Trans North GA...3rd times a....Lucky Break!!

So, for the 3rd year in a row, I head down south for the group start of the TransNorth GA 360 mile self supported mountain bikepack 'route', not technically designated as a 'race', but timed for overall comparisons (see explanation & rules at below website.)

Description of what the route/start is all about and the 'rules':
http://www.firstworks.com/tnga/
2010, 2011, and 2012 results:
http://www.firstworks.com/tnga/results.html

Bike used in 2010: Orbea 29
Bike used in 2011/2012: Salsa Ala Carte 26

As you can see in the results last year's group was cut short by a really bad tropical storm that came through ending up making it just too dangerous for everyone to continue on. This year, hurricane Issac was looming, and threw some rain/wind around Monday/Tuesday but nothing to slow anyone down!! In fact, this year's leaders rivaled last years record leading time by exact seconds regardless of weather and a route detour! Oddest thing ever, but great riding guys!

This year, the group got big....35 starters at the cap with a waiting list! 2010 was 18 starters and less finishers, 2011 was 23 starters (7 of those were invites that I had initiated....geez, who else invites the competition?? really....) This year, I invited no one, I have shit to get done and can't be concerned with not getting some more of my bucket list things done in these last few years of riding/racing that I probably will even be able to do. Things just go smoother to focus on my own goals instead of try to include anyone else. This plan has so far been working this year:-)

 

Along with that, super big thanks as usual to all the folks that make this route happen, esp for the peeps coming from out of town since it's P2P, etc, etc :

-Dave Muse of course, as head honcho. Even though he leaves this as a self support ride and arrangements, he makes concious effort so that logistics & safety are not impossible for people to figure out which makes it reasonable to put this ride on your schedule if you are anywhere on the east coast (or not) and want to do some MTB bikepacking on some all out classic trails!

-The ladies, Diane and Ginny, at Mulberry Gap Mountain Bike Getaway, who will do just about anything needed. (organize shuttles, cook food, sleeping spots, etc)

-Andrew at Mulberry Gap, he shuttles us in his truck thru the forest 'S' shapes roads really fast when he's sleep deprived from picking up riders all night long AND is a great breakfast organizer! He will also spot you some cash when you realize you left your MAC/money all back at the initial shuttle pick up....lol...

The really nice Yurts that MB arranged for us to stay in just 30 minutes from the start.

-Rick Moon (president of the Pinhoti Trail Assoc) for the limo shuttle every year so far, the cool music selection, support of the Pinhoti as a long-standing multi-use trail (which is so awesome since a lot of states don't have such a thing!) and moral support to get the show on the road! (and I am SO sorry to the 5 guys in the limo for all my huge amounts of luggage....lol...I assumed it was my personal limo ride:-)

Rick's generously provided Limo carts 6 of us plus bikes!

-to all the guy riders who were really nice to me along the way, and let me stay in the yurt with them and didn't make me feel left out as the only girl starting out this year:-)
-of course shop help with getting stuff I needed from Top Gear.

-and last and usually least, JPOK. I don't even know how many times he gritted his teeth and interrupted his evening beertime to continue to repeat the same information to me over and over about my bike because I can't remember it all:-)

-and to several friends that I know kept an eye on the trackers just to help me feel kind of cuddly out there, even though I DO NOT ever use a cell phone or any other kind of contact with anyone during the route. (I keep it with me OFF, for emergency use only.)

Since I was the only girl this year, I just pray so hard I am not dead last! As usual, everyone eyes up the huge variety of packing scenerios just hoping yours is correct to get you thru. Someone yells at me that my bike looks way too heavy;-)

Right off the bat, the route starts climbing away, things spread out quick....the first day flies by and before you know it I am at the WildCat reroute (~75 miles) (we are directed to avoid a gravel climb due to a landslide to a different route that will cut a few miles off and sounds peachy.....actually it is a hellish rocky/grassy jeep road straight up the side of the mountain. I laugh continually at the craziness of this road while I trudge on) At this point I have seen no one for quite sometime. I had seen Clay (SS who I happened to know from the year before) and James (?) a bit earlier but had a feeling Clay got into a glitch with his gps, I had waited at a tricky turn and he didn't show up so I really hoped he was finding the reroute ok. I really wondered if people had already gone off route somewhere or if everyone ahead was bombing towards Helen(~100 miles) for the night already??

Up the last hill before Helen, Clay comes flying by, a little ticked as he says "I've been lost ALL day"...oh boy, I feel bad I didn't see him at that turn! Oh I guess he'll get over it....he seemed to be beelining it to Helen. Once at the top of this mountain, for the third year in a row I get dazed and confused...it just turns dusk and the garmin flips out here. I get completely disoriented as to which intersection I am really at and cannot find the correct trailhead although I know full well what the trail entrance looks like, and after having already one near total collision with a smaller bear and a jaunt down the mountain in the wrong direction, I am about frustrated as crap when Karlos and his posse of casualness comes rolling up. I'm hysterically like "it's RIGHT here, I know it!!" ugh, they helped me realize I needed to go one more intersection and there it was....duh....this wasted about 2 hours of my night getting me to Helen late, missing an open store and losing some rest time.

I decide to keep going without getting anything at Helen, as I pedal out of town I see a biker coming towards me....who in the world is going backwards??? lol..it turns out to be Scott T. (see his more detailed but funny TNGA summaries http://www.driven2divide.com/category/rides-and-races/page/2/ ) shortcutting to town and I start to con him into riding with me but it becomes obvious he needs rest and a hotel to just reorganize his shit after a frustrated evening. And I guess to talk to his wife. As Dave M. said on his blog, I also don't quite get anyone's need to contact significant others to assure them of your still being alive. I hear it a lot, and still don't feel the need to let Justin know anything about what I am up to out there? I mean he can watch the tracker, and he knows I have 911 if there is an emergency and he knows approximate times I will bypass towns that I would stop there if I needed to. Otherwise, he really has no clue what is going on until I am done and home....then he gets an earful:-)

I continue on anyway making it until I am really exhausted, find a spot to lay down and catch a nap. A few hours later, some bikers go by waking me up and we all catch up at the next store down from Coopers Creek, a super long fun dirt road downhill. And again, at the next stop past Aska Road I see Alex and Clay just finishing up some grub. I order an egg sandwich to go, and almost slap the clerk silly when she says it'll be $7!!! wth....ONE EGG?? I make a bold decision I won't buy anything else there....ooopsie...not too smart (as I had already dug into my reserves by missing the stores by Helen). I pay for this later, basically I do not ever get anymore food until I reach Dalton the next late afternoon, but I manage to ration the precious $7 egg over that time, what a complete rip.

Some tricky navigation into singletrack at Stanley Gap, (it gets tricky here as the trails are rerouted) luckily Alex and Clay are still around so I make it thru ok. A little road haul and a few climbs onto the next store stop but it's closed as I suspected. We stretch out here a bit & eat. Clay is eager as a beaver to get headed towards Dalton, and takes off quick. I never see him again, ends up he had a great finish time and was the first SS to finish so far on the route!! Alex passes me up the hill, same thing, never see him again. In fact, from this time (mile ~200?) until the end I see absolutely no one else....peaceful but I kept wondering where in the world is everyone???

Turns out I find out later that Ardie and Thomas were very near me during the last day and night, but I never saw them at all. Ardie was just ahead of me, and Thomas after a reroute, passed me while I took a picnic at the town of Dalton (~70 miles before the end, the last stop for anything and the last spot before you are up on the mountain ridge for the next portion of your life, which for me was going to be night time). But without seeing them, I had to do what I do not do best....ride a TON at night in the forest sections alone. After one bear run in and an absolutely spiritual encounter with a beautiful snake up on the Snake Gap of all places (lol...)...I resorted to just about screaming my bear calls and getting a little hoarse. oh man, if Ardie or Thomas must have heard me.....so this snake, I have NO IDEA what kind it was, but I guess the combination of being really tired, on a trail called The Snake, it's casual manner, and my bike lights hitting it, made it shine like highly polished gold with intricate designs and with a fuzzy aura all around it. I was dumbfounded but felt lucky I happened upon it while walking so didn't risk hitting it. Anyway, after that I felt some calm being out here, I mean the snake was so cool & collected and could care less about my foot being 2 inches from it that I started not being scared anymore. And after awhile the same with the bear incident, as I came barreling thru some low branches he all but killed himself to get up some slippery steep rocks to get away from me!! ha, take that dumb bear! But now, the PIGS....oh I didn't see any of the pigs yet, that may be the end of my night riding!

My total time for this year was of course much better than 2010, but the circumstances were much different as well. I didn't use a gps then and was a total beginner to bikepacking and had never been in this area before at all, only hunching at resources from studying the map and internet. I am fairly certain my pace this year and last year were about comparable overall as far as I got last year, but with a major difference: last year I did at least attempt to rest/sleep a decent bit and so my riding felt better. This year, I tried to pull a little more night miles and really ended up just too exhausted to really ride a lot of the course after that which although still gave me a better time it just didn't feel as good to be walking that much of a BIKE race! Although as Clay had put it, as he ends up walking some uphills due to SS, think of it as a new sport: PushBike. That was funny, and I kept just thinking yeah, it's ok to push for now it's still an effort forward:-)

So, my lucky breaks comes in that since few girls have yet to finish this route, my time this year is the best female finish to date at 3:03:45, and current bikepack ultra record: http://www.bikepacking.net/ultra-records/
It's kind of exciting to have made that page for me, although I know there are a few southeast girls, maybe even a few named Kari, or is that Carey(?), that will be eyeing this route up a little closer soon.....and probably up that time by a lot. Thanks to the peeps who recognized that for me it was still a fun result to get for the 'record' for now as only one of 2 girl finishers to date, even if it wasn't as fast as the next ones will do, I am glad to have done it sooner than later at whatever pace I can and for now still having fun doing these routes vs as much XC, NUE, and heaven forbid the ancient 24hr scene like in years past.

A few things I noticed this time through more than before, one was how much of the trails of the Pinhoti are now being gone over and machine built. I know it's the future for trail sustainability, but I find it so adrenaling killing to ride miles of machine built trails. Being that it makes all trails look and feel just about the same, it takes a huge chunk of the adventure out of going somewhere new and all trails have the same types of switchbacks, degrees of steepness, etc. I will do some more, but as this is the future of development, I have a feeling I will end up mountain biking less and less. Although I know the masses of riders love it, and it helps bring more new bikers to the sport.

The other I noticed was, um, a little ease of navigation along some areas. Wow, huge time difference here between the past and now, esp at night! I won't go in to details but let's just say the nav is about 100% completely doable in some areas even at night that if you didn't know the area was pretty much impossible to do at night a few years ago....kind of a buzzkill for me being that I had to nav it at night my first time by literally step by step which I thought was a cool challenge, but development never ceases in terms of simplifying things.

So, here was a section NOT machine built...lol. Maybe doesn't look so significant in the photo but this down tree across an off camber section threw me for a loop for quite a bit. The only feasible go around was to pitch your bike up the hill and over two tree trunks and the dirt was all soft and crumbling, let alone lifting a heavy bike, I tumblerwd down this hill multiple times before making it! Someone did ask me later that when they were getting over it they wondered how in the world I would ever make it being so shrimpy....my answer was 'everything just takes me that much longer'....sigh, story of my life.

Fallen trees across trail with steep go around, takes me a long time!

THE AML400 MTB TIME TRIAL, Blacksburg VA

July 13, 2012.
Ruth 63.5 hours finish. Loved it.
Justin same time finish. Hated it.

The route, the ‘rules’, and description: http://alleghenymountainsloop.blogspot.com/2012/01/allegheny-mountains-loop-2012.html

Earlier in the spring, I had carpooled down to the previous noted Huracan 300 MTB ITT (group start) with a few folks I really didn’t know at all. During the ride a chat about a eastern route that one of them had put together an agenda for comes about. I had seen the initial proposal, and although intriguing as the idea was since it was ‘kind of’ closer to home for me (not really, but at least my side of the country!) it didn’t really strike my interest in terms of much to look forward to in the terrain that was being used.

For the sake of a lot of things such as scouting time, logistics, forest trails maintenance, etc, the well established ACA Allegheny Mountains Loop was being proposed to be run as a timed, self-supported bikepack route. Immediately, feedback rolled in…..there is SO much off road potential in that area and we are going to ride THIS?? This mountain ridge & valley border area between WV & VA is primo forest area, a lot of which is open to biking. But for now, it is what it is, future changes I am sure might come about depending on the interest. As of now, this ‘event’ so far has a lot of people signed up for a first year run and without a mention of including any singletrack & quite a bit of pavement: 19 for the group start Oct 5^th, and 7 ITT before then!!One nice thing about using this loop though is the documentation is rather already done. Being an established ACA Route, the maps, mileage cues, elevations, amenities (warning: amenities on the map are not as large as they appear), and even some history along it are outlined and easily available as downnloads right from their website.

My intention was that since this route was a little tamer in terrain and incidence of night drug runners, etc that I would do it as my first full-on ITT, not as a group start. I really prefer the solitude….then again, it’s pretty scary out there in unknown territory & wilderness knowing you are ALL alone…so I waivered quite some time on actually making the trip down. In the end, JP started feeling guilty sending me down there all alone so it then became a decision would he drive down with me and at least be in the area if I would need to DNF or would he ride as well. To put it simply, JP has little interest in the nature of these routes which is quite fine with meJ It is kind of an adjustment for us, but after so many years, I kind of needed a change to keep some adrenalin flowing and right away these longer rides struck my interest and so I have been focusing on these and not doing much XC/XXC, etc. I love researching the route info, preparing for just about any calamity that might happen, and then actually finishingJ My feet hate it, but my brain still loves it!

He decided to at least ride while there, so got his Salsa Fargo ready to go, deciding to forego the now ‘standard’ race packs and loaded a rack and 2 waterproof panniers on it. He likes to be very comfy when he stops!

I set aside my Salsa Ala Carte that I would usually use for a MTB pack, and planned on using what I call my ’cross bike’. This is a newer frame w 700 rims, disc brakes, carbon fork, flat bars, road double cranks & some spin potential with a 9 spd MTB cassette. All my usual MTB packs fit pretty well right onto this bike even with the differences.

A few folks have ridden their ITTs of this route before me and rumor was there are very little supply points, and the locations get rather remote, so between that and some weather details I do pack a little heavier than I really want to, as usual! This actually did help me, as since I got held up with both nights having cold drenching thunderstorms, it was longer between refuel spots than it otherwise would have been, so the extra stuff came in handy.

To date (4) others have ridden the route before me to scope it out and test some timing, and have written a little more details. I don’t think an ‘official’ finishing list is posted yet, but will be probably after the fall group start is completed.
Kelly: http://ourlifeontwowheels.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2012-05-24T11:22:00-0
Chris: http ://thebikepedaler.blogspot.com/2012/05/allegheny-mountains-loop-may-2012.html
Cricket: http://www.teamup4type1.org/search/label/Allegheny%20Mountain%20Loop
Markley: http://teamcrank.wordpress.com/2012/04/03/allegheny-loop-400-mile-itt/

So 63.5 hours later as I finish (yes, the slowest finish to dateL ), I am pretty trashed, we grab a room and sleep, the wheels still working on evaluating what I just did……wow, that was really way better of a route than I had anticipated. I mean, without any trail, I had really questioned the fun or even adrenaline factor. Not sure about anyone else, but I can usually stick out a less than exciting day 1, but then if the route is backend loaded like this one is, that stays in your mind. The last half of the course is the gravel, the climbing, the mountain ridges, the fast/long descents, and the hunt for limited supplies. It really makes up for what you might have intended was going to be a boring mostly paved/rail trail tour w porta potties & water fountains every 10 miles….lol. So much so, that I am tentatively adding the Oct 5^th Group Start to my calendar to give it another go! (and then once again, pushing my bucket list 100 mile trail run off of this year to next year….someday, THAT will get done!)

Link to a few pictures of different areas when Justin and I were together for bits. I really didn’t take too many as I was trying to keep moving in the rain and stuff:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151103778661208.500611.621536207&type=3&l=c89a553acd
Thanks to TOP Gear and everyone at the shop for helping us get ready for the trip! And thanks as usual to JP for always letting me pick new adventures to try outJ

Just IN time

(photo credit: Cycling Dirt Coverage, Thom Parsons)

 

Just IN time

          Back in January I registered for the Mohican 100 in the single speed class, the only reason I registered so early was to save a little cash. But 4 weeks before the race I had a set back and broke my single speed frame. With the race getting closer I was getting a little impatient and wasn’t  sure if I’d get a new SS frame in time or just race the geared class.  

Finally on Wednesday before the race Top Gear was able to get me a Niner SIR frame. I had some mixed emotions about getting the SIR frame. Steel mountain bikes look really cool with their skinny tubes and ride really nice and are built to last a few years. But downside is it’s a little heavier than alum or plastic and I’m really not a big EBB fan, I’d prefer sliders.  When I went to pick it up the Mavic SLR 29er wheelset that I’ve been expecting was in too.

I hurried home and built it up but still wasn’t sure if I’d race it on Saturday or not. Racing a hundred miler is hard enough and doing it on a bike that I’ve never ridden had me nervous. I decided to ride it on Thursday and if I liked it and didn’t have any trouble I’d race it and if I had any problems or if it didn’t feel good I’d change classes and race my Superfly 100. Thursday when I got home I headed out on the trails and to my pleasant surprise it felt great and no issues so that made my decision easy.

Saturday morning as the gun went off the pace seemed fast but I managed to get into the first bit of trails in good position.  I was riding with all the fast single speed racers early and there wasn’t much separation. (I’m not going to mention any names because I don’t want to miss anyone)  It wasn’t until I left aid station #2 and was on the road that I was all alone for the first time. I could see a few people ahead of me and some people behind me but it was hard to tell who any of them were. It didn’t take too long before Ernesto Marenchin caught me but to my surprise I was able to stick on his wheel. When we got to the single track in Mohican Wilderness I was having a blast on the rocky trails. I left aid station #3 pretty quik and finished the rest of the trail section at Mohican Wilderness and was back on the road.  I’m not really sure when it was but I was in a small group with Ernesto and Andy Gorski. We hit the rail trail and I was able to stay with them. Before I knew it we were at the swing bridge. After a quick stop I was back on the bike.  I got to the last aid station and had a cup of coke and seen a sign: 5 miles to the finish. The last 5 miles was pretty much all single track and went pretty fast.

In the end I had a great day, got to ride some really fun trails, rode with a few friends, didn’t suffer any mechanical issues like last year and even won the SS class.  For complete coverage check out:

http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/national-ultra-endurance-nue-series-mohican-100-2012/results

            http://bigbikesmedia.cyclingdirt.org/coverage/249412-Mohican-100-2012

I have to say thanks to TOP Gear Bicycle Shop  for getting me an awesome bike just IN time for the race.

 JPOK

           

GAP/C&O Roundtrip....or not....

Intentionally attempting a kind of late effort to rack up a few miles and retest out some bikepack gear, I planned to pedal it down the GAP/CO, take a rest day, and then pedal back. I have limited days to do so (7 total), meaning the days need to be long, stops need to be short, and I have very little wiggle room for hold ups.

So, the long days also means I need to get some night miles. Hhhhmmm....I really struggle with remote night riding/sleeping alone....STILL. So, one person, Erika, who has time off offers to go along, and is actually really motivated to attempt the ride. This is good....but also as I have learned one too many times, I will not be able to max my effort towards my goal as once someone else is involved the horizon of where you will get totally shifts. Especially with a fact of someone doing this type of ride for a first time, having little insight not only to ability of long mileages but to the importance of certain issues over others in getting prepared accurately and for the most common follies that can just kill your trip.

So, not just through luck, but thru the last few years of me literally hounding Justin to make sure I know MUCH more about being self sufficient with my bikes so I can do more long self support rides without him needing to supervise or make sure our schedules are always the same, I have acquired 'some' ability to be pretty confident that I can get thru most of the common bike issues and nuances that can be a hold up. JP is also really great at easing my concerns over mechanicals by allowing me to 'demand' some bigger items are new just before each big trip I do...sometimes costing more, but then we can always keep the older parts as spares anyway. So between this and trusty stuff from Top Gear, I feel pretty good my bike is going to be just peachy as I get ready to head out.

Unfortunately, I do not feel so good about my ride partners bike/knowledge to be self sufficient & right from the beginning I get some doubts. Preparing in a crunch, with a bike used for commuting, with little love, and old/unknown condition of parts is just not a good combination. Period. At one point, I rethink this and almost cancel but then I figure wth, the worst that will happen is we just have to find a way home....can't be that hard. So, she gets some brief mechanical help, and I roughly give her the guidelines for packing and we head out.

Also, due to the circumstances, I had to adjust my 'camping' & packing style. I knew for a first time, she would need a little more sleep, shelter, hot food, & hygiene issues than I worry about. So, gear total was packed much heavier than ideal to allow for this, but I figure in the end it would be worth it and give us a better chance to make it in good time.

When I say heavy, here it is. Not how I typically travel, but needed. We shared a set of pannier bags, and according to my inexpensive theory, lots of poortex was used for rain protection. The pack scenerio:

Pack scenario for GAP/CO

Let me just add here, pizza is NOT what either of us intended to munch on here, but just as we rolled in to this park, a grandma had ordered mucho food for one grandchild and possibly could not eat it so it became ours. Being part-time workers, we couldn't pass up the free food:-)

Day 1-So my overall goal was to make it to DC in under 70 hours, then back in just over that. Leaving from my house and getting to Confluence by day 1 was over 130 miles. At this point I could have continued on, but since the GAP tourist trap has little options of free camping all throughout the middle section, this was the last area for cheap camping for the next 60 or so miles. huh. (I didn't want to stealth camp due to the forecast and my sleeping setup wasn't rain tolerant!) Erika would need some camp time and hot food so we settled on setting up camp there, it's only $5 in the public camp. Flat one of multiple for Erika this date.

Day 2-waking up to a downpour was a little slow to get packed up and of course when you full on camp near a town, there is more delay inevitable as there was. Going to town to 'grab' something/load up becomes an hour affair. Finally we get going and this day easily get to Cumberland ahead of schedule, plenty of daylight left. We both love to eat healthy, so we hit up the Cafe Mark on the main drag 'no car' brick square in town and get some awesome fresh grilled chicken salads & fresh made iced teas. Camping & water south of here is plentiful so we decide to ride until we just get too tired then pull over. Erika ends up getting stuck with a few more flats which lose daylight for us, we don't make it near as far this day as I intend, but again I knew at a certain point we would need to stop again anyway. Erika did really good riding the long days for a first effort, so I couldn't begrudge her some sleep!! We rode until close to midnight, pulled over, had a hot camp 'dinner' and settled in for 8 hours.

Day 3-One reason I hate to camp or long stop is because I totally am slow getting up/packed so again the morning takes some time on my part, a camp breakfast, pack and finally get rolling. The C&O is the slight downgrade to DC, although the pedaling is still relentless and mucho calorie burn, so food stops/eating took presidence for this day along with a few more flats for Erika and some other time consuming mechanicals I believe this was our lower mileage day....the killer that dug into the 70 hour goal. We rode as late as we could again, this time the camps were crowded as this is closer to some touristy areas there is a little more trail/camp traffic. At this point, I realize we just lost the chance to make the time goal and also the option to attempt to ride back, as by 9AM tomorrow morning will be the 70 hour time check.

Day 4-I try to just not worry about it, but as we start out in the AM it eats me alive! Just 4 more hours of riding last night and we would have made it in 65 hours w camping/stopping :-) My feet are killing me, and there is no use pushing a finish that is 'useless' now anyway, I let it start to not only dismotivate me but physically I feel like a bonking sluggish for a few hours. Erika is still excited to get to the end so she rides ahead for a bit while I struggle to get through it. At one point, I take a mental stop and actually lay down, pressure off the feet and think some happy thoughts & completely zone out. After this I seem to bounce back, I just want to GET DONE, get home and start on a next trip now that this hasn't gone my way. That's how I am. So, I decide to (carefully on the sometimes crowded trail) push up my pace, my feet can take a little pressure after the break, I actually get my heartrate high, break a good sweat, love the few hike a bike detours involved, and the teeth chattering bumpiness of the last sections of C&O. I do stop though to snap a few photos, as along with the big rocks & crashing water on one side here, the canal on the other side is overflowing with wildlife abundance. I see some really cool large birds, and also this big guy!!! yes, he was a snapper!!

I am diggin the wildlife along the C&O Canal.

Erika rolls in to the end a bit after me, and we hit up the large refreshing park fountain to rinse off, then a rest at Starbucks while we devised our plan to get home.
All-in-All, this was a cool trip to finally do the entire route, as several times I have ridden from home to Cumberland before but never the whole route due to logistics, etc. I was quite bummed of the finish for us was 78 hours, thus I wasn't able to use any rest time nor have the days to begin to ride back, or have much time to explore in DC, so we instead got ourselves a ride to Cumberland to the scene of the ongoing Cranky Monkey MTB race where we hitched up with JP for a carpool back to the burgh.

Thanks to Erika for going along and sticking with it, to JP and Top Gear for all the preparation!
This was definitely a great training run for the upcoming Allegheny Mountains 400!

(ps: although I keep hearing what a beautiful route this ride is, I really have to say people are so overly influenced by words and hearsay....riding along this canal is in a lot of cases nothing more than standing gross mosquito laden water that stinks! I actually now refer to it at the B&O! I can imagine that sometimes the bugs/camping could get pretty nasty along here, just like most rail trails that exist....um...you know...along sewar lines and used tracks & people love it because it's called a Recreational Trail....really??)

AZT 300

Between Reddington Rd & Minola Pass-AZT, Tucson

I may write more about this trip later, but suffice it to say Justin and I both had a big FAIL here. Our heads were not in it, and pretty sure we both started to feel that hike a biking the entire state wasn't really a 'tough guy' contest that we needed to prove ourselves in at this point. We each bailed on Day 2 and started getting ready for our next plans.
Thanks again to all the helpful peeps at Top Gear for getting us get ready for the 100+ miles we each did get under our belt.....

Huracan 300 ITT, FL-March 30

The Huracan 300 MTB ITT route is hosted by Singletrack Samurai and makes for a nice early warm spring ride when your from the northeast. So I decide to head down again this year after having done it last year and really liked it. Justin made the trip with me last year, but really didn't like these types of rides as much as I do, so he saves some vaca time while I head down alone. This year the route is basically the same loop, although evil route organizer worked in some changes and the start was at last year's midway point due to easier logistics for everyone.

We grouped up at Santos Campground/Greenways Bikes (this year's start/finish), which was a great organized place to gather. The shop was super helpful and they sell beer, and the campground staff was really accommodating to the group....great idea to set up there.

This year there were lots more folks compared to last year's skim 13 riders. Antsy to get headed to the sun drenched desert-like Ocala, we took off promptly at 0900 and straight into what I call 'jungle bliss' (one reason I like this route is that I like jungliness, NOT reptiles, but the rest is so cool!). This is scenery at the beginning of the route:

Even though we hit it early, the red clay, dirt, gravel rollers, and eventually deep sandy walking, getting up and over the Ocala is hot and dry. But we all know it's better to take this than hit it at night.....when you are most likely going to run into some peeps that you would rather not. Even though there is a water pump up here, the heat and eventual sand walking due to the extreme dryness this year take a toll and people are dying to get to an initial store once we exit the Paisley singletrack which leads you out of Ocala, when we get that far....a few hours later. I decide to bypass the store, anticipating a water source in a bit but my memory served me incorrect, the water was extremely not safe to use, and a few other riders then beared witness to my near hands and knees crawling and disoriented grumpiness. As they were ooogling a croc, I lost all ability to comprehend conversation and start down the road still thinking water was ahead. I don't fret about water or heat as most times it really doesn't change my pace much or feel that bad, but right now it was putting me at a snail level. Some trail magic ensued, and I got enough to get me to the gate on time (a big gate into the next section shuts at 6PM to keep bears off the roads, this gate really has no optional go around and is quite big to get over with a bike so it was a landmark to make on time for everyone) and then shortly after to the river crossing in which we could fill up water and rinse some of the days gunk away. Approaching the river was different this year as well.....SO DRY! As the sandy and often unrideable roads had already shown it was super dry here this year. Last year, the approach to the river was with the sound of flowing water all around and the swampiness had been up to the edges of the dirt path. This year, the channels on the side of the path were bone dry, as was the approach to the river which last year was a swampy shin deep bushwack. The river was not as clear as I remember, and the knee length seaweed took me by surprise, and even though low, the water rose well over my waist for several steps. To my surprise, as I got to the river, there were a lot of peeps still on the other side.....I asked if they had done a THOROUGH croc check....they said yeah....hhhmmm...not sure if I believed them but just dove right in.

After a water fill up, short rest and chit chat everyone was rushing to the sweet jungly singletrack coming up. Someone had mentioned that Schultz (rider from my hometown, pittsburgh) wasn't feeling good and just left the river, it was still daylight so I picked it up a little thinking maybe if Schultz was moving slower we could hit up the next Apopka Preserve section together in the dark as it was something I was dreading. Coming up on Schultz a bit later, he was in no shape to ride on, so I made sure he had a phone and knew where he was and continued on. Big fence up ahead, trail magic to get over and then some blinkies up ahead on the road!!! OOOOOh...people to ride with at night!!! By the time I caught up, the group was taking a break at a store. I hung out and hoped they might want to ride Apopka with me, then I could get to Minneola before thinking about having to stop again. Little did I know, the women's leader Keri Lindner, was ahead and had entered Apopka bravely alone probably between 1-2 hours ahead of me. She would continue her brave night riding and fast road riding completely alone to end up with a great finish and a new women's record on the course---kudos and way to solo it compared to a lot of girls entering these with plans to ride in groups.

The guys thought a bit then decided yeah. So we trudged on, Dave Muse and his two friends and I. To my surprise this section was very toned down compared to last year, we didn't have to enter a covert fence crawl straight into some gator lounge area.....instead we entered into and stayed on a wider gravel road with the gators all hunkered down in the deeper channels and much easier to move through here! Apopka ends with a sandy hike a bike, then a tricky barbed wire fence crossing. All was good, from here it was the biggest hills I think FL has to get us to Minneola (one road is actually called 'Sugarloaf Mountain'.....LOL).....one thing really noticeable here and I was anticipating is the blooming orange trees....it smells like sweet perfume when you get a big wiff and motivating during the climbing.

On to Minneola, the guys opt to stop and get a hotel. I would like to keep going but it's 2AM, and next up is back to some forest roads which if sandy could be slow going and again, sections of peeps that I really don't want to see at night by myself. So, I chip in on the room. In the AM, this delays my start a little, but I finally get going and head to Lake Louisa. This part is different from before, and some how the name brought to mind a crystal blue lake with manicured lawn all around and felt safe and comfy. NOT. This was a dried out orchard and the lakes in FL are ALL swamps as I should know by now.....I try to hoof it through here, over two big gates with my loaded bike, around 2 snakes, and I keep my eyes on the dirt, as I notice both sides are wet ickiness in between the walking sand sections. Finally out of this and onto the Richloam forest/dirt roads. A mix of riding/walking, but happily not in the blistering sun today. But instead, a short downpour keeps the sun hidden, and wets the sand a little. Some chain noise bothers me, but once I get out of the rain and the terrain starts to dry the bike is happy again.

Sandy roads very dry & not all rideable this year.

Past here, some road takes us into the Croom singletrack. This year, it's different with lots of trail intersections, navigating was sometimes tricky but rolling fun and fast trails with a little bit of technical in it seemed to go on for a long time. Then  straight onto the Withlachoochee rail trail.....10 miles to Inverness with a supply stop and I get screwed ordering a cheesesteak that take 45 minutes to get for take out....wth.....

I hesitate here......for a LONG time...debate on how far I will get riding alone as it's dusk. If I ride straight thru I would have an early Sunday AM finish at best, but I wonder if I can be brave enough to do all the woods/swamps sections in the night or not. I wait a little, hoping maybe someone would be coming up the rail trail soon, but eventually call it a fruitless use of time (esp since there are 2 women probably somewhere right behind me as Lynne and Chris were busting a move and riding late Friday too, but I hadn't seen them today yet.....)  and decide to grab an extra sandwich, snacks, etc and plan to head on and just see how far I can get before I cave...or run into some of the forest night peeps.....

Potts Preserve is next. While on the sand road, I hear a quad not too far away, decide to kill the lights and walk the sandy bog a bit to avoid them coming my way. The fence entry was a breeze here, the wire fence was ripped down and just some rocks to hop over now. Alligators galore in the canal, as you ride through the grass gets a little taller and I keep a watchful eye just in case. It seems longer than last year, but eventually I am to the road.

Moving on to the Florida Greenway....a twisty turny long foresty like little used doubletrack that is fast and fun, a few dry sandy pieces, but for the most part fast rolling....not TOO scary in here in the dark alone, some swamps are just off the trail and at times you enter in and out of parking lots, but it was a lot longer than I had remembered. Eventually to the road and this time I am feeling some stress to enter the next woods section. I know rather soon I will be at the outer edge of the actual Santos bike area of trails, but I seem to recall some bit of forest road yet and some nav issue there and in the twisty intermingled singletrack for me last year.....so when I get to the trailhead parking lot it's 2AM (not realizing I was actually already AT the edge of Santos because I didn't go close enough to the trail to see the sign....duh...) I decide that if I have ~30 miles to finish I will eat the extra sandwich and keep going. If I have more than 30, I will take a rest first and finish later than I planned. We were ending with the Vortex, a little technical stuff and I didn't want to be super tired getting through that and wreck.

And here is a hiccup that really only if someone tells you or you know the area or you use an odometer, you can know for sure (or maybe some aspect of gps I just haven't learned yet?). I knew the gpx was only 289 miles, but assume this is gps flattening and the route is really more than the 289. My gps says I am at mile ~245 or so. I assume I have near 50 to go....much more than I can do right now without a break in the night. So I bivy out in the lot, get woken up at 7AM by the maintanence man, and move on. Pretty sore and tired, and using emergency stashes of food, I turtle move it thru Santos and Vortex, taking until 11AM to the finish, which surprisingly was only ~30 miles from where I had slept!! Darn dumb gps....(total mileage was actually ~275ish on most gps this ride).

At the Finish.

Surprisingly, all the finishers ahead of me were still at the campground which was cool because usually at these things everyone takes off asap. But with the far travel for most peeps, people had hung out for a night of sleep before hitting the road. I had really wanted to eat and stretch out, sleep for a bit before jamming myself in a car for 2 days eating on the road, but with carpool buddies that had already waited a day and were well rested, I decide better to just hit the road and get napping in the car instead. It was a rough drive home after they got me to my car in NC.....trouble drinking enough, stopping to get my feet up as they were swelling, and napping along the way took up most of my time....happily now a few days later I feel almost back to normal just still a little tired quickly and, most thanks to Justin, my MTB is all revamped, packed and shipped far west for my next early spring soul searching 'adventure'.....

Official results have been posted in private emails, TBD/posted by the Samurai.
Out of 4 women, I was a long 2nd behind Keri, and just a bit before Lynne and Chris.
Nice ride to everyone that finished or even attempted this year's Huracan!!