just kept railing the single track and passing a ton of people. Then we started going up again, a lot. At this point I was in my granny gear every time the trail went up, and we climbed for what seemed to be forever. After some more up and down single track, we popped out on the last bit of our first loop which I remembered from Thursday. I rolled through the S/F just under 4 hours and was feeling good. Ty called it quits, which I can’t blame him. That loop was brutal with gears, so I can’t even begin to imagine doing it on a SS.
A quick pit stop, and off I go. I took the first few miles easy since I knew what was coming and I took the chance to spin and rest. Right about where my brother in law and I turned around on our preride Friday, the trail got significantly steeper and almost completely loose rock. I walked with several other folks for about a half hour, stopping to accept an offer of handfuls of blueberries from a volunteer. Off I went, with about 3 more miles of smooth fire road climbing to the first of two 11,500 ft climbs for this loop. It was sort of a figure eight which doubled back on itself at the top of the peak. A nice stop at the aid station for some refueling, and off I go again. A quick right turn in to the single track and I felt like I was in Downieville; endless swoopy single track with roots, rocks, water, pure ear to ear grin type descending. Again, I was passing people left and right.
The 1800 ft descent had enough brief sections of climbing to almost break my spirit, but the trail would turn downward before doing so. So, 5 hours and 45 minutes in to the race I’m sitting at the second to last aid station outside an old mining town. I knew I had about 10 miles and 1800 ft of fire road ahead of me, but figured I’d put my head down and do my best to crush it in about 45 minutes. I figured miserably wrong. For the first 15 minutes or so, I rode at about 15 mph with a guy who was doing the 100 race and had just two weeks prior finished in 10th place at the tour divide. As soon as the trail pitched up a bit, I said goodbye and settled in to reality. I was watching the feet tick away on my Polar watch ever so slowly and knew I had a long way to go. People started to go by me pretty frequently, offering words of encouragement as I sat on the side of the trail stretching and trying to force fluids and calories in to my body every 15 minutes or so.
It took me an hour and 15 minutes to get back up to the aid station at the peak. Okay, all downhill from here! I asked the volunteer how long to the bottom, and his response, “About an hour.” I hung my head in dismay. I’d been on my bike for 8 hours and was really tired. I hadn’t cramped yet, and I think the altitude was actually benefiting me. For the entire 8 hours, I was never able to give it full gas. My legs just didn’t have the capability to put any power to the pedals. Fortunately this meant at no point during the day was I able to burn myself out. Anyway, back to the volunteer… I told him I’d been crushing the descents all day and he said maybe I’d get to the finish in 45 minutes. I said, “I’m doing it in 35,” shifted in to the big ring and started bombing the rutted out fire road descent.
Psssh, an hour, whatever… After about a mile of 30 miles an hour and passing support vehicles, reality presented itself. Like a 100 ft mythical creature blocking my path, I watched as volunteers were directing me in to a single track climb. Up we go again, super granny gear, I slogged on for a bit. But after a while, the trail started going down, fast. I felt like I was riding the South Burma trail in Annadel, but for about 5 times as long. A ton of roots, rocks, small jumps, and steep descents. I stopped for a few minutes to help a girl with a flat, but she decided to ride it in even though she had a spare tube. After trying to help her get the Stans to seal it, and unsuccessfully trying to convince her to put her tube in, I rolled on. More steep, rocky, technical descents, and then there it was like the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow; the road back to the start finish.
I bombed the pavement in full roadie tuck, and took a short bit of single track behind some houses. I missed an arrow or something and wound up riding on the city streets for a little detour back to the S/F. So I had to make my way around a gate and enter the grass field to cross the finish line. Ty greeted me with a much deserved congratulations after 8 hours and 39 minutes on the bike. I sat stunned for a bit, shocked I’d completed such a grueling race. I’d never attempted anything like this before, and afterward told Isaias and Joie that I felt I’d basically done the Downieville XC race 3 times back to back.
All in all, I ended up 21st out of 39 people who started the race (4 DNFs) in the 30-39 age group, 2.5 hours behind the leaders. Even more crazy, is that the pros finished the 100 mile race in about 20 minutes less time than it took me to do what turned out to be a little over 70 miles. People keep asking me if I’d do it again, and I think I will next year and invite my parents along for the big family vacation. We’ll see though, time to start thinking about the SoNoMas race!
Matt
So, here I was, busy with life wondering how I’d ever manage to race my bike 68 miles, at an average altitude of ~10,500 feet, and climbing approximately 9000 feet. I tried to squeeze in a ride here and there, but with moving and trying to find new daycare for Alex, I wasn’t left with much free time. Mid-July came pretty quickly, and reality was setting in. I borrowed a bike box from Paule and Julie, got a brief tutorial on how to properly pack a bike, and with a few last minute panic moments, I was ready to go. Unfortunately, earlier in the week, Isaias and Joie got some bad news and were unable to make it out to CO. A quick email to Ty and I had a fill in for a racing buddy.
We arrived in Breckenridge at around 4:00 on Thursday, and I quickly assembled my bike and headed out for a ride. I looked at the maps, and planned on doing the first 5 miles or so of my first loop, then cutting the course to the last 5 miles or so of the 35 mile loop. A quick spin over to the start finish and I hit the single track. I went up, then up some more, then up some more. It was really nice swoopy single track, if I’d been descending. I climbed from 9,600 ft up to about 10,500 feet, the first peak of the race. After about 20 minutes dealing with shortness of breath, I warmed up, settled in and felt like come race day, I’d at least finish my first loop. I hung out at the abandoned mine with some new friends from Park City, Utah and Springfield, Missouri. After some chatting about the race, I bombed down the fire road, and then took a left to cut over to the end of the course and head back in to town. On race day, I’d take a right and ascend a rocky double track trail up to 11,500 ft.
On Friday, my brother in law rented a bike and we headed out to the start of what would be my second loop of the race. We climbed pavement for a half mile or so which would be part of the course, then jumped on to some more fun single track which gradually gained elevation. After a few miles, we hit pavement, which turned in to fire road, which turned in to rocky double track with creek crossings, then up, up and more up. We turned around after about a total of 5 miles or so to head back and meet up with Ty. But after two days of preriding, I was feeling good, even though both days it took about 20 minutes for my lungs to warm up.
Race Day: After an evening of carbo loading at the local brewery, Ty and I rolled out around 8:30 to the race to go check in. With a 10AM start, we had a lot of time to kill. But it gave us a chance to take it all in and watch the first 75 people roll through the start/finish who had started at 6AM for the 100 mile race. Those masochists added about 30 miles and another 4000 ft of climbing to the beginning of our 70 mile race.
Just prior to our 10 AM start, Ty somehow without me knowing snuck up to the front row of the neutral start. We rolled out of town casually and climbed up the pavement a few miles to thin the group out and then dove in to the single track climb I’d preroad Thursday. The atmosphere was calm, since we had 65+ miles to go together, so the group rolled along casually. Once we crested the first peak at 10,500ft, I bombed the descent passing 5-10 people. We began our first climb of the day to 11,500ft. Fire road qhickly turned in to rocky double track, which had people walking near the top. Once the trail flattened out, it was rolling single track as we rode at 11,500 ft for a few miles, and then started a mean fire road descent. After a long descent, I opted to skip the first aid station and began climbing again in some nice wooded single track. At this point I was feeling tired, but good.
Once we crested the next peek, somewhere around 2 hours in, we started an awesome semi technical descent. At this point I caught Ty, and we started passing people left and right. At some point I passed him since he was on his single speed, but I just kept railing the single track and passing a ton of people. Then we started going up again, a lot. At this point I was in my granny gear every time the trail went up, and we climbed for what seemed to be forever. After some more up and down single track, we popped out on the last bit of our first loop which I remembered from Thursday. I rolled through the S/F just under 4 hours and was feeling good. Ty called it quits, which I can’t blame him. That loop was brutal with gears, so I can’t even begin to imagine doing it on a SS.
A quick pit stop, and off I go. I took the first few miles easy since I knew what was coming and I took the chance to spin and rest. Right about where my brother in law and I turned around on our preride Friday, the trail got significantly steeper and almost completely loose rock. I walked with several other folks for about a half hour, stopping to accept an offer of handfuls of blueberries from a volunteer. Off I went, with about 3 more miles of smooth fire road climbing to the first of two 11,500 ft climbs for this loop. It was sort of a figure eight which doubled back on itself at the top of the peak. A nice stop at the aid station for some refueling, and off I go again. A quick right turn in to the single track and I felt like I was in Downieville; endless swoopy single track with roots, rocks, water, pure ear to ear grin type descending. Again, I was passing people left and right.
The 1800 ft descent had enough brief sections of climbing to almost break my spirit, but the trail would turn downward before doing so. So, 5 hours and 45 minutes in to the race I’m sitting at the second to last aid station outside an old mining town. I knew I had about 10 miles and 1800 ft of fire road ahead of me, but figured I’d put my head down and do my best to crush it in about 45 minutes. I figured miserably wrong. For the first 15 minutes or so, I rode at about 15 mph with a guy who was doing the 100 race and had just two weeks prior finished in 10th place at the tour divide. As soon as the trail pitched up a bit, I said goodbye and settled in to reality. I was watching the feet tick away on my Polar watch ever so slowly and knew I had a long way to go. People started to go by me pretty frequently, offering words of encouragement as I sat on the side of the trail stretching and trying to force fluids and calories in to my body every 15 minutes or so.
It took me an hour and 15 minutes to get back up to the aid station at the peak. Okay, all downhill from here! I asked the volunteer how long to the bottom, and his response, “About an hour.” I hung my head in dismay. I’d been on my bike for 8 hours and was really tired. I hadn’t cramped yet, and I think the altitude was actually benefiting me. For the entire 8 hours, I was never able to give it full gas. My legs just didn’t have the capability to put any power to the pedals. Fortunately this meant at no point during the day was I able to burn myself out. Anyway, back to the volunteer… I told him I’d been crushing the descents all day and he said maybe I’d get to the finish in 45 minutes. I said, “I’m doing it in 35,” shifted in to the big ring and started bombing the rutted out fire road descent.
Psssh, an hour, whatever… After about a mile of 30 miles an hour and passing support vehicles, reality presented itself. Like a 100 ft mythical creature blocking my path, I watched as volunteers were directing me in to a single track climb. Up we go again, super granny gear, I slogged on for a bit. But after a while, the trail started going down, fast. I felt like I was riding the South Burma trail in Annadel, but for about 5 times as long. A ton of roots, rocks, small jumps, and steep descents. I stopped for a few minutes to help a girl with a flat, but she decided to ride it in even though she had a spare tube. After trying to help her get the Stans to seal it, and unsuccessfully trying to convince her to put her tube in, I rolled on. More steep, rocky, technical descents, and then there it was like the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow; the road back to the start finish.
I bombed the pavement in full roadie tuck, and took a short bit of single track behind some houses. I missed an arrow or something and wound up riding on the city streets for a little detour back to the S/F. So I had to make my way around a gate and enter the grass field to cross the finish line. Ty greeted me with a much deserved congratulations after 8 hours and 39 minutes on the bike. I sat stunned for a bit, shocked I’d completed such a grueling race. I’d never attempted anything like this before, and afterward told Isaias and Joie that I felt I’d basically done the Downieville XC race 3 times back to back.
All in all, I ended up 21st out of 39 people who started the race (4 DNFs) in the 30-39 age group, 2.5 hours behind the leaders. Even more crazy, is that the pros finished the 100 mile race in about 20 minutes less time than it took me to do what turned out to be a little over 70 miles. People keep asking me if I’d do it again, and I think I will next year and invite my parents along for the big family vacation. We’ll see though, time to start thinking about the SoNoMas race!
Matt
posted by maleonardphi @ 7/23/2010
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home