Back when it was Cool Hand Luke Gravel Grinder we raced it, 2017 on the Pugsley and 2018 on the Fargo and it was a butt kicker both times. Since then they have changed the name due to legal reasons and are now going by the name Stay Fired Up, there are also rumors that the course was "tamed down" a bit from the previous versions but that was yet to be determined. It was a ride that sort of fell off the radar for what reason I didn't really know, it was always a fun one in a type 2 fun sort of way. I believe Doug was the one who mentioned it and Jackie had never done it before so that is how we found ourselves once again toeing the line in Leavenworth Kansas.
The saying goes that Mama didn't raise no fools, Jackie and I decided we were going to enter the single speed category for Stay Fired Up and after the previous two times riding it I felt like that decision was going to test that old adage. Would we live to regret the decision or would we not, that was the question yet to be answered. Truth be told we were the only people in the single speed category in the 62 mile (actually ended up being 68 miles and some change) or the 100 mile and I think that say something about how difficult this course can be. All we had to do was finish and we'd get first place but we still had to finish and that certainly wasn't a guarantee going into the race.
I think I made it all of 50 yards from the starting line when I noticed that my freshly pumped up front tire had decided to not remain pumped up and so it was that we had to pull over still within the shadows of the starting arch and pump the tire back up. I was hoping that it was just the valve stem that I had been struggling with and that after pumping it up things would be great... nothing like giving the rest of the field a 5 minute head start. We began the race in dead fucking last, like literally the sweeper van and then the sweeper volunteer rider were right behind us!
Thankfully none of us went into panic mode and felt the need to burn all the matches to try to get back with the field. Instead we wisely just settled into a brisk but sustainable pace and it worked, by the time we hit about mile 15 we started catching up to and passing some of the folks on the back of the pack.
By the time we hit the first checkpoint we were sitting pretty good, I figured we had passed at least a half dozen folks already so we were safe from the DFL.
At the checkpoint who should be run into but MK who we met 6 years ago at our very first Cool Hand Luke (Stay Fired Up) event in 2017. How cool was that and very unexpected. After chatting it up for a few minutes MK and her friend sailed off into the gravel seas to finish up their race.
As the day wore on so did the endless hills and the memories of the previous two races came back to me. Don't get me wrong it's a great event but the hills in that area of Kansas are relentless and they all seem to pitch up a couple of extra percentage when you near the top of them. I ain't bull sh#tting you either, just ask these two fellas!
If you could convince your legs that things weren't all that bad the views held up their own. If you come to the event prepare yourself for the end of the race, some of the worst of the hills are stacked up near the end and if you're not mentally ready it'll be demoralizing.
I was very grateful to see that pavement and know that we were only a few more minutes from the end and it was great seeing friends at the end as well, smiles all around.
Jackie and I finished and that meant that we walked away with some pretty sweet medals, Doug was a bit disappointed because we had thought that there were only three men in the fat bike category but there ended up being four after someone made a last minute category change. Didn't find that out until after the race. Stoked to have finished and super stoked to have "won" but I'm not sure I'd do it on single speed again.. but never say never I guess. Great event, great friends and great times!
No comments:
Post a Comment