Georgia State Championship Race # 6 -Columbus

Finally GSC-6, the hometown race. After all this riding/training and riding around GA we finally got to race at home. It was a great feeling to wake up at 7:30am and cruise my way over to the race venue 10 minutes away from home. Won’t describe the course since you all should know it well. Besides Ft. Yargo probably the fastest course in the series.

We all knew (even the buzz online) the Start would be crucial to this race as it bottlenecks into the woods only 300 ft or so after the Start, not to mention the 180 degree turn around the Oak tree. I had my plan(s) for that turn, 1. If I got stuck on the inside I would unclip my inside foot, spin my bike around and take off again or 2. Go around the outside and slingshot w/o losing speed. All depending on how the Start actually panned out.. So my cat. is up on the road itching to line up because there are so many of us and so little space. Everyone is edging in as the time gets closer and I decide I must do something to guarantee a front row spot. Bruce (announcer) calls ten seconds on the cat ahead of us and I start counting down, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4 ...Go! I jump the field rolling down the grassy knoll, lining up just as the whistle is going off for the other category – by that time everyone’s to busy looking at the race start to say anything and I find myself smack in the middle of the Start line by myself with everyone racing up alongside me. Perfect! I was psyched! I was sooo worried about getting stuck in the back row.
Now the hard part, getting into the woods in a good spot. Bruce gives the whistle and I bolt with everyone but what happens is everyone gets up to speed and then coasts as they approach the 180 degree turn. I didn’t. I pedaled a little longer getting myself ahead of the pack, put a little brake on to make the turn and bolt again in second place to the woods. Perfect, again! I just couldn’t believe the start went so well. Thinking I am behind Kolszak, the guy leading our series, I worry about keeping his tail in sight long enough to secure my podium position. To my surprise he just takes it easy thru the woods so once I recover from the starting effort I decide I need to pass. If I am going to do well I need to use the woods to my advantage. I gear down and wait for the rock slap in the Orange Loop to come up. I step on it passing who I find out was Tim Z., another very fast guy but not the one I thought was there. Now I pick up the pace and he matches it. In the switchbacks I see there is no one else behind us for a little bit so it’s all about dropping this guy – which is not easy. I attack several times in tight sections until midway thru the course I break away slightly from him. Now he has to find his own line, not use mine...and that’s a good thing for me. I never see him again.
Now I go into “someone’s gonna catch me” mode. I start attacking everything I can to build some time between those riders I know can usually outlast me and catch me towards the end of the race. Everything goes well from there I am pleased to say...well, maybe not everything. I tried to pass a guy in the tight orange section (2nd lap) but he doesn’t tell me when to pass, he just moves over and drags me with him making me wreck. I got up, put the chain back on and on my way I go. Got to some open areas and looked back every time but couldn’t see anyone behind me (from my category) so I started to slow down slightly so I could recover from each effort instead of riding max’d out constantly. That remained the case the remainder of the race.




If I have anything I wish happened differently it would be the rock garden. I pre-rode that technical climb 3 times and made it up every time. Then on race day lap 1 I clip a root and have to dismount before even hitting the steep climb and lap 2 my hand bumps my front der. lever and drops me down to the granny gear just as I hit the right turn losing momentum dismounting again.

So I made it to the finish line for the first time in 1st place. Great feeling, weird feeling. I usually spend the next few minutes after the race trying to figure out how many people were in front of me yet this time I had nothing to do but wait for my goodie bag. I had a blast. Thanks to all who volunteered and also served as our cheering section at every other corner. It was hard to slow down when we had people screaming our names (and encouragement) what appeared to be constantly. It was so nice to have people around us and know the event was being taken care of w/o us worrying about anything but just to pedal hard. I’ve read nothing but praises online about the course and the volunteer effort – great job!
Many other locals raced and surprised themselves at how well they can ride in the woods. Hope to see more of you out there.

by Jose Mendez

Nicki had a great race too as she slowly wraps up her vacation, I mean season, on the way to EXPERT next year. Way to go Nicki!!! Paul, where were you? You obviously missed the start. See ya next year. Joseph, cool to see you again and awesome top ten finish John Spencer, You’re just fast! 2nd place! Sport next year for you. Jared (BOMB), I am scared. Did anyone see his times? He pulled a Sport-type lap time. Glad he’s a lot younger than I and not racing me. Gabe Jr., It happens in the best of families. Hey, what’s an Endo here and there anyway No really, sorry to hear that, I know you would have won your race. Glenn, I was impressed. A busy man who doesn’t get to ride much and still representing.
Dayton, top 5 finish if I recall correctly. Smokin’ Teresa, so you moving up to Expert next year to chase Nicki? Matt W., good to see you complete your goal. Next goal is winning! All roadies who raced, keep on coming out. My boys raced again and both came in 2nd place. They were excited about it but wanted more riding. Now that’s a good problem for a parent to have.




Nicki's perspective
All in all I had a good race. The heat got to me too and I felt like I just didn’t have the energy level I was hoping for. I’m sure that some of it had to do with the fact that I feel like my legs haven’t quite recovered from racing 3 weeks in a row, and some with the fact that I had not gotten enough sleep during the week and was up between 4 and 5am due to being on call (being on call during a race week always stinks!). Grandma needs her sleep! =)
Racing at home definitely has its advantages and it shows. We know the turns and terrain and your body almost my instinct knows which way to lean, what’s coming up and what to prepare for (of course, that didn’t keep me from taking a hit twice!). But it also adds additional pressure because you feel like you should do better for the exact same reasons.
For me however, it feels like my home trail is also my Achilles heal! This year, although cramps started to set in a little later in the race than last year, the end result was the same. My legs locked up at the EXACT same spot as last year. Sigh… I want to give a HUGE thank you to the two sport guys that were right behind me who helped clear my rigid carcass from the trail so that riders could get by. You have to love it when someone comes hammering by screaming “clear the trail” and you are thinking to yourself “if I could move, do you think I’d be laying here?”
Thankfully, I was able to finish the race after much pain and agony which continued once I crossed the finish line. Of course, I really wanted to hide somewhere after the embarrassment of apparently causing some folks a scare again with the pre-mature calls for an EMT.



Joseph's Take on the race

off the line i was fourth into the woods. i held this spot, staying in the big ring, through the entire wooded section and out into the short track area. i passed a guy, third now. then someone passed me. fourth again. about halfway through this lap i realized i only had half a water bottle left from my warm up. i never switched bottles!!! continuing around the lake and on new trail i thought to myself, this place looks great. i'm sorry i wasn't able to help with the new trail. i crossed the rock section boldly, as the guy behind me sort of rattled his way across it. into the woods and back to the final straightaway i dropped down to about 7th or 8th place. as i came charging through with a guy on my wheel i reached for a cold new full water bottle and only managed to slap it out of darcy's hand. the water bottle flies to the ground, screeching halt, trackstand, she picks it up and hands it to me. two riders pass by. my second trip through the uphill rock garden was better than my first, i dismounted (think cyclocross) and ran all the way to the open trail again and hopped back up to my pedals. i passed one rider here. i began hydrating every second i could and found myself on the wheel of a pro woman rider. i did my best to stay on her wheel through the end of the lap. this kept me moving faster. i pretty much followed her and traded places a couple times with the pro woman through the rest of the lap.

climbing through "my trail" as barry called it was a very humbling experience. when i reached the final straightaway all i could do was pass a 30-39 rider. no 19-29 sport guys were in the way, or i would have surely passed them. big ringing it along the way i felt the great satisfaction of racing on a great trail in my hometown. i'd been cheered on by roadies and mountain bikers, old friends of mine, and been cheered with "go columbus!!" i crossed the line in 7th. about 6 spots lower than i'd been hoping for. but i had water bottle tragedies and general inexperience riding in the 106 degree heat (i'm used to upper 70's lower 80's... come ride in boone!!!) as a weak excuse. i'm happy, though, with my finish, and very happy about the day.


Results from our local riders were numerous and stellar.

Nicki Sutherland – First, Sport Women
Teresa Bruce – Second, Sport Women
Jose Mendez – First, Sport Men, 30-39
Glenn Kalnins – Fourteenth, Sport Men, 30-39
Dayton Preston – Fourth, Sport Men, 30-39
Jared Alderson – Fifth, Beginner Men, 20-29
Joseph Grimes – Seventh, Sport Men, 20-29
John Spencer – Second, Beginner Men, 30-39
Gabe Denes, Jr – Junior Men, DNF due to a technical problem from a crash

GSC 5 - Chattsworth

GSC 5 - Chattsworth

An overwritten and pitiful race recap for me. By Jose Mendez


GSC 5 proved to be the toughest race I have done yet in my 2 years racing. The course wasn’t technical in the sense that you were making 4 ft drops but more the fact you were going downhill for about 15 minutes straight thru loose and jagged rocks – VERY FAST. For reference the trail cleared up in one section and I hit 39.5mph!!! Once you hit the absolute bottom of the mountain you climbed it all back w/o a break taking about 30 minutes. The climbs were viciously steep in many parts and loose rock beds in many others.

So we first line up at the bottom of a 1/2 mile road climb. Being a 9:30am start kept me from warming up well since I have the boys’ races to deal with right before then. Bruce continuously reminds everyone at the start that this is a VERY dangerous trail using this line many times ....” if you don’t have SKILLS walk away, you should not be on this trail”. So that said, we take off up the only truly smooth part of the course – the road. I get to the top in probably 7th place and into the woods we go. Feeling OK but worried that we will be hitting the real downhill in about 1.5 miles. I think I got passed by one or two before then on a short steep climb then we make it to the road crossing where the volunteers are yelling “downhill, downhill!!” and there it is. We head into the woods again and it’s down into the depths of he11 from there, literally. Steep downhill switchbacks for the next 10-12 minutes – the trail was about 4 ft wide but you did not want to veer off more than 6 inches from the main line or “bite it”. Not that the main line was clean. Jagged rocks imbedded in the trail and loose ones that have been kicked up just laying around. Then some areas were just loose 4 to 6” rock beds that you had to hope you did not flat or crash on. My hands were getting weak from just hanging on and feathering the brakes most of the time. Then just before we hit bottom it clears up a little and we have about .5 mile of incredibly fast SS where my computer marked me at 39.5mph (though I think that was on my second lap, since I was following people on the first) when finally we hit bottom. So what from here you ask? Well, you climb it all back in one long effort! No rolling climbs, no flats to recover, just one long 30 minute climb. Some areas were literally unrideable as they were just the side of a cliff were they managed to a squeeze in a few switchback to get you over it. Horrible pain as you climb those next to a beautiful soft waterfall on your left. I really just wanted to sit and look at it at that point. My legs just gave out – I blew up and just crawled my way walking out of there for what appeared to be an eternity. Got back on my bike and rolled for a bit then walked for a bit, then rolled then walked...get the picture? My mind won over my body and I decided to quit, yes DNF, the race. I told myself that when I made it back to the finish after the first lap I was pulling off, quitting and licking my wounds (none physical thankfully). As this is happening of course I am losing positions constantly. I thought myself to be a decent climber until yesterday.
For some reason once I hit the road climb again heading to the finish line – for lap one – I recovered and managed to convince myself to roll on. I felt much better by then and was (what I thought was) flying thru the trail hitting the downhills hard and even passing people on my way down. Got to the fast SS and that’s when I just let go of the brakes. I had put “grippier” tires on my bike for this race (why you ask, well because I was scared!!) so I knew they’d hold better in the corners and at high speed. There I believe I hit my top speed for the race 39.5mph!!! Probably the fastest speed I’ve ever done in a race.
Well but then I hit bottom again. Hmmm, I guess I have to climb out, AGAIN! With more mental strength and physical strength this time around I managed to ride much more of the climb only getting of for the truly steep and loose rock bed areas where it’s faster just to walk it. I probably took a little longer but I was going MY pace which kept me going OK, instead of chasing people. On one of my walks I came up on another walker who begins to tell me he had just slid out and broke his elbow (yeah, one of many casualties) after landing on a rock. After making sure he was “OK” I kept going – he was just going to walk back out and deal with his injury, but OK overall.
I kept climbing and passed one rider in my class and I believe one more rider on the final road climb. Then finally!!! The finish line. I have never been so glad to finish a race.
Final thoughts – 1. I need to train more in the mountains. We just don’t get 3 miles on trail climbing here in Columbus and you could tell the mountain goats from the rest of us. 2. Mind is over matter and 3. Add 1 teaspoon of salt into your drink. It WILL keep the cramps away...at least for me. This is my second race doing it and Zero cramps. Before then I could guarantee cramps. BTW, I read that on-line somewhere while researching cramps.
Great race. Big ups and downs in many ways. Glad it’s over.
Nicki tells me I ended up 14th and 25 of us started, not sure how many finished. This year’s group of Sport 30-39 racers it stacked, fast and plenty of them.
My boys raced and came in...
Samuel – 1st
Gabriel - 2nd


Nicki's take on the Chattsworth race.

I pretty much felt the same; however I had 1 HUGE advantage over Jose… I was ALONE! Nobody else in my class was apparently brave (or stupid) enough to come and race this trail. So there was no pressure on me, and I decided at the starts that I was just going to ride conservatively and not get hurt.

Generally speaking, I live for the downhill descents, but on this trail, there really wasn’t much room for error if you lost control of your speed. While letting go of my brakes, I would hammer down the sections, rocks kicking up against my bike (haven’t actually checked for damage yet) throwing me around as if I was holding a jack hammer. To add to the “excitement” they had these sharp switchback turns at the bottom of each downhill section, that you COULD NOT overshoot or you would find yourself off the side of the mountain, “hopefully” landing at the next section of switch back downhill.
My hands started to ache and I was switching between trigger fingers and when I could, not using the brakes at all.
As Jose mentioned, there was ONE nice clear, smooth section of trail where you could let go of the breaks and enjoy the speed.
But then the brief moment of joy was sucked out of you as you took a sharp right and the climbing started.

We do not exaggerate when we say there were no relief points. Whatever breaks you got where merely inclines of fewer rocks than the others. I fought it for a while, but after having to fight one rock after another, and another and another and looking ahead and seeing no end to it just more uneven road of UP UP UP, I allowed it to claim my mental fight and I dismounted. Even walking was hard. I attempted to run a few times, but then thought there was no need to twist my ankle, so I would walk, change sides, walk some more, hoping I would get to a spot eventually to get back on my bike. Ah, yes, now is good… a few more pedal strokes and dismount, walk, walk, push, hang over the bike, wipe the sweet draining from my face, look down at watch, heart rate 189, maybe I should rest for a bit. This is not a biking trail! This is not even a HIKING trail! Whose sick idea was this? I actually stopped to enjoy the scenery from time to time. I figured it was going to be a long ride, I mean WALK, to the top, so I might as well try to recover when I could. I watched as some pro/experts even pushed their bikes up the one section of switch back climbs. Could any body have ACTUALLY biked up there?

Before I hit the road, I had all but talked myself out of the ability to continue and do one more lap. But I felt like that would be terrible! I had no excuses to NOT finish… I always promise myself that I will finish no matter what, and I didn’t even have anybody chasing me. So I didn’t care if I had to walk the rest of this course, I WOULD FINISH IT!

Once I hit the road, I felt fine and my legs felt strong going up the road. It made you realize how much energy was being sucked out of you trying to go over the uneven terrain. By the time I entered for the second lap, I was feeling a little more positive, but once I took the right to start climbing, that enthusiasm came to a screeching halt again.

2 miles from the finish, I got passed by the 2 pro girls. They were finishing up their last lap (one more than me) as I was still convincing my legs to keep walking. I hopped on my bike and tried to follow them for a while, but with no recovery spots, I had to back off, and give in to dismounting my bike again one last time.

I can’t remember walking my bike this much since the first year I rode Carter’s Lake up near Ellijay, my first year racing as a beginner. This course is evil! Maybe next year I will offer to volunteer instead, so I can stand and watch how the pro men do it and be amazed and re-inspired.
This course is truly a reality check!

Ok, I’m exhausted again just thinking about it!
BUT, at least it is over, and another race down, 4 more to go.

A REAL Southern Girl Wins Again!!

Nicki Sutherland is the ultimate southern lady. Not only does she live in Columbus, Georgia in the heart of the south, She is originally from South Africa. (That is really south!) Nicki has dominated the Sport women's class this year and may move to expert next year.


BUMP & GRIND
Paul's Single Speed take on the race.....I think I got 17th out of 25 single speeders. Man there was a bunch of
them, our category had all ages and classes combined. I ran a 32X17, I think I could have pushed a 32X16 to help from spinning out on the flat sections but really would have paid on the climb up the mtn. I had to
dismount right before the bridge and walked for about 15 or so feet. I just couldn't turn the cranks.....

I think most guys were riding 29er's but feel the way to go was 26er, those 29er's didn't seem to handle well in the tight stuff due to their longish wheelbase. I had a good time and the cramps didn't show up until mile 11....I forgot to take my pills.

Nicki's write up....I had a good race. I was very excited. At the start, there was a girl that dashed off faster than jack flash, and I tried to keep up with her for a bit, and then was like "no point in blowing myself up, it's a long race!" I was able to catch up with her at that first section of the woods after we got off the road, and then once I passed her I didn't see her again...thankfully. My goal for this race is always to get to the bottom of the climb up the mountain as fast as I can so that I have distance and time between me and the other rides in case I just can't keep cranking. I felt like I had a good climb up the mountain.. It was painful, but it seemed to go by a lot faster than I was expecting. Maybe it's because I was expecting another feed zone at the top and after the feed zone before the bridge, I kept looking for more people, and they never came. Then all of a
sudden, I was at the top and I was like "THANK YOU!"...

After that, I just wanted to stay focused, not make mistakes and enjoy the ride. I find that pushing the 2 miles down that fire road after the climb can be painful too from time to time. once you dip into the downhill section toward blood rock, that's really when the fun starts. I cleared blood rock and that gave me a boost to roll through the rest of that fast section with more confidence.

I finished first, just behind 1 of the girls that started in the age group ahead of us. When I came up on her, I tried to catch her, but she was pretty fast through the woods and I wasn't able to close the distance. 1:24...I only started to feel a few twinges of cramping toward the last mile and 1/2, and only on those last few climbs, so I feel like that was a good thing.




GSC#3 - Fort Yargo, GA 04/29/2007
Today we had perfect racing conditions. Finally some warm weather (which we may not be so thankful for come mid summer) and a perfectly dry trail. I was feeling a little shaky before the start of the race. Not the nervous shaky, but the low-blood sugar shaky. I don't know if it was because I didn't eat enough pre-race, or maybe the sudden heat was draining me more than I realize. Either way, after GO, I tried to get myself motivated to get out of the starting blocks and first into the woods. I was being closely tailed by Emily (the girl in 2nd) which was a huge motivator to keep me pushing and not back off. After about 3 miles, I couldn't hold the pace and had to back off and allow Emily to pass. I recovered and continued to push myself to at least keep her in sight. This paid off as 2 miles from the end of the first lap, I was able to pass her again on a climb. Again, she remained right behind me. We chase into the start of the second lap, and I slow down to feed, at which point, she takes the opportunity to pass. I got back into rhythm, and tried to not let her get away from me too much. About 5 miles into the second lap, I came up on her again, managed to pass, and somehow managed to push past and never saw her again. It was a good race with the two of us challenging each other the whole way.

more results:
Jose came in 8th
Gabriel came in 2nd
Samuel came in 2nd
Gabe D junior came in 2nd.

good day for all! =)