Race Report 12 hours of Temecula #2

What a great Day for a race..Perfect weather and as usual Jason and his crew from So Cal Endurance put on a great event :bang:. This course was a bit tougher and more technical than the January or November Versions... The wind was the biggest enemy in the Mid-afternoon laps as well as the course started to get a few washed out corners and sandy areas.

Tinker pulled out after a while leaving the solo honors up for grabs and Daniel Munoz took the top honors and turned 16? laps...simply amazing!

My team the Crusty Cabras placed second in the Salty Dogs Category and all the MVMG teams did very well, Second in the 4 person Single Speed Even after one of our riders went down hard the first lap and could not continue after he finished his lap), 2nd and 4th in the Salty Dogs and 5th in the 4 person open...

Healing vibes to the rider that went down hard on Funner ridge-line..

Great day, great racing out on the course and good fun with the Goats!

 

I believe Daniel got 15 laps, Glen.. ...and looked like he had just started warming up when he stood at the podium. I had heard he was fast, but dayum! Folks are going to hear alot about this guy.

One note to the folks in the OC and elsewhere who haven't yet come out and raced one of the socal endurance/temecula events.. ...do yourself a service and make the drive. You won't find a better, more organized event in southern California. The turnouts are exceeding 600 riders and the location (vail) and it's amenities are perfect for a high quality, high profile mtb event. ...We locals are extremely proud of what the Ranoa clan has done with Vail, and just wanna share the wealth.
Call a goat and we'll show ya around.

 

I rode my first 12 Hour race as part of a 3-man team yesterday, what an amazing and well organized event! Props to to the SoCal Endurance team for putting on such a fun event, The course was sooooo much fun. It had enough technical sections, climbing and fun flowing sections to make the 9.6 mile laps fun and challenging. Our 3-man team called team Pivo ended up only doing 3 laps each and we did not end up high in the standing, but what a blast the whole weekend was. Our campsite was the second to the last right on the course as you made a left into the pits and as I came around for my 3rd lap, I could see/smell that Ron had the Tri-Tip on the grill and that was it for me...as I pulled into the scoring table, Pink Floyd was blaring over the PA and I thought, it does not get any better than that. Most of our lap time times were right around 1:00 long, but one of the other teams we had in the race had Ed (Store Mgr of Rock-N-Road) turning some serious 47 & 49 minute laps, but he too called it quits as soon as he saw the Tri-Tip. Next year our goal will be to do 4 laps each and hit the twelve lap mark. We were camped next to Tinker and talked to him a little this morning and he said that he did a 12 Hour in Mexico last weekend and some road work during the week and just did not let his body recover enough this week and his legs just did not respond and called it quits...proves that even Tinker is mortal like the rest of us...very nice guy to chat with...made my weekend to get a pic. w/ the legend. I also went by the rider who was down on Funner Ridge....did not look good as they were loading him/her on a gurney and onto the quad....my prayers out to that rider, as that was a very bad section to go down on. The other highlight for me was winning a new 750 lumen Cygolite at the raffle.yeahhh! here are a few pics from my cell phone, more on the way as I get em from all who were taking them. Also, mad props to my teammate Ron who some how convinced his 19 year old daughter Kelsey to take up a spot on one of our other teams when a last minute cancellation ocurred, Kelsey had only been mountain biking for about 3-4 weeks and she turned in two laps for Team Rock-N

 

My 1st 12 Hour experience was definitely a good one. Huge thanks to Jason and the whole SoCal Endurance crew for putting on such an awesome event!! And a HUGE thanks to Dino for all his encouragement in the pits!:clap: It was great to meet/hang out with some of you out there (Impy, Alan, Geoman, etc...).:wave:
The course had a little bit of everything, and it kept my mind occupied, which was great. I went ahead and tried out the Solo Women's SS cat, not knowing how it was gonna go, due to a stressful work week, not a lot of sleep, and not enough time on the bike. I was able to crank out 8 laps, which was my set goal for the day (congrats to those of you who cranked out 10-12 laps! You're animals!). I bonked on laps 3 and 4, and figured I was done for. But I tweaked my nutrition, and felt great during laps 5-7. After lap 7, I rolled into the pits to see my competition had tapped out after lap 6. I considered stopping then and there, but I knew I had to try to squeak 1 more out. My legs were toast, and I was HAB-ing up a lot of the climbs during lap 8, but it was worth it.
Next year, we'll look into camping out there for sure.
The only pix I got were from my phone, and they're not great. The 1st 2 are of Hotchkiss taking 5th place in men's solo beginner:bang:, and the last one is a blurry pic of Neil taking 1st in solo men's clyde (12 laps, you're a freak!:bang. Great job everyone!

 

Wow, what a great event and well organized event. Kudos to all the solo riders! You guys have a few loose screws! Kudos to the Mountain Goats for letting my team hang out at their campsite! This was my 1st 12hrs and the same for my 2 other teammates. I tell ya, racing is so humbling, lots of fast people out there! I was on a 3 man team, each lap was about 9 miles long and the plan was to each do 4 laps. I was the first rider and that first lap was killer because everyone wanted to be up front and even on the fire roads there was no room to pass, because of how many bikes where on the course. The course was awesome, a lot of ups & downs. Riding at race pace is SOOOO much harder then riding at trail pace, each lap my time got slower by a minute! After the 3rd lap I wasn't sure I'd be able to do #4 and after doing the math it became apparent that I'd have to do 5 laps total!!!!! Yikes!!! So my lap times where: 47mins, 48, 49, 50 & 53 minutes!!! I was so happy to be done and I had so much fun regardless of all pain!! My total miles because of the parade lap turned out to be 47miles ouch and we got 13 laps in!!!

PS!!!! I held up Tinker for several minutes before he could pass me, granted it was on the down hill, but that's not how I'm going to tell the story. Thinking about it now and how he was not feeling it, the guy is still out of this world!

 

Another great Temecula event. The course was perfect -- just enough technical stuff to keep it interesting. This was my first solo (6 hr) and it was good to be able to calculate and spread the effort out over the day. I finished lap #6 at 2:15 pm and didn't dare try for #7 at that point, as my average lap times were more than 45 min. Was happy to finish up and watch my teammates take 1-2-3 in the 4 man race. Great job guys! Will definitely be back in November!

 

That was my teammate Milin he is out of the hospital and ok.
Super lucky no broken bones, just a lot of angry mescles, cuts, and bruises.
Hopefully he'll be back on the bike in a few weeks.

Thanks to all the riders and racers that stopped to help him!

 

congrats to gerry cody who lead the field for the entire first 4 laps. he's a machine

 

That is great News!

 

..happy to hear your buddy is ok. There were stories of a broken back flying around, and that section of the ridgeline where he went down could definitely be a back breaker.

 

This was my first 12 hour solo event, and it was pretty dang tough!

I was able complete the King of the Mountains road century challenge (Mulholland Challenge, Breathless Agony, Heartbreak Hundred), but Temecula was definitely a step up in difficulty for me. Although it’s not really a technically difficult course, there are some rough sections and riding them over and over again beat you up, and the steep, punchy climbs and loose sand really wear you down. I think this is what keeps me coming back to Temecula… it feels like a real “mountain bike” course. Plus my strength is to find a gear and grind out long climbs, not all this sporadic stuff that Temecula has... always a challenge.

The first few laps just flew by -- seemed like before I knew it my computer said it was 12:30PM. First lap was slow and involved a lot of hiking since I was stuck in the conga line of riders. Picked up the speed on lap 2, and by lap 3 it seemed most had settled into their rhythm. I had a great crew at the pit (my wife) who helped me keep stops to a minimum, gave me food and bottles, and checked my bike/cleaned my chain. I don’t remember much about laps 4-8 except that I couldn’t change the settings on my iPod (some new one with a touch screen) with gloves on so I listened to Weezer’s Blue Album probably 7-8 times.

At lap 9, on the first climb, I hit a wall. All sorts of weird cramps started showing up. My right hand locked and I couldn’t get it off my bars without great effort. Foot cramps, calves, thighs, hip flexors, and under my chin. Never experienced anything like it. I was able to stay on the bike but spun most of the lap in granny/granny and was simply limping through the course. Pulled into pit and decided to take a longer break and eat some solid food, as I’d been subsisting on water and liquid calories all day. Drank a Coke, a couple Gatorades, water, ate a sandwich and some chips, started to feel a lot better.

At about 6:30PM, I headed out for lap 10 and decided to just cruise and enjoy the ride. My goal was 10-12 laps and I knew I would make 10 easily. By the time I rolled back to the pits, it was 7:30PM and I knew I had an 11th in me. However, our crew was tearing down and there was talk of cheeseburgers and beer back at the campsite. My lights were up at our campsite also, and the thought of a campfire and some greasy food with friends was too great, so I helped pack up and ate the best double cheeseburger of my life. After a few cans of beer, I fell asleep almost immediately and slept like a rock. Good times.

Notice how I shift the blame of not doing lap 11 on everyone else, haha. Secretly I was super happy/relieved to hang up the bike and kick back.

Thanks to all involved with the race, I’ve never had a bad day out at Temecula. The race organizers, volunteers, crowds, other riders, everyone seems to have a good vibe. I’ve been out there several times on a team and really enjoy the social aspect of team racing, but going solo was much more relaxed for me, definitely more of a mental game. Hope to be out in November!

 

Had a great time at the race. My first long mtb ride ever, and although I've done plenty of endurance road rides, this was a completely different animal. Not only was the course technical (for a noob), but the climbing is relentless. I'm a strong climber, but this was punishing -- lots of steep kickers where you have to tap your explosive power multiple times every lap (rather than just settle into steady groove like on the road).

I managed 8 laps, and at around 6:45 had time for at least one more, but I was cooked. I managed okay on all the technical sections except Tarantula, which I ran down most of. I thought I should have a sign on my back "Caution: Roadie", but I guess that was obvious anyway.

All told, a great event. A bit discouraging getting passed by all those fresh legs on the teams, but most of them were very supportive, giving some encouraging words to the suffering solos. I was also happy to hear from a few STR folks who recognized my photo from the other thread. Must come back in November to get 10 laps...

​

 

I gotta say the Solo guys and gals are really the studs and stud-ette's of the day...Having to climb bridges or go down tarantula or slingshot after multiple laps late in the day had to be tough mentally and physically. The course was tough like Jeff^d said.....10 miles at Vail lake is like riding 25 anywhere else (IMHO). Looking forward to November and the Dam Climb....

 

My first 12hrs. and I had a blast. I could definitely add this to my "yearly" schedule. I couldn't believe how many riders there were out there. I have not done many events but I can tell you this one is very well organized. Thank you to all of you generous people and sponsors that dedicated their time and effort to put this on. It's humbling to be a part of it.

My only "gripe" is that you opened my eyes to what I have been missing! Thanks guys!

 

This was my first 12 hour event as well, and the longest, hardest thing I've ever done on a bike.

I had no intention of registering for this, as I saw it as a very bad idea. I just wanted to pit for my Wife and hang out with Dino all day and talk smack. But so many of you said such great things about it, so i felt it would be foolish to not see what the hype was all about.

I have to say it lived up to all the hype.

Having never done a long event like this I was really nervous about fueling. Not knowing the course also lent to my nervousness. Jason, the volunteers and all the riders really made me feel at ease, I was with my people. I spent the first lap getting a feel for the course. From there on out I just concentrated on my intake of water and fuel and having fun.

The first 4 laps were awesome. I cramped a bit on my 5th lap on 2 of the climbs. I walked it off and slammed some electrolyte pills, shot blocks and water. felt really good on the 6th lap. the 7th lap saw a little more cramping and as I finished I told Dino he can punch me in the face if I ever mention I want to do this again. My goal was 7 laps, I knew I had at least 2 laps left in me and was EXTREMELY happy knowing I only had time to do one more. That 8th lap was so beautiful with the sun setting. Knowing after every climb that it was the last time I had to do it brought a smile to my face.

I finished my 8th lap at 8:00pm.

I guess Dino gets to punch me in the face, cause all I can think about is how I'm gonna do 10 laps next time.

It was cool getting lapped by so many strong riders out there. I'll never forget ChrisB passing me on my 6th lap "Hotchkiss! how you doing?", my mouth opened, but nothing came out. there was no word I could find that described how I felt at the moment. It's a moment that could only happen under those circumstances , and I'm so blessed to have the opportunity to experience that moment.

 

^^^^^^^^^^you and Kim rocked it! Thanks for sharing your stpry...just remember "pain is temporary...victory is forever"....and you both accomplished a victory

 

If I wasn't so "off the charts" proud of you, I would have punched you right then and there!

All kidding aside, if I had a Top 10 biking memories list, Saturday's event would appear (somewhere) on that list!

The event was awesome. The location was awesome. The vibe was awesome. I spent the day with 10 wonderful people. What made the day EXTRA special was the fact all (7) of our racers were SOLO competitors! Twelve hours... solo!

Plain and simple: I have a newfound respect for endurance racing! :clap:
I also have a newfound respect for my friends. How they kept pedaling (when all they wanted to do was get off the bike), I do not know!

Unless I am wrong, all (7) took home medals!
Impy.......... 1st Place
Krunner44... 1st Place
Geoman...... 1st Place
Aosty......... 2nd Place (behind Geoman)
Cam.......... 4th Place (behind Geoman and Aosty)
Hotchkiss... 5th Place (first ever 12hr. race)
John............ ???? (left before the medal ceremony)

Rolling start


Impy


Beautiful venue




Tinker Juarez
His fastest lap was 2 minutes slower than mine
(I was on a motorcycle)


Aosty and John


Geoman
SS SOLO 1st Place




One cool cat!
The man can bring the smack (I found out the hard way) #-o


Krunner44
SS Solo 1st Place




Still smiling at 4pm


Aosty = Freak of nature!


Hotchkiss


BAUHAUS, his buddy from Mammoth and a third friend competed in the team event. When they weren't racing, they were just hanging out! Good times... That's what it's all about!


Cam
1. He rides with Hugh (enough said)
2. Jinxed rider of the day (seat issues, riders falling in front of him, etc. etc. etc.)
3. He kept pedaling until the end!


That's what I'm talking about! :clap:
(the kids were diggin' his bunny ears)


Cam and Impy taking a water break
(still smiling after... 10 hours)


Disgusting!


Geoman's Garmin


Impy showing off the BLING!


Geoman and Aosty (1st / 2nd Place)


5 Members of the (12 Hour SOLO) crew
Geoman, Krunner44, Hotchkiss, Aosty and Impy


Kimmy took home a Winner's chain ring


I will definitely be back!

Question for the competitors...
First 10 hours of the race: I was oblivious to the fact I could have walked over to the scorer's table and checked standings/times. Long story short: 2 of our racers were fighting (each other) for first! I chose to say nothing. Should I have said something? Did I do the right thing by keeping my mouth shut? Part of me feels dirty for not saying anything! 8-[

Note: Had they both pulled into the pits before 8:00pm (rather than at 8:10pm), I would have informed each of them that 1st Place was on the line!

 

My jaw just dropped... F'n insane! I only did 4 laps and felt wrecked. Btw, it was great seeing you Dino...Looking forward to ridin with ya!

 

^^ It is nice knowing where your competitors are if you are there to race. I like to know where I stand and whose laps times are consistent or slowing down. Depending on what place I am in, how the laps times of the guys in front of me are changing (or not changing) throughout the race, and how I feel all affects how hard I push myself.

My mini race report.....

I started off just planning to take it easy for the first 4 or 5 laps. I have never wished that I rode harder at the start of the race, so I figured I would try it out on Saturday. So, I got a spot just behind the front before the start. I didn't really like the parade lap. Too many guys were trying to speed off around the sides to get to the front like the race had started. This was the first time Jason did a neutral roll out like that and I think a lot of people in the back thought it was like normal and took off full speed. So, it got hectic at times, especially when we looped back onto the same road and some of the last riders were still heading out on it.

So the first few laps were pretty mellow. I was swapping spots with another rider in my category. I have no idea what place we were in, but I think we swapped spots every other lap for the first 4 or 5 laps. Then, on the 6th lap I caught up to two more guys in my category. I recognized one of them as John Dang and was assuming the other was Guy McDermott. Well, John crashed in a turn coming down Tarantula so my and Guy continued on. I later asked him his name and he was in fact Guy McDermott.

So for the rest of lap 6 and lap 7 Guy and I traded spots a few times. I would ride away in some sections and then he would catch me later on. I think it was lap 8 when I finally rode away from him and he never pulled me back in. so when I left for lap 10 I was told by my awesome pit crew (My wife Ashley was my formal pit crew and Sjon was my informal. He was helping Danny Munoz out and would help me out a bit too. He is the best pit crew that I know) that I had about 15 minutes on Guy, so I felt comfortable. Then, just after the military climb (backwards), I broke my chain. It was a nice clean break and all I had to do was put in a masterlink and be on my way. BUT...... The masterlink or chain must have bent because I spent about 10 minutes trying to get it on and it just wouldn't snap into place. I eventually asked for help and someone stopped and we used his chain breaker to put my chain back together. Right as we had gotten it together, I saw Guy pass me up!

So I took off rather quickly and thanked the guy for helping me (If you are on STR, THANKS THANKS THANKS!!! Sorry for leaving so quick but I had just gotten passed and dropped from 1st to 2nd). I rode behind Guy for a bit and then got past him before bridges and slowly rode away. I had to limp around that last lap because my chain was acting funny, so I walked up some of the hills and rode conservatively just to hopefully not have another broken chain.

Finally made it back to the pits where I had my other bike all prepped and ready to go (I saw Sjon out on the course and told him to get my other bike ready and he did. Best pit crew out there!). Got in 2 more laps on the back-up bike. My last lap was around a 1:02 and I finished at 7:53pm. I had time for another lap, but I had convinced myself that if Guy was going to go for a 13th lap he deserved the win. Luckily for me, he didn't.

 

What a great event - was part of a 4 man open team. We only race a couple of endurance events a year and you forget how much different racing is than normal trail riding. Such a humbling experience to see so many fast riders all at one time. My hats off to all the 6 and 12 hour Solo riders. My goal is to do the 6 hour Solo event in the future.

Jason put on a wonderful event - we will definitely be back again. Great competition and the sportsmanship of everyone that I interacted with was off the charts.

Great meeting Dino for the first time - look forward to riding with you soon.