Race 'em All

The racing spectrum is vast.  If there is an activity done for measure, pleasure, or distraction you can be sure there is a race to be found.  Just this morning I read about a hotly contested points series in stair climb racing.  The pinnacle event being the Empire State Building Stair Race.  Do you enjoy floating a lazy river on a hot summer day?  Yep, you can race it.  How about spending the afternoon with your kids at a petting zoo with the goofy donkeys?  Well, toss a rope around one and race as a duo up and over mountain passes against professional burro racers.  Being that one can race nearly anything, anywhere, anytime, and against other goofballs in tight fitting race garb, finding where you fit in can be a long process.  

It was for me. 

I started racing MTBs in 2013.  I didn’t have a clue of what to do.  Racing at that point meant simply riding as hard as I could until I was finished.  (Note: In the past 12 years I haven’t really pivoted from this strategy.) In the first few years I just raced what was accessible: local, within my confident ride distance, and low barrier to entries and I found success against other newbies taking a pleasurable activity into a passion project.  

Crossing my first Leadville 100 finish line marked a tipping point in my development.  I just raced 100 miles!  I just finished the LEADVILLE 100! Confidence oozed from every pore and I craved the answer to “What’s next?”.  Of course I needed to cross another LT100 finish line and earn the coveted big buckle that I missed by just 15 minutes the year before (2016).  And I did.  8:38.  Whoa.  This 100 mile monster may be a small point of success for my preferred race format.  

It was.  More specifically the 100-Mile Singlespeed Mountain Bike Race would become my domain.  My stair climb race.  My burro.  After crossing the finish line at the 2019 Leadville 100 in 2nd place on my singlespeed I would go on a terror.  I won 11 out of the 12 one-hundred-mile singlespeed races I entered.  Over the next 5 years, I won an additional 26 races, all marathon distance or longer, on my singlespeed including a National Championship.  I’d found my domain.  In my tiny little pond I am the baddest fish with sharpened teeth and smoothly shaved calves.  Come get some.  

But what about the other ponds?  

We can confidently surmise that there is a ripped 60+-year-old racer out there who feels the same about his pond.  (There is.  I know him.)  

So can I swim in other ponds?  Do I want to?  What will it feel like to go backwards in my race results?  I’d climbed this tiny pond mountain with such intense focus that I’m not sure my ego would do well with the inevitable bruises that come with swimming in my neighbor's water for his teeth are sharpened on his specific discipline.  Maybe I should just stay home?  

Stuck on this plateau I pondered a bit about what I wanted to do next.  

Jump.  

I settled on jumping and I found good historical data to help me move from my post.  Eddie Merckx is the winningest bike racer of all time with 525 career victories.  He was the biggest, baddest, sharpest, fiercest shark in the ocean of worldwide bike racing. But… he lost 70% of the professional races he entered.  The baddest shark lost far more than he won.  The baddest shark swam in rivers, lakes, ponds, and backyard pools.  This beast would wrestled many types of races in varied locations all in the pursuit of feeding his hunger to compete.  

I need to harness my inner Merckx.  

So I jumped.  

In the past few years I’ve taken on short-distanced geared races, multi-day stage races, team-format lap races, duo category marathon events, and even a rip across that LT100 monster on a tandem.  This year, as I look forward to sharing the globe with DtD Athletes at events on 4 different continents, started off with 6 events with only 1 common denominator: a mountain bike.  6 events that don’t fit my tiny perfect mold.  6 events that in their differences have offered lessons and opportunities for continued growth in this sport.  

Here they are:

January 18: Ol’ Tucson 10’er

Coed Duo with Abbe.  Geared.

Did you know that race events are fun gatherings of like-minded people enjoying the warm desert in the coldest month of the year?  Well, good for you.  I didn’t.  I thought a January race in the desert was another chance to hammer my legs into oblivion as I sought another top-box podium spot to validate my highly-unorthodox lifestyle.  

Abbe and I look at races through much different lenses.  I’ve peered through hers in the past.  My first couple of years, before I found my pond, races brought more questions than answers and more butterflies than confidences.  We raced as a duo in 2022 at the Breck Epic and our only goal was finishing.  We did.  Now, 3 years later, we are going to compete.  We did.  We were in 1st for a bit, then 2nd, then 1st, then 3rd.  Then we dropped as the hours wore on and as Abbe was finishing her 3rd lap.  I waited expectantly at the transition area.  Caffeine freshly loaded up in my bloodstream and I eyed the chance for my fastest lap of the day.  The minutes ticked by and Abbe’s pace had fallen just enough to give me a second more of thought.  Race rules forbid partners from having a lap delta greater than 2 so if she couldn’t commit to another lap then we’d be disqualified if I punched another lap.  Waiting in that transition area offered a chance to see the light.  I rolled away from the competition hungry racers to my left and right.  I swung around to the final stretch of trail before the timing mat so I could exchange a few words with Abbe before she finished her lap.  When she pulled around the corner she said, “I’m smoked.  That’s it.  I’m done after this.”  Without hesitation I celebrated her and what she’d accomplished.  She pressed me to continue until I explained how we couldn’t have that big of a lap delta.  We’d call it early, before the 10 hour finish line.  We’d have brunch in the van.  We’d make coffee.  We’d walk around the venue.  We’d listen to the live band belting away.  We’d enjoy the warm desert in the coldest month of the year.  

Who knew races could be just one part of long, fun days with one’s wife in the desert?

10th / 27 Coed Duo.

February 15: 24 Hours Old Pueblo

4-Person Singlespeed.  

The text was simple: “Do you want to be on our singlespeed team for 24HOP?  Be clear, we really really take the costumes seriously!” - @Lo.Sendquist

Yep.  

I’ve chased the 24HOP team podium a couple of times.  One year we finished in 5th, a podium finish, after overcoming some broken wheel drama in the wee hours of the night.  With a team packed full of @noridearound heaters we battled for the top spot falling just a bit short for a 2nd place 4-Man Open finish.  Each podium finish delivered a single sandstone coaster showcasing our finishing spot in fields of 100’s of teams.  At this rate I’d need to keep doing this damn event silly to get a complete 4-coaster set.

This didn’t seem like a podium seeking opportunity for a couple of reasons.  One, we were racing as a coed team against the 4-Man-Singlespeed Open division as there is a limit to how many small ponds a race organizer can provide.  4-Person-Coed-Singlespeed must be too long to print on a sandstone coaster.  Before I get canceled for saying that a female on our team means we can’t win, pump the social norm police brakes.  I’m not admitting to this but it is surely an element of the story.  Second, she said its all about the costumes!  Here is a socially accepted fact: turning a MTB race into a Burning Man Costume Contest is not a sure fire way to be at your fastest.  

Taking this into account I went into the 2025 24HOP with a relaxed approach and without a taper.  I rode bikes all week because bikes are fun and are most fun when in a dry desert as your athletes pound away indoor miles in a snowglobed Colorado.  I raced my heavier, full-suspension Trek Supercaliber not because it matched the demands of the course but simply because it limited the amount of bikes I needed to bring to AZ.  I spent more time ensuring I had all of the little pieces to my varied costumes than I did checking the air pressure in my tires.  Simply said, I was having fun.  

We won.

We battled back and forth with a few teams at the top of the category and it was the commitment to our 1-1-1-1 race lap strategy, our commitment to our top-notch costume game, and our commitment to having fun for 24 hours that brought home the masterpiece.  The coveted complete 4-coaster set given only to those on the top box of their respective category!  (Note: I now have 6 coasters which presents a whole new problem.)

Costumes featured:  Cowboy Sheriff, Taylor Swift, Barbie’s Ken, Furry Onesies, Disco Electric Nighttime Fireflies, Macho Man Randy Savage, and a beautiful cross-dressing Taylor Swift.

Who knew having fun first could be a more effective race strategy than 200mg caffeine hitters and an Eminem-heavy playlist? 

1st / 12 4-Person Single Speed

9th / 525 Teams Overall     

February 22: Arizona Endurance Series : Tortolita 50

Open. Geared  

Back-to-back race weekends are a doozy.  Back-to-back race weekend when you weren’t planning on racing because you didn’t know about the event and have already logged 10+ hours on the bike during the week and have no plans on slowing down to taper are a double doozy.  Racing any of the grassroots Endurance Series events in Arizona, Utah, or Colorado on their notoriously difficult, technical, and long courses are a double-dog-doozy-dust up.  

Broox said he’d do it.  Then he couldn’t.  A new AZ-friend said he’d come along.  Then he didn’t.  Committed to the plan I parked my van at the barren parking lot for the early morning start without a clue if anyone else was showing up.  The chat forum had been silent.  Was I about to start a race of 1?  Not so great for competition but could be good for the ego.

People showed up.  About 30 or so.  Fast guys showed up too.  Alex has won the AZ Trail Race (an 800-mile monster event), finished the Tour Divide and the CO Trail Race, and is pursuing the Triple Crown as being the fastest to do all 3 in a single year.  He’s a beast.  Another speedster, SRAM test rider and local Specialized stud who hides himself on Strava as @cookieballs, had speed-hungry components not yet available to the general public.  A smattering of other 150 pound bundles of leg-dominant muscle brought their determined faces to the now full parking lot.  

Years ago I’d be battling insecure thoughts.  I’m not rested.  My bike is heavy.  I’ve never raced this course.  On and on my weaknesses would bubble to the surface.  However, I just learned that I could be fast even as I run the Le Mans start to my singlespeed with toy guns bouncing around my Sheriff Cowboy holsters and blaze around a 17 mile desert lap in the overall Top-10.  Details be damned.  I can pound the pedals. 

So I pounded.  I hung onto Alex’s wheel until his pace faltered.  I bounded up the technical climbs with a hunger for the screaming heat pulsing though my legs.  When my competitors closed the small gap I created I stuck in.  I didn’t let doubt enter my mind.  In the end I met a humbling hill that stole away my 1st place position placing me in No Man’s Land between 1st and 3rd.  Knowing that a race is never over I stayed true to my upper limit and nearly fought back onto Big Bird Bicycle Cafe’s wheel but ran out of real estate.  He reached the unadorned finish line less than a minute ahead of me.  

Damn!  Who knew trusting my strengths and committing to the wheel in front of me could be so motivating?  In the past a rider ahead would fuel my insecurities.  With nothing really on the line I was able to let it fuel my competitive spirit!  

2nd Place.

March 1: BWR Arizona

The Waffle. Geared Age-Group  

Seriously?  A gravel race?  If you’ve read this far into my blog there’s a good chance you’ve also given a listen to an episode or two of the @noridearound Podcast I co-host with Harley.  And if you’ve listened to us enough you’re spinning in your seat as I admit to doing a damn gravel race for I have strong opinions on gravel racing.  Strong opinions about how much I am not into the idea.  Nope.  Not at all.  Not for me.  

So I did the BWR AZ.  The first stop of the Belgian Waffle Ride Series which stands as the premier gravel race series in the US.  Why?  

Why? 

The opportunity came unexpectedly but with an energy I couldn’t ignore.  The timing was oddly appropriate as I’d raced the previous two weekends without a taper and things seemed okay.  Fact is, I’m training for the Cape Epic in mid-March and riding a lot of hard rides is part of my prep program.  A previously scheduled meet-and-ride-and-coffee with the national rep for Haro Bikes preceded Saturday’s BWR.  Aiden offered up his gravel bike for me to use the following day and it was surely better suited to the course than my only other option: a singlespeed belt-driven Spot.  

Want to channel your inner Merckx I asked myself.  Jump on this bike the morning of the event without understanding the tactics for a popular gravel race.  Pop around on the shift levers trying to figure out how the dropper post works without knowing why a gravel bike needs a dropper.  Plug a couple of small pinholes on the tires instead of installing new tires without knowing if they’ll make it to the finish line.  And then… stop thinking.  Stay on the front wheels.  Trust your instincts.  Pound pedals.  And race bikes.  Any bike.  Any race.  

The result?  A bit of crow eaten at the finish line along with the famous waffles.  More specifically a bit of desert dust on the crow on the waffle.  Gravel racing is hard!  Gravel racing is… fun!  Yes.  I said that.

Not nearly as fun as MTB racing.  But it’s fun.  And there wasn’t an MTB race anywhere nearby that weekend.  

4th / 30 Men 40-44

54 / 257 Men Overall

March 16-23: Cape Epic

Master’s Men. Geared  

More on this on the next blog post. 

So amazing.  

Best in the world. 

30th / 220 Master’s Men

April 5-7: Moab Rocks

Pro Men. Geared  

Stage 1: 8th place Pro Men, 10th Overall. 

Stage 2: DNF Mechanical.  Broke the bolt connecting the rear triangle to my frame while sitting in the Top 10 and feeling good.  I proceeded to video my fellow teammates and DtD Athletes who were behind me and then walked to the first aid station as my bike was unrideable, uncoast-able, and flat out wrecked.  Unable to get back to the race start until all competitors (300 or so) passed through Aid 1 I sat down to some free snacks while stuffing extra free snacks into my jersey pocket.  I call this Race Day Grocery Shopping.  

Stage 3: Who cares place as I cobbled together a hardtail singlespeed from the broken bike and set out to enjoy some of the best trails in the world only to realize that opinions are fluid.  Riding these best trails while on an unforgiving singlespeed makes for a bouncy, hard, painful version of said trails.  I went from WooHoo! to I’m never riding this bike in Moab again with alarming speed.  But I smiled.  And raced.  And finished ahead of the other 2 singlespeeders.  Unofficial top-box-podium spots in a field that doesn’t exist can be powerful motivators!    

Who knew that putting time with friends, athletes, environment, and vibe first could be a great way to overcome race setbacks and disaster?  

Don’t get it twisted.  

I still love to win.  The primary purpose of a race is to determine who is the fastest.  Who will win?  That’s the answer we seek when the start gun pops.  However within the race there are many more races.  There are those who raced just to be there and this is already a victory.  There are those who’ve never accomplished a single feat be it the first to top out the climb, or the first to the line in a sprint finish of 132nd place and 133rd place.  The fastest on the descent or the one to reel in the breakaway.  The Tour de France has several jerseys for this specific reason.  In broadening my race vision to accept different formats, different preparations, and different attitudes I am becoming a better racer.  Have I won much this year?  Maybe not if you only count the podium pictures.  

But guess what?

My past 35 or 40 top box podium pictures rarely create the most impact or engagement on my blog or my Instagram.  You know what the analytics say people enjoy the most?  Stories.  Specifically stories with heart, passion, struggle, and honesty.  You know how you find an opportunity for those 4 element to align?  

Sign up for a race. 

Any race

Race 'em all.