Ah yes, the always fun Front Range 50. This is basically the first big bang for the mtb season here in Colorado....especially in the Denver area. The format is simple, it is a 50 mile race....5 laps on a 10 mile course. It's fast...and more like a long xc race more than anything. Heck, this race is only 1 hr from the house so there is no reason to skip it.
As far as importance goes, this race has a very low priority on my season goals. For me, it serves as a fantastic training day to go out there and rev the engine. Don't get me wrong, every time I race I want to do well. It basically comes down to risk taking. This race has a lot of risks involved in it. It all comes in the form of stuffing roughly 800+ racers onto a 10 mile loop. Passing becomes an issue...and dangerous. In my race, I saw 3 guys basically face plant while riding though high grass trying to pass a slower rider. Sketchy stuff for sure.
For me, my race went well from an execution standpoint. Pacing was spot on and nutrition was dialed to give me a clean energy burn from start to finish.Overall my race was uneventful. There were so many people on course, I had know idea who was or was not in my race. So it basically became a 3.5 hour TT. By the time it was said and done the promoters had me listed as 15th overall out of 94 riders. Not 100% sure those are correct. There are some guys listed above me that I know for a fact finished after I did. Not a huge deal....not going to make a big deal about it.
Time now to keep pushing towards the CTR...and the next race, the Gunni Growler.