Tahoe Sierra 100 Mountain Bike Endurance Race Updates by The Motley Grinders

The Tahoe Sierra 100 Mountain Bike Endurance Race was another brutal event and here are the gory details by Todd, Roger, and Kayden of The Motley Grinders (Auburn, CA).

Todd's Tahoe Sierra 100 Update

Gory, it was. Hot and dusty roads made for a difficult race for everyone, including the pros. Rumors at the finish line were that this was more difficult then the Leadville 100. All TMG members finished with out incident, but there were 2 racers that were taken to the hospital. One broken collar bone, and the other racer face planted in the deep dust that resulted in a head injury. Roger and Kayden can tell their side of the story, but I think I can safely say it we all had thoughts of where the hell is the sag wagon at some point in the race.

I race men’s open geared division. I am not sure why they don’t have a separate pro division, but they don’t. Unofficially I finished 9th in approximately 8 hours 15 minutes. The course was 98 miles and arguably about 12k feet in climbing. I had mechanical issues with my derailleur before the race started, but with the help of Roger (aka MacGyver), with duct tape and a twist tie, we resolved the issue. Thanks Roger!!! The race went out fast from the start. I managed to hang with the pros for the first 5 miles, but had to let them go once the road pitched from 4% to 8 plus %. I think I pushed harder and deeper then ever before and found that I can push it to a level that I had not though would be possible. However, at the finish line I nearly fell off the bike as I tried to get off the bike and proceeded to lay on the ground for 30 minutes waiting for the muscle spasms/cramps to pass.

The first place finishers (a tie) came in at 7 hours 10 minutes. So I just need to knock 1 hour off my time and I could be competitive. Ha ha!!! At least I can say I beat Tinker “momma’s boy” Juarez; however, so can just about everyone else.

Want to watch Todd's muscles involuntarily dance after he finished the race?



Roger's Tahoe Sierra 100 Update

How it went down for me!

Started out and watched the top 30 or 40 roll away on the pavement. No worries, just riding. Hit the climb and keep it nice and smooth, chatting with Matt Zanner (sp?) and a couple boys from Oregon. After about a 1/3 the way up the climb, I hear Dez Wilder shout out "hey, Rog, I thought you weren't doing long ones anymore." I laughed, and said "I ain't racing I'm riding, but what the hell are you doing back here?" He goes on his mach speed way, right on by..."I'm a slow starter." He lost by about 3 minutes, at least the same amount of time he spotted the winner at the start. Doh.

Anyway.... The four of us, Matt, me, and the Oregon boys are clicking people off pretty fast heading up the first climb and pass Louise Kobin and Amanda something or rather just before the Victory Velo aid station. Passing Louise meant that we had a very good pace going. We hit the fast descent on the backside leading into the more gentle but rocky rollers. Spoooge is all I hear as I puncture the sidewall of my tubeles. Determined I spend about 5 minutes trying to get the damn thing to seal. Ride it a few yard and spooge again. Dammit, get off put in a tube, pump it up and now I'm on my way. A mile later, I'm off again....with a pinch flat (I think my tube had a leak, which caused me to pinch). So out comes my last tube, I pump the tire again, and just laugh, what a day already....I get to the bottom and make the right up to Lyon's ridge. I rail that mother, the traction being suprisingly good and just past person after person struggling or walking (well, duh I'm probably close to deadlast in the pack by now!). I'm feeling good, give the camelback a shake and decide to forgo stopping at the aid station at the summit. Less than a mile down the road, blammo, I'm flat again! Yes, we're now at three flats, in probably about 8 miles!

No tube, I just sit on the side of the trail, a guy gives me patch kit, so I'm pulling the blown tube to patch, remember I have STan's crap all over my tires and me now. Along comes Jenny V. from Ride for a Reason. She gives me a tube, sweet! I put the tube in but now for some reason I can't get the bead back on. I'm frustrated at this point, just repeating "what the f...." meantime, people continue to roll by.

Finally, a guy stops and asks if I need anything, I'm about crying at this point, but I say have any tire irons. He hands me three, and I try to get the damn tire pried on. After several frustrating minutes. He says "give me one back, and keep the other two." and rolls off.

Finally, I get the bead on and this time, hit it with a CO2 instead of a pump. Back on the bike, and rolling! Oooops, not quite. I think I may have pinched the tube with my dreaded all thumbs tire iron job. FLAT AGAIN!

By this time Dawn Bean and Steve Bowman roll up. I'm whining about "I just don't know what's wrong..the bead this, the tube that...blah blah." Dawn hands me a tube, I take the bead completely off the tire and try to make sure everything is good, I stick the new tube in and put the bead back on...and it slides on??????????????????????? (I think what happened was in my haste, I had the tire twisted on the rim on the third flat). Anyway, they take off and I pump like a madman.

So now I've spent probably somewhere north of 45 minutes with flats over a few miles.

Ugghhh, I hit the bottom of the descent seeing one guy in the bushes with a broken collar bone and other folks folks just sking it down. I pass Dawn shout another thanks and catch Steve Bowman.

Steve and I roll for the next 20 miles or so together at which time, I grab tubes from Dan's aid station and begin my beer consumption at Robinson flat.

Steve and I get separated on the long gradual descent, so I ride solo most of the way until I catch Kayden as I roll through an aid station. A few miles later Kayden yells to me and I slow to wait for him, so that we can ride together. He tells me to remind Todd that he has the keys. I say okay and than Kayden, after I had just waited for me, DROPS ME! What!!!!

I roll into the RIP mile 69 aid station and give Kayden crap...we laugh, but homey is in the hurt box and almost lays on me for support...muttering strange sweet nothings in my ear. I'm like dude get off me, I just want to fill my camelback. ;o)

I head out on my way, leaving Kayden with a margarita blender and a few sombrero's.

The next 15 miles get hot with southern exposure. I do my best Sturges impersonation and ride from road side to road side catching as much shade as possible. I hit the aid station to turn off and head toward Robinson flat. I down a cold drink, a few pretzels, and a handful of licorice. I ride pretty strong through here but far earlier had planned to walk the steep pitches leading into Robinson Flat. I'm feeling a bit bonky at Robinson and I hang for awhile..during that time Jim comes in with his truck with Louise Kobin and the Amanda racer, plus Jim Hewlitt. Seemed they all made a wrong turn and were an hour off course. Oooops, no cash for the ladies!

I roll out of Robinson to hit the last six miles before I get to descend. Those damn rollers were hard and painful. I hit Dan's aid station and he has a cold beer waiting. I down the beer and roll the rest of the way to the finish.

I grab another beer and head down to the lake to clean up....beer consumption does not end until the keg is dry.

I wake up with a partial hang over and make my way back to Auburn with one stop at McD's for two sausage egg mcmuffins and a second stop at Coffee Depoe for a hot tall boy of java.

Good times!

Kayden's Tahoe Sierra 100 Update

Okay here is my story...it starts on Friday after 7 days of taking nyquil 24 hrs a day; when I feel too weak to get off the couch and get my stuff ready for the race. This is where my race should have ended but I am way too dumb to throw in the towel. Of course this is why I waited until today to see the Doctor who confirmed I have a sinus infection and bronchitis.
So the race actually started pretty well. I started near the back and quickly began passing people. When I passed Dan-o and Devon at the first aid station I was feeling pretty decent but near the top of Lyons ridge my body started aching all over bad but my legs and breathing were still good.

After flying down the awesome descent I am passing quite a few people and I see Tinker on the side of the trail working on his bike and I figure at this point I have to finish so I can tell my grand kids I beat tinker. Then I hit the fricken same goddamn climb again and knowing what is ahead of me sucks so I settle in and get into an easy pace. Unfortunately I start aching all over, snaught is coming out my nose steadily like mollasses, head feels like in a vice, weekend warriors start passing me and I am starting to realize the body is starting to shut down. Luckily I hit Dan-o's aid station again and he hooks me up with water, mixes my perpeteum, and hooks me up with a couple of aleve (Thanks much Dan and crew as you guys were awesome and supported from beginning to end).

So I roll out of there and start feeling a little better at mile 37 or so, and then I start feeling a lot better and am passing people one after another again. Then upon hitting the top of the descent and getting fired up to keep my 9 hour pace I start flying down the descent when I see a rock in the middle of the trail that looks round so I decide to roll over and air it out. However my vision was impaired and the rock was a nasty triangle that blew my tubeless tire and bent my rim. I pull over to fix it and get passed by tons of people I worked so hard to pass. Then some guy pulls over and asks me to help him clip in by stepping on his foot. After 20 tries he still can't clip in and decides to abandon. Then I get going again down the descent and my rear brake starts acting up and making noise...then starts clicking and finally locks up. I get off and think my race is over. Then a nice hill billy pulls up in his truck and suggests taking the brake caliper off. So I pull off the bolts and luckily the nice hill billy's mom is helping find all the parts that are falling into the rocks. Then when I get the bolts off the caliper won't come off the disc but after a few more minutes I get it pried off. Now off I go with only a front brake flying along at about 30 mph. Then I come across the guy who face planted and his bike is a mess. His front tire is off, tube is off and his face looks like he got lit up by muhammed Ali so I take it as a warning and slow down a bit more. Then I hit some steady grades and figure it is time to make up some time. I start giving it as much as possible without getting too past the redline and people are giving me props as I pass but it was really just a survival instinct to want to get the race over with. After punishing myself like this for about 25 miles the body starts shutting down and I figure screw it I can ride through it. So not much later right before the aid station that roger shared the photo of I crack hard. I get to the aid station and down some electrolytes and a coke. As I'm chilling roger goes blowing through. I wait for the body to recover a bit more before I take off and thankfully get a pretty huge descent before I have to endure any more cramps and pain.

Then I'm surprised to see Roger again so I call out to get his attention and tell him to tell Todd I put the key to the truck in his camelback because I figure roger will get to the finish long before me. Roger gratiously waits for me and then I go rolling past him and I'm thinking damn that was a punk move but survival mode beckons me forward. On this descent that lasted forever my legs start seizing up and my body is going into serious shut down mode. I think this was the first time that has ever happened. So roger catches me at the next aid station and I am all over him like a cheap, desperate hooker who needs to feed her kids. Roger pushes me off and I come to my senses. Then the aid workers start worrying about me saying that I am goose pimpling up and say that I don't look good enough to continue. Roger chimes in telling me to just continue and ride.

So in good ole TMG spirit I continue. After hitting the next couple climbs I realize this was not a wise decision. I'm in such bad shape with chills, goose bumps, dizziness, low blood pressure, cramps and more that I start panicking asking for people passing me to let the next aid station know that I am in trouble. Most people tell me to get off my bike but I continue for several more miles of climbing before I finally dismount and chill in the shade for awhile. Another rider comes by walking so I figure I'll start walking with him and this gives me enough of a start to cruise to the next aid station. At the next aid station I refuel for about 40 minutes watching everybody and their mother pass me. At this point I seriously fear death if I continue but the guy who was walking says he is going to so again forget better judgment and go forward. The last 20 miles go pretty well as I ride everything and hold off the severe muscle cramps that a couple times almost make me scream. Once I hit the final descent I decide to lay into it and finish strong. I pass a few people and make it to the finish which at the beginning of the day and most of the day felt was out of reach. I have never appreciated a medal as much as I now appreciate the finishing medal I got. Hard to believe anyone finished after me but they did. My time was a little over 11 hours. Now I am on antibiotics and loving relaxing with the kids and wife. Great job Todd! You killed it. Roger thanks for not killing me out there. Again thanks Dan-o for the great support!

Some Photos from the Tahoe Sierra 100

Thanks for the pain and suffering Jim!