Week #23 - 511 miles
This past weekend was something special! It was my fourth time racing in Emporia and my third finish. There have been some low points and some very high points. The 2018 Dirty Kanza 200 was a roller coaster of emotions for me. Luckily I was able to come away with a very good experience and a podium place. 2019 things went horribly wrong all day and then ended at mile 173.
This year at Unbound Gravel XL there was a different objective and that was to make sure I completed the course. Since it was only 6 weeks after Iowa Wind and Rock, there was just enough time to recover and prepare for the 356+ miles of Flint Hills. I have been in athletics all of my life and I have to say that I am as proud of this race as any of my other achievements. This course was hand down the hardest thing I have ever done. We were lucky that lots of roads had dried some or we would had been walking forever.
We started out at 3pm on Friday and headed north with a tailwind. I knew the pace would be fast but didn't really think that I would get dropped by the front pack if I was going 20mph, but I did. Mat Stephens and I rode together through the first 80 miles together before I hit a mud hole wrong and went down. By the time I got to Alma (around 119 miles), I had worked my way into the top ten overall. Mat rolled out of the C-Store first and I was with three other strong riders. We were working well together, but around 160ish miles I going through a little rough patch and lost their wheel.
Luckily when I got to Council Grove (mile 218ish) Lael Wilcox and Dave Hasse rolled up to the C-Store as I was about ready to leave. This was great now to have folks to ride with and two very strong ultra cyclists. Lael had won the women's XL in 2019 and I have raced against Dave many times. He was 2nd overall at Iowa Wind and Rock this year.
Dave and I kept taking turns helping Lael for the next 140 miles. To me this was the best part of the whole experience. It didn't really matter to me what place I came in, the goal was to finish. By helping out Lael get her second title, was icing on the cake. As we got close to Americus (mile 345ish) I thought we could probably break 27 hours but we would have to push hard. The rest of the course was fairly flat but straight into the headwind. I asked Lael if she wanted to see if we could make it, she thought for a second and then said "let's go for it". The last 10+ miles turned into the hardest effort of the whole race, but we all three came in under 27 hours.
Beside a couple small wrecks, I didn't have any mechanical the entire time. The new Lauf handled great, but needs a bath. I was really pleased with my LightandMotion Lights. There were so many tricky descents on this course, but I had no problem seeing all night. Also a big shout out to Cantu Cycling Wheels, Panaracer and Move Up Off Road for being such great sponsors.
I have one more "ultra" race this year - Gravel Worlds 2021 - The Long Voyage (300+ miles) in August. This will be the first year for this distance, so I will be one of the first people to attempt to complete all three races in one year.
Last and not least, it was really good to see everyone again. This is what makes gravel racing so special!
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