2014 Pow Wow Race Reports

That was a rad story! Congrats.

 

Yeah Lety that may be one of the best RR I have ever read Congrats on you Journey!

 

After swearing up and down I would never do it again, like a crack addict October 1 rolled around and I was online when VQ sign ups opened. This point I had forgotten all the suffering. Gone were the thoughts of almost throwing up as I pushed my bike up West Horse Thief. I figured there was no way it was as tough as I remembered it and "now I now what to expect so I'll be able to train better!"

Heading into it I felt good and my Strava times were all on par with where I wanted them to be. Last year I had a moving time of just over 7:30 and a total race time of 8:05. My goal this time was a total race time of 7:30.

I rolled into the start that morning and was able to get about halfway to the front of the pack. I was surprised because I had probably 20 friends racing wither VQ or CC, but I couldn't find any of them. I was POSITIVE at this point a few of them flaked out. Within a few minutes the drum started thumping and the countdown was on!

As soon as I got through the gate I swung to the far left and started passing people. By the time we hit the first climb I knew I had good legs for the day. The whole start and first climb is so surreal. You are racing in complete darkness with people going everywhere and it starts sinking in that you are going to be riding your bike and suffering for a long time. By the time you get to the top of Blackstar, the sun is starting to rise and you can see the next set of mountains welcoming you in the distance. I have to say that sunrise on the Main Divide is a pretty spectacular sight and it takes your mind off what you are going through.

I was really pumped when I made it to Motorway (first downhill) 10 minutes ahead of schedule and decided to charge the downhill and see what I could do. I charged a bunch of sections without hitting the brakes (which I never do) and felt great. Then it happened..... rear flat.

So now I'm super pissed as everyone is passing me. A buddy passes me as I'm flipping the bike over and all I thought was "Im going to catch him by the peak." I had to stand in the bushes to change the tire and by the time it was done I had Stans all over me and the bike and just wanted to get to the bottom without crashing or flatting again (I only had one tube). I got to the aid station at the bottom, refilled with water, hit up the G2 tent for some more air and took off up Maple Springs to the peak.

I made it up Maple (and introduced myself to Gene along the way), through 4 corners and on to the peak in record time (for me). About ¾ of the way to the peak, I spotted my buddy up in the distance and put in a charge to run him down, which I did about a mile from the top. I was completely shocked I was able to catch him after basically spotting him 5 to 10 minutes with my flat tire.

My goal for the peak was 4 hours 15 minutes and I was able to make it in 4:04 including the time to fix my tire.

I felt great as I crested the peak and started the series of downhill’s to the second aid station, but that didn’t last long. I got hung up on one of the steep switchback corners on Upper Holy Jim and wound up going over the bars and into the bushes. I got some minor leg cramps on the start of Lower Holy Jim sand ended up chilling there for a minute….. Which is where my buddy got back by me. Heading down LHJ, I just tried to cruise it and not make any more mistakes. My brain was mush and I wasn’t really processing everything too quickly.

I took a bit of a break at the second aid station, filled my bottles, found my feedbag, lubed my chain and took off up Trabuco towards the hike a bike on West Horse Thief. Both of those trails were super painful and sucked bad. In a blur/haze I met MtnbikeJ and SinglespeedRider as well. We chit chatted as we went along for a bit. I ended up getting into a bit of a rhythm about ¼ the way up WHT, made good time, and ended up catching back up to my buddy at the top (funny how that works out). I had to regroup at the top to make sure I would be able to make it over to and down the final downhill. Again…. Worked body and mush brain.

The trip down Trabuco to the finish was a total blast. You know the worst is behind you and you get to settle in and charge through a tunnel of trees and over loose exposed sections.

This year I had to navigate the people heading up to WHT, all of which were close to not making the final time cut off. Next thing I know I hear someone say my name and I realize it was my buddy I assumed flaked!!! I was SUPER happy to see he would make all the time cut offs, considering he hadn’t trained as much as he wanted was hoping to at least make the first 2.

From there it was an easy ride out Trabuco Canyon Road to the finish at Parker Ranch. The finish area is awesome! There is a big grassy, tree-lined area for family to wait in, there’s El Pollo Loco for all the riders, a food truck, and a band. It’s a real party and a great way to end the day.

When the dust settled, I ended up finishing in 7:24, just slightly under my 7:30 goal. I’m happy, but still pissed because I was on track for a lot better. My moving time was 6:47, which was basically 45 minutes faster than last year. That is crazy to me because I don’t feel like I am going that much faster. I’m also shocked that I PR’d the Lower Holy Jim downhill as well as the WHT. I don’t know how, but I did.

 

So my VQ was drastically different than most. Due to an injury/health issue, I was faced with the unfortunate reality that not only was I not going to be able to train for this ride, I was likely not even going to be able to participate. However, I made the decision on Friday night to show up and at least be a part of the event and see how much I could complete.

Off the start, I made a point to allow 90% of the crew squeeze through the gate before I jumped in and started my day. The cruise up Blackstar was very casual for me. I notice a lot of comments about how cool it was to see the train of lights coming up blackstar,..I thought it was equally cool to see all the lights going up the switchbacks on the first climb. I had a chance to chat with a few of the guys at the back of the pack. Just before the top of Beeks, I found myself alone - ALL alone! I made it to beeks in 1:24 and felt that wasn't too bad considering I had to make the 1st cut-off at 9:30.
My traverse across MD was slow and very quiet - almost surreal. I thought that I would make the first cut off no problem, but got to the bottom of motorway at 9:15. I was greeted by some good vibes by the few remaining support. After a shot of pickle juice (from Gene?/thanks!),,some girl scout cookies & energy beans, I was motivated to keep going and chose to continue on with the knowledge that I needed to get to 4-corners in 2 hours (should be so easy, right!?). Well I kept it spinning and felt relatively good, just slow. No gas in the tank.

I pulled up to 4 corners less than 10 minutes after the cut off. I was the 1st rider officially pulled from the course. As I was riding up MS, I kept thinking it would be somewhat respectable for me to complete the CC course, but it just wasn't happening for me today.

Lots of good vibes out on the trail, lots of words of encouragement from everyone, thanks, it helped!
Having completed a few VQ's back in the day (last one in 2004), I was very impressed with how smooth this event was. I'm amazed at the incredible dedication and fitness level of all of the riders who entered.
Quite a humbling experience for me, but I came home feeling great about my day.

 

And that my friends is what the event is all about!

Great story...thanks for sharing

 

Thanks for sharing, hope you heal up and have a better race/ride next year. I am so happy/proud to be part of this event. Depending on condition in October I might sign up for VQ.

Funny thing is about 59 hours ago I said I would never do CC again! (had a few beers and feel braver now)

 

I signed up for Counting Coup with a crazy ass schedule that just got crazier as the race got closer. I have a part time job with wonky hours and oftentimes I have to switch things up at a moment's notice to run off to auditions. I recently took a second part time gig to bring in some extra $ and to help out a friend of mine who is a contractor who was up against several deadlines and needed extra help. So basically, my training schedule consisted of me schlepping from LA to the OC for training one day a week. Sundays. With Lety or Bob (Waldo). I was trying very hard to build up my endurance with only one day of riding a week. Nuts. And since I like to make my life as complicated as possible, I got a cold. Which turned into a sinus infection. Which put me on antibiotics. And then it turned into bronchitis. I attempted a training ride up Blackstar after 3 weeks of being sick and the bronchitis came back. So all in all I was 4 weeks off the bike with only a little more than a month to go. So, my goal for CC was to finish. Bob informed me that I needed to set my goals higher, so I told him that I'd like to finish before dark. :lol:

On the morning of the race, my climb up Blackstar was uneventful and my time to Beeks was okay. It was heartbreakingly beautiful to ride up the mountain and see the sun rise. Blackstar is a boring climb but the views it offers never cease to take my breath away. The Main Divide sucked as always and I knew that I was near the back of the pack but I didn't really care. My goal was to finish. I was laughing because I was basically keeping pace with 2 really nice guys who were hung over and might have actually still been drunk. I ended up finally leaving them behind and I ended up arriving to the bottom of Motorway earlier than expected. Cool. As I approached the first cut-off, I was accosted by Collette, Allen, Andy, Brian and Kevin. They filled my water bottles, shoved half of a banana down my gullet and shouted words of encouragement. It was terrifying. And extremely helpful. With their screams of encouragement ringing in my ears, I headed up the pavement with a spring in my step. About 3/4 of the way to the dirt, my left knee squawked at me. It was my IT band. An old injury that hadn't acted up in about 6 months. I told it to go away. I may have even said some curse words. I kept grinding up and got really bored on the Maple Springs climb. Grind grind grind. Oww oww oww. I was extremely glad to get to 4 corners because I knew that I only had to get up to the peak and then it was all downhill.

About a mile or so into the final climb, my knee went nuts and got worse and worse. Grind grind grind. Oww oww oww. I climbed the last 3 miles with only my right foot, leapfrogging with four other guys in various states of pain. I passed the friends/family of the poor fellow who passed away last month and that was a very sobering sight. They were saying the rosary for him. I said a prayer for him (again) and kept on climbing up. I have never been so glad to see those towers.

I headed down Holy Jim and only ran into one guy. He and I had been passing each other for hours. He'd pass me on the climbs and I'd pass him on the downhills. I made it down Upper and Lower Holy Jim unscathed where I gleefully realized that I was almost done! All of the climbing and technical riding was over. I could relax. Phew! I just needed to deal with the water crossings! BAM! I clipped my left crank on a big rock and flew off the bike and down the side of the trail. I actually shouted the words, "ARE YOU FU@%ING KIDDING ME?!" as I flew through the air. I laid there for a second trying to figure out if I was hurt. I wasn't. As I was assessing the situation, a fellow tired racer wheezed by asking me if I was okay. I told him I was and he looked so grateful to not have to stop and help me. Which I totally understood. So I picked my way up the side of the trail, unsuccessfully trying to dodge the poison oak everywhere. (If I somehow manage to avoid getting a rash it will really be a miracle of the Baby Jesus.)

I gathered my bearings and hopped back on the bike. Water crossing, trail. Water crossing, trail. Water crossing, flat tire. Seriously. About 5 and a half miles from the finish I got a flat tire. I hit a square rock head on and immediately heard my tire go flat. I was riding tubeless and started looking for a puncture. I didn't see one so I assumed I had burped my tire and pulled out my co2 to fill up the tire. It filled it up. Sort of. So I pulled out my other co2 and as I was filling the tire I heard a sputter and saw a big ol' hole. Too big for my Stan's to fill. Both my co2 cartridges gone. I wanted to cry. I was so mad. I wanted to punch someone but thankfully nobody was nearby. So I walked. And I walked. And I walked. According to my Garmin I walked for over a mile. Several riders passed me trying to offer help but nobody had a pump or co2 left at this point. So I walked. And walked. I walked until a really nice guy I'd seen throughout the day offered me his co2 cartridge. But it was the wrong size for my co2 pump. And then finally, 2 guys appeared. With halos and shit. Harps were playing and they kind of glowed. They asked me what had happened. We realized we had ridden together on the Hell Ride this past year. (Which I found ironic since they were obviously 2 angels.) They whipped out a tube and a pump and like Dale Earnhardt's pit crew, they had that sucker changed in no time. Hooray! I would get to finish! And then Lety rode up. What?! Yay! We had been training together on weekends so it seemed fitting that we roll through the finish line together!

Over the weekend I was really bummed that my time had suffered because of the flat tire, which was dumb because I already knew my time wasn't going to be good. I reckon it cost me at least a half hour and the one legged climb up to the peak certainly didn't help matters. But I got to finish and at the end there, I didn't think that was going to happen. So that made me really happy. And that's what makes this fun, right? You never know what's going to happen. If we knew how things were going to turn out, it wouldn't be nearly as exciting or worth doing. :beer:

 

Best LMAO statements:

Bob (Waldo): Quinn, you need to set your goals higher....

Quinn (speckledtrout): OK, I wanna finish before dark!!

****in Quinn classic!!!!!

 

My first Pow Wow was in 2006. I happened to check out the times from that year compared to 2014 and it is crazy how much faster the times have gotten. Well, all but mine! They keep changing and I seem to stay the same. In 2006 my time this year of 7:58 would have put me in the top 35 vs. 82. So has the event attracted stronger and faster riders? The event has definitely seemed to mature into a premier event. It used to be a locals kind of ride and now it is the ride to do. I feel like I have watched one of my kids grow up . I have seen the work the WS put in to this even year over year and appreciate you ALL.

 

VQ Haiku

Since my inner monologue during the Vision Quest is oft akin to meandering ramblings, Haikus seem to be appropriate.

Tomatillo juice.
No pickles in the fridge. Kids.
Hope I don't need it.

2am Blackstar
Are they partying til dawn?
Glad I packed earplugs

Up at 4am
Roof top tent on the Cruiser
Another Pow Wow

Coffee. Gotta Go.
Gonna make me late to start.
Porta Potty line.

Oops where's my Garmin?
Forgotten in the kit bag
Do I turn around?

Damn. Damn. Damn. Damn. Damn.
Damn. Damn. Damn. Damn. Damn. Damn. Damn.
Damn. Damn. Damn. Damn. Damn.

Time doesn't matter
Ride. Have fun. Talk. Joke. Laugh. Help.
Not a race a ride.

Hot then cool then cold
I think the weather is drunk
I want a cold beer

Blackstar in the dark
lit with a stream of bike lights
an amazing sight

Sunrise through the fog
like a big neon cheeseball
through steamy lenses

Grunt Mash Stand Hammer
Thirty Two Twenty Two. One.
Hammer Grunt Mash Walk

My wrists and knees creak
up to Santiago Peak
West Horse Thief burgers

More Endurolytes
Race Caps Anti Fatigue pills
Energy Surge yuck.

W H T
Perpetuum Gas Propelled
My tummy rumbles

Holy hell that stinks
Perpetuum and oatmeal
Lethal gas. Lethal.

Not enough base miles
Vision Quest suffer fest love
why rigid single?

Best burger ever
I could ride with one in hand
Where is the cold beer?

Mud puddles await
Down Trabuco Canyon Road
Funnest part of ride.

VQ nine hours plus
A lifetime of memories
Back for another?

Kudos to the crew
Warriors Society
Super fun event!

 

You have my vote for the best RR!! If you can get me to double over in laughter you're a fine individual!!

"Holy hell that stinks!" ... THEE BEST LINE.....

 

VQ...........the pain

First thanks to the WS for another outstanding event. I can’t say enough about the volunteers…….simply the best.:clap::clap:

Last year I rode the CC on my rigid SS and my wife and kids were there to greet me at the end. They asked me how I felt and I said great! Then my middle boy said “then why did you do the short race”….OUCH!

I really felt like I had a lot left in the tank so I said “Sure I will do the VQ next year but on a geared bike with a suspension fork. Last year’s CC was the first since 2006.

So this year was the VQ and I hadn’t ridden it since 2003…..11 years ago.

I stayed in good shape the entire year and was riding two or three times a week and raced the OTH series (really fun). October rolled around and signed-up. Sent a text to my training buddies the next day and all three of them failed to get in. So I knew what that meant…….long solo training rides. I was doing well until about February when Little League Baseball got into full swing (I coach and umpire) and started taking more of my time. Then at that point I was just sick and tired of riding those gawd awful long boring fire roads by myself. So my performance peak was too early and when April rolled around I was not really ready. My longest ride in 2 months was 40 miles with only 5K of climbing.

So the day of the event another buddy (he was riding the CC) and I rolled up to the back of the group and off we went. I felt great going up Black Star and didn’t feel I was working hard at all. Next the Main Divide……..found my groove and was moving out. Down the Motorway and to the first aid station. I looked down at my Garmin and realized that was my fastest time ever!

Refill water and up Maple I go. At this point I am starting to feel the effects of the ride but still keeping a nice pace……..all was good. 4 Corners……….more water and off to the Peak. Slow and steady and still feeling “ok” but the last mile or so before the peak I was starting to feel it.

Down Upper and Lower HJ and then up to WHT . This is when things got ugly. I had nothing…….I mean that hike a bike sucked the life out of me. I must have been passed my 10-15 riders during that death march. Had some nice conversations with a few guys and we were all pulling for each other. Made it to the top…….of WHT…..had a handful of chips and off I went. Once on the bike I felt good and was surprised how well I did getting to Trabuco. When I saw the nice folks at the trail head…..I thought to myself it is all downhill from here! Took it easy going down Trabuco and was also careful on the road out to the finish. When I saw my time I was bummed. WHT / Trabuco to the finish took me well over 2 hours!

Then after I changed my clothes……..got something to eat I had time to reflect. One of the poor souls that was pushing their bike up WHT said..”I don’t care where I finish…..I just want to finish….99% of the population wouldn’t attempt this”. Then I thought about my age……….going to be 50 this summer. My training suffered but I had balance in my life coaching baseball among other things. And last but not least I beat my 2003 time by 2 hours!

Congrats to all that attempted this event! See you next year (maybe)8-[:-k

Wheeler

 

That is why this is a quest.....and not a race. :clap:

 

Well, I'd been a CC regular for a while. I DNS'd last year's event due to life events. I did far less main divide training (almost none) and a lot more saddle-time training all over, just doing double loops or connected road rides + mountain with my cyclocross bike. So that was a new X factor for me. I also went from a 21 lb bike that was unquestionably built for racing to a 150mm travel squishy 650B ride.

I got my now-customary wipeout halfway through the race on the main divide (always those mini-canyon divits around otherwise loose terrain that come out of nowhere when you leave the safe line when attempting a pass!). Picked self up. Some skin missing, but thought...

Ti's but a flesh wound.


Got back going relatively quickly. Double thanks to the kind sir on the motocross bike who saw me getting back in the saddle and double checking with me that I was alright as I started pedaling again. Next year, I'm going to just take that freaking singletrack short-cut that 25% of the other people always take to cut off that corner (about 70% of the way to motorway)....

I was lucky in that this crash didn't seem to dump all of my "adrenaline stores" like my previous crash a few years before, so I didnt have quick onset and continuous cramps shortly thereafter.... those came on at 4 corners like always. All in all, I came within 15 min of my PR, but I learned a few lessons. The major one was that the DH capability of my bike means nothing when the downhills are single file. Sure - you can pass a couple people, but by the time you wait for a safe/courteous passing point, another major chunk of the DH is over. - Just not worth the weight.

I also noticed that while I was more confident on the super technical stuff on the HJs, I wasn't necessarily much faster overall. I think my downhill speed was very similar to previous years - sure, I did a lot more white-knuckling on my old race bike than the new squishy, but the actual trail width, turns, edges, etc. really were the deciding speed factor. The only thing I gained was a less stressful descent.

 

Don't doooo it....you will be a weaker man for it!

 

.. Next year, I'm going to just take that freaking singletrack short-cut that 25% of the other people always take to cut off that corner (about 70% of the way to motorway)....

That is the route.........riders that continue on the fire road are lost..........

 

I had wondered about this too. I took the long way and was momentarily disturbed by what I thought were poachers. Most near me, took the long way. To me, this could be an area of improvement, in the future. A couple of little orange soccer cons could have made matter pretty clear.

 

Every year I either forget about it until it's too late, or decide it's probably not kosher and choose to avoid the scorn of other riders who might be nearby.

In any case, just past that turn off on the left side of the fire road is the rut that caught me when I left the line to pass, so I was doubly pissed. What do you expect, for me to blame myself?! GET REAL. =P

 

Not to mention I've crashed on the short cut 3 times while on normal rides. :lol:

 

Someone in the WS will still have to do the actual transfer, remove the original rider from the data base, enter the new rider in. This is the process that none of us have the time for any longer as it takes away the time we already spend preparing for the event months in advance.

I managed the waiting list here on STR several years back before Jeff^d took over it to maintain it (adding/removing names). Even with that, it still took someone in the WS to do the transfers as mentioned (make the data entry and send out then receive the signed application & waiver).

I'm the Co-Trail Director for the WS and we start our trail work season in Oct. I spend a lot of my time planning and doing trail work on those trails that are part of the course. Having to come home to answer emails and PMs about wanting to sell their spot and contacting the person next on the waiting list or putting people on the list after a long day at work or a long day doing trail work is something I no longer wanted to do.