Hardcore 24

It has been way too long for this post - so I'm going to sum everything up.  The 24 hour race was in July in New York and it was amazing! 

 The Team:  My Sister Charlotte came out from San Diego to be my nutritionist. 

  Seth my Husband was the crew chief so he oversaw everything...and took care of all the things I forgot.

So this is how the race worked.  The race start at Noon on Saturday and goes to Noon on Sunday.  The course is a 8 mile loop, the person with the most loops by Sunday at Noon wins.  You get to decided your pace how long you want to rest, you can even sleep if you need it.  For me I had my A, B, & C goal.  My A goal was to get 100 miles.  I had a race plan and a nutrition plan and I really felt prepared for this race...I felt really good. My race plan was to be conservative...stay in a zone 2 which I am convinced I don't have.  I rode about 3 laps staying within my zone 2 and it was hard, because I was going so slow!!!  So finally I just had to ride how I felt, and that meant I rode harder and I was in Zone 3 and low zone 4...but I felt better and I was moving quicker now.  I can't remember which lap it was on maybe lap 4 the clouds opened up and the craziest rain storm hit us!  The trail was dark even though it was only 5pm, and the rain was so heavy that you could barely see the trail.  I had to use my headlamp at that time.  To tell you the truth it was probably the best time I had on my bike.  When else would you ride your bike in weather like that.  Well it gets better...after the rain and when the sun started to go down the trail was covered by the thick thick fog....honestly you could hardly see the trail underneath your front tire.  You had to keep your light on so you can see the reflectors to keep you on the path...the fog was so thick that would could pass right by someone and not know.  Again it was a little stressful, but a lot of fun.  Unfortunately my wrist was bugging most all of this race...but luckily I didn't have too many down hills to pound it. So really my whole goal this race was to be a smarter rider!  Usually I am not a smart rider, I just go out until I blow up and then keep trying to go and enjoy the pain...well I am getting a little older and wiser, so I really tried to dial in my nutrition and with the help of my sister I did just that.  I had the best nutrition plan I have ever had.  I ate real food!  I hardly touched energy food.  I ate burritos that were made with chicken, quinoa, grapes, humus and other good things, I had soup, PB&J's, I ate real food, and the best part was that my sister can read my mind and she would have exactly what I wanted waiting for me with out having to tell her...she's amazing. 

 

 Transitions: This is what a lap would look like.  I would start the trail ride my 8 miles, roll up to my teams pavilion Seth would take my bike and he would clean it and make sure it's shifting well etc. He would check my liquids to make sure I drank enough, and get me clean water and stuff.  I would sit down and Charlotte would bring me something to eat, and stuff my pocket with about 150 calories worth of food I need to eat on the trail.  I would eat and chit chat with the our friends who were there racing.  I would get up stretch and get back on my bike roll though the timing station and do another lap I would be at the 'camp' for 10-15 mins.  It was clockwork.  Everyone was working really hard.

Anyway this post is too long already, but the race continued through the night, and everything was going really well I was on mark to make my A goal, when I thought I was having an allergic reaction to a granola I ate.  I freaked out because it was in the middle of the night and I probably wasn't thinking clearly...and I didn't want to be on the trail and go into shock then I would be in real trouble...so I took half a benadryl, then took a shower and got back on the trail.  Too bad for me benadryl knocks me out, so I was practically sleeping while biking...it was brutal and painful.  I roll up to camp at 3 something, by no I was in First place, but I was so tired I slept for a few hours and when I woke up I did another lap, but I didn't feel right after that, so I called it...and ended the race I think about 8 or 9am on Sunday.  I ended in 2nd place and I only got my C goal and that was 80 miles...I guess I don't regret anything I just wished I didn't take a sedative during an endurance race....but as for everything else, it was great!!!  I had a great time and I think I finally found the race for me.

Huge shout out my Seth who supported me through all my hours of training...He was the one looking after my bike and body, he would stitch me up after work without complaining, he practically carried me out of a trail when I sprained my ankle, he would watch Fisher while I rode...he would check in with me to make sure I was on mark with my training.  He is by far my biggest support in life, and I am not joking when I say, I would not be where I am today without him.  He knows I need outside motivation, what it comes down to;  he knows me better than I know myself....so he knows how hard it was for me to say that.