Leadville 100 Race Report by Mark Odendahl

Leadville 100 Race Report by Mark Odendahl

The LT100 is a 100+ mile long (more on that in a minute) bike race that starts at an altitude of 10,200 ft above sea level in downtown Leadville and travels out into the Rockies and up to 12,544 ft. There are more than 14,000 feet of total elevation gain on a course that is about 80% rough fire road/double track, 18% pavement and 2% singletrack. It has 3 huge climbs and about a dozen smaller ones. Entry is by lottery – 1500 get in and reportedly over 10,000 entered the lottery to try after last year’s movie. What makes it special is that the entire field starts at once on the out and back course – Tour de France pros and amateurs alike all race together.

2012 Brushy Mountain Training Ride 5

2012 Brushy Mountain Training Ride 5

4/4/12    Andy and I made it up to Brushy Mountain yesterday.  It was my 5th time to Brushy this season.  It’s always fun to start the season of with a bunch of trips to Brushy to get into shape.  I set a PR on the last trip and this weeks trip was just a steady state ride, especially with a VO2 test on Friday and the 6 Hours of Warrior Creek on Saturday.

What is Keirin Racing

What is Keirin Racing

A keirin race is a mass-start race with 6-9[citation needed] sprinters riders and a paced start. Riders draw lots to determine starting positions and start as the pacer (usually a motorcycle, a derny, or a tandem bicycle) approaches. The riders are required to remain behind the pacer, which starts at the deliberately slow speed of about 25 km/h, gradually increases in speed and leaves the track approximately 600–700 meters before the end, at a speed of about 50 km/h. The first cyclist to finish the race is the winner (sometimes finishing at 70 km/h). Keirin races are about 2 kilometers in length (eight laps on a 250m track, six laps on a 333m track, and five laps on a 400m track).

Race 2 – 2011 Charlotte Winter Short Track Series

Race 2 – 2011 Charlotte Winter Short Track Series

This past Sunday was the second race of the Charlotte Mountain Bike Winter Series. I was hoping for a better result than I had the  previous weekend. The weather was colder but it was dry (finally) all week. I got to the course around 10 to watch Lexi (Jasen Taylor’s  little girl) while he raced. Watching them race got me a little excited to get going and the good news is that the riders were staying  dry and mud free.

Race 1 – 2011 Charlotte Winter Short Track Series

Race 1 – 2011 Charlotte Winter Short Track Series

Hard to believe that the 2011 season has started. Even more scary is that I have no miles on my legs this year. I adopted a puppy (Ryder) in November and then the temps went south – WAY south. It’s been 10-15 degrees below normal here in Charlotte, NC. So needless to say, before Sunday’s mountain bike race, I had only two days on the road and a few cyclocross races in December for training.

Race 1 – 2012 Charlotte Speedway Time Trial Series – OUCH!!

Race 1 – 2012 Charlotte Speedway Time Trial Series – OUCH!!

Holy Cow,  Wednesday, April 11 was the first race of the Charlotte Speedway Time Trial Series and one word describes the TT – OUCH. 

Sarah and I left the shop around 4 to get to the race and like always, one thing led to another, we had to pick up something we forgot (wheel and timing chip), put gas in the van (as always), school traffic and managed to get to the track around 5 and lost our customary spot near registration and ended up on the backside of the garage.

2012 Dillworth Criterium

2012 Dillworth Criterium

The 2012 Dillworth Criterium was my first road race of the year.   Dillworth isn’t one of my favorite courses.  I find it to be a challenging course with a long, steady climb on the front stretch, plus it’s usually the my first road race of the year so my body isn’t used to the effort required in a criterium.

My race started at 2.  I arrived a little early to catch the end of the Cat 4/5 race to see my friend Mike Levine finish up.  After that, I rode my bike around for about 20 minutes to get the legs going.

2012 NODA Criterium

2012 NODA Criterium

April 15, 2012 was the inaugural NODA Criterium held in NODA (North Davidson) in Charlotte, NC.  Since I had raced the Dillworth Criterium the day before, I slept in and did somethings around the house before heading down to NODA.

I arrived about 45 minutes before my race, got dressed and found Mike Levine of Mills-Levine.  We warmed up for about 20 minutes.  MIke had raced the 4/5 race and was going to race the 3/4 race.  This would be our first chance to race together.  The course in NODA is super fun.  it has 6 turns and is a fast course with a long uphill drag on the back of the course.

2012 I’on Village Criterium Charleston SC

2012 I’on Village Criterium Charleston SC

I headed down to Charleston, SC for the 2012 I’on Village Criterium and the SC State Championship Criterium the following day.  I’ve made this trip the last 3 years with Neal Boyd and several of the Clif-Bar Giordana Brica team members.  We went down Thursday night, woke up early Friday and went Kayak Fishing with Neal, Leah and Shirlene.  Good times.

It’s always a fun trip and the course at I’on Village is a lot of fun.  I wake up, help Neal set up the course and then hang out until my race.  I did the Cat 2/3 race and it didn’t start until 1:50.  So I went back to the house and did a 20 mile ride on the Isle of Palms and Sullivan island with Shirlene, Alison and Leah.  It was a perfect warm up for my race.