Monday, July 9, 2012

Stump Farm 100

For the second weekend in a row, I raced in a Wisconsin Endurance Mountain Bike Series (WEMS) event. The Stump Farm 100 is a 100 mile XC race through the Reforestation Camp outside of Green Bay, WI. Some history of the area plays into the terrain of the race. This park was logged by settlers and crops were planted. Thing is, the ground is so sandy that the crops did not do so well. So eventually a prison was built and the acreage was plowed and trees were planted by the convicts.

OK, enough history...I'm signed up for the WEMS series so I went into the race as a points hound. The final goal is to win the Long Ride Singlespeed category at the end of the series. I took it easy after the Thunderdown in the Underdown the week before and rode 3 times for 1-2 hours on the Wisconsin gravel roads near the in-laws place to keep the legs stretched. The legs felt good, rested and ready to go. I hadn't ridden the course yet but from what I read, it is relatively flat and a bit sandy so I went with a 32x18. The lap distance was just over 10 miles which I figured on a 55 or so minute lap time. Water is real important to me on these races and I have resolved to having too much liquids so as I was prepping the night before, I noticed my camelbak bag was moldy. Hell if I was gonna use that so the plan was to stop at the camp (my car) and grab a new water bottle after each lap. After every two laps, I would grab a bottle of Perpetuem so I had both cages holding. The plan worked well for the most part.

The race begins with a Lemans start. Everyone gets to run down a small hill and up about 100 meters to the bike. This is by no means a sprint for this kid so a healthy jog was in order. The 30 or so starters took off and I got to spinning with 6 or 7 geared speed demons getting the jump on me. The course started with a mile+ of wide cross country ski trails. It had me spinning and I got passed by two other single speeders and a few more geared heads. I worked on staying close to the SS'ers but a few geared guys got in front and when we hit the single track, a couple showed their true colors and were not tecnically adept. I watched the two SS'ers ride away and I just rode the given pace.

Once out of the first bit of single track, I passed those guys on the XC ski trail and entered the next single track behind a couple other guys. They were a bit better but I was still hugging their back wheel. On the next bit of XC ski trails I passed them and got behind a couple others... Patience was necessary on this first lap until the field spread out. There was a section of the trail that was new...it was dubbed mile 7. Many people were whining about the mile+ long stretch that really made you realize that this area was indeed once plowed. The bumps were unforgiving, like riding across a corn field. Row after row after row after...you get the idea. The remains of the plowed rows where the trees were planted were very much apparent in this new section. Sitting down was a limited option at best for this long mile of singletrack. The two guys I was riding behind at the time were crying to each other about it...Pull the Fug over then and give each other hugs was all I was thinking. Upon exit of that section, I snuck in front of them on the next XC ski trail right before the last bit of single track before the stretch leading to the end of the lap. Good riddence.

I would then pull up to my car and grab a new water bottle just before the end of lap and this first time through went quick. I took off and hit the second lap ready to get into my own rhythm. The first stretch had a short, sandy climb that was bearable and riding the first section of singletrack was great. The next couple sections of XC ski trail had a couple more short, sandy climbs but nothing that could not be handled. The next couple sections of single track also felt real good. In fact, the goal during the race when in those sections was to not hit the brakes for the whole section. They had more flow than Mel's Diner on Alice (Kiss my grits!). The fourth singletrack section with more ridges than a bag of Ruffles was the challenge but the feeling when exiting made it all worth it.

My lap times were in the low 50's so my pace was good and after the fourth lap, I refilled my water bottles for later laps and took a few minutes to snack on some vittles and have a seat. After 5, I got antsy and got going. The course reminded me of a forgiving, juvenile Chequamegon. The relentless hills and numerous rocks where absent but more sand and the washboard were present. This and the multitude of laps made for a race were recovery could be planned. My pace was holding and by lap seven, the count down began and my plan was to reload with a fresh water bottle and prep the water bottles for laps nine and ten since I figured on not stopping before the final lap. After lap seven, I got all prepped and took off. A half-mile into the lap, I realized I forgot my water bottle. Doh! Mistake #1 but I did have a half bottle of Perpetuem so I made that last. At the end of the lap, I downed much water, and loaded my two last waters.

The countdown of laps soon turned into a countdown of miles and a short goal was to finish within 9 hours. I came in at 8:53 which was way better than I expected. I didn't know what place though. I hadn't seen the other SS'ers during the day. As I was cleaning up, I heard the announcement that I won the Singlespeed category. I won by about 15 minutes so the quick turnovers between laps was essential and may have been the difference maker.

All in all it was a fun race put on by some good people. Each of these WEMS races are all low key and filled with real good singletrack.

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