We finished!

We made it. As tempted as we are to put an explanation at the end of that statement, we are still in quite a state of shock over how we made it through the past 4 days. To say we were humbled or in awe of the terrain and weather we witnessed would be an understatement. The Alpine Epic was more than we bargained for…on the first day! After we acknowledged this fact to one another we then acknowledged that we had 3 more days like this first day…We feel extremely fortunate and grateful for a lot of reasons ranging from the fact we had no flats during the race, no injuries or (major) falls, and we got to the finish healthy and still enjoying the company of one another. We got to see beautiful country and parts of New Zealand that included high country stations (ranches) not open to the public.  We rode in the shadow of the great Mt. Cook yesterday and much thanks to him for giving us a strong tailwind to finish the final leg. The race started on Wednesday, consisting of two stages.  The first was supposed to be 50 kilometers with 1,250 meters of vertical ascent. At the finish of this stage we were to be ferried across a river to the opposite bank where we began stage 2, which was a 17 km (team) time trial and only 300 meters of climbing. It would be dishonest at this point to say we weren’t nervous as we were entering terrain (and conditions) we were really not familiar with, as well as the unknown weather factor which could change at a moment’s notice. The other reason we were nervous was because the weather predictions for the day was a high temperature of 37 degrees C (about 104 degrees F). There were 38 teams competing, many who were professional athletes who regularly compete in these sorts of races or other adventure-type events for a living. (Zeph might have been so nervous that after the start of the race he managed to bounce off the rear wheel of the rider in front of him, swerving into me, almost making a mess and definitely making me laugh!). In underestimating the terrain we were riding through, we expected to finish this leg in about 3 hours, at the speed in which we usually ride. Three hours into the race, I remember questioning whether I really needed to be humbled how I was being humbled. The winds were relentless. They were warm (Northwest) winds, consistently blowing at us at 50km an hour, gusting to 75+. I remember coming around one corner and a gust of wind catching my helmet and feeling it being held down by my helmet straps. There was also a significant amount of hiking. We can honestly say we didn’t train much for the amount of hiking that ended up transpiring. It was an epic mountain bike race we entered so we expected to be riding our bikes the majority of the time. Needless to say, there were tremendous amounts of hiking because the terrain was so treacherous it could not be ridden, even by the professionals. The hiking sections were across exposed mountain ridges with the wind pushing so hard there was no way to carry our bikes to make the hiking any easier. At hour 3 we were nowhere near the finish line for this stage. As we approached the gorge where the river was for the finish of this stage, we could see the wind blowing the sand and debris down the river valley, a couple hundred feet into the air above the river. We were both thinking (and deliriously hoping) this was not the gorge we had to drop into. Long story short is that it was.

 The wind was blowing the sand so hard into our faces once we were at the bottom of the gorge that we couldn’t see where we were supposed to cross. It was something straight out of Lord of the Rings (not in a good way)! We made it to the finish in 5 and a half hours…a fair amount over our 3 hour estimate. Fortunately, or unfortunately, the race organizers had underestimated not just the distance but also the vertical ascent as well. The stage that was supposed to be 50 kilometers actually ended up being 54 kilometers which isn’t terribly inaccurate however they underestimated the ascent by 400 meters (over 1,200 feet). The time trial was simple, rolling, and fast, and in hindsight, the easiest stage by far. We ended up third place in our standing and 19th place overall for all the teams. The group camp spot for the night was at a white water rafting lodge in the Rangitata Gorge. The wind continued through the night, keeping most the group from getting any real sleep.

After Day 1, we were even more nervous and apprehensive about the second day. The rumors from people who had competed in this race last year regarding the underestimates of the race officials with regard to total distance and vertical ascent also had us worried. The weather forecast for the day was to be windy and hot, similar to the first day, with the official briefing advising us of a hike equal to or greater than the first day. The predictions proved accurate as far as the hiking on the second day however we were riding a fair amount of the steep pitches.

The first water feed for this stage was about 3 and a half hours into the stage. After this feed stop we rode across a valley on a (thick) gravel road for a good 15 kilometers (that they had said was only 8 km). I began to not feel so good on this road. I was sitting on Zeph’s wheel, hoping my body would feel better. The only other thing I remember was that I had stopped sweating and the water I was drinking was sloshing around in my stomach, not being utilized by my body. At the end of this gravel road section, there was another feed before heading out for another loop, before finishing an hour down the road. At this feed, we thought we had another couple hours of racing left, at the most…The race official told us here that this loop was estimated to take 3-4 hours (about 15 km of riding), before getting to the finish an hour after that. It was about this moment that I temporarily went a little crazy. They told us we could take the short cut (only an hour) back to the finish, however we would be disqualified. I didn’t know if I had enough in me to do the total distance and I barely knew if I had it in me to make it to the finish. Thankfully, Zeph helped me resign my mind and make the best decision of taking out the 15 km loop and get to the finish. Thankfully, we made it in to the finish with a riding time close to 6 and a half hours. We later found out that the temperature where I wasn’t feeling good was clocked at 38 degrees (106 degrees F). We thought we were done with the race at this point as we were to be disqualified. We didn’t know if we would continue to ride the race course however we were in the middle of nowhere, with our car waiting for us at the finish of the race over 100 km away. The race officials made it hard to stop. Because so many other teams had taken the shorter version to the finish, they decided to not disqualify us but simply gave us a 4 hour penalty. On top of that, they decided to split the large stage for the third day into two parts while eliminating an hour of hiking. This helped our decision to continue.

Day 3 now consisted of a shorter (2-3 hour) stage, with a regrouping, then another group start for the second stage. The funny thing about the starts of these long stages was that there was supposed to be a neutral start, meaning the group was to be fairly relaxed until the dirt section began and the racing officially began. Needless to say these “neutral” starts turned out to be flat out time trials! Finally, on the third day’s second stage, the race start was a little more relaxed as people had already been going all out. The two of us were also beginning to get the hang of the race (and each other) a little more. Granted we ride together all the time, but racing is another story altogether as people have different points at which they’ll push themselves to as well as it being hard to gauge how much you have left in the tank (especially at hour 5). We started eating breakfasts that agreed better with our systems and we started drinking a lot more water during the race. The biggest challenge of our trip thus far was adapting seasons overnight. We were coming from training in winter conditions, not needing to be drinking tremendous amounts of water, to peak summer conditions that required significant amounts of water to function. This stage also had a lot more riding (granted steep riding) through the mountains and a higher average speed. We finished the first stage in about 2 and a half hours and the second stage in about 3 and a half hours, making our total riding time equal to six hours for the day. The underestimates of the officials continued however and at the end of the third day we had reached the total vertical that we were supposed to complete by the end of the final day! We also began taking turns in a way that enabled us to ride faster. Z began leading on the downhill sections more and encouraging me along.

The fourth and final day consisted of a 70 km stage and approximately 1,500 meters of climbing (officials had said it was supposed to be close to 800 meters but by this point we knew to expect otherwise). The first climb consisted of a hike that was a relentless 30 minutes of vertical shale rock. Its decent left us heading alongside Lake Pukaki with a view of the impressive Mt. Cook the entire time.

About mid way on this stage, Zeph’s knee started giving him a lot of trouble as mountain bike shoes aren’t meant to be hiked in as much as we had in the previous days.

  We managed to zip along toward the finish line with a miraculous tailwind and were extremely happy to see the finish line! We had had enough of the dry, high desert terrain. While we were fortunate to not have any cold, wet conditions, the heat provided enough challenge! The terrain for the race was similar to the Owens River Valley on Highway 395 in California.

There were few trees for protection, with many wild roses, shale and volcanic rock as well as thorns to provide plenty of opportunities for flat tires. We passed a team on the first day who were on their 8th flat for the day (it turns out the “record” for the race was 10 flats in one day for one team). We ended up 4th place in our team standing and 32nd overall…not bad considering!
Needless to say we were really happy to sleep in a normal bed again as well as enjoying a good shower! While still recovering from the extreme sun and bruises and sore bums, it gave us great pleasure to go for a nice, flat walk today! We don’t know if we would compete in this race again, maybe if some of the hiking was excluded or exchanged for more riding. We met an extraordinary group of genuinely nice folks…many of who we will visit in our weeks of travel to come!

Check out our interview from the race! http://www.mtbracenews.com/2010/02/alpine-epic-mountain-bike-stage-race_26.html

On to visit the great Mt. Cook!

We're Here!

We're here! Or there, depending on how you look at it…A warning that this addition to our blog is exceedingly long only because internet is not an easy thing to come by when moving around as much as we have been this past week.  We’ll do our best to make them a little shorter and more frequent, beginning, perhaps in a couple weeks or after our travel through the more remote south island (of New Zealand).

The last few days in SLO went by ridiculously fast, and we would not have finished without some tremendous help from some amazing friends and family. We definitely didn't realize how long much of the essentials (of packing) would take to get accomplished. There is a huge lesson here, one that should be heeded by anyone new to moving (or rusty), but definitely if you're planning on going overseas...plan out how much you have to do and how long you think it will take. Once that's been accomplished, double it and you’ll then get an accurate timeline.

 It is incredible how much time there is in a day and how much can be accomplished, especially with two people moving about as fast as they can with synergistic actions, but it is still amazing how quickly a day can go by. Above all, however, we did our best to remind each other to BREATHE, even if it was in the form of a quick bike ride or swim- “forced” breathing during exercise is not such a bad thing!  Funny how we take advantage of the act of breathing and how those breaths tend to get shorter and shorter once a little stress is inserted.

Leaving SLO was surreal and in some ways very bittersweet.  It was near impossible to think we were leaving.  The only way we could do it was by assuring ourselves we would be back to visit in the next 6 months because it was too much to think otherwise.  The thought of leaving or not seeing some of our favorite people (in our lives) as often as we are accustomed to was not an easy thought.  However, we were lucky enough to spend time (usually in the form of eating) with friends and family in the last few days.  From going to the Baywood Farmer’s market with Sarah’s dad and hanging out with him, coffee with her grandparents, sushi lunch with her brother, to our friend Sandra’s “Wadsworth Bread” she made for us to enjoy hot in the car, or the brilliant quesadilla Sarah’s mum selflessly made for us to give us more steam to make it to Ventura, all fueled our love for what we were leaving.  We now understand the term bittersweet to our core.  Fortunately, we finally got to begin relaxing and unwind a bit before our flight, with Zeph’s parents in Ventura as well.

 The drive to the airport was interesting, especially since we had to take two cars because we had a lot of “stuff”.  Even after paring down to the necessities, with the bikes and their respective gear, we had A LOT of stuff!  We decided early on that, despite the hassle of the quantity and size, the two of us would be flying down with two bikes each plus a luggage bag (each). By the time we finished packing everything to go with us on the initial plane ride down, including clothes, spare parts, and necessity Clif product for the race, we went to the airport (huge thank you Mum and Dad for the ride down) with a total of four bikes, two bags of clothes, one giant bag of camping gear (tent, sleeping bags, etc.), Z’s Pedro's tool kit, and our two carry on and personal items each. For those counting, that's eight checked bags and four being carried on. We definitely had some interesting looks checking in, and a few more going through customs in Auckland, especially during our 1km haul between terminals (quite a hike at 5 in the morning after arriving in Auckland to sprint-walk over to the domestic terminal). In our defense, and thank someone that we had one, we could say we weren’t just on holiday.

All that being said, we made it to Wellington by 8 in the morning.  For anyone looking to travel to New Zealand in the future, the 11+ hour flight goes by surprisingly quick- Even if you aren’t deliriously tired and only wanting to look at the back of your eyelids!  For most, 11 hours is a long time to sit in one spot, but on Air New Zealand, it is one delicious meal, separated by some good movies (whichever ones you choose to watch for yourself), separated by some good sleep, then more good food in the form of breakfast, a catnap, then, Voila! you’re there!  We came off the plane to see Graeme waiting for us at the gate, which, to say was a pleasant surprise would be an understatement.  Aside from being Zeph’s Godfather, Graeme is a saint, in so many ways.  Zeph asked me after arriving what we should get Graeme in thanks for all he has (and continues to do) for us, and my quick and simple response- A Bugatti!  That is how huge it has been to have him in our lives.  He had been helping us find a vehicle, picking us up at the airport and filling his Volvo (inside and out) to maximum capacity, and above all, an unconditional support that makes all the difference in the world, especially with as many unknowns as we have/had.  After arriving, we quickly unloaded, with a bit of help from Graeme, freshened up to run a few errands, go for a quick bike ride, look for a new vehicle, and eat a wondrous Cambodian dinner with Graeme and 4 of his close friends visiting from the UK.  A note on Wellington…it is one of the most beautiful of cities.  We are not huge “city” folk, but Wellington pulls out all the stops.  Aside from being the capital of NZ, it is built on steep rolling hills giving it a similar feel to San Francisco, on a smaller (400,000 people) scale.  It is clean and pristine (especially by city standards) and has some of the best food in the country, as well as amazing botanical gardens and great nature preserves less than 5 minutes out of town.  Needless to say, it is a great place to arrive. 

Day two consisted of finding and buying a vehicle.  We had been looking for something large enough to fit our bikes and luggage and that had a diesel engine for reliability and better mileage. Having the bikes to have to carry with us helped narrow our search down to vans and SUV's, and with a ton of help from Graeme, we finally found our new ride. 

 We settled on a 1994 Isuzu Bighorn 3.1D. To translate for our U.S. readers, it's an Isuzu Trooper with a turbo-diesel v-6 (designed by Lotus which is supposed to make it handle better than the not-so-good reputation Troopers had for a while of being not-so-good handling).  Even on the first day we were lucky enough to get out for a spin on the road bikes.  While Zeph has been doing an amazing job of driving on the left hand side of the road, on the right hand side of the car, we will both attest that riding on the left hand side of the road feels flat out weird.  Thus, we have only done our best to seek out trails to enjoy on our mountain bikes since.  Graeme’s friend, Steve, took us out to Makara Peak mountain bike park, about 15 minutes out of Wellington, filled with lustrous, lovely, fun, flowing singletrack through New Zealand’s finest flora.

On Saturday, after 4 days in Wellington, we headed on the InterIslander ferry to the south island, beginning our journey toward the start of the race.  Ah, the minor detail of the race!  We signed up for a little event to make sure we made the journey to New Zealand in the first place.  Our logic, if one may call it that, was that if we didn’t find a way, aside from an airline ticket, to commit ourselves, we would never make it out of SLO’s doors.  So, we signed up for a mountain bike race.  Not just any race, but a 5 stage, 4 day, mountain bike race through the southern Alps on the South Island of New Zealand.  The AlpineEpic (www.alpineepic.co.nz) is only in its second year and has a following similar to other multi-stage races such as the TransRockies or the BC Bike Race.  For those of you interested in looking up where it is on Google Maps, it begins in Mt. Somers and finishes 4 days later at Lake Tekapo through what local New Zealanders claim to be some of the best scenery in the country.  Above all, it sounded, and fortunately still sounds like “fun”.  Oh, and it is not an individual race at all.  It is completed in teams of two so the two of us get to ride/race together against other teams of two for its entirety.  After taking the 4 hour ferry to the south island, we drove south to a favorite alpine spot that we visited last trip, Hanmer Springs.

  We found an amazing campground, slightly out of town and close to fantastic alpine singletrack that also happened to have better showers than most hotels.  We could easily have stayed here a week or more as it has the feel of a nice little European mountain town with a little Colorado and Wyoming mixed in.  That leaves us to this morning making our way to the finish of the race where we will leave our vehicle at our lodging spot, also enabling us to fantasize what it will be like to sleep in a nice bed, eat a great meal, and relax, during the possibly challenging moments of the race.  Tonight we are staying in Methven, about a 3 hour drive from our final destination, hoping to catch up on some internet usage, rest, and the Olympics.  Thank you for reading and we’ll do our best to get a blog addition out prior to the race which begins on Wednesday.  If not, please send your best thoughts, fast thoughts, healthy thoughts, and lucky thoughts to us in copious amounts from Wednesday through Saturday.  Thank you!