HEAT, ELEVATION, AND A SCORPION STING-Team nuun-FeedTheMachine
Well, since my last post, we’ve all been busy preparing for Primal Quest. Not only in terms of training but also getting the right gear together and planning logistics. It’s been time consuming but we’re slowly getting there. It’s amazing how after years of racing, every race requires a new piece of equipment. Our garage at home can no longer accomodate a single car. Just the way it should be!
Since my last blog, I’ve been putting some consistent training sessions with 2 notable longer ones.
Three weekends ago, Sean and I rode from the Rose Bowl in Pasadena to Wrightwood and back along Hwy 2. It’s one of the most beautiful roads in the nation winding its way through the Angeles National Forest. When we got back to our cars we had ridden 130 miles and climbed more that 13,000ft (our 2 altimeters registered different total gains so we’re not exactly sure what the actual total is. one registered 13,100ft and the other 13,900ft). It was an incredible and satisfying day but I wasn’t feeling good at all. Typically long days in the saddle are what I’m all about. The more climbing there is, the happier I am. But, that day, it wasn’t meant to be. Within one hour on our first climb, I started overheating and even had the thought of ripping my helmet off which was clearly a bad sign. When that thought hit me, I knew I was not going to have a good day. I simply overheated. Although it was hot out, I typical perform well in the heat. But, I hadn’t been in the heat much this year and figure I wasn’t well acclimatized. Real bummer because I spent the rest of our ride to Wrightwood in a really tough physical and mental state. I kept telling myself that all this suffering would make me better acclimatized for Primal Quest. I think it has but it was little comfort in the heat of the moment. The ride back from Wrightwood was a lot better as I had somewhat recovered from the intense heat.
Two weekends ago, my girlfriend – Sylvie, our friend Darin, and I competed in the Desert Winds night race. Once again, Robert Finlay, the race director, did not disappoint with an amazing course through the canyons, desert, and warm waters of Lake Mead. We kayaked, swam, trekked, and biked through a fun and challenging navigation course. And, the scenary was absolutely stunning. We had a solid race and won in just under 14 hours. The race course exceeded all our expectations and we achieved all our goals – introducing Darin to adventure racing (he now wants to do a 24 hour race), further developing Sylvie’s navigation skills, and sharpening my own navigation skills. I felt good throughout the race and could feel the benefits of all my training in the last months coming together. As is often the case in all adventure races – no matter how many years you’ve been racing – something unique happens to the team or a member of the team. At this race, it involved a scorpion. As I was bouldering up an incline using my hands, a scorpion stung my pinky finger. Damn, the fierce burning sensation was intense. But, luckily the pain was localized and I still felt good to finish the race some 3 hours away. Over the course of 1/2 an hour, my pain migrated all the way up to my elbow. Every time I touched my hand or forearm, it felt like an electric shock going up my arm. Luckily, the pain and eventual numbness subsided after 2 days. It could have been a lot worse. I can now scratch off my “things not to do before I die” list a close encounter with a scorpion.
Since the night race on July 25-26th, I’ve been tapering and trying to get some rest before Primal Quest which starts on August 14th, a little over a week from now. I’ve been able to taper but resting is another thing all together. Life’s been quite busy and getting a lot of rest/sleep is challenging. It’s the irony of preparing for a big expedition race. We often show up a little sleep deprived and then get our maps the night before the race, plan for hours, get a few hours of sleep and we’re up at 3am to head out to the race start. Starting a race like Primal Quest sleep deprived is just not a good idea but often is the reality many of us have to deal with.
The others on the team have been busy as well. Three weekends ago, Ryan and Rinn did a 24 hour training race and pulled off a win while Tessa competed in a 90 km mountain bike race (not sure how she finished but I’m sure it was on the podium). Last weekend, Ryan and his wife, Jennifer, headed out to Lake Tahoe to introduce their friends to the intense experience of a 24 hour race. They finished well and are now hooked!
This weekend is all about gear preparation and doing some promotion for our new product, SportMulti – a multivitaimin and mineral supplement for athletes. We’ll be at the Brentwood Grand Prix with our retail partner Helen’s Cycles.
On Monday, I’m driving from Los Angeles to Rapid City, South Dakota while the rest of the team is flying in.
The race is about to begin, Let’s hope we’re well prepared, race hard and cleverly, and have a bit of good luck to outsmart the other top teams.
Cyril
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