Reforestation Ramblings

The WORS Reforestation Ramble is a little bit different than the other races in the WORS series. And by different I mean longer and by longer I mean almost twice as long as a normal WORS race. It's a fast course and a perfect course for a race of this length. The course starts with about a 3 mile long doubletrack leadout that did a great job of sorting out the field before entering the singletrack. The mood at the starting line was a little more laid back than usual. I think most racers decided that since the race was so long that a good start was not necessary. So at the start of the race I decided to approach the start like a normal race. The result was a fantastic start as I followed the leaders into the singletrack. After following the leaders of group I started with (Sport class 39 and under) I decided it was time to settle into a pace I was more comfortable riding for the next 20 miles or so.

A little more about the course: Brown County Reforestation Camp, the home of the Reforestation Ramble, is a mix of fairly smooth double and singletrack with little elevation change. It is an absolute perfect match for a hardtail 29er like the Airborne Goblin. I can't imagine having a better setup for the course. Certainly there was some twisty singletrack and roots, but never so much that I was wishing I was on a full suspension rig.

On the night before the race I took my brother out for the preride. It was his first time mountain biking. Since he didn't have a true mountain bike of his own I took the clipless pedals off one of my favorite bikes and let him ride with that. It's always fun to take a friend or family member out and introduce them to one of the things I'm most passionate about. We went slow and had a good time. I wasn't too worried about the quality of the preride, just the quality time with my bro. Despite the the saddle soreness the next couple day I'm pretty sure he had a good time.

My brother and sister and all their kids came out to cheer me on which was very special to me. It was so awesome to have my brother passing me water and my 7 year old nephew telling me he though I was so cool racing my bike. I'm going to try and get my nephew out for one of the kids races this year.

But back to the race. I ended finishing 3rd place in my age group and 9th overall in the Sport class. So that's another podium finish for the Goblin and I'm one more top 10 finish away from being a mandatory move up to the Comp class.


Thoughts on Powerbar: I have to admit that I was skeptical on the whole idea of using powerbar products for racing and training. When I used to think about powerbar, I equated it with the Snickers energy bar. Just candy with a strong marketing department behind it. I poked fun at some of the marketing slogans like "cramp crushing electrolytes." But as a sponsor of team Wheel & Sprocket/Vision I thought I should try out their products before totally giving up on them. I've been using their energy bars, gels and recovery drink for a couple of months now and I have to tell you I am impressed. Since I've started using it I have had no cramping issues and it delivers the energy I need when I need it. Some of the races where the product really showed strength as a performance enhancer was the 24 Hours of Wausau and the 26 mile Reforestation Ramble. So mark me down as a believer and powerbar user.

On the video front, I just completed a promotional video for Wheel and Sprocket/Vision that won't be public for a while, but the hope is that it brings is more sponsors for the team next season.