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Saturday we did a triathlon in Morgantown, WV. We both pushed ourselves pretty hard and we both did pretty well (we both beat our goals pretty heartily). So, on the way home, I say something to the effect of "Can we just not leave the house tomorrow?"
We get home, get cleaned up, watch some TV and go to bed early.
This morning, we wake up around 7:30 (which is sleeping in for us). Mrs. P gets on the computer just to see if the official results were posted yet. (They weren't). While she was on the www.iplayoutside.com website, though, she sees a mountain bike race for today...registration starts at 8:30. She doesn't want to do it herself (she's not real hot on the mountain biking), but she thinks I should do it (because I really do like mountain biking more than she does, and until today, I thought I was not terribly bad at it).
So, we quickly get ready, load up my mountain bike and both of our road bikes and head to Charleston for the race.
We get me registered. I pick up my t-shirt, and written across the front of the shirt is:
"23rd Annual Black Bear 40k Mountain Bike Race - The scariest mountain bike race in the world".
Now, there were 3 classes for competitors. Beginner, Sport, and Pro. I thought I was probably a 'Sport' rider. The distances were different for different classes. Beginners did 25k, Sport did 30k, and Expert did 40k.
Now, the normal person would assume that the Beginners would have an easier route than the Experts, and the Sports would be somewhere in between.
This simply was not so.
90% of the race was the same route for all 3 classes. The Experts started 1 hour earlier and did an extra 10k at the beginning, and the beginners and Sports started one hour later, and the beginners had 5k less at the end.
So, the race starts. I knew the trail we were starting on. It's a dirt road that goes from the bottom of the mountain to the top of the mountain. It's 2 1/2 miles uphill, right at the start. So I'm trying to conserve energy. No use killing myself right off the bat...it's a long race.
We get to the top of the mountain and head off the road onto a single track trail. It starts off moderately down hill. Then it gets steep. Then it gets rocky. There are about 6 of us in a small pack heading down this cliff. (It's the first downhill of the race, remember). The guy in the front hits a rock and goes down. I make sure he's okay. He says he is. I go around. I get about 100 feet further down the cliff. I hit a rock and endo. I go right over the handlebars. I hit on my left side, I bounce, I hit on my right side, I bounce, I hear my helmet scraping against the basketball sized rocks on the trail. I finally come to a stop and realize I'm still alive...bleeding and bruised, but still alive. But my bike stopped about 10 feet up the trail, so I had to walk back up and get the bike.
So, we're about 3 1/2 miles into this 18.6 mile race and I've already face planted. ::fpaw:
That was the only full wipeout I had, though I had a few more very close calls.
The rest of the course was pretty much the same, except the trails got a little steep and rocky toward the end.
I finished in just over 3 1/2 hours. 3 people finished after me.
About 200 finished before I did.
But I survived, and I finished.
Next weekend is the Charleston Distance Run (15 miles). I hope I'll be able to walk again by next weekend.
We get home, get cleaned up, watch some TV and go to bed early.
This morning, we wake up around 7:30 (which is sleeping in for us). Mrs. P gets on the computer just to see if the official results were posted yet. (They weren't). While she was on the www.iplayoutside.com website, though, she sees a mountain bike race for today...registration starts at 8:30. She doesn't want to do it herself (she's not real hot on the mountain biking), but she thinks I should do it (because I really do like mountain biking more than she does, and until today, I thought I was not terribly bad at it).
So, we quickly get ready, load up my mountain bike and both of our road bikes and head to Charleston for the race.
We get me registered. I pick up my t-shirt, and written across the front of the shirt is:
"23rd Annual Black Bear 40k Mountain Bike Race - The scariest mountain bike race in the world".
Now, there were 3 classes for competitors. Beginner, Sport, and Pro. I thought I was probably a 'Sport' rider. The distances were different for different classes. Beginners did 25k, Sport did 30k, and Expert did 40k.
Now, the normal person would assume that the Beginners would have an easier route than the Experts, and the Sports would be somewhere in between.
This simply was not so.
90% of the race was the same route for all 3 classes. The Experts started 1 hour earlier and did an extra 10k at the beginning, and the beginners and Sports started one hour later, and the beginners had 5k less at the end.
So, the race starts. I knew the trail we were starting on. It's a dirt road that goes from the bottom of the mountain to the top of the mountain. It's 2 1/2 miles uphill, right at the start. So I'm trying to conserve energy. No use killing myself right off the bat...it's a long race.
We get to the top of the mountain and head off the road onto a single track trail. It starts off moderately down hill. Then it gets steep. Then it gets rocky. There are about 6 of us in a small pack heading down this cliff. (It's the first downhill of the race, remember). The guy in the front hits a rock and goes down. I make sure he's okay. He says he is. I go around. I get about 100 feet further down the cliff. I hit a rock and endo. I go right over the handlebars. I hit on my left side, I bounce, I hit on my right side, I bounce, I hear my helmet scraping against the basketball sized rocks on the trail. I finally come to a stop and realize I'm still alive...bleeding and bruised, but still alive. But my bike stopped about 10 feet up the trail, so I had to walk back up and get the bike.
So, we're about 3 1/2 miles into this 18.6 mile race and I've already face planted. ::fpaw:
That was the only full wipeout I had, though I had a few more very close calls.
The rest of the course was pretty much the same, except the trails got a little steep and rocky toward the end.
I finished in just over 3 1/2 hours. 3 people finished after me.
About 200 finished before I did. But I survived, and I finished.
Next weekend is the Charleston Distance Run (15 miles). I hope I'll be able to walk again by next weekend.
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