'23 Breck Epic - Stage 5 and 6

 

Stage 5: Wheeler Mountain
25 miles
5300 feet
5.89 mph
4:15 time
21st 40-49

Karel heard the horror stories about Wheeler. Although his body was extremely tired, he mentally prepared himself for a lot of hike-a-bike up the Wheeler trail. The state was set up as a "time trial" so that the early single track wouldn't get too crowded. Although his mind was in a good place for the uphills, he was not mentally (or physically) prepared for the downhills. He said it was the scariest routes he has ever done and he just wanted to finish. I think his stats tell the most. When it takes over 4 hours to ride 25 miles and when you can accmulate 5300 feet in only 25 miles, you know it's a really tough course. Here's Karel's recap of stage 5. 

Since I had completed my big workouts, I was really looking forward to seeing Karel in action today. I left our place around 7am and drove to the trailhead on McCullough Gulch Road. A little after 7:30am, I started my 3 mile, 2300 feet hike up the mountain. It took me around an hour to make it to the first top of the mountain (~12,750 feet). I had my USWE hydration pack with Skratch Clear to stay hydrated and also brought some snacks and a bagel sandwich with PBJ. I waited around an hour before I could see the pros far in the distance. 

I didn't know what to expect but I have never see so much suffering. Although almost everyone was in good spirits, there was a lot of huffing and puffing to ride, walk, push the bikes up the mountain. 

I had a lot of fun cheering for the riders. The scenery was incredible. 

Eventually I saw Karel and he was in a group of 6. He wished he had different shoes as his MTB shoes are very stiff which makes it hard to hike. But he felt pretty good walking his bike up the hill. Although some sections were rideable, it was either too steep or too rocky to ride through. Some of the male pros were able to ride most of the way but the majority had to get off the bike and walk. 

Around 10am I made my way down the mountain. I had a lot of fun cheering for everyone as I was jogging down. The trail was narrow so I did a lot of stopping to make sure the riders had plenty of room to push their bikes up the mountain. It took me ~43 minutes to run down the mountain. I ended up with 6 miles of run, hike, walk. 

I drove back to our place, got my bike and rode to the finish of the stage, ~3 miles away (up Ski Hill). I waited and waited and waited for Karel and I was surprised that it took him so long to finish. I was really worried that he crashed or had a mechanical. When he finished, he rode over to the field and couldn't wait to get off his bike. He said that he got very dehydrated and messed up his fueling. He also mentioned how scared he was on the bike during the descends. He was completely empty - mentally and physically. 

We rode the 3 miles back to our place and as Karel rested, I drove to the pool around 3pm for a 3600 yard swim. I picked up Chipotle for Karel (and me) on the way home and also stopped at the grocery store to get a few things. Karel was really exhausted, he didn't sleep well and had no idea how he would get the energy to complete the last stage. 

Stage 6: The Gold Dust Trail
31.8 miles
3500 feet
11.6 mph
2:44 time
11th 40-49
16th GC (overall in AG after 6 stages)

Karel woke up very sore, tired and exhausted. But with his stage racing experience, he knows that you can never count yourself out, no matter how horrible you feel. You just have to show up and do the best you can. I had a really good feeling about stage 6 as I felt like the course suited Karel was some long steady climbs up gravel-like roads and single track to start and finish (and throughout the stage). Plus, no matter how tired Karel is when he races, he always finds a way. I felt like he was going to deliver something great on this last stage. 

Here's his recap of stage 6. A completely different Karel from the previous stages :) 

Karel left our place around 8am as his start time was in the 7th wave. This stage had a "time trial" start in groups of 10 because of the tight single track to start. 

My plan was an easy 2-3 hour ride. I hadn't made my way all the way around Dillion Res so I was looking forward to riding on the bike path that I hadn't seen before. 

I surprised Karel and watched him start the race and a little before 9am, I headed out on my ride. 

I really enjoyed my ride. I still can't get over all of the bike paths that connect from town to town. 

I rode 36 miles and less than 5 of those miles were on the road. Everything else was on a bike path. 

I returned to Breckenridge at the ice rink before 11am and waited ~45 minutes until Karel crossed the finish line. I was so relieved to see him as every stage had me nervous about a crash or mechanical. 

I could tell with his riding style and expression that not only was he happy to finish Breck Epic but he had a great stage performance. 

Karel placed 11th in his age group on the last stage and he said he felt pretty good and was able to pass several riders in the last climb. 

After hanging around at the finish for a little, Karel was eager to get to the local french bakery. The service was slow but the pastries were worth it. 

We rode back to our resort (one last time up the hill). 

And Karel was officially DONE. 

Although it was incredibly difficult, Karel said he would do it again. He learned a lot and he would have approached it differently with training, gear/equipment and tactics. 

At 6pm he went to the finisher banquet/awards. I walked around the town while Karel was at the banquet in the hotel. Karel received two black and white pictures of him after the first and second stage, as well as a cardboard cut out to frame the picture and bib plate. 

He also received a belt buckle as an official Breck Epic finisher. 

6 days
~227 miles
~26 hours
~33,330 vertical feet
relieved, exhausted, broken, sore, proud.

The only way to discover your physical and mental limits is to pursue challenging goals.
Doing something hard will quickly expose your weaknesses and reveal your strengths.

Breck Epic tested Karel’s mind, body, fitness commitment, character, problem solving skills and abilities. Although it was incredibly hard, he rose to meet the mental demands and physical rigors of the 6-day Breck Epic mountain biking event.

Push past your self-imposed barriers and crush those hard, scary goals.