WGAFAVQ??????
Uh......Me :lol:
I was out there yesterday.....actually I am out there every year. Usually I am out there from about 4am to about 6pm volunteering.
However this year I decided it was time to give it ago, again. Been awhile since my last VQ.....2006 to be exact.
Was I out there racing yesterday???? Yup.....but I was racing against myself. Goal for the ride....take as much time off my 2006 time(10:12)....and also beat a couple of buddies' times from previous years. Not really any different than pushing the pace on a normal ride with friends to see who gets to the top or bottom first. Just friendly competition to give each other crap.
Believe me....I had absolutely zero chance of having the best time out there. :shock:
I have posted a few of my ride reports from some solo training rides....i totally understand the whole ride for the soul thing....i am one who enjoys going out on long solo adventures.
I have dabbled in different types of racing: 24hr, 12hr, XC, DH....and I am by no means a racer.
Different strokes for different folks.....now if only we could get the shuttle monkeys to realize they have to earn the DH.....see how closed minded that sounds. :roll:
The Counting Coup is the easy ride at 44 miles 8800'.....while the Vision Quest is a little tougher at 55 miles and 11000'.....and that includes the HAB up West Horse Thief.
While the VQ and CC are timed...it isn't a true race.....1st Place and Last Place get the same award.
And since you seem so interested in the VQ.....here is my ride report:
I normally work these events.....this year was a treat and I got to ride.
Last time I rode VQ was 2006, and it took me 10:12.
Goals for this year:
1. Ride the singlespeed
2. Beat my other time....which turned out to be beat a buddy's time of 8:00....which turned into another buddy's time of 7:56.
3. Enjoy the ride
4. Slow down and don't go out to fast
5. Beat the WHT Cutoff on the way down.
So...kept checking the weather reports yesterday to see how it was gonna be out there today. Saw a high of around 65-68 in Silverado later in the day. However knowing that it was always cooler up over the Peak, I ended up dressing appropriately.
Joined the crowd the front 3rd the gate for the start....said hello to some friends.....and before I knew it....GO!
I had a plan of 1:05 to Beek's.....felt this would be a good pace and not blow myself up. Got through the gate cleanly and began the Spin, Spin, Coast....Spin, Spin, Coast up the road. Kept telling myself to stick to the plan. By the time we had passed the gate to Edwards Ranch, we were riding at a pretty good pace. Didn't feel like were going all that fast....but was closer to the front of the train, than the back. Really cool sight to look back down the canyon and see the stream of headlights. Chose not to run a light personally, and it wasn't a problem. By Hidden Ranch, the sun had begun to rise and it was getting lighter. Rolled into Beek's and looked at the clock...52 minutes...ooops, guess I got caught up in the mad dash start.
Continued across MD towards MW.....really uneventful....walked a few of the climbs....but that was in the plan. Reached the top of MW with a goal/plan of 2:15/20 and a goal/plan of 2:30/40 to bottom of MW...again ahead of schedule....1:57. Started down MW and felt great...felt like was making good time. Slower riders were yielding faster riders(when safe to do so). At the turn where all the rock piles are, encountered a long train of riders....and the pace was slow. Looked way up and slow rider was out front. Bells ringing, but no yielding...MW really is hard to ride when you go slow. The slow rider finally moved aside, but we were near the bottom. Reached Aid Station #1 where my wife was waiting for me with my bottle change....time....2:11.....waaayyy ahead of schedule.
Headed on up MS and was a bit worried that the fast pace was gonna cost me on the way up.....NOPE. PR to end of pavement....felt great on the climb all the way to 4 Corners.....rolled through and continued on towards the Peak....started to get cold after we passed Joplin. Reached the Peak....PR from Motorway to Peak.
Dropped down towards UHJ.....really surprised at how good condition of the road was. Was kind of in a open spot....no one in front and no one behind.
Reached UHJ and it looked like I was going to have open trail in front of me.....nope, after the first turn started running into rides....however most were nice and yielded. Did have 1 guy that wouldn't let me by....but I eventually got by when he screwed up a switchback, and I took the inside line. Really Really love UHJ...such a fun trail and the conditions were excellent. Hit the bottom and rode over to LHJ. Scampered down the drop in and got around a couple of guys that all got there at the same time. got out in front of the pack and flew down LHJ...again, slower riders would let me by. Conditions on LHJ were prime.....save for the poison oak. Pushed hard and made it down to Aid Station #2.
Met up with my wife again....time.....4:46....I knew it takes about 2 hrs to do the back loop. So I suddenly started thinking that a sub 7 hr time was possible. Headed up TCR towards Trabuco Trail. Feeling tired, but still moving forward. Shortly after crossing over the gate.....the wheels came off....suddenly the legs were dead. Fortunately, it was still early enough the leaders were just starting to descend Trabuco Trail....would only see 5-6 of them. Found myself walking alot....ride, walk, ride, walk...walk somemore. Finally reached the split at WHT....time 11:00(cutoff was 12:45). Last time I did VQ I made the WHT cutoff by minutes.
Started the long torturous slog up WHT...through the gauntlet of PO. Figured on :45 to hike up. Legs were still dead, and the ankle I broke a few years ago, was not happy doing the HAB. Struggled to keep moving forward....eventually I was joined by db.mx and SinglespeedRider. Kept pushing on, counting down the switchbacks. Eventually got to the decomposed granite where you can get back on and ride...nope...legs were still not ready for that. Walked a bit more, then hopped on and rode up to the burger stand at the top. Ate a little and hung out longer than I should have. At this point I knew the sub 7 hr time wasn't going to happen. However I knew what time I had to cross the finish line to beat my buddys' times.
Slowed rolled up/down/up Main Divide towards Trabuco Trail. Legs were finally no longer dead, but kept getting the twitch for a cramp...that never came. Walked somemore...finished strong up to the top of Trabuco Trail. At this point I had about 1:15 minutes to do a :40 minute ride...dropped into Trabuco Trail and found my flow....wide open trail while under the canopy. Came across a couple of riders in the exposed area, both again yielded. Returned to the WHT split and was 8-9 minutes ahead of the cutoff. More wide open trail all the way down to the gate. Trabuco is so fast when you don't have to worry about waiting for riding buddies.
Flew through Aid Station #2....at this point was feeling a little nauseous. Really hate TCR.....rough road....head wind. Turned into the Parker's Ranch and manualed across the finish line......
Time 7:36:37.......turns out I beat another buddy's time....one I didn't think was possible. Total ride time was even better @ 7:10. Good enough for 66th place.
So out of my goals above, I met some and threw some to the wind.
Overall I am extremely pleased with my ride......now I don't have to do it again.
Thanks to my Warrior Family who were out there working the event....and thanks to all the riders who came out and participated.
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