In 2007 I was coming off my best season ever, I was just new to the master 30-34 group and coming off of a strong 2006 season in what would be my last year of 20-29. I ended up winning the whole Provincial title in 2007 and I was on top of the world in my opinion (even though it was only sport class at the time).
When the year ended I was not done, I was very fit, I wanted more, but what was there? I wanted something to test my fitness and that's when I decided to enter the Epic 8 hour which is held by Chico Racing and Hardwood Ski and Bike. I had done them before with a team and it was hard enough but this time it was on my own, not even a pit crew! This would be my first time doing it solo and I was thinking a top ten finish was something to shoot for but who knew as it was all foreign territory to me.
As the day of the race began I had a cooler full of bottles with E-load along with a few that had protein shakes and flax oil. My solid food was a couple of simple peanut butter sandwiches, Hop and Go snacks and I think I had some left over pizza, perfect, I thought and in the end, it wasn't that bad of a choice. What made me feel very comfortable was the fact that I had my own, little pit zone right on the course where my car, food and gear all stayed and all I had to do was stop and it was right there.
Everything was packed, the races briefing was done and the gun went off. I started very slowly and generally stayed in the middle of the pack. I passed a few riders that were just pissing me off but for the most part I left myself in the spot that I started. As the first lap closed I felt fantastic, no fatigue at all and it looked as though I was going to be able to finish the race. As I went through transition I gave a bit more gas on the open section leading up to the first single track whereas I passed a few riders and found myself at a nice pace with whom later introduced himself as Matt Spak. He was a veteran marathon racer and was about my age. He gave me a few pointers and then I asked what place he was in and he replied second and the leader was just up ahead ...what? The whole race plan went out the window and I was in third and perhaps second or even first if I really wanted it! Now I didn't know when to pit or even to that matter, how to pit! I didn't want to lose my spot! I kept Matt's pace for about 3 hours when I finally decided to grab some food and a new bottle (about my second bottle). This was not my call but rather his, he said something like "I have to stop on this lap so you might want to too" and I did. Within seconds it was over and we were back into the race and riding the same fast pace as before. The leader was not too far ahead and we made plans for a late attack. That was cool and I let him do all the thinking but that was until he had a horrible crash that would nearly knock him out of the race! Then I was in second and in panic mode, I had lost my guide and it was only the fourth hour or so and the rush of having second place put my body into Ontario Cup racing mode which won't get you far in these types of races. I knew by about the fifth hour that I was in trouble when my legs cramped in the quads, then in the calves and then in the hams and before I knew what was going on every pedal stroke was like someone stabbing me in the legs with knives. My distance on from the leader began to expand and Matt was starting to get back on his horse and catching me. By the sixth hour I was now stopping on every lap, eating and drinking and hoping that I could hold off whoever was behind me. I also noticed solo racers flying by me as I was stopped but I couldn't tell if they were lapped racers or not so I panicked again and left without taking any rest. I had some fun in the process, I passed countless team racers who asked how I was able to do the whole race and still pass them and it was wind in my sails and also made the whole effort worth it. There was also one guy late in the race who was screaming with every pedal stroke he took and I knew his day was over after the lap; it was then I knew I had something that others didn't so I kept going. It was about the 7th hour when I hit the wall hard, I was a mess, barely able to pedal and taking long breaks on the final laps. One dude who was riding a steel tank with running shoes on flat pedals and a freestyle bucket blew by me and it was at that point that I was in survival mode. Nothing was helping anymore, I had been eating, drinking and taking little breaks but the body was not performing. My issue was that I went too hard at a critical time just after Matt crashed and there was nothing left, I was ready to drop dead. I passed through the transition and I got the green light for one more lap, I went and it was a good thing as I would've lost my second place if I hadn't. Again, I coasted, not coasted but struggled around the 10 k lap and finally reached the finish where I got lots of cheers, complements, stares from people and pats on the back as I limped using my bike as a crutch. I quick glance at the results and I was in a solid second although losing time to Matt but my efforts earlier on gave me enough of a gap that I could've held him off for another couple of hours. The leader was another story, a young elite athlete named Andrew House had made us both look silly by opening up a huge lead that won him the race at about the four or five hour mark.
That was it for my first race, it was awesome being up on the podium as a solo racer in front of a few hundred people whom most were team racers; I felt like an Ironman! The part after was difficult and that was packing my stuff up and driving my soar ass home where I called a few people to brag but shortly after was passed out!
I went on to race in expert class in the Ontario Cup and in my opinion became more fit. I also raced four more 8 hour races and managed to podium in all but one where I had a total blow out and finished fifth. The most recent one was the Summer Epic 8 Hour where me and my friend Dave Law battled for half the racer before mechanicals dropped him off the podium and I got a lucky break when the rider just in front bailed out late in the race and I got third. It rained very hard in the last two hours of the race and my brakes were gone and I was losing time but I managed to hold on; it was really bad out there and it took many days to fix the bike and clean my gear.
This weekend I'm hoping to race the 24 Hour Summer Solstice with a team although I'm not sure yet as I have a very important job to start on the following Monday. I know that if I can get myself back into shape then I want to race the 24 Hour on my own but with the aid of the team whom I racing with this weekend (I hope). Given what I've been able to do in the 8 Hours I think I can perhaps get a top five if I plan things out right. Till then, I train to just get myself back in the condition I once was.