Just some thoughts and experiences from a mountain bike endurance racer who likes to ride and race his single speed mountain bike a long long way on remote single track in the mountains and desert.

Thursday, April 15, 2010

1st Place SS Solo, Dawn till Dusk 12 Hour race

The Dawn till Dusk 12 hour race in Gallup NM went well last weekend.  I finished 1st in the single speed solo 0-39 with 10 laps equaling over 124 miles and over 12,000 feet of elevation gain.  There were just under 500 total racers.  This was the first time anyone in the single speed solo category did 10 laps which is the most laps any geared solo racer has historically done as well.  This year 5 single speed solo racers did 10 laps which made it a very competitive and exciting race as we were pushing each other the whole race.  The trail was a bit dusty but overall pretty nice on the sweet spot of the single track but the edges were soft and aggressive cornering was a challenge.  Lap after lap I cornered faster and faster as I became more familiar with the trail and the Schwalbe Racing Ralphs really stuck to the ground well.  My plan was to ride laps consistently and not come out to hard at the beginning.  This put me behind for most of the race but after a hundred miles I passed up my competition with some great lap times.