Vision Quest Wrap

Vision Quest was unlike any other endurance event I've ever done. It was awesome. But uniquely awesome. A lot of the time I was quite terrified. I actually considered a few times throughout the day if I was going to make it out alive! Swarms of bees, sharp cliff drop-offs, an unmarked course, riding in the dark at race-pace, poison oak, you name it, VQ had it. All things considered, I ended up having a very nice day in the mountains.

Why deem my experience as "terrifying"? (I realize I am being overly dramatic here-it's for the effect, just go with it, okay?)

1). My little commuter light that was suggested to me as being "plenty sufficient" was way too dim. Riding in the dark at race pace in a mass start with hundreds of racers in which I was many, many rows deep = terrifying.

2). The course was open to trucks, jeeps, hikers and other riders. We're talkin' Southern California on a Saturday morning. Unforeseen traffic coming at you around blind corners when you are going at race pace = terrifying.

3). 2-way race traffic on singletrack, forcing you to pull over and ride in poison oak. Slow, yes. But only terrifying because I am really allergic to the dreaded plant. Highlight of my day was almost getting into a messy head-on with Tinker that I was completely unprepared for. Ditched into some poison oak instead = terrifying.

4). Descending on piles of washed out loose rocks all day = terrifying.

5). Unmarked course. Okay, not really terrifying, but riding as if you could possibly be lost all day is, at best, unnerving.

I'm not quite sure at what point of the ride I shifted my brain out of race mode to "Amanda, just get out alive and in one piece" mode. I think it was when I did a triple flip (yup, 3 rolls) down a sharp left-hand switchback on Upper Holy Jim, only to get back on and immediately almost fly off a cliff trying to avoid an uphill group of hikers around a blind corner.

Once I made the mental shift I had a really nice but very hard day. I took my time in aid stations and made some pals on the trail. There was this one local guy, Mike, who totally saved my day. We did a lot of climbing together and he got a head start going down Upper Holy Jim. There's a point where UJH empties onto a doubletrack. Well, I guess you are just expected to know that when you hit that doubletrack, you are supposed to take a sharp uphill right hand turn to make it to Lower Holy Jim. No course marking or marshall to tell you, though. I started nuking downhill in the wrong direction when I hear Mike yelling at me that I am going the wrong way. He waited for me at the bottom to make sure I made that turn. So thanks, Mike, for showing an out of towner the race course!

Lots went down over a 6 hr 19 min. period (my self-calculated, unofficial time) but a few highlights: I felt strong most of the day, stronger after I fought through a rough period at about hour 4-5. I successfully talked myself back into a more race oriented mode even though I felt lost. I saw the most beautiful sunrise I have seen in recent memory. Absolutely knock-you-off-your bike stunning. I took more time in this race than in any other to enjoy my fellow racers, to chat, to enjoy the views and take it all in. I really enjoyed that as the area is really beautiful.

I learned a lot out there that will no doubt help me this season. Racing with a power meter was inconsequential. In fact, it made me wonder why the heck I didn't care about the extra pound of weight on my wheel, yet I didn't want to haul around a heavy-duty light that would have actually enable me to see the trail and go faster for the first hour? Clearly, I learned that I am an idiot when it comes to meaningful equipment choice - silly racer.

I learned that my 2x10 on my 29er is more than enough for endurance racing. I was able to grind out some 22-24% climbs with my 26/36, so that was cool. My calorie/fluid tolerance is getting lower and lower as the seasons go on. Every race I'm finding I need less and less to get by, so that rules. This was the first time I had not done a pre-race warmup. I rolled direct from my car to the start. It went fine, although it's hard to tell for sure. I couldn't see, so I certainly couldn't redline my start.

Mostly, I got a harsh reminder that I had best get my head on straighter for these events. Although it was very little, wasting any time wishing I had more course knowledge, that I had done x, y, z is a waste of my mental energy. Can't control it, shouldn't waste time on it.

Official results aren't posted yet, but I think I came in 2nd to Pua. I got on the shuttle back to the start as soon as I could so I could bum some Tech-Nu off a fellow racer (Thanks, Guy!!!) and get into a very cold shower. However, I was sure to think about my day on the drive home. The most important thing many racers skip is the post-event personal debrief. Seriously, if we just took the time to think thorough just a few lessons we learned, write them down and remember them for next time, we'd be better off in the long run. This is one of my goals for this season. To truly learn and take to heart lessons from each race. Thankfully, Vision Quest was a GREAT start to reaching that goal this year!