OMBC - Grassman

Ouch. That's the best word to describe what was the longest and possibly most difficult OMBC race in history - with finishers coming in well past the 4 hour ride time mark (on a course just over 20 miles long!!).

The course description (before the race):

"The start section is 0.8 miles;
The main loop is 4.8 miles;
The finish section is 1.3 miles.

OMBC Pro/Expert Champion Ben Ortt has redesigned the Grassman course for 2011 and it isn’t for the faint of heart.
Each main loop features the infamous Heart Attack Hill with a 170 vertical foot climb in a fifth of a mile, a 16% grade! Ben has also designed in 4 other significant climbs at over 10% grade. The expert course features 2960 feet of climbing over the 21.3 miles. You will need two or more hearts for this course!"

And after the race, this was posted:

"Thanks to everyone that endured what may be the most difficult ever, old school ninety's style course ever concocted. Thanks to Ben Ortt and Dave Ruble and fellow course marshalls for all the work you've done at the race and on the course. Ben has promised a more doable, flowable style for next year with a more novice friendly distance/difficulty."

What I think was meant by "a more doable, flowable style for next year with a more novice friendly distance/difficulty" was a profile with a little more recovery time than this one:

Like a saw for your legs

But, just before noon, the sun was shining, and people were lining up at the start not knowing what they were in for.


In fact, most riders were on the lookout for the course's namesake, the Ohio Grassman (like Bigfoot by most accounts, only smellier). Anyways, riders jostled around in the sun waiting for their turn to start off.

What is that in the background?!?!?! Could it be....

Yikes, with temps in the high 80's it's no wonder the Grassman smells

Finally, the call went out for my division. I positioned myself in the front for the start. I had pre-rode the first section of the course - gravel road up a hill, then down into the singletrack which quickly came to the first of the day's skyward reaching ascents - and knew I wanted to be near the front by the time we hit the hills to avoid any bottlenecks.
The horn sounded the start and we were off! I stayed with the lead group until about halfway up the first hill when I made a quick sprint to the top to be first into the singletrack.

This section was fun - quick, sweeping turns... And then the hills.
The last race at Mohican Wilderness has long been touted as the toughest of the series - not anymore. The hills on this course just kept coming. I've never been off my bike so much (or seen as many other people off theirs) as I did in this race. It wasn't really the height of the climbs, none were that long, it was that they had grades of ~15% and many were fresh cut, meaning that they were still slimy. Usually, when the hills are this ridiculous, you at least have the assurance of some really fun downhill sections ahead of you. But here, not so much. The downhill sections were STEEP and technical. Rocks, logs, and squirmy terra firma kept you on your toes and made any notion of a recovery on these downhills hard to come by. There were nearly as many shoe tracks on some of the downhill sections as there were on the uphill.

The smarter riders called it quits early and went back to enjoy some Great Lakes. The rest of us (probably delusional from the heat) stuck it out and did multiple laps through this monster. I will say, even through all this suffering, riders were respectful and encouraging - making room for people to pass, and shouting things like "Gbblahh!" as people tried to ride some of the hill sections (maybe that last one was just me gasping for air).

Being in the division with the fewest number of laps (and taking another win!) I was the first rider to cross the finish... And only an hour and 50 minutes after the race had started...

Congrats to my fellow COMBO Race team riders Heidi, Michael, Joe (This was his first race! Hell of a way to start!), and Shannon; who finished (a "W" on it's own) 1st, 7th, 6th, and 4th respectively.

Thanks to all the sponsors of our team (our big Kenda pop-up was a godsend!).

Looking forward now to the Mohican 100!

Goose Rant

I would guess that anyone who has ridden on a bike trail near a major body of water has had to deal with one of these:

She may look adorable, but she has the glassy eyes of a killer.

These menaces from the great white north have their way with area bike trails. Leaving little "presents" for everyone.

And now is the time of year they bring their fuzzy little devil progeny out to meet the world.

Yeah... Adorable...

"You seem pretty bitter" you may be saying.

Well... let me tell you a story.

I'm commuting in to work earlier this week, and I come across a mama goose ushering her little goslings across the trail. "Oh looook how fuzzzy and cute!" I think to myself. I slowed down, oblivious... I was about 5 feet from these little guys, nearly stopped - when out of the bushes rushes papa goose! Hissing wings out!! It was a trap!! I was being ambushed!!!

Papa goose

I stomped on the pedals to try to get away. Behind me I could hear hissing and wings flapping. I looked back and papa goose had taken flight and was tailing me "HISSSSS HISSSSSSS!!!!" I put my head down and barely made it out with my life.

A mile later (I was still recovering) I came across another group of geese. My heart rate picked up in a tense anticipation. Then, at the darkest hour, a man came riding in the opposite direction with a rolled up poster in his hand - jabbing it at the geese like some master fencer! "Watch out for the geese!" He shouted as he went by.

Glad to hear I'm not the only one...