Bakers Dozen (2014)

Photo Credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/37554200@N03/

It has been officially one year since I started to race MTB. Last year Bakers was my first race ever and I'm glad I did it, even though I only had a month of (maybe) riding experience under my belt. This year I had no real major goals other than to just go as long as I can without having any major issues. I know last year I wasn't smart on nutrition or drinking so I ended up having a series of cramps which eventually led to bonking. This year, I was a little more conscious of my regimen.

Prep: Not much really, I bought some probars and carried them (but I never used them). The wife and I packed a full cooler with some bananas, three gallons of water, the honey peanut butter (my favorite!), nutella, and some other nic-nack essentials. We packed up the car Friday night and went to bed rather early. Oh and I had ice cream!!

Race: The morning of I was up a 4:45 and make my usual CX juice drink blend of beets, oranges, spinach, and carrots as well as having a decent breakfast, and we were off to Leesburg. We showed up decently early and found Paul and the rest of the AFC gang and after that there wasn't much for me to prep. I carried a spare tube, CO2 cartridge, and a pump (just in case). As for food I had some Stinger chews and I had a bottle of water with Cerasport, thankfully I was talked out of the Camelbak by Esther! As the race started I kept to the front as much as possible without over doing it, which was good for me because I never hit the bottle neck that normally comes with this race. I mainly just kept a decent pace and tried not to overdo it on my HR. After every lap I would stop, refill my water that I would completely drink every lap and swap between water and water/Cerasport each lap. Every two laps I would eat a PB&J and a banana and occasionally grab a couple of Stinger gummies or the occasional swig of my Hammer Gel from my flask while on the course. The weather was a little hot in the afternoon so I made sure I was hydrating properly while making sure my salts and electrolytes were replenished, in which I believe I fully accomplished since I did not keel over and two my jersey is completely covered in salt! I also nut-checked myself once and took a spill on the knee but those were minor. I went over most of the obstacles minus the thigh high rock jump, which I CX'd every time after my fall on the first lap (that was the nut-check/knee), other than that it was a moderate spinning pace with little to no stopping on the course.

I completed a total of eight laps which was +1 from last year and I probably could have done more minus the fact that my hands, forearms, and biceps were pretty much useless from all the bumpy pastures and roots on the back side of the course. This is one thing I need to work on I believe, I really wasn't ready for such a beating to my upper body, but I'll get there. Either way Bakers this year was extremely fun and I am looking forward to it next year. Maybe next year I'll hit 10+ laps...

By the end of the day I got my last lap in and waited for my wife to return from her lap, which by the way this lady endo'ed on her SS (which we thought she might have seriously injured herself), took a small break, and then went out I believe two more times on the bike! After that, the wife and I cheered on everyone else went by and then eventually we packed up and made the tiresome drive home.