I am finally home and can decompress on what happened Saturday. I was so dehydrated I didn’t pee till 2am Sunday morning, was scared to go to bed till I could drink 1L of Pedialyte.
I hope to be able to do the event next year, I do not really consider this a race after riding it. Its more of a death march to determine where the limit of your physical capability is. It is a very lonely ride, and that makes me sad, since cycling is such an enjoyable sport and brings so much excitement into my life.
Errors I made.
- Forgot to turn on the clutch on my rear derailleur.
- Lacked salt, and it impacted my ability to eat and not cramp.
- Don’t trade pulls with Eddie Anderson
- Change tirewiz battery prior to event, they didn’t work day of the event.
I managed to eat all my food on Friday, but come Saturday morning I was having a bunch of trouble eating and drinking. Never had that issue in the past.
I got to the start line about 30 minutes prior to the 6am start. I would say I was around 100th. The pace out of the gate was fast, and people were not leaving any gaps in the bunch. I noticed on one corner I had some chain chatter around mile 10, that’s when I figured out that I forgot to turn on the clutch. We were going so fast there was no way I could fix the issue and stay with the group. So I just kept going, it was so dusty I wasn’t able to see my computer and it felt like my teeth were being cleaned due to the dust. Mile 25-30 the road ended up being too paths that were pretty knurly outside the correct line. Someone ate it in front of me and I put the bike in the ditch to have the person behind me rear end up. I didn’t look back and threw the bike back on the road and started to chase.
Man I got lucky and found a friend from 10 years ago who has done the race a few times and almost finished under 12 hours this year and we motored back up to the bunch. I was so excite, I hadn’t spent too many bullets and I was still in the lead group. 10 miles later, my first mistake would bite me in the butt. On another technical section my chain popped off, and the bunch road away from me. I threw the chain back on as fast as possible, but the leaders started an ascent and I had no one around me to take me back. I started working with some people but we were not going to fast. This is when Eddie Anderson came by and our group jumped on his wheel, after a few rotations eddie went again and I jumped to his wheel and thought this would be my ticket back to the front group. As we made a turn someone told us we were 4 minutes back, and I determined this is not the effort I can make and I pulled the plug.
First check point I was in the top 70. I grabbed a coke, and threw my hydration pack on, put sun screen on and changed helmets, I wasn’t able to eat and jumped back on the bike. I really don’t remember the next 30 miles, except I was just trying to limit how hard I would pull. You would get on a group and no one would pull, they would just sit on one persons wheel. After 100 miles I was still top 70 but that helping pull thing caught up with me and I was cramping pretty bad. I managed to drink 1 liter of mix and water out of my pack. I was way behind on food and felt like I was going to throw up. I motored on and kept just plugging away.
2nd water stop I was just limiting wattage peaks and trying to stay smooth. I had to climb most hills out of the saddle to prevent from cramping. Somewhere in the section from 130-155 I stopped and helped someone change a tube, he had no tube and no pump so I helped out. I got back on the bike and picked up one of the women riders and she sat on till the final stop at 155. At this point I am full blown cramping. My feet are killing me and I know I need to eat food.
2nd Pit stop
Change socks and shoes to try to get some reprieve, that doesn’t help. I also am willing to sit for a while to get food down. I was able to eat some chips and a coke. Nothing sounded good. I loaded my top tube bag with gels and blocks, 2 new bottles and filled the hydration pack back up, and set forward. At this point, I am all alone, just slowly picking people off, they might sit on then they would fall off. I end up catching a guy riding a single speed and we start chatting. I was so happy to talk to someone, I told him I don’t have much left, and he said the same thing. I asked if he was cool with me riding and chatting and he said it made it a lot better for the next 30 miles I rode with one person and we talked over the blowing wind. He had to walk a few hills due to his gearing, I would just wait at the top of the hill for him and continue the march. At this point we are just rolling by people stopped on the side of the road, they are shells of bike racers.
13 miles to go I have to get off the bike, the hamstring cramps are hitting so hard if I don’t stop my legs will lock up and I will crash. I tried to slowly walk, this didn’t help, I downed 3 gels and waited for cramping to stop. I hopped back on the bike and picked up a coke a mile later. At this point I grab a wheel of a giant factory rider, but after 2 miles I had to let him go, I just cant keep that pace. I ended up riding in with a former podium finished, I was not able to pull through the final 10 miles.
I finished under 14 hours I was very happy with the result. Could I have done better? Of course I can and I will try again next year. My moving time was only 13:05 with my final cramping stop when I didn’t turn off the computer. When I look over what I could have done better, its been something I have been having issues with for a few years and that’s cramping. Cramping cost me a win in a race last year and this year it cost me dearly. I didn’t pee till 2am
With that being said Unbound isn’t a race, its more of a march to find your limit. People are so serious it takes away from the enjoyment of the event for me. I always wave and always say thank you to people, always talk to someone and ask if they need something. The amount of times this is reciprocated was minimal. After I finished I talked to my dad and had to walked over to the EMS tent. 2 people looked familiar, neither rider had a jersey on, and both looked in rough shape. Both riders I had spent 2 hours riding with in different spots in the final 75 miles. One person stood up and gave me a hug, they achieved there goal and I was a part of it, that made the whole event worth while for me.
Tss for the day 700
IF for the day .7
Hottest topic. My tyrewiz didnt work during the race, but at the start line they said 30 front and 35 rear. I weigh 200lbs
b) the course requires such intense mental focus to stay on a good line and avoid issues that it’s hard to remember how to be a normal human being.