The Lowell 50 that was actually 57
Lowell 50
10/28/17
Renting a bike for a race sounds like a great idea when you
don’t really have the right equipment for the event. But in reality, it might not be such a great
idea after all.
I know racers like to make excuses and try to explain away a
result that was not as good as they had hoped it would be; I am not going to do
that. I made the decision to rent a gravel bike instead of riding my mountain
bike for the Lowell 50, a decision I do not regret, but I will not try again.
Friday, the day before the race, I stopped into Terry’s
Cycle in Alma and spent some time getting fitted on a Trek CrossRip 1. The
owner, Chris, was very helpful and did a great job of getting the bike to fit
me. We set the bike up on a trainer, put my pedals on and adjusted everything
else needed to make sure the bike fit correctly. It felt good on the trainer so
I loaded the bike up on my car and went home, excited to race. When I got home
I rode it around a bit, adjusted the brakes a little more to my liking and gave
it a last once over; although there is not much needed on an all but brand new
bike. In fact, I think I spent more time figuring out what I was going to wear
to stay warm, which turned out to be everything.
The drive to the race was uneventful and we arrived at 8:30 am,
which gave me an hour and a half to get myself ready. After getting layered up
and doing a warmup ride I went over to the start line to make sure I could get
a spot right up front.
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| Photo Courtesy of Sara Longest |
The race started with just over a mile of neutral rollout
until we got to an old covered bridge. I stayed toward the front of the pack
but out of the wind for the next couple of miles until we got to some decent
climbs at which point I stood up to accelerate with the pack. At this point,
the bike told me, “NO, absolutely not. I DO NOT CLIMB!” I could feel the rear
wheel flex when I really tried to put the power down and watched the group of
leaders pull away, unable to answer. When we got back on some flats I hammered
to catch back up thinking that if I could stick with the lead group through
these initial hills I would be fine since the course was pretty flat for the
middle 30 miles and I could worry about the end of the race when we got there.
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| Photo Courtesy of Sara Longest |
The next set of hills came and once again the rear wheel flexed
and only a portion of the power I was putting out was transferred to the ground.
The lead group pulled away, and this time there was no catching back up as the
next ten miles was just a series of punchy climbs.
At about 15 miles into the race most of the climbs were done
and I was getting used to the bike, but the lead group was gone. On the bright
side, I was able to get in a group with three other riders who were all willing
to put in the effort and make a pace line work, and after another 20 minutes we
picked up a fifth rider who was also willing to take his turn pulling
At mile 29, just over halfway through the race, we made a 90
degree left and I instantly realized we had been riding with the wind all
morning. It was like getting slapped in the face while another cold hand reach
down your jersey and gave a little tweak. It seems like just about every year I
have one moment when I realize I have forgotten just how chilling a fall
morning can be in Michigan; this was that moment this year and it was quick to
remind me I do not like the cold much now that I am a skinny cyclist. There was
not much to do but tug my zipper up a little higher and pedal on. Our pace line
turned in to a mini-echelon and our pulls got a little shorter but we all
struggled on as a group trying not to fall too far behind the lead group.
With about five miles left to go, three of us put in little
surge the other two were not able to match and a gap was created. The three of
us continued to take our turns pulling and put a little more room between the
other two.
The last couple miles of the race had two more climbs at
which point my bike reminded me it preferred to be on the flats, staying at a
constant speed; climbing and accelerating were not its forte. The two guys I
was with pulled away and I focused on not getting caught by the two people we
had dropped. And the race was over; 19th out of less than 75. Not
exactly the result I was looking for but a fun and hard fought race.
First the positives:
I felt strong and raced well: I was able to put in solid
pulls on the flats and hold a pace I was comfortable with.
My nutrition was spot on: I had a Hammer Gel before the race
and during the race I had one bottle containing a mixture of Hammer Nutrition
HEED and Sustained Energy, about 350 calories worth, and one bottle of Fizz for
hydration.
This was a great learning experience: I am signed up to race
the Coast to Coast Gravel Grinder (http://micoasttocoast.com)
next spring, a 218-mile race from the east coast of Michigan to the west on
gravel roads and two tracks. I have been unsure what I wanted to ride for this
race. I was not sure if my mountain bike would be the best bet or if I wanted
to rent a gravel bike. This race answered that question for me. Equipment does
make a difference, especially wheels. And while I’m really thankful that places
like Terry’s Cycle will rent quality bikes like this, I now know that I’m
personally better off sticking with my own familiar equipment. That way, I know
the strengths and weaknesses, and am not caught off-guard by unexpected
performance.
I am not going to dwell on any negatives, let’s just say I
did not place as well as I would have liked and after reviewing some stats, I
had a faster average speed at the HellKaat 100 on my mountain bike (and I rode
almost twice as far). If you want a little more proof than just me saying the
bike can make a difference, check out this video from GCN comparing a cheap bike vs a race bike when you have a chance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wdb7KEc7xJI
I will write a short review on the bike soon but here is a
link if you want to check out what I was riding: https://www.trekbikes.com/us/en_US/bikes/hybrid-bikes/urban-commuter-bikes/crossrip/crossrip-1/p/1374000-2018/?colorCode=grey
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