Francine and I both raced in the solo category. We arrived at the scout camp around 1pm and my dad brought us his hard-shell pop-up camper for our base camp. We set up in the field alongside the trail near the end of the loop. Brandon Wright and Dave Fish set up next door and the MAC and Rowlett's crews were just past us.
We had massive amounts of food and liquids to cover our needs: PBJs, Cookies, Crackers, Coke, V8, Starbuck's Doubleshots, Red Bull, 2 Gallons of Heed in a dispenser, 5 Gallons of water, as well as plenty of Hammer gels and Clif Bars.
Before the race I walked around the camp to check up on my friends, who were scattered all over the place. Scott D and Kevin Cox set up a big tent for some reason... I guess they were planning to get some sleep or something?
The MAC bros, Lee Wilson, and Mr. T showed up with a my favorite on-the-go food: "Hot and Ready" 5 dollar pies from Little Ceasars (as well as everything else that doctors tell us to stay away from). They had a support crew hanging out, too. 
The Bike Factory Team had a huge showing: 2 four-person teams, 3 two-person teams, and a couple of solo riders including Shawn Tevendale. Their pit area was huge and I knew they would be taking much of the wins given their commitment to winning in the VORS series...THE RACE/RIDE
The race began with a guy on a mountain unicycle leading the pelaton into the woods. I stayed in the rear of the group because I knew I'd be taking it lax for the first lap (and for all laps really). After rolling a couple of miles, I was grouped with some of my favorite people to ride and race with: Todd Green, Kevin Cox, Scott Davis, Lee Wilson, Travis Williams, Brandon Wright, and a couple of others. The mood was super positive and we rode at a VERY lax pace for the rest of the lap. I actually got passed by my friend Danelle near the end of the lap, which was not easy to allow :) - but I got over it pretty quick.
I was using water bottles instead of the camelbak for the first 4 laps (daylight hours). I figured that 1 bottle would be sufficient for each lap, but that amount was a little short... I pulled into my pit area near the end of the lap and grabbed some Heed and a small snack. Laps 2 and 3 were similar, but I was alone for the entire laps. My stomach grew more and more knotted and I had a bad headache that grew with the miles - something had to give or I was. I stopped after lap 4 and loaded up with Aleve, Coke, and a half PBJ. I also rested for 20 minutes or so to allow my body to overcome and respond to the meds. After my break, I felt recharged and much better! The headache went away never to come back and I began stopping every lap for a half PBJ and some coke! Later on I switched to V8 and RED Bull for good measure. I rarely ate gels as my stomach wasn't in the mood. The sandwiches and Coke did the trick!
The night laps (lap 5 through 12) went smooth and not so smooth. One could call me a rookie for not being prepared when my headlamp battery died on me half way through a lap. Then one could call me a dumb ass when it happened the second time. Both times, I was aided by other riders. I would ride their wheels through the rest of the lap. The first time, I was near the end of the lap, so I went light-free for only a mile. The second time, however, I was only about a mile or two into the lap. I guess my head was all turned inside out since I had been riding all night without sleep. It was my last night-time lap and I thought I had another lap in my light.... I was wrong. A few minutes after the battery died, Kevin Cox rolled up and helped me out. He was in the running for first place and wanted to keep a secure lead on second, so I told him to head on and I'd catch the next rider. He wouldn't have it, so I stuck to his wheel for the ENTIRE lap... About 8 miles in, Shawn Tevendale rolled up and lighted up the rear (thanks). We all rolled out the lap together as the first light of day appeared.
Believe me, it's not easy to ride with any kind of speed without your own light. I fell over a couple of times, but nothing major. I will not let that happen again.
I was able to catch up with Francine from time to time. SHe was riding well during the first 8 hours, then she had problems with her light. It appears that one of her batteries did not charge, so she was left in the middle of a lap with no light and no charged batteries back at the pit. When she returned to the pit, she put her battery on the charger and took a nap… for 4 hours…what a slacker :). I guess it didn’t matter, though, since the second place and third place solo women weren’t going to challenge her first place spot.
After lap 12 I was pretty wiped. I decided it was time to put on a fresh change of clothes and take a breather. At this point, my ass was in VERY poor shape. (For those of you with weak stomachs, move on to the next paragraph) I didn’t expect the friction to be so bad that my skin would rub off, but it was. I had spent many of the previous laps feeling twinges of sharp pain and I knew I was in trouble, I just didn’t know it was THIS bad (sorry and you're welcome - no pictures due to graphic content). I emptied a tube of Neosporin onto my blistered, raw, and ruined hind quarters, dosed a few Aleves, and pushed on…
By this time, I was contemplating my finish. I was in certain pain and began questioning my ability to persevere for 3 more laps, which I needed to meet my goal of 15 laps. Throughout the lap, I changed my mind from “14 laps is good enough” to “I’ve come this far, I know I can at least get in 15 laps”. At times, I felt myself going intentionally slower and complaining about how much it hurt to myself. What a joke! Well, I got over the slump and reinstated my determined mindset for the remainder of lap 13 and lap 14.
I started Lap 14 at 16 hours into the race (which translates to 8am Sunday morning). I knew that I could easily (and that I had to) blow out two more laps to finish the race with 15 laps total. I started thinking about the post-race brunch with omelets, pancakes, bacon, sausage, orange juice, etc. I was getting pretty damn hungry. So, I ate a gel and middle ringed it through the lap in an hour and five minutes (my fastest lap since…um…lap 5). My final lap was just like lap 14, pushing hard to get it done so I could get some brunch!!! About a mile into the lap, I was blessed with a riding partner – Roger Sattler. He rolled up from behind and rode my wheel for five or six miles. We talked about the highs and lows of the race and I almost forgot that we were riding at all. We stopped talking at one point and noticed that we only had a couple of miles left!!! AT this point, I was getting pretty wiped and told him that he’d better head on because I could feel myself dropping off. So he took the lead and I tried to stick to his wheel for the rest of the lap – and we finished the race together.
The race was a really good experience – lots of fun and very challenging. I was lucky enough to start and end the race riding with some good friends. I ended up taking 4th Place in the solo male category and Francine took 1st Place in solo female. I was 6th place overall. the Results are HERE.
Good Times and Good Peops!
