MTB Baja Ultra Endurance 100KM race

Another weekend, another race.... This one was similar to Chupacabras, but different.... Most people want to know which one was better, but it's hard to say. In my opinion, both offer different challenges. Chups stars as a road race, while Baja UE is a mtn bike race the entire time. The major challenge at Chups is the hike-a-bike, while Baja UE has at least 3 very long and steep climbs. Singletrack for both races is about the same. I personally think Baja UE is harder due to the climbing. I guess if I weighed 135 lbs, I would think differently.

PRE-RACE

Wendy and I drove from Phoenix to San Diego at 5 PM on Thursday night. We made about 20 miles past Gila Bend when we realized we had forgotten our passports and had to turn around. (First sign from the cycling gods!!) So we really left Phoenix at 8:15 PM. Made it to SD just before 1:30 AM.

Next day we went on a leisure ride near Otay Lakes. I rode from the house and thought I would pump Wendy's tires before I took off, of course, I forgot to up the front tire back in the truck and when I met up with Wendy, there was no front wheel. Another trip back to my Mom's house. (Second sign from the Cycling gods!!)

We arrived in Ensenada Friday afternoon, stopped to pick up our packages (Wendy decided to do the 65 KM tour) at the race hotel. As you check in, you must have your bike "inspected" by a team of mechanics. The pretty much check brakes, shifters, bolts, etc. They even lube your bike. I had my Anthem full suspension bike and since my rear triangle was brand new, I was planning on going over everything later that evening, but the mechanic worked on it and adjusted my rear derailleur (mistake!! - cycling gods???) Had some shifting issues ... duh!!

RACE DAY

The start of the race was pretty early - 7 AM. I saw some old friends at the start (I grew up in Ensenada in case you didn't know). Talked to some of the pros, Manny Ortiz from Costa Rica - who won the race, Emmanuel Valencia from Mexico who I had run into at Chups the weekend before (he finished second here after having a flat tire near the end of the race).

We started exactly at 7 AM - no joking about Mexican time!! These guys are punctual. We were on city streets for about 500 meters then into a wash that crosses most of the city from West to East. The was is fairly flat, but a little sandy in some spots. I thought about going off the front, a la Chups, but every time I get my face out of the draft I would quickly change my mind.

We hit the first climb about 5 miles in and this broke the lead pack of about 30 almost immediately. The climb was steep and long. Oh, yeah, there was a $500 dlls prize for the first one to the top, so all the pros were gunning for it. I got to the top of the climb about 50 minutes after the start, already about 10 minutes behind the first pros. I dabbed a couple of times and had to walk a few short sections, but it was more bad riding on my part than the terrain. Everything was rideable. I didn't know most of the people I was racing against so I finally asked another younger rider if he knew of anybody in the 45+ category that was up ahead and he said yes. At least one. Crap!! I was hoping to do well. All I could do was race at my own pace and see what happens.

My sister Gaby and brother-in-law Vico (that's him in the picture next to his Class 11 VW) agree to help me out and take pictures and carry some water bottles in case I needed them. First time I saw them was about 8:30 AM and got my first water bottle - had a bladder with Heed - which tasted really good. Later I found out that first place rider had over 15 minutes on me at this point. I was riding with two riders working together. One was having issues with his bike and had to stop. The second dropped off when we caught an 18 year old kid named Henry who was very strong.

Just before we started the second climb, I told Henry to go at his own pace, there was no way I could keep up with him on the climb. We hit the second climb - this was the part that was excluded from the 65 KM Tour - long and steep, but all rideable. I could see Henry moving away, but I stayed my pace and eventually caught up with him again after some descending and flat sections. Second road crossing, another water bottle, got rid of the camelback and carried another water bottle in my jersey pocket (mistake!! Cycling Gods??!!?). Later I was told that I was in first place at this point.

The course took you onto a very technical descent - loose, rocky, with lots of ruts. I went down near the top, got back on the bike, passed Wendy on my way down - she "looked" like she was having fun :-) Once out of the technical singletrack, I passed an aid station since I still had a quarter of a bottle of water on the bike and the one in my pocket or so I thought. I few miles after passing the aid station, I finished my water bottle and reached for the one in my pocket... and... oh, crap!! Nothing there... WTF??!!?!

I ran into two riders fixing a flat and asked/begged for some water - it was pretty warm by now - and got half a bottle. I rationed the water until I could see an aid station. Luckily it wasn't too far away and made with with no problems although I didn't drink as much as I wanted for about 30-45 minutes. Next aid station I stopped for more water and heard some yelling - saw my sister and my brother in law across the road with a nice cold bottle of water... Sweeeeet!! Of course I was back in second place by now :-( or so I was told.

Next climb I could feel my left leg wanted to cramp, probably due to the lack of drinking water. I spun up it, took my time, ate, drank some more and keep rolling. The last 10 KM seemed like an eternity, back on the wash and onto the finish - I was still moving pretty good, so no bonk this time near the end, probably because I ate and drank regularly (almost). Felt pretty good at the end. Finished in second place in my category with a time of around 4:52 about 5 minutes behind the winner. Third place was more than 15 minutes behind me. Wendy finished the 65 KM in about 5:40, was the second female although there were no categories and had a relatively good time. She's amazing!! There is now way I would do a 5 hour ride, with my longest ride in the last 2 years being 3 hours - one 3-hour ride 2 weeks ago.

POST RACE

The 100KM MTB Baja Ultra Endurance is a great event. Prizes were incredible - set of spinery wheels for 1st place rider (non pro), lights and tires for second place, and set of tires for 3rd place. The ambiance is fun and relaxed. I may be biased because I grew up here, but I feel perfectly safe in this city - I don't feel safe in Tijuana or Nogales, but Ensenada is very peaceful. The course if fun, challenging and picturesque. The people are friendly and go out of their way to help you out. This is another event to put on your "must do" list. The promoter, Jorge, is already thinking about next year.

Oh, yeah, at the awards ceremony, there was a huge raffle with the grand prize being a Giant Anthem!!! and if you win the raffle you still have to jump into a pool with pretty cold water, but don't worry, Jorge will jump in there with you just in case you don't know how to swim.

Stay tuned for my updates on Baja Epic which starts on November 5 and runs until the 8th. Adios!!

POST

Chupacabras 100KM

Yes, I know, the Chupacabras is a animal/monster that sucks blood from sheep, but the Chupacabras 100KM is a mountain bike race held in Ciudad Juarez in the state of Chihuahua (Mexico) that sucks the energey from mountain bikers. This is a HUGE race. This year they broke last year's record with over 3500 racers.

PRE-RACE
This was my first time doing it so I didn't know anything about the course. I decided to go do it since my friend Jay said he was doing it (and signed up for it) but then chickened out at the last minute (He had a good excuse though - watching his son play in a soccer tournament). As luck would have it, Jay and I stayed with a friend (Danny) of his that was racing, so at least I had some company.

Danny and his wife Liz (and Jay) gave me the scoop on the race and the course. The only thing I really got out of it is to be careful on the Levee and the long hike-a-bike section. The morning of the race, Danny got me in the front chute (which made a big difference) using somebody else's name. The rule is that the top 100 finishers from the previous year get to line up in the front chute, but this was a rule that was only followed for about 20 minutes, then everybody was jumping over and lining up wherever they could find space for their bikes. I was still in the 3rd or 4th row by the time the race started.

Danny and I were both lined up about 7:45 AM... the race started at 9 AM, which meant not much of a warm up. I wanted to get a good start since the race went straight into the levee after 1/2 mile or so.

THE START
When the gun went off, I was bit careful, but moved up pretty quickly. I was in the top 20 by the time we hit the levee. I stayed near the front, but the main pack was moving rather slowly - probably around 17-18 mph. I was getting pushed back so I decided to go to the front, take a pull for a minute or two and warm up the legs. I pulled for about 30 seconds and looked back thinking somebody would come around but there was nobody there. Pack was about 30 meters behind me, so I decided to keep going. Pace felt comfortable.

I was off the front by myself for about 10 minutes and built a lead of about 200 meters. Finally, 2 other riders bridged up to me, then 5 more came across. The 9 man break worked really well together and everybody was drilling it. I pulled when it was my turn, but wasn't overly anxious to do to much pulling, we still had 55 miles to go. When we got off the levee into some single/double track section, we were still together but only 4 or 5 of us were working, the rest were struggling to keep up. We finally got back on the levee and this is were we were caught by the Pros - two Italians, Emmanual (from Turbo, a professional mexican team) and a Trek-VW riders. The Trek-VW rider had some mechanical about 1 mile later and never saw him again. Not sure if he finished or not.

We had to "cyclocross" across a couple of railroad ties and this is where the pros dropped me like a hammer ...'Adios amigos!!'.

INLAND WE GO
We finally stared going inland - after over 20 miles - which meant climbing was about to begin. The course is fairly flat with just over 3,000 ft. of climbing - good for me!! We went through a very poor neighborhood with dogs all over the place, and I was still in the top 10. Once we hit the first real climb - steep and loose - but short, more fast guys were catching up with me. My initial goal was top 100, but after talking to Danny and Liz, my goal dropped to top 50, so I was in great shape.

Just before the King Kong steps (the first hike-a-bike) we went though a feed area that also had a microphone and probably a hundred or so fans just encouraging the racers. The announcer was telling every rider their position, which I thought was very cool. I was 18th. Maybe I could get a top 20????

I had done the first 35 miles in just under 2 hours - OFF ROAD!! I was moving pretty good. I got passed by a few other riders and by the time I hit the King Kong steps, I was 24th. Maybe I could get a top 25???? :-)

The steps turned into a 7 minute hike-a-bike - not bad. Danny and Jay had told me that the hike-a-bike section was 20-30 minutes long and I thought they were full of it since it took me about 7 minutes. The next section was fun downhill singletrack through a wash. I was catching people on the technical sections, but it was hard to pass. At one point, I tried to pass another rider in the wash only to realize that the trail went in another direction. I had to stop, catch the same rider and finally pass him... AGAIN!!

Another feed zone, with fans and sound system --- 22nd!!

"THE" HIKE A BIKE
I realize that the steps was not the section that Danny and Jay had mentioned when I saw the climb. This is a brutal, rocky, loose, steep and long section that is 100% UNRIDEABLE. It climbs about 500 ft. in about 1/4-1/2 mile and took me about 35 minutes. Got passed by a few riders .... need to practice hiking while carrying my bike before next year's race. I had new shoes that I had only worn twice before this event and never really walked in them. I thought cycling shoes were for CYCLING!! not hiking. WTF??!!?

Once at the top, then come the other half of the WTF??!!? La Bajada del Diablo (transalation: the Devil's downhill). Ummm? I wonder if it's technical? I stopped to retighten my shoes at the top - a rider goes by and about 30 yards down, he goes down really hard. There's my answer. It is a bit technical. I was riding well on the downhills, and didn't have any issues. I missed one switchback were I had to dab and also walked the last 20 yards due to another one that was followed with a very steep section with big boulders at the bottom. Too old for that shit - I can walk.

THE FINISH
I ended up catching a couple of riders once we hit the dirt roads again, but the last little climb - called the Terminator - did me in. My legs didn't want to keep going. I lost contact with the two, then another rider that I had dropped just about 2 miles ago, caught and I couldn't stay on his wheel. My legs were done. I rode the last 5 miles at a decent pace, not too slow, but didn't have much umph!! in them. I finished the 64 miles in 4:46 - I'm pretty sure I finished around 25th place. Final posting are not in yet. Danny came in about 5 minutes later probably right around 30th place.

POST RACE
This is a big event, with all sorts of drinks, food, vendors at the finish. Top 650 finishers get a jersey, so if you think you can finish 100 km in less than 6:30 hours, you get a jersey. I stongly recommend anyone thinking about to come out and do it. The course is fun (mostly) with only 3000 ft. of elevation gain. I had lots of fun. We parked the cars in El Paso and rode our bikes across the border to the park. About a 1.5 mile ride. If you come, remember to bring proof of citizenship so you can get back into the US. Many thanks to Danny and Liz for taking such good care of me.

Next up is another 100 km race this Saturday in Ensenada. Thanks for reading!!