Epic Racing around the World

MonaVie/Cannondale signed up for La Ruta de Los Conquistadors several months back, it seemed like the trip and the challenge were so far off that today would never get here…not that I was itching to arrive, or dreading it either (individually)…it was more of a joint effort and feeling of doom and excitement.

But, before we could get to this point…

There was some racing to take care of - the Utah CX state championships at Wheeler Park in SLC.

Most of the crew made it out - Mitchell and Chris Peterson, Art O’Connor, Sager, and of course, 47 time returning champ, Bart.

Bart did his job and repeated as the Open champ, with Art and Mitchell putting themselves in the top 10, also.

In an attempt to simulate the hard work of a La Ruta day, I raced my first single speed event and became the Galatic Universal Utah Single Speed champ…then raced the mtb in the open race. I half expected Bart to lap me out there.

Ok…back to Costa Rica. The rest on the plane, if that’s what you want to call it, was actually welcomed after racing on Saturday…then it was back to work on Monday as we re-loaded 9 people’s gear into one small van.

From there it was an all day jungle adventure through the mountains….

and onto, and finally, the coast.

Tuesday is the day before the event. It’ll be time to get a little more serious, focus on resting for the 3am Wed wake up call/5am start time, fine tune the equipment selection, and prepare mentally and physically for a quest through the deepest of jungles…and personal athletic challenges.

Thanks to Flahute and Forrest for some of the photos.