HC 100 – 2011 Review
Whew, what a trip! I made it out to Bend, OR for the 3rd ever High Cascade 100, another National Ultra-Endurance (NUE) race. Nice write up here at Singletrack Magazine. The start was pretty chilly, but only because we started at 5:30-AM!
I chose the usual Divinity gearing for this and was a bit under geared at times, but others finished ahead of me who rode lesser and greater gearing. So as usual its about how you spin it, not what you spin.
I wore the Breckenridge jacket for the first loop in lieu of the vest and arm warmers, mostly because they had an on-course – and well placed and timed – clothing drop-off. Really first class approach here, because while the 5:30-AM is a pain in the arse, I do understand why they do it. This is a race of heavy hitters, but it also allows some slower riders the chance to finish. Last year they let some guy race for 16:35 on the course. Wow, that only helps grow the sport and this 100-mile format is sure to be the future of mountain biking racing because it is participatory for both pros and amateurs. You get more racers showing up for NUE events than you do for USAC, thats for sure.
I wore our European Team kit, as I did for the Breckenridge 100. I really like how it feels, especially the shoulders and sleeves of the jersey which are one piece, spandex type material – with no annoying cuff.
The course ended up being 108-miles, with 12,281-ft of climbing, with the lowest elevation around 4100-ft, and the highest around 6300-ft. There were no big climbs, and the course had to be near 100-miles of singletrack, it was incredible! Nothing but flowy, moto-style singletrack, with some logs and rocks to contend with. In fact, I did more log rollovers on this race, than I have done the entire season combined.
I would have liked some long sustained, high elevation climbs, but then again thats what I have here in Colorado, so it was nice to ride something else. I did crash pretty hard around mile 86, and the forensics of the crash left me with a sore left leg – Charley Horse – no bruising thank goodness, and my saddle was knocked so hard it pointed almost straight up. I think I hit a pedal on a log, dunno for sure. I crashed again around mile 102, just being careless. No mechanicals, other than my bottom bracket worked its way loose again, like it did at Bailey 100. A tad annoying and it did ruin all stealth capability out there. I finished 7th place SingleSpeed, with 6th and 5th just less than a couple of minutes in front of me. The crash knocked a bit out of me, but as it stands I did this race somewhere around a comfortable pace – only 12-minutes anerobic, which is 5 minutes more than Breck 100. I’m gonna have to step it up a bit, or just continue having fun riding these and be more strategical for next year. I had fun though, and even though the drive was so incredibly long, it was worth it, at least on the singletrack.
On the way back, I camped up high outside of Provo up at Strawberry Reservoir. Really nice up there, and I would liked to have ridden, but man, I just wanted to get home.
I always take these night before the race bike shots in the hotel room. Cool thing for this race was that I got a personalized number plate. Wish I could have arisen to the occasion though, but that said, these NUE events are truly National Races, and it’s not like going against the boy scouts up in Delta. Tough, competition, and I am proud to be a part of the NUE series.
I met up with Gerry Pflug, the national SingleSpeed champion for the NUE the last few years pre-race and we went out to dinner at the Cascade Brewing Company. Really good food, and so convenient since it was accross the street from the hotel, and just a few minutes from the race starts. Thanks to Jeni and her accumulated Marriott points, the room was free as well!
Bend, OR is a real cool place. It was a lot larger than I had expected, and it’s more a Breckenridge type of town, than it is Durango. Trails and soil were a lot like Flagstaff, but the town has a more west coast, dare I say, California type feel. Lots of tourists there in the town, but I did not see one trailer mounted with ATVs and Texas licence plates – whereas I did see a lot of Lexus type vehicles on their way to the golf courses. So there you have it.
The drive to and from Bend, was very long and mostly uneventful. I was somewhat taken aback though when entering Oregon and trying to fill up for gas. They have a state law that requires that gas station attendants actually pump your gas for you. In fact, one station had them in full dress from the 1950′s – think Navin R. Johnson.
I’m home now, somewhat rested and ready to ride.
-Matt