Week night XC racing at 6,000 ft

Yep, confirmed. XC racing is still hard! Got to love Fort Collins, when in August they have a 3 week 3 race series out at Lory State Park. Good training for sure! The race this week fits nicely into the work and riding schedule for the week. So, I threw down my $10 and bled out my eyes for 1 hour. My race plan? Ride hard. Attach the opening climb...by my standards....and see what happens. Well I got the hole shot....and led the group up the climb. But, of course, I pooped out and was left chasing for the next 45 minutes. I had the Epic Cam HD on the handlebars for the duration. Here is the 1 hour race cut down to a quick 5 minutes.

Jeff Kerkove said at 12:10 AM :: ::

Talking Bikepacking at REI Boulder - Thursday

Heads up for anyone interested in learning about bikepacking, Sonya and I will be at REI Boulder on Thursday, Aug 25 to share our experiences while bikepacking....as well as our attempts at trying to race the Colorado Trail over the past 2 years. The clinic will focus heavily on bikepacking basics and the basics to getting out there and enjoying bikepacking in Colorado. You can RSVP on the REI website, but it is not required.

Jeff Kerkove said at 10:28 AM :: ::

Running around at the Leadville 100 with a camera

Spent a better part of the week leading up to the Leadville 100 in Leadville with riders Alban Lakata and Yuki Saito. Other than running support and logistics, I had camera in hand to try to document the week and race. Well, after shooting about 4-5 hours of video, I tried to edit it down to less than 10 minutes. Here's their experience in 8 minutes.

Jeff Kerkove said at 7:56 AM :: ::

Breck-Epic: Stage 6 (Gold Dust)

Singletrack and PBR. That is all I need to tell you. Enjoy!

Jeff Kerkove said at 6:06 PM :: ::

Breck-Epic: Stage 5 (Wheeler)

While the 3-day race is finished, it didn't keep me from getting out there and enjoying the 5th stage while shooting a little video for work. Here is a good taste of Stage 5! You really should be here in 2012! Enjoy!

Jeff Kerkove said at 8:51 PM :: ::

Breck-Epic 3-Day Stage Race: Stage 3 (Keystone Loop)

Ahhh, yes. The Keystone stage. While on paper, this doesn't look that bad....in my opinion, it is the hardest stage in the race. This is my 3 time on this loop racing it. Every time, it has been a struggle. The course is a constant up and down....very little recovery. The climbs are the steepest of the week. The flats are not flat. The downhills are littered with rocks the size of softballs and basketballs. You basically have to get into 'your' pace and stick to it....all day.



My race today did not go anything like the first 2 days. Struggled the second we hit the dirt.  The fatigue from the first 2 days caught up with me.  I was struggling to get my butt up the hills.  Was also fighting the bike on the downhills.....over shooting corners....breaking when not needed.....etc, etc, etc.



I spent almost all day riding solo. Few moments were shared with friend and training partner, Jonathan Davis. Other than that, alone. All day. Struggling to turn the cranks over. My field was in front of me. I rode in 4th place all day to try to minimize time loss to the 4th place GC. Going into today, I had an 8 minute buffer. Today, I lost 10 minutes to Christian who rode strong the last 2 days. This bumped me off the podium for the overall. Bummed? Sure, who wouldn't be. But it was a fantastic 3 days of healthy competitive racing!  Some of the most intense racing I have been apart of since moving to Colorado.

Here is today's HR and GPS data via Strava.

Jeff Kerkove said at 7:44 PM :: ::

Breck-Epic 3-Day Stage Race: Stage 2 (Mt. Guyot)

Big stage today with many big, long, and sometimes very steep climbs. Most noted on the day is the climb up to French Pass which begins at about mile 11. The trail is there, but barely.  Today's start was a bit more mellow for me.  I rode on the top 10 of the entire field for the opening miles.  The race did spread out quickly.  Our race leader, Yuki was on my wheel briefly, before coming around and beginning his job of the day....keeping his lead.  Jorge was also up the trail.  Not in sight to often for me early.

Having done this route both in racing and in training, I knew to save some matches for the big climb at mile 29 to 31.  I settled into my pace and found myself sharing the trail pretty much all day with Travis Brown.  Not a bad guys to be racing along side of.  He was getting me on the downhills....I would get him on some of the climbs.  Key word there is "some".



While climbing up French Pass I was caught by 4th place finisher from yesterday, Christian.  He was riding well....climbing strong.  I had him in sight all day....but never could get close.  On the descent of French Pass, chasing Travis, I came across Tostado fixing his 2nd flat of the day.  Both Travis and Tostado beat me to the descent.  Now on the dirt road climb to Georgia Pass, I bridged up to Travis and Tostado.  Tostado was on front and charging hard.  Travis was the first to 'pop'.  A few minutes later it is was me.  Tostado rode away....to then win the stage in the 6-day race.  Near the summit of Georgia Pass, Travis caught me then put time on me on the descent of the Colorado Trail. I would not see him until later in the stage....fixing a flat.

At the bottom of the Colorado Trail / Georgia Pass descent, I came upon Christian, who was riding in 3rd.  We rolled into the final aid station together and he complained of cramping.  Now with a big climb in front of us, I settled into my pace.  Christian dangled off my wheel....but not far.  While climbing we came upon Jorge, who was in 2nd in the GC and the stage.  We both caught him....then Christian pulled away.  I would not catch him.  For the rest of the stage, Jorge and I would battle.....attacking each other.  Soon we came upon Yuki, who had a flat tire and just finished changing it.  We passed Yuki, but he caught back up.

With only about 3 miles left, Christian was off the front. Yuki, Jorge and I were playing cat and mouse.  Yuki got away....and stayed away.  This left Jorge and I left to duke it out over the next few miles.  I got away from Jorge.  I thought I had him beat. But he came up on me with only 1.5 miles left.  He got a gap on me that I could not close.  All 4 of us would finish within 1 minute of each other.  It was an insane race in the last 10 miles!

The numbers don't lie.


3-Day GC after 2 days of racing.

Here is today's data on Strava.

Tomorrow is the last stage. Yuki is in the lead from 2nd place by 4 minutes. I am 8 minutes behind Jorge in 2nd. I have a 19 minute lead in 3rd place. Anything can happen and any of the 4 riders from today could take the stage and/or overall GC!

Jeff Kerkove said at 8:24 PM :: ::

Breck-Epic 3-Day Stage Race: Stage 1 (Colorado Trail)

Today's stage was a good one! About 40 miles and 5,600 ft of climbing on some of Summit County best trails.  The last 2 years I raced the 6 day race here at the BE.  This year, Mike added a 3-day offering, and this fit in nicely with work and travel associated with supporting Topeak-Ergon team riders at the Leadville 100 all last week.

This year has the biggest field ever for the BE.  A lot of strong riders locally, from the USA, Costa Rica, and Europe.  Looking at the 3-Day Open Men field there are some strong riders.  Jorge from Boulder (top local road racer), Yuki (teammate), and some others.  My goal is to get podium spots here over the 3 days.  Ride hard....test my personal limits.....let the race play out...build some speed fitness.

Today at the start I hit the front soon after we hit the first dirt road climb.  Behind me, Travis Brown, Josh Tostado, Kevin Kane, and others....if I recall correctly.  I stayed on the front until a few other rider felt the need to 'up' the pace.  I maintained, but not enough to keep with the lead group.  Soon Yuki bridged up to me.....rode on my wheel for a bit.....then went on his quest to catch Jorge and the possible win.  I would not see Jorge or Yuki the rest of the day as I chased these 2 strong riders.



The remainder of the stage, I would ride in the top 10 or 15 of the 6-Day field.....mostly alone  A lot of strong riders, as I said before.  First rider I came upon on the Westridge CT climb, was a guy I rode with at the DDC before he dropped me on his SS going up Bolam Pass.  Today he was geared.  I bridged up to him....but wasn't able to get past until he bobbled on rooty section. Thought for sure he would be back on my ass shortly...but didn't see this strong rider the rest of the day.  Kip Biese was in my sights all the second half of the ride.  Wasn't able to get away from him until the end. He was killing the DH sections of the trail!  In the final miles, I was caught by two 6-Day riders, Sam from Epic Endurance and I believe Nick Truitt from Yeti.  Both rider rode a consistent race to get me at the end.



Overall, I felt good all race.  I finished 3rd overall in the 3-Day race.  Yuki took the win!  Only 2 more days to go....and both stages are burly.  Going to be some good racing in all categories!

HR and GPS data posted on Strava.

Jeff Kerkove said at 3:04 PM :: ::

Alban Lakata's Leadville 100 race bike featured on Singletrack.com

Clicky, clicky, to see details and more pictures!

Jeff Kerkove said at 4:20 PM :: ::

What is next?

Well, CTR, as you know, was a flop.  Not meant to be for some reason this year.  After thinking about it, I am not going to do a individual time trial of the route.  One of the reasons CTR appeals to me is the shared start with like-minded riders and the act of being chased and chasing.  Being out there alone will not fulfill my needs for what I am looking for in my CTR experience.  I am willing to wait until 2012 to conquer, for me, what is the hardest cycling event I have toed the line at.

So, on with the rest of 2011.  The Breck-Epic is in a few weeks.  The 3-Day version fits nicely around some work I need to do at the Leadville 100 (team support and media) and September through October racing schedule.

So, the bikepacking bags are put away.....for now.  Time to get some speed work in the legs for the Breck-Epic, the Park City Point 2 Point, and the Brasil Ride Stage Race.  Few other events on the list, which will happen if I play my cards right.

Jeff Kerkove said at 4:18 PM :: ::

Colorado Trail Race: Pulled the plug

My 2011 CTR is done.....for now.  After Bailey, things went downhill fast.  Not sure if bad food from the sketchy store in Grants, CO or a bad water filter source.  Achy joints and body.  Chills.  No appetite.  Super thirsty.  No energy.  Route is too hard to go at it half-ass.  Bummed to stop early in the group race.  This year, for some reason, is not the year for me.  Time to continue with the reason of the riding season.

Jeff Kerkove said at 1:43 PM :: ::