The story of our SMU Cycling experience at the Texas Time Trials …
Caryn and I competed with each other a few weeks ago to see which one of us had the best chance to win our category in “The Texas Time Trials”. We raced each other on the course and it was somewhat of a draw. She did it in just over 19.6 MPH and I did it in 20.75MPH , so either one of us had a real possibility of winning. Since we both were interested in doing this event and with her being a solid cat. 2 quality rider we settled on the 2 person, 200 mile mixed team event.
Since I have had a quixotic quest to actually win a bicycle race, she thought we would have the best opportunity to win this event as a team (she later regretted agreeing to play Sancho Panza to my Don Quixote.) After registering for the event, we found we had only one team to compete against. Despite numerous appearances at this event and victories in the 500 mile 4 person team event for these other competitors, we determined that they should be easily overcome. Could my victory drought be over? (and beating Samuel in the sprint at White Rock because he sat up and I snuck past only qualifies if it made the paper!)
Unlike bike rallies, we needed to make sure we were completely self-sufficient (well supplied with water, electrolytes, protein, minerals, spare wheel set etc.) Afterwards we determined we should have had a blanket as well as some meds. No one came through with some clamp on aero bars, so we went more with climbing bikes, (except I used Spinergy Rev X wheels and a straight block on my aluminum bike, my y-foil needs a new bottom bracket - Caryn used her super light Trek OCLV, Campy Record and Mavic Kysiriums). We had two hours sleep then drove the hour and a half to a FM road near the Cleburne state park.
As a change of pace from bike rallies, we arrived too early (3:00) versus the “we’ve got 30 seconds to get to the start line, hurry!....Urgh, I forgot sunscreen %#*^@# ! The volunteers seemed almost as sleepy as we were. As we picked up the race packet, I had a frantic moment of confusion regarding where I put the car keys. Amazing that years of wearing cycling jerseys went out of my mind as the volunteer got his flashlight out to look on the ground. After a few seconds, they were discovered in the back middle pocket of my SMU jersey.
Crisis averted, we walked back across the New Hope Baptist Church’s parking lot to see a vast array and variety of race support set up. There were a couple of huge RV’s, parked next to a guy sleeping on a bare air mattress a few feet from the out house like toilets. We were to hear later that he started out very rapidly on the 500 mile event, only to stop at 260 miles to feed his delirium with fitful, deranged sleep. Walking back through the pit area we saw what could only be described as a Mt. Everest like base camp environment with support crews in various degrees of either ennui or frantic calculations regarding relative position against others in their category. As we prepped for Caryn to start the 5AM start, her biggest concern (short of getting run over by the big gravel haulers) was whether she had to wear one of those nerdy mesh vests with the slow moving vehicle triangle on it. Some of the cyclists (that “s” is for you, Beth Newman!) that went by us were resplendent in the lowest tech, “prisoner picking up trash” vests but had lighting rigs that looked like a spaceship from the movie “Close Encounters”. This event was quite different from the Txbra type event, where standing out from the crowd at a crit is wearing a LAS Haxial Pro helmet rather than a Giro Atmos.
The 5AM start approached and Caryn made her way to the start line with her comparatively modest helmet light and a reflective belt that I swear was once paired with go-go boots as she wore it slung low, Barbarella style (and quite an attractive look). The race director came over to greet the last of the 200 mile, 5AM starters and it was obvious the other 200 milers had a different plan. The others knew that yes, it is dark at 2AM but the wind is not a factor until late morning. There was only Caryn, one recumbent rider and a tandem couple (who showed up without any reflective gear and had the race director frantically put a vest over the stoker Hawaiian lei style as they pulled away when the gun went off.) Remember it is 5AM and a little chilly still so Caryn was going to follow the others and the pace car while she warmed up. As they left, what I saw was Caryn leading them out since the vesting of the tandem was awkward. Later she told me that the tandem couple took off like a rocket, taking the pace car with them. That left my SMU Cycling teammate and the recumbent to look at each other and say “uh, oh.”
Without the pace car the first lap was a case of ride into your light and hope that the pitch black beyond the illumination was not a deep void. Caryn was cold and felt like she was pedaling "squares" for about 5 or 6 miles. The front half of the course has a number of longish gradual grades (<5%) but at this time of the day the wind was very favorable for the back half and when Caryn showed back up she was doing quite a good time at just over an hour. I waved her through and returned to my nap. After 30 more minutes I started getting ready for my 40 mile stint. We expected her to finish as the sun came up so that I would not have to be lit up like a klieg lamp. It was just light enough when she returned to the start finish, looking like she really put a lot into it. By my reckoning she did the 40 miles in 2:07, which was impressive, I knew I had to really perform well.
She crossed the line and passed the change kit to me and I started off. I was pedaling squares also. I started to think that maybe today was not going to be kind. After we passed a very recognizable landmark from the “Goatneck” rally I saw some cyclists ahead of me, so I had some rabbits to chase down. As I passed these other competitors, I remembered to say nice things, knowing most of them were 500 milers who had already been on the bike for a day or so. I could just imagine what they were thinking as I pedaled past, all fresh and clean and not a lick of salt on me (nor any evidence of delirium). When I made it to the start line after a real fast and exciting downhill section I was three minutes short of an hour, things seemed to be going well.
Lap two, more of the same and I came in to trade off with Caryn after finishing both laps in under two hours. So far pretty easy. I checked the scorers table to discover we were not yet listed, but our competition was obviously here for an enjoyable day on the bike and were not setting rapid lap times. I found out later that they were one of the sponsors of the event and treat it like a family outing, kudos to them.
Before Caryn returned at the anticipated time of 10:20 or so, the 100 milers showed up to set off on their event. Lots of time trial bikes and aero helmets in the 100 mile arsenal. Yeah, I think that the hills are tough, but not so long that a time trial bike would not be effective. Then I forgot about them and waited. After a bit longer than an hour Caryn came in, in distress. It seems the cool start, her tonsillitis and sickness the past few weeks had come to take it’s due. She was having problems catching her breath, and we talked a bit and we were both concerned about her health. So I pedalled off thinking I might have to do the rest of the ride on my own, and did the next lap a bit easier, 2:15 or so. By now, the wind that had made the back side such a scorching, quick return was a heavy cross breeze and the Spinergy’s were no longer an asset. I passed Caryn at the base camp and she looked little improved, so I did another lap, again with such a big lead over the other team, I took it easier, still thinking I had a long day ahead.
Climbing the longest hill on the course, before turning to head back in the other direction I experienced something I can’t ever remember happening before. One of the 100 milers on a noisy TT bike with a solid rear disc surged past me on the hill with such speed I was in shock. He didn’t even say hi! (one of the directives of race director, Dan Driscoll) I heard later that his first lap was a 49 minute drubbing of everyone and that he was a pro caliber triathlete. I now want to try the course with aero bars.
I finished the lap and Caryn was willing to give it a go, so I let her. Another nap for me, and a nice talk with the neighbors at base camp, whose rider was doing consistent 2:07’s all night but faded when the word was another 200 miler was averaging over 22 mph and he was now in 3rd. (to show you the race is never over till over, that 22 MPH faded to 17MPH by the end and the neighbor’s charge, Ryan, finished 2nd overall.)
When Caryn came back I had not awoken from my nap! She was expecting to do her last lap after I did another. Oh well, off she went lamenting my lack of concern and ungentlemanly behavior. Hey, I wasn’t fully awake yet! (Editor's note: You cad!) She struggled a bit but her pain threshold is amazing. One reason why she has a closet full of cross-country trophies, she was able to dig deeper than anyone else and had a renowned finishing kick. If you didn’t drop her, you were going to lose, and most lost to her. When she came back after an hour and change, it was time for me to finish it up. Another lackluster lap, but I sure did a strong kick to get to the finish line (where there’s a photographer present, I’m going to make it look like I had something!)
We then packed the car up, bikes on the rack, cleaned up our base camp and went to the pavilion where the dinner and awards were to take place. We have spent most of our cycling lives around and near the cat 2, 3 and Masters crowd, running in pacelines, or inches away from dozens of other cyclists at 25 MPH, or doing pseudo races like the Wednesday worlds and must say that this group of people that racers frequently malign are something to marvel at.
This is a completely different way to look at competition and requires a strong mind, not the quick reactive response to a surging paceline, but a slow, methodical and determined effort that requires the competitor to budget what resources they have, great or meager, and use them all up at just the right time. It is a lonely, solitary, introspective effort to do 500 miles (shoot even 200 is really tough and I was always proud of 100) and makes sitting down with your fellow competitors and the volunteers who worked so hard to make it happen, a genuine pleasure. At first glance, it seems that too many people are rewarded with trophies, but afterwards, those of us that did other events realize that every one who does 500 miles or 200 miles of a difficult course deserves accolades, whether a fast 26 hours or just tantalizingly close to the 48 hour cutoff. In addition, Caryn showed the kind of tenacity that I wished I had. She was really in pain but did her laps. I might have won some more races with that kind of effort! We did set the course record for 200 mile 2 person mixed team, so if anyone is interested next year…
Photos at http://www.tt24tt.com/Pictures/2007/
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