Cohutta 100 ’09
The story of the Cohutta 100 began a week before the start when my Topeak-Ergon Team bike was delivered. Unfortunately there were a few key parts missing including the drive train, wheels and the bolt kit for the rear sus. The latter being a real show stopper. I contacted the team manager and they were shipped out ASAP. Jump forward a few shipping days to Thursday. I have the bolts, the brakes hoses are shortened up to a manageable length and the bike gets built. Then I spent the afternoon fitting it and finishing up the build (trim cables, adjust derailleurs, dial brakes, cut steerer tube, etc….). I actually ride it for 30 minutes on Thursday before a hellacious thunderstorm rolled in and I went about packing for the weekend.
Friday was more packing and some more checking over the bike. I was so nervous something would fail because nothing was tested, so I went over everything twice and then had two others look it all over. Finally I just ran out of time and left it alone.
Fast forward again to the pre-ride. I rode up to the venue with a friend, Monte, and then met up with Mark D and Ernesto for a quick spin. The Rotwild delivered on all it’s promised hype: stiff when pedaling (even out of the saddle), super light & maneuverable, took the edge off the bumps and had great traction on the climbs. The new Magura Durin Race was sweet as well. It’s plush in the descents and remote lock out is so easy to get to that I actually use it. I never bother with the on the fork lock out, since I always to forget to unlock it before it gets ugly, then nearly die trying to unlock it. The Magura Martas not only look cool, but they do thier job well. The modulation felt smooth & even and the stopping power was confidence inspiring. The Crank Brothers pedals have been on all of my bikes since they I found them in 2001, the only difference with this set is the 2-Ti version saves some weight. I’m also happy to report that I never gave the Northwave shoes a second thought. I set the cleats up according to my Wobble-Naught blueprint slipped in some SOLE footbeds and rode in comfort all weekend. My Jagwire cables which matched my shoes and all the other lime green bits garnered more than one comment as well. The whole look is definitely Euro, then add in the Addias specs and it’s over the top. Even the brake hoses are green.
We rode the first 10-12 miles of the course taking in the views of the surrounding mountains and the Ocoee River:
I put the bike through the paces and tried to shake things loose. My legs felt good and my skills were slowly returning (it had been a month since I was on a mountain bike). The only issue was a loose pivot bolt that was fixed the next AM with some thread sealer. We dropped our SAG bags and headed for dinner and then some early sleep.
We were up at 5:00 AM to get some food in and head to the start. I was actually pretty organized so I had a few minutes sit and visualize how the first couple of hours would go……Draft up the first paved climb, jump up a few spots as we hit the single track, be conservative until the Old Copper Road where I attack a bit, steady up the climb to SAG one, then find some others work with as we hit the FS roads….I felt ready: excited, but not fearful. I warmed up a bit and lined up in the second row.
Go! I sat near the back of 20-25 riders that made up the lead group. The heart rate was up immediately as they pushed the pace to thin the herd, but I was OK. There are two steps to the climb followed by a short descent to the single track. The key is to stick with this group then make a jump as we come over the top to get a good position into the single track. Up the first step I was well placed and drafting. Then I started to fall back and pushed hard to stay on. Drifting back further I became worried that I just didn’t have the fitness to stay up there. Then I felt it….the bouncing from the rear wheel. I flatted. 5 or less minutes in and I flatted.
I pulled off the road and began the frantic tube change. I could hear the riders going by “…sure is early to flat…” “…oh, that sucks…” “…come on Eddie!” I had the tube changed and looked up to see the police escort tailing the last three racers up the climb. “This is going to be a long day.”
Big ringing the climb I passed as many as I could before the single track. I jumped in at what looked like a never ending line of riders. There was some room to pass, but with a line of riders as far as I can see I’m not feeling real motivated. Still, I get to work. “On your left.” “Can I get by up here?” “Thanks.” “Good luck.” Then I feel my tire washing out in the turns….I needed some more air in there. I decided to try to replace the CO2 canister while I ride so I can jump off when it’s more convenient and I won’t lose too many places in this line. I get the inflator out, take the top off and pull the C02 out with my teeth while negotiating the turns. I put the head & empty C02 back in my pocket and get the new canister out and slip in the inflator while making a hard right hander. I fetch the head to screw it back on. Now is the hard part, screwing the head to the lower part which requires two hands. The trail is not giving me more then a few seconds between sweeping turns to get it done. I drop the head…. That was the chance to take. I stop grab the head, put the inflator together and add some more air to the tire. 6 people pass me.
I begin the passing process over again, but eventually just sat in as the trail climbs up to Boyd Gap. I let the girl in front of me know I’m going as soon as it opens up. We make the left hand turn, over the little rise and I sprint across the 30 yards of grass for the next bit of single track. I drop into the descent at full speed, pass a guy on a rigid bike, then another who hesitates in a technical spot, three more on a short up hill section before finally coming out on the pavement to descend to the Old Copper Road. There I hammer across the flat section and try to float over the rooty sections. I can feel a couple of guys trying to draft me through here, but I will not let anyone pass here so I can pick my own lines when it gets technical. Finally I negotiate the creek crossing that caused my flat last year and cross the bridge of the Ocoee River. Friday’s preride to this point took a leisurely 58 minutes. My race pace was 1 hour even….not good.
I settled into a good rhythm as I passed a steady stream of racers. Fortunately they are more spread out that on the flatter sections earlier. I was just coming out of the single track when the first 65 miler passed me. Then Z came by in second and I stuck to his wheel for a few minutes, but lost him in traffic on the single track. My impetus to get around others was waning by now.
Passing another 20 or so racers on the two track up to SAG 1, I was feeling good and ready to try to salvage a decent time for this race. I had not spent much of the high-end efforts I have been training for, so I figured I could race back into the top 30 or so and still finish under 8 hours…..if all goes well. I flatted again as I rolled up to SAG 1.
I rolled into SAG 1 with the fork locked out and all my wight on it while I nursed the flat rear to the top of the hill. I pulled the tire off and began to really inspect why I was flatting. These were brand new Conti Mtn King 2.2s which are pretty beefy tires for today’s smooth and dry conditions. The tubes were fresh. I checked for anything stuck in the tire and found nothing. Next looked at the rim strip and found my problem….spoke holes were showing. They have sharp edges and will cut a tube if you hit it right….twice. I tried to fix the strip, but it was having none of it. Mean while this guy who introduced himself as David later rolled in with a sliced tire. One of the volunteers tended to him while I loathed the idea of having to bag it for the day. Decided there was nothing I could, I gave up my rear tire to David and he was soon off again. Next someone asked if I had chainring bolt, so I removed one of those and he too was off. While I was asking for directions back to the start finish one of the volunteers offers me his wheel. “Do you have a chainring bolt I can borrow as well?” It took another 20 minutes or so to get it all back together, but I was rolling out again. By now I was solidly in last place….at least 15 minutes back.
The rest of the ride was pretty uneventful. I started off pretty leisurely, but then realized I would be out there for 12 hours unless I picked up it. Besides I was here to push myself as much as I was to race others. I could at least get half of the experience. I kept my pace as I would if I were actually racing for the top 10, though in reality it was more like 50th. I certainly missed the opportunity to work with some others as I cruised passed all of the riders I came upon. I’m sure that cost me some time, but made for a good day of training.
I rolled into the Whitewater Center and across the finish line for 9:13 finish and a solid 53rd place. That was almost 2 hours off the last time I ran the 100 miler in 07. Oh well, it was a good day of riding and some great training. Next up is the Dirty Spoke 12 hour this weekend at Fort Yargo.