National Marathon Championship Race/Everest Challenge
By Ron Sawicki
Monique and I got back from our Hawaii 24 hour race extravaganza on Monday
and left for Mammoth to race the one day National Marathon Championship Race
on Wednesday. Thursday morning we awoke and that in itself
was a great accomplishment. We got ourselves focused and headed out
for our race. Our coach, Dr. Brandon Grove met us at the race start
for some race pep talk. This was the first race and the last of the
season for our coach to attend. We were very excited to have him and
his family there. The race consisted of 3 laps of 22 miles and 6,000
feet of elevation gain. It sounds long with no climbing, but it was an
all out cardio blast. Monique was able to take a 3rd place against the
best riders in the country. I was shocked to find out that I had won the amateur
title for men 30-39. After the ceremonies we headed back to our room
to get right into recovery for the Everest Challenge only 2 days away.
The Everest Challenge (California/Nevada Hill climbing championship)
is a 2 day road stage race, consisting of 228 miles and 29,000' of
elevation gain. Two weeks before Nationals Monique found out about it
and felt it would be a great way to end the season! The race starts in
Bishop not far from Mammoth, so the drive was short. At registration we
found out the pro women had gotten together and decided not to race
with all the other women but start an hour later at 7:00 am on
Saturday. We begged and pleaded but to no avail, they would not let
Monique (a non licensed road racer) start with the pro's. The big
disadvantage was she would have to race blind, starting one hour
earlier and not knowing how she was doing against her competition.
At the end of the first day her time was only 4 minutes off the
fastest female the year before but we would have to wait till the end
of day two to know were she placed. At the start of the second day it
was dark and freezing cold, there was a 4 mile neutralized start which
the group road very slow due to the temperature. Monique went out
strong and finished the day only 20 seconds slower than the fastest
time the previous year! The only pro to stay in the race Dotsie Cowden
came into the second day 6 minutes behind Monique but she had an
advantage, she knew her deficit (due to her later start), so she went
out hard and took the race on the second day. We had no clue until the
end of the race were Monique stood. She was 2nd place by only 11minutes
and almost 2 hours ahead of 3rd place. Our race season is now over!
We're ready for some fun rides, Hikes, paddling, etc. All with no heart
rate monitor (at least for 4-6 weeks)! So anyone want to ride?
Monique and I got back from our Hawaii 24 hour race extravaganza on Monday
and left for Mammoth to race the one day National Marathon Championship Race
on Wednesday. Thursday morning we awoke and that in itself
was a great accomplishment. We got ourselves focused and headed out
for our race. Our coach, Dr. Brandon Grove met us at the race start
for some race pep talk. This was the first race and the last of the
season for our coach to attend. We were very excited to have him and
his family there. The race consisted of 3 laps of 22 miles and 6,000
feet of elevation gain. It sounds long with no climbing, but it was an
all out cardio blast. Monique was able to take a 3rd place against the
best riders in the country. I was shocked to find out that I had won the amateur
title for men 30-39. After the ceremonies we headed back to our room
to get right into recovery for the Everest Challenge only 2 days away.
The Everest Challenge (California/Nevada Hill climbing championship)
is a 2 day road stage race, consisting of 228 miles and 29,000' of
elevation gain. Two weeks before Nationals Monique found out about it
and felt it would be a great way to end the season! The race starts in
Bishop not far from Mammoth, so the drive was short. At registration we
found out the pro women had gotten together and decided not to race
with all the other women but start an hour later at 7:00 am on
Saturday. We begged and pleaded but to no avail, they would not let
Monique (a non licensed road racer) start with the pro's. The big
disadvantage was she would have to race blind, starting one hour
earlier and not knowing how she was doing against her competition.
At the end of the first day her time was only 4 minutes off the
fastest female the year before but we would have to wait till the end
of day two to know were she placed. At the start of the second day it
was dark and freezing cold, there was a 4 mile neutralized start which
the group road very slow due to the temperature. Monique went out
strong and finished the day only 20 seconds slower than the fastest
time the previous year! The only pro to stay in the race Dotsie Cowden
came into the second day 6 minutes behind Monique but she had an
advantage, she knew her deficit (due to her later start), so she went
out hard and took the race on the second day. We had no clue until the
end of the race were Monique stood. She was 2nd place by only 11minutes
and almost 2 hours ahead of 3rd place. Our race season is now over!