Iditarod Trail Invitational 2016 Part 1

Loaded and ready for whatever comes!

My inspiration and best friend.  None other than Laura Fox.

My furry friends Palmer and Dot.  The guy that put up with my crap for years, my dad.

First, thank you to my family and friends for all the support.  Years of preparation and training were all possible because of you.  I thought of all of you and appreciated everything you've done for me.

Thank you to all the volunteers and the folks that hosted a bunch of stinky racers.  You all were so kind.

Congratulations to Tim Berntson and Heather Best!  You two had great races and really kicked butt.

Now that that's out of the way, on to the race report.  Here's a quick rundown of what I did.  Racers start at Knik Lake on the historical Iditarod Trail.  From there we have checkpoints that we are required to hit in Yentna Station, Skwentna Roadhouse, Winterlake Lodge, Rainy Pass Lodge, Rohn Tent, and Nikolai, and then we finish in McGrath.  There are no gear requirements and the racer can choose the route with the exception of Knik Goose Bay Road. 

We started on the lake and it was wet and muddy as soon as we hit the Iditarod Trail.  I put a fender on my bike and also wore goretex pants and coat.  (This turned out to be a good idea and I actually felt comfortable wearing this all the way till Rohn). We headed down Ayeshire Road where my goal for the first part of the race was to be in "the" picture.  Sure enough when I ran into Angie I was with the lead group!  

The Pack.  Jeff Oatley, Tim Berntson, Charly Tri, Adam Erritzoe, Tyson Flaharty and I think that's Jay and Dan at the back. Photo credit Angie Glover.

After seeing Angie we headed off onto the Gasline straightaway.  The pace was quick and I just tried to keep drinking water and eating.  I saw speeds into the low 20's on the road and into the high teens on the gasline and river later on.  We saw the Speedway crew for just a moment and they hopped on to follow for just a few moments.  Even they had a tough time holding on.  I have never been in a fatbike paceline like this one.  Maybe a Frosty Bottom but that race doesn't involve loaded bikes.  

Selfie time!

Dropping down onto the Susitna River.

We flew across Flathorn Lake were I saw the last of our spectators until Nikolai.  There the pace dropped as we lost the trail and got into soft snow.  We all slowed to a literal walking pace and made our way to the actual trail.  Once there I decided to stop and drop a layer.  It was warm and I was sweating up a storm.  I dropped down onto the Susitna River and saw the lead group in front of me and kept them there until we got a few miles up the Yentna River where I stopped again to check on Adam Erritzoe.  He had to adjust his slipping seatpost and that was the last I would see of the lead pack till Skwentna.    

More Selfie time!

 I checked in and out of Yentna Station and was amazed how quickly we had gotten there. We started at 2pm that day and had already made it to Yentna by about 6pm!

I got back on the river and it was pretty uneventful until Skwentna where I arrived to see Tim B, Tyson and Charly leaving as I was coming in.  Jay P had already checked out after getting some hot water (possibly to rehydrate some food up the trail.)  Jeff O was also in the checkpoint and left a little after those other guys.  I took in some chicken noodle soup, a Ginger Ale and a bicycle cupcake!

Skewentna Roadhouse had some sweets on hand for us!  How cool!

 I am a rookie.  I have ridden up to Shell Lake before but that's as far as I've ever gone.  I didn't really know what to expect going to Finger Lake.  I continued onto the trail thinking that we were going to run into a LOT of snow.  It turns out the trail wasn't as bad as I thought.  The Iron Dog teams' stories of feet and feet of snow were true but enough of them had passed through that we were able to just putt along at a reasonable pace all the way to Finger Lake.  I got up the Shell Hills and after getting to the lodge I noticed Charly with what looked to be a beer in his hand.  Mike at the lodge told me he was dropping out of the race because of his bum back.  Bummer.

I had a little bit of a boost knowing that I was now in fifth place!  I kept plugging along and found the rest of the trail to Finger Lake to be fairly mellow.  It was snowing but the accumulation wasn't too bad.  Just outside of the lake I caught Jeff O and we rode into the checkpoint.  There we found Tim, Tyson and Jay already there.  Jay P came in about an hour before me and was catching some solid snooze time on the floor.  We rounded up our first drop bags and the lodge owner made me a huge burrito with eggs, bacon, salsa, beans, rice and sour cream.  It went down great!  I had some coffee and was debating with myself whether or not I was going to head out to Rainy Pass Lodge.

This was a decision made fairly easy.  Again, as a rookie I had no idea what the heck I was doing. Tim left and Tyson wasn't too far behind him.  Heather, Jeff O. and the winners of the 130 mile race started to pour in.  It was getting pretty busy in the lodge and I figured if Tim and Tyson were leaving then maybe I should leave.  Jay P was still sleeping on the floor when I left, I assumed that he would be flying when he left and would probably catch me on the way to Rainy Pass but either way I was in third place now!

A Trio of riding buddies

I am really nervous.  There, it's out of the way.

This past weekend Laura, Nico, Stew and I headed up to Talkeetna to take a couple of laps of the Talkeetna Trio course in.

Talkeetna Trio March 12, 2016

It really was great to go out and just have a fun ride with a great group.  After years of preperation and months of training I needed a low stress, fun ride.  We climbed a bunch of rollers, jumped like goofy kids on the downhills and loved the clear view of Denali.  This is a tough course but one of the better ones in the state.  Afterwards we headed to the brewery for a well deserved dinner and beer.

OMG!!

Photo credit goes to Laura Fox

Susitna 100

First things first.  Tim Berntson and Megan Chelf rode great.  Laura Fox, Danielle Dalton, Will Ross and Carey Grumelot (and Josh Chelf :winkwink:) kept those two honest the whole time.  Congrats on the course records too!

The team had a great showing as well!  Revolution Racing had the most teammates racing!!!  Many folks were returning to the Su100 as well as some first timers.  They all did great and we have the best team out there!!!

Thanks again Adam and Angie.  Laura and I drove out Friday night and slept at the Shilman Quest Lodge which saved us a bit of energy that we would surely need the next day.  Thankfully there wasn't any big earthquakes like the last time we were out there.

The best team ever!

Saturday morning rolled around and Laura and I got to the start and checked in for the bike division. The race started and in typical fashion there was a really fast lead pack that headed off down the trail and that would prove to be the last time we would see them till the finish.

There was a pack of about 20 or so folks riding our pace.  We rolled that way pretty uneventful till we got to the river.  At that point there was a bit of a stall in the the pace so I decided to hop up front and crank out some miles.  From there on for Laura, Megan, Tom and I it didn't slow down till Cow Lake.  We absorbed Nico at first just before the turn off for Rolly Creek trail and then about 2 miles before Eagle Quest we picked up Fred West as well.

Ryan and Laura keeping spirits high as we tried to keep the pace manageable early in the race.

We had a couple of freeloaders near the end of Gasline till Flathorn Lake checkpoint.

Fast forward to the river near 5 Star checkpoint.  Laura, Megan and Tom were all that was left of our pack.  Looking back at splits we would have hung in their with David Artega and John Sindell.  That's major league not just for me but both of these rockstars.

We rocked through the Willow Swamp to Eagle Quest where I decided to hit the porta-potty.  I figured that I would line up to sign in and out just as the last person in our group lined up to sign out. That was not the case.  I looked up and Laura was already leaving and no one was left at the checkpoint.  After pulling the pack for quite a few miles I was pretty miffed and pegged it and Tom decided to attack hard through Willow Swamp and I didn't latch back on until Hunter Loop trail. That really drained me and it would cost me a good bit of energy through Big Swamp.  I decided to just sit in and regain my wits.  Tom was riding really strong and many of us were considering letting him go. We all apparently decided to stay attached and continue on.

After a goof up by half the pack at the Fish Creek intersection I found myself with Nico in front and Megan just behind him.  She backed off as we hopped onto the Cow Lake connector.  This is a fun trail with a couple of mean rollers thrown in.  Usually we end up coming through here in the darker hours of the day and I guess I was feeling pretty good and decided to ride up everything that was possible to ride up.

We dropped down into the lake and to my surprise Josh was waiting for Megan.  I had thought that he was racing and to see him there messed with our heads just enough and when it came time to sign out of the checkpoint Laura and I had to take a mental break.  Megan, Josh and Fred took off down the trail with no break and that would be the last time I would see them.  When Laura and Nico left she had dropped approx. 5 or so minutes and I even more so as I left alone.

I am in no way making an excuse or taking away from the winners and the folks in front of me. These races are as much about the mental aspects as the physical.  Tim Berntson is incredible at this racing. He has the right mental attitude and strength as well as the physical training and ability to do very well at 100 mile snow ultra distance races.  To hear stories of how quickly he is in and out of checkpoints is amazing.  I come away from this experience a little smarter and will continue to focus on my race. Just as my father always told me when I was younger and racing remote control cars and later on racing full size cars.  Back to the race report.

I rolled through the hills out of Cow Lake and we were on the worst trail conditions of the race. Which wasn't saying too much as I decided to run Dillinger 5 tires and aired down just after Little Cow Lake.  I also took the opportunity to tighten up my seat tension bolt.  I made it through here without too much trouble.  From there I just pedaled away and caught Nico at the Power line trail just before the Little Su river crossing and the final checkpoint.  I was still chasing Tom and rolled right in after he did at the checkpoint.

From the final checkpoint till the finish Nico and I pulled and gave it our best effort to catch Tom. After trading pulling duties I told Nico that I couldn't just let Tom pull away without giving it a go and he acknowledged so I left.  I didn't quite have enough to close up the gap and we rolled into the finish with me just about a minute behind Tom and a minute ahead of Nico.

I didn't get too many pictures of teammates finishing.  Here is Nico with his new Glacier Blue Corvus crossing the finish line.  He really hooked me up with a great pull out of the last checkpoint.

I'm so happy for Laura.  She really put the hammer down and once again only Tim was faster than her from the last checkpoint to the finish.  That's just amazing!

2016 Susitna 100 and Little Su 50k ADN article

This was a great tuneup and hard final effort before the Iditarod Trail Invitational.  I raced on a nice light bike, with just the right amount of gear.

Quick notes:

I rode without bike shorts and was totally comfortable.  The Selle Anatomica NSX series saddle is heaven for my bottom.  Hahaha

Selle Anatomica NSX saddle

Dillinger 5's are great tires and roll OK until about 11-12 miles per hour.  After that they really start resisting rolling compared to other tires in the 4" range.  I didn't need the newer style studs or the larger tire for this race and that would be the one thing I change next time.  Looking ahead to the ITI there still maybe possible snowfall this side of the range and the 5's might be a better bet than the 4's.

45nth Dillinger 5

I rode the entire race without filling a water bottle or a hydration pack.  Revelate Designs Wampak with a 100oz camelbak bladder brought me all the way to the finish with water to spare.  This is good news for me.  The stretch from Rohn to Nikolai is a long way and this gives me confidence that I can make it without having to melt any snow along the way if the conditions are decent.

Revelate Designs Wampak

The final countdown

My favorite riding buddy.  :-)

Prospect Height.  Running in Susitna 100 trim.

I didn't get a picture of the whole crew.  Amanda and Angie had just jumped off to head back to the Shilman Quest Lodge.

Willow Swamp

Rolly Creek Trail to Willow Swamp

Sunny days and smiling faces

Another big weekend in the books.  Laura and I made it through 125+ miles on Saturday and Sunday.  The sun finally decided to poke it's head out of the clouds and made for nice weekend on the saddle.  

Kincaid Chalet

Product placement

Middle Fork Snowman

Williwaw Lakes and Middle  intersection

We started the weekend riding around Anchorage up South Rim to Middle Fork and back.  We just missed Fire Island Bakery.  :-p

On Sunday Laura, Ryan and I drive up to Happy Trails Kennel to pre-ride the Susitna 100 course.  

We started out at Happy Trail Kennel.  Hard and fast!

Photo Courtesy of Ryan Greeff

Photo Courtesy of Ryan Greeff

My 9:ZERO:7 in mostly Susitna 100 race trim

Photo Courtesy of Ryan Greeff

Photo Courtesy of Ryan Greeff

Photo Courtesy of Ryan Greeff.  Coffee mug courtesy of Clinton Hodges III

This one is for you Adam.  Fuck you Wall of Death.

Laura "The Flyer" Fox photo courtesy of Ryan Greeff

Not long after we popped onto the Susitna River.  It's in the best condition I've ever seen.

Photo Courtesy of Ryan Greeff

Paceline work.  Haha

Chocolate egg layers

Photo Courtesy of Ryan Greeff.  He knows how to make us look fast!

Rolling into Big Swamp like we own the place.

Who me?

We made it within a mile or so of Cow Lake at Fish Creek.  There was a good amount of overflow at the normal crossing.  I am looking for another trail option.  Photo Courtesy of Ryan Greeff

Photo Courtesy of Ryan Greeff.  He took one for the team and scooted across first.

Photo Courtesy of Ryan Greeff

The defense.  Photo Courtesy of Ryan Greeff.

The Prosecutor.  Photo courtesy of Laura Fox.

We had a bit of a scary moment with Laura's front tire fell through a suprisingly deep trench crossing the trail.  Her right leg went into the muddy water up to her knee and her left knee banged into the ice.  OUCH!  She's tough and luckily Ryan had a set of spare socks and Advil.

I also didn't escape without problems.  I had a spoke break on my rear wheel but luckily I was able to tape it up and ride on without further problem.

A cool piece of gear that Laura and I tried out this weekend was the Revelate Designs Wampak.  

It worked great!  I rode 75 miles, didn't freeze the hose, didn't run out of water, stayed comfortable and pretty much didn't notice the pack.  That's a good sign that this pack works as advertised.

http://www.revelatedesigns.com/