2006 Furnace Creek Race Report

EPIC TRAINING SYSTEMS

Endure, Excel, Achieve

2006 Red-Eyed Vireo Furnace Creek Race Report Page 2 - Time stations 1-4

Race Day

I awoke at 4:45am. I actually didn’t sleep well that night. I was nervous and felt butterflies in my
stomach throughout the night. But really that is nothing new. I never sleep well before an event.
Consequently, I was awake before the wake-up call. I jumped in the shower and headed out the door
to Denny’s.

At Denny’s, I had my favorite breakfast, Moons over my Hammy. Do you know this sandwich?
Well, it is eggs, cheese, and ham on toast with hash browns- a hardy meal by itself. In addition, I
had a short stack. The Moons over my Hammy is greasy and filling and I will usually have it when I’
ve been out drinking.

In retrospect, I know that was too much breakfast. I usually don’t eat that much. But I was thinking
the whole time, “This is a long ride, longer than anything you have ever done. You need to have a
good breakfast.” My usual breakfast is peanut butter on toast with honey, or a bagel and
yogurt, or oatmeal with fresh fruit like bananas, or pancakes with real fruit spread- not
syrup, and before long training rides I like something hardier like over-medium eggs over
brown rice. Ok, so without giving too much away, we will come back to that big breakfast

After breakfast we packed up the vehicle with all our stuff from the hotel and then we were off to the
start. We got one room, with two queen beds for four adults. Ron, the crew chief suggested this
thrifty move and it worked out well. Four adults, one bathroom and 1 hour from waking, breakfast
and rolling out of the parking lot was pretty impressive. We were told to be at the start by 6:30am
for a 7:00am start.

LESSON LEARNED--Don't eat a monster breakfast. IF you chose to have a large breakfast,
wait at least 1/2 hour for every 500 calories before racing, preferably 1 hour per 500 calories.

Time Station #1 California City, 82.25 miles, Elevation Gain: 6176'.

Departed Santa Clarita 7:00am, Arrived California City 5:16 race time 12:16pm Saturday
Real Time

All Furnace Creek 508 2D and 3D Maps by Doug Dog Sloan, solo and team veteran

We began with a neutralized start of 4.7 miles. This was a good time to connect with the riders
because soon after everyone would have their race faces on and would begin “hammering” the
remaining 500 miles.

I was fortunate enough to ride with Shanna Armstrong and Kenny Souza for a few miles. Shanna
is just an amazing woman competing in events from sprint triathlons to Ultraman distance and even
RAAM. And Kenny, he’s no slouch either, winning eight National Championships and a World
Championship for Duathlons. By the way, he was the defending 508 Champion and current Solo
Record Holder coming into the 2006 edition.

After the neutral start we made a left turn and began climbing San Francisquito Canyon, 15 miles and
2,500 feet climbing. Everyone’s legs were fresh so most people were going fairly hard. I believe
because drafting is not allowed many racers are just trying to separate themselves as quickly as
possible. I didn’t think I was going hard until Viper asked me what was my heart rate. It was 166
BPM at the time. Even though my max HR of 206, I was going harder than I intended in the first 10
miles.

For about 30 miles in this first section, I didn’t have the benefit of my support crew. The canyon is
too narrow to accommodate the cyclists and all the support vehicles. However, when you make the
right turn onto Johnson Rd. you see all the crews waiting there for their riders, it is an awesome and
inspiring sight. Every crew cheers for you as go by.

Next is the Windmills Climb which was 1000 feet climbing over 7 miles. And guess what, it is quite
windy going through here. There are hundreds of windmills capturing one of our natural resources—
wind.

In the first 60 miles I was feeling a little bloated but I kept drinking a bottle of Sustained Energy
(340 calories) every hour or so. I was concerned, because I have faded on Double Centuries for not
eating/drinking enough calories in the beginning of the ride. I fade, lose momentum and then I
eventually recover and finish the event strong. I didn’t want to fade on this event and thought I
would get on the calories early and stay on a regimented program.

Chris said something that was funny because it was so true. During the pre-race meeting, he spoke
directly to the crews. Basically he said, that even though they (the crews) want to be extremely
helpful to their racer, they also needed to keep in mind that many of us (racers) had been training
unsupported for century plus rides all season. In training, I barely keep up with 200 calories an hour
and feel great. I only carry two bottles and will ride 4-5 hours before refilling them. I also pull over
and eat solid food if I get hungry. And so, I saw the opportunity to have “calories on demand”
and over ate/drank to the point where nothing was being digested.

LESSON LEARNED- We didn’t practice handoffs. Our first attempts were not successful

LESSON LEARNED- Experiment with your nutrition plan in training, race with what works. I
was not able to handle a constant flow of calories.

Rejoining with Support vehicle, and the Windmill Climb

TS# 2 California City to Trona, 70.25 Total miles., Elevation Gain: 4212'

Arrived 10:20 Race Time or 5:20pm Saturday Real Time

As you roll out from California City, you have a gentle descent and then it’s back to climbing. I
started to feel the heat slowly coming on throughout the day. I climbed 1500 feet in seven miles
nothing steep just gradual. And as always the climb got steeper towards the top with more rollers
before another descent.

Almost immediately after leaving California City, I wasn’t feeling well. The bloating I felt earlier
was now turning to nausea. I couldn’t figure out what it was and tried to pedal along but I pulled over
and starting heaving. There was only one thing I did differently than in the previous five hours.
When I arrived at California City I was so thirsty I downed 20 oz of Gatorade. That is not unusual
for me. I do this on training rides when I pull into AM/PM’s, 7-11’s and the like. I buy three bottles,
I down one and then refill the two bottles on my bike. My stops at convenience stores last less than 4
minutes. My Power Tap is set for sleep mode in 4 minutes. I make every effort to be rolling before
the screen goes blank. I carry dollar bills and pay with them and I leave the change as a tip. I train
this way because I am competitive and I race against myself (previous best times at events) at Double
Centuries.

Back to the roadside, I was heaving and nothing was coming out. Now at this point my crew chief
was standing over me and I guess he must have been wondering, “I don’t think I have ever seen
George sick on the side of the road.” Well, there I was. This was the first time I have felt this bad
on a ride in a long, long time. My crew didn’t know what to do and I just felt awful and couldn’t tell
them how to help me.

I was progressively feeling worse. I got back on the bike and tried to roll at a lower intensity but I
was feeling worse and worse. As I finished the last roller and turned right onto the 395 in
Johannesburg, (mile 116), I punctured my rear tubular. My crew had gone ahead and stopped at a
gas station on the right side of the road. I pulled into the service station and announced I had
punctured and I could see the anxiety on my crew’s faces. They were not familiar with tubulars
and had never changed one.

Luckily, Sloth’s crew was at the same service station getting gas. They volunteered to help me so I
could keep rolling. Wolverine, volunteered to stay behind with my crew and change the tubular.
Meanwhile, Sloth’s crew would roll on as they supported both Sloth and me. I didn’t know any of
this at the time. But later as I approached Sloth’s vehicle I was told if I could maintain the same
relative speed as Sloth they could crew for both of us simultaneously. Well, I wasn’t feeling well and
I fell off Sloth’s pace.

Shelley, my girlfriend and crew member, jumped in with Sloth’s crew. It was weird to look out into
the distance and think that I was seeing Shelley but, I thought “wait that is Sloth’s vehicle pulled over
not mine.” Unbeknownst to me, Shelley was riding with Sloth’s crew, and Wolverine was back
with my crew changing my tubular. This “teamwork” is what makes this event so great—another
crew helping me. You have to admit that is pretty cool.

As I was approaching Trona, I really was starting to fall apart. I was nauseous, throwing up and just
out of energy. Basically, I was dehydrated, behind on calories and hot. I had taken on too many
calories at the start, and then I was weaned off of calories entirely by my crew. I had not been able
to digest anything for hours. Robin, one of my crew members, suggested some chicken soup to get
some sodium in me and to settle my stomach. I thought he was going across the street to get a cup
of hot soup and he returned with a can of Campbell’s Chicken Soup. I resisted at first but you know
what, it seemed to help. Now I was feeling like a true Ultra Cyclist having cold chicken soup straight
out of a can, suffering and loving every minute of it. I stayed a few more minutes and then rolled on.

Another thing I remember that helped fuel me was Clif Shot Bloks. I had brought them along as
another option. They remind me of gummy bears. They are more like candy treats than nutrition.
But they have Sodium and Potassium and 3 bloks have 100 calories. This is how I nursed myself
back to riding form over time.I wasn't feeling gels, the Sustained Energy wasn't working for me at
the time, so I was drinking HEED and eating Clif Shot Bloks. So maybe you can give them a try
next time you need an alternative fuel source.

LESSON LEARNED—Train all crew members on all aspects of all your equipment i.e. tubular
wheels and tires, lighting systems etc.

LESSON LEARNED- Your crew should know everything you packed. Have an inventory of
your nutrition. Your crew can use it as a menu for you when you are falling apart. In
addition, have a list of things that have worked for you in the past in similar situations. Your
crew may purchase those items along the way.

LESSON LEARNED- One of my favorite things to drink is V8. It has lots of Sodium and
Potassium and it was in the cooler. My crew forgot to offer it to me.

Stage Three: Trona to Furnace Creek, 99.2 miles. Elevation Gain: 7538'.

Arrived at Furnace Creek 21:01 Race Time , 4:01 am Sunday Real Time

Leaving Trona I was definitely in survival mode. I was hot, dehydrated, low on calories and
starting to fatigue quicker than normal. I call these situations, “Thermonuclear Meltdowns”. I
began the Trona Bump, which is just north of Trona (mile 160) with a 1000 foot climb. I tried to
maintain some sort of power up the Trona bump but I just couldn’t. When a rider came up behind
and subsequently passed me I jumped at the chance to re-engage in the race. I sprinted over the
“Bump” and then began the descent. It turned out he was a relay rider so I couldn’t keep up with
his pace—heck he only had 10 miles on his legs and I about 160 miles.

I was given sound advice to go easy through Pinamint Valley. The key would be to take
advantage of the terrain and yet conserve energy for Townes Pass. I went easy and still I felt
nauseous. It was getting dark and I had failed to achieve another milestone. I had wanted to
descend from Townes Pass into Death Valley in the light.

It got darker and darker and I was fading fast. By now I was back to full strength HEED, but still
felt like crap. We pulled over a couple of more times and the teams kept passing me. It was
somewhere in this section that my crew chief was tired of seeing me sick and suggested I
stick my finger down my throat and get my stomach emptied out. I thought he was insane for
recommending that I force myself to puke. But was the alternative? I hadn’t felt good all day and
we were headed to Townes Pass and I needed to hurry up and fix myself. I forced and forced and
finally gobs of stuff starting coming out. I have never forced myself to puke on a ride and I don’t
recommend it to everyone but I did feel better almost immediately.

Once on the road I would get these short bursts of motivation to keep pace with the relays and then
“poof” I was out of energy or the nausea would return. But not as bad as before, I was on the
mend.

One of my favorite things about riding in Death Valley is watching the moon rise. I was
able to watch it two nights in a row and pointed it out to my crew.

We made the right turn onto the climb of Townes Pass. At mile 200 I began the 13 mile, 3800 feet
climb up Townes Pass (El 4956’). The climb up to 2000 feet is gentle, then there are steep grades
of 10-13% to 4000 feet; the last few miles are gradual once again. One of the coolest things you
will ever see is looking up the climb and the seeing the long line of riders and their crew
vehicles’ flashing yellow lights going up the climb in the dark of night. I was climbing well I
thought, but in reality I was climbing slowly. I was falling asleep and dismounted on a nice flat
section with a big pullout. My crew wondered what was wrong and I told them I just couldn’t stay
awake.

Now this is the time I really needed my crew’s help. And remember this is all in retrospect. What I
needed to know was how close I was to the top. I would have pushed further and tried to crest had
I known how close I was to the top. While we were parked I watched as other riders passed me.
And then there was a long span of time where I didn’t see any riders. This stop was a little more
than 30 minutes.

Just as I was getting ready to roll I saw a few more riders come through. I had this fear of being
the last rider on the road. That really messes my head up. I was once the last rider on the road.
The first time I did Tour of Two Forests I was the last rider on the course. But I wasn’t the last
rider at the finish.

As it turned out, I was only a couple of miles from the top. Once we got to the top it was time to
bundle up and put on my Nite Rider Headlight. The headlight was an important tip given to me by
another 508 racer.

During the stop on Townes Pass, I climbed in the vehicle, laid the front passenger seat back and
tried to nap. I tried and tried and couldn’t fall asleep. Two of my crew members,in the vehicle, got
some sleep. The third, my crew chief, Ron, showed how dedicated he was to my success by
sitting outside the vehicle in the cold while I rested. Everyone should be so lucky to have such
dedication from a crew member.

It was really cold as I descended into the desert. A long fast descent of 17-mile, 5000 feet, into
Stovepipe Wells, where it was much warmer. A few desert rollers took me into Furnace Creek.
And there was Blackbird at the time station. He was a sight for sore eyes. By the way, I had
eaten less than 2,000 calories in the last 21 hours (excluding breakfast).

LESSON LEARNED: You, your crew and more specifically your crew chief should be
intimately familiar with the route and be able to tell you at any time, how far to where.

LESSON LEARNED: Have good lights for the descent into Death Valley. I use a Nite Rider
HID type.

Stage Four: Furnace Creek to Shoshone, 73.6 miles. Elevation Gain: 6744'.

Arrived at Shoshone 28:05 Race Time, 11:05 am Sunday Real Time

South through Death Valley and I climbed and descended several thousand feet through Badwater (El
-282’). But just before Badwater I was having a tough time staying awake and pulled over again. I
asked for a few towels and laid them out on the rocky surface. I laid face down because I didn’t
want to empty out my jersey pockets. I tried to sleep and once again the paranoia of having other
riders pass me kept me up. I saw at least 5 riders pass me. I found out later from Blackbird that the
key to getting rest is to get off the main road. I thought that was against the rules so I stayed road-
side.

I let my crew sleep for a little this way they would be there when I needed them again. Because one
thing is for sure you need your crew if you even think you are going to finish as a Solo rider.
While they slept I rested. The weather was very pleasant. One of the problems with spending too
much time in Death Valley is it dehydrates you quicker than anywhere else. The air is so dry as you
exhale you are dehydrating yourself even further. The other problem is how hot it can be once the
sun rises. And as that thought was going through my head I decided it was time to get back on the
bike. We had stopped for an hour and it was time to boogie. My new goal became “get out of
Death Valley before it heats up!”

Once I was rolling the sun started to rise. Now the “race” was on to finish the next two climbs
before the desert floor heated up. Along the way from Badwater to the base of the exit passes,
Jaguar and Jo came by and chatted with me. I felt better talking with them about my performance
and surged ahead. The first climb starts at mile 300 and climbs about 1000 feet in five miles to
Jubilee (El 1285). A one-mile descent leads to the next climb, about 2300 feet in 9.5 miles to
Salsberry (El 3315). I felt really good on these two climbs. However, I did change shoes at the
base of Salsberry. My feet had been hurting for hours but I didn’t want to switch shoes too early.
It was now daylight and 24 hours had gone by.

LESSON LEARNED—Pack a sleeping mat.

LESSON LEARNED- Let your crew sleep even if you can’t.

LESSON LEARNED- Get out of Death Valley before the sun comes up.

LESSON LEARNED- EYE DROPS EYE DROPS EYE DROPS

LESSON LEARNED- MINI-VAN is much better than an SUV