Dirty Road-A-Coaster

I had concerns about racing this 100k gravel grinder when my neighbor Mathew texted me suggesting it 3 days before the event. First, it was 100k, second, Mathew is faster than I am. When I looked at the pre-reg list I identified several fast riders from Rasputitsa.

My concerns were confirmed when the group began organizing around the start line. More than half of the bikes were road bikes with slick tires. There were even several pairs of carbon wheels. It was billed as 80% gravel but I am guessing the it was less than that. In addition, the gravel was strangely smooth with no technical or gnarly sections.

I was happy to get started and felt pretty good, riding in the half of the group. The first 5 miles were paved and mostly flat until it turned left up a steady hill. soon there was gravel and the lead group reduced to about twenty. I hung on until around mile 9 then thought better of riding in the red so early in a long ride.

I rode for some time with a group of 5 to 9 riders. The pace did not feel any easier as some young riders were breathing so hard I thought that I'd have to administer CPR. I was in a very compatible group that rode nicely for about ten miles. In this pack I elected to skip the first of 2 feed zones - a mistake. I was carrying minimal food and should have known better.

I ended up riding off with one other rider. We were joined by another rider who peeled off of the front group. The pace was too fast for me but I elected to push instead of being alone. I asked one of these riders how many miles we had gone. He looked at his computer and told me 34. A rider came up from behind and the pace quickened more on a paved section. I had to let them go after a few miles. I rode alone for 5 or six miles. After around 40 miles I knew I was bonking. I had less and less power on the hills. A roadie came up on me and we rode a few miles to the second feed zone. We stopped as did the rider ahead of us. I ate a cliff bar, half a banana and we were off. I felt a bit better for the next five miles. The roadie left me on another road section to face a tough had wind.

The last ten or twelve miles were purely survival riding; I was done. Small groups caught and passed me. It was painful to watch some riders that I was faster than ride away. The race ended on a long section of pavement. Mathew finished twelfth, I was near the back. I have endured sore knees and lower back as a result of using all of my body to climb the hills late in the event. I am really looking forward to a more relaxed pace with the rest of the Pickles riders and some other friends at the Tour de Heifer in 3 weeks.