Michaux Trail Cup

There is a certain phrase I often hear passing from the lips of mountain bike racers after an event: “Damn…that was a brutally hard race!” I’ve said it many times myself… as recently as this past weekend when I competed in the Michaux Trail Cup.  The MTC was one of the toughest races I’ve ever done (another phrase I’ve used before). But it got me thinking about just what makes one race hard in comparison to another. The answers are fairly obvious…first is the course itself. For most racers, the difficulty of the course comes down to how much climbing it has, and how technical the trails are. The second factor is level of competition, and how hard you have to push yourself to try and win. When I reflect upon my history of racing mountain bikes, which is getting close to 9 years, the races I rank among the hardest all have various combinations of the aforementioned elements.

Where the course is concerned, it’s safe to say that even if you enjoy it (which I genuinely do), climbing is still hard…when the hills get steep, long, rocky or all three,  it puts a hurting on your legs and often forces you to push yourself into the red to keep from dismounting and losing time. Technical trails (also a favorite of mine) are tough on your bike and your body, causing everything from flats to crashes to hand, arm and shoulder fatigue in the long run. The toughest courses force you to ride harder and beat you up regardless of who you’re racing against.

Competition?  If you’re the fastest guy (or girl) in your class by a wide margin, you need only go so hard to stay ahead of your competition, but if your field is stacked with other racers who have the potential to beat you on any given Sunday, trying to best them can force you to go deeper into your pain cave that you thought possible. That, my friends, will make even the smoothest, flattest race course seem like  a painfully hard affair.

This brings us to the Michaux Trail Cup, which for me was a perfect storm of a brutally hard course, and very stiff competition. The mere mention of the name Michaux is enough keep some riders from even showing up. The races held in this massive PA State Forest are widely known to be some of the hardest on the planet, and for good reason. The courses here are epic, point to point monsters with tons of long, steep climbs, scary white-knuckle descents, and endless miles of singletrack, laced with sharp rock gardens and rock features. This is why I love the place, it appeals to my sense of adventure. When you complete a Michaux race, you really feel like you’ve accomplished something on the bike.

The MTC was a brand new event but the pre race info on the website told me it was going to be more of what we’ve all come to expect from Michaux. 42 miles, 6000 feet of climbing, and lots and lots of rocks (which, thanks several hours of light rain, promised to be wet and slippery). What I wasn’t expecting was that it would be on two separate 20ish mile loops…an interesting new format for the course layout. Nor was I expecting to see NUE Masters champion and former 29er Crew Teammate Roger Masse in the parking lot when I pulled up (he wasn’t on the pre-reg list). Roger is in my class and when he’s on, which he usually is, he’s a full gear faster that I am. Oh well, I thought…maybe he’ll have an off day and I’ll have a shot. Dave Funk was there too. He almost beat me at Tuscarora, and may very well have if he hadn’t flatted.

So the stage was set. I had a very tough competition on a very tough course...this was not going to be easy day in the saddle. As expected, Roger, Dave and I were alone at the front for the first few miles. After trading spots in the lead we came to a long stretch of fire road that had some rolling climbs. The pace was very high and though I could have held it, I didn’t want my HR to be in the high 170’s for too long. It was going be a long day and I knew I needed to conserve my strength, so I backed off and let them get a gap of 100 yards or so. The course turned onto singletrack, and by the bottom of the first rocky downhill I was right back on with my rivals. Hmmmm….food for thought.

 We we’re picking our way through some heavy traffic of Open Class and Single speed racers when I got stuck behind a rider who slid out on a short steep climb, and had to dismount while Roger and Dave rode on and out of sight. Damn, they were really moving! In the next technical section I was back on yet again. I was sitting 3^rd wheel we came to a narrow, rocky power line descent. Rog attacked and at that moment, Dave did not have the testicular fortitude to stay with him. Unfortunately, I could not get by Dave so we both lost sight of him.

On the first big climb, the pattern with Dave solidified itself. He was flying up the hills, and for me to stay with him I’d have to push my HR into the red, so I just let him go, thinking I’d catch him when the trails inevitably got nasty. This cat and mouse game continued, and we were riding together with no sign of Roger, when we hit the long fire road climb back to the start/finish area. We tried to work together to reel Roger back by taking turns doing pulls, but Dave was just too fast for me to keep pace with him…this guy can climb! I told him I needed to back off and away he went. I settled into a comfortable tempo and watched as Dave gradually disappeared from sight. After a quick stop at the Start/Finish area feed zone to replenish my bottles, I was off again on the second (and much harder, we were told pre-race) of the two big loops, This one started with at least five miles of gnarly technical single-track. I felt like I was in a nice groove at this point and was comfortably floating over the rocks. Sure enough, it wasn’t long before I caught Dave. All the time I have spent training in the rocky parks of North Jersey had prepared me well for the perils of Michaux. I passed Dave in the singletrack and rode the rest of the race nearly alone, taking gels and sodium tabs when appropriate. The remainder of the course had two seemingly endless fir road climbs and countless miles of technical singletrack. The last 7 miles may have been the toughest for me both mentally and physically. I knew I couldn’t let up at all…for all I knew, I could be gaining ground on Roger or losing it to Dave. The last few miles featured a sick 45 degree loose, rocky downhill that was pretty terrifying. That was followed by a big creek crossing and a long gradual singletrack climb to the finish that sapped the remaining strength from my legs. I gave one final push to the finish and was rewarded for my effort with a searing cramp in my left quad as I crossed the line. So much for looking cool.

Roger was already in so I knew he’d won, I took second and Dave rolled through about 4 minutes behind me to round out the Masters podium. I checked my average HR and found it to be an incredibly high 164bpm…the highest average HR I’ve every achieved in an endurance race. One of the first things I said to Roger after congratulating him on getting the win was “Holy shit that was hard!” He agreed. Michaux as always, lived up to its reputation, and with the competition level this high, it was truly a race to remember. Promoter Zach Adams put on a great race with a beautiful course that was well marked and incredibly scenic, if you took a moment to look up from the trail. The prizes and post race food were also excellent. Every mountain biker owes it to themselves to come race Michaux at least once…if for no other reason than just to say that you’ve survived it!

A Dragon's Tale...

The Dragon's Back, from the valley below.



No, this is not a children’s fairy tale, or even an episode of Game of Thrones... Dragon’s Tale is the real deal…an epic 40 mile endurance MTB race set in the picturesque mountains of the Shenandoah Valley in Southern Virginia. Back in 2006 when I lived in Maryland, my good friend Rob Campbell and I did an earlier and shorter incarnation of this event called Dragon’s Back.  In those days the XC race was only 20 miles but it still had some of the biggest climbs and most technical ridge-top singletrack I’d ever ridden. I also took a wicked spill that day which left a permanent scar on my right forearm, a reminder of the fact that Dragons can be extremely vicious when they’re pissed off ( I affectionately refer to that scar as my Dragon Bite). When I saw this event on the calendar this year…with double the distance, and Chris Scott (of SM100 and Wilderness 101 fame) as the promoter, I knew it was a must-do. I called up Rob and hounded him mercilessly until he agreed to make the trip with me again.



Saturday morning I packed up the car and made the 4.5 hour trip from North Jersey to Rob’s house in Rockville, MD. He had agreed to drive the second leg of the trip (another 4 hours) to the race in the tiny town of New Castle, VA.  Saturday afternoon we were joined by our good friend and longtime riding buddy Fernando, for a 2 hour “tune up” ride on the new Seneca Ridge Trail, in Germantown, MD. What was supposed to be a mellow warm up, quickly denigrated into a mini pre-race race…funny how that happens when friends with similar abilities ride together. It was a blast, but not exactly a smart game plan for the Dragon Tale. Oh well, I wasn’t too concerned…Rob and I had agreed that because the race had no classes or age groups (just open men and open women) that it would be utterly laughable to even consider finishing near the front, let alone making the podium. This notion was further compounded by the cast of heavy hitters that usually attend this race. We also wanted to explore some nearby trails the next day, so we agreed to just use this race for training; ride together, have fun, and not worry about how well we finished. I even decided to bring my camera along to capture some of the incredible views from the spine of the Dragon.



Startt/Finish Area



Neutral lead out



The race began at 10am Sunday morning with a 5 mile neutral start; a group of about 125 riders was led through the streets of New Castle by vehicle escort. It was a perfect day for racing…sunny and 58, going up to the 70’s. Among the bad motherfuckers in attendance were none other than former National Marathon and Short Track Champions, Jeremiah Bishop, and Sue Haywood. Rob and I were somewhere near the middle of the field when the pack turned left towards the mountain, the lead car pulled off, and the real racing began. The front of the field tore off at and incredible pace down the rocky dirt road. It didn’t take long for the carnage to start, as several riders were stopped with flats in the first 2 miles. The road crisscrossed a large very creek at least 5 times…huge groups of racers were riding or running their bikes through the frigid, knee deep currents. I was able to ride all of them except one, when another rider slipped right in front of me.  For the next 7 miles, the dense field of riders slowly spread themselves out as the fire road snaked its way along the base of the ridge, over plenty of rolling, punchy climbs and descents. Rob and I were riding together and chatting about how so many people went off guns blazing like it was an XC race.

Climbing and more climbing

 At mile 11 we made the left turn onto the Grouse trail, a 3 mile switch backed singletrack that climbs 1400’ to the top of the ridge.  I dropped into my granny gear and spun my way up. At various points I’d accelerate, get a gap, and use the opportunity to pull out my camera and snap some images of the action or the incredible surroundings….not something I’ve ever really had the luxury to do during a race. Rob would catch back on and we’d continue the climb, most of it could be ridden, but there were several switchbacks that were just too steep to stay on the bike. As I pushed my bike around one of the nastier turns, I wondered aloud to Rob if Bishop was riding all of them cleanly…nah…not humanly possible!

The final turn at the top of Grouse Trail

When we finally crested the ridge, we turned right and rode a mile of rocky, technical ridge top singletrack with spectacular views of the valleys on either side. Next was a right turn onto the Deer Trail which plunged us back down towards the base of the ridge. It was a tiny bench-cut singletrack with more tight switch backs, some that could be ridden by slowly inching yourself around them, and others that were far too hairy to even attempt. The bottom half of Deer could really be bombed, and at the base I caught my breath and sat up, as Rob and a few other riders caught back on. We hung another right back onto the fire road and rolled our way back to the 1^st aid station, where we filled our bottles and grabbed some snacks. From there it was back up the massive grouse climb a second time, where again I rode ahead and took more pictures.



Rob navigates a tight switchback on the Grouse climb.



When we summited the second time, Rob asked me for some Endurolytes. I wasn’t cramping, but with this much climbing a little preventative medicine couldn’t hurt. While I was handing them out, Sue Haywood rolled up and we gave her some as well. She must have been having an off day…she should have been well in front of us.  The next section of the course was a beautiful yet punishing 10 miles of narrow, undulating, ridge top singletrack, with jagged rocks protruding from the ground (Dragon scales?). I was constantly jumping from my granny gear, straight to my big chainring and back again…From this point on the notion of taking it easy went out the window, as the trail demanded very hard efforts to clean the climbs and rock features. Some sections were just too steep and had to be walked…and at mile 27 we hit a massive wall that may have been the longest, most grueling hike-a-bike I’ve ever done. Again, more speculation between Rob and me as to whether the top guys could ride it…as my calves cried for mercy.

View from the Dragon's Back

After what seemed like an eternity, the trail finally shot us steeply down another hair-raising decent to the 2^nd aid station. Again we took our time..filling our bottles, and eating some gels etc before getting underway. The folks at the aid station told us there were 7 miles to go to the finish, and that the remaining trails were the best in the race. But as we soon learned, “best” is not synonymous with “easy”. Right away we were climbing…another narrow side-cut ribbon of trail that snaked it's was up Broad Run Mountain for 700 vertical feet.  Although it was only half the length, the fact that we already had 4 hours of racing in our legs made this climb seem even steeper and harder that Grouse. For our efforts, we were rewarded with the sweetest downhill of the day. Buff, and fast…with only a few switchbacks, this was the one where you could really let it rip. I can’t be sure but I may have been yelling woo-hooo! on my way down. At the bottom, it got rocky again and dipped through a couple stream crossings. The trail leveled out and I pulled over to wait for Rob. A minute passed, then another, then a third. When another rider came passed and 2 more minutes went by I started to worry. Then just as I was about to start hiking back up the mountain to investigate, Rob slowly rolled around the corner, his front wheel bent to the point where the tire was rubbing the inside of the fork. He told me he had crashed hard at high speed, with his wheel kissing a tree at the same time his hip kissed the ground. He was bruised and scratched but clearly in one piece, and eager to keep rolling. He’s a trooper!

Rob’s bike was ride able so we were off again. I really wanted to see if I still had some hard efforts left in my legs after all this climbing, so I accelerated and did hard tempo for the last couple miles of paved road. The legs still felt pretty good! I came through the finish feeling strong physically and great mentally..  Rob wobbled in 5 minutes later, with big grin on his face, happy to have survived the Dragon’s wrath. Not being in any kind of rush, we chilled out, consumed copious amounts of post race chili, and shared stories with our fellow racers. I learned later that I had finished 48^th out of 125…which was perfectly fine, given our plan to use this event for training, and enjoy the ride.  This is exactly the kind of event that reminds me why this is my chosen sport… an amazing course in a beautiful setting, that challenges you and provides a real sense of adventure…along with the knowledge that you’ve really accomplished something. Total elevation gain for the day was a whopping 7300 feet in in 37 miles....that's hardcore! I’ll be back next year for sure!