Brian Oliver PKU Hero

25 hour Race Report

admin — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 04:30:36 +0000

Is it possible to underestimate a 25 hour race? Believe me, I severely underestimated it. It is Monday night and I still can’t feel my pinky finger on my left hand. I wish I knew a doctor.

First, the thank you’s. I could not have done this without the support crew, including my wife, her sister and husband, my parents, and of course my 3 kids who were extremely motivating, especially the two year old who was really cute in his puffy coat with the hood on yelling “go daya”. I also could not have done this without the motivation given to me by all those who donated.

Next, the highlights. The spectators, organizers, and other racers were awesome and very positive. I enjoyed all the motivational “good job” and “nice riding” comments from the team riders as they would whizz past me in the middle of the night. This race was extremely hard. I never really thought about abandoning (even when I was hypothermic, see below), but I definitely questioned my own sanity. The course is very cool and I suggest anyone vacationing in the area ride the JEM trail near Hurricane, Utah. The weather only made this more epic. What fun would it have been without snow on the course and a mach 5 wind for the first 6 hours?

Next, the numbers. I rode 16 laps. At 12.8 miles per lap, that’s just shy of 205 miles. The low temperature at 6 am was 34 degrees (that’s almost zero on our celsius-only motorhome thermostat). Here are my lap times.

16 laps, total ride time 24:44:10
Lap # Lap Time
1 01:03:50
2 01:04:55
3 01:09:01
4 01:11:00
5 01:23:22
6 01:20:48
7 01:15:30
8 01:56:59
9 01:22:57
10 01:47:13
11 01:28:33
12 02:23:12
13 01:46:07
14 01:57:55
15 01:43:31
16 01:49:17

You may notice some outliers, lap number 8 was dinner. Lap number 12 is when I almost froze to death. I overheated in laps 10 and 11 so I came into the start of lap 12 shivering from sweaty clothing (at about 2 am). So I stopped at the tent to put on dry clothes. Now normally, that would solve the problem. Not this time. It took me 30 minutes huddled dangerously close to the propane heater to regain a reasonable temperature. Finally, I stopped shivering, finished my Red Bull, and headed back out for five more laps. You may also notice my lap times did get slower. I’ll bet you are thinking this is due to tired legs. Not so, my legs were good. My hands, arms, feet, shoulders, back and ischial tuberosities (a 25 cent word for the bones you sit on when riding a bike) were a big problem. I think the cold temps had a large impact on my hands and arms. They were definitely the weakest link.

Overall, I really enjoyed this race. Don’t get me wrong, I have no plans to ever do it again (until next year)! I was fifth out of 24 solo racers, which is quite satisfying especially considering this was my first solo 24 hour race. I cannot adequately thank all the people who made this possible, and all those who gave generously. Thank you very much.

The hay is in the barn

admin — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 03:36:57 +0000

Taper: (v) to diminish gradually. Taper (n) gradual diminution in thickness, diameter or width in an elongated object. I would say that this training season was definitely an ‘elongated object.’ In March, I trained in knickers and full gloves. Yesterday, more than six months later, I trained in windproof knickers and full gloves. Now I am tapering. I have trained hard this year and as my coach say, ‘the hay is in the barn.” With less than a week to go, the only thing left to do is taper. In cycling, a taper is done by massively reducing the total hours on the bike but keeping a little intensity. I will do a set of intervals next week and a couple of short rides. I am the strongest I have ever been, not the fastest, but definitely the strongest. It’s hard to describe, but I possess this deep strength, like a core of iron or tempered steel. I am optimistic about the big race next week. Cross your fingers for decent weather.

Nightriding

admin — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 18:49:07 +0000

I had a great week on the bike(s). It’s been a bit cold, but I was able to pull off a 7 hour training ride and a night ride. Night riding is interesting. I have done a fair amount of it. It is amazing how much you depend on peripheral vision to ride a mountain bike. That combined with a loss of depth perception due to the white light makes it a little harder to ride fast. You simply cannot predict how big the bumps, berms and twist and turns are when you ride with lights. I expect to be 10-15% slower at night even though I will have done 6-8 daylight laps prior to nightfall on November 5th. I hope I can remember the course well enough at night to have the right “body english” and save myself some wear and tear. I predict that the weak links for me will be my hands and feet and not my legs. It is going to be a fun and interesting experience.

Time for an update.

admin — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 08:36:41 +0000

I haven’t updated this for way too long. I have been riding a fair amount and things are really coming together for the 25 hour race. I am excited. We rented a motor home to travel to the event and the kids are super excited about it. My friends, colleagues and others have been ridicuoulsy generous, THANKS.
On the training front, I rode the 12 hours of Sundance recently and rode 80 miles in 8.5 hours (shortened race due to rain). It was fun. I felt surprisingly good on the last lap, including on the downhill, which was refreshing and encouraging. The race had 10,000 plus vertical feet which is about 15 laps on the course down at Frog Hollow. I find that the vertical feet is much more important for my pacing than the distance. So I am very encouraged about my chances of making 200 miles (weather permitting).

Park City Point 2 Point

admin — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 22:34:26 +0000

I finished the Park City Point to Point (PCP2P). I stress the word finished. Many top riders think this is among the most difficult one day races in the country. I did it in 9 hours and 22 minutes on my singlespeed. I had hoped for a finish time about 45 minutes faster, but I am happy to have finished. This long day in the saddle should give me a nice training boost. I hope I can hold the fitness until November 5th and 6th. My goal for the 25 hour race is 200 total miles, at least 100 on my singlespeed. Judging by last weekend my hands and feet are going to need some non-singlespeed time during the 25 hours so I will also ride my geared bike. Maybe 100 miles on each???

Hello!

admin — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 05:05:00 +0000

I am so excited to have the word hero attached to my name. That doesn’t happen very often. I am also psyched to ride my bike for 25 hours straight. I think the 25 hours of Frog Hollow will be an outstanding test of my cycling credentials and training, and a great way to raise money in support of PKU.

By way of introduction, I have three kids, the two youngest have PKU. They are amazing and doing very well. When our second child was diagnosed with PKU it was a major roller coaster for a while. Now, that we have adjusted to the daily demands of the disorder, life is basically as good as it gets with three kids under six. I feel very lucky to be able to live a full life, race bikes and raise three great kids despite PKU. I hope to help the National PKU Alliance raise some money for the purpose of helping find a cure for this disease.

I have dabbled in cycling since I was a teenager. Fortunately, over the last few years I have had the time and energy to do more than dabble. I ride as much as life allows and really enjoy the challenge of pushing myself a little farther with each new cycling season. My personal “to do list” has always contained a solo 24 hour race. This November, I will get a chance to go one hour better than 24 hours. I appreciate your interest.

Check back periodically for updates as the race date gets closer. Upcoming events I will be riding as I train for the 25 hour race include the Park City Point to Point, and the 12 hours of Sundance. I just finished the Pierre’s Hole 50 miler, and I won the single-speed class for the second year in a row. I was actually quite surprised by how well the race went. Don’t get me wrong, I suffered a lot, but that is easier to do when you are in the lead!

Welcome to my blog!

admin — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 18:20:02 +0000

Come back sign for updates on my efforts to raise money and awareness for PKU!