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2nd Place EXPERT
Master Men
Fuzzy (Mark Nickerson) - Wooden Wheels |
Date: April 22, 2001 Event: Michaux Lives 2001 Name: Fuzzy City: Landenberg State/Province: PA Country: USA Age: 47 CLASS +/or Age group: Master dnd (damn near dead) Category: Expert Team: Wooden Wheels XC Race Bike: Litespeed 1 x 8 Tires: Hutchinson Conditions: Fugly Email: samjames@brandywine.net |
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Did you do anything special (apart from the whole training lifestyle) to prepare for this race?
Drank like a fish, including lots of water, juice, Gatorade and of course hop devil ipa. I also camped out the nite before at the venue which I recommend to anyone living more than 2 hours away. There were a bunch of us camping and it was fun. I had pre-ridden the course a couple weeks before with Gentile, Elk, DeJesus and a couple other fast riders which really helped me.
Did you achieve your goals for this race?
Sure, I finished and didn't die
Were you strong from start to finish?
Oh hell no. There was a brief time when the trail turned down and I was too tired to pull the brakes and caught a bunch of guys who had blown me off on the dead woman climb.
Did you change your race strategy after encountering the more difficult course this year?
Absolutely. Normally I wait until after the Grave Ridge to start suffering, but this year I started suffering right after the start.
What was your favorite part of the course?
Hands down, no question, it was the finish line. A distant second was the Rattlesnake Trail.
When did you put the hammer down?
There was really no hammer involved, gravity did all the work. coming down the rattlesnake trail when it turned steep and rocky I was having fun and next thing I knew there was Todd. I assumed he had flatted until I saw the pic of him walking the best part of the course (see below)
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Due to the heat and difficult course did you have any problems with cramping or dehydrating?
Yeah, my lower back just sucks ass. Does anybody know of any docs doing transplants?
Did you have any unusual problems?
Ringing. There seemed to be this constant ringing in my ears. I was so sorry I gave that bell to Todd before the race.
How would you rate the course?
Brutal
Were you happy with the way the race was run?
Somewhat. I think I was spoiled by the excellence that m o r e had established. They had better payouts and the event was better run. Some of the single track sections were just so much fun it almost made up for it.
Is there anything you would like to add?
Yeah, that last piece of singletrack at the top of the log climb to the finish was damn near unnecessary.
