The More You Sweat In Peace, The Less You Bleed In War

The title of the blog is a quote from a speech that Stormin Norman Schwarzkopf gave to the graduating class of the Naval Academy in 1991. Being a young Marine at the time the speech was given, I heard that quote spoken and misspoken more times than I want to remember. Even though it was given by an Army General and contains War and bleeding in it, it's not just about violence... actually it's not about violence at all. It's about training and dedication to do what needs to be done when nobody is watching, the drive to do the difficult things when you don't want or need to do them. To understand that to achieve long term goals there is often some suffering in the present that needs to be done. The more you prepare for something, the easier it is to perform well when it's go time.


Being on or near the Summer Solstice it's almost a given that the Solstice Gravel Grinder is going to be on a hot day, this year that day seemed especially hot but I am sure I've said that just about every year. Sweat was a necessity rather than an option. Team 3 Cog Night signed up for the 100 mile co-ed single speed relay but at the last minute the other team had to drop out leaving us the only remaining single speed team. As long as we finished, we would be the single speed champions and we could have just coasted in on that and taken the victory given not really a victory earned.


As a team we all decided that instead of just cruising onto the podium. we would go out and give it our all and race as if we weren't the only single speed relay team. Like last year we were going to race against the geared teams and see how the cards played out. Jackie led us out and set the tone for the team with an impressive ride, covering the first 30 mile leg in just over 2 hours with a 14 mph pace.


I took the handoff in Burchard for the second leg of the relay and held up my end of the deal turning in a 14.3 average over the 40 mile leg for a time of 2 hours and 50 minutes.



Justin did the anchor leg and continued the fast pace with a time just over 2 hours for his 30 mile leg, also with a 14 mph pace.




Well, if you've been paying attention at all you know how the race ends... we won. However that's not the end of the story, 3 Cog Night turned in a great performance and we actually would have finished second out of all the relay teams if there were not a single speed relay team category and only by about 18 minutes. Looking at the overall standings for the Hundy, we placed 18th as a team out of 101 Hundy racers. I think we achieved our goal of giving it our best effort even if it wasn't necessary to take home the hardware and everyone on the team killed it in tough conditions. There were 31 DNFs in the Hundy, it was that hot out there. I hope that the single speed relay sticks, this is the first year for it and I feel like there will be other teams that will race it, seems more and more people are picking up a single speed lately.

Video from the Solstice.

 

I'm A Cowboy, On A Carbon Horse I Ride - 2020 Pony Express Gravel Dash

This is the third year I've done the Pony Express 120 Gravel Dash and it's normally one of the last races of the year, this year even more so with it happening a month later than normal. Usually we'd be Ponying it up in September but then the gravel race formally known as DK... The Dirty Kanza, if you're nasty... (a Prince and Janet reference in the same sentence, be still my heart) slid into the weekend that the Pony Express had slated for their race. The organizers of the Pony Express then called an audible and moved to October, ironically the DK never happened but the new date was already set. Still in the midst of Covid guidelines, masks and social distancing was the norm for the Pony Express as it has been for all the races I've been a part of this year. To the credit of the organizers of the races that I've participated in, I have not heard of any cases being contributed to the race. It's possible that the elimination of mass starts, large rider meetings and after race parties might be a rarity for the foreseeable future but from what I've seen and experienced, it does seem like modified events are possible. Even if not a popular opinion.


Teach me how to Hopken.





With the normal area used for the start/finish line in Marysville under construction, this year it moved to just in front of the Union Pacific Station. Built in 1929 the Station was weeks away from being demolished in 2015 when the City of Marysville and the UP Preservation Society bought the station and started restoring it. The Union Pacific station was designed by architect Gilbert Stanley Underwood, most famously known for designing lodges in our National Parks. Underwood also designed 9 Union Pacific stations and all of them were beautiful, ornate designs, the Union Pacific Station in Omaha is another of his designs. These stations and lodges were built by the Union Pacific as an incentive to get folks to travel by train to the National Parks thus increasing UP revenue. While still in the renovation process it's great to see these types of historical buildings being saved from the wrecking ball, architecture like this just isn't being produced today.





Check-ins were checked, beers drank, prizes raffled and won. Amy also gave an emotional speech about her recent battle with breast cancer and gave a little insight into her coming up with the idea and formation of Pink Gravel as a way to raise awareness of breast cancers among active runners and gravel enthusiast. For more information on Pink Gravel, click HERE.


The staggered start was in affect and participants had a 20 minute window in which to start their race, I was part of a three person relay team riding the third leg so I had time to kill before I'd need to get ready to ride.




Winds were strong and temps were low that morning, I was not envious of those riding in the wee hours of the day. On my way to checkpoint one I snagged a few pictures of the Pony Express rider and a few of the black squirrel sculptures that are everywhere around town. Two things Marysville is famous for is as a former Pony Express station and for the abundance of living black squirrels, which are also everywhere but not as into posing as the sculptured ones are.






The tiny town of Summerfield, Kansas, a town totally devoid of any sort of cell reception, was the site of the first checkpoint. Winds were still whipping and temps were still in the 40s, I was chilly but riding must have helped with that because a few of the crew left jackets and vests with me to take back to the start/finish. That was a good sign because it meant I might actually warm up at some point in the day.



The first relay point was some 20 miles up the course in Du bois, Nebraska. While bigger than Summerfield, there wasn't a single thing in Du bois except the forbidden love of a dog and cat. Nothing was open in the entire town, the lady running the Post Office was also the lady who would open the bar at 11 am after she closed the Post Office. I picked Doug up, who crushed his leg of the relay, and watched Sarah ride off to start her leg before Doug and I went in search of some Casey's pizza.


After Casey's, Doug and I headed to the second relay point to wait for Sarah to ride in. Once we saw Matt pull into the lot we knew it was only a matter of minutes before we'd see her so I grabbed the bike and warmed up a little bit. Sitting in a car and standing in the cold and wind most of the day was not ideal for preparing to race bicycles so I am glad that I got a few minutes to get the legs going.



Since we as a team were trying to do well in the race, I opted to not bring the camera along on the bike to stave off that distraction. The first 15 miles into that stiff SSW 24 mph wind sucked but thankfully as the day went on the winds began to drop so the second half of the leg became a little less windy as the ride went on. The entire leg was in about the same direction but I was able to add almost a mile per hour to the total mph average over the course of the second half of the leg once the winds started dropping. While not the fastest time or average I've had on the Revolt, given the winds I felt like it was a good effort and I gave it what I had.



As a team we did fantastic and raked in the hardware, we finished under 9 hours total time for the 120 miles and took first in the relay. Super proud of my teammates for absolutely crusing it out there on course!


The second and third place teams were comprised of junior racers from the Move Up Cycling Team. Don't let their young age or diminutive size fool you, they were fast and did really well, they are the future of gravel.


We weren't the only ones of the group to come home with some hardware however, Joe and Roy took 1st and 2nd in the 70 mile fat bike division.


Overall I am super stoked with our team and decently happy with my leg of the race. The Revolt performed flawlessly again and was fast as always, winds and temps could have been better but we don't get to control that part of it I suppose. It was great seeing all the Rastas out there and to have so many of us podium, great folks and great shop. Next year we are coming for the 70 mile tandem race, I think we have a decent chance of doing really well in that race also, we just need to get the miles on the bike early in the season and perfect our on bike teamwork. 

Oh, some of the photos were borrowed from Matt Pearson. He can take some mighty fine pictures. 

 

2020 Solstice 100

I have been to every single Solstice 100 Gravel Grinder, I've been there well before the riders and often still there after they have all left. My body has felt tired after each one, my legs dead, my back aching and sleep coming easily when I finally got to lay my head down late that night. I've been to every single Solstice 100 Gravel Grinder but until this year, I had never raced any of them.  


Joe had apparently had enough of my "help" so he called me up waaaaaaaaaayyyyyy back in January or February offering me a spot if I wanted to race in the Solstice in June. I said sure, why not, and while I couldn't see him, I am pretty sure he was doing his happy dance where ever he was.



June came and June went and still no Solstice race due to the world going to poop, I was beginning to think that it just wasn't going to be in the cards for me this year either. It wouldn't have been a total surprise since the rest of the gravel racing scene has pretty much been shut down this year, yet here we were on a crisp September morning getting ready to race.


The Giant Revolt got the nod as Saturday's sled of choice for the race. I had hoped to have had several races on the Revolt by this point in the year but as it turned out, this would be the first non-virtual event we would try our luck at. This bike is meant to be ridden fast, it's been a stellar machine when I've ridden it but unfortunately it's not gotten a lot of time in gravel events this year and even more unfortunate our time together is coming to a close.



Gone this year was the traditional mass start that is commonplace at these types of events, instead each category had a 30 minute windows in which to start so that people could stagger their launch onto the course. The usual crew arranged a time to meet up and we sort of rolled out in a mini group right around 7:25 which allowed the 100 and 50 people to both be within their designated windows of departure. Most of the crew opted for the Solar Fiddy this year with most not feeling in race shape like they normally would have been this late in the season. I'm actually having a pretty good year, already eclipsed last years total and we still have a few months left in the year that has been 2020 so I stuck with the full 100.




Since it was almost fall and not the beginning of summer, the temps were much better for racing bicycles but wind was going to be a factor. Steady SSE winds in the teens to start and then increasing into mid 20 mph range with gusts up to 30 mph as the day went on meant you wanted to not dilly dally out the gate since we went into that wind for the first half or so of the course. The hazy smoke from the wildfires out west made for a fairly spectacular sunrise.




Up until Friday night I wasn't exactly sure what kind of race I was going to attempt, I had some goals and that was about it. Goal number one was to cut down on the amount of time spent at SAG stops. Over the years I have added 1-2 hours of non-riding time to longer races by lingering a little bit too long at the stops, for the Solstice I was going to make an effort to cut that significantly. My other goal was to try to not spend all day out there, something under 8 hours seemed like it was more than plausible if goal number one was achieved. A 13 mph average would get me back into Beatrice in just under 8 hours, that seemed totally possible. Without the mass start, there were no rabbits to chase so I just rode out at a decent pace that I felt was quick but not so fast that I'd blow up by the halfway point. As it turned out, I felt really good and once things started clicking the pace started to tick up a bit too. It wasn't too long before it was just Carlos, Dave and I from our group. That was kind of expected though since most of the rest of the group was only in it for 50 miles. As much as I love riding with the gang, I was a little concerned about not making any of my goals if I rode in the bigger group for 50 and then still had another 50 to do once they were hitting the showers. So the three of us just kept spinning the cranks at a quick but controlled pace.



McColgan Photography was out on the course snapping photos, he had a knack for making me look pretty good on Saturday. I'll have to remember to drop and extra 6 pack off at his doorstep sometime soon.



Carlos, Dave and I rolled into checkpoint one together at mile 30. We were making decent time and I was still feeling really good at this point, so far things were going as planned. Dave and I said goodbye to Carlos, we thought the 50 and 100 split here, and Sarge and I rode off... some of us with meat in our mouth, Hannibal Smith style.





Not too far from Barneston we ran into Quigley (Larry for those not in on the story) who was not having a great day, something was causing his tubeless to not hold and what ever that was, was also puncturing his tubes. Three tubes down he called for a ride and we happened to roll up on him while he was waiting for rescue. It's too bad as it seemed like he was otherwise having a great day on the bicycle.


The staggered start meant that there weren't a lot of crowds, which was the point, but it seemed odd to be in a race and not see many other racers. Dave and I did sort of do a yo-yo with Paul and his buddy from North Platte for most of the race between Barneston and Diller.



At about mile 63 we rolled into Steele City and checkpoint 2 where we ran into Roy. We filled up on water, grabbed some food and we were back on the road in a timely manner. Well, almost, I did have to pry Dave from a conversation he was having with a local about the festivities going on in Steele City. I think Dave had dollar signs in his eyes trying to figure out how to sell his wares there next year, I on the other hand just wanted to keep that non moving time to a minimum.



The section between Steele City and Diller was the worst section of the day, especially after turning that corner in Endicott and heading into that SSE wind. We took a bit more time at the Diller checkpoint to recover a little and grab much needed food and drink. 20 miles to go I was feeling good still and we were about to get into some of the longer tailwind sections.




Dave and I rolled across the finish together wheel to wheel, which seemed fitting since we had spent the day taking turns pulling one another through the Solstice 100. I honestly didn't feel horrible at the end, I was glad it was over but for a 100 mile bike race I felt surprisingly good. I also checked off all of my personal goals for this race, we came in at 6 hours 46 minutes beating the 8 hour time I had set by quite a good margin. We only had about a half hour of non moving time, that was fantastic, and we managed a respectable 15 mph for moving time.

Joe designed a great course. The Revolt was a dream to race, it flew over everything that the course threw at it. Whoever picks it up once the demo is done will be getting a heck of a race bike, all day grinder or even daily commuter rolled up into one. I also have to thank Cycle Works for being the radtastic shop and people that they are and for allowing me to ride for them all these years.


And then of course there are these amazing people, with which the after race shenanigans happened.