2009 100 Mile Highland Fling

For the last two years I have being trying to get my ugly mug onto the podium in this event, I have often come quite close, but never close enough, so yet again I rolled up for another shot at it...

I got there nice an early to ensure a good spot on the start line, all the usual faces were there and it was awesome to catch up with people, but before long the gun went off (well, Huw shouted "Go") and the game was on. I pinned it all the way out of town and kept the leaders in my sights, my heart rate through the roof I wondered if I would pay for this sprinting later, but if I was going to pay, so were they!

15 or so minutes into the race we were cruising along some grassy farm land when I felt the rear tyre squishy around, then the guy behind me said "you're tyre looks flat"... fark. Not willing to lose sight of the front bunch I rode on the flat and after several more minutes I was getting slower and slower, Dave caught up to me and confirmed what I already knew, the tyre was dead flat and I was going to have to stop and deal with it. So I bid him farewell and pulled over and pumped it up with my hand pump... dozens of people cruised past... I jumped back on and smashed myself to catch back up, charging past people left and right, riding like a maniac, lactic acid burning my legs...

The field went up a grassy hill and before long it was clear the 150 or so guys in front of me were lost, the whole field had followed the race leaders off the course, and we were all lost! Meanwhile, my rear tyre went down again... while the forlorn race field stood there scratching their heads wondering which way to go, I got off and fixed my tyre. When it was done I got back on my bike and looked around, everyone had gone, back to the race course, and stupid me had forgotten to look up and note which way they went! I was alone on top of a grassy hill with no idea where I was or where the course was!

I rolled back down the hill the way I came in and found what must have been the middle of the race field and got back to trying to catch up. The congestion at this end of the race was appalling though; when we got to single track sections, they would all get off and walk it! I could not believe it, and I started to express my frustration by mumbling things like "what the f.... are you people doing, just ride it!" :) Of course it only takes one person to get off and walk and everyone behind them has to walk as well, so it was probably only one person causing hundreds of us to walk as well. Where ever you are "one person", I'll bet your ears are burning ;)

I couldn't get past, and at this point, I knew I was completely out of contention for a podium, I stopped swearing, gave up chasing and just rolled with the field to transition. When I got there I told Neil about the flats and he confirmed sixteen 100 milers had already gone through, I was in 17th, and mentally I gave up, as I often do :(

Neil was encouraging though and told me to go chase and see what would happen, so chase I did, I hoped on the back of 100k bunches, and then jumped off the front and bridged to the next bunch, then had a rest there, and then drilled it and jumped across to the next bunch. As I went I was catching faster and faster groups, which bridging across to them was getting harder and harder, but I grit my teeth and did what I could...

During that 50k loop, there was one guy that kept passing me, and I would pass him, I noticed him because he had speakers in his jersey pocket and tunes playing, cool tunes :) As I came into transition Neil let me know I was now in 8th, so I had made up some lost time, but the gap to 3rd place was massive. The gap to catch back up Dave though, was now less than 2 minutes... so I gave up on the podium and decided to see if I could catch Dave instead and get back into the race position I was in before the flats. I pulled out of transition just as another rider did too, it was the guy with the tunes... he wasn't in the 100k like I had thought, he was a 100 miler! I chased him down and rode along side him and asked if he wanted to ride together... the last two years I had done this 2nd loop alone, and it's a really lonely 3 hours I can tell you; if I wasn't racing for podiums anymore I was keen to enjoy the rest of the race. He agreed, shook my hand and introduced himself, "Pat Howard" he says... "Oh shit" I think... he came 4th last year, beating me easily. Let's see if I can hang on to this guys wheel...

We took turns on the front, chatting as we rode, and it wasn't long before we reeled Dave in, at the base of "The Wall" I attacked in an attempt to gap Dave, hoping Pat would follow. Sadly though, I did not have the legs and ended up stalling and walking. As I walked up the hill, Dave and Pat caught me back up and rode past, I cheered them on to smash that hill, it's just so steep, anyone that can ride it twice in 100 miles is putting in a solid effort! Go boys!

At the top I got back on my bike and chased them down. I took the lead in to the single track and railed it the best I could, Pat sat on my wheel, and slowly but surely we gapped Dave, by the time we were out of the single track, he was nowhere to be seen... with that goal attained I needed a new one.... "Let's go chase down Spoony" I said to Pat (I thought Craig was in front as I had not seen him all race), he laughed at my childish ways, but agreed, jumping on the front and tearing up sandy fire road mile after mile. At the halfway feed zone Pat wanted to stop, I would never stop during a lap, but was really enjoying riding with Pat and agreed to stop with him, it was pretty relaxing having a mid lap break I hate to admit, but it doesn't mean I am going to make this sort of thing a habit in future races ;) I was a nice thing to do during a social lap though.

My legs were getting tired and Pats turns at the front were getting longer and longer as I struggled to hold on, eventually we broke out of the forest for the last time and onto the open fire road to Wingello. Pat was running an interesting gear setup, 2x9 gears, but the front two rings were 26 and 32 teeth, so if I got on the front on the firetrail and put it in the dog (44 teeth) I was pulling away pretty easily. So I left my bike in the middle ring and we were able to ride together more evenly. About 10 minutes out of town though Pat noticed the bolts were falling out of his gears, three of the four bolts securing the little chain ring had fallen out and the gear was rattling around about to completely fall off!

We rolled into transition and I was keen to wait for Pat and ride the rest of the event together to the finish, he had done most of the work of the front during that lap and I was not going to leave him know, I owed him; Kylie had arrived and told me the next guy was only 3 minutes ahead, and I swear she said he was 3rd place... my podium was in reach and I my brain went back into race mode, I looked back at Pat fixing his gears with an allen key, then I looked at Kylie, and she said "GO!"... so I did. I felt like a real dog, but I wasn't sure how long Pat would be fixing his bike and this was it, my chance to get that podium!

I told Neil and Kylie to go and help Pat with his gears and I took off, to chase down 3rd place. I smashed it for about 30 minutes, then in the distance I saw it, a pink jersey, I knew it was Crawford (who came 3rd last year), and I was gaining on him fast. A few more minutes and I was close enough that he turned back to see who was coming behind him and he must have seen it in my eyes, I was fired up and coming at him full throttle!

I caught and past him, smashing it hard, I was a man possessed! We got to a steep hill, my legs were tired, and he was not going to give up easily (and I would have been disappointed if he did! :)), he took advantage and caught me back up and sat on my wheel, and that's when it happened... I decided I didn't want to beat him.

He rolled up next to me and I said "let's work together and roll across the finish together (the same pact I had made with Pat); I knew I had transitioned fast and the time penalties were against me for that, if we crossed the line at the same time he would win because of that, but oddly, I didn't care anymore, at all. It was weird.

So we rolled into town taking turns on the front, chatting away. We cruised to the finish and crossed the line side by side with hands held high, both happy to have finished the 100 mile as strongly as we had. It was a cool moment for me, but later a certain someone would tell me that was all "a bit gay" :D LOL

So I dunno, was it the right thing to do? I was not prepared to push it and beat those guys, but I was prepared to put myself into the pain box and slam the lid to catch people up. This is not the first race that I have done this in either. I guess at the end of the day, I think I am just not a racer at all, I am punter McAvoy; In it for the challenge, not the race, and the challenge was to catch Dave and make up for the flats, then stick with Pat and finally to catch Crawford, once I had achieved those goals, I gotten what I wanted from the event. Why did I not think beating Crawford was a worthy challenge though? Part of me just really respects Pat and Crawford, they are really nice blokes, strong riders, and to share time with them during the event, to hold their wheels, was victory enough for me, and I would have felt like a real tool to try and burn them off at the last minute, for what? It's just not me...

Results

Thanx

Number Fun

My average speeds through the 4 stages of the race compared to last year reveal the flat tyres in stage one caused lower speed, but once I got out in the 50k 2nd and 3rd stages I was able to open the taps and see some major improvements. In the chase to catch Crawford on the final stage I was no faster than last year though.	My heart rates are pretty much exactly the same as last year, with maybe a touch less fade toward the end. So for the same effort I was faster this year and that's always encouraging.

A quick comparison of the top 10 race finishers; this year on the left, and last year on the right. The field is much much faster this year with all the top 10 under 8:30, the difference between 4th and 8th place (my part of the field) is bugger all this year compared to last year, less than 20 minutes, or 4%!