2008 Fort Rock
8/3/08 Fort Rock, Exeter, NH
Conditions:
The ground was wet from overnight showers and humidity leaving no chance for the ground (or rocks) to dry.
The Course:
7.5 mile loop on technical rolling terrain consisting of rocks and roots. The first third appeared to touch lowlands holding more water than the remaining sections. There is a long tunnel which bores under New Hampshire’s route 101 which divides the course and requires readjusting your eyes while staying clear of oncoming riders. That other side has great single track that was a little more dry yet there were some nasty roots to contend with. A number of wooden bridges added to the excitement so long as you stayed upright.
Results:
Keith Reynolds – Expert SR2 (27-34) – 4th
Michael Good – Expert Vet2 (42-49) – 5th
Norm Collard – Sport Masters (50+) – 2nd
Barry Greenberg – DNF
[Barry]
10 minutes of: Ride, slip on rock, Ride, slip on rock, Ride, slip on rock
Then: PSSSSS-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S . . .
[Michael Good]
Fort Rock Revenge has been my favorite race each of the last two years. I eagerly look forward to it. I consider it a must do.
The course is a great mix of terrain. Lot’s of rock’s, root’s and single track. The only thing that could ruin this ride would be lot’s of rain, which would render the terrain slippery and downright dangerous at a race level intensity.
It was with great interest that I watched the thunderstorms roll across the area Saturday afternoon. It seemed that the heaviest showers missed Exeter so it was with guarded optimism that I went to bed Saturday night.
Upon waking Sunday morning Keith and I spoke on the phone and committed to doing the race.
Course conditions were good. Things were definitely wet but there wasn’t alot of mud. The biggest problem I found was the root covered uphills. Most were easier to just run up them.
As far as the race goes, I entered the woods in the top four. We four opened up a gap on the rest of our field. Worried that I was expending too much energy I backed off and let the other three go. I spent the rest of the lap mostly alone occasionally passing riders from one of the waves in front. There was a bit of back and forth as I worked through some traffic but I thought I was holding my 4th place. On the second and final lap I caught and passed one of the three riders that I had let go. He was spent. One rider did pass me after that. I didn’t recognize him and thought him to be one of the riders I had passed earlier catching a second wind. I spent the rest of the lap and race thinking I was in 3rd place. When the results were posted they had me in 5th. Oh well.
5th or 3rd, it doesn’t matter. I was pleased with my race and it was great to be mtb racing again after missing a few races over the last five weeks with knee troubles.
[Norm]
Fort Rock Revenge: the 7th race in the 9 race EFTA series. I’ve never done this course before. I was really looking forward to having fun and doing well at this race mostly based on the reports I had heard on what a “fun” course this was.
Barry G and I drove up together and arrived the usual 1 hr before race time. After registering and suiting up, we headed out to ride a portion of the course. The start is in a narrow field that leads to some open grassy double track for about a 1/2 mile and quickly turns into tight, twisty single track with an immediate little climb that would certainly cause a bit of a bottleneck early in the race. Make a note to get to the single track in 1st or 2nd place if possible. We continue on the single track for maybe another mile, see Keith and Mike returning from there warmup before we do the same and turn around to head back to the start line. Warmup assessment: this is going to be a tight technical course with an added degree of difficulty due to slippery roots and rocks and mud.
Back to the starting line to await the start. Thankfully, they start in waves by category and age groups. 8 of us line up for the Sport Masters including the series points leader, Chuck Piper. I quickly settle into 2nd place on the long straight double track and into the first rt turn into single track with an immediate short climb. I’m holding my position in 2nd place for perhaps the next 5-8 minutes before I’m down. CRASH! Chuck is right behind me and asks if I’m okay, “Yup” and quickly get back up…rear tire slipped in a rocky section that caught me a bit off guard. Damn. Back on the bike now in 3rd place behind Chuck. I manage to hold that position for probably another 10 minutes before another CRASH and I’m down again on some more rocks. Quick check of the bike, and myself, there’s a little blood on my knee and my thumb is aching but otherwise I’m fine. Although this single track is somewhat technical, it’s not terribly difficult and normally I can just rollover this stuff. Maybe the race jitters are getting to me and I’m not focusing on the terrain?? My confidence is a bit shattered now and I can barely keep Chuck in my sight about a 100 yds ahead. Okay, it’s a long race and plenty of time to catch up. No need to kill it just yet, just ride in control I’m thinking. Through the tunnel under Rt 101 and into more tight twisty rocky stuff. Chuck is still in sight and I’ve passed the other Sport Master racer putting me in 2nd at the moment. CRASH once again in another very rock garden type section that I should have been able to roll through. “Welcome to the BLT section” a racer shouts out behind me who obviously knows the course. Damn! This one hurt! But, once again, just more scrapes and the bike is okay. My rt thumb is throbbing a bit making shifting on the rear deraileur a challenge but doable. Chuck is now out of sight. A few others pass me as I start out a bit tentative thru more rocky downhill sections. Finally finish the first lap…wow that seemed long. I pass most of the riders that passed me during the several crashes and am in no mans land as I start the 2nd lap. More slipping and sliding but no crashing as I take the technical sections a bit more conservatively to preserve my aching body a bit. Just before the tunnel in the 2nd lap, a racer behind me points out to me “your tires are overinflated as you seem to be bouncing a lot over the roots and rocks”. Bingo! At the other end of the tunnel I stop and deflate my tires. How did I miss that? Within minutes I notice a big improvement; I’ve got much more traction on the rocks and roots and suddenly have renewed confidence. Unfortunately, I only have another 5+ miles to go and pick up the pace for the last portion of the race and pass a few other racers along the way. Chuck is nowhere in sight however. Finally, I cross the finish. Barry is there waiting for me. He flatted early in the race and limped back to the start as a DNF. I’m covered in mud with a little blood mixed in on my elbow and knee. Back to the car to rinse and change and then back to the registration area just as a torrential down pour kicks in. Check the results: took 2nd a solid 2+ minutes behind Chuck. “I kept thinking you were going to catch me somewhere along the way” he says. “Not today Chuck, didn’t have my A game with me. You rode a nice smooth race. Congrats!” It wasn’t a total loss. I took home a pair of new socks for my 2nd place effort. All in all, this was a fun course as advertised. Overinflated tires and some tentativeness on my part made this a longer race for me than it should have been. Looking forward to redeeming myself next year on this course.
[Keith]
I had been looking forward to this course since crossing the finish line last year. In that race I felt like I was “on” and riding everything. When the forcast broke and rains were predicted I started to think twice given the terrain, wavering towards racing & volunteering @ Bow. 5am rolled around and I confirmed mtb’ing had the green light.
This year the course was reversed in direction over last year. This prompted a need to see the start and decide how the entrance to the single-track would affect the waves. Up the double track road and down the other side and a slight turn into a narrowing section; then the single track arrived at a 90-degree bend to the left and shot up a short but steep climb. Must run this on the first lap I thought to myself, continue to check a little further down the path. Michael and I went as far as a wooden bridge which required a tight line to the right, brushing up against an evergreen. What I didn’t see was the rockpile after it. Returning to the start we ran into Barry & Norm and told them about the bridge and to have a look.
I lined up with about 8 others and knew there would be some unrest during the race. I recognized three guys who have been podiuming frequently. From the start two groups settled into pace and I was with the three guys who were going for the win. We entered the singletrack and in succession everyone jumped off their bikes and ran the short rooty uphill. Remounting the bikes we were back off into bumpy terriotory. Once the pace settled in and we connected with the single speeders from the field ahead frustrations arose; bikes were bouncing, pedals were striking, tires were slipping and racers were faltering. I was participating in all of those emotions too. The first half of the course was much more damp and slick while the other side (reached from under the 101 highway) required more finess and had some enjoyable lines, other than the rooty uphills that went straight up. You could barely climb them in shoes no less. I slipped up on those and did my fair share of tumbling over the bars, wee!
Then the daylight began to come through and we were out on the high tension lines. I was connecting with someone but the overgrown brush kept them out of sight. Reminded me of a short bit of anywhere New England under power lines. Then the lap came where the Del Rossi’s were handing up bottles to us. Great to see friendly faces and forget for a moment what is going on. From there I heard the leaders were a good distance ahead and I tried to take some more time off but the combination of fatigue, slick rocks and partially over-inflated tires wouldn’t allow for more. In all I prefer the course run in the counter-clockwise direction because of the flow I thought it had. By the finish I felt good in that I’m done with that! and I met my goal I set last year, to place higher overall (by one spot, I’ll take it!).