'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.

'23 Breck Epic - Travel, Fri, Sat

 

8/10 - Thursday
We got up around 2:45am to leave for the airport at 3am. We are so thankful that Karel's mom is here through all our trips to take care of our furry crew. We made the 30 minute drive to the GSP airport and Karel dropped me off w/ our suitcases and bike cases before parking the car in the economy lot. I've booked all of our GSP trips for the first flight out as it makes for smoother travel with less chance of delays/cancellations. The check-in process was smooth and no issues (or charge) with our bike cases on Delta since we have all of our checked bags/bikes at 50 lbs. I love traveling with Delta as they are reliable and always kind and helpful. 

TSA was quick thanks to our pre-check status (highly recommend for the one-time payment of $85 for 5 years). We were through security shortly after 4am and waited for the Centurion lounge to open at 4:30am. I was able to get a little work done on the computer in those 30 minutes. Thanks to this credit card, we have lounge access at Delta Sky Club, Centurion and many others, which makes for a more enjoyable travel when we have access to a quiet place to work (with free Wifi), unlimited food and as many espressos as Karel wants. 

We had a little over 2 hours in Atlanta so we want to the Delta Sky Club and had breakfast and got some work done. Then it was time to board our flight to Denver. Our flight was ~50 minutes delayed due to storms but otherwise, it was a smooth morning of travel. 

I got my period the day before we left. For some reason, this months cycle left me feeling really awful. I mention this because the flight from Atlanta to Denver had me feeling really stiff and my right knee was really bothering me for some reason. The 3+ hour flight to Denver was uncomfortable for me and I couldn't wait to get up and walk around outside. 

When we arrived in Denver, Karel collected our suitcases and bikes and I took the shuttle to the Peaks Parking lot to get our rental SUV (I reserved on Turo as it was a lot cheaper than renting a car at the airport). I found the SUV, put my bag in the backseat of the car, plugged in my phone from the passenger side (after folding down the backseats) and went to the drivers side to get in the car to pick up Karel. When I went to the driver's side door, I couldn't get in. The door was locked. Before freaking out, I rushed to the passenger side. Locked. I checked all doors and the trunk - locked. Somehow, the keys were in the car and the car was locked. I panicked. I didn't have my phone and I had no way of reaching the owner of the car or Karel. Thankfully, there was a guy cleaning out a car a few rows down and I asked if I could use his phone to call Karel. The guy mentioned there was a free service for lock-outs so he let me borrow his phone to call. I thought I was going to be saved by this service but the lady on the phone told me that because it wasn't my car, she couldn't order the service. At this point, I feel completely helpless and I started to cry. She passed me over to the manager and he was very helpful after I told him the situation. Around an hour later, someone came and unlocked the car (which was pretty impressive to see :) I finally picked Karel up after 12:30pm (over 90 minutes after we landed). 
I was so exhausted from everything but Karel helped me through it all. 

Karel was really tired so I started the drive. We stopped for lunch around 50 minutes into our drive at a Himalayan restaurant. It was SO good. We love this type of cuisine (so many great flavors) and enjoyed a basket of Naan and we each got a delicious bowl of curry (mine had chickpeas and Karel had chicken). 

After we ate, we drove to Frisco and met up with our friends Peggy and Anthony as they were driving to Avon. We chatted for about an hour outside of Starbucks. It was so nice to see them (and meet their dogs). Around 4pm, we drove across the street to Safeway and got a lot of groceries for our apartment and then drove into Breckenridge. The air was refreshing at 9,600 feet. 

We checked into the Beaver Run Resort (host resort of Breck Epic) and unloaded all our stuff in our room on the third floor. I really wanted to do some type of exercise but my knee was really bothering me. We opted to take a walk but then it started to rain. I guess it was a sign to rest. I unpacked my stuff, we had a light dinner and then went to bed around 9pm - we were exhausted. 

8/11 - Friday
Karel had a hard time sleeping but I slept pretty good. I woke up around 6:30am (Karel was up around 5:30am). We spent a few hours working and Karel built the bikes in the morning. I was craving a swim but unfortunantly the local rec center pool (2 miles away) was closed for renovations. The next option was ~15 miles (~30 minutes) away in Silverthorne. At least I had another option. I drove to the pool around 10:30am and purchased a 6-visit pass for $70 (normally one visit would be $14). It was really important to me to swim throughout our trip, even though the pool location wasn't ideal. Swimming at 9,000+ feet was challenging and I needed to give myself a lot of rest. I wasn't able to do any intervals so I just focused on swimming easy and moving my body. The aquatic center was very impressive but the lap pool only had 4 lanes (and was warm). I swam 4,600 and then went to the hot tub to stretch. while I was out for my swim, Karel did a 3-ish hr, 25 mile mountain bike ride on the first stage of his event. He said it was really technical. 

After the swim, I picked up a few things at the grocery and then drove back to Breckenridge. At least the drive was really pretty. In the afternoon, I went for a bike ride to spin my legs. I was so impressed with the bike paths around the area. I biked 2 hours (35 miles) from Breckenridge to Copper Mountain - all on a bike path. It was incredibly beautiful. It felt really good to spin my legs. I wanted to do a short run off the bike but then it started to rain. I guess it was a sign that I needed one more day to let my knee calm down. It was nice to have a full kitchen (minus an oven) in our studio. The resort was like a hotel but the studio made it feel more like an apartment. We walked around in the evening and then went to bed around 9pm. Suprisingly, I was sleeping much better than I anticipated at altitude. 

8/12 - Saturday
I was planning a long ride to Loveland Pass (12,000 feet) this morning but the weather forecast didn't look ideal. I wasn't sure how my knee would do with a run so I spent some time doing ECFIT mobility and foam rolling before I went for a run around 9am. Karel left a little before I did. Since we were staying at the top of a hill, all of our running was net downhill to start, then a tough run back uphill to where we were staying. The terrain is very deceiving too as it doesn't look hilly until you start running or biking up the incline. It's more like a false flat. My knee ended up being just fine for the run and I was so thankful that I took those two days to let it calm down. I think my hips/SI joint got irritated from all the sitting and due to my period (loose ligaments). I ran 5 miles out and back and I could really feel the altitude coming back. I had to do a lot of walking. I wasn't worried about pace but just focusing on staying fueled/hydrated and enjoying the run. I ran 10 miles in 1:28 with almost 1000 feet elevation gain. I got a bit of work done before heading to the pool (30 minutes away) later in the afternoon. I swam 4000 yards and it felt really good to loosen out after the morning run. The aquatic center was really busy with kids playing on the slides and in the various pools but thankfully the lap pool wasn't too busy. While I was swimming, Karel picked up his stuff at registration and then attended the nightly meeting at 5pm (to learn about the upcoming next day stage). Karel made pasta for dinner (he made chicken for himself and I cooked a Beyond Beef burger). 

Boulder Train-Cation - day 1

Day 1 in Boulder started with a 50-minute run through Wonderland Lake Trailhead.

With this being my first workout in Boulder, I just went by feel to make sure I didn't overdo it with the altitude of ~5400 feet above sea level. 

We are staying at our athlete's house which is just a mile from the trailhead so it was the perfect warm-up before an absolutely wonderful, beautiful run. 

The altitude wasn't too much of an issue but I certainly didn't push it during my run. I did notice that for the same RPE, I was running 30-60 sec per min/mile slower which was just fine by me. I really enjoyed the ups and downs on the trail and if you know me, you know I just love running on hills and trails so this was a very welcomed run. I included a few more frequent walks if I felt short of breath just to make sure that my aerobic run didn't turn into an anaerobic run (regardless of the pace). 

I had 2 x 10 ounce flasks during my run in my Nathan hydration belt - one with water and the other with Clif Hydration. 

Here are a few pics from my run. 

After the run, I had breakfast #2 which consisted of homemade banana bread (thanks Kristen!) and a glass of milk. I didn't want to eat too much as I only had an hour or so before our morning swim at RallySport Boulder. 

An outdoor pool with a view....yes please!!!

My friend Katie invited Karel and I to join her at her masters swim at Rally Sport at 10:30am. 

Did I mention that the swim was coached by Professional triathlete Julie Dibens?

Here's the workout (if I remember correctly):

800 warm-up (150 free, 50 non free)

10 x 100's (first 4, moving 25 of kick, the rest free. Last 6, 3x100 of the first 25 of each 100 being IM order, then freestyle for 75. The repeat). 

600 buoy (300 build, 300 steady/strong)

6 x 100's (25 fast, 75 EZ)

6 x 100's strong

400 paddles/buoy

8 x 25's (15 yards fast, then EZ, 20 yards fast, then EZ, 25 yards fast, then EZ, last 25 EZ. the repeat)

100 cool down

4200 yards total

Once again, the altitude was a factor in that the effort felt a little harder than what we were doing but after around 35-40 minutes of our 1:15 masters workout we felt more normal. 

And since Karel and I have been swimming long course meters all summer, it was fun to swim short course...outside!

Thanks Julie and Katie for welcoming us to Boulder with a great workout! 

After our swim, it was time for lunch. 

Katie took us to Modmarket. Karel got the Wintergreen salad and chicken sandwhich and I got the Superfood salad with tofu. The menu had so many great selections! 

After lunch, Karel and I did some grocery shopping after a little walking around Pearl Street and stopped by Vecchios.

I suppose you can call this a bike shop but for Karel, this was a bike museum filled with all things cycling memorabilia. 

Now you may be thinking that we didn't have a lot of carbs after our swim. Oh don't you worry. We made up for that at Bread Works.

If a place has BREAD in the name, I'm pretty sure we will walk out with something in our hands..or in our belly. 

After a busy day, we had a little furry company while watching Stage 1 of the USA Pro Cycling Challenge. What an amazing performance by Taylor Phinney! 

As for the rest of the evening, Karel went for a short run in the evening and I took a walk with our athlete/friend Kristen and then we stayed-in for dinner.