Weekend Racing Report - April 9, 2006

Paris-Ancaster ENDURO, Paris, Ontario, CANADA

I'm not one to gush but yesterday I did one of the coolest races I've ever done, so I thought I would write up a little race report: little being the important part.

The race was Paris to Ancaster and it was in eastern Ontario, near Hamilton, about three hours from Ann Arbor. The promoter described it as a point to point 60k race of paved roads, railroad grades, and singletrack with mountain bikes and cross bikes being the weapons of choice. What is really is, is a whole lot of ass kicking. Think of Iceman, a whole lot harder and a whole lot faster, and a whole lot cooler. I chose to do it on my cross bike.

This is the largest single day cycling event in Canada. This year they had just under 1600 people riding. Yeah you read that right: 1600.

I heard about it from the guys on the Bell's Mountain bike team, who were out in full force and who successfully defended their victory from last year.

When you register, you can request to be in the first wave of 250 racers, but unless you finished in the top 100 from last year and got the special colored number, who were called up first, you were left to fend for your self for starting position. Not knowing that, I ended up at the back of the first wave at the start, with a sea of heads in front of me. I would say, 60 percent of people were on cross bikes, the rest were on Mnt bikes.

The race started with a long section of dirt road, then a lllooonnnnggg section of rails to trails type path. During the dirt road section, I worked my ass off to get the up to the main group, which was still huge, likely 70+ riders, when we hit the path. On the path, everybody hit the gas. A 70+ group of riders on riders, mostly on cross bike, doing road race pace four wide, bumping shoulders on a path, it was awesome. I was spinning my 46X11, in my drops. The coolest part: nobody crashed, everybody knew how to handle their bike, and keep the pace up.

After awhile, everybody started yelling right turn, and we turn right into this hill that was about 150 yards long straight up. Nobody could ride it, we all shouldered our bikes at ran up it full boar. Not knowing anything about the race, this the moment I thought ahhhhhh yessss...., this is ON!

The next 45 k was filled with sweeping, rolling single track, long sections of dirtroads, long sections of paved road (as soon we hit roads, pace lines would form), paths, muddied, rutted two tracks, places you had to run the bike, etc. In the last third of the race, I started hearing people say that the mud slides were coming up. Those turned out to at least 200 yard long plus steep chutes of ankle deep mud and running water. These were steep enough it was more of a controlled stumble. Nobody could ride them.

There were four of these....

By the end of the race, there was three people off the front and I was in the chase group of probably 15. I had no idea what to expect for the finish, I knew it was a hill. What I was greeted with would more aptly called a wall, a long dirt road wall. I hit it hard, and I have never had my legs shut down on me like that. I'm not to proud to say that I got off and pushed, along with more than half of the people I was with. It felt like I was going up the Koppenberg.

At the finish, completely covered in mud, I was greeted with free food (including subs), a free bike wash (were they sprayed your bike off), and a live band. After filling up with food, I got on my newly cleaned bike, and rode the 25 miles back to the start with the bells team, who, with Mike Simonson, repeated their victory from last year.

I didn't stick around for the results but it looks like I finished in the top 15, maybe even top ten (ED: Andy placed 25th overall and was 2nd best placed US racers, after the winner, Mike Simonson), not bad out of 1600. I am fairly positive I was the second American across the line.

This is an absolutely, 100%, no doubt about it, will do again next year race.

Andy

www.parisancaster.com