Saturday brought my first endurance race in quite while. I haven't trained for long distance races specifically, but I did get in several 5+ hour road rides in the late summer, and also some long mountain bike rides while in Utah. I did the Lock 4 Six Hour Challenge two years ago and had a rough day. I seem to be at one extreme or the other when I race at Lock 4, sort of like when I race at Land Between the Lakes. I have some awesome races at Lock 4, but I've also had some hating-life kind of days as well. I kind of felt like I had to return and conquer this race, so I added it to my schedule for the season. It would also serve as a great training event to kick off my winter.
We arrived to the race early to set up our area. Shannon and I scoped out a good spot along the course to set up our 10' x 10' tent and table. I loaded the table down with gels, bars and tools that I might need during the race. Before my warm-up, I walked part of the trail with Shannon, showing her some good spectating areas and spots where we might be able to communicate with each other. She could tell me time splits and I could tell her my eating/drinking plan for the next lap.
Hanging out at Mike Taglio's van before the race
Photo by Mike Taglio
The temp dipped into the mid-40s overnight, but it was quick to warm up. We barely needed a jacket when getting ready. By the time I hit the trail to start my warm-up it was nice enough to be in shorts and short-sleeves. The sun had creeped over the trees by the time we lined up for the Le Mans-style start. We were to start on foot at 10am, running about 50 yards to our bikes, then mount up and start into the woods. The race loop was the same as that used for Dirt, Guts & Donuts a few weeks ago. It was a 9-mile loop made mostly of singletrack. The race was six hours long. Every lap completed prior to the six-hour mark would count. Anything finished after six hours would not count toward your final lap total.
The run was uphill. I was sure to line up on the front row so I could get to the woods in a good spot. My bike was on the second row of the bikes. We got the countdown to the start. Several riders on the right side of the group jumped the start by quite a bit, getting several steps lead over everyone else. I was surprised at how fast everyone ran. I run more than most of the people in the field, but I could only muster 9th on the start.
Bikes in place for the start
Riders massing for the running start
The start
My biggest competition was sure to be the trio of Biker's Choice riders: Craig Evans, Matt Schupp and Billy Wood. Evans won the race last year and was sure to be riding strong after just returning from Maui where he raced the XTERRA World Championships. Schupp finished second here last year. Both of them did 8 laps last year, which was my goal for today. I did 7 laps here in 2010. There are usually some questionable tactics used at this race. I prepared myself for that by planning to just let them go early on and riding my own race. There is no point in getting into a raging battle the first few laps. It's a long day. As expected, the trio got off in the front and worked together with one of their teammates who was on a relay team. They quickly got away from the rest of the field while I was back in traffic.
Two of the riders that started a bit early got to their bikes first
First riders grab their bikes
The group mounts up and begins 6 hours of Lock 4 fun
The back of the group gets on their bikes
The leaders head toward the woods for the first time
I had a fair start and hit the singletrack in 9th
Stanley Wills on the start
My legs were terrible early on. I was holding back, but I don't think I would've been able to go hard if I had wanted to. It took me a few miles to move up to the top 5. Just as I did, my back began to hurt. The Camelbak I was using was just not working with the position on my hardtail. I have no issue with it when riding the Remedy, but the leaned-over position on the hardtail broke me down. The right side of my lower back was knotting up just 3 miles into the race. And it only got worse.
I was 5th in the Solo category after lap 1, coming through in just over 42 minutes. I was hoping to do my first lap in around 40 minutes. I dumped the Camelbak at the end of the lap and started using bottles. My back got better and I got faster. I was 1 minute behind 4th place starting lap 2. I had cut that in half in just a mile. Some of the lower areas of the trail were a tad wet from rain we had earlier in the week. Those spots were slick the first lap, but had dried significantly by lap 2. I was having fun ripping the corners until I caught one that was still wet. It put me on my face. It cost me a few seconds, but I was fine and back up chasing the rider ahead.
Mike Taglio
Things were looking better, but then the back cramp returned. It slowed me down near the end of the lap. My stomach also started cramping in the same way that it did at XTERRA USA. I had to stop once because it cramped so hard that I couldn't pedal. I ran almost exactly the same lap time as my first lap despite the crash and body issues. I was still just 40 seconds behind 4th. The leading three were now several minutes ahead.
The stomach ache continued into lap 3, then suddenly went away. I felt better, but was still feeling the lower back pain. It was really a rough start to the race, but I was still hanging in the battle up front, holding 4th place at just 30 seconds ahead. My back got worse with each hill climbed. I tried to stand on most of them because that hurt less. Extension exercises would take the pain completely away, but they were hard to perform while riding down the trail. I squeezed in several on the road section around the peninsula. At first the pain relief lasted 5-10 minutes, but by the end of the lap the relief only lasted a few seconds.
My lap time slowed 2 minutes and I dropped to 1 minute behind 4th. I had to stop after lap 3 to work on my back. Shannon helped me with some mobilizations and muscle energy techniques to my lower back. The pain went away and I was left just with stiffness. I did some stretching and ate some food before getting back on the bike. I gave up 15 minutes during that stop, but I didn't have much choice.
Lap 4 started well, but quickly turned sour. The back pain was gone, but I was bonking. I started getting weak and lost another 2 minutes on my lap time. I tried to eat, but it was too late. I thought I had eaten plenty before the race and during the first 3 laps, but clearly I was mistaken. I faded badly on the fifth lap. I had made up a lot of spots on lap 4, but then gave them back up on lap 5. I also lost my right grip. I tried riding without a grip for a while, but that was very uncomfortable and sketchy. You have no traction on a smooth, painted handlebar. I stopped after a few miles and jammed the grips back on. That turned out to be a chore as I was weak, even in my arms. I was so bonked it was ridiculous. I struggled around the rest of the lap. My lap time was 16 minutes slower than my previous lap. I got smoked by some true Beginner riders. It was a humbling day!
I stopped after lap 5. The plan was to take a break and then go for one more lap before the cut-off. Despite my best efforts, I couldn't recover from the bonk and another lap never happened. I had to call it a day early, not getting anywhere close to making my goal of 8 laps. I finished 6th in the Solo Expert class. It wasn't what I had hoped for, but I got a good ride out of it and had fun despite the difficulties. Some days it just doesn't work out.
A short video from the Lock 4 Six Hour Challenge
The next day, Shannon and I went out for a road ride to spin out my legs and get her in some saddle time. It was another nice day to be outside. We rode some backroads while the leaves fell in the strong breeze. I love riding with my wife. She's my favorite riding partner.
Shannon on a leafy backroad
Looking out the back of my bike as we cruise on a nice Sunday ride together
Leaves blowing everywhere
Me on a local climb
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