12.17.2008 

Cooper Cycling Completes 6 Hour Race

Cooper Cycling completed the Los Aguantes de Seise winter race put on by the Dallas Off-Road Bicycling Associations (DORBA) As the name translates, this was a six hour endurance race. Kirk and I finished 12th and 21st in the 40+ category. We had a lot of fun. Unlike the Ultracentric race we entered individually so we could get our 6 hours of exercise in one continuous effort.

The 35 mph winds were not a factor because the trail is wooded and temperatures were in the 50's. I completed about 50 miles and Kirk completed about 60 miles of single track sweetness.

The Boulder Park Trail in South Dallas is a gem with fast flowing lines, intense short climbs, technical descents, ladders, bridges, creek crossings, and tight twisting turns in dense woods. The trail doesn't permit the rider to maintain a static position to crank the pedals. You are continuously out of the saddle and moving on the bike to negotiate the technical features of the trail. It is a blast covering an 11 mile loop.

Hydration and feeding all happened on the bike with short breaks in the pits to top-off the hydration pack. There were some fantastic competitors present. The leMans start required us (about 150 of us) to sprint about 60 yards to the staging area, leap onto our bikes and race on the road for about a mile before entering the trail at a mid-point.

I was home at 5pm just in time for my eldest son's 12th birthday party.


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