|   Soul ride | BSG
Oct 15, 2003 5:39 PM | | Is anyone rideing the Soul Ride in Oracle. Im signed up for the 60 mile race. Its my first race of any kind. I was hopeing for good info on the course. Thanks for any info
BSG |
| re: Soul ride | crash test dummy
Oct 16, 2003 2:44 PM | | yup I'm riding the 60 as well. It looks much easier than last year as it is just two laps of the 30 mile. Last year we had to do the climb into the Galleros which was BRUTAL. The course starts out as asphalt, then dirt and I think they have thrown in a few miles of the AZ trail and then it is dbl track downhill then back up a dirt road to another part of the az trail a little more asphalt and then another lap. Should be some pretty fast times this year. You can see more at www.epicrides.com |
| re: Soul ride | BSG
Oct 16, 2003 4:25 PM | | Sweet. Hope its a fun course. How well was the course marked last year. Im not going to be able to pre-ride the course so Im hopeing its well marked.
Thanks for the Info
Ill see ya there
BSG |
| re: Soul ride | crash test dummy
Oct 16, 2003 9:51 PM | | You won't have any problems following the course, the 100 milers leave an hour ahead of us so all you do is follow the tracks to the 1st aid station and the rest is pretty intuitive. Not an awesome course per se but with 60 miles you're bound to have to ride some dirt road - but a good ride. See ya there. Yellow DB hardtail. |
| re: Soul ride | BSG
Oct 17, 2003 7:47 AM | | Thanks for the info. Ill be on a silver and Black RM Instinct.
Have fun and Good Luck
BSG |
| re: Soul ride | crash test dummy
Oct 18, 2003 5:18 PM | | Rode the 30 mile loop once today- 3.5 hours- granted I was nursing a hangover (thats my excuse and I'm sticking to it) but Sunday is gonna be a long day. The ride was more fun than I remember it. Rode with a roadie who whopped up on us.... |
| 2003 Soul ride - 100 - my story | Johnnygun
Dec 12, 2003 1:12 PM | | The 2nd annual Soul Ride
Yes, I did the 100 miles. Yes it kicked some serious butt. I am very proud to have completed the century, my first century ever, on a mountain bike. That says it all right there.
I elected to use a hard tail ( a 2000 Trek 8000 )with a set of IRC Mythos Slicks ( lightly treaded ) - XT components complete - Duke XC fork - No camelback - two water bottles on the frame with all repair equipment fitting in jersey pockets
Julia drove support and provided a very well stocked Jeep at each checkpoint.
As soon as the first break of dawn could be seen creeping over the eastern horizon the gun went off. 140 or so cold restless MTB'ers started on this 100 mile journey across the desert. I was feeling good. I have been training hard and was as ready as I was ever going to be.
The first climb of the day was pretty much a hike a bike through Cody loop backwards. As far as the eye could see like a line of ants, warmly dressed MTB'ers walked their bikes up the mountain. No complaints, it appeared as if everyone was content to save a little energy for the long hall. There were no hero's appearing yet.
After the climb up Cody came the decent down into san Manuel to the first checkpoint. The decent was formable and dangerous at the beginning with a settling into a sandy wash type terrain as we drew closer to San Manuel and Webb road. I took a spill towards the bottom in some sand. Minor scrapes but no biggy. I was back up and rolling within seconds.
I was feeling great at the first checkpoint. I refilled water bottles, GU, and dropped off my jacket. I was ready for the 18 mile downhill to Mammoth.
The ride to Mammoth was uneventful, fairly smooth sailing. Lots of time to contemplate the pain that was quietly approaching. I was not looking forward to the 13 mile climb up the Galiuros. I had done the training climb a couple of weeks prior and was confident but it was grueling then and I knew it was going to be grueling now. I'm glad the checkpoints 2 and 3 had been placed strategically at the beginning and end of the climb.
Well checkpoint 2 - The base of the climb. I refueled, watered, and contemplated. I explained to Julia that she would be waiting a couple of hours at checkpoint three and I asked the gods for luck. I started up that nasty, evil, lung busting, soul sucking mountain. I was able to maintain a fairly even pace and keep my heart rate within a manageable percentile throughout the climb. One of the hardest things during this section is the descents. They are lose and steep, and will buck you right off in an instant. They rattle your teeth and make every muscle weary. There is the 2 mile long downhill at the halfway point that I swear was harder than the climb itself. I reached checkpoint three famished, weak, shaken, and in dire need of a rest. I sat on the tail gate of the jeep and replenished my stores while slamming Gatorade and bananas. I also took a couple electrolyte supplements trying to keep a balanced salt level. I was just thinking about the climb when Julia says "Hey its 12, You only have an hour and a half to get to checkpoint 4"
Damn, with the wind picking up there was no way that I could possibly keep the speed up to make it the 25ish miles to the next checkpoint. I grabbed my bike, a last bite of banana in my mouth headed off towards checkpoint 4 - I was truly bummed out and wondering why I hadn't picked the pace up earlier in anticipation of the cutoff point. I new that with the headwind there was no way I would be making the cutoff. It was during my self pity session while peddling furiously that a pace line of mountain bikes, about 4 starts screaming past me. I quickly deduce that this will probably be my only chance at making the cutoff so I stood up, put my best foot forward and gave it every thing I had to catch up to the tail end of this pace line. I slid into last wheel, breathless, but hopeful. The wind gave way to the air pocket and I settled in at a nice 20mph pace. If I could stay with the pace line I would make the cutoff. Thank the Buda. *smile*
I was able to stay with the pace line for about 8 miles before I peeled off. I couldn't keep the pace but had earned enough time to make the cutoff. The last 2 mile hike a bike up to checkpoint 4 was taxing but I was elated knowing I would be allowed to continue with my regime of self inflicted pain. I made my way to checkpoint 4 arriving with 35 minutes to spare. Thank you whoever you guys were, your pace line allowed me to finish this race.
So now I am so spent that I am beginning to question my whole reason for being there. I can barely move. I did not anticipate having to maintain that high of a heart rate for so long to make the cutoff. I am spent. Julia does what she can - hands me Excedrin, bananas, e-caps, Gatorade and lots of congratulations. Thank god my bike is holding up cause my body is screaming my age to me every millisecond. Well I figure that I can rest a bit now that I have made the cutoff, so Julia lays a towel out for me on the pavement and I lay down stretching completely out to give my muscles a rest. It was about this time that the official comes by and states that if we are not out of there by 1:30 (cutoff time) then we are disqualified. ha-ha just my luck, but Ill be damned if I'm going to get disqualified after going this far (about 65 miles at this point) so I kiss Julia good bye, get on my bike, ignore the pain in my butt and start peddling towards the next and last checkpoint of the day. It about 1:15 pm.
This leg of the race is just brutal. Its a constant climb of endless double track. I think the brutality comes from knowing that you have come so far but you still have so far to go. There is lots of time for reflection. Halfway to checkpoint 5 a pickup stops in front of me. A man get out opens a cooler from the back of his truck, grabs an ice cold Gatorade and hands it to me. I stop, took the Gatorade, and thanked the man. He told me I had about 7 miles to go until checkpoint 5. I still wonder if that guy really existed. hmmm
I got to see Steve C and Dick Bryant at checkpoint 5 - friendly faces. I was so out of it by that point that I was a mere fraction of myself. I tried to understand what Steve was asking me but I couldn't really get it. I just nodded politely and I could see the understanding in his face. I grabbed some Newton's, Gatorade, bananas, and tried to reenergize for the last leg. It was about 3:30. I was told that I was 17 miles from the finish. I would find out later that I was 17 miles from the 10 miles of single track making it a total of 27 miles from the finish. I decided that since I was only 17 miles from the finish and it was 3:30 that I wouldn't need a light because I could easily make the time. I left my light kit in the jeep.
I kissed Julia good bye and told her that I would see her at the finish line. off she went. I picked up a rider at checkpoint 5. His name was Rory. He was 17. We rode together from checkpoint 5 the whole way, chatting and drawing strength from each other. The sun was getting low and my odometer showed that we were 2 miles from the finish but the terrain didn't look like we were that close. The next two miles were spent wondering where we had made the wrong turn until we saw the start of the single track and it all came together for me. We had 1 hour of daylight left to do 10 miles of single track. Not unheard of but not easy after riding 90 miles. Like we had a choice. Off we went. the going was slow, the single track was slightly technical and we were very spent. Both of us ate what we had left before we started the single track so that we would have some energy to make the technical sections. And the sky grows darker. Finally we pass the marker saying the ranch house is only 1.9 miles. And the sky grows darker. Thank god the ranch house. And the sky is black. we are 3 miles from the finish and have to ride the pavement - no problem I said to Rory as we start up the road. We were 1 mile from the finish when Julia coming at us from the other way pulls a U-turn behind us and floods the road with light for us to see the last mile in. There were lots of people cheering when Rory and I crossed the finish line. A little girl handed me a trophy that Rudy had made (thank you Rudy). I had finished. A quick goodbye to Rory and the Soul Ride of 2003 ended for me.
There were so many people, and so many inspiring things, and thoughts that took place during that ride that I couldn't possibly find the time to mention all of them. Thanks to all of you - you know who you are. Good Luck Rory!!
There's my story
Casey |
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