Thierry Bonnaire said:

"We were presented with what felt like a wall of gravel in the region of 17% straight up. After this the gap between me and the main group was too just a bit too big to bridge over even working with Max. Feeling super tired on a long descent I rested and then tried to get back on to Max’s wheel some 300m ahead of me. Fortunately he saw me and chose to ease off so I get back on."

Feels like Juniper Swamp Rd to me.

I don't remember JS being that steep, but it's been a while.

What a great ride and race.  Hats off to the crew (Max, David, Eddie, Riley and James) that got together for a great weekend of comradery, cycling and upstate NY vistas.  Everything clicked logistically and I’d do this again in a hot second.  Perhaps as Eloy might say, the weekend was the hotness … with tons of hard riding and looking sharp.

Race wise, I did my best to plan for it, as the previous 3 weeks had been dedicated to super long rides.  The whistle blew and we were off.  I was feeling great as we approached the first gravel climb when away the field went.  And I stayed!  Well, until the second section of the climb.  I was totally redlining and could feel the group slipping (not breaking) away.  With the descent visible, I had done the work I needed and just needed to control the downhill.

Then mushiness.  Not the mushiness of supple 28mm clinchers gripping the soft gravel road, but the mushiness of a blown rear tire slowing my descent to a proverbial crawl.  I stopped the bike as the gravel met the tarmac.  Behind me was a battlefield of other unlucky riders and one across from me had blown a sidewall. So mine wasn’t that bad … or was it? 

The impending saga was a collection of teammate compassion (Eddie giving me a hand), fellow rider assist (CO2 cartridge gifted), SAG wagon assist (spare inner tube given), and personal, multifaceted embarrassment to change a flipping flat tire.  But 25 minutes … 25 MINUTES to change the flat!! I won’t go into the laborious details, yet what a total failure, one that can only be accepted by hand-pumping a tire to a less-than-acceptable pressure.  Two fields passed by during this period as more wounded soldiers collected behind me.

Which brings me to the way I repaid Eddie for stopping to help me.   We caught on with a strong 45+ group and did equal pulling and line rotation.  The next gravel section started the ascent and climb we did.  But as we crested, I turned around and didn’t see Eddie.  Our group had dropped him.  But repay I will!! Lead outs at PPark on me, dude.

I managed to have fun with a group of ~10 and pulled a lot.  The 17% hill climb is where I dug deep into my mountain / CX skills, not slipping and accelerating over the top at a ground-breaking 4.3 mph.  Lost a handful on that hill, and we were down to 5.  On the next climb I was dropping back slightly when a fellow rider gave me a soft nudge on the back.  A psychological nudge was what I needed to get back in front and lead the group again.

Had I not blown the tire, I very certain Riley and I would have had some fun together and moved up a few places.  Hats off to Max and James working together and finishing close to the front.  I don’t remember too much more of the race except for the half gallon of chocolate milk I crushed afterwards. 

The weekend was total baddassary, and USAC points or not, I would love to do it again. 

 

I think it's been said here before but out of town races are worth like 7 park races in terms of team bonding and general hotness.

Yes. traveling to races as a team is the best.

Also, hotness.

Epic weekend, epic rides, and loads of team bonding both on the bike and off. 

The weather was cooperative, in the low to mid 60's. The sleeveless thermal went a long way in helping to regulate body temperature between the climbs and descents. It was pretty cloudy all weekend, which helped tremendously for us light-skinned folk. 

Anyone who has ridden with me knows that climbing is not one of my strengths. Weighing in at 195 lbs, and with limited endurance training, I am in no way suited to tackle repeated climbs or repeatedly red-lining. So I had a pretty conservative strategy going into this race to make sure I didn't go into the red on the climbs. My goal was to have fun and finish. I got dropped at the first gravel climb @ about the 10th mile. 

To my fortune, and Scott's misfortune, I found a frustrated Scott wrestling with his brand spanking new Gatorskins. Pulled over & offered assistance. I was in a slight panic mode, fearing that I would be alone for the next 58 miles, so I was happy to see a teammate.

We worked together for some miles, alongside a strong group of masters, until the next gravel climb hit...as I waved goodbye to Scott...all the while sinking backwards down the hill

For the many miles that would follow, I made friends pulling for & pacing with the CAT 5 35+, 45+, and 55+ guys. Drew inspiration from them. Thanked each and every single race supporter I saw. Smiled for the folks cheering me on at the sidelines. Admired the scenery, as I struggled to maintain tempo throughout.

Count me in for the next one, the one after that, and the one after... 

Thanks to Scott, James, Riley, David, Max, all of the Kissena brothers and sisters that offer their support, and the folks at Redbeard Bikes!!

I went off the back ...



A few guys passed me on the descent but I was too blown to react. Finally I got in with two big fellas who were doing such big watts that I couldn't even pull through. Then I dropped them on the final climb. Then my pedal broke. Then those guys passed me in the final 20 meters or so because I had to pedal really carefully. Then I kept almost falling asleep at the wheel as I tried to drive home. Then I passed out in the parking lot of a Stewart's Shop about 30 miles out of town for like a half hour. The I went into the Stewart's Shop and bought coffee and a large box of Good 'N' Plenty. Then I went home.

THE END

Truly the drive back is often the most challenging part of the race. That final kicker looks Nastay.

Photos, or you're all fibbing and went to the Mohonk Mountain House for spa treatments.

the only reason i love to hate to climb:

the Lion of Brooklyn!

http://www.shopbulmerphoto.com/2016-Tour-of-the-Battenkill/i-wnPwX4W/A

I know they changed the format this year, but b-kill still looks like a good race. I've done it the last 3 years and plan to go again this year. I've gone up the morning of the race and been fine. In the past race start was mid to late morning (at least for CAT 5 and the gran fondo). Grandma lives close by. I've crashed there the night before as well. Room for lots of Kissenas

https://www.bikereg.com/tourofthebattenkill13

What?
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/tour-of-the-battenkill-cancelled/

sounds like the cash just wasn't there.  You would think with all this "gravel bike" marketing bullshit that's happening we would see more bike races with a few dirt roads sprinkled in....cuz cross season isn't enough....can someone explain the difference between a cross bike and a gravel bike?

twoyacks said:

sounds like the cash just wasn't there.  You would think with all this "gravel bike" marketing bullshit that's happening we would see more bike races with a few dirt roads sprinkled in....cuz cross season isn't enough....can someone explain the difference between a cross bike and a gravel bike?

From what I can tell gravel bikes will let you run tires in the high 40's mm width, and (allegedly) have longer wheelbases for stability.

the real anwser is marketing. that's the only real difference between a cross bike and a gravel bike.

yup, there are often other differences like lower bottom brackets and longer wheelbase, but you'll find tons of crossover if you look at enough bikes of both labels.

There are three major difference between CX and gravel bicycles:

1) True CX bikes have explosive charges in their seat tubes that are wired to go off if you ride it for more than one hour. 

2) CX bikes are allergic to water bottle cages as well. Your CX bike will not perform properly if you put on water bottle cages. 

3) Also if you heckle a gravel bike rider, their bicycle will cry. They have very sensitive feelings. Usually there are two tiny holes in the head tube which is where the tears come out from. 

This entire conundrum makes yacks cry....makes me miss the mtb scene of the early 90's...when men were men and sheep were scared

twoyacks said:

sounds like the cash just wasn't there.  You would think with all this "gravel bike" marketing bullshit that's happening we would see more bike races with a few dirt roads sprinkled in....cuz cross season isn't enough....can someone explain the difference between a cross bike and a gravel bike?

I've heard that Dieter Drake, the battenkill organizer, is a polarizing figure. Even before it changed it's format, teams began dropping out bc they just straight up don't like the guy. That being said, his mercurial approach to Battenkill (announcing, canceling, threatening to cancel, proposing, then canceling proposals, etc.) is incredibly off putting. Battenkill is such a great course / place to race. Bummer he seems to have so much trouble making the numbers work.

Has anyone ever dealt with Dieter? Would be interested to know what the deal is / more of the background. 

I plan on doing the Gran Fondo this year. 

Have known Dieter for many many years. He is an ok guy, but definitely a character when it comes to Battenkill. Not sure there's much worth discussing on the board. Ask me on a ride sometime

My experiences with him have been fine. Harry B left a pair of race wheels at Battenkill once and Dieter kept them in his office until they could be picked up.

I know that #relegationgate with Myserson was polarizing, but other than wild price tag Battenkill is still my favourite race.

#ymmv

Does anyone know who Dieter sold the race to?

- uh, just talked to Dieter. 

https://ruggedmaniac.com/ will be running it... ?

how much did he sell it for? guessing he didn't tell you. endurance sports is big business. 
good for him.

GregStreiff said:

how much did he sell it for? guessing he didn't tell you. endurance sports is big business. 
good for him.

I don't think he'll tell anyone. But a company that has never put on a bike race doesn't sound very encouraging.

Agreed. not encouraging.
their merch store is super lame: http://store.ruggedmaniac.com/

^curses

Ok so this promo video was about 100 times better than expected:

https://www.facebook.com/battenkill/videos/1605623152822535/