Friday, July 31, 2009

IMC Drama

I've almost been clueless as to what I want to write about the DRAMA of the Intermontane Challenge Stage Race here in Kamloops, British Columbia.
I've been working on a full race report outlining the countless issues and discrepancies of the madness occurring here, but it's just taking so long...because there are so many stories to tell.....
Today was day 4 of the 5 day stage race. Suffice to say I've been having a rough week, along with just about everyone else involved in the event. The course was supposed to be 89.5 kilometers but actually was 98-99k and it was a l-o-n-g day in the saddle.
I didn't get lost, run out of water, become dehydrated, and I could actually breathe while pedaling, so it was a big improvement over the previous three days, but I'll admit that when I ran out of food and was in the middle of 40k of the most annoying hike-a-bike up and down section of trail I've ever ridden in my life, I had a few Not-So-Nice thoughts playing through my mind.

One scenario that kept me particularly entertained was a Judge Judy meets Chuck Brennan episode where several of us racers described the conditions of the race and got all the proceeds awarded back to cover entry fees, with the extra cash going to some cool non-profit, like Ride for Reading or something. This thought kept my mind occupied for a solid hour, hour and a half today, and gave me something small to look forward to, or at least hope for. How pathetic.

I did stop during today's stage, and take a small rest on the side of the trail. I paused to look at the local vegetation, get swarmed by mosquitoes, and tell Chuck exactly what I thought of the course. I informed him that the trails we were riding were actually hiking trails and bikes had no business being on them. I also asked him if he had ever ridden a mountain bike before, let alone raced one. Seeing as it was just me and my bike on the side of the trail, my words were lost to the sagebrush and rocks.

One more stage left....a 50k "time trial." Let's see how badly this one can get mucked up.... I mean Chucked up.

3 comments:

Billy Fehr said...

Hell Yeah, sounds romantic!

Dwayne said...

Come and ride Squamish with the others that left that race.

Wicki said...

I wish I had (left and come to Squamish)...or at least gotten on my single speed the next day to enjoy what I could...