Friday, August 23, 2013

That Hampshire 100 is a really hard race

I think the field was unanimous- there's nothing easy about the Hampshire 100.   Not to say that any 100 miler is easy, but because of the wide variety of terrain throughout the course every riders' strengths and weaknesses got a chance to be exploited.

So this past weekend I journeyed back down to Greenfield NH for the 2nd installment of the 100 mile version of the Hampshire 100.  Being a part of the National Endurance Series I was pumped that I finally had one of these events in my back yard!  Or at least for once I didn't have to spend more time driving to and from the race than I was actually on my bike for.

Saturday afternoon on my way to the race I joined old college friends for a BBQ all afternoon.  It was great getting to do something off the bike for a little bit, even though I didn't partake in the corn hole tournament.  I left early evening and got to the venue for the usual packet pick up and set up camp (ie bed of the Tacoma) this time rolling out an air mattress- yeah...fancy.  It was great to see that they even had events going on Saturday night at the race venue- cyclocross and short track mountain bike riders were doing a course right at the fields weaving through the venue.  So it was a great chance to see some action/ suffering while registering and catching up with fellow riders.  The race promoters really did a great job with it.

Saturday night turned out to be a little on the less restful side.  For one, I was lucky enough to wake up every now and then sinking lower and lower into said *fancy* air mattress.  Half way through the night I pulled the plug and resorted to the old reliable z-rest camping mat.  Tip for you out there- when racing, ALWAYS test your equipment.  On top of that it got cold at night!  Who said fall could come so soon anyways?

By the 5:00 AM alarm I was partly ready to roll, partly didn't want to escape from my warm cocoon.  So I bargained with myself- get up, make your breakfast and coffee, and you can eat it sitting in your sleeping bag. Brilliant!

Ahh, the race.  By now I was getting pretty comfortable with these 6:45 start to 100 milers.  Fellow riders would be rolling around asking "don't you even warm up?"  Ummmmmm- no.  For once I can say "I take the first hour to warm up"- not the luxury you get in a 2 hour cross country race.  We rolled out of the venue for the extremely mellow roll down dirt roads until this single file foot bridge which always adds a little bit of tension and excitement, but I don't think anyone hit the deck this year.  From here it was onto a lot of rail trail and abandoned rail lines. Meaning 1) it was flat, and 2) I was screwed if I got out of the draft in front of me, because I cannot ride that stuff on my own.  So for the most part I stayed in the mix until one of the first punchy ATV trail climbs leading to a ball field.  At that point I got spit out the back a little bit was was left with the decision- do I bury myself 12 miles into this race to try to catch up?  Or do I sit in, ride my tempo, and see who comes along.  I wasn't feeling fantastic so I opted for option B.  Soon enough another rider and a teammate- Brian Wilichoski (who was doing the 100k and had caught our wave already) settled in together and started working on ticking away the flat miles.  Before we knew it we were back up to the lead group of 8 riders or so just as we were hitting "the beach".

So the whole group just cruised knowing we were about to hit Hedgehog Hill- a 23% gradient washed out, loose, sandy driveway.  At this point the group really split up and a lead group of 6 riders got away.

I spent a good majority of the next sections chasing back, keeping people in sight on the powerline climb.  Eventually things got spread out enough that once again I was riding alone.  Sometimes I welcome this because I know I can ride within my capabilities- or is it just my comfort level?  Sometimes I get caught out and am left wondering, just how much harder could I have reasonably pushed if I was riding in a group?  Thats a dilemma that I'm still trying to figure out.

By the 30-35 mile mark we started hitting some of the really great single track in the race.  Brian and I had joined up again, and we were making good time.  I started to reel in Derek Treadwell.  We've joked in the past about trading places- I'll ride all the ST and descents ahead, and he'll motor back on the hills.  So that's basically how the next 10 miles went.  Unfortunately I started to do a little race within a race, and here's where I think I got myself in trouble.  I knew that we were both contenders in the New England Endurance Series, him leading me by a point coming into the Hampshire 100.  We would be awarded points in the race based on our 63 mile lap split.  So I got it into my head that I needed to roll through the start finish one place ahead to tie him going into the final race of THAT series.

Well at mile 53 we rolled into an aid station together and I swore that he was still filling bottles when I rolled out.  So I figured if I'm hammering I'm putting distance on him.  Come to find out at the venue where we started on our second lap he was already rolling through the start finish 30" up.  I think at this point the wind went out of the sails a little bit- I had just been geared up for a 63 mile competition for a while there, now I had to go do the final 37 miles solo.  This wasn't going to be pretty.  I stopped for a pit at my truck, grabbing fresh bottles, food, and hitting a 5-Hour Energy- these little guys are perfect for this situation where you need the mental clarity to get back in the game.

The second party of the course repeats a lot of the first section- wide open dirt roads and rail trails, which, as I mentioned earlier, I'm TERRIBLE at.  I kept plugging along, trying to eat and hydrate slowly, thinking that at some point I'd come out of my low energy funk.  The eyes were half open and I was hurting.  As I made my way down the singletrack on Crotched Mountain and up the opposing hillside I saw  Team CF jersey sneaking up from below.  Before I knew it Gerry Pflug and a Mason Racing rider blasted past me- at that point all I could do was watch them go, I had already resorted to just riding it home.

Finally things turned around a little- at mile 89!  I hit a feed zone for the last time, grabbed some coke and filled the bottles and as I climbed I actually felt like my eyes opened up a little bit.  I made my way back through the single track at Greenfield State Park and rolled into the venue.  At this point I felt a little energized- 1) I was done, 2) despite how I'd felt I knew I'd only been caught by those two riders, and 3) on a nearly identical course to 2012 I was about to finish almost 20 minutes faster than last year.  Finishing time was 8:06, just about 19 minutes faster than last year, and was good enough to grab 7th in the mens open class and 8th overall.

So that actually set me up pretty well for my final race in 2 weeks down at the Shenandoah 100.  Last year was a blast, despite the torrential rain, so here's hoping this year is just as good.  By just completing that race I'll qualify for national recognition in the National Ultra Endurance Series points standings.  I'll definitely be taking the lessons I learned at Hampshire and giving it my all!