More of Princess for a Day - Finishing the Triple Crown

So where were we, or more correctly, where the hell was I, and what the hell was I doing there? Oh yeah, that's right, I was suffering at the bottom of Pulmonary. While those around me were high-fiving, laughing and chatting, I elected to ride on into town, desperately in need of some well worn shoes, flat pedals and and big head start. It took them all of about 3 minutes to catch me. While I tried to hang with half dozen or so riders "drafting", Travis pushed me along easing my pain and foot numbness somewhat. It was at the "Welcome to Nelson" sign I parted ways with the group...They continued uphill to the Mountain Station parking lot and (manned) check point number one, I went home to lick my wounds. My wife had obviously been expecting me, for as I walked in the door she handed me some home grown, aromatherapuetic balms. One for the many cuts and scrapes I'd suffered on Wake and Bake's off camber roots and rock faces, another for my already exhausted muscles. Damn, I'm a lucky man!


Pedals and shoes changed, I loaded the bike into my Runner, shuttle style - No, wait... I had my chauffeur load it for me. In any case, from there, up we went to meet the crew at check point one. I took advantage of the drive and proceeded to fill my belly and massage my legs with the aromatic muscle balm. I rolled into the parking lot feeling 100% better than when I'd last seen the group. I think they were not only surprised to see me, but they were surprised to see me so soon.

While they continued to eat, I took the time to get my head on straight and sign in for the Vein, my favourite local trail. Seeing the list in front of me, I was obviously way off the back and my 2 card hand was looking bleak as well. Oh well, it's all about the ride, not the competition, right...?

If I remember correctly, the Vein is pretty close to a 3500 foot climb. There are many options to get to the top, we chose the quickest - a fire road climb that's part pushing, part pedaling and all up! Grouping up at the rock cairn marking the Vein's entry, we again filled our bellies and discussed trail safety, briefly giving directions to a group who had climbed all the way to the top of the Mt Station after missing the cairn. Glad I wasn't with that group, as if 3500 feet wasn't enough...


From there, a series of 25-30 tight, technical, (dare I say?) vein-like switchbacks wind their way towards the doobie-time bench and the Vein's stamp station. Here, we again filled our bellies with chocolate covered coffee beans, fruit, nuts and water, readying for the descent back into town. I was feeling pretty good, damn good in fact and on that descent, I hit each and every stunt, running back uphill to hit any that gave me any trouble again. By the time I hit the BNR railbed at the bottom, I'd passed a good number of riders and I was revelling in the fact I'd just made the Paper Bag cut off time. Not that the 2pm cut-off time was set in stone. Hell, I rolled in at 2:15 and many riders behind me were allowed to continue on as well. It's about the ride, remember?


More food, water, balm and a quick trip to the tent to sign in and out, there I was, 2 more cards in hand, two trails behind me. The best part? There was just a Paper Bag between our group and the finish line. Sounds easy enough...


As we rolled along the railbed towards Svoboda Road and the Paper Bag's biggest climb, we passed at least half a dozen riders who had completed the Bag and were working their way back to NRG HQ for beer and barbeque. The end was near! Almost as soon as Svoboda turned upwards, I was forced to dismount and continue on foot. While the fittest of our group climbed in middle rings, "Bad Alice French" slowly ground his granny alongside at my walking pace. On that slow climb, we chatted, ate, stopped for photos and repaired a shattered cable cousing, the one and only mechanical of our day. No hurry, we were going to make it eventually or so we hoped.


On Svoboda, we were passed by at least 3 police vehicles including a CHiP's style Harley riding motorcycle cop. It was "harvest" time after all and we figured someone's crop was being raided by the Nelson City Police. As we rolled up to the Svoboda gate, the boys were waiting patiently for our arrival. No attitude, just smiles, more food and more safety discussions when the full Police Posse rolled by. Apparently they had been at the shooting range conducting some training. It was nothing less than hilarious when the motorcycle cop rode by on the gravel road saying "it's like riding on f@#$ing ball bearings". From there, I don't really remember much until arriving at the stamp zone, just minutes short of 4:20. Just in time, as I was really beginning to suffer.


I hadn't ridden Paper Bag in at least 6 years and as such couldn't remember just what to expect. It's a tough trail! Steep, technical and I'll-kick-you-in-the-nuts-hard-when-you're-tired kind of trail. She didn't disappoint. It was while crossing a 12-18 inch wide uphill ladder bridge when I realized just how serious things could get. You see, I almost fell off, 15-20 feet down, into a rock chasm. When you're tired, you make mistakes, at least I do! It was on that bridge I stopped having fun and elected to simply make my way down, leaving the stunts for another time.


I can't tell with any certainty how long the pedal back up the railbed was or how many old trestle bridges I crossed before I rolled into NRG HQ. I do know I did so alone.


I was greeted by a cheering section worthy of an NCAA football game. I had to be one of the last finishers, if not the last, but I did it and my name will join all of the other finishers on the Crown. 55 kilometers plus 7950 vertical feet equals 10 hours and 19 minutes and 46 seconds in the saddle according to my watch. The day's quickest rider did it in well under 6 hours. I'm no king of the mountain, that's for sure, but in my humble opinion, the effort was definitely worthy of a princess' tiara. In all, 32 of the 40 riders who began the Triple Crown finished.


I wish I could say it was a piece of cake and we partied till the keg was done, but I quickly gobbled down the awesome burger and headed home for a well deserved shower and some warm, dry clothes. Finished, I drove the 3 blocks (shame on me) back uphill to NRG to thank everyone - The volunteers, the group who carried me, the boys from NRG, the Oso Negro Crew and the Nelson Cycling club. Without all of you (and my wonderful wife) I never would have finished. From there, it was back to the couch for some R&R and I was tucked in safe and sound well before 10pm.

Next year, I'll certainly be more prepared, more fit and ready to rock, but I don't know if it could possibly be any more fun. This was nothing more than an awesome social event that took place on some of our best local trails. It's amazing what you can do once you've set your mind to something, because if I can haul my heavy, sorry, tired ass across the Triple Crown, damn near anyone can do it!