Know the rules The Paceline Forum Builder's Spotlight


Go Back   The Paceline Forum > Rides, Events, Gatherings and Charity events

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old 07-25-2017, 10:51 AM
jensenn jensenn is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Posts: 297
Day Across Minnesota 240 Mile Gravel Race

http://the-damn.com/

I got talked into signing up for this over the winter. Its a week away and getting really anxious. I almost backed out but my wife wouldn't hear it and went ahead and booked all the flights and hotels.

Anyone else attending or going to be in the area?
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old 07-25-2017, 04:20 PM
kingpin75s kingpin75s is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Mpls, MN
Posts: 1,565
Interesting ride. Had not seen that one yet. A couple good local sponsors.

Gary, SD to Hager City, WI correct? That was the only route info I could find in the archives.

Can you ride any path you choose to get there or is there a prescribed route because it is a gravel race?

Interesting that the route would appear to be close to inline with the Luce Line trail that runs out of Minneapolis about 78 miles to the West IIRC. If you can choose your own path at all and are riding gravel anyway, the Luce Line could be a nice part of the route.

Good luck with the race!
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 07-25-2017, 09:56 PM
jensenn jensenn is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Posts: 297
@kingpin75s

I believe we will be given cue sheets at each checkpoint. You have to arrive at each one within the time limit to be able to continue.

I am mostly worried about starting at midnight and not having any sleep. Also this will be my first real gravel ride.
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 07-26-2017, 07:24 AM
AngryScientist's Avatar
AngryScientist AngryScientist is offline
Administrator
 
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: northeast NJ
Posts: 33,023
Quote:
Originally Posted by jensenn View Post

I am mostly worried about starting at midnight and not having any sleep. Also this will be my first real gravel ride.
i wish you luck, but you may honestly want to reconsider.

riding gravel for the first time in the dark on no sleep sounds like a recipe for problems. also, dont underestimate how much riding off pavement will slow you down. "gravel" is sure fun to ride, but you just dont generally carry as much speed as you would on blacktop.
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 07-26-2017, 10:43 AM
kingpin75s kingpin75s is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Mpls, MN
Posts: 1,565
Quote:
Originally Posted by jensenn View Post
@kingpin75s

I believe we will be given cue sheets at each checkpoint. You have to arrive at each one within the time limit to be able to continue.

I am mostly worried about starting at midnight and not having any sleep. Also this will be my first real gravel ride.
Interesting. I ride or am familiar with a number of the gravel races in MN and with this one being cross state, I was curious if they would have a prescribed route (as most all that are more contained do) or if they would just have checkpoints to hit and you could roll your own route.

Hopefully the gravel on the west side of the state where you are starting will be ok, I ride in the Granite Falls and Redwood Falls areas along the MN river valley quite a bit and I know that area (South of your route) uses really chunky cheap fill for their roads and it makes for really tough riding without pretty fat tires. You will certainly see a mix of road conditions I expect and sounds like a heck of a grind.

Make sure your lights get you to morning and focus on enjoying the moment as this is your first time. If you need to bail, do so. Ride hard, do what you can finishing or not and just have fun!

Always wanted to do a midnight century but this is certainly a bit beyond.
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old 07-26-2017, 02:29 PM
jensenn jensenn is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Posts: 297
@angryscientist

might not sound like the best idea but I love a challenge. I've been riding my cross/gravel bike as much as I can on the lowest psi possible to get a better feel. I've put in a bunch of centuries this year and feeling confident.

@kingpin75s

my wife and brother will be meeting me at the checkpoints for food and water. a friend of mine is friends with he organizer and she told me that the course is not as technical or difficult as dirty kanza. I believe this is to give the riders a chance to actually finish. The weather forecast is looking good and my plan is to just finish as much as I possibly can. Thanks for the kind words!
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old 07-27-2017, 11:26 AM
AngryScientist's Avatar
AngryScientist AngryScientist is offline
Administrator
 
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: northeast NJ
Posts: 33,023
i wish you the best of luck jensenn!

be careful and have fun! bring us some good pictures and a ride report when you get back.
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old 08-03-2017, 10:33 AM
mattnes17 mattnes17 is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2016
Location: Minneapolis,MN
Posts: 44
Looks like a sick race! I plan on signing up next year.

Good luck Jensenn! Remember: even if you get lost, dirty, bloodied, or generally downtrodden, don't forget to keep a grimy grin on your grill!! It will help
Reply With Quote
  #9  
Old 08-03-2017, 12:03 PM
jensenn jensenn is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Posts: 297
thanks guys! here's a quick update.

due to the storms yesterday, planes couldn't get into the airports in the east coast. so American Airlines cancelled our flight to Minnesota this morning and put us on the first flight tomorrow.

This means that we'll get to Minneapolis around lunch time. Crossing my fingers they don't lose my bike. Grab our rental car and drive across the state to South Dakota. Put my bike together and hopefully get a nap in. Then at midnight, start riding my bike.

Guess no trip is complete without any mishaps. Will make a good story some years later
Reply With Quote
  #10  
Old 08-03-2017, 02:02 PM
kingpin75s kingpin75s is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Mpls, MN
Posts: 1,565
Good luck!

Logistics, ride and all!
Reply With Quote
  #11  
Old 08-03-2017, 04:29 PM
mattnes17 mattnes17 is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2016
Location: Minneapolis,MN
Posts: 44
Quote:
Originally Posted by jensenn View Post
thanks guys! here's a quick update.

due to the storms yesterday, planes couldn't get into the airports in the east coast. so American Airlines cancelled our flight to Minnesota this morning and put us on the first flight tomorrow.

This means that we'll get to Minneapolis around lunch time. Crossing my fingers they don't lose my bike. Grab our rental car and drive across the state to South Dakota. Put my bike together and hopefully get a nap in. Then at midnight, start riding my bike.

Guess no trip is complete without any mishaps. Will make a good story some years later
If you need any tools or parts or coffee on your way through Minneapolis I'm more than happy to help a guy out!!
Reply With Quote
  #12  
Old 08-07-2017, 12:33 AM
mcewen mcewen is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Posts: 554
1st through 5th rocked the house, averaging 18.02 mph and finishing 5 seconds apart. That seems pretty strong for that kind of course.

Did you make it to the start OK?
Reply With Quote
  #13  
Old 08-08-2017, 05:46 PM
jensenn jensenn is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Posts: 297
We made it to the start just fine except we were already exhausted.

The race was very well organized and everyone was so nice and welcoming.! I felt great throughout the whole ride until around mile 170 and I tweaked my knee riding through a deep sandy section. Pain kept getting worse and knee was getting swollen so I decided to call it at the 3rd checkpoint on mile 183. Didn't think it'd be very smart to ride another 4 hours on a busted knee and risk some type of serious injury.

I'll definitely be back next year. We stayed an extra 3 days and we really enjoyed our time here. Hope to see/meet some of you guys as well

I'll post some pictures once we get back home
Reply With Quote
  #14  
Old 08-11-2017, 09:42 AM
jensenn jensenn is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Posts: 297
Pictures







Reply With Quote
  #15  
Old 08-11-2017, 10:02 AM
commonguy001's Avatar
commonguy001 commonguy001 is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 1,115
That looks awesome! I love riding in southern MN but haven't ever gone that far west, most everything I've ridden is on the eastern side of I35.
Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 07:05 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.