Seal the Deal

      The first weekend of August brought the fifth of six rounds in the DINO Series. This race took place at Potato Creek State Park in North Liberty, IN, which is just south of South Bend. It was a convenient race for us as we were already in the area this week spending time with family. We finished up a trip to northern Michigan on Friday and stayed the weekend with Shannon's parents in Elkhart, IN, which is only about 30 minutes from the park.

     I felt "normal" for the first time in over a week on Saturday as we popped into Potato Creek for the first time to pre-ride the course. I have had a stomach bug for over a week now. I was sick for about four days, then have been dealing with the aftermath of full-body weakness and slow digestion for five more days. I was 10 pounds lighter going into this race weekend than I was two weeks ago at Nationals.

     The trail was a fun one. There isn't much elevation gain, but there is lots of flow and cornering which keeps you busy for the full eight miles. I felt much better than expected. I did a lap with Shannon just to look things over, then did a second lap a bit faster just to see how the body was feeling. I was weak with intensity, but not too bad overall. My bike was creaking in the pivots, so I threw the bike on the rack and pulled the linkage apart in the parking lot after my second lap to service the bearings and bushings. The bushings in the main pivot near the bottom bracket are getting worn and will need to be replaced soon, but my parking lot service job was enough to get things tightened up and ended the awful creaking.

Shannon on the trail at Potato Creek

     The trail was dry and fast on Saturday, but there was a threat of overnight rain. I welcomed it as slick corners are good for me. I could seal up the series overall on Sunday by finishing in the top four and being one spot ahead of Chris Bowman. It didn't seem like that would happen with the sickness I have been dealing with, but I remained optimistic and ready to jump at any opportunity. That would remove all pressure for the final round at Southwestway Park in a few weeks, a place I struggled at last year.

     The rain held off overnight. It was a cloudy and cool morning as we prepared for the race. There was some light drizzle falling during my warm-up, but it didn't do much more than dampen the trail. It actually gave it more grip and made the loop faster.

     My plan for the race was to get a good start, then try to follow Chris all day. I wanted to sit in and conserve as much as possible because I knew my energy reserves were not as full as usual. My digestion has been slow the past few days, so I also didn't think I could get as much out of the calories I consumed during the race. My thought all day was be smooth and conserve for the final lap.

     We only had five riders on the start line, so that meant if I beat Chris in this race I had the series wrapped up. We started off with a short grass stretch before crossing a ditch and then onto the road for a flat stretch of pavement, followed by a hard right onto a gravel road that led you to the singletrack. We would be doing three laps in the singletrack, not going through the finish area until the actual end of the race. There were very few places to pass on this course. It was at least 95% singletrack and the wider sections were so fast that it was hard to make a move on someone. The only real open stretch was when we shot out onto the gravel road at the end of each lap to go through the Feed Zone. It was open for about 50 meters, so not a lot of time to make a move. 

     The start was definitely going to important today. So was the Feed Zone. I put my bottle in the woods so that I could try for a pass on that gravel road without missing a feed should it come down to that. When I went to put my feed pole in the woods I ran into Chris, who also had the same idea. It's really crazy how tactical the feed zone has become in the past two years, especially on courses like this where passing is very difficult. When you popped out of the trail to end lap three, it was a 100 meter dash down the gravel road before crossing a paved road and then riding the grass ditch next to the road into the finish. There was a few twists along the ditch before a final 30 meter open dash to the line. It was a long finish section and gave plenty of room for a sprint so if you couldn't make the move in the woods you did still have a chance in the sprint.

     I got a great jump on the start and was first onto the pavement and onto the main road in the park. I didn't want to lead so I sat up. Chris Bowman attacked and everyone went after him. We rolled through the tight right turn onto the gravel road with people leaning on each other. Chris got to the woods first with Craig Baker in tow and me in third. I had to work hard to get that third spot as Tomasz Golas tried to come by. I just wanted it more and braked later than him going into the woods.

     Chris set a fast pace early. I was surprised to see we were clear of the fifth place rider in the first section, then gapped Tomasz in the next section. Our lead trio rolled smoothly through the first lap, putting about 45 seconds into Tomasz. Chris blasted through the Feed Zone at the end of the lap and Craig got gapped trying to grab his bottle off a table. He cleaned the whole table off, but did manage to hang onto the bottle he wanted. That let Chris get a gap. Craig let me by in the first section and I set out after Chris. It took me a few minutes to get to him, but I got across to his wheel by bombing the small descents. I was very smooth like I had hoped to be and was carrying momentum well which makes a huge difference on a course like this. My cornering was great today. Not only were my Ikon tires the right tread for the dirt, I also had my air pressure right on point. The pace did make my stomach hurt a few times the first two laps, but my legs were strong. I didn't feel all that great everywhere else, but the legs were good. I thought Chris was holding back because we weren't flying, but I could tell he was pushing on the inclines because there were several times I had to give everything I had to hold his wheel. Craig did not follow me across the gap to Chris. He steadily fell back and was about 45 seconds off at the end of lap two. Tomasz had lost more time, but still was in fourth.

A rider on course near the end of the lap.

Somebody was feeding out of a pail

     I tried to memorize all the possible passing spots the first two laps and even made a few fake runs on lap two just to see if I had enough time to come by. Chris was ready for me though and upped the pace every time it got wide, including sprinting through the Feed Zone again this lap. I heard some extra cheering for me in the Feed Zone as Shannon's mom and Amber came over after church to catch the end of the race. 

     I felt we slowed down starting the third and final lap, so I started really looking for a spot to get by. There was a grassy road crossing at the top of the first uphill on the loop that was followed by a really wide right corner. I got a run up the hill and pulled out to the right of Chris as we reached the grass road. I got next to him and then hung the inside of the wide turn, staying in the grass inside of the worn in trail. I caught him off-guard and made the inside move work. 

     Once out front, I punched it with everything I had. I pushed all the corners hard and carried max speed into the hills. I could tell I was pushing Chris in some of the faster sections, but he was all over me on the hills. After a few minutes, I started to ride more defensively as I was afraid I would run out of energy soon. I settled into a fast, but slightly conservative pace, upping the speed in the sections where he might be able to pass. About one-third of the way through the loop was the first gradual uphill drag where Chris had hurt me the first two laps. I went really hard all the way up this hill to try to keep him from passing. When I got to the top, I looked back to find I had gapped him. That was all I needed to get some confidence. I just went for it from that point. It was time to seal the deal and end this series right here.

     I slowly pulled away from him the rest of the lap. I was cramping again, but I have learned how to deal with those over the course of the year and they didn't slow me down at all. I never ran out of energy. I don't know if the conserving really saved me or if the oyster crackers had revived me that much. Either way, I finished the race about as strong as I have ever ridden. I normally will see a heart rate of over 180 bpm maybe twice in a race these days, a few more times on a perfect day. I typically average around 172-173 bpm for a good race. Today, I went over 180 bpm 22 times and held 180-185 for over 10 minutes once I got the winning gap. My heart rate never dropped below 175 after taking the lead and I maxed out at 188! I definitely had the legs today. I grabbed the win by about 40 seconds over Chris. Craig held on for third 1:53 back. All three of my lap times were nearly identical if you take off the start/finish sections on laps one and three. Consistency wins races.

Rider coming into the finish

     I was beyond happy and surprised with this result. I have now won three of the five rounds, which I never dreamed I could do. My goal for the series is also now complete as I have locked up the win no matter what happens at Southwestway. This was just one of those races I will always remember. I worked so hard out there and wanted it so bad. I was on my game today despite the recent sickness and rode smart all day. I showed today what I can do with a good set of pedals and how ready I really was for Snowshoe. I won the races right before and after Nationals. I'd love to have another shot at Snowshoe without a mechanical this time.

     It was also super cool to win in front of family. I just wished Dina had been there as I think she would have liked this course too, but she didn't want to drive the nearly eight hours up here for this one by herself. In the future, I think we should give the winners at Potato Creek a bag of potatoes on the podium. It just seems fitting. Lots of podium pictures below and a short video of some of the action.

Elite podium

Video: DINO Potato Creek

     Shannon and I went for a ride after the race to explore the park a bit more. It turned into a beautiful day. We checked out Worster Lake and several swamps within the park before loading up and hitting the road for home. That long drive sure is a lot better when you are going home after a win and knowing the series title is yours.

Worster Lake inside the park

One of many swamps in the park

Another swamp