There were about 30 of us or so with a couple of guides on bikes and neutral support and everyone was very friendly. Dieter was there and enlisted the help of his kids who were at the rest stops with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.  We all started together but, just like the race, broke up on the hills and went about our own way.  Roads were marked and we had cue sheets.

One thing I want to definitely report on is the downhill at mile 50.  It's super steep, is rutted and littered with rocks, not the quaint pebbles strewn across the road, but rocks.  If you do this race, remind yourself at mile 50 to slow down.  Don't be close to anyone going super fast because they're going to eat dirt.  You can see mile 50 my on strava.

Some of the roads that were completely rutted and had huge potholes now sport new dirt and are easier to ride on, though new dirt comes with rocks, so the going is still rough.  The new dirt and rocks mean difficult transitions to and from pavement, especially on the 90 degree turns.  I fishtailed a couple of times, during a preview casual ride, so I'm going to have to remember that racing doesn't mean going fast, it means riding smart, going slow when I need to in order to stay upright, and staying off wheels that are going too fast on the iffy parts.

Winter may help pack the dirt and rocks down.  And with only 30 of us, one guy broke a spoke and I saw another with a flat.

After the ride, I did get chocolate milk, and a t-shirt.  Success!  I drove up day of with my GF, who rode with me.  3.5 hours up, 6.5 hours back because of mysterious traffic.  

The ride

On of the new segments, which I'm listed on at 7th until the actual race, when I drop down to 15k

$110. That's the last time I'll look at this thread.

That said, most people don't want to look at their bikes for a few days afterwards.  It's a hard damn race.

Thirteen Cat 5 fields

Six Cat 4 fields

Two Cat 3's

One Cat 2

#demographicsholmes