One of the goals I’ve loosely set for myself this year is to participate in the Wilderness 101. It’s this little mountain bike race that visits the fire roads and single-track of the Bald Eagle and Rothrock State Forests; basically my backyard. It’s typically held at the end of July and covers 100 miles. The past several years I’ve volunteered for the race so I figured it’s about time to give it a go and see what it’s like from the other side.
Over the years I’ve ridden the whole course in various segments but never linked it all together in one day. This weekend, Brian and I decided to ride a bit of the course in preparation for the race. I wanted to gauge my fitness level and put in some miles so we settled on a
loop that would take us on about half of the race route. Of course, riding with Brian I knew I was going to suffer, but Mother Nature also helped with that.
To say this weekend was hot is an understatement. It’s been brutally oppressive the last several days here in the SC. At times I felt like I was riding on the sun. Other times, I felt like I was riding in a blast furnace. I’m not a meteorologist, but I think at one point the temperature reached one billion degrees. Add to that the ridiculously dry weather we’ve had lately and it made the suck quotient rise exponentially.
When the ride was finished I was completely worked. My legs were almost black from all the dust sticking to me and my arms felt like wet noodles with lead weights for hands. I’m not sure what my legs felt like because they had no feeling left in them. We ended up logging about fifty miles over six hours. Some of it was really fun, but none of it was easy. I’m not sure what this means about my abilities to finish the 101 but no one needs to worry about me taking a podium spot.
Over the years I’ve ridden the whole course in various segments but never linked it all together in one day. This weekend, Brian and I decided to ride a bit of the course in preparation for the race. I wanted to gauge my fitness level and put in some miles so we settled on a
loop that would take us on about half of the race route. Of course, riding with Brian I knew I was going to suffer, but Mother Nature also helped with that.To say this weekend was hot is an understatement. It’s been brutally oppressive the last several days here in the SC. At times I felt like I was riding on the sun. Other times, I felt like I was riding in a blast furnace. I’m not a meteorologist, but I think at one point the temperature reached one billion degrees. Add to that the ridiculously dry weather we’ve had lately and it made the suck quotient rise exponentially.
When the ride was finished I was completely worked. My legs were almost black from all the dust sticking to me and my arms felt like wet noodles with lead weights for hands. I’m not sure what my legs felt like because they had no feeling left in them. We ended up logging about fifty miles over six hours. Some of it was really fun, but none of it was easy. I’m not sure what this means about my abilities to finish the 101 but no one needs to worry about me taking a podium spot.
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