The first day consisted of 3 loops of just over 30 miles each. The first loop started pretty flat and ended up utilizing the Katy Trail for several miles. I was shocked when the race started and people started flying off the front! So much for this being an endurance race! The same thing happens at just about any gravel race it seems, so I'm not sure why I was surprised. I managed to catch up to the front group and stick with them for the entire day. It started with about 10-15 guys and slowly dwindled throughout the rest of the day (especially on loop 3). There were some fast dudes up there, including (among others) my buddy Peat Henry who is always entertaining and Josh Johnson, who is one you can always count on being super fast. The first two loops went well and I did a really nice job of making sure I conserved power when possible and continually nourished myself. Eating/drinking is something I have struggled with in the past, so making sure I'm better at that is a major goal. The third loop had some monster hills on it. I even ended up walking up one since my 42x18 SS gear was just a bit too big, but it worked out because walk/jogging up the hill pretty much kept me on pace with the geared dudes riding up it. The front group finally dwindled down to me and two other guys (Lawrence Simonson and Bryce Hylton), and on the last few miles of pavement they clicked their gears down and hammered away while I was spinning out on my SS. So on the first day I came in just a minute or two back of those two.
Day 2 consisted of two longer loops that were just over 50 miles each. It started a little bit slower on this day since I assume people were tired from the day before, and that was nice so I could work out the legs from the previous day. It ended up being about 10-15 guys in the front group again, and it slowly shrank in size throughout the day. I lost a full bottle on a swift descent in the first loop, so that had me worried that I would put myself into a nutritional deficit. I would have picked it up, but that would have meant losing the front group and never catching them again. It was a really nice and cool morning, though, so I managed to get through to the halfway point in good shape. The second loop went really well, and I ended up at the front again alone with the same two guys from the previous day. It started raining pretty heavily in the latter stages of the second loop, and to my dismay Lawrence and Bryce decided to finish together instead of trying to kill each other to finish first. I was prepared to sit back and enjoy the show! But we all finished together and it turned out to be an incredible weekend. I'm really seeing the benefits of my training in recent months and the leadership of my mystery coach.
Overall it was a really fun event that I'm sure I'll do again if it works with my schedule. My wife and in-laws accompanied me on the trip, so it was fun to have stuff to do during the afternoon/evening after the rides. Hermann is a really cool city with fun stuff to do, so I'll be back! Another cool thing about a race close to St. Louis is that Dan Singer was present taking pictures. I always love going to events he attends because he is really good at what he does. I hope I'm not breaking any rules by sharing this, but below is a picture he snapped of me.
I'm now out sick for a handful of days with some allergy issues, so that is a major bummer since coach wants me off the bike so I can get better and not make my problems worse. I'm so paranoid I'm going to lose all the fitness I've worked for, but my goal with the whole coaching situation is to do whatever he says since he is the expert. I'm supposed to do the OMBA Caramba in Springfield this weekend, but we'll see how my health is doing. Until next time...
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