Short report.
This was my fourth trip over the past ten years to Sebring, Florida, for one of the first ultra bicycling events of the year. (Sebring 12 - 24 Hour). It was a `stretch' given that I've been mostly restricted to indoor training (the "Shed") since my rotator cuff surgery in May of '21.
The course starts out (6:30AM) with three (3) laps on the 3.75 mile Sebring International Racetrack. We then transition to a 50 mile out and 50 mile back (100 miles) road to Frostproof, Fl.
Returning to Sebring we do a hilly (5.8% grade) 11 mile loop as often as possible until 5:40PM when all the racers are funneled back to the Racetrack.
The rest of the race takes place on the Racetrack. At 6:30PM the 12 hour racers exit the Racetrack and the 24 hour racers continue through the night until the next morning at 6:30AM.
I had a few mishaps that had me stopped for almost two hours.
I had a small mechanical on the track just before we left for the 100 mile route. Just needed to tighten two bolts and I was on my way. Five minutes off my race.
The Sebring race course is marked with iridescent markings/cues on the road. I don't really know how it happened but I missed a road cue and a turn at around mile 18. I wandered on for another several miles without seeing any road cue so I stopped and called the race emergency number. I told them the cross streets I was at and they directed me back to course. This error consumed about 45 minutes off my race but it fortunately didn't happen again.
And then, at about mile 60 on the way back from Frostproof, I rode up to a woman who had just gotten off her bike and was wandering around in tears and grievous lamentations. She clearly had bad leg cramps. She was inconsolable. But, with incredible pluck, and still crying, she just picked up her bike and started walking. She raged at the grey sky and said she was just going to "walk the next damn 40 miles" back to the Racetrack!!
Of course, I stopped to help her and called the sag number but ... no cell coverage. A passing driver told me if I rode up about half a mile I'd get cell coverage. I finally did contact the sag vehicle and it arrived in about 10 more minutes. I got back on the bike and took off. That took another 30 minutes off my race.
All in all I lost about 1 hour and 40 minutes. Finished with just under 150 miles. My goal was 194 miles. Disappointed but not depressed.
It was `odd' to encounter stop signs and stop lights during the race. I train mostly in the desert. Hills and sparse traffic. As well, the desert roads are usually a straight out and back for me.
When training in desert terrain cell phone coverage is iffy so I typically don't go more than 15 miles in one direction and then head back to my van. I've had a few occasions when the bike was not operable and I had to stash it behind a bush in the desert and hitch hike back to my van. It can get up to 118F out here, so ...
I'm planning to return to a balance of indoor and outdoor training here in Arizona. But not for a while. It just snowed four inches in the last 12 hours.
