Approximately 105 Miles and 10.5k’ Elevation
Race day morning I got up pretty early and first thing first, started hydrating, and stretched out for a while. I then stretched the legs and the pedals for a bit and dropped by Food on Main for a burrito. After that I went for a little ~3 mile bike ride on the road before heading back and continuing hydrating while checking over my kit and bike one last time. That all done I dropped my checkpoint tote off with a friend who had graciously agreed to set it out at the checkpoints and I headed to the start of the race. Unsure of myself I moved to the back of the pack and made some light small talk with nearby racers while we all shifted about on our pedals and seats and waited for the call to action. Shortly thereafter Carlos gave a short speech, a countdown, and we were on our way.
I started off basically at the end of the pack. I knew I had no clue what my pace was going to feel like all day so I started near the back and then on the road section I slowly worked my way forward till I found a group that I liked the pace of. There really wasn’t a huge distinction in the pack that I could see though. A few people moved out front real fast and then kind of stayed there. I ended up in a large pack of about 8 people for most of the ride on the road. Just before the bridge I let most of that group past me and then tagged onto the back in front of one other person. I carried on at that pace for a little while and had one or two people go past me on some of the short first climbs but after a little while I had found my stride and was feeling good so I started pedaling harder. Shortly thereafter I settled in behind Patrick, (I believe) Kevin Murphy, and Nathan Lane. No one was really booking it but the trail was slick. I remember thinking pretty clearly that I was going to stick on to that group as I really liked the pace. A moment later going up a short hill with a technical root/rock section Patrick lost traction right in front of me. I remember being annoyed because his bike just went sideways in the trail and I couldn’t pedal past him. I had to dismount to get past the root. Shortly after that he had a fairly spectacular wipeout through some slick rocks. I was right on his tail so I hit the brakes hard and came to a stop just long enough to ask if he was ok and when he replied in the affirmative I took off down the trail to catch up to Kevin and Nathan. At that point I was still catching occasional glimpses of another group of riders up ahead on the trail and I entertained thoughts of passing my group and catching up to them. However I knew Kevin was a seasoned Soggy Bottom racer so I decided his pace was probably one borne from years of experience and I decided to just hang out. I was feeling really good at this point. We were probably only about 4 miles in on Res Pass but I felt so solid. My heart rate was low, my respiratory rate was low and my legs felt strong on the climbs. I had immediately taken to locking out the rear shock on climbs and I think that this paid dividends over the course of the race.
The climb up to the pass went pretty uneventful from there. Probably about 10-12 miles in Kevin passed Nathan and I went ahead and followed him around. From there I followed Kevin to the top of the pass. I found myself just enjoying the ride. On the short downhills I had the energy to be playful and since Kevin was on a hard tail I didn’t have a hard time sticking to him. Once we got up to the top of the pass and it leveled out I started wondering if I should pass Kevin as he never really picked up his pace. I had decided that this would be one of the areas of the race where I would try to push hard and make up some time so I didn’t really like going at an intermediate pace. But at the same time I figured Kevin was a trustworthy pacer. About ¼ of a mile before the intersection with Devils my interest in going fast won out and I jumped around Kevin and started bombing. I cruised through the intersection to the cheers of the crowd and kept motoring along pretty quick. I didn’t feel like I was pushing my legs but did feel like I was pushing my focus. Sure enough I wiped out fairly spectacularly a moment later. I was pretty frustrated and jumped back on the bike quickly and kept going. My head though must have just been in a weird place because I was shaky and not riding well after having felt great all day so far. I think I was second guessing my decision to push out ahead of Kevin. Whatever the reason for it I wiped out again about 20 minutes later on the descent into Swan Lake. Fortunately neither wipeout dealt me any serious injuries and so I kept going resolving to keep my head in it. Unfortunately the course had different plans for me and about five minutes after my last wipeout of the day I popped a large gash open in the rear tire. It was so weird because I had just slowed down thinking I didn’t want any flats when I heard my rear tire just explode. I hadn’t even felt a big impact that would warrant that kind of ejection of air. I came to a stop quickly and the tire was already flat. Somewhere in my head I knew I was really annoyed, disappointed, and concerned, but my focus stayed on the race and I located the hole. It was pretty clear I wasn’t going to be able to get it to close up with sealant and I didn’t want to take the time to try to boot it so I just started putting the tube in.
Right after I got the first bead off the rim Kevin passed me. And then I think about another seven racers passed me while I was working on it. I was cursing that pump of mine as it took me probably 3-4 minutes of pumping just to get the tube up to pressure. Once I got all the beads seated back on the rim and it up to pressure I jumped back on the trail and started going again. I think I lost about 10 minutes all told. Ryan had been the last person to pass me and he did so as I was getting the air pressure as high as I wanted. I knew I wanted to catch some of the people that had passed me but I didn’t want to run any risks as I was now doubly worried about flats. So I went slow through the rocks and started going fast on the clean downhills and flat spaces. I saw Ryan just before the Romig cabin and then caught and passed him shortly after that. I was still being mindful of my weird headspace so I wasn’t pushing as hard as I usually do on the downhill but I just decided I would make up for it with pedaling on the flats. I think I caught up to Clint next and passed him as well. I believe next up I passed Nathan again and then it was just me and the trail. Shortly after passing the Bean Creek trail cut off I nearly ran into John. My brain was in race mode so I didn’t really stop, I think I just unclipped one foot and then he slapped my back and said “12’th place dude, killing it!” I don’t think I even really stopped though, my mind is hazy. I remember biking away and telling him that I’d gotten a flat and that it sucked and then I was back on my own. I assumed that I’d be coming up on other racers soon coming up the climb so I started yelling at this point. It wasn’t too long before I came across Chaz and the one relay team that was going fast. From that point on I controlled my speed a lot more and always stopped for ascending racers. I had to pull over for quite a few before I finally got to the cones and jumped off my bike and started walking into the checkpoint.
Kinsey was standing right at the TH looking at her phone and as I walked past her she asked if that was where the checkpoint was. I told her it was down next to the road and she walked down there with me. Ryan’s mom spotted me as I approached and waved me over. She had my tote out with the lid off which was nice to see. Can’t remember order of anything but I cleaned my drivetrain, re-lubed it, ate half a bag of potato chips, drank a bottle of chocolate milk in two swigs and changed out my bladder and bottle on my bike. I think I also drank some more of the bottle I pulled off the bike as it still had a lot in it. I’d seen Kinsey leave about a minute earlier so I wanted to get back on the trail as she was one of the ones who passed me while I was working on my tire. Ryan had also come in about three minutes after me at this checkpoint. Based off of what John had told me there where probably about 11 racers in front of me and I remember thinking that 12th place seemed like I’d be unlikely to make it in sub 10 hours. So I wanted to motor but of course, still didn’t want to push too hard this early. Of course, that’s the story of the race.
I had taken my glasses off at the checkpoint and ended up just putting them in my backpack. They were too dark and the climbs where making me sweat too much to want to keep them on. I thought I might put them back on for the Devils downhill but I ended up leaving them off for the rest of the race. Starting that climb my legs felt tired and I was noticing some problems with my drivetrain. Not a super great spot to be in. Somehow Clint had gotten into the checkpoint and out of it without me noticing and so I passed him shortly after. However he being on a SS he passed me again. Then further up the trail, I think just past the Bean Creek turnoff I passed him again. At that point the chocolate milk had kicked in and I felt strong so I started really turning the pedals going up towards Juneau Lake. Going through the swamp of puddles there sucked but I was still feeling good as I turned the corner of Juneau Lake and started the horrendous gravel switchback climb. Didn’t actually feel that steep though and on the other side of it I really started putting the pedals down. I don’t actually remember any of this part of the race. The next thing I remember was turning onto the skinny trail that leads to the hike-a-bike near swan lake. There was a group of people there cheering which was sweet motivation for the mind. I got to the tech climb shortly after and without breaking stride I hopped off the bike and started power walking up it. I heard a voice higher and though this would be a good spot to put some unused climbing muscles to use to catch someone. Sure enough within a short bit of time I saw Patrick and James working their way up it. I caught up to them and they offered to let me around but I needed to dig in my backpack so I said no. At the top of the climb I quickly dropped my pack and re arranged some stuff that had snuck behind the bladder and was being annoying on my back. As I started putting my backpack on I saw Oliver coming up the winter route from the cabin. He must have missed the turnoff. I had my backpack on before Patrick was ready and James seemed to also be taking a break so I took off up the next hard climb, and the one I’d been dreading the most. It’s a bit hazy but I remember just instantly walking two rocky sections and holding my shift lever in the whole climb just to get my derailleur to my second largest cog. The granny gear 46t was outta reach to me. Guess it worked out because I got to the top and didn’t feel too bad. I do remember having a hard time doing a feed halfway through the climb since my respiratory rate was pretty deep, but I knew it was time for one. I also remember wondering if I was going to have people streaming past me on it but I saw no sign of anyone. At the top I started pushing hard to get to the downhill and albeit taking the rock sections easy I got within sight of the cabin and was surprised to see another rider about a half a mile out from me.
I assumed it was Kinsey and made it my goal to catch her before the real DH started. I was close enough to her that I saw she didn’t stop at all at the bacon station at the intersection. As I approached it I decided I would have a piece of bacon and since I didn’t know anyone who was at the race I was incredibly surprised when someone yelled out “Yeah Caleb!” as I approached the intersection. I had forgotten that John was up here somewhere. As I grabbed a piece of bacon from the bag and readjusted my chamois he came down and gave me a high five and told me I was in the top ten. I was feeling good enough that I cracked some jokes and then took off down the trail, intent on catching Kinsey. There were a few people flying drones over the lake and then it was a muddy flat section before the short uphill to the main DH portion of Devils. I got onto the rocky sections and had closed the gap to Kinsey. She heard me coming and was incredibly gracious enough to stop and pull over to the side. It was in the middle of one of the rock gardens which she was picking her way through and I was taking full advantage of my 150 mill bike to move through em fast. On the other side of the final rock section I let my brakes have a rest and started cruising. Sight lines weren’t very good so I was a bit nervous but everything worked out. I cleared all of the main creek crossing soaking my feet but it was good. I can’t say that I had a ton of fun through here, that DH just requires too much focus. I passed the first uphill rider about a half a mile before the main switchbacks on the trail and then passed Chaz shortly thereafter. Cruising through the trees I passed several more riders but not as many as I expected. I was still hoping to catch back up to Kevin at this point so I was a bit disappointed when we nearly collided while I was finishing a short steep uphill. We exchanged pleasantries as you do and then I kept pressing on. I was close to the TH at that point and my derailleur was feeling pretty well messed up. I had been a bit concerned about the final few climbs to the Devils Pass TH before the race so I was pretty happy to cruise them feeling good in second gear.
Again, Ryan’s mom had my tote ready to go and a very nice young lady held my bike for me while I cleaned it up and had a snack. Largely the same routine as the last checkpoint except I had to refill my bladder which took a bit more time. Then I went to inspect my derailleur and found that the cable was nearly broken. For a second the notion of scratching played through my mind but I quickly said no to that and decided I just wouldn’t shift at all. It was at this point that I noticed there was another racer at the checkpoint that had been there the whole time. I was surprised to see other people working on his bike for him. He looked like he wasn’t doing too hot. Right at the end of my break at the checkpoint he took off back down the trail. A couple minutes later I stuffed the last little bit of Probar into my pocket, chugged my last bit of chocolate milk, and then hopped on my bike. I felt good despite my concern over the derailleur. As I was getting back on my bike Kinsey pulled into the checkpoint.
From there to near the top of the climb is a haze of frustration over not shifting, standing up on steep climbs while my chain skipped between second and third cogs, passing riders coming downhill, and powering through long consistent sections of the climb. I of course never used my 46 tooth. Despite that I was still feeling good drawing near the top when I saw a figure heading uphill somewhere in the distance. Goal acquired I really settled into my pedals and decided to catch him before the downhill on Res. I powered through and up the intersection where I didn’t spare a glance for anyone. Just turned the corner and powered the climb in third gear. I knew I was in good shape at this point and that if my cable held out I would be putting in a decent time on this section of the course. Shortly after I left the checkpoint behind I heard cheering and knew Kinsey must be near on my tail. So I kicked it up again and decided to catch that next rider sooner than I had planned. I powered past him on a wide section of trail next to the lake right before the res pass sign. After that I used my shifter to drop down to my 11 tooth and then basically just stayed in that. I powered up most of the short climbs in there without shifting and just basically squinted my eyes against the fresh mud while I flew down that section of the course. I was worried about the downed tree but I remembered right where it had been at and braked right in time, hopped over it and took off back down the hill. Everything was freshly wetted and the trail was kinda slick, but I was feeling on my DH game finally and I blasted through the roots and corners without ever slipping.
About halfway down the DH I was startled to hear a hub spinning behind me. I instinctively moved over before glancing over my shoulder just in time to see a relay rider pass me. I won’t lie, it was incredibly frustrating to see this guy who had an almost totally clean jersey on, no mud on his face, riding on a mostly clean bike pass me and continue down the trail. I kind of decided there on the spot that that was bullshit and that I was going to pass him again before the finish. At this point I was still in my bottom gear and hadn’t really shifted more than a handful of times. However, the next time I went to shift I felt the lever move with just about no resistance and knew she’d finally blown. I quickly estimated I had about 16 more miles to go at this point to get to the finish line; which is about 9 miles of resurrection left. It was hard doing that with no gears and I maybe wanted to cry at a few points. I remember getting really emotional thinking about the finish line and Nic being there to cheer for me. I think I was just realizing that I was actually going to finish. I knew it was too early for those thoughts though so I suppressed them and kept working hard. I jogged my bike up most all of the hills I couldn’t climb. The flats I was able to pedal sitting down. Anything with a slight incline I power pedaled standing up out of the seat. That final steep gravel hill I ran partway up then walked the rest with that relay racer right in front of me. I knew I could catch him at that point. I got on to the final DH and really let the brakes go. Sure enough I went bouncing past him on the wide, muddy flat section right after that. Kept in front of him all the way to the bridge and then bounced out on to the road, locked my suspension in and went for the speed finish into town.
Unfortunately my legs where worked from so much power pedaling in a high gear and he managed to get past me about halfway back to town. It was a moot point anyways since he was a relay racer but it helps to have someone to duel with to keep yourself pedaling hard. I was pretty worked at this point and when the pavement road finally came into sight I had a huge feeling of relief. I popped onto it (after looking both ways) and got up to speed before coasting down the hill going aero. I worried for a minute about taking the right turn, but saw the equipment down the street a ways and got on the right one easily enough. Right before I turned the corner onto the final street a truck pulled in there and I had to squeeze between it and a car on the side but as soon as I did I stood up in my pedals and poured my last bit of gas out to speed in to the finish line. I was a bit shocked to have it end so fast and so I kinda just stared at people for a minute trying to find a familiar face. Then I started really feeling tired so I leaned up on my bike and then Nic showed up in front of me. I gave her a hug and just remember feeling sooooo good just having some of my weight being supported by something other than my legs or bike seat. It was crazy, and honestly, pretty important to me emotionally. My mind upon finishing the race was going kind of crazy, and having my sister there was huge. I had a few other friends around but no one that I share anywhere near the kind of emotional bond I have with her.
Carlos gave me my token and offered me some congratulations which I gladly accepted. Unfortunately I didn’t think I could stomach a beer and also didn’t really wanna give up the only memento from the race so I held onto the token and went to the timing desk to check in on how I’d done. I asked them for my time and they told me 10 hours and 26 minutes. At first I was pretty bummed out about that. Towards the end of the race I’d been feeling like I’d been keeping a good pace all day and that sub 10 hours would be in my sites. Unfortunately it just wasn’t to be. The flat tire and broken derailleur certainly played a part in it all but I’ll never know how much time I lost to those. And in reality, mechanicals are just a part of biking. They’re going to happen. However it did come as a bit of a shock as well when the people at the timing desk told me I had finished in 6th place. That assuaged my disappointment in my time to some degree. That being said, comparing the number of racers and who was there this year versus years prior makes me think that the competition was perhaps not quite as steep as it often is. Regardless, I had a hell of a time with the race as it was.
Races aren’t really my thing so I was surprised to find myself so interested in doing this one. When I did eventually sign up for it I was still unsure of what my motivation and reasons for racing where. I was really competitive growing up and in years recent I feel as though I was finally able to get away from that part of myself. But competition is a complex subject, and I know that I still have some parts of it residing inside of me. On race day I definitely felt like there where some racers that where less than friendly, and a couple that I just downright got bad vibes from which certainly annoyed me. To me, the race was a friendly subject, something to be enjoyed. You try hard, but you enjoy yourself. However, I understand that others rely on different motivations to compete. Of course for me going into it I’d told myself that if I didn’t enjoy it I would probably never bother racing again. Others don’t need to enjoy it to have reasons to compete. And still others have even different motivations all together. At the end of the day, despite those with an aggressive race mentality, I really did enjoy myself; pretty immensely actually. Next year, if I can swing it, I’ll definitely be back to try it again.
