24 Hours of BERMS

Denelle changed the name after the event to this one. I have to agree, what a course. Lots of fast, fast, fast sections made for a really nerve addled trip around the course everylap. For the first time I felt like I was actually overriding my HID light beam......and that takes some serious speed. My bar clock recorded 35 mph at one point going downhill through the trees and berms......fast.

Race Start:

Gotime, suited up in the new Trek team kit, sunscreened, fed, lubed up (chamois), and itching to ride after a few days of taper.
Typical Lemans style start, run, run, run. The team riders were allowed to tag off at their bikes, so they could use a runner in tennis shoes to sprint ahead and tag off to the guy in cycling garb to open up the bike leg full bore. I took a solid jog to the bikes about 300 yards away, mounted up and headed off on the first lap. The first lap used the old course and bypassed the newly built section, so first lap times were way faster than every post-ceding trip. Things opened up pretty quick. No backups, no stumbling beginners to contend with....awesome.

Lap one down
Lap one finished quick, I grabbed a bottle from Dave and Jason in the pit, cruised out again for lap two. The legs were saying, "go, go, go." but the mind knew I had to hold back as I had 23.5 more hours of this fun to survive. So I sat back, and tried to entertain myself on the mind numbing parts by drinking and eating.....cytomax and cytogel, powerbars, plants....whatever.

lap 4 down
4 laps in, still feeling solid. Riding the climbs in the middle ring still, eating big: gels, powerbars, more cytomax....yum.

Lap 6 down
Time to acknowledge that it is gonna start getting dark, and I have an entire night of sufferage ahead. I decide to commit to the granny ring for climbing in hopes of staving off muscle failure until morning. Gotta save something for the race for placings that will occur in the final 4 hours of the event.

Lap 10 down.
Nausea. While the idea of eating big may seem good, it should not be only on machine made foods and drinks. My gut is loaded....I want to just pull the trigger and puke, but that will ruin everything. I stop in the pit for a change of clothes, Jason takes care of my bike, Dave helps hand me clean stuff to wear and double checks my light set up.

Lap 11-
More nausea. As I pit I try a coke, and some plain water. Seems to work. I take plain water on the trail with me for the ride. that and a shredded Turkey Sandwich in a cup. I munch and sip as I go. I start to feel better.

Lap ?
After 15 minutes off the bike in the pit, my strength has returned. My body has managed to move the large gut ball of powerbar, gel and such through and all the nutrients are starting to absorb as the plain water dilutes them. I pit, take in some electrolytes, and more coke....and roll.

Lap ? +1
More coke, more PB and J. Ride your bike you fool.

Lap 21- come in, pit crew is doing math, trying to figure out what I need to do. I have climbed from 8th place to 5th now. The guy in 4th is 1 lap plus 10 minutes up on me. They have set up the Top Fuel SL- go time. Speed it is.

Lap 22
I manage to catch number 4 on the next lap. David Holmes, a Fisher 29er Crew rider. I had just put in two really hard laps. I try to ride with him, but instead we go head to head for a short time....he is a small guy with climbing abilities....and puts them to use on me.....I am shamed into backing off quickly. Man that Superfly Carbon can climb with that guy as the engine.

Lap 23
Pit crew tells me that I need to do one more to secure 5th place, I need to go.

Lap 24.
In to pit, they tell me that David Holmes has done some math work at 22 hours into the race, and thinks I can't catch him. I am down one lap and need to do that plus one to get 4th place. I am off, Pushing middle ring again, pulling time on 4th!!!
Dave rides with me for moral support and to see if I fall apart....like watching a train wreck at that point I guess....or Britney...either way.

Lap 25.
Speed...sort of. I am actually pulling faster laps now than all of the top 3 riders.

Lap 26
Cruise control time, push the middle ring on the climbs, flow the downhills, ignore the crying muscles.....you can recover later.
In to the finish line 24hours 23 minutes of riding.....26 laps at 7.5 miles and 900 feet of climbing per lap.
4th place it is. I am pleased.....and learned a bunch from this one.....

Denelle won the women's field in her normal style....make it look easy while the competition falls apart around you. At one point I swear I saw her opponent clinging to a tree on the course like it might help her along.
Nicely done, 14 laps is a solid ride, just over a 100 miles I guess she figured.

Giant Thanks to Jason and Dave, they were awesome support through this whole thing. They kept me and my bikes rolling. Thanks guys!!!!

-Shawn