Ragin' in the Sage

This weekend was the 6th Annual 24 Hours in the Sage in Gunnison, Colorado. It was my second year racing it and the race marked the one year anniversary to my venture into soloing these events. As noted last week I have been not quite up to par in health and conditioning so I went to have some fun at a race for once instead of to punish myself. My best friend and teammate, Lisa, and I made a decision to ride every lap together and decided to do just 6 laps, which was one shy of what I did last year. The six laps felt great, my shakes only appeared a few times, and I had plenty of gas left in the tank for another lap or two had we chosen to do so.
This was the best time I have had at a race in a very long time. We rode a steady pace, we enjoyed the awesome sunset, the full moon, and the spectacular sunrise over Hartman Rocks and the surrounding mountains. I was surprised to learn I had more laps in me than I did last year, since I have been unable to train the last month or better, and I chalk that up to overall heightened condition from the last year of steady training.
My Partner was amazing crew for Lisa and I and helped watch Lisa's soon to be 2 year old, who is starting to learn how to help, or rather help herself, in camp. It was great to hear her say "momma, go ride your bike" and send Lisa and I out for more! And Lisa, well she's my bestest bud and one of my inspirations, so it was awesome to ride 80 miles with her. I think for both of us it was a chance to get back to why we ride, to leave the pressure of doing well at a race and the fear of not meeting goals behind. I climbed virtually everything on the course every lap for the first time and Lisa rode down decents she rarely felt comfortale on and flew down other decents that she normally kept a mere steady pace down. Lisa, thanks for the inspiration and the awesome time at the Sage! Pics to come soon.