Pierre's Hole 50 - Holy Crap!

I think this guy had an issue with me and was following me around all day.



The Grand Teton is in full view coming in to the valley. You can even see it on the drive up canyon to Grand Targhee.

This historical marker tells the story of the area. I'm glad it doesn't say Brad Mullen, RIP!

This was Craig Carlson's first endurance race and he was uber fast. This guys got a future in the sport. Hopefully he can make more than $25 per pop!

Here I am at the start chasing Mad Dog teammate Brittany Kener and another chick that kicked my ass. It never got any better than this.

Garrett Kener was on it today. He's always strong and a great guy to ride with. WTG Garrett.


Eight minutes in to what was to be a 6 hour 42 minute ordeal, I knew it was going to be a long day. A rider in front of me went down on a downhill off camber corner and I went down trying to avoid him. Unfortunatey my day continued but his mercifully end with a broken tailbone. That's how bad my day went!

The weekend started with a relaxing Friday drive through beautiful SwanValley to Driggs Idaho where we checked in for Saturday's race. Garrett and Brittany Kener and I arrived before Craig and Jessica Carlson so we went through the process and headed to their base camp at the Teton Valley Cabins. I checked in with the Carlson's at the luxurious Super 8 just north of town. Actually, it was a nice room, except for the screaming shower. We ate dinner at the Royal Wolf and went back to the motel and got ready for what we thought would be a tough, but fun, well supported event. Were we in for a surprise!

The race began with a 10+ minute "spread em out" lap before a gnarly single track downhill. Like always, the hotshots took off at a XC race pace and us wanna be's followed. Before I knew it I quickly passed through heart zone 4 in to 5!!! Yikes, that was not according to my plan for a day of steady zone 2-3 riding in preparation for the Park City Point 2 Point race in 2 weeks. That high paced craziness lasted a good 15 minutes and I knew I'd pay for it later.

The course was rougher than I expected and lacked the flow of Park City and Deer Valley. Lots of small stumps and roots, rocks, very loose dirt, tight turns, off camber single track, and unrelenting steep climbing. It was advertised that there were 2 support/fueling stations but the first one was an unattended blue water cooler at the back of parking area that nobody saw! That impacted most of us very heavily as the race unfolded. The 2nd station (actually the only one most of us saw) was a well stocked and attended tent that had everything I needed, including very friendly and helpful volunteers. Thanks you very much for being there and your positive spirit. Without you, I'd be dead!



Back to the beginning of the race. After we zipped through the baby start loop we headed for the dreaded downhill, narrow, white knuckle ST trail towards a wooded, rocky section that lead past the unmarked aid station to the first long section of paved climbing. Although the pavement climb went on for miles, it was welcome relief from the pounding we had just gone through. The route hopped back on the ST for more bouncy double track and another loose, white knuckle rocky ST descent before we passed through a beautiful section of private property pasture that lead to the only true aid station on course. At this time I was averaging 10 mph and feeling confident I'd have a 5 hour day. All systems were go and I was in a good place. But that was all about to change.

The difficulty of the course exposed itself immediately after the aid station at the coral - roughly mile 13 - where the climb from Hell began. It was 3+ miles of ST that went as steep as 24% and it was merciless. There was no air circulation, it was hot, and did I mention it was long and steep! I walked a bit of this section on lap 1 and most all of it on lap 2! Afterwards I found out most everybody walked some of it, even Brittany. Except for my initial crash and backtracking about a half mile before the end of lap 1, all systems were still a go as I completed the first 25 miles. But my hopes of a 5-hour race were dashed.

Can you say CRAMPS!!! About 2 minutes after completing lap 1 the cramps began. It was totally unexpected since I was religiously popping E-lyte cabs every 30 minutes and took extras when they were available. I thought I was drinking enough, but I probably fell behind and that contributed to the problem. Without going in to great detail, I must of cramped 50 times - more than I have in the last 8-9 years combined! Whenever the trail headed up, on came the cramps and I turned in to a hobbled hiker. I must have pushed my bike for several miles and my 2nd lap was almost 2 hours slower than the first. All I can say about lap 2 was it was shear will and survival instincts that got me through it. I was a whopped puppy looking for someone to mercifully put me out of my misery. Suicide was an option, but I couldn't find a place to do it and make it look like an accident! So I continued to suffer to the end!

When it was all said and done, I finished 4th from the last (click here for results) of those that completed the 50. Quite humbling and a big eye opener for the PCP2P in 2 weeks time. Rumor has it they are changing the 2011 course to 3-33 mile laps for the hundie, but I don't know what the 50 will bring. I do know it won't bring me back, I think. If you are looking for a very challenging 100 miler, give this some serious thought and a whole LOT of respect. Even with the new course, it's gonna be Big Bite to swallow.

Craig, Garrett & Brittany had good races although Craig and Garrett both battled cramps on lap 2. Somehow Brittany was immune to the cramps and finished in fine fashion with a smile on her face - so I was told. Maybe it was the Friday night beer! Hmmmmm. The four of them kindly waited for me to push across the line and I felt very grateful to finish in the saddle. Craig's wife Jessica was a great supporter and without her being there I may have packed it in after lap 1 (it was a pride thing). Thanks Jessica.

Overall it was a great weekend and one I won't soon forget. The event was well run, the after race "reward" beer and spag dinner were most excellent, the raffle was great and very generous and all the folks affiliated with the event were incredibly friendly and very helpful. The Royal Wolf Bar and the Bunk House Bistro served surprisingly delicious food and the weather was very cooperative, except for the heat. Dave Byers has a race recap that is probably more accurate than what I have written. The course was probably better than I described but I'm trying to make excuses for why I sucked. I still don't think I'll do it again...

Deer Valley, Sherwood Hills and Mr. Bad Ass

This is kind of long so if you only want to read something funny, skip to the last paragraph.

The June 12th ICUP race at Deer Valley was postponed due to constant rain and muddy trails. We ended up doing the race on Wednesday which was kinda weird. Due to the rescheduling, my week was totally screwed up. I need structure and predictability so this got me out of my comfort zone.

DEER VALLEY. We started at 6PM and a light rain started falling - de ja vu? Nope. It stopped, Ed sent us off and we heading up the infamous, sinister, long and steep Little Stick climb. My group started with the Sport Women and we stayed together for about 2 minutes. At that point Joel Quinn showed his strength, took the lead and we opened a nice gap by the time we hit the top. Joel was about 5-10 seconds in front of me so I was pretty satisfied. He put a little more time in to his lead right after Little Stick but I caught him on the single track descent. We rode together for another 5 minutes and I responded to each of his attempts to put riders between us. On the next long climb he opened a gap and I lost sight of him. I continued to push as best I could knowing I still had a possible chance to catch him on the final descent. I was right. I caught up to him at the top of the 4 short switchbacks before the long straight away that leads to the start/finish line. I followed him for a few hundred yards and made an unsuccessful attempt to pass him on the left. I was stopped by big rocks and has to fall back in behind him. I made a 2nd pass attempt a few seconds later and that one stuck. I kept the hammer down and nipped him by 19 seconds. This was a hard fought and gratifying win and one I was never sure of the outcome. Well done Joel.

SHERWOOD HILLS was run on Saturday and I was not fully recovered from Wednesday. Since my training has been so on and off and sporadic at best, my recovery time is not very quick. I got to SH feeling mentally tired with heavy legs and not a lot of motivation. I got a decent warm up and I'm glad I did because the start was the usual blast off from 80 bpm to 165 in 30 seconds. Oh how that hurts! Joel jumped out to the lead, again, and I got on his wheel and followed with a guy from Arizona on my wheel. We stayed together until the Feed Zone and dropped the AZ guy and took off. I stayed on Joel's wheel for the next 15 minutes, observing, and then passed him on the long double track section after the upper meadow. He got on my wheel at the base of the climb and stayed there till the Feed Zone. I had backed the pace down hoping he'd pass me but he was content following, so I backed it down further and got a little rest on the climb. My HR data showed 160 average for the 1st lap and 166 for the second. About 50 or so feet before the Feed Zone I kicked in to another gear and opened a quick gap on Joel and picked up the pace. Knowing that he's not comfortable on fast descents I picked it up and increased the gap. He would close in on me on the climbs in the trees but he never got back to my wheel. When I got to the upper meadow ahead of him I know I'd increase my lead in the upcoming technical twisty section in the woods, and I did. I got back on the double track and kept the pressure on the pedals. When I got to the top of the 1st climb after the double track I saw he was back a ways, so I upped the pace again. I kept pushing and rode for several minutes above 170 bpm knowing if he was going to catch me he was going to have to suffer more than me. My plan worked and I finished my 2 laps in 59:23, 40 seconds ahead of Joel. Like DV, Joel pushed me hard and I was very gratified with the win.

So as the points now stand, I have about a 83 point lead and a pretty good chance of winning the points championship, something I haven't done since 2005. This will be my last year chancing points since it heavily impacts my endurance training, and I hate the high heart rate thing.

One last thing. I rode Park City Mtn Resort with Garrett and Brittany Kener today scouting out some of the trails for the September Point 2 Point Race. After climbing the Steps Trails we headed to Apex and came across a Sage Grouse in the road. Garrett warned me about their aggressive behavior and how one attached him on a recent ride. Well, I rode up to this bird and as I approached he just stood there facing me, challenging me to give him my best shot. He did not move his position or back down, so I bumped in to him (or her?). That pissed Mr. Grouse off and he came at me with him beak a peckin. I started laughing and jumped off my bike while Mr. Grouse kept attacking my wheel. And he wouldn't stop! Garrett & Brittany we hootin it up while I was jousting with this persistent bad ass Grouse. I was finally able to get back on my bike, but to my surprise, he came after me again. Garrett was downhill laughing and started riding toward me so Mr. Bad Ass got interested in him instead. Garrett and the bird went back and forth with Garrett finally retreating momentarily so he could pick up some speed and safely pass Mr. Bad Ass. When he finally got by I had tears in my eyes from laughing so hard. We looked at each other in amazement that this 5 pound hunk of kick-ass was ready to take us on. It was unbelievable! Well, we left Mr. Bad Ass on the double track and headed up the Apex Trail. After the first switchback I looked back and that damn Grouse was marching up the hill, taking shortcuts, guns-a-blazing on the attack again. We were amazed and picked up the pace, but Mr. Bad Ass kept coming clearing 3 or 4 trails we had already crossed!!! We were marked riders and Mr. Grouse was gonna have one of us for lunch. I looked around to see if there were cameras filming us cuz I could swear we were in a Steven King or Alfred Hitchcock movie. This was surreal. That bird was not going to give up until he pecked at least one of us. We picked it up again and finally got far enough ahead that he disappeared and we were safe. The next 10-20 minutes was filled with laughter and amazement by what had just happened. As a matter of fact, I'm smiling right now thinking back on it. That was one of the most amazing things I've ever seen and one I'll never forget. So next time you see a Sage Grouse, be forewarned - they're bad asses.

Stupid is as stupid does

What's the other one - "you can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig." Well, I had one of those days yesterday.

It started out like any Tuesday. I got up early, was productive at work and was going to finish the day off riding the Mid-week Series XC race in Park City in the evening. All was well until I left for Park City.

I'll make it short.

I left home at 5:10 and headed to Park City for the 6:30ish race. Just before getting to Parley's Canyon I realized I forgot my GPS and called Jane to confirm my realization. She acknowledged my misque so I pulled off Foothill Drive to return home via Parley's Way. Insteading of driving over some stupid weeds I heading for the gravel and immediately high centered my Element on a boulder that came out of nowhere! Even when I was on it, it didn't register what had just happened. I was stuck and my AWD was doing nothing. I called Jane to bring a shovel and dug under the rock for a good 30 minutes before it was loose enough for my car to get free. Once free, I reluctantly headed to PC hoping to get there before registration ended so I could salvage some portion of my evening.

I got to the parking lot at 6:15 and couldn't find the registration table and assumed they had closed up shop. Damn!!! Fortunately Garrett and Brittany Kener directed me to the right spot and I got registered. Finally I'm back on track. Yes! But now there's no time for any kind of warm up so this was not gonna be pretty. I hop back in my car to change in to my Mad Dog kit and discover I didn't have it! I had left my riding clothes at home. Double damn it... I can't believe this. But, what a fitting end to a totally screwed up hour. What else is gonna happen?

But wait! Enter Mad Dog teammate Bruce Lyman and his trusty roll of black electrical tape. That was the answer. I rolled up my Kuhl pant legs, taped them down tight, tightened my leather belt, put my HR strap on under my T-shirt and headed to the start/finish line. NICE! I got quite a few strange looks but that added a nice flavor to what started out as a full blown fiasco. I did the race and had a blast. Bill Dark and I started and finished together and enjoyed a few laughs along the way. One word of caution - if you want to try racing in street pants, keep your belt loose or you won't be able to breathe - believe me.

Well, all's well that ends well. I didn't crash or take anybody out, and I actually had a good time. I've learned a lesson and I'm gonna put an extra pair of riding shorts and jersey in my bike bag so I'm prepared for my next brain fart episode.

And I'm gonna keep an eye out for those jumping boulders. Stupid is ...

Soldier Hollow ICUP

My daughter and grand daughter at the Sugarhouse Crit on Saturday. I'm slowly converting them to the wonderful world of bicycles.

Gene, Lewis, Joel, me, Bill and Bruce.

May 24th - 2 days after the race!!!

First off I've gotta thank Chris and Jared at Bingham's Cyclery on 300 South in SLC for hooking me up with a new 2010 RockShox Reba Team 29er fork. They pulled some strings with the SRAM boys in Chicago and got my blown out 2008 fork replaced - at no charge to me! And THANK YOU SRAM for standing behind your product. That is way cool.

Along the fork line, I guess I've never had a fork set up correctly, or I've never had a good one because this new Reba was as smooth as butter and very stable. I set it up based on the factory recommendations, no field testing yet, and I love it. And the proof is in my hands and arms. Very little discomfort compared to usual and I don't feel beat up. I'm excited again.

I encountered rain and snow on my drive to Heber Saturday morning, and expected the worse. To my surprise, conditions at the venue were actually quite nice. The course was wet and muddy so Ed was forced to shorten it by eliminating the single track climb to the normal high point. That would have been a mud bog so Ed made a great call. I'm glad too because I struggled mightly today. Like the rest of you, work and bad weather kept me off my bike since last Sunday, and, I did a boot camp class on Thursday that made my glutes and hamstrings tender to the touch! That was so stupid - I can't believe I did that. The fallout was I had absolutely no snap and my legs felt like lead the entire time. Yikes!

My race went like this. Joel Quinn and I separated from the pack immediately and went back and forth for about 17 minutes. The fun thing about where our group starts is all the people we get to pass. And surprisingly this year riders are being more cooperative than in past years. So, if you're one I've passed, thanks for being a sport and moving over.

Back to the race. Joel built up a 50-75 yard lead that felt like a mile. I wanted to quit but decided to gutt it out and see what happened. Maybe he'd get a flat and I could coast to a cheap victory. Didn't happen. He kept that gap for a few minutes and I took it back on the short steep righthand uphill after the slightly downhill fast double track (you know where I'm talking about). We rode together until the course headed downhill and I gapped him. My bike was hooking up on the corners like never before and my confidence soared. And the bumps that usually drain my speed were a non-factor. I built up a 10-20 second lead and I hung on to that till the end. The only time I got concerned was the short steep hill just before the start/finish line. I thought about walking it the 2nd time up but there was a chick at the top watching and my manhood would have been called in to question. Damn women! That hill really hurt me.

The weather stayed nice, but cool, until after the awards and everybody went home happy. On the way home I stopped at Brothers Bikes Store in Heber (520 North Main Street) and cashed in my winnings. Brothers - thanks for supporting our race.

As a follow up, I'm writing this on Sunday and I can report my legs have come back. I rode in PC at Round Valley and Lost Prospector with some Mad Dog teammates and my legs felt like new. And my fork was just as good today as yesterday.

Watch out Dwight and Roger. I'm coming after you at the State Championships!

Sundance Spin Video

Youtube video from last weeks Sundance Spin. Click here.