Rageosaurus Rex post race report poem...

We had our mojos on, donning dinosaurs on our helmets and backs, and boy did Francis attack! With no specific plan except to race hard and have fun, a good time was had by everyone. The course was well-marked, dry, and fast. Too bad the plunge turned powdery and didn't last.

The stats:
Jonathan Lerner: 7 laps Highlight: "There were so many highlights, it's hard to choose just one. I'd say the night laps were the most memorable/fun, especially riding my last night lap as the sun started to rise."

Tristram Langford: 8 laps Highlight: "Finishing my last lap in 39 minutes, then the reward of a cold beer, knowing that I had finished and put in max effort."

Doug Murphy: 5 laps Highlight:"Riding well on the climbs, clearing the technical, and cheering for everyone."

Whitney Brown: 6 laps Highlight: "Sporting the Rageosaurus Rex dinosaur on my Camelback, making it down the plunge, and riding the last lap."

Francis Blesso: 9 laps, ALL under 40 minutes (GREAT JOB, FRANCIS!)

Highlight:
1) "Cheering for and being cheered at by all of the Ragers at the event."
2) "Being in second overall, even if only for less than a minute."

Cozy's Race Report

(Get ready to read!)

24 HOURS AND MORE FROM MY POINT OF VIEW My feaver has broken a bit today, and I can still recall some of the race here's how I saw it.

Arriving at Great Glen for 24 hours of racing a day after the Nationals at Mt Snow. Two hours to the starting cannon and lemans style start. Do I really have to run??

I have my main bike KHS softtail and back-up KHS hardtail. I raced the softtail at Mt Snow and noticed a wobble in the front wheel (disk brakes) after the first lap it got worse as the race went on. I held back on the technical downhills for fear of taco-ing it. Good thing I did.

Toast(Chris Polson) immediately starts to work on the wheel and says "this wheel is shot". Taking the wheel to a local bike shop that had setup at the race confirmed it. It's toast........the wheel that is. (pun intended). So Toast suggests plan B on the fly. Take the v-brakes off the back-up bike and put them on the softail then he can put a regular wheel on the bike. This meant removing the disk breaks setps. He went right to it and made quick work of it. The guy next to us needed some crank bolts so they cannibalized my hardtail. Doug came on the scene and his bike became my back-up bike (Sugar 1). I was a bit strung I hadn't eaten breakfast , drank anything and I should be resting.

I hadn't thought alot about the race I was just going out with the thoughts of holding back and keep on going trying to stay within my limits. I later found out I was in the company of some highly decorated atheletes. I'm glad I didn't know that before.

Come on lets just get this thing started at this point. Just as more support team arrived my main bike and back-up are set, I eat, drink, get dressed and head to the start. "3 minutes" I heard. I looked around and said "HI" to a few competitors "20 seconds" "God please be with me". Bang! We're off running. I instantly remind myself, "HEY YOU'VE GOT 24 HOURS TAKE IT EASY"! At 24 hours of Snowshoe, I got to see the importance of a support team. I never felt so good as I did in the 24 hrs of Snowshoe race and it was definately because of the support.

My "World Class" support team (the Pro's would be lucky to get near what I had, this ain't no joke!) --from the start there was Toast and Dave (Wrenches), Doug (support, mouth and experienced direction) Cheryl, Renata all around general help food, reminders, gophers, cooking, etc. (just the second I ever met both of them) . Chryss (split her time racing and support) afternoon arrival Holly. Paul was there for Nori's support and general help.

I could not have done without any one of them. They all had tolerance, literally waiting on me hand and foot. I stopped every lap and drank at least 20oz of something and every other for food and drink.A typical lap rest would go something like this. I would put my order in for food and drink the previous lap. I'd arrive, lay my bike down and immediately start drinking and eating the timely prepared food. (Doug and Toast said they have never seen me eat so fast in their lives) maybe I'd sit down for a few minutes. Espresso to order(really), a cutlet sandwich with cheese and toast warm, maybe 10 water bottles filled with water, juices, recovery drink bottles of Pepsi, Dr Pepper, Coke.

I'd say the recovery needs more powder and it was done instantly. Can I get a candy bar and there it would be. I would get reminded to take my ibuprophen. I wanted to take a shower there was my towel, soap, shampoo, new bike shorts, jersey socks ready to go. I would drop off one bike and say the gearing is screwed take the other bike and it was ready on the next lap. Come to find out that I broke 3 spokes at different times through the evening and early morning that required practically taking the whole rear wheel apart. I hear a rumor that the wrenches weren't to happy. But all I heard was "you broke another spoke" and it's ready to go.

I would come into the pit and hear them laughting and joking, asking what I wanted/needed. I'd hear these blurred converstions, I kinda felt like I was an outsider and came across someones camp and just walked in. I didn't think about it then but it all feels a bit abusive how I just got everything but then again everyone just did what they had to.

And I can not thank all of them enough.

I'd see Nori (also a Team Rage Solo) once in a while at the pit and we'de ask how each other felt. He looked as if to have a smile every time I saw him. If this kid had knee reconstructive surgery rehabed it and kept on going how could I complain. I got a lot of strength from that alone. Effort with a smile. Nori you kick ass!

On to racing, I would leave the pit to cheers and screams of , Go/Come on/Keep it up Gary, Powerpuff Girls, Race Day, CozyCozy. Most of the time I answered back with a "Powerpuff girls" but I think a few times I didn't have enough energy to get something out.

I rode about 6 of the saturday day laps with the Trek guy. We paced each other, talked and took the same amount of time for breaks. He asked me along with a few other solo riders if I was using a heart monitor and what my stragety was. A few of the riders told me they can measure their longevity/endurance by their heart rates. So many beats per minute to how how much output and how long they will be able to ride. I never thought about it much but I said I was self monitoring. Don't know if they thought that was a silly way to do it but seemed to accept it.

The Trek guy told me that one of the other riders said he was not going to sleep and we both said well good for him and said well, "I'm sleeping". Little did I know!!

It's time for lights according to the rules so Trek guy about 8:30 pm splits off for a longer break and said he was doing about 4 more hours riding then bed down and hammer in the morning. We good lucked each other and parted, see you in the morning. I never did get tired not even one head bob, it was very weird, right at the edge of out of control. I remember almost not being able to put the fork of pasta into my mouth.....yikes!!!! I developed a stragety as in the early hours of night. I would wait for what looked like a slower rider and draft them for the initial ride out of the valley. It was super cold esp after taking a break. A few times they would look back as to say "what the hell are you doing?" so I would tell them that I'm solo and drafting so I don't freeze to death. No one seemed to have a problem with this either. As soon as I started climbing it got hot real quick. From 12 sat to 12 midnight you still feel pretty good then the night kicks in. Its going to be dark for 6 more hours. Out there alone 90% of the night laps. Scarry!

No not really. you start getting tired and just plain don't care. Some state of apathy. Then there was the annoying frogs, kind of a drawn out "wweeeeeeeeee" that trailed off at the end -- now that drove me nuts for 8 hours at night. The support crew stayed up all night and provided one of the best things. Every lap even at 1am, 2am, 3am, 4am, 5am, 6am cheers at the plunge area of the race then walk back to meet me at the pit. They were there and up right with me. Not that I felt that they needed to put their time in but that the support continued very strong and all night.

Change light batteries eat, drink, do another lap. Ok I am growing tired of this. I was really waiting for morning for some light and rejouvination. Light came about 5:30 am and on, I felt better for about 1/2 hour then started feeling it again. thinking I got 6 more hours to go, "please let it be over". Laps were hard and long. I stopped riding the plunge about 1-2 am I didn't have the strength to handle it anymore. the first 10-12 laps I could ride the whole course and then gradually I would walk just 20 feet through a section that required finess/strength gradually the walks got farther and farther. 2 goals at this point was to never walk one part of fire road and there were some steep sections, I succeded! Believe me I was crawling as slow as the bike would go without falling over, but I didn't walk it. The other strategy was to big ring these certain 2 parts of level fireroad and I did that too getting up to 35 mph.

Other riders would see that I was solo and ask me questions like I was a tour guide. He's been riding all day he knows the trails. Is this where that log crossing is? Is this the last section of singletrack? Is there more fire road? How far to the plunge? I did know the trails a little bit by the end. That's where that fire road is. That's where that trees is. Here comes that sharp turn. Watch out for that rock. A spider lives under that leaf. The angle of the rooty climb is 17.5º at 27º Longitude and 54º Lattitude at the altitude of 2406 ft.

I did see the Trek guy again maybe about 8am ish. he had gotten 6 hours of sleep and was big ringing the fireroad hills what a show of power. he urged me on as he did about 50 mph by me. How are you I said. He said I feel great and it showed. He ended up with his goal of 22 laps. Congrats!

My competition came by me at some early hours of sunlight and looked at me on the course and said "I am hoping that you are going to take a break soon" "don't you feel tired" we kind both let out a chuckle. Word was spreading that I had 3 laps on the field. I did not know this. I did hear whispers "there he is" "get out there that's the leader" "man does he look bad" "he's not gonna last to much longer". My score card guy was happy to see me each time. If he wasn't sitting at the table and he'd hear them call my number as I came in "48" and he ran to the cards sat down as say that's my guy. "you're in the lead keep it up" he said! After hearing some of the comments I made sure to put on a game face everytime throught the scoring tent after that. Kinda like nothing was going on.

On lap 25 I got the word that I was 2 laps up with 2 some hours to go. I was pretty much home free. Partly knowing this my body really started giving out. I think the last 2 laps were close to an hour. I knew the record was 27 and I was on 27 and a definate "W". I thought I might go for 28 and I could have gotten in under the ending cannon for another lap but my body/mind and competitiveness was shot. I waited in the woods for 3 minutes waiting for the cannon to fire the ending and rode in with 5-6 other solo riders. I was greeted with cheers, hugs, support and "you won'. It does get dampened a bit by how you feel after being up for the last 28 hours and riding 178 some miles off road can have that effect.

I quicky developed a feaver post race and just about everyone one of my cuts was infected. My left knee took a beating the last 8 laps(sharp pain) and general total body soreness. Post race I was useless. Again the support crew kicks in. They tore down the whole camp, packed my car. Glenn drove me home, I finally "passed out" this is a mild term to use for how fast I was out. It was like getting put under, count backwards gary. Um 100, gone, out!!! There was no getting drousy. I was awake and I was gone. turn him off. bye bye now! Hollly and Chryss drove my car home and unpacked it.

I got home said good byes, zombied into the house. Fall on bed, out! I got a rash or worn skin from the bike shorts that looks like some kind of leparcy. ooohhhh yyuuuckk! It starts to go away by the next morning. good thing.

The fever is very slight now and I started to feel like I won a race and accomplished something around 1pm on monday afternoon. WOW! 22 hours of riding, average of 5 minute lap rests for a total of 2 hours, 178 miles, 8.

1 average, support , support , support!

Thanks for the support and puttin up with everything.

Gary(CozyCozy)Contic