Burnin at the Bluffs

This has been a goal of mine for a very long time. A 12 hour race with teams consisting of 3 members. I was to ride with two other guys from Momentum Racing. We had high hopes of finishing the race in good standings, but as time would determine, it wasnt the case. I was unable to get down to Council Bluffs on friday so I left at 4am on Saturday. I arrived just as team Natural Mystics were waking up, Jason Pryor, Keith Weinkein both members of Schlafly. They cooked a small pancake breakfast and we decided our running order. I was scheduled to go third, Chris was second and Caleb, the fastest, was to start it off. Well my first lap was beginning to look like a good one. I was attacking all the tough hills and the very deep creek crossings. 4 inches of rain two days pryor and more rain the day before made for some wet sections and deep cold water crossings. Well I was on about mile 8and began the nasty rock garden section. I almost made it through the entire thing but at the last minute I heard air gushing out of my rear tire. Damn it!!! I had a small hole squirting out sealant. I tried to let the sealant do its job sitting there with my finger on it. It sealed it up and i shot some co2 in and it blew it out. I decided to take my wheel off and throw a tube in. I was back on my bike in about 10 minutes total. My attitude sort of sucked by this time, bummed out about the flat. I had to pass about 10 people that passed me while changing my tire. Then about mile 13-14 was the finish line. Lap one in 1:33. Not what i was hoping for seeing that the other two came in at 1:23 and 1:27. The second lap went better, no mechanicals or flats, just tired legs. There are two very long climbs on the course and I couldnt bring it to myself to push hard. I spun easily and made it to the top. I rode this lap a lot better but could have pushed a lot harder. My back was cramping up quite a bit and it was hard to push through. I ended up with a second lap of 1:26. much better. I came to the finish line and didnt see Caleb getting ready to leave or Chris waiting either. Finally they came up to me in street clothes and asked if I wanted to continue. I knew Caleb was worn out, Chris wiped out twice and hurt his wrist pretty good, and my back was messed up. I said it was up to them and they said it was time to start drinking. That was sort of the answer I was looking for. We were in 5th out of 12 at the time and was beating natural mystics. We had a fast team, just beat up.

This was by far the best mountain bike race I have been a part of yet. A ton of people and a great atmosphere! Everyone was having a blast. I hope to be a part of it next year again.

Now I am in training for the Berryman Epic 55 mile endurance race on Oct 25. I will post a blog after the race. Last race of the year!

Jay