Preride – 24 Hours of Vail Lake
My friend and beginner season racing , Orion, joined us this morning for a ride around the course. No pics today, sorry. It starts out with a big sand pit…6″ deep sugar sand…just like Florida! Then it climbs for 3 miles, some of it gradual, some really steep. From there we roll up and down the ridge with a couple of technical spots and few abrupt steep pitches, but all of it manageable. Nam struggled a bit on the steeper ones, but she’ll run an easier gear for the race. Then came a sweet descent along a ridge line back down to the same elevation as the start in about half the distance. The Optimus Ti just ate it up. I’m really digging this bike. The only time I’m left wishing for suspension is on the flat to gradual bumpy singletrack bits and on this course they are few and far between. It just hooks up so nicely everywhere else. The course continues on as it dips in and out of what we’d call hollers back home, but I’m sure the locals have another name for them. Then it’s a couple of hundred yards through a camp ground where our pit will be to the finish. Easy peasey.
The sun and steep climbs will be the two biggest factors. There is no shade to speak of….heck, no trees to speak of, so lot of sun block will be in order. There is plenty of areas for passing and it’s so wide open you’ll see riders ahead for hundreds of yards. Eating and drinking should be easy on the course. There is two gradual climbing sections that I’ll utilize for that. I’ll be drinking more than usual, since there is no humidity here….very different that back home. The climbs, well they are what they are and they are there for everyone. I have a triple on the Optimus Ti and I’m not too proud to use it.
We’ll it’s time for a siesta.