Well. yesterday was the fifth running of the Ragnarok 105 and my third go at it. The first year my goal was just to finish and completed it in 8 hours 50 minutes. Last year I wanted to break 8 hours but with a longer course that wasn't happening. I came in at 8 hours 40 minutes. Yesterday was a different story. I trained a little harder, getting in 80-120 miles a week for most of the month of March. to make things different I decided to ride my Bianchi San Jose Pro SS. I wasn't completely sure how I would fair on all the hills with only one gear, but a pre-ride a couple weeks ago left me feeling like I was strong enough to do it.
The day started out early with a 5:01am wake up. I had all my stuff packed up so I drank some Powerade and got dressed for the day. On the way down to Red Wing I stopped and picked up Curt and started to mentally prepare for the race. We got to Mississippi National at about 6:55 and checked-in. At 7:15 they had the pre-race meeting and we soon gathered to start the race. At 7:30 we rolled out to the first section of gravel and the race was on. I just rode comfortably and didn't try and hammer it up any of the hills. I was going at a good pace and was passing a few people so I was happy about that. After seeing the below video I was happy to learn that I was only 45 seconds off the lead, even with my casual pace. As we turned on the the second small stretch of pavement I started to notice that everyone ahead of me was turning on next gravel road (45) and I knew that was not correct. I continued to on to Churchill Rd and found myself to be the new race leader. I lead the race on and off for next 6 miles before starting to get passed by the now back on track original race leaders around mile 25. I rode strong and tried to grab onto to a few of the fast groups that came by for as long as I could. At the 41 mile check point I shed my pants and undershirt. It was too hot to continue dressed like that. The next 40 miles was "easier" and wound its way through the valley. This is where riding the single speed become frustrating. I knew that I had plenty of strength to push a higher gear and go much faster if I had it, but such is life. I rolled into the Lake City checkpoint and saw some people who had passed me earlier sitting outside of Kwik Trip so I knew that I could not mess around if I wanted to stay in front of them. I slammed a Red Bull, ate some beef jerky, refilled my almost empty water supply and took of again. Two weeks ago we did a ride that was the exact same finish as this years race so I knew exactly what was in store. I pedaled as fast as I could to "Heaths Hill" because I knew that I was going to be walking part of it and get a little break. I stopped just before the summit to drink half a Premium that the Almanzo guys graciously had waiting for the racers. From there it was an all out fucking grind. We immediately went back down all the elevation that we had just gained and started right back up. Strangely enough both of these roads are called "335th" even though they do not run parallel to each other. At that point I started riding and chatting with Eddie. We had been leapfrogging each other all day, but at this point I just needed some conversation to get my mind off pedaling. I broke away from him near the top of 335th but once again he caught me and stayed ahead for good. Climbing Huenke was a task that I knew if I wanted to finish strong was going to be tough. I rode as much as I could but once I felt like I was just mashing the pedals I walked the remainder. From there it was mostly down hill and i ate a gel and tried to get my spirits real high for the final climb to the finish line. I started the slow rise to where it gets real steep and started to feel like shit. I made it about 1/4 of the way up the final climb and had to walk. I've never felt that bad with the finish line in sight. A lady driving by asked if I needed any help, there was no way in the world that I was going to accept any help with .1 miles to go. Not a chance. As I neared the top I hopped back on my bike for the last 50 yards and crossed the finish line in 7 hours and 55 minutes. I was really happy with my time and the effort that I gave out there. All the pain and mental anguish quickly faded as I rode the three miles back to the parking lot.
This race once again proved why it is my favorite of the year and is one that I always look forward to doing. I don't think that any event for the remainder of the year will be as overall challenging or as fun as the Ragnarok, it's all down hill from here.
Thanks to all the organizers and supporters for making it a great event!
In the U of M jersey at 45 seconds
 |
| Do work. |
No comments:
Post a Comment