Rattling Creek
I mentioned yesterday I'm going to race in the MASS Rattling Creek Marathon next Saturday, somewhere out in the sticks of mid-Pennsylvania, just north of Harrisburg. I'm not sure how the course shakes out in terms of terrain, but there's "only" 6000 feet of vertical in the 48 actual miles of the race. It is being dubbed an "easy" way to do 50 miles. Another account from the guy promoting the race said his GPS reported 5000 feet. While those are ballpark figures it does put it short of something like the 50k, which is a good thing.
I don't know about easy but it does look a little less brutal than some of the other half-century mountain bike races. From what I can gather a 6 hour goal is not unrealistic though I would do well to plan for something in the 7 hour range, just to be conservative.
I'm pretty excited and yet nervous about this race. I'm excited because it looks like a good race that should be something I can complete, yet nervous because I haven't done this much saddle time in quite some time. In distances like this I always seem to have pacing problems at the start so it's something I have to be concerned about. Plus heat, hydration, and fueling always become an issue with rides this long. Should be fun regardless, in either a good or painful way. I'm sure you'll read all about it.
I guess I'm looking to take the good vibes from the LMC race and either extend them or destroy them. Smart money is on destroy, though sooner or later I'm going to get this stuff right. This is a great primer for the 24 hour race in terms of fueling, pace, and hydration. Like I said, both nervous and excited.
When it comes down to it I don't have the confidence I'll be able to pull it off. Strange in a way when you consider that I'll take off for an 85 mile road ride with 7200 feet of vertical and have no qualms about that. But put it in the woods and it's a whole new ballgame for reasons I am yet to put a finger on. Mental blocks wear many different hats.
So it goes. Now the decision becomes whether or not to camp out there the night before or get up early and drive the 2.5 hours early. I should probably float it out on the message board and see if anyone else is going. The decision gets tougher since it's a Saturday race, meaning that Friday could just be a killer day of commuting in and out of Brooklyn then driving to Harrisburg that night. More than likely it has to be an early morning drive.
Today's ride was an hour plus on local roads. No link this morning for the same usual reasons, no time before work. To be honest I don't think linking these weekday rides provides much to the reader so I'm going to stop linking them. You can always find some/most of what I've been doing on my MotionBased account here. I don't log all my rides so if you do look don't be surprised if you see big gaps from time to time. I will continue to link the big rides though. They seem to be more interesting to look at than these weekday 20 milers.
As always I aim to serve the customers so here's more feedback.
Steve
"if this is beverly hills, mtbnj, i hope to be knocking boots with shannon doughtery real soon. good stuff, 3rd party."
You know I was always lukewarm on Shannon Dougherty. My favorite was Jennie Garth. The funny thing about those shows was that we all used to watch them in college. I don't know how it happened but slowly they grew into Must See TV until literally everyone was watching weekly. In reality it was probably just another reason to sit down for an hour and drink beer.
Jake
"i did see that guy, all yardsale'd out right @ the switch. i guess he came in too hot and couldn't get the red knobs outta the corner fast enough and swamped the bow resulting in him getting all tweaked."
You kids and your jargon. All I am reminded of is the Jive Scene in Airplane (YouTube link here). "Oh stewardess, I speak jive." A brilliant scene in a brilliant movie. Terren and I were discussing how it always seems better "back then" but I wonder, do they make movies of that caliber anymore? It seems to me the days of Blazing Saddles and Airplane are over. I don't think Blazing Saddles passes the PC Police if it's made today.
Steve
"*Today's installment of Beverley Hills, MTBNJ can be found here. That's just good stuff. Third Party, your sarcasm is being paged.* Huh. Nothing there."
Well it seems the Drama Pot has been emptied so there's nothing for me to stir. With that I'm going to have to close the book on the Beverley Hills, MTBNJ series and move back to my fueling, hydration, and pacing issues. Thanks for the usage rights, Third Party, and those who were not injured in the filming of this docudrama.
George left a big comment that I will give attention to tomorrow. In the meantime, good luck, we're all counting on you.
I don't know about easy but it does look a little less brutal than some of the other half-century mountain bike races. From what I can gather a 6 hour goal is not unrealistic though I would do well to plan for something in the 7 hour range, just to be conservative.
I'm pretty excited and yet nervous about this race. I'm excited because it looks like a good race that should be something I can complete, yet nervous because I haven't done this much saddle time in quite some time. In distances like this I always seem to have pacing problems at the start so it's something I have to be concerned about. Plus heat, hydration, and fueling always become an issue with rides this long. Should be fun regardless, in either a good or painful way. I'm sure you'll read all about it.
I guess I'm looking to take the good vibes from the LMC race and either extend them or destroy them. Smart money is on destroy, though sooner or later I'm going to get this stuff right. This is a great primer for the 24 hour race in terms of fueling, pace, and hydration. Like I said, both nervous and excited.
When it comes down to it I don't have the confidence I'll be able to pull it off. Strange in a way when you consider that I'll take off for an 85 mile road ride with 7200 feet of vertical and have no qualms about that. But put it in the woods and it's a whole new ballgame for reasons I am yet to put a finger on. Mental blocks wear many different hats.
So it goes. Now the decision becomes whether or not to camp out there the night before or get up early and drive the 2.5 hours early. I should probably float it out on the message board and see if anyone else is going. The decision gets tougher since it's a Saturday race, meaning that Friday could just be a killer day of commuting in and out of Brooklyn then driving to Harrisburg that night. More than likely it has to be an early morning drive.
Today's ride was an hour plus on local roads. No link this morning for the same usual reasons, no time before work. To be honest I don't think linking these weekday rides provides much to the reader so I'm going to stop linking them. You can always find some/most of what I've been doing on my MotionBased account here. I don't log all my rides so if you do look don't be surprised if you see big gaps from time to time. I will continue to link the big rides though. They seem to be more interesting to look at than these weekday 20 milers.
As always I aim to serve the customers so here's more feedback.
Steve
"if this is beverly hills, mtbnj, i hope to be knocking boots with shannon doughtery real soon. good stuff, 3rd party."
You know I was always lukewarm on Shannon Dougherty. My favorite was Jennie Garth. The funny thing about those shows was that we all used to watch them in college. I don't know how it happened but slowly they grew into Must See TV until literally everyone was watching weekly. In reality it was probably just another reason to sit down for an hour and drink beer.
Jake
"i did see that guy, all yardsale'd out right @ the switch. i guess he came in too hot and couldn't get the red knobs outta the corner fast enough and swamped the bow resulting in him getting all tweaked."
You kids and your jargon. All I am reminded of is the Jive Scene in Airplane (YouTube link here). "Oh stewardess, I speak jive." A brilliant scene in a brilliant movie. Terren and I were discussing how it always seems better "back then" but I wonder, do they make movies of that caliber anymore? It seems to me the days of Blazing Saddles and Airplane are over. I don't think Blazing Saddles passes the PC Police if it's made today.
Steve
"*Today's installment of Beverley Hills, MTBNJ can be found here. That's just good stuff. Third Party, your sarcasm is being paged.* Huh. Nothing there."
Well it seems the Drama Pot has been emptied so there's nothing for me to stir. With that I'm going to have to close the book on the Beverley Hills, MTBNJ series and move back to my fueling, hydration, and pacing issues. Thanks for the usage rights, Third Party, and those who were not injured in the filming of this docudrama.
George left a big comment that I will give attention to tomorrow. In the meantime, good luck, we're all counting on you.
Labels: block training, comments, race, rattling creek
1 Comments:
At 7:08 AM,
Anonymous said…
Norm, I know you are an early riser, but with a 9 am start and an almost 3 hour drive, you would have to leave bright and early. Plus I dont know how much time it takes once you arrive to get ready. Would you pack the car the night before or the morning of? I guess now that I think of it, you could probably handle a 4 am wake up. What about food, do you eat on the way, or before you leave? Just stuff to consider.
I agree with you on the movies, Airplane, Spaceballs, Naked guns, all get better every time you see them, you always catch something new.
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