Cool Mountain Bike Race 2017

[Michael Koppe]

  I decided to enter the Cool Mountain Bike Race since it was on the way to Tahoe. I still need to shovel my cabin plus do some spring skiing. Even though much of the precipitation has been rain in Alpine Meadows, the snow can absorb the rain and increase the weight on my roof and deck. Some places nearby have suffered significant damage. It also has snowed about 35-40 feet at my place. Basically I am in great shoveling shape.

  The Cool Mountain Bike Race is always a good reminder to train and get in shape. The mud tends to suck all the power out of my legs! I knew most of my team members were in Sonoma the previous day so I did not expect to see anybody that I knew. There were only 5-10 riders in the expert/pro class which did 3 laps and about 25 riders in the over 40 sport class (2 laps) which I entered. Participation seemed lower compared to previous years. The course was a little different this year due presumed trail damage from the intense rain this year. I think they bypassed the steep ravine section with some more single track. Overall the course was in good shape with lots of stream crossings and lots relatively dry single track. Of course there was the usual muck in some sections. Lots of chains were coming off.

  I rode my Trek Fuel which now is my regular bike for training. It has a dropper post, big tires, and lots of travel. I recently suffered some whiplash after someone rear-ended me and I wanted the security of not falling. I left the starting line and riders quickly sorted themselves out. It was an unusual race for me in the sense that they were very few position changes over the 2 laps. I passed 2-3 riders and maybe 1 rider passed me. I enjoyed the freedom of riding my own race and not worrying about other riders. 

  Each lap is about 11 miles with an elevation gain of 1000 ft so it is a relatively flat race. I finished somewhere in the middle of the pack with a 2 lap time of about 1hr 57mins. My fastest lap(1st lap) was 57mins 33secs. I could tell toward the end of the 2nd lap that I was fading as I pedaled through the muddy sections. I don't know who won or what position I finished in my race group since I left quickly to shovel in the warm weather. According to Strava the KOM on the new race course is 44:15 for 1 lap, but he probably did 3 laps. I am sure Jim would have won the race and my teammates would have dominated their age groups. Mike