Epic Racing around the World

The first event on the National Endurance calendar is one for the books. Read the real race report here.

One of my racing history’s staples has always been this classic event in far, far, far West Texas. 300 miles from the nearest commercial airport, no matter how you choose to approach Lajitas/Terlingua, Texas, its going to involve vast distances and a lot of sitting.

I’ve won a couple versions of this event over the years…it used to be the season opener, a pilgrimage to the land of Pancho Villa, and a 2 day/3 event stage race. Lately, its become a 100 kilometer marathon event, and the first of the USA Cycling National Endurance calendar…which was the perfect opportunity for Blake and I to open our legs up for the first mountain bike event of our season.

This time of year, competing is more about a regrouping of friends, in the desert mountains, and with it….a bigger and faster field of competitors joins us.

Using the new Garmin has proved to be a great tool. The mapping is interesting, but I’ve found the course profile as it relates to HR, effort, and speed to be the most useful. The file details can be found here.

You’ll notice speeds are higher at the end, and heart rate lower. Surprising, but that’s likely b/c after a winter spent on the road bike, after 50 miles its possible the skills were coming back…which makes winning all the much better.

Let’s keep the momentum going.