Just some short snippets from the memory and thoughts:
-The race is well put on and I hope as the organization changes it only continues or gets better
-I keep thinking about a 100mm rear rim. I have it. Next year maybe.
-I really do love my bike. I think 9:zero:7 makes a fantastic product. I plan on using this same bike for pretty much all my races this year, so look out! Also, the Cold Avenger makes my Arrowhead finishes possible. And that is amazing.
-The people of the race go a long ways to making this the race it is. I can say in 4 years of this race I have only found one person that I didn't want to continue our conversation. That one person may surprise you.
-This year I saw a ton of wolf tracks. Mainly from checkpoint #1 to #2. I also saw 5 piles of scat, I assume wolf, in that area.
-During my 10 mile stand and grunt finish the snow was falling heavy. I couldn't even make out the tracks well at all of the riders that were about 45 minutes in front of me. At one point I did notice tracks pop out of the woods, go up the line I was riding, and then back into the woods 8 feet later. Those were wolf tracks and they were fresh. Fresh as in the dumping snow had not touched them yet. It was at that time I yelled to scare him away further, but also wished I had been looking up as I am sure I would have gotten to see the tuff of fur run off.
-I have been confused about my body's lack of need for calorie replenishment. Hydration yes. Muscle soreness check. But food not much.
-There is a lot of MN vs. AK rivalry. I join in on it. That being said, everyone I have met from "up there" is super nice and I enjoyed their company.
-My asthma was a pain...again. I wonder how things would go if I could breath normally without a mask as opposed to gingerly with. The other way to look at it is the fact I should pat myself on the back to push through those times and finish at all.
-This race is getting popular. I worry too popular. I wonder if it might someday the bike portion would be run separately. That would be too bad in the sense that I have met a lot of great people that run and ski the event.
-I worried out loud at the finish during the snowstorm if people were prepared to bivy. I think a lot of people come to the race barely having looked at their equipment. I was one of those the first year. If it had been pouring snow AND -20 there would have been a lot of people in serious hurt as I think they don't prepare enough for the "what if's".
-I desperately want to take my bike to the Iditarod Trail Invitational. Only problem is I would be looking at a $4,000 or so trip ($1,000 just on the race entry). That is about $3,500 more than I could plan on. Yes, I am a landlord with properties. That essentially means I am land rich and cash poor. Well actually I will EVENTUALLY be land rich. Ben Doom has already volunteered to hide in my luggage so we can split an airfare (about $700 round trip, btw). Factor in bike transport costs (Maybe $500), lodging (???), flight back to the start (????), new gear for the adventure (?????), and I think $4,000 sounds about right.
great job man, i'm glad you finished on this particularly tough year. It sounds like you were just ahead of the accumulating snow. ITI would be awesome, I'm in the same boat but one of these years I need to get up there. later DR PS I'm the guy you don't want to talk to right :)
ReplyDeleteIf only that were a choice.
ReplyDeleteTaking out the new snow it was actually pretty fast. The section after Melgeorge's was much more rideable than last year. As in, you didn't have to get off and push up nearly as many hills. I think that contributed heavily to the faster pace by many people. I got in as the snow was getting tough. The last section had a about 2 inches I think as I rode it. Hard to tell.
Congrats on arrowhead finish! I think the ITI could be done a fair bit cheaper than that if you are willing to do some airlines trickery (check out the alaska airlines credit card - once a year $100 companion fair so dr doom wouldn't need to hide in the luggage), but yeah, still an expensive race.
ReplyDeleteNicely done Charlie. Don't let yourself get caught up in 'what if's'. You are who you are and every day is a different day. It really could be your day some year. Think in those terms. Good work out there and thanks for sharing some your thoughts at MelGeorge's.
ReplyDeleteCharly...this is elder Charlie...Your are right about the ITI; I have had to sell my first born and re-finance my house and I am still not completely paid up. I would say that $3500 to $4000 to do it...add another $2000 if you want to go all the way to Nome. When I retire in 7 years my plan is to drive up and do the full trip to Nome...I think driving would actually save a lot of money, especially if you could get a couple guyz to share the expenses...
ReplyDeleteHugs,
C