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Michaux Lives 2001
Race Interview
1st Place OVERALL Jeremiah Bishop - K2 / New Sun |
| Date: April 22, 2001
Event: Michaux Lives 2001 Name: Jeremiah Bishop City: Harrisonburg AKA. Bike Town State/Province: VA Country: USA Age: 25 CLASS +/or Age group: Senior I 19-26 Category: Pro / Expert Team: K2 / New Sun XC Race Bike: K2 Razor Back RX Tires: Hutchinson Python Golds Conditions: Hot and heavy Email: k2newsun@hotmail.com |
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Did you do anything special (apart from the whole training lifestyle) to prepare for this race?
Tried to pre-ride the course. I didn't know what the additions were...... so I rode last year's course Wednesday before the race.
Were you strong from start to finish?
I was very pleased with my start. I've been struggling with starts the last couple of racer....... and today's start felt very comfortable...... like I could have gone considerably faster...... but I think that the length of the race also affected that. I ended up fading a little bit towards the end of the race ..... but...... (laughs).... it was very, very hard and very long.
Did you change your race strategy at all due to the more difficult course this year?
Yes. I knew that it was a TREK designated race and they would have several riders near the front. Tactically it would be a bad situation for me to get in that group setting. That's why I wanted to start pretty hard and establish a pace where it didn't become tactical. The added difficulty of the course helped that as well. It weeded people out early and made it very selective at the front. So..... I definitely changed strategy.
Did any part of the course surprise you today?
The severity of the last section. Climbing log sled (the last moderate, but long and tough while you are racing uphill) I was giving it everything I had....... maximum........ and then I turned right....... looked up at the trail....... I was not a happy camper.... figured.... this is gonna hurt.
When did you put the hammer down?
Dead Woman's Hollow (a 1200ft climb on a soft (and hard pedaling) 2 mile long fire road) right before one of THEE toughest, fastest and most furious trials of Michaux - the infamous "Three Mile Trial"- the thing about Dead Woman's Hollow is that you always think it is ending and you reach what you think is the crest..... and it just goes on and on)
It was like war. (laughs)...... Chris Eatough and I were battling it out. I was gone..... and then he'd catch me..... I'd go again..... and he'd catch me again...... then again......... and we did this all the way up....... then near the top it was like....... ok..... one more time........ and I just suffered SO bad......... but I managed to get a small gap before entering the three mile trail. Maybe a 10 second gap......... and I saw it (the gap)......... and when I did there was extra motivation...... fuel for the fire....... get it?........ FUEL (this was the bike Chris was riding).
Did you have any unusual problems?
Dropping my chain. It was just so bumpy out there.........also it was one of the first hot races of the year........ so hydration was important. I cramped quite a bit but managed to get through it somehow. I was able to stay on the bike. I think another factor in cramping in this race is that the leg strength it takes is different from pedaling hard........... on a road bike....... it requires a lot of leg strength to push through rocks...... you use a bigger gear......... the way you attack the course is a lot different than standard pedaling. It's hard....... really hard.
Did you have enough nutrients, enough water and (energy gel)?
I brought enough water....... unfortunately I thought I was out as the hydration pack had a kink in the hose...... I was sucking on it and nothing was coming out. Still had a good amount of water in there though........could have used a feed today...... but ..... it's a one lap course and that's hard to do.
How would you rate the course?
This is the hardest race course that I have ever seen. Definitely the hardest race course on the East Coast if not country..... with the course additions this year. The parts they added were as hard if not harder than the rest of the course......... just really difficult.
Were you happy with the way the race was run?
Yeah....... they always run a great race....... regardless of the change in who's promoting it.
Is there anything you would like to add?
Man..... that was hard......... and I'd like to thank my sponsors K2 / New Sun...... etc......
