It was already time to load up the car again and head back down to Arkansas for 24hrs of Syllamo. I knew this course was going to be more brutal than the previous 24hr MTN bike race I did last year and of course, doing it on my single speed. They said it was going to be 2,400 feet of ascending and descending per loop. Loops were 10.5 miles long. 
We arrived Friday night to set up camp and was greeted by other St. Louis folks-Team Seagal, Team Redwheel, Bob Jenkins and crew, and others. I got a good nights sleep since my strategy was to go straight through the night. The killer coons ate Wendy's oatmeal, who was my competition, so I brought her back some hot oatmeal from a local restaurant I went to for breakfast. A girl has to eat before a big race like this! Race started at noon Saturday and would go till noon Sunday. The start started with a short run to the bikes. I was warned of the same start as Syllamo's Revenge, which is 3/4 mile gravel road at a 11% grade. This was a lot of standing on the single speed. Right off the bat, a few suffered from flats on this road alone. We took a left off this road onto the red section which consisted of flowing single track with a few steep climbs. The bulk of the trail was twisting beautiful single track winding through the Ozark Mountains. The last section was an incrediable long rocky descent that took you back to Blanchard Springs. This last section left a smile on my face every time and made me say "I want to do that again." But, reality hit quickly and I realized I had to climb that dang 11% grade hill again after the start.
After 5 consecutive laps some sort of stomach problem hit me. I usually don't get sick in races so not sure what it was from. We couldn't drink the water from Blanchard Springs so I got my water from another camp site. Jim Davis came to my rescue and gave me some Pepto Bismal. Wendy Davis was a few minutes in front of me (I think I gave her some super turbo oatmeal that morning) but, my stomach problems kept me out for 2 hrs so she gained a couple laps on me. After a couple hours, I felt fantastic! Time to play...game on!!! Close to 10pm, I hit the trail and wasn't going to stop again. I realized I was gaining time on each lap. Around 4-5 AM, I saw Wendy sitting down, FINALLY, and looked like she might have been a little tired. I quickly raced back out and realized I finally made up my time. I knew I could get 2 more laps in and finished sometime after 1pm winning the Women's single speed division completing 11 laps. I was also very happy with my 7th place overall position with the men too.
After 5 consecutive laps some sort of stomach problem hit me. I usually don't get sick in races so not sure what it was from. We couldn't drink the water from Blanchard Springs so I got my water from another camp site. Jim Davis came to my rescue and gave me some Pepto Bismal. Wendy Davis was a few minutes in front of me (I think I gave her some super turbo oatmeal that morning) but, my stomach problems kept me out for 2 hrs so she gained a couple laps on me. After a couple hours, I felt fantastic! Time to play...game on!!! Close to 10pm, I hit the trail and wasn't going to stop again. I realized I was gaining time on each lap. Around 4-5 AM, I saw Wendy sitting down, FINALLY, and looked like she might have been a little tired. I quickly raced back out and realized I finally made up my time. I knew I could get 2 more laps in and finished sometime after 1pm winning the Women's single speed division completing 11 laps. I was also very happy with my 7th place overall position with the men too.
Steve did a fantastic job putting on this race. There weren't many racers who came down for this since it was the 1st race but, I know he will draw in many more racers next year. This course is not as technical as Syllamo's Revenge so it can definitely be done by many. He already has the date for next year, April 9, 2011, so check it out!
