Robi came to visit for his third tattoo appointment. We rode today at Harriet Hollister Spencer State Recreation Area (apparently it's a recreation area, not a park). Robi knew that two other Albany area riders were going to be somewhat near Rochester and so we added Jim and Diane to our group! I had met Jim and Diane at last year's Empire State Muni Festival.
HHS is where the Suicide Six mountain bike race is held. It's tough with plenty of climbing and technical trails. Robi and I had talked about riding some tougher trails so this was good. Jim is an amazing rider so he was game. Diane planned to ride what she could and at her own pace.
It was a gorgeous day with thunderstorms predicted in the afternoon, so we met up at 9 am. The trails were in great condition, damp and only muddy in spots. These trails are serious work! I hadn't ridden in weeks thanks mostly to being super busy at work. My cardio had weakened and I wasn't really well rested. I felt a bit of vertigo at times when I stopped to catch my breath. I'm pretty sure I was just tired... but not two tir.. oh never mind. :P
The trails are a lot of work but a lot of fun too. After a respectable distance into the trail Diane decided to ride at her own pace. The rest of us broke away and followed the nicely marked S6 trail markers. I has never seen those before so I assume they were put up since I last rode there over a year ago. Some of the trail was new to me too so I guess the race course has been extended. I rode my fat tire 26 and was happy I did. The fat soft tire gave me some much appreciated suspension!
After riding the 3 mile south-west portion, Robi, Jim, and I headed back to the parking loop to reconnect with Diane, assuming she probably headed back. We weren't able to find her, so we decided to backtrack the trail we just rode. Riding it the other way is always different. It wasn't until we were back at the parking lot that we found her again. After a break we all agreed to be insane and ride some more. We continued the ride up the east side which has some good fun flowy parts, followed by more challenging climbs and technical.
At the end of the trail we followed the crushed rock road back to our cars. On the last hill climb my quads cramped like they have in the past. Even though I drink a lot of water during the ride, maybe I'm not hydrating enough in the day or so before riding.
This year's Empire State Muni Festival is happening this weekend
and I believe Jim, Diane, and Robi are going, so I'll likely ride with them again very soon!
I decided to muni at the Suicide 6 mountain bike race this year. It's a little more than an hour away at Harriet Hollister Spencer park in Canadice.
It felt a lot like when I did it two years ago. I came to the conclusion that the first half of the lap is awesome. It's challenging for muni with a combination of roots, rocks, climbs, and descents. The second half of the course is much wetter, loamier, and hillier. The change happens right when the course crosses the park road. On my first lap when I hit this section I was sure it was freshly cleared trail. It's not really a cut trail, just the kind of quick trail clearing that removes vegetation and debris but leaves the dark organic soil. Not only is it top soil, but the surface has awkward little ups and downs. This kind of trail is my nemesis and causes my lower back to work extra. As I rode it I realized this trail was not a new trail but the same trail I rode two years ago. I guess as far as muni is concerned, clearing a trail like this is not ideal. Last year my lower back got very fatigued from this area and the same happened this year.
Before I finished my first lap I questioned how I could possibly do another. My hope had been to try for three laps this year. Now I knew that would be impossible.
After finishing my first lap I went back to my car to rest and refuel. About 20 minutes later I was feeling like I should just get out there and do another lap. Again, the first half wasn't so bad and I was glad my lower back was not screaming at me, though I was getting sloppy and was clearly fatigued. And again the second half was really hard and I found myself shamefully pushing my uni up quite a few inclines. I was glad to finish and finally be done.
The mountain bikers were all great and gave me more praise than I wanted. The fact is, I saw so many of them powering up hills that I complain about. I really need to try a mountain bike to see if it's so much easier, or if these guys are just super strong.
The course was really well marked with arrows, tape, mile marker signs and paint on the trail. Nice work Park Ave Bike Shop!
Today I "raced" at the Suicide 6 mountain bike race at Harriet Hollister Spencer Park at the south end of Honeoye Lake. The race is 6 hours long and teams, sending one rider out at a time, do as many 7+ mile laps as they can. Riders can ride as a team of one, which is what I did, on my muni of course.
About a week and a half ago I did a test run of the race course. Based on that, I knew I'd have to push just to do two laps in the race. So my hope was to do one at the start, and one towards the end, with a good few hours to chill in-between.
Unfortunately there was a 70% chance of rain today. Still, that left 30% of no rain. I like those odds. So I went for it.
I arrived and learned it had rained over an inch overnight. So the trails would be at least somewhat wet from the start. From early on there was significant thunder in the distance.
The rain held off during my first lap. The course was marked very well and had mile markers. I felt ok at the beginning, but somewhere around mile 5 the course gets more difficult with many rooty and rocky climbs. My lower back muscles got painful quickly and I realized this would probably be my only lap. But somewhere near the last mile I found my back was improving. There were more downhills and flats to recover from the pain. I finished my lap, and chilled and snacked for a bit. The park only has one shelter, an open sided lean-to, where the race officials were stationed. Many riders/teams had canopies set up with chairs and coolers. The guys next to me were from the Sprague Brook area. And one of them was actually Scott, the race director of the Singletrack Stampede II that I hope to attend on Saturday. So I hung out in that area for a bit. Thunder continued to rumble in the distance and a few drops were falling. It had probably been about 30 minutes since I came in from my first lap, and my lower back was feeling fine. With the threat of a downpour soon it seemed wise to go ahead and head out for another lap sooner than later. So I did.
In the first hill climbs I was questioning my decision. My quadriceps were burning. But I pushed on. The lower back pain came quickly, but didn't seem as intense. It began raining, but the trails didn't seem to be changing much. There are enough flats and downhills in the first half of the course to manage my pain. But again, once I hit the 5 mile mark my lower back muscles started to hurt bad. The rain began falling harder and the trails were getting very wet and much softer. I found myself dismounting earlier on difficult uphills, and remounting later. I still was riding a whole lot more than walking, but certainly walking a higher percentage than I prefer.
Some areas had thicker fog. Unicycling on difficult trails with low light levels, fog, and thunder is other-worldly. Some sections also had a thick tree cover, and the light levels were insanely low. Riding down a greasy, twisty, rooty, rocky trail in these conditions was feeling crazy. In the latter half of lap two, my quads were giving strong hints of cramping. Anytime I pushed hard up hills, my quads felt like they were on the verge of having one the those charlie horse cramps I have had recently in my right calf. I was even feeling it as a walked up hills. I downed energy gels and extra water to help. But with this kind of fatigue and the deteriorating trail conditions, I was sure this was my last lap. I finished and was glad I was done.
As usual, all the mountain bikers were super nice and many gave encouraging comments. Of course, I dismounted whenever I heard them on my tail and got out of the way. I tried to return the positive support too. Anyone riding in those conditions has some serious will power and skill. The bikers are more likely to catch up to me when I'm moving slowly, so I think I see them more often when I'm walking up the remainder of a hill. The bad part of that is they see me walking and not riding, and I feel a bit like a loser. The good thing is I see that these hills ARE climbable... at least on some machine. I'll keep working on it.
After my second lap there was still a few hours of riding left in the race. But with the rain coming down steady and nothing for entertainment, I decided to call it a day.
The trail mile markers went up to 7 miles with plenty more trail before the finish line. I put my two rides together and only get about 13 miles. But with all the many twists and turns, it makes sense the GPS would cut corners and show less distance. So I'd say it was about 15 miles of riding. Given the caliber of these trails and the conditions, I'd say I did well.
I took a vacation day and went to Harriet Hollister Spencer Park just south of Honeoye Lake. I had never been there and I wanted to see what the trails were like. This should help me determine if I am attending the Suicide 6 mountain bike race.
The trails were not marked all that well, though I occasionally found a sign with a trail name. There are double-track dirt roads weaving throughout the park and the trails intersect these. Normally single track is preferred, but some of the race is on these double-track roads. Knowing when to turn off the double-track was tricky, but the route should be well marked for the race.
I did have two maps with me. One was the race map, which is not to scale, and another was a trail map with more trail names on it. My ride roughly followed the race map, but it looks like I did the southeastern Sidewinder trail backwards and bigger. I think part of that deviation was a long downhill followed by a long hill climb, of course. I had to walk much of that climb, so it will be great if it's not actually part of the course! I also missed a turn and had to backtrack a bit, shown in the middle north section of my trail map.
Each race lap is said to be 6.7 miles, and I did about 7.5. Those deviations add up.
I got a charlie horse in my right calf about 80% into my ride. It was just like I had at a race a few months ago. I rolled around on the trail and moaned for a minute before I could stand up and start walking. Those things are excruciating! I was soon able to ride, but I was cautious not to stress my ride calf. I think I may have tilted my right foot down too much during a climb. I was drinking a lot of water, so I don't think I was dehydrated.
So the big question is, will I race? Hmm. There were plenty of times during my ride that I leaned towards not racing. But once I was done, it felt like it was possible. To race and finish in the S6, I have to start at the start, and be out riding at the 6 hour mark. It look like it would take me about 2 hours for a race lap. So, at that speed I could theoretically do 3 laps in the 6 hours. But that would be suicide! Instead, it probably would be smarter to do 2 laps, one at the beginning and one at the end, with about a 2 hour rest in-between.
I need to think about it some more. The upcoming weather forecasts for August 14th will also help me decide.
HHS is where the Suicide Six mountain bike race is held. It's tough with plenty of climbing and technical trails. Robi and I had talked about riding some tougher trails so this was good. Jim is an amazing rider so he was game. Diane planned to ride what she could and at her own pace.
