Balltown Classic

May 19th I completed in the Balltown Classic 200 mile race.  This is the 5th time I have entered this race and it is one of my favorites.  I really enjoy the fast starts that a 200 mile or 12 hour race offers.  That fast-paced riding in a tight group takes me back to my USCF (now USA) cycling days.  I feed off the riders around me and can dig a little deeper.  The rush of chasing someone down or bridging a gap is quite exhilarating.  It seems a little strange to be chasing with 195 miles to go but I love it and can't help but get caught up in the action.

The field this year was stacked.  There were two 2012 solo RAAM racers, Paul Carpenter and Kurt Searvogel, one four person RAAM racers, Larry Ide and a past RAAM finisher, Dave Meredith.  Previous Balltown winners Jay Yost and Bill Ford were also at the start line.  Bill Ford is a teammate of mine and he and I have been preparing for this race for a few months.  Bill came to the race with more centuries this year, 10 weekends in a row of 100+ mile rides, then he has ever had for the entire year.

During an ultra race there comes a time when your brain admits that you are going too fast and cannot sustain the current high pace any longer so you let the group go and conservatively settle in to your own "sane' pace. Our plan was to stay with the lead group and help with the pace in an attempt to break the race record of 10:05 or 20.13 mph average.  We were not going to save anything but push and hang on until we could hang on no more. We knew who the big guns would be and we did not want them to get away.

The weather forecast was for warm and breezy with the winds picking up out of the south at 15-20 mph and gusty.  This was going to make for a quick ride up and a long ride back.  I tried to keep the thought of fighting the wind for the last 100 miles out of my head as we rapidly pushed our way north.  The front group quickly whittled down to 10 in the first several miles.  The group was riding strong as we rolled through Lost Nation and closed in our our rendezvous with the first of the big climbs south of Baldwin.  Once over these climbs our group was reduced to seven with the first sag stop quickly approaching.  We reached the sag in 2:08 with an average speed of around 24 mph.  Kurt had on-course support and did not have to stop and Keith Wells was carrying enough food and water that he did not stop.  When the rest of us stopped for 30 seconds they got a gap on us that "forced" us to chase.  There we go again 150 miles to go and chasing.  Sometimes the testosterone gets the best of the common sense.  Five of us grouped up and started working to close the gap.  Larry was on his recumbent and did some monster pulls on the long gradual downhills to help out and we eventually caught back on.  I don't think they were really running from us but us still took 15 miles to catch them.

Chasing took quite a bit out of us and our little group was reduced to 5.  Kurt, Bill, Martin, Collin and myself.  Bill and I seemed like the weakest links as we rolled up and down the hills.  We tried to take the downhills nice and easy but everybody else was hammering them.  With the wind aided northern journey we hit the 100 mile mark in 4:16 and made the turn at Balltown, 104 miles, in 4:30.  Now the fun would begin.

The race, and the hills, really begin in earnest shortly after Balltown on Horseshoe road.  The climb into town is long and gradual and you hardly know you are trending upward until you are on the ridge and can see for miles.  The route leaving town is a completely different story.  In the first 20 miles after Balltown you hit three climbs that are over 10% with the length being over a mile.  This year they changed the course and were avoiding those three climbs.  I was glad because that is the point where I usually get dumped and finish the last 80 miles on my own. 

Heading out on the new route my glad feelings were quickly erased as we came face to face with three very steep, 12%, climbs back to back to back.  These climbs were not as long but were steeper and not spaced out like the old routes hills.  At the end of the ride most of us agreed that the old route would have been easier.

Collin put the hurts to all of us on this section.  He had commented that he likes the hills and was bummed there was not more.  He was followed by Kurt, Martin, Bill then me bringing up the rear as the road finally leveled.  This section decided the race and Bill and I did not have what it took to hang with the leaders.  Bill commented that he has never wanted to get off and walk his bike up a hill before today.  It is a good thing I loaned him my 12-23T cassette to go with his 39T little ring replacing his 12-21T.  I was glad to have a 12-25T with a 36 in the front.

After the climbs all we had left was 85 miles of screaming head wind.  Bill and I worked together not chasing just surviving at this point. We had Martin just in front of us and Kurt and Collin out of sight.  We caught Martin just as my first cramp hit both legs forcing me to briefly stop and stretch until they went away.  My legs were rebelling from the last 5 hours of pushing.  The cramping would continue off and on for the next four hours.  Bill got a little gap that allowed him to stop in Farley for water and me to catch back up to him.  We again reeled in a suffering Martin but he was off the back quickly to leave Bill and I to push on to the finish.

Over the next 75 miles we climbed,  fought the wind, enjoyed some much needed cross-wind sections and rolled along in survival mode wondering why we do this to ourselves.  We commented that Mike and Jean were smart to stay home for this ride.  I reminded Bill that we were solidly in third and fourth place and that everyone was suffering.  This kind of talk was used to motivate him but also helpful in keeping my spirits up as I battled cramp after cramp.

We added a few quick unscheduled stops for water and the scheduled stop at the 150 mile mark to pick up some supplies at the sag before making the final push.  With 23 miles to go we turned east for 16 miles of crosswind that rejuvenated us.  With a quick stop in Welton for more cold water and wipe the salt off our faces we rolled on for the last 10 miles celebrating our accomplishment.  Our finishing time was 11:15, 4:30 to Balltown and 6:45 back.  We were 31 minutes behind Kurt and 27 minutes behind Collin.  Martin would finish 27 minutes after us giving us 3rd and 4th place.

It was a very tough ride with the wind on the way back making every hill seem like a mountain.  I have never seen Bill use such a low gear as often as he did that day.  We pushed each other for the first 110 miles.  He helped me through the cramps from the 75 mile mark to 30 mile mark and I helped him through the last 30 miles of no energy.  It was a true team accomplishment by two guys who love to ride together.  We have ridden thousands of miles together but this was the first rides that we really needed each other to make it to the finish.  We were the only riders that finished together of the 15 official finisher.

results

Balltown Recon Ride

Three of us set out on a damp and foggy morning with Cascade Iowa as the destination. The plan was to meet Paul Carpenter at 9:00 AM to ride the north 100 miles of the Balltown Classic race course. Bill, Paul and I had ridden the entire route many times but Jean (pronounced like John) Dragon would see the toughest part of the course for the first time. Jean's plans were to make 2012 his first attempt at the Midwest spring classic.

The gloomy mist turned into a light rain as we neared our staring point at the tiny Happy Joe's just off highway 151 on the northeast corner of the small Iowa town. The fine mist returned as we rolled out of town hoping the England like weather would break and turn into a beautiful day like the rest of the unseasonably warm spring had been.

The pace was social as we forged our way north into a slight headwind while the spray from the water soaked roads made drafting less then desirable. Shortly after the aptly named Roller Coaster Road the pavement showed some signs of drying as the mist ceased and the light fog began to break. We enjoyed so great views as we neared the bluff town of Balltown sitting at the end of Ridge Road. The long gradual climb to town provides a panoramic view of the Mississippi River valley as well as Illinois and Wisconsin. We three veterans enjoyed this forgiving approach to the hilltop turnaround and remembered years this scenic road was closed and we were forced to go in and out on the more hilly and less scenic Horseshoe Road. We also knew what was waiting on the southern trip.

I am not sure how Horseshoe road received it's name. Maybe the visual of standing many horseshoes in a row would give you a good idea of the profile. Another possibility could be the horses needed special shoes to climb the hills or stop at the bottom. Either way after 7 different times over this road going south or north I know what it means to me. We are going to descend really fast and ascend really slow on three "major" climbs before we hit Epworth. This is where the race would break into the contenders and pretenders and leave rides scattered to fend for themselves for the next 80 miles to the finish line. Luckily we were only riding 100 today not 200.

The three long, steep climbs were just as I remembered them. All you can do is just set a nice steady pace and grunt it out, and wish you had a bigger gear in the back. During the race this is where you decide if you want to push it to keep up with the lead group and risk blowing up and a very long ride back to Dewitt or do you climb at your pace and try to conserve as much energy as possible. On this trip I chose to let Bill and Paul go up the road and I hung back with Jean. Unlike race day I knew they would wait at the top to regroup. Afterwards I wish I had pushed it a little harder on at least one of the hills.

Epworth was the planned stop for the day at the 57 mile mark. Jean's wife is from Epworth so he knew where the BP store, just two blocks off the route, was located. A quick in and out and we were on our way south with the hills and the wind behind us. At this point you can breath a little sigh of relief knowing the big climbs are over but the problem is you still have 75 miles of riding. On this ride we only had 43 so it did seem like the end was near.

The thankful light breezes pushed us along at a nice pace over the next 25 miles to our turnaround at the race 50/150 mile sag stop location. The only break was a quick flat tire change by me just before the turnaround. Bill was not too happy to learn that we had to turn around and head back into the wind for the rest of the ride to Cascade. He mentioned something about finding a stick.

We plodded north, rotating regularly, over the undulating terrain counting down the last miles. Our trip was interrupted again by a mechanical problem with 15 miles remaining. This time it was a little more serious then a flat tire. As Bill rotated behind me and in front of Paul his rear skewer brushed Paul's front wheel and bent a spoke causing the wheel to have a significant wobble. Paul was able to stay upright but the wheel was gently rubbing on the fork. Luckily I had a multi-tool with a spoke wrench and was able to take some of the wobble out so we could continue.

We finally rolled onto Cascade 6 hours after departing. Once the roads dried the weather was fabulous for riding with the temperatures staying consistently in the low to mid 60 the entire ride. It was a great training ride that provided Bill, Paul and I a reminder of just how tough this hilly course can be. For Jean it was an eye opener. He later said that words cannot describe the course even though I had tried several times since he had mentioned the race would be fun.

I look forward to the challenge that competing on this course always brings. There will be some very talented riders and I hope to hang with them as long as possible. Whether solo of with a group this is one of my favorite ultra-distant rides in area.