Race Report Warriors Society Traverse Recap

boy....does this typo explain how I felt at mile 19.

After further reflection and rest today I figured why I bonked so early. I drank plenty of fluids (too much?), but ate less than 1/4 of the food I should have ](*,). During the race I only ate 1/4 of a Cliff Bar, 1/4 of a PB&J sandhich, handful of trail mix, a banana (4 corners and Trabuco, and 5 GU packs............stupid.........stupid......stupid.:?:
I thought is was odd that when I was pedaling, my cadence was solid, but I could only go so far before dismounting. A good lesson learned. I just need to figure out how to eat when I don't feel like eating.:?:

I new something major was wrong when I got home and did NOT want a beer!:drunk: That was a shame. Good thing I had that beer today......mmmmmmmmm :beer:

Way to go everyone and special thanks to the Warriors Society for making my first endurance race as fun(?) as it could be!

Also nice meeting so many great people.......STR and on STR alike

 

Grasshopper, you put your finger right on it. The body needs fuel for energy... when you don't give it fuel, it doesn't give you back energy. Take a page out of the Tour D'France rider's book. Before a race they literally eat two breakfasts with plenty of pasta thrown in and then constantly eat while riding. Why should we be any different?

I had a LARGE bowl of oatmeal and strawberries, several pieces of toast with jam, and energy bar and 24 oz of Accelerade before I started... then drank Accelerade and water with Gu the rest of the day (oh yeah and had a PB&J during the ride).I never even came close to feeling a lack of energy... yes, I'd get tired if I was pushing the pace too fast, then would slow and the energy would quickly return...

Cramps! Ha! I spit at you! Never even a quiver. Even at the end of the ride. I was tired but not really hungery... until 3 hours later at Outback, where I downed a huge plate of ribs, large garden salad, plenty of bread and butter and helped my wife finish her steak (Yeah, I was a pig!)... still woke up 3 lbs lighter this morning as the metabolism just continues to burn with high intensity.... ain't it cool!:bang:

Point being: You gotta eat to compete.

But congrats on finishing the race. The next ride will seem way too easy!

OMR

 

yep.........I guess I should have considered brain fatigue as I brought plenty of food with me. oh.....5lbs lighter today and my wife is pissed about that :-k

 

i put a few pics my wife took from 4 corners during the race. random photos and random riders:
http://www.socaltrailriders.org/gallery/showgallery.php/cat/753

 

You are so right. I knew that the fact that all I had was one bite of my breakfast burrito is why I could not sustain a fast pace and finish strong. I should've been stronger from Lower HJ to Trabuco, but the energy wasn't there.

Suzanne W. pointed it out why I couldn't increase or even maintain my pace, no food=no energy.

The second half of the course(4 corners to finish) was the easier of the 2 halves and yet I took more time on that half than the 1st. It may be a few miles longer, but less climbs and 4 miles of it is the road out to the finish.

Yes you're tired and have ridden for over 25 miles at that point, but aside from the "wall" the rest of the climbs are nothing compared to what you've already climbed. I didn't bonk hard, but bonked just the same.

Not eating and not hydrating properly probably added 1 hr to my time due to more stops and slower pace cause of cramping and lack of energy. I still had a good time doing it, but I'll prep better and be ready next time.

 

Gene, there a supplement called cytomax preformance..... its like a protein shake you drink 1 hour before an event or training and it has very long lasting energy. Its packed with carbs vitamins amino acids and lots of other good stuff.

 

i also use preformance before races/long rides. great stuff. nothing really magical, but i dont like to eat a lot morning of, so this helps a lot.
tastes like orange push-up pops, too.

 

I'll have to try it. Maybe I'll do the Traverse course again after the summer and time myself. Anyone care to join me? :bang:

 

Gene, let me know when you plan on doing it (after summer weather of course), I may be interested.

But, have to say that I was surprised at the steep hills between Motorway and 4-corners (never riden it); it sure looked like a suffer-fest from my window.

Congrats to you for completing it!

 

Ya, I'll post a ride here and I'm sure they'll be a few interested. Might even get someone to be at 4 corners to supply us with water and things. Stay tuned, it could be sooner than later. As long as the forecast isn't too hot. Would have to shuttle as well. A car a Black Star and a car at the finish.

So you found the hidden message. :clap: I also want to thank all the volunteers for the great job they did. :clap::clap::clap:

 

From getting up at 4 and wolfing down the obligatory pre-ride PB sandwich, to Ed's chainstay breaking less than a mile in on Blackstar, to grinding my slow way up so many of the hills on "Pain Divide", to that euphoric feeling of having actually finished...whew, lot's going on during this race! This was my first event of this caliber, which was rewarding and enlightening in the same breath. I know what worked to get ready, what didn't, and what to change for next time. Which there will definitely be!
Enjoyed riding the long climbs along main divide with xhuskr; always nice to talk beer while you're riding, gets the mind off the brutal climb coming up.
Can't wait for next time!

 

A few of us are already thinking Traverse Re-run sometime at the end of summer. I'll be posting it so stay tuned.

 

Hmmmm... [-X tell you what Gene, let's wait until next year! ... there are just so many prettier places to ride nearby and not enough time as it is.

OMR

 

I hear ya. There's an interest though from some who didn't ride it and some that did. We'll see though, but I'll check dates so it doesn't conflict with some other big event. It won't be till later this year and that all depends on if we get rain by then.

 

i'm in when it happens

 

You didn't get enough pain the first time??? :lol:

OMR

 

i'll buy u a pint next time you're in Seal Beach, eh?! Or I can pour you a homebrew!:bang:

 

Better the VQ, at Night!!!

 

Steven,

At this point, I can probably barely do Blackstar to the top of 4 Corners....that'll be a challenge. Let me know when you guys plan the night ride. I might be up for it, not the whole thing but parts of it.

 

Ya, thanks for pointing it out.