August 18th, 2009 by

Gregg

(the following article submitted by woman racer “KC Holley”)

“My husband, Chris, and I did our second Leadville 100 Race Across the Sky. We did well last year, but hoped to make some improvements based on our experience. Our friends, Karl and Brad, also got in so we travelled with them. Brad has done it twice including last year when we did it. Karl did it in 2000 when it rained and snowed. We all live in the Salt Lake City area and arrived in Leadville on Thursday night after an uneventful commute.

Friday was filled with the usual pre-race festivities. There was the medical check-in. It is actually just a quick medical question, “Are you taking any medication?” “No.” “Here is your bracelet. Wear it through awards.” Next is schwag pick-up—t-shirt, bag, numbers, poster. We returned to the hotel to start the drop bag strategizing and packing.

Then there is the pre-race meeting. This is more like a pep rally according to Karl’s interpretation. Ken Choubler tells you that you are better than you think you are. Then the race doctor asks us not to succumb to “Testosterone Toxicity”. Interestingly, women are just as susceptible to this as men. Don’t overdo the ibuprofen because it can lead to dehydration. And lastly, welcome to the Leadville family. No pep talk from Lance this year. Dave Wiens was there though and said a few words. We got our picture taken with him before he said his spiel. What a nice guy.

We usually go for a quick hour or so ride just to get the legs spinning. We like to head up Powerline to see how ridable it is. It was not bad, but it is always easier when you don’t have 70 miles under you beforehand. The clouds started to clear a bit and the sun came out. It was a good sign.

Then we finished packing our drop bags. I went back and forth between a Camelbak or bottles. I wanted to keep a rain jacket with me at all times just in case. I got drenched last year and did not want to go through that again. The weather report was calling for chances of rain. I finally decided that the temps would probably be cool enough to keep my vest, which has pockets, on all day. With six pockets between my vest and jersey everything would fit. (My small Gary Fisher Superfly frame only fits one water bottled so I had to have room in a pocket for a bottle, tools, tubes, food, and rain gear.)

We got everything packed and dropped off on the way to the spaghetti dinner. This is always really fun. There is good food and great conversation with friends mixed with the anxiety of the next day. There is always a large contingency of riders from our area. We talked race goals. A friend of ours said that Chris would finish under eight hours and I would be sub-nine. This aligned somewhat with what Chris had been hoping. That would mean cutting 27 minutes from my time last year. Chris would need to shave off eight. I was uncertain, but hopeful.

Finally, it was back to the hotel for hopefully enough sleep to be prepared for the next day.

Race day. I did not sleep well at all. It seemed like forever before I fell asleep and there were periods of wakefulness throughout the night. That was the general consensus from everyone. Maybe it was just the room? Doubtful. That is pretty typical for the night before something big.

We got up at 4 am to start fueling and getting ready. There was a little bit of an early morning rain shower, but it was clear. Karl, Brad, and I had to leave early to try and get a decent start spot. (Chris was given a “Captain America” bracelet at check-in, so he had a reserved spot in the top 100.) The three of us arrived at 5:15 to a big cluster of bikes. We were as far back as last year and my intent was to have a better start position. Oh, well. After several trips to the bathroom, which is pretty standard, the race was about to start. I had no view of Lance even though I looked for him on each of my bathroom jaunts. Lance and Dave were not the only big names in attendance though. Tinker Jaurez and several of his Mona Vie/Cannondale teammates like Brian Alders, and Alex Grant were in attendance. Travis Brown, Max Taam, Manual Prada, and Matt Shriver were also in attendance.

This race started much faster than last year. The neutral start was really just a start. I liked this better as riding in large groups freaks me out due to a very unfortunate incident several years ago. The course was wet on the way to the bottom of St. Kevins. And then it rained and rained and rained. I had rain until the two hours and 22 minutes into my race. Coming down Powerline was a bit scary as it was wet and my glasses were all foggy and splattered with mud and sand. They are prescription though so it is always a tough call as to whether I should ride with them or without in these situations. I stayed with them and it did not seem like a bad decision. They got “cleaned” up a bit on the road to the Pipeline aid station by the gentleman I was drafting.

Lance passed me three hours and 36 minutes into my race as I was climbing up to Columbine Mine. He was coming down the road and took the corner I was on pretty tight. He took it closer than any of the people I was climbing with thought he would take it. A guy in front of me a short ways said something like “I guess he wanted the inside line.” We all chuckled. Of course, Lance was in complete control and there was no real safety issue. Dave Wiens would pass us about five minutes later and gave a word of encouragement as he sped by. And then Alex Grant was in third around four minutes behind him as I continued to climb. That is always my favorite part of the race seeing the fast guys come down Columbine. They are so smooth.

I felt pretty good up and down Columbine and through Twin Lakes and Pipeline. Climbing back up to St. Kevins I began to feel it. I decided to just ride it at a nice tempo and try to take in calories. By the time I descended to the bottom of St. Kevins I did not think I was going to make my sub-nine goal. I was just spent. This guy I had ridden with on and off came up from behind me and asked if we were going to make it. I tried not to let my doubt show. We worked together for a bit. We were both feeling it. Then we got to the final climb. I would push and think it was over and then the road would go up again and again. I still did not think I was going to make as I watched the race time tick on. This kid on the side of the road said two miles to the finish. I am always skeptical of information from spectators and was still uncertain even if his info was accurate. Then I had two minutes as I was coming down the road descent. I still did not think I was going to make it. That red carpet seemed so far away. I pushed and pushed up the final false flat. The crowd was cheering loudly. Finally I was there—8:59:20. I was done—completely done. I stood over my bike panting as volunteers took my timing chip, slid my finishers medal over my head, and asked if I was okay. It wasn’t until one guy asked me if I could unclip that I realized that they were waiting for me to dismount my bike. Chris came and found me as I walked my bike into the crowd. He was really excited for me.

Chris made it in 7:59:32 and was 19th. Our friend was spot on.

Sunday is awards. Ken and Merrilee had a plan to get things rolling a bit quicker this year. They still wanted the essence of the awards to be the same—every finisher’s name is called. They had names called by two volunteers which made them available for photo ops, a common request. After all the finishers sans the top three in each category were called. The overall presentations were given to Lance and Rebecca Raush (Specialized). They each gave a quick speech thanking the volunteers and commenting on the crowds. Lance credited last year’s race as providing him the motivation to return the Tour de France. Dave Wiens also said a few words including the importance of exercise as part of America’s health care initiative. The three of them were escorted to the back of the building. I believe they signed autographs and posed for some pictures. Only Dave returned though for the rest of the awards—1000 mile buckles, 1100 mile jackets, and the top three winners for each category. Top finishers received a belt buckle (small for under 12 hours and a big one for under 9), a “gold mining” pan award, and industry prizes that ranged from pedals, sunglasses, or shoes.