Catchin' Up

 So much fun to be had, so little time.

Last week was my 9th consecutive Pisgah Stage Race.  And I missed two days.  With Todd's no DNF rule, I still managed a 10th out of 11 single speeders.

I took it easy on stage 1 and scored an 8th or 9th place.  I wasn't concerned.   I knew that was going to miss Thursday and Friday, so I wasn't going for it.  I decided to just enjoy the ride.  No regrets.

Stage 2, the bottom 9 single speeders tried to have a neutral roll out, but that became difficult on the 6 mile road ride to the first single track.  I tried to keep a moderate pace, but when geared wheels went by, offering a good draft,  I had to take it.

13 miles into the stage, I cam across a racer sitting next to the trail nursing a dislocated ankle.  I borrowed a phone from another racer and called the race director then 911, giving them the exact location of the injured guy. In the 7.5 minutes it took to make the calls, most of the other single speeders caught up to me.  I think at the end of the day, with the time adjustment, I scored a 4th place. But, I'm not really worried about that.

Thursday and Friday, I found myself suffering in the trenches with a shovel, struggling with the emotions of being a kid stuck in a grown up life.   The contractor was available, and in this growing down,  you can't ask them to wait, or it might be another month before they can get to you.   I kept telling myself it will be worth it in the end.... really, it will.

I was really excited about this year's race because I had just gotten this little camper built up.  Still have some finishing to do, but with 3 bunks and room to sit and play cards,  I'm hoping this will get us out of the house more this summer.

I bought the aluminum shell and built the rest to create a lightweight slide in camper.  I need a couple more windows, and ac/heat window unit and a couple of other minor things.  Staying in Brevard made a huge difference in my race.

As soon as I hear the dates, I'm going to make reservations for next year's Stage Race!

 I made it back out to Brevard on Friday night.  As I said before, it is so nice to wake up, have coffee and head to the venue 10 minutes down the road, rather than drive 45 minutes......

Stage 5, I hid in the middle of the pack and then worked up towards the front of the race.  Within a mile, the single speed leader slid out and I was momentarily in 1st place.   Of course it didn't last long.  I settled in to my pace.  My goal today was to beat Markley.  A super cool guy from Ohio, who has done quite a bit of self supported endurance racing.  He has a strong steady pace.  We rode together a couple of days.  Not today, I was in front and as much as I wanted to slow down and hang out,  I felt like I needed to prove something to myself.

I went for it, to my limit and finished the day in 4th place,  45 seconds behind 3rd!   

Before the race, I was pretty discouraged about my "training".  Due to life, it had been inconsistent, and, well, I didn't think I had it in me.  Apparently I was wrong.  I was thinking this would be my last, but I had so much fun this year....  I'll be back until Todd tells me to leave!!