50 is the new black?

Think I've found my new distance!

This was the first time out on the dirt since the Fat Tyre back in December. This was my first 50km event. I usually go in for the main event but after spending zero time training or spending any time on the bike this year I decided to downgrade my entry to the 50km. My theory was simple 'I could prolly kill a 50 but a 100 would prolly kill me".

After cheering the boys off for the cold 7am start I had cruisy couple of hours to get my bike dialled in and my nutrition sorted. I got to the start line to see a motley crew of riders on k-mart specials. Oh oh I thought maybe this isn't the group I want to head off in - so I put myself down a few riders back from the start of group 1.

From the gun the pace was fast, fast, fast. The group was pretty tightly packed and we stayed together all the way to hill with no more than prolly 100-150m separating the whole pack. At the bottom of the hill the Garmin had recorded an average speed of 38km. This was going to be a quick day out.

Rode about half the hill split into 4 sections of ride, walk, ride, walk. There weren't many riding the whole thing and those that were I was easily keeping pace with on foot. So why blow your legs I thought?

The ride to the water station was pretty uneventful. Stayed pretty much with the same bunch the whole way. Leap frogging each other as we went along. One of the guys was on a CX and boy was he getting some air off those water bars! Saying that, because this was my first ride of the year my confidence on the downhills and water bars wasn't a tight as it could be so I took them a bit more gingerly.

Screamed through the water stop and onto a section of trail I was unfamiliar with (I usually turn right with the 100kers).

After all the hoo-haa by race officials about the water bars between 15-27km being all washed out they failed to mention the water bars between 15-40. So nothing prepared me for how sketchy the downhill and water bars were on the decent back down to the road. These were, in my opinion, FAR WORSE than those before the water station. We hadn't been warned about these. To top it off we almost ran into a 4WD that was heading down too. It was about half way down one of the steeper sections that the pack of 4 riders I was with came across a rider down. Turns out (I later discovered) it was Black Flash. Hope you mend well buddy - would love to hear your account of events when you're up to it. Up until this point the 4 of us had decided to work to together and form a train once we hit the road. Things didn't quite work out that way after coming across Heath. The lead 2 guys were flying and we unable to stop in time, myself and another rider managed to slow it down and stopped. The other rider was a Firey and he stayed with Heath whilst I grabbed his race no# and pushed on to raise the alarm. Heath wasn't in a good way at all. This was def an Ambo/Heli situation.

Hit the road, up ahead was a race official 4WD and the 2 other riders. I raced over to the 4WD to tell them to make 'the call'. After leaving the 4WD I knew I couldn't catch the other 2 but looked behind me to find another rider had just entered the road section. I waved him down to catch me up which he dutifully did and we both worked the road together dragging each other to the finish line. Thanks buddy couldn't have done it without you! Crossed the line and the time on Garmin was 1.58 but I knew I started it a bit late. Checked in at the timing tent and saw I had recorded a 2.03. Considering this was my first hit out for the year I was pretty stoked to say the least.

So the question now is with a finish time like that should I just stick to 50km events?

Oh yeah, and my HRM and Cadence sensor decided not to sync... grrr