24 Hours of Vail Lake SS

[cH4os]

Greetings STR.

Does anyone know the deal with these 24 hour Single Speed\Rigid class?

Do I really need to yank my RockShox?
Do you really need 4 people?
I want to do it solo or duo.

Would love 1 other person to be able to do 20 - 24 laps.

Would anyone like to join me?


1x1clyde, Jose and team will be there...

Think a 1 beer per lap minimum is in order?

-pE/\cE
-cH4o~

[ShinKen]

We'll see ya there for sure ehh!! I think Keith wants to do the race and he said he was doing it on the SSer too!! hit em up!!

[pup]

Good on you if you are racing solo ss! Heaps of respect for the ss crowd (solo or team)...I'm racing solo as well but on a gearie hardtail. Although the last couple of laps are usually fully grannied out, does that count as single speed?
Have a great race!

[mtnbikej]

Originally Posted by cH4os

Greetings STR.

Does anyone know the deal with these 24 hour Single Speed\Rigid class?

Do I really need to yank my RockShox?
Do you really need 4 people?
I want to do it solo or duo.

Would love 1 other person to be able to do 20 - 24 laps.

Would anyone like to join me?


1x1clyde, Jose and team will be there...

Think a 1 beer per lap minimum is in order?

-pE/\cE
-cH4o~

Well.....ridgid means ridgid....no suspension. So yup....gotta loose the Reba.

[tkblazer]

ok playas.... how did you all do?

[Pain Freak]

Waiting.............

[andy aka rut]

still.....



waiting.....

[singletrakk]

ok by popular demand here goes. Well my team consisted of Justin and two other buds Tyler and Sid.We entered in the single rigid class.The conditions couldn't have been any better dirt was nice and sticky from previous days rain.
My teammates at some time or another voted I do the Lemans.Well I learned real fast that running and biking don't really mix too well together.First couple miles of climbing were tough because my legs were all loaded up from running around that pond.Rotation was me,Justin,Sid,Tyler.
After the first lap I come in and learn the leaders are about 10 or so minutes ahead.Then I ask Tyler where we are in relation to the competitors in the single rigid class.He smiled.Well it turns out the guys we were competing against (Jack Mormon Militia) were actually in the overall lead.These guys are freaks.They do the whole series and had come down from Utah.They pulled insane laptimes (47 minutes) and dominated the race beating second overall by over a lap.
I must say I'm very proud of my team.Everyone was always on target.There was always someone at the transition well and ready to go.From the start,we switched off every lap until around 10:00p.m., when Sid+Tyler and Me+ Justin paired up to switch for two consecutive laps in order to give us all at least a little bit of rest.I must say it was dreadfully cold at night.Having to wake up at 2a.m. in the morning to do night laps is no fun.It seemed the best place to be at night was the bathroom,where there was a heater.
I was the only one to suffer a mechanical.It actually happened on one of my night laps and could have been catastrophic had it not happened near the end.I was coming off a downhill and approaching a quick climb when the pulley on my Surly Singulator launched into oblivian.I tried going back a minute or so to look for it,but no luck it was too freakin dark!!This left some major slackage on my chain.I tried to take it easy for the remaining two miles.The chain must have derailled another 5 or 6 times on my way back to the finish,but still managed to pull a 1:07 lap and not drop too much time.Turns out Neill had a spare Singulator and I just pulled the parts off I needed.Thanks Neill!!I love you man!!
The remainder of our race went without a hitch.We ended up 2nd in class and 8th overall.We had been in 9th and even tenth overall at certain points in the race, but were able to pull away near the end of the race.Our team's average lap time was about 1:02.Sid kicked some major butt and actually pulled a 53 minute laptime on his first lap.All in all it was a great weekend,but honestly it did not really feel like a weekend.Too much work!!!I need a vacation.

[cH4os]

OK, I too, had the Greatest Time of my Life!

I rode solo SS. I did the Lemans Start with a beer in hand, and Walked it! Classic! still passed about 20 people on Lap 1, with the walk was 1:10. I proceeded to ride 3 hard. Stop and eat. ride 2 more Drink more, then ride 2 in the dark, drink more beer. Crashed for 5 hours, Thanks to Neil and Tracy, for providing assistance and a comfortable place to crash!

Woke up feeling great at 6, and rode 5 straight through to make my personal goal of 12 laps!

This was an excellent experience! I would highly recommend doing a Solo Race... The Mental Stress that I overcame on the Double Century last week, made riding this solo doable. On the road you ride with people and talk.. MTB you either pass or are passed but there is no waiting for people, and MTB riders usually are not the same speed over the various terrain.

All in all, after each lap, I couln't wait to get out there and ride again! It was one fast and fun course!

Massive (not really) climb in the beginning. then fast rollers all the way back, al most. You really didnt need brakes for this course.

PS. Finished the last Lap "Booze Cruize" Style.. with a Beer in hand rolling through the finish!

I think there are some pix coming soon...

Again Thanks to Neil, Tracy, Jose, Mark, Ryan, and everyone for there support and encouragement on this 120mile Ride over 24 hours of Vail Lake!

Saw Justin and Jeff while they were staging... Only rode with Justin for a while on 1 lap.. and was able to hook up with Neil twice on the climbs...

PS. Since I rode solo I kept the Reba! Granny Gear events are very fun, really cool people and I would highly recommend!

Congratulations to all of the Teams STR was well represented!! Although we really need to get the 2nd Jersey Order going.. as this is the beginning of Race Season, and all the Punk Rock Riders here will be rolling on behalf!!

[ShinKen]

YES a BIG thanks to Neil and Tracy for hooking us all up the way they did!! It sure made this thing a much easier and fun experience for me. I really had a great time doing this race on and off the course!! I'm actually thinking of doing the 12 hour thing (just thinking oK)

great Job to Jeff, Justin's team for taking 2nd!!

Steven gets the big WOHOOOO!! for doing it solo and for walking the running thing with a beer on hand!! ha haaa I'm still smiling about that one ha ha

we got 4th on our group but prob could had done better if it wasnt for the mechanicals we had to mess with. so, it wasnt all that bad!! GREAT JOB MENUDO POWER!! we totally rocked...

[SScheetz]

[FONT=Verdana]I raced as a last minute invite on team Velo Bellas & Mammoth Fellas. They were last years overall winners so I was a little intimidated by their extreme level of competitiveness. My cousin is the team captain but I had never raced with any of them so they weren’t sure about this old man putting out good lap times (neither was I).[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana] [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana]I was third on the rotation and the first two guys threw down 50 minute laps. When I raced here two years ago only Sho-Air could pull that off. My best lap back then was 57 minutes. [/FONT][FONT=Verdana]The lyric "I don't belong here" from Radiohead's "Creep" kept going through my head.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana] [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana]Thursday night I slapped on a Reba squishy fork, an old SRAM Grip Shift and turned my rigid SS into a 3 speed softy. As my chain fell off for a second time on my fist lap all I could think of was my cousin getting heat from the other two guys about her idiot old cousin she invited. Somehow I still managed a 50 minute lap, sweet![/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana] [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana]This team has an amazing support crew that included two mechanics. As I pulled into the pit my bike was put up on a stand and within minutes it donned a bash ring and front derailleur to guide the chain. With the problem solved I did a personal best of 49:34 on my next lap.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana] [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana]This course is extremely fun and the Grannygear folks are great. The Jack Mormon Militia team are inhuman. They finished a lap ahead of us riding rigid SS and took first overall. That’s just sick![/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana] [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana]Hey CH4os, that start was classic![/FONT]

[cH4os]

Lap #RiderIdle Time Start Finish Ride Time Lap Time
BEER
1 0:00:00 Sat 12:00:00 PM Sat 1:07:50 PM 1:07:50 1:07:50
2 0:00:01 Sat 1:07:51 PM Sat 2:16:03 PM 1:08:12 1:08:13
3 0:00:03 Sat 2:16:05 PM Sat 3:27:48 PM 1:11:43 1:11:45
Beer & Eats
4 0:40:49 Sat 4:08:36 PM Sat 5:19:12 PM 1:10:35 1:51:24
5 0:00:01 Sat 5:19:13 PM Sat 6:31:17 PM 1:12:04 1:12:05
Beer & Massage
6 2:15:30 Sat 8:46:47 PM Sat 10:08:50 PM 1:22:04 3:37:34
7 0:00:00 Sat 10:08:51 PM Sat 11:31:55 PM 1:23:04 1:23:04
Beer & Sleep
8 7:05:52 Sun 6:37:46 AM Sun 7:51:20 AM 1:13:34 8:19:25
9 0:00:01 Sun 7:51:21 AM Sun 9:05:58 AM 1:14:36 1:14:38
100:00:01 Sun 9:05:59 AM Sun 10:22:57 AM 1:16:58 1:16:59
11 0:00:01 Sun 10:22:58 AM Sun 11:36:51 AM 1:13:54 1:13:54
120:00:00 Sun 11:36:52 AM Sun 1:02:35 PM 1:25:44 1:25:44

BEER & Burrito's & BEER

[Rob]

All you guys did a great job!

I had a blast just being there. The course was fun on that Chumba, thanks Neil for letting me try that out!


Steve, you've got some skills man, 12 laps is insane! I had trouble doing just the one lap

Thanks to Neil and Tracy for letting me hang out and party with you guys, it was a great time.

Thanks to Jose for the laughs and for the Stone beer, that stuff is GOOOOD.

[1x1clyde]

Took me an extra day but here are some pix and "my" view of the event!
Thanks to Rob for coming out and keeping my wife sane 3 liitle girls can be a handful!
All day friday it rained, I hooked up the campers in the rain, drove them there in the rain, set them up in the rain, relaxed with Newcastle in the rain, got ready to race and set up for the rest of the squad in the rain...did I mention it rained Friday ?
Saturday at 8am the one and only Jose arrived- yes he was early!!!!- so we got the rest of the team up and descended on the breakfast burrito stand, those were tasty!
Hooked up with Jeff, Justin, Tyler and Sid at the pre-race meeting. They had a great race, I think it was 8th 0r 9th overall and 2nd in their class.
A observation on the Mormon Militia, I met them last year at the 24 Hours of Moab, they do live at elevation- 8,000 ft- and 2 of their riders actually smoke cigs...I truly do not know how they do it. Nicest guys in the world but will rip your legs off and beat you with them!
Anyways a little later on Steven rolls by our campsite on a skateboard, my teammates from SLC loved his intro!, and went and registered his 4 man team minus 3 people.
The Lemans start was a riot, I think almost every pix I have of Steven he has a beer in his hand, with Steven walking the running start and then putting in a pretty quick first lap.
Our teammate "Jelly Finger" went first and had a great first lap!
My wife did a killer job getting all the food and drink ready for each of us as we came in from our laps. She is the backbone of the squad, she organized the grub, reserved the sites which were perfectly located for us and also watched our daughter and 2 nieces! She Rules!
Our laps went pretty quick and smooth while the atmosphere was amazing, sunny skies, cold beer and a great vibe from the folks at granny gear and all the other racers.
The only mechanicals we had was a flat tire followed by a crash by "Jelly Finger" he ended up with a 1:30 lap man he was pissed!
I was also the team wrench so I have to give Joe some crap for making me get out of bed at 2am to look at his wheel, especially since I was up next
As the night progressed we actually made up time in our class and went from 8th to 5th to 3rd but then another squad picked up the pace and we dropped to 4th after the sun came up.
I tried getting under the magic 60 minute mark but kept missing it..I was pretty proud of my times though since it was ala uno speedo and I do represent all the "bigboy's" out there....there is always next year!
I really enjoyed riding a little of my laps with Steven, we kept running into each other out there and even did the final lap together, that was pretty cool!

Thanks to my wife Traci, Steven's sister Kelly for the extra firewood, Jelly FInger, I need 3 inches, I Love Puppies, Do I Have to?, Rob and his girlfriend for keeping the girls busy, Andy for yelling at me to go faster- I tried!- Newcastle beer and Chaya Tequila -I had a beer and a shot after each lap mmmmmm-
We finished 13th overall out of 46 teams and I have to believe this was the best 24 hour event I've been to, that is a big shout out to my teammates and friends that raced there because I've been all over the US for these type of races so thanks to the STR posse for keeping it real!
Hey Shannon, at Moab our team name will be the Spice Girls so I hope you are ready!
Go Menudo Power!!!












Jelly Finger and Steven

[1x1clyde]

More pix!

Steven, Brian and Rob before the start


lining up the bikes


Jose ripping thru!




Steven coming thru, check the clock!


the campsite


Our next to last lap exchange


Steven in the sunday am


Thanks to everyone that stopped by, helped out and cheered us on!

[Shannon]

Originally Posted by 1x1clyde

Hey Shannon, at Moab our team name will be the Spice Girls so I hope you are ready!
Go Menudo Power!!!

Ummm, are you going to be borrowing Traci's skirt or something, perhaps a push-up bra?

[1x1clyde]

Originally Posted by Shannon

Ummm, are you going to be borrowing Traci's skirt or something, perhaps a push-up bra?

I do have a kilt and I would prefer to go bra- less
Joe's name will be Butt Spice- he's a proctologist
Ryan will be Whiney Spice - he knows why
i was considering Extra-Large Spice- no explanation needed I hope!
I will do a lap in a dress so get the cameras ready!
When are you heading this way?
Traci and I will be in D-ville June 8th, 9th and 10th...you and Bruce gonna make it???