Pisgah..a little late

Now THAT was fun.

Even though it's a few weeks later, I still can't come up with words that would do proper justice to the Pisgah Mountain Bike Stage Race. Fact is, I can't really describe the best week of riding of my life. And the bigger bummer is that I don't even have any pictures to show off! But here's a video of the Black Mountain DH, what we got to finish on 4/5 days. For the record, when I close my eyes and picture the perfect trail in my dreams, this is it:

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Let's back up. Back in July, my friend and old teammate Robert Marion asked if I was interested in doing this race. He had arranged for my old Kenda team mechanic Chris Magerl to come out and work the event and said that I would love the riding. I said "Nah....that's the start of cross season. No thanks."

As the weeks wore on and I continued to chase the NUE Series title I couldn't escape how much fun I was having riding my mountain bike. The cross bike wasn't really calling out like it did last year. Don't get me wrong, I always love riding ALL my bikes, but this year has been extra special. Something in me shifted to a different level and all I can describe it as is pure joy. I have been riding my mountain bike this year with so much joy, so much happiness, so much passion and enthusiasm, I just can't wait to do it every day. And this has been whether I am out training, out to just spin easy or out with friends for fun.

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Post Stage 3. Whoa, you can tell I am tired!

Maybe it's because I am finally 110% dedicated to endurance and have pretty much ditched the XC scene besides for a training race here and there. Who knows? All I know is that as the summer wore on, I have wanted to do everything I can to ride my mountain bike MORE. So when the opportunity to do Pisgah arose I quickly decided cross season could wait. There were world-class trails to be ridden and raced!

Logistics took on a life of their own and all of the sudden I had paid the entry, bought a plane ticket, shipped bikes, hired a mechanic and rented an idyllic little cabin in Pisgah Forest. Nate had taken a job with Giant to help prep for Interbike so he would be gone anyway. Just 5 days after returning home from the Shenandoah 100 I was back on a plane to race yet another unknown race course on the east coast. Turns out it was the best decision I have ever made.

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Stage 4 climb up Squirrel Gap. I was bonking. Hard. I had been out of water for an hour and I was deep in the pain cave on this climb. For the record, stage 4 was 38 miles long and took 5 HOURS!

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Post Stage 1 Interview

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Stage 5 Post Race

If you want the nitty-gritty details, cyclingdirt.com has great coverage of the event. Lots of additional helmet cam and video there to enjoy. As I do not want this blog entry to turn into the War and Peace of posts, I'll sum it up sans the blow-by-blow. In short:

1. I fell in love with Pisgah, its people, the trails and the daily challenge.
2. The riding was ridiculously hard but also mind-boggling-ly fun. My fun meter was pinned 5 days straight.
3. 5 days was long, but it was also too short.
4. I came away with a lot more confidence in my bike handling, my mental toughness and my tolerance/ability to push/walk/heave my bike up ridiculously steep hills. I've never ridden so much with the saddle on my stomach going downhill.
5. I would enthusiastically recommend this race to anyone who digs phenomenal race organization (everything was completely dialed-course markings were the best I have seen all year, aid stations were awesome, timing was perfect,the food beer and smiles were aplenty, the race involved the community with kids events, a huge post-race party and also did a fundraiser for World Bicycle Relief, and the payout was extremely generous) and crazy good singletrack.
6. I would not recommend it to people who cannot deal with long hike-a-bikes, copious amounts of roots, rocks, suffering, gravel roads and who do not like to scare themselves once in a while.
7. I won all 5 stages and the overall title after daily battles with Sue Haywood. I can only hope to be half her speed in my retirement! Sue is total class, all the time.
7. I think stage racing is my favorite thing in the world.

I got 4 of these. I signed one and donated it to the silent auction for World Bicycle Relief and I gave another to the family from whom I rented the world's most perfect cabin in the woods.

As for my 2010 mountain bike season, it's a wrap. Now it's time to see what I can milk out of my body for an abbreviated cross season. Going from 100-milers to "I'm going to vomit" 45 min. efforts? Right.

The Finale: The Shenandoah 100

The Shenandoah 100 was the NUE series finale and the last race of the mtb season for me that "matters." Every race matters of course, but it takes a phenomenal amount of mental energy to have every race be an important one. The SM100 was important. I came prepared for a tough day whether my legs/head wanted it to be or not.



Racing this distance at this point of the season can go one of two ways depending on how motivated you are and how good you feel. As this was my 5th 100-miler of the year (in addition to a 12-hr event, multiple national-level xc events, marathon nationals and a 100k) it could have gone either way. As I am on a borrowed laptop because my hard drive crashed 2 weeks ago and is still out for repair, I'll save you the long-winded blow by blow race report.

In short, it was the hardest NUE I did all year. The weather (I am still in shock, really) couldn't have been any more perfect. The field was deep (30 women!), the course was hard and I suffered. I went into the race most concerned about Cheryl Sorenson as we were neck and neck for the NUE series title and this result would determine the overall series winner. It ended up that I had Sue Haywood on my wheel until mile 75 which made the day a lot more fun, but also a LOT more challenging, stressful, strategic and HARD. We were in a pattern of me gaining time on the climbs and Sue smoking me on all the descents all day. I finally decided to make my move just before the aid station at mile 75, knowing that I had to make up enough time on the remainder of the climbing so she couldn't catch me on the down before the finish. I was struggling with the same mechanicals all day and it made the descents scary.

I finished first just 5 1/2 min. ahead of Sue in 8:23 with no front brake and a huge sigh of relief. And, I got what I came for:

My NUE Series Overall Trophy. That's me, charging a stream in the Mohican 100.

The SM100 was the best event of the series. I know all volunteers rock, but Chris and his army made this event extra special. I never had to get off my bike at any of the aid stations. I simply stood there while one person got my drop bag and held it while another took stuff out for me and stuffed my pockets. All racers know and appreciate how much of a help that is-Thanks everyone! The post race party was incredible with unlimited food, beer and smiles. Equal payout too! This is one race I will most definitely return to and recommend to everyone. As part of my NUE Series title is free entry to all the 2011 events, I'll be back!