Park City Point 2 Point

This was the one race I KNEW for sure I was racing this year. I signed up back in February. Registration started at 7 and filled up in 6 1/2 minutes! Super happy I got in.
Now for the training of it. Bobby and I had a great time going on 2 x 2 day bike adventures down to Manti, Utah.
The first time we rode it by going up over Mt. Nebo and through Thistle on I-89. Loved every second of it except for the bad traffic on I-89. Stayed in a hotel for 40 bux and got as many free movies as our hearts desired. This turned out to only be 2 movies since we really just wanted to go to bed.

We ate at my newfound favorite restaurant Miller's Drive Thru.

Jeanetter & Carey, Bobby & I up Nebo

The 2nd time we had to chose an alternate route since Mt Nebo Road was being chip sealed. So we rode to Nephi then up Nephi Canyon and instead of going thru Thistle we went thru Whales. A much better, less crowded route. In fact in 20 miles we only got passed by one car. Opposite of riding on I-89.

This was one of Bobby and my hardest day on a bike. We left at 12:30 in the afternoon and dealt with a headwind the entire 100 miles to Manti. It was 100+ degrees. We had to kept dumping water on our heads to stay somewhat comfortable. I also forgot to mention that we'd stayed up until 4am. So we were riding on about 4 hours of sleep. It was really hard.

Next day we were supposed to ride up to Skyline Dr and stay in Castledale for the night. Well on the ride down Bobby had developed saddle sores and it was much too painful to ride the next day. So we spent it watching movies! We ate at Millers 5 meals in a row. Shweet!
There really isn't anything to do in Manti and especially in the heat. We tried to go to the museum that they have signs for all over but we never found it. Bobby spent much of the day sitting on an ice block. Poor guy.

So still in training for P2P I did many epic rides with my friend Jeanette Pierce. She is the best! I love that girl and we are perfect little riding buddies.

As the days grew closer to race day I became less and less excited to race P2P. I learned that lots of bigwig big name racer ladies had signed up. I just wasn't looking forward to getting my aaaa handed to me.

Race morning it was 39 degrees at the start. I rode with a jacket on for the first 11 mile loop at Round Valley, Park City. When I came thru the loop area Bobby was there to take my jacket he informed me the I was in 8th place and only 2.5 minutes behind the leader. WOW! I was so excited to hear this.

On the climb up Deer Crest I passed a couple of fast chicks (gals that are much faster than me normally), including Sonya Looney who ended up getting 3rd. I felt great. So I came thru the feed zone, mile 27, and before getting my bag I had to do a loop that took about 5 minutes. Bobby told me I was in 6th and only 4.5 minutes back from the leaders and only 40 seconds back from 3 time world champion Rebecca Rusch. WOW! I got really emotional that I was doing so well. So at the end of the little 5 minute loop the guy right in front of me makes a hard right hand turn instead of going straight thru to feed zone. I obviously follow him. What am I supposed to do?? I'm watching his wheel not the scenery in front of me. I realized instantly what we had done but it was too late. So we rode an extra loop. I wanted to cry. I also wanted to kill the guy that lead me astray because earlier he was stopped on the side of a super narrow single track trail and I warned him I was coming but he stayed glued where he was with his bike upside down and peddling his bike backward and totally nicked my wrist, it freaking killed for about an hour. So I could have killed him.

I came thru the feed zone and told Bobby what had happened and he told me Evelyn Dong who was behind me hadn't taken a wrong turn and was in front of me now. I left the feed zone so defeated. I was so upset and I had a really hard time focusing on the race and not my mistake. My stomach would not digest the food that I was putting in it (I think because of stress)  so the food just sat there in the back of my throat. I forced more food down and tried not to gag. After an hour of riding Evelyn Dong is behind me and needs to pass. WTF I thought she was in front of me. Nope, she'd had a longer feed zone time than me. So I ride behind her for a while.

One funny side note. My Garmin was only reading 19 miles and we were at least past mile 30 so I ask some random rider behind me how many miles we'd been out. 33 he said. So then literally 2 hours later after the race had been shaken up a bit and I was riding with new guys all the time I asked again the person behind me how many miles. He scoffed and said "how many times are you going to ask me?!" Sorry a-hole to inconvenience you! :D I mean seriously what are the chances that the second time I ask after 2 hours I happen to ask the same guy!?

So then Sonya Looney passes me and she is flying. I mean seriously there was no chance of keeping up. Evelyn I could hang with, not Sonya.

We had to go down a really rooty trail and I take a corner wide, hit a nasty rutted out root and land on my face. I hop back on my bike and keep riding. Not 5 minutes later a bug is crawling on my cheek and as I brush it off I knock my glasses off my face. They land in the bush on a hillside. So as I sat there looking for them I debated if they were worth looking for. I decided they are and I didn't want to ride 35 miles without sunglasses on.

The rest of the race was fabulous. I rode from mile 40 to mile 70 completely alone. It was a trip. I was pushing myself, not sure if I would've been faster had I been with people, but I was racing! At the 3rd feedzone I emptied all my solid foods out of my pockets and traded the m for gu's. I didn't fill up on water and I ditched my camelbak. Stupid! This was mile 57. I was so thirsty until the final aid station at mile 66. The gu's totally did the trick. I would start cramping and would pop a gu in and it'd go away. Cramping was weird for me, I haven't cramped for 5 years! Cramping sucks.

When I got to the final feed/aid station I sat there and chatted it up with them. A girl told me I wasn't far behind Kelly Boniface. She's super fast so I pushed it to catch her.

When I came thru the finish I was in 8th. Bobby handed me and Arnold Palmer (tea and lemonade) and I drank it up! Bobby checked results and it showed KC Holly was in front of me and I was in 9th. I asked timing about it and they said she started in the wave behind me so she actually beat me by 30 seconds. Had I known she was right behind me I would have gone faster (maybe).  Places 6-9 were all within 7 minutes. And had I not taken an extra 5 minute loop, I would have maybe been in 7...which got couple hundred bux. Dang. I was super stoked on my time. 9:02. I think that's pretty quick, next year I want to do it in 8:30. That's my goal.

It was a very exciting race and was a huge confidence booster for me, especially since I've had a weird season of racing. I will try to add pictures of it later.