Last October, I signed up for the 2008 Warrior’s Society Counting Coup. It’s a 44 mile mountain bike race with a bit over 8000 feet of elevation gain.
So after a a few months of limited training due to fires, forest closures and above average rainfall, March 1st came faster than I would have liked.
My day started at 3:23AM. The alarm was set for 3:30AM, but for some reason, I just woke up. Maybe it was the anxiety? They say you are supposed to eat a few hours before a race to allow food to digest. So down goes two servings of Trader Joe’s Organic Instant Oatmeal w/ Flaxseed, along with a peanut butter sandwich and a banana.
By 4:15AM, I’m on the road and I’m on my way to Blackstar where the race begins. The drive was pretty uneventful until I almost took the wrong freeway. There was a moment in time where I thought I was supposed to take the 241S from the 133 instead of the 241N. Call it a brain fart - or maybe my mind was just foggy from being up so early.
I get there and start getting the bike ready along with the rest of my gear. The opening ceremonies start and a speech was given about challenging ourselves, and I realize that what he said was true. We don’t challenge ourselves enough.
At 5:30AM, the race begins. The faster guys and gals take off like a bullet. I hang in the back where I belong.
The initial climb up Blackstar was dark and foggy. The mist would help fog up my glasses as well, so seeing more than 20ft ahead was tough. I think that did help flatten out the hills slightly, since I couldn’t see what was coming up.
By the time we got to the Main Divide, we started to climb above the fog, and the view was absolutely gorgeous. Sunny with an ocean of clouds around you, with a few mountain peaks poking above the clouds.
I got to the first checkpoint at the bottom of Motorway at 8:23AM. If you don’t make it there by 9:30AM, they don’t allow you to continue.. After refilling the hydration pack and mixing a new bottle of Perpetuem, I started up Maple Springs. I got to the 2nd checkpoint at Four Corners at 10:11AM, which is the last and final cutoff (11:30AM) for Counting Coup.
I got a second wind and was able to pick up the pace a bit on the final climb up to the peak. I kept looking at the antennas and thinking to myself that it’s not much farther now. When I finally reached the peak, I was glad that the majority of the climbing was over.
I started the long descent down Upper and Lower Holy Jim. My back started to stiffen up and my hands were getting sore - but it sure did beat climbing.
I trip the finish line at 6:38, good enough for 49th out of 150. My actual roll time was 6:22 and I had only stopped and rested for 16 minutes total. Being on the bike that long continuously isn’t very comfortable. I had to keep reminding myself that I liked to ride bikes.
Regardless, I’ll be back next year. I will challenge myself again. Perhaps Vision Quest will be on my calendar next year.
