We competed in the 24 Hours of Moab a couple weeks ago. I maintained a race profile and decided to post this here as well:

Ok, so I wasn't able to post as I liked during the race. Here's a recap:

We started at Noon on Saturday with hopes of a podium finish. Scott started and did the big run in the dust, around the bush, and then hopped on his bike. He proceeded to RIP and I mean RIP his first lap in under 1:12, which is hyper fast. (The fastest laps in our class can be found at: http://www.grannygear.com/realtime/public/class.php?displayfastestlaps_flag=1&class=ME)
) Anything under 1:15 on this course is really strong.

He finished and I went out. All of us race and know our limits pretty well. If you go past your limit too long, you run the risk of “blowing up”, which means that your body will force you to slow down. When a rider blows up, you really hurt and really slow down. It takes everything you have to finish. I know how to avoid “blowing up”. What’s really tough about 24 hour races is making sure I don’t blow up on a lap yet leave something for future laps.

We didn’t know what place we were in, but knew we were in the hunt. So I pushed it really hard. My heart rate shot up and I was rolling really fast. I was flying, About 2/3 around the course, I decided to ratchet down a bit, worried that I would not be able to do 4 more laps at that pace.

The course is super demanding. It has many, many technical sections with frequent, bursty climbs and constant technical descents. That kind of course does not suit me as well as others and puts a pounding on my less-than-burly body. Still, I pushed and took some chances. I finished at just over 1:12 and handed off to Zeke.

After a lap, I have to 1) warm down, 2) get out of sweaty clothes, 3) eat, and 4) eat some more. After the first lap, the adrenaline is flowing and it’s easy. Later it gets really hard. I came in and we were pumped. Zeke finished at under 1:12 and then Jeff rolled a really fast lap too.

We were in second place when Jeff started and he put five minutes on the first place team to put us up. First place! We wanted it at that point.

Night came and it got tough. First, you have to use lights in tough conditions. Second, it gets cold. Third, you get tired. We went through two rotations with few problems. A couple of folks had slower laps, but nothing bad. We were in good shape

We found ourselves competing with a team from Beaver Creek, Colorado. It got really close with just seconds separating us. They passed us on the course and we passed them. It was a dogfight. We felt that we had the upper hand, were faster and would win.

These races usually come down to consistency and a little luck. As I said, if we rode the rest of our laps without problems, we knew we were faster. No one wanted to say it, for risk of a jinx, but I know we all wanted to avoid problems, like a mechanical breakdown or a crash. Either one could cost us the race. And, if the opposition had a problem, we wanted to be poised to pounce.

Well, the 4:00 a.m. lap is called the “bewitching lap.” It’s so cold and late and everyone is exhausted. It’s too early to see the sun. I hate the bewitching lap. I started it and 2 miles in, my rear tire hit a wedge and I heard a something pop and then sputter. My rear tire had blown off the rim. I swore. It took me maybe five minutes to repair it. And dozens of riders passed me.

I assumed that our competition was one of those riders (in fact, he started only 30 seconds behind me and was one of the first to pass me). I knew I had some ground to gain so I pushed as hard as I could. I tried some mental games to keep myself motivated. I pulled out all the tricks but I was hurting. My body kept saying no. My lack of conditioning for this kind of race was hurting me.

Just before the final big climb, I was in a groove and passing people. I stood on the pedals to quickly clear a technical section and my crank stopped and then spun. Uh oh, I thought. I think I dropped my chain. Occasionally, your chain can slip from your cassette and need to be replaced. It’s annoying, but it happens. Unfortunately, I didn’t drop my chain. I broke it.

%$%!, %$%!, %$%*!

I was not PG-13 at that moment. I was way behind my pace, I had lost the lead, and now I had a big mechanical problem. This was bad.

I got my wits and went about fixing the chain. Fortunately, I had the right tool and a replacement link. Still, in the cold, with lights, and in the dirt, it took 7-8 minutes. I rode as hard as I could to the finish. 1:40 lap time. I was 18 minutes behind the other team. It was a disaster.

I was upset, a bit, but my teammates and friends were great. It’s part of racing and everyone understands. Still, it was horribly disappointing to lose first place like that. Lose head-to-head? No problem. To a mechanical? That’s tough.

We rode well through the rest of the morning, keeping the third place team comfortably behind us and quietly hoping for some bad luck to strike first place. It didn’t. We finished second.

We were thrilled to be on the podium. We got a great medal and some really nice bike gear. The team exceeded our expectations, had a ton of fun, and rode safe. All in all, it was a great race.