Race Report 2012 Pow Wow Report

Discussion in 'Racing and Training' started by Hotchkiss, Apr 7, 2012.

  1. mtnbikej

    mtnbikej Well-Known Member

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    Cheryl,

    I was the sweep that rode behind you down LHJ. Did a great job. You then proceeded to drop me on the way down Trabuco Creek Road......guess you still had a lot of gas in the tank.

    J
     
  2. aosty

    aosty New Member

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    Another VQ over with.... too many "WTF AM I DOING?" moments before/during/after to count!

    Many thanks to all my friends and volunteers for their help!

    Yikes, results are up and I found a glaring error... 8-[8-[

    43 07:xx:xx Andy aka Rut 189 Tustin CA Male - Singlespeed 43


    :lol::lol::lol: :-({|=\\:D/

    :?::?:



    :drunk::beer:
     
  3. OMR

    OMR Old Man Riding...

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    Ahhhhh, grasshopper, we do this for you... your story makes this all worthwhile. Yes, the event has turned into a race; but, the original intent of both the Vision Quest and the Counting Coup was to challenge yourself and find that inner strength to persevere ... to run the race... to fight the good fight...no matter what. I consider everyone who tries these rides to be a winner... there are no real losers here. Yeah some are faster than others... that's not really the point. It makes you look deep into your soul to realize how you can overcome anything you put your mind to... and yes that includes mechanical breakdowns, physical handicaps, injuries, cramps and sickness. I am humbled by your efforts and gladdened by your success. Cheryl, as a Warrior, I thank you for riding in our ride. There is always room around the campfire for people like you.
     
  4. andy aka rut

    andy aka rut Active Member

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    Well said OMR. Cheryl, at the next campfire, please take my seat.

    The Pow Wow is about your acheivement, not about the time it took you to do it. The real fight is figuring out you CAN do it. Reading the write up's always brings a tear to my eyes. Cheryl's yours also brought my heart into my throat. My only regret was not introducing myself. Well done!!!!
     
  5. andy aka rut

    andy aka rut Active Member

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    Sorry Aosty-I already e-mailed the club and let them know of that error. I also suggested they push your time back 15 minutes for not being more polite in recognizing this error.
    ;)

     
  6. Hotchkiss

    Hotchkiss human being

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    Man I'm slow! (Mentally)

    I know Cheryl exclusively through strava. We were talking to each other after the ride and I had no idea it was you. A little late but, NICE TO FINALLY MEET YOU!
     
  7. aosty

    aosty New Member

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    Aw Andypoo, I'm very sorry to hurt your feelings... I forgot them extra gears can make you extra... sensitive. :wave::wave::wave: :lol:


     
  8. XcShane

    XcShane Member

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    Thank you once again Warrior Society for another year of awesomeness. You did a great job from start to finish. All of the volunteers were very encouraging and eager to help. I can't thank you all enough! This is currently the only yearly event that I have penciled in my "must do" list. And if it wasn't for you guys, it might not be so.

    This was my 3rd CC and my hopes as many were to have a "clean" ride and ultimately, be better than last year. The massive start is always entertaining and I look forward to seeing all lights heading upward. I got to Beeks and to the bottom of Motorway in record time for me. Right when I was preparing to suffer up the life sucking pavement of Maple, a rider came in with a badly torn up knee. People were looking at him and it didn't sound too good for him. What a bummer! So off I went. Despite bad cramps towards to end of Maple, I ended up at 4 corners in good time. The legs still weren't too happy so after a short rest, off to the Peak. About a mile away, the rider with the knee injury started to pass me. We chatted for a bit and he mentioned he needed stitches but I was unclear if he got them or not. Kudos to him for displaying that warrior's spirit this ride is about!

    Hit the Peak in record time and down to UHJ. Once there I decided to check air pressure for the descending and sure enough, a small rip on my new Racing Ralph. Don't the rocks know these tires aren't cheap? So Stan's was put to the test and after playing with it for a bit, it seemed to seal. Down UHJ to LHJ, I checked it numerous times and it was good to go. I ran onto the many hikers like everyone else during LHJ but most were courteous and happy to move to the side. Finally reached the final straight away and off I went. No matter what's happened in my previous CC rides, I always seem to have energy for this last push. Finished with family and friends around and again, great volunteers. So in the end, I had a pretty clean ride and bettered my time for the 3rd year in a row. Mission accomplished! :D
     
  9. ThinkFast

    ThinkFast Member

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    We are so fortunate to have such a great mountain bike community. I hiked up West Horsethief with someone from Utah who flew out for the event. He mentioned that he has a hard time finding people to ride with...I bet most of us don't have that problem. We also have so many great trails in our backyard. Every day as we go about our daily activities Saddleback is always in the background, so close.

    This was my slowest and most difficult VQ...but probably my favorite. I had no intention on finishing this year after having surgery on my clavicle 2 weeks ago, but I did...success. Good to meet JoJon, Kimmi, Joseph and others. Great to see steviefromtheOC and hear of his hard fought finish too. Always good to see familiar faces as well. Looking forward to the next one!
     
  10. stenogrl

    stenogrl New Member

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    Thanks Mtb Jim - were there a few of you back there? Good thing you can stop on a dime and track stand for a long time! You kind words really helped me and thank for being so encouraging and donating your time to keep CC a safe ride for some of us that were just trying to make it!


    Funny to not know with I am speaking (or writing) - thanks for the kind words. I sat around depressed yesterday and this morning -
    Made myself go out on a ride to get some sun and gratitude - came home to the results - Holy Cow, I sucked! lol - I really am happy for these recent posts from you guys reminding me that it does not have to be a "race" - so if what you say is true, and it really is about pushing yourself and digging deep, then I did fine! Only me and God really know how deep I was digging on that ride. I kept saying over and over "easier than cancer" - i was talking to my mother who died in 2010 at 67 of a horrible disease! Mom, please pedal for me! God, would you please pretend this is a tandem and take over? I trained with a coach and ate well. I gave it all I had, but was wishing I had more. So where and who is the real Chris Vargas? I really owe him a big hug and thanks! and are you mailing my suffer trophy? thank you all so much for your kind words, or I may have sold my bike after seeing the results an hour ago! ;-))


    Thank you, Mr. Hotchkiss - I just love your wife and her attitude! She is something else - Yes, I saw your photo and said, hey, I saw that guy with a major flat tire while deciding to shuttle or not to shuttle to my car. I figured out later that was you, because I saw what they called the "Hotchkiss smile" - Three flats you had? bummer - next time I come to OC for training ride maybe the three of us can meet for dinner or something? Nice to meet you too - Next I want to meet the famous SS queen!!! I am having my SS built this week!
     
  11. Makoto

    Makoto Outdoor'ist

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    Where to start? I think I learned about the CC/VQ from STR. I think it may have even been this thread last year that inspired me to attempt to enter it. I have never been in a race let alone this type of an endurance event. About a year ago, I started trying to convince my closest riding buddy to commit to it with me. I believe his response was something to the effect of, “if you commit, I’ll commit”. Fast forward one year or so and we are both CC finishers.

    Thank you to the Warrior Society, all the volunteers and people cheering us along the way for your hard work and support. Thanks to all my riding buddies for joining/leading me on training rides (especially Sage, Rodger, Charles and Dakota). If you are on the fence about doing this event, I strongly recommend you do it. I did it as a personal challenge and am very proud of my accomplishment and look forward to challenging myself in other endeavors in the future.

    My biggest concerns entering this event were getting a decent amount of rest the night before, bonking, not finishing, missing a cut off and getting off to too rapid of a start. Unfortunately, I did not get the amount nor quality of sleep the night before, but I overcame all my concerns. What I did underestimate is how my descending skills would be affected after climbing 8,000 feet. Unfortunately, I had a pretty good spill descending Lower Holy Jim. Thank you to Sage for getting me untangled from my bike and helping to calm me down after my spill. Thanks to all the riders who passed by making sure I was okay before they continued their descents and to the hikers who gave me some water and also made sure I was okay. Like many others have mentioned (who have prior race experience), my fellow “competitors” were awesome!

    Compliments of Gene, here’s a shot of me climbing Black Star
    [​IMG]
     
  12. stenogrl

    stenogrl New Member

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    very well put! wow, surgery two weeks ago? See you at the next one!
     
  13. mtnbikej

    mtnbikej Well-Known Member

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    Actually Jason......but that's ok.
     
  14. onthemoun10

    onthemoun10 New Member

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    Cough!Cough!Bull!Cough!!
     
  15. onthemoun10

    onthemoun10 New Member

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    Nice job to both of you.
     
  16. genusmtbkr5

    genusmtbkr5 STR Moderator

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    Hi Cheryl, Thanks for all the kind words for the club. I'm not really sure who descended with you, but I can tell you who was assigned at the various check points and sagged the last riders from those sections.

    Jason: Maple Springs to finish with last CC rider,
    Brain and Bob: Sweep riders from top of Upper HJ
    Keith and Mary: Sweep riders from top of Lower HJ


    The other sweep riders were sweeping the VQ riders from HJ check point to bottom of WHT to the top, from WHT to Trabuco and from Trabuco to finish. Those riders were:

    Lubos and Matt: HJ check point to WHT, Trabuco, finish,
    Gerry: WHT to Trabuco to finish,
    Calvin: Trabuco to finish,


    These sweep riders keep track of all the riders and as one sweep shows up at that check point, the others gear up and join the ride. This insures we know where all riders are and NO ONE IS LEFT BEHIND. They do an amazing job year after year. Many thanks to them all!

    Chris was feeling a bit under the weather so he stayed in the Warrior trailer most of the time but was in constant communictions with the HAM operators so insure the event was running smoothly. He is on STR but never logs on, but does read these reports through the links I send him. If you haven't heard from Sherry who is also on STR, but never logs on, I'm sure she will contact you about getting the award to you.

    Thanks again for the kind words. It's riders such as you that make this event what it is and why the members of the WS enjoy what we do before, during and after long after the last rider crosses that finish.
     
  17. OCMoto

    OCMoto Member

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    This was my first CC and I have been trying to sum up my experience from Saturday. What OMR said above in bold is pretty much what I had thought it was about, but in the end it is EXACTLY what it ended up meaning to me. I was not out to race/compete with anyone, but rather compete with my physical and mental abilities and see what I could accomplish.

    The morning of CC was awesome! The Warriors Society puts on an incredible event. From atmosphere, to preparation, to support and encouragement. I loved starting in the dark and seeing the string of lights winding up the hillside and then seeing the simultaneous moon setting and sun rising.

    I'm not one to cramp normally, but it has happened on occasion. That morning it was a perfect day and I was feeling great climbing Blackstar(probably one of my first mistakes). About mile 11 or so I felt the hardening in my quads. First thought was "What is this? Noooo! Not cool!" I had never experienced cramping so early in a ride. Rodger(rodgerdodger) came rolling up behind me and we discussed my issue. While I was already convincing myself I would not let this beat me, he helped encourage me that we would have plenty of time and I could walk some if I had too. After I very slowly pedaled along Main Divide trying not to put too much pressure on my quads, Rodger and I bombed down motorway and hit the aid station around 8:30. Woohoo! extra time to meet the next cutoff! My legs were really giving me a fit though while I walk around a bit and started re-fueling(BTW, big thanks to everyone helping down there and getting people filled back up). Not giving up though and a few minutes later we started our journey up Maple Springs with my legs giving me fits off and on all the way up. I stopped a few times to take in some supplements/snacks and relax the muscles, but refused to walk(I'm hard headed that way - lol). Just as I was making the last hairpin before 4 Corners something happened to me that I hadn't expected. I started to well up a bit and get a little emotional because I knew I had made the cutoff, which around mile 12 I had doubts of that happening. It suddenly took on a whole new meaning. After another break with Rodger at the 4 corners aid station we rolled on up to the peak. Very slowly for me of course :) Once I hit the peak I knew the downhill could do a number on my cramping legs but I put it out of my mind and went for it. I did walk a couple of sections on UHJ to be safe due to the cramps, but once I started the descent on LHJ I just flew down that hill trying to forget about my legs and know that I was home free. I was so happy to see the group of people at the aid station at the bottom of Holy Jim when I suddenly remembered that I still had to ride out the wash. #-o So I got on it and started pedaling my butt off with my legs screaming the whole way and threatening to throw me off my bike at any time. It felt so awesome to cross that line and realize I had accomplished what I had so loosely set out to do and how much it ended up meaning to me at completion. It was an honor to be a part of it and I'm now looking forward to torturing myself next year.

    Congratulations to all that competed against themselves and if you didn't make your cutoffs or finish for some reason, I hope you come back next year to test yourself again.

    p.s. Special thanks to Rodger for getting some motivation going in me and making me ride all of the segments and start training. I probably wouldn't have started training until March 31st if it wasn't for him. :lol:
     
  18. oskin100

    oskin100 Member

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    1.JPG

    Didn't have a pic at the time of my write up. But here is one of my wife kid and I at the starting line. I am loving all the great reading on here!
     
  19. Oldskool

    Oldskool Old School MX'r

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    Shane, lets not be too humble here, Shane was part of my 'lets scrub an hour' club and he posted a 7:40 in last years CC and he posted a 6:43 in this one, I would say he bettered his time!! Congrats bro....you killed it this year, but I am going to train even harder and catch you next year :lol:
     
  20. stenogrl

    stenogrl New Member

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    oops sorry - somebody else gave me that name ;-) -see you next year and hope you are not sweeping me!
     

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