Lumbar Jerk 2012.

Lumberjack... Quick blurb about my day.. Coming into this race as of June 10th I was feeling pretty good. I dont follow any specific training plans or anything but I had been riding more and felt fairly strong on our Tuesday rides. I felt I had an 8 hour finish in me.. Monday, June 11th... Getting something off a high shelf in the garage I twisted the wrong way or something and felt something pop in my back. Didnt bother me right away but the next morning it was really sore. Like wince to get out of bed sore.. I have done something like this before, just not in a long time. I did alot of stretching in during the week, and went for an easy lap at Pontiac Lake on Tuesday to see how it felt while riding. It wasnt terrible but whenever I went to climb I had a hard time getting into a position I like to climb in and I didnt feel like I could get any power down. The next 3 days I rested and stretched hoping it would get better, which it did but it was still a little sore come race morning but I figured I would give it a go.


The rollout went smooth except for the hillbilly in the van that decided to go around the volunteers who were blocking the road, pissed off that he couldnt get through only to pull into the Big M parking lot and park his POS in the middle of the road. Luckily everyone got around him safely and we filed into the trail. The trail was as loose and dusty as I had ever seen. At the start you could hardly see at times. I settled into a decent pace was feeling great. I could feel my back on the climbs but it wasnt bad enough that couldnt deal with it. I did notice I was in a smaller gear than I would normally be in. Its amazing how much power comes from your core on a bike. Figured I would just spin the hills and make up time on the downhills. Then after the aid station there are 3 climbs that are fairly long. My back was getting worse.. Right before the fire tower climb I was out in a corner I took a little fast and ate it... Jumped back on to grind up the firetower to the top. The run up is where I knew I may have a problem. Now my back was really sore. I did what I could, spun the hills to roll in around 2:36 for my first lap (I think, my time isnt on the results). I really slowed down on the second half with the climbing. I sat in the pit for a couple minutes and decided to try to gut it out. After the 3 climbs in the first couple miles I said screw it. This sucks. I dont really feel like suffering for another who knows how long and possibly make it worse. I seen racers off to the left going the other way, so I cut the course and rolled the last mile back into camp. Ended up with 38 miles.

I am really not that dissapointed. I hate not finishing, but it was really out of my control. I had a feeling early in the week this might happen. On a positive note, my legs felt good. Got to hang out with and assist my buds between beers, and even with my aching lower back my lap time was a good 9 minutes faster than my first lap time last year (in which I finished in 8:30). Not sure I would have been able to get under 8 hours with the heat, but there is always next year..

Congrats to all that finished, Keith, Alex, Landry, Venlet, Bratney. Way to earn that finishers patch!!!

Had a Chiro appointment Monday.. Get my shit straightened out for whatever my next adventure will be. I look like those old V8 commercials...

This picture sums up my day by 11am..