Posts Tagged ‘XTERRA’
Specialized interview with Jay Prashun at Sea Otter
A race report from 2004 where Steve Larsen pushed me to the outer limits of Paindom
2003 XTERRA USA Champs: Steve smashing it…
2004 Xterra USA Champs- Lake Tahoe
When: The night before the race.
Where: Hyatt, Lake Tahoe.
Who: Steve Larsen and myself.
What: Watching TV.
Which show? 2003 Xterra USA Champs, Lake Tahoe.
The year old images on TV brought back strong memories of last years’ epic battle. Steve Larsen, Mountain bike legend, Ironman champion and kicker of my ass at our previous meeting (Xterra Keystone 2003) was tearing up the bike course, setting off alarm bells in my head. I rode as hard as I could to keep him within striking distance, throwing all caution in the wind concerning pacing, the 500ft cliffs, the trees and the rocks whizzing by. Even my “if all else fails, I’ll catch him on the technical down hill” theory got blown out the window. I started the run 90seconds down- a tall order, even on a good day. The dueling on the bike was so fierce; we dropped the rest of the field by more than 6 minutes.
Once in my running shoes, I took off as if it was a 5k. Hoping to gain time quickly and trick Steve into thinking it’s my 10k pace. The pain was immense, the atmosphere was heavy with suspense, and the crowd went nuts. TV loved every second of it. The race for USA Champion was really close, and until the final moments nobody knew who was going to win*. Reality TV can only dream of this stuff.
Here we are, one year later, Steve, now my sports agent, and I, the athlete, sitting (very) upright in bed, (each his own, thank you) reliving last years’ epic dual. Who would have dreamt the turn of events in one year? From fierce rivals to team mates in 364 days.
For me, the 2004 edition of Xterra USA Champs was much less spectacular. My form lacking from too many months of racing (a common disorder known as Olympicqualificationiitis) and too few months of training, plus an almost comical “broken” collarbone scare**, 5 days before the race. I did what I could to work a small miracle. In order to win my 4th consecutive USA Series title, I had to win the race, and Sylvain Dodet had to place no better than 4th. I put all I had on the line- Lost a little time on the swim, a little on the bike and slipped from 3rd to 5th in the final kilometers of the run. Finishing 5th in a sport where one has had a 2 year winning streak is no fun, 3rd place in the series standings is just not good enough, but those are the realities.
I played the cards I had.
* I won.
* * Out of curiosity, I did a lap of this cyclocross race I was watching Steve and home-stay Michael race. On the football field there were two knee high barriers to negotiate, I approached them at all of 10mph, and dismounted cyclocross style to run the barriers, only problem was, the release angle on my new pedals was bigger than usual. I couldn’t get my foot out of the pedal in time and next thing earth was coming closer fast. I remember Ned’s advice- “Tuck and Roll” so I tucked and I rolled, but didn’t have enough speed to finish the roll, so I landed on my upper back and neck- bones crunching and joints popping. The crowd went wild- there were about 150 cyclocross racers and fans watching. I had broken a collarbone before -also falling on my back- and I know what it feels like. This thing felt broken. Within 30 minutes there was a huge lump and we were off to ER. X-rays showed no break, but the doc said it’s probably dislocated, with or without torn ligaments. Perfect preparation, 5 days before one of biggest races of the year. Next morning the swelling went down and it turned out nothing was broken, nothing dislocated or torn- just a big hit. Note, it was a big hit on a grassy football field, going 10mph, in front of 150 people. Funny, earlier that same day I was going 30mph down a rock strewn mountainside, weaving between trees, jumping logs, on an a trail I’ve never seen before.
XTERRA Midwest. Battle Creek, Michigan
Winning smile & story time. During a week like this, so many things happen, its impossible to keep track of it all. I’ll try to give some perspective here.
My new race kit is officially here. It arrived from Hong Kong on Friday. My mate Gary Mandy hooked me up sweet with LUMA kit. I have a white kit, a black one and a red one (pictured) to chose from. And cycling gear
X mas came early!
TOP PRO MEN
1 ) Conrad Stoltz 2:03:16
2 ) Mike Vine 2:04:13
3 ) Josiah Middaugh 2:04:27
4 ) Dan Hugo 2:05:27
5 ) Nico Lebrun 2:06:00
6 ) Seth Wealing 2:06:31
7 ) Brian Smith 2:08:20
8 ) Branden Rakita 2:10:10
9 ) Craig Evans 2:10:20
10 ) Ryan Decook 2:13:09
XTERRA West- Las Vegas video
Yes, that is me crashing (only a small one) at 3.00.
Earlier in the race I was quite rattled after losing the chain and bending it. I thought my race was over, but I bent it back (about 90 degrees!) and it worked perfectly. I could see Josiah charging from behind, and with my mind all over the place, I wasnt cornering that well along the “single track” along the lake side. Braked too much and at the corner in question- the last one- in front of some spectators, I was determined not to brake. The soil (no, “dust”) was loose and ridden out and the Fast Trak tire just didnt have enough bite. The Captain would have railed it.
Anyway, hardly lost time, but it throws one off, and creates interesting video…
Photo shoot for “A day in the life of Conrad” by Gary Perkin.
Flowery run by Gary Perkin- Official UCI and Specialized shooter . www. flipper.co.za These pics are most definitely copyrighted.
Them dere are the AVIA Avi STOLTZ trail shoes. Super excited! They hit the shelves this past week. Also, Balega, the #1 sport sock out there.
