Descending down Spencer Trail was the 1st taste
of some new single track sections added to the Wilderness 101 this year. The initial
lead in section of single track from the road seemed very similar to the day’s
1st major technical descent on Croyle trail.
Soon however, the trail pitched downward more than I had
expected… but in a good way! There were less rough sections of baby head rocks
and more loam than the 1st rough and tumble plunge. The trail
surface allowed me to carry more speed because I could spot ahead and find good
sections of loam to scrub speed before letting off the brakes and rolling
through the next rough and rocky section.
As I pulled into Aid 3 I had a feeling the rest of the
re-routes in this year’s course would be fun. How could trails named Sassafras,
SassaPig, and PigPile not be?
Earlier that morning I woke up at the crack of dawn and
shared in the prerace rituals all the racers undertake to saddle up and dish
out the watts for the better part of a day. The temps were great and the
forecast seemed in our favor. I lined up at the start with my crew of Design Physics racers. I've competed in many ultra-endurance races with my team mates Tom
Haines, Joe Fish, and David Reid. These guys are all fierce competitors and it’s
always nice to toe up the start line rocking out a strong team presence.
Climbing back up to the top of Rag Hollow Road for the next
sections of re-routed single track I began to think back to some of the
experiences from the 3 hours of riding before bombing down Spencer Trail to Aid
3…
Chris Scott was a welcome face filming riders near the entrance
of the day’s first single track section. I really enjoyed this section of
flowing single track that gives way to a nice technical section punctuated by
three narrow plank bridges, a cool rock garden, and bunch of cheering race
fans. As usual, Bob Popovich was there taking some awesome photos capturing the
whole spectrum of rider’s expressions. Faces of triumph were mixed with
surrender. Technical trails demand the truth in everyone’s mountain bike
skills.
Soon after this section we rode through a beautiful section
of PA forest. Morning sunlight washed through the high forest canopy and lit
the emerald carpet of ferns covering the ground. Stunning.
As I started the next major climb, two more race fans
cheered us on. One of them was rocking out Iron Man on the kazoo. Classic! There
was also the traditional, yet unofficial beer station. Complete with color
coded cups for beer or water.
My cramping quads would soon drag me back to reality as I
worked my way back up the mountain on the gravel grind out of Aid 3. Near the
top I stepped up to a tougher gear and charged into the long and rocky single
track. This type of trail really suites me and I was able to gain a number of
positions before starting the fast descent down to Barrville Road. The re-routed
trails rock! Figuratively and literally.
A long section of double track finally yielded to my
favorite trail in the race. Sasser X flows down through a section of forest
where the ground is covered in ferns. The curve of the smile on my face
probably matched the arcs of the dirt slalom my tires consumed. Then the trail
tightened up into a very twisty section of trails over loam and roots.
As I popped out onto the fire road, I felt pretty confident
I had put a solid gap on every one I passed in the re-routed section of trails.
Fortunately, the earlier leg cramps had subsided and were now getting replaced
by nutrition from all manner of gels and high octane goop. Tasty.
Up and up some gravel to the last long section of trail. The
single track at Beautiful trail is fairly rocky and has a couple of spots that
take a power move or two. I bobbled a bit on one as my legs transitioned from taught
attack mode to spaghetti dinner. Oops, bad a foot and drag the bike over that
one. Good, nobody was here to see it :)
The downhill that followed on Kikapoo trail is very rocky
and fairly steep with only a modest bench cut. I think it’s fun, but this late
in a 100 mile race it hurts a bit, even on a full squish 29er. Where’s my trail
bike when I need it eh? I was glad to see the road.
Aid 4 was a welcome stop and I swapped supplies out of my
drop bag for the remaining 23 miles. The climb right after this aid station is long
and fairly steep. Fortunately it was not that hot. Also fortunate was not
rolling over that yellow and brown rattle snack slithering off the road. The
climb eased up at the top and continued on gravel to Sand Mountain. The sandy
single track felt like it went up more than it went down and I knew I was ready
to wrap up a big boy day of riding.
I rolled the final downhill on the now primitive road called
Panther Run. It’s not that technical, but it is super rough and very, annoyingly
long. I would describe my relationship with this section as ‘abusive’. It beat
the hell out of me physically and I verbally assaulted it back.
As flew past Aid 5 I prepared myself for the day’s last
reroute. The Goat Path. It was very rocky and I was soon bobbling across the rocks
as I made my way to the Fisherman’s path. Soon the rocks gave way to a fun and
tight trail that delivered me to the last of the day’s gnarl. The Fisherman’s Path
is always a challenge to hike / ride with 95 miles under your belt. I had
checked this section out the night before and recognized the decayed tree stump
that marked the point where I could ride out the rest of the path.
The rail to trail grade clicked by nicely and I gingerly
rode across the last bridge before entering the old spooky train tunnel. I rode
through the tunnel with no dramatics and soon was rolling into Coburn with
nobody on my tail. Nice.
I crossed the line and was excited to see 8:18 on the big
digital clock. Hell Yeah!
What an awesome day of racing! Thanks so much Shenandoah Mountain Touring!!
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