Logan to Jackson

Logan to Jackson is done and I'm happy. I set a goal of 10:30 and finished in 10:18:31 which was 42 minutes faster than last year. Thank you Lynda. I ended 219 overall which was much better than 390 from in 2006. My climbing was better as I came in 12th on the KOM TT and felt much better on the climbs overall, but I can improve a lot more. The weather was perfect except for the 10-20+ mph wind that we faced from half way down Salt Creek Pass to the finish!!! I bet 70% of the time we were facing a straight-on headwind or quartering headwind from the west. That was mentally very tough and the big topic of discussion afterward. Not fun after 102+ miles on the legs with 102 more to go.

What was even tougher than the wind was Terry Patterson, an 18 time LoToJa finisher from Idaho, wanted to pick up the pace to make the finish more exciting. There were 4 in the group and 3 of us said let's just take it easy, our tanks are empty. It was not to be. As the competitive juices got reignited one last time, we had a go at it. Terry put the hammer down with 1K to go and I jumped on his wheel. I stayed there until the 200 meter sign, pulled the trigger and edged him by a wheel at the line! That was really exciting even though I almost passed out when I stopped. I'm gald Terry coaxed us into the sprint because it was a fun way to finish, especially since I won. That's 2 wins in 2 spints (Leadville was the other one). Maybe I ought to be a wheel-sucking roadie...

Other than a sore right ankle, I have no idea why, and a sore butt, I feel great and ready to ride again. Hopefully I'll be in the desert soon with Chris and KC Holley honing my desert riding skills for the 24 Hours of Moab in October. I always learn something new when I ride with them so I have fun things to look forward too.

Lastly, I've got to say that this was probably the most fun and best race ever because my wife and daughter were my support crew. They were always cheerful and well organized, and, it was just great seeing them along side the road and at the feed zones. And, to my surprise, Markie said she wants to do it again next year! How can I say no? Now I have to train again, for HER future. See, it's not just about me ;-)

Well, it's getting late so I'm out for now. I'll post some pics in a few days.

4 Days to LoToJa

The big day is almost here and I think I'm ready. I started a two week taper right after the Wolf Creek Pass ride last week and did my last interval sessions yesterday afternoon. Luckily I finished my ride before the monster storm hit. My legs feel a little bit heavy so I'm going to concentrate on massage and stretching the next few days. I'll do a couple of short, easy zone 1 rides to keep my legs fresh and will finish my fueling prep and be good to go.

Hail, yes!

My race day plan is to ride with Tom Uriona, a veteran Logan to Jackson racer, and hopefully be able to hang with him on the climbs. Since we are both stronger in the last half of the race, if we are together at Alpine we should have a strong ride to the finish in Jackson. That's the plan at least. Many things can change during the course of 10 plus hours on the road so there always has to be a plan B. At this point, I don't know what plan B is, so, plan A had better work! It's looking like the weather is going to be cooperative with comfortable temperatures and sunny skies. One thing you can count on from me is that I'll be prepared for snow, cold temps and rain, no matter what the weather forecast says! No more hypothermia for me. Been there, done that. No sir, not me...

My one regret for this years race is none of my Mad Dog teammates will be there. I have some good memories from 2005 with those guys and will carry them with me this year. Maybe next year guys?

And, although I won't have my sister Robin and her husband Bruno assisting my wife Jane this year like they did last year, my daughter MarKay will be in the support vehicle keeping her mother in stitches. Markie's a really good photographer so I should have some nice pics to post after the race.

If you're interested in the results after the race, click here.