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| Ore 2 Shore 48 Mile Women's Overall Champions |
Year
One – 2013: My fist harrowing attempt at this arduous 48 mile Mountain
Bike race in the Upper Peninsula. As it
was only my 3rd year Mountain Biking, I probably should have started with the shorter
28 miler. Like my dad always says, “Go
big or Sleep in the Streets.” I was
almost sleeping in the woods after this one.
That year the group I was in
got stuck at the railroad crossing because of a train. Then I crashed and
my handlebar nearly poked my eye out. I
was seeing stars and knew it would only be a matter of time until my eye would
swell shut. Do I go on or call it? Figured it would be a game to see if I could
make it to the finish before losing an eye. I took a few minutes and shook it off as my
legs felt good and got back on my way.
Later in the race I got a flat
tire, a trail angel helped me with a CO2 cartridge. I was able to ride a
bit further but the gash wasn't sealing. I made it to the top of the
Country Road 510 climb where a spectator had a pump. I pumped it back up
and continued on. But another couple of miles and the tire was flat
again. (!*^%&!#) I started my march to the next aid station,
ready to pull myself from the race. After hiking about a mile another guy
tossed his hand pump at me. I proceeded to pump the tire up and ride as
far as I could, then pump it up again about every mile for the last 14
miles. I crossed the line just shy of 4 hours with a flat tire, one
eye open and a group of medics waiting for me at the finish.
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| Photo Cred: Kari Lewis Scheppman |
Year
Two – 2014: I was out for the entire season with a shoulder
injury.
Year
Three – 2015: As I didn’t have anyone to go with, I didn’t race that
year.
Year
Four – 2016: I made
my return attempt for redemption only to be thwarted by another early
crash. I was thrown into a fence, then run over by a few people. I
suffered a minor injury on my arm, nothing to stop me from pedaling, but my
shifter had fallen off. I slow rolled to the closest aid station and was
able to get it fixed.
Because of strong legs, I once
again began to plow through the masses. With about 16 miles left ……..
another flat. C’mon Man, Really, Aaaaaaahhhhhh! I was
so upset that I smashed my camelback on ground.
With furiously shaky hands I unzipped the pouch, grabbed the CO2 and
shot it into the tire. Because the puncture sealed up this time around, I
put my camelback on to start again…… only to have the water leak all over
me. The nozzel had busted off from the impact when I threw it. I started to
hyperventilate from the the rage I was feeling.
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| 2016 Heartbreaking for me, thankfully my honey was waiting at the finish |
Year
Five – 2017:
The goal was
to make it through the entire race without a crash or mechanical so I played it
super safe the entire race and ended up 3rd overall.
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| Broken Spoke Racing Team |
Year
Six – 2018: I was gunning for a first place finish as I felt
I'd finally figured out how to race this one.
As it turned out, I believe
that was one of the most exciting races of my career!
Emma Swartz and I battled it
out for the majority of the race. She grabbed hold of me a few miles in
and asked if we were in the lead. I didn't think we were as I thought I
had seen Lindsey Kriete up ahead. So the entire time we were working
together, pushing the pace, making moves, trying to get our group to catch the
pack in front of us in effort to close the gap on Lindsey.
With 15 or so miles to go we
passed who we thought was Lindsey only to find that it was a man in the same
kit. We knew then that we were in a race for first!
I started to make
attacks. It was an epic battle for a few miles. We were in a strong
group of about 20 riders clipping at over 20mph when I rolled over a stone and
my butt hit the back of my saddle causing it to jack knife up. I tried to
push the seat down while pedaling so I wouldn't lose the group but it wouldn’t
go down. I tried to just ride standing but it was too much. I
stopped to try and get it to go down but couldn't. I had lost the
group. Another equipment snafu.
(*^#%)
I did what I could and came across
a couple of volunteer firefighters. I pulled over and asked one to punch the
seat as hard as he could. One hit and the seat was back in line, my hero……..
I was on my way!
But the damage had already been
done. I was on my own for the last 10 miles, still giving it everything I
had because there was a slim hope that Emma would get dropped and maybe I'd be
able to catch her. She is such a strong rider that she never got dropped
and won the race. I was able to hold a respectable 2nd place overall.
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| Few of My Besties - Kristina Navarro, Katie Kimberling, Me, Mary Penta |
Year
Seven – 2019: This year was the
year to crack the curse. This is the race I have been training for all
year.
I normally mark riders at the
start but it's really hard when there are 800 people lined up. It’s tough
to keep an eye out for your mark after the gun goes off, as you need to watch
out for the mayhem that is going on around you. Early crashes are very common
in the mass-start races. Adrenaline is
running high, people are energized and challenging for good positions.
I've learned to ride aggressively
and defensively at the beginning. You need to burn a big match at the
beginning in effort to link with the fastest group of guys you can, while also giving
a wheel in case there is a crash in front of you.
Consequently, I do not hug
wheels early in the race, I try to keep enough of a gap that I can respond when
things go wrong. We hadn't even gotten off the wide open road section
when a multi person crash happened right in front of me. I quickly yelled
out, "riders down," and "Slowing" as I tapped the brakes and
maneuvered around the pileup. The thing is, when you've got to slow or stop for
a crash, a major threat is from the masses at full speed behind you.
You've got to be paying close attention, quick to respond….. and loudly.
Once we turned into the first
section of jeep trail we were in 2 single file lines. It’s still very early in the race, people are
jacked up and make stupid moves in efforts to overtake riders. Sure enough there was another multi guy crash
right in front of me. Yet again, I was
able to carefully make my way past them a second time.
Once the race spreads out a bit
is when I start to hold tight to wheels. Drafting is key when going for a
podium finish. I latched onto a group that was much stronger than me but
was able to hold on thanks to the draft until we hit the deep sand. The
draft advantage is gone when in the sand and the stronger, heavier men are able
to grip and plow forward. They dropped
me as if I'd stopped for a snack break.
Out of the sand and I was alone.
Rather than attempting to catch
them, I sat up and waited for the next group to pick me up. It's
important to save your energy so that you can grab hold of the next train that
rolls through. I jumped on the passing train and was pushing hard.
Before Misery Hill a few
spectators said I was first lady and I felt that I didn't need to make any
crazy moves to hold the lead. I played it cool for the entire sketchy section
which is full of off camber descents, pot holes hidden by grass, sharp rock
features and a few hike a bike climbs. There was a group of 4 of us
working together once we hit the road section and were able to bridge the gap
to a group in front of us. There was also a few behind us that caught on
so there was a solid party of about 20 of us heading up the County 510 Bridge.
At about Mile 32 we take a
right hand turn back into the jeep trails, it’s sweeping downhills, fast flats,
single track, a couple of sand pits …….and all sorts of fun from there.
The weather was a perfect 75
and sunny, couldn't have been better. Conditions were as usual, a few big
water holes in the beginning followed by dust and sand so that you always look
like burnt toast at the finish.
I’d turned the final corner on
the road section and was greeted by cheering spectators. I slowed down to bask in it, slapping hands
and smiling as I rolled past the finish line FIRST! 7 Years in the making for this win, for THAT
MOMENT.
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| When a Dream is Finally Realized |
Training:
I've been training for the XC
Marathon style races specifically this year so I do a lot of long days on the
Mountain Bike during the weekends and interval sessions during the week.
New this year: I hired a strength coach named Ethan Urban from the Princeton
Club in Madison. We do a day of heavy lifting and a day of balance each
week. This has been a game changer for me. I'm climbing faster and
with less fatigue than ever before.
Nutrition:
I use Hammer Nutrition products
for fuel in every training session, ride or race. For this race I had two
big bottles full of water and Heed to keep my hydrated, full of electrolytes
and calories. I also took a Vanilla Hammer Gel every 35 minutes.
They are quick and you don't have to waste energy on chewing. I also took
to cups of water at every aid station. After the race I had a scoop of
Hammer Whey Protein and a scoop of Recoverite in a shaker bottle in my drop bag
so that I could fill it up with water and take it down immediately after the
race. I Never Ever Ever skip a recovery
shake.
Equipment:
I go with my Specialized S
Works Hardtail for smoother races like this one. It's light, nimble,
responsive, pretty and FAST. Fastest bike I've ever ridden. Weighs
only 19.6 lbs. I race for Broken Spoke Bikes in Green Bay
Wisconsin. They became a Specialized dealer last fall so I've also got an
S Works Epic full suspension as well and I'll be getting the Fat Boy Fat
bike. I am swimming in the Specialized kool aid.
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| Specialized is Especially Fast! |
Team:
Want to Thank my sponsors,
teammates and everyone that has been supporting me in this intense journey over
the years. www.brokenspokebikes.com www.hammernutrition.com
www.princetonclub.com
Fall
Racing Action:
I was very pleased to start my
fall season off at the Ore 2 Shore with a win. I am planning to race at
the Dakota 50, Chequamegon 40, Oz Trails Off-Road 50, Margi Gesick 50, Founders
Peak2Peak and the Iceman Cometh.
I'd like to continue advocating
for separate starts for the females. Mass starts are fun but the races
would be much closer and more tactical if we had our own start. We
wouldn't be able to pin it like we do and rely on men for help. After the
start this year I didn't even see another woman. It felt more like a super-fast
group ride. If we were able to start on our own there wouldn't have a
woman or two just disappearing off the front. We'd need to work more among
ourselves. This is why I am excited about the Chequamegon 40, Oz Trails Off-Road
and The Iceman Cometh. Nothing will make you push as hard as you can then
seeing a group of pony tails driving the pace.
I was even able to get the Fat
Bike Birkie to commit to a separate start for the females in 2020. Hoping
one day the Ore 2 Shore will consider this style as well.
www.birkie.com/bike/events/fat-bike-birkie/
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| Photo Cred: Jack Kunnen |
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| Photo Cred: Steve Lindburg |
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| Photo Cred: Shawn Tyrrell |
