This opportunity was made possible by the generous support of Will Muecke and his Core.Co. team. I arrived in San Jose, Costa Rica on October 18th and then flew to the Liberia airport to meet up with a friend who was staying in Tamarindo. We checked out the beaches and he showed me some of his favorite restaurants and other cool places. It was a bit rainy so we had many days to relax. I ate really well, had afternoon naps, and when the sun was out, I worked on my tan. I spent a lot of time paddling around on a surf board and got pummeled by a few waves. I could really feel the humidity for the first few weeks and as my burn turned into a tan, I started to acclimatize. Back in Canmore AB, Jon and Brian emailed me stories and photos of snow and near hypothermic rides. Meanwhile, I got on a good sweat as I was toured around by local cyclists in order to get my lazy surf legs into cycling shape with only a week to go before the race.
Jon arrived in Costa on October 27th and the next day I was showing him around on the bikes. Navigating through San Jose's insane traffic was a bit unnerving. Getting hit by a car before the race would have been horrible, but we managed to get through the city and into the hills for some pre-race riding. The first ride we went on was a short piece of the 2nd stage. The next day we went back to the same area and rode more than expected. On that ride we climbed over a few mountains and it felt like we traveled far away from civilization. Thankfully, having my GPS I knew we were on the right course and after climbing 2200 meters and traveling 50km, we arrived at the highway and descended into the heart of Costa Rica, San Jose. Not too sure how to get back to the hotel, we road along asking people on the street which way to Santa Anna. 30km later, totaling 6 hrs for a training ride, we made it home and had a huge dinner with our favorite chef, Hazel at La Hotel Rivera.
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| Jon riding a ridge line on our training ride |
Click on the this highlighted link for each day to see my GPS info.
GPS coordinates of Day 1, La Ruta de los Conquistadores
The Core Co. team woke up the morning of day one in a bit of a frenzy, scrambling to get the bikes loaded and gear organized. I felt anxious and imagined being late for the race. As we drove to the race, Nat reassured me in his calm manner that we wouldn't be late. Nat was right. We arrived with lots of time to get on our bikes and spin for a bit. I lined up near the front of the start line and focused on my breathing, staying calm while visualizing what was in store for the day. I said hello to the guy beside me and went back into my zone. The gun sounded and we were off. Brian, Leighton and Jon were a bit behind me in the lineup, but as we started riding we jockeyed into position. Leighton and Brian led the climb and as we neared the top, I stayed with them, but we lost sight of Jon. Leighton, Brian and I sped across the ridge and passed a bunch of riders. As we began to descend, we encountered a slick muddy slope that many people couldn't ride. While working together we kept a strong pace, taking turns leading so that we could cover a lot of ground quickly. As we arrived at the hike-a-bike section, we lost sight of Brian. Leighton and I moved along quickly until I got a flat. I carefully proceeded to ride with the flat for one last downhill because I had another hike-a-bike to climb. When I got to the top of the last climb, I changed my flat. While I was doing so, Brian caught up to me. I was glad to see Brian but discouraged about my flat tire. I changed it as quickly as possible and pedaled hard, trying to catch Brian. It wasn't long until I caught up to him. As I approached him I could tell something was off. He was suffering from the heat and had to slow down. I kept my speed up and rode by myself for quite sometime, drinking as much water and Nuun electrolyte water as I could to prevent any cramps or heat stroke. As I entered into villages, I would get cheers and high fives from school kids and parents. It was a good feeling and made me forget about the pain for awhile. As I climbed steep roads, trucks would slow beside me, asking me where I was from and then tell me that they liked Canada. A local bike shop set up a fire hose at a creek crossing and blasted riders with cold water. During a super hot six hour day these supportive gestures helped keep me going. As I got closer to the finish, my pace slowed considerably and all I could think of was the next day. The day ended with some steep climbs only 5 minutes before the finish which just made us hurt more. The race ended in our hotel parking lot. For Jon this was a good thing, as he had such bad cramping he could barley walk on his own and was helped up to our room by first aid. Jon cleaned up right away and started doing everything he could to recover. We all sat down for a late lunch and we were joined by the fellow I lined up beside at the start of the race. His name was Rosco and he rode with Jon for most of the day. He, too, was in pain from the worst cramps he had ever experienced while riding. Brian went back to Paulo's and pulled out of the race. Leighton had a great day and I was very happy with my result. We both finished in the top 20 and we were both in the lead for our age categories.
Day 2 of La Ruta de los Conquistadores
Before the second stage started, Leighton and I were called up to the front to wear leader jerseys for the day. It was an exciting moment for me as I didn't expect to do as well as I had. The gun sounded and we were off. I knew where to go because Jon and I pre-road most of this stage. Within 5 minutes, we started our first long climb. It seemed to go on forever and as we got closer to the top it got steeper. After a painful start climbing for over an hour, we were rewarded with a beautiful ridge view and then an awesome descent. The unfortunate thing was as soon as the descent was over, it was straight back up for another grueling climb. The second climb was forested and we rode through coffee plantations. It was the third climb that stung the most that day. It involved a lot of pavement riding and the steepest climbs I have ever pedaled. If the road was gravel, I had to walk my bike. If it was paved, I was pedaling at a walking pace. I couldn't believe Leighton was running a double chain ring on his cranks. He was a monster pushing stiff gears on steep climbs. I was glad I changed my brake pads and tires for this day. I had no mechanical issues and other than been exhausted at the end of it, I had a pretty good day. I fell back to third place in my age category.. Leighton kept on strong, leading his category. Jon and Rosco both recovered from day one and were back in the race.
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| Photos courtesy of Bicycle World TV |
Day 3 of La Ruta de los Conquistadores
On the morning of day 3, I was tired and in a bad mood. Our hotel room was right above the restaurant kitchen and all night long we heard the banging and crashing of pots and pans. I called down twice asking the front desk to please ask the kitchen staff to be more respectful with their noise level. Eventually I put toilet paper in my ears to muffle the noise and before I knew it my 3:35 am alarm was going off. This taught me to always travel with ear plugs. As we shuttled from the hotel to the start of the race I was feeling weak and heavy eyed. I wasn't ready to climb the sustained 6000 feet. It didn't matter how I was feeling, the racers were ready, the gun sounded and we were off. I changed my tires again for this stage. I put on a Maxxis tubeless tire which had a thicker side wall. It was a bit heavier, but we had a 7000 ft descent on old roads and I didn't want another flat. I started out with a pretty good pace, riding with Leighton and Rosco, but I fell back on a climb and road alone for a bit. Eventually two riders caught me and I had someone to draft off. This helped me stay focused and I kept a faster pace. I was riding with the 2nd place rider in my category until I made a careless shift under pressure and broke my chain. That hurt. I felt so tired and didn't want to fall back from the pack. I hurried to fix the chain on the side of the road while the never ending train of riders kept passing me. I fixed the chain, got on my bike and with legs full of lactic acid, I struggled to pedal up hill in an attempt to catch the pack. After about 20 minutes of riding fast to make up for lost time, I started to feel fatigue set in and I was almost bonking. Nearing 10,000ft, I entered fog and the air seemed thin. I held my pace as fast as I could as I knew the 7000 ft descent was in sight. I looked forward to making up some time on the descent. As I began to descend, the wet, rough, and rocky road was difficult to maneuver, making it a challenge to keep a fast pace. I decided that slow and steady was a better strategy, so that I wouldn't crash or break something on my bike. The rough road felt like it went on forever because I couldn't let go of my brakes. I wanted it to be over as soon as possible. As I got lower in elevation, the roads got smoother and the temperature got warmer. My new friend Dean Henthorn from www.bicycleworld.tv (who followed the race from day to day capturing great photos and keeping me distracted from the pain) followed me on his 1980 Honda 225 through the paved streets of the last village to the finish line. I was cornering at 60km/hr like I was on rails, laughing the whole way. Dean wished he had a video camera to record the "video game" like action.
Another stage under the belt and I needed sleep!
Day 4 of La Ruta de los Conquistadores
(sorry I took to long too post this and lost the profile from the La Ruta website)
Sleep last night was a 6 out of 10. We stayed in an open concept, hostel style barn that was hosting a birthday party for some locals. Conveniently, these locals drank beer and smoked cigarettes right outside our room in a common area. Jon asked them twice to be quiet and they finally took their party elsewhere.
As day 4 got under way, I thought about the beach in Limon. It seemed far away, but I knew it would be a great reward for all of the hard work put out in the last 3 days. The course started out with a short steep climb that spread out the racers. The route then cruised along through rolling hills until it reached one last steep climb that made me want to puke or fall off my bike. As we reached the top of the climb, we had our first view of the far away ocean on the horizon. The course then gradually descended and it felt like the longest straight stretch of the race. Speeding towards the ocean on nicely paved roads, I joined a group of riders who were familiar with the course. As we entered the banana plantations, we took turns leading the group of about 10 riders. I was lucky to be with the experienced racers. They directed the group and we moved along like a finely tuned machine. Jon was with the group, riding strong. It was good to witness his strength knowing how much pain he had experienced on day one. As our group covered ground, we eventually came up to the dreaded railway crossings and rail tie riding. This forced all riders to slow down because most had to walk their bikes across the ties. I caught up to two racers in my age category that were competing for my overall third place position. It felt good to catch them. They had been gaining time on me every day since the first day and they had been working together to make up time and to conserve energy. Unfortunately, one of the guys had a prosthetic leg and the bridge crossings must have been a challenge for him. I road with them from the rail way section to the start of the beach section. When we were 12km from the finish, I couldn't keep up the pace and lost the group. I only had an 11 minute lead over the two riders in my age category. With everything that I had left in my gas tank, I moved along at a steady pace, trying to stay close and keep them in sight until the finish line. I finished in 3rd place overall in my age category, four minutes in front of the fourth place finisher. Jon finished the day a few minutes ahead of me and I was really happy to see his successful finish. Leighton and Rosco had fast times and Leighton finished 1st in his category. After having a rough start, Rosco overcame his cramping from day one and finished 1st in the non-licensed category. It was a great ending to an emotionally, psychologically, and physically challenging 4 days. It was the perfect ending to a long season for myself and I am so happy and grateful I was given the opportunity by Will Muecke and team Core Co. Thank you.
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| courtesy of www.bicycleworld.tv |
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