Category Archives: Race Reports

Not a “race” report, but it sure felt like a RACE! VOGP

Two weekends ago, Kurt, Tread and I traveled to VT to participate in Vermont Overland GP.  We dragged Fred Prescott (pbm athlete hot shot) to suffer on the steep dirt climbs and ever steeper dirt descents.

I won’t bore you with the small details, just the high (low) lights-

-Neutral start for about 1-2k, then- BAM!  straight uphill on loose dirt/gravel.  Awesome. 500+ guys and gals with fresh legs all smashing it hard.  No categories or age groups, just a good old fashioned race.

-Tread off the front with all the heavy hitters racing for glory, me and Fred a little further back but moving up.  Kurt slightly further back from us, riding steady.

-Fred super strong today, stretching out our group on every climb, dancing on the pedals with a huge smile on his face.

-Make it to the first water/feed zone and stop for a coke/water/treats.  Basically the whole group stopped so we didn’t really lose many spots.  But who cares because it’s not a race, right?  My heart rate was 176 avg for the first hour.

-Still in same group riding strong, Fred still on the front breathing through his nose.  Tread, long gone never to be seen again. I flat (thank God) and pull the plug on my “race”.  I change the flat at a very leisurely pace hoping Kurt or another friendly race will roll up.  Kurt finally arrives and we chat, then set off to finish this thing.

-I stay with Kurt for a little while then decide to get a little extra tempo work in and ride away.  Not an attack or anything because me and Kurt are tight and I would never attack him like that, just a subtle acceleration which he could have followed but didn’t.

-I finish 3:42 (I think), stopped a lot to eat/drink/nature calls/flats, so I think it’s respectable but no where near Tread or Fred.  Both those guys drilled it.  Can’t say I’m not jealous, I would’ve like to have tested myself to stay with the front groups.  All told, I got in 6+ hrs of riding, with over 7k vertical feet.  Good times.  Of course, Tread and I had to ride to and from race venue for warm up and cool down.

-Definitely a buck list ride- VOGP.  Peter Vollers organized a great day.  Beautiful VT country roads, amazing weather, and some excellent cyclists.  Current and former Pro’s, World Champions, National Champs and local hot shots.

-I’m going back for sure.

Thanks for reading.
Bill.

Race Reports…Everybody is doing it!!

Why write a race report? You’ve spent weeks and months working hard to get race ready. Race day comes and goes. Hopefully the result is great, but sometimes it’s not. What was good and what was bad? Put it to paper (virtual paper these days!) Athletes have horrible short-term memory I have found. They forget…Continue Reading

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