Snake Creek I

Snake Creek Six Mountain Gap is an epic mountain bike race that traverses a short, treacherous section of the Pinhoti Trail located in Pisgah National forest, north Georgia. This is probably one of my favorite off-road races. It will change a mountain biker. It allows the rider to know that the local 10 mile home loop is not mountain biking; it is trail riding. It slaps the rider in the face with a reality check that mountain biking is not just fitness; it is skill. It challenges the rider not only physically but also mentally. I have seen men give up on the sport just from attempting this event.  I have tasted a vast number of trails in the U.S. and I maintain that there is nothing like Pisgah. Snake Creek is just a adequate and structured way to absorb some Pisgah Trail.

The event consists of a series of three races. It is a 35-mile point-to-point race on the first Saturday of January, February, and March. You pay one fee for all three races and officials accept your fastest race of the three for your winning time. The seasoned pros complete the race in about 3 hours; mortals will finish in 4-6 hours. Many riders use this event as an off-season “long ride” for fitness. However, it can potentially be the hardest race of the year. I have recently learned that, now, if you complete all three races you receive a belt buckle. You see I love belt buckles. I have a collection of leather belts to interchange buckles with. That Snake Creek Gap buckle would look good in my collection.    

I have raced this event six times. I love it. It is a challenging and epic experience located in one of my favorite places of the world. Since moving to Memphis from middle Tennessee, it is much harder to participate in. While living in Murfreesboro I could simply wake up on the morning of the event, drive to Dalton GA, and be ready to race. It is not so easy living an additional 3.5 hours away. However, this would be the year I would tackle the challenge. I’m going back to the Snake, I am going to post three of my fastest times, and I’m going to do them all on a single speed.

I have been meticulously prepping for the Snake this year. I have been testing gear ratios on my single speed, performing countless hill repeats, and tackling 3-4 hour off-road rides. I have been watching my nutrition during the holidays and putting the hours on the bike so race 1 wouldn’t be a disaster. I asked off work for the day of and the day before each event two months ago. Secular work was covered and ministry work was caught up. My plans for race 1 were to leave Memphis at three, drive home to Lewisburg TN to chat with my parents, have dinner and crash, wake up at 4:00 AM, and be in Dalton GA at 7:30 with time to prep for an 8:30 race start. On my way to Lewisburg from Memphis I remembered that I would lose an hour in GA with time change. No problem, I will leave home at 3:30. It would all work out perfect. After the race I will come back to my parents house, take a nap, finalize a sermon, wake up on Sunday, preach a sermon and serve communion in Columbia TN, beat the snow storm back to Memphis, and all in time to Pick up Ellen (girlfriend who I haven’t seen in ten days) from the airport. This is how I planned my first weekend of 2014 and it would be awesome.

There was a hiccup. I was in bed on Friday night, bundled up and ready for a good pre-race slumber. I pulled out my iPhone to set my alarm for 3:10 AM. That would give the coffee pot enough time to brew and me enough time to suit up. All of my race stuff was accounted for and packed. Hydration pack was full, two bottles were full of thick electrolyte drink, two gel flasks were full of my favorite chocolate/PB Hammer Gel mix with a dash of water for the perfect consistency, and each layer of thermal wear was laid out and stacked so I wouldn’t forget one from heart rate monitor to the outer wind layer. I was prepared for the forecasted 18-degree temps and I was ready to go fast. My bike was tight and ready to fly. My bags were packed with a pre-race meal, helmet, shoes, etc. I packed an extra outfit to put on after the event. I packed 20 bucks in cash because I know there is a Chili’s close by that will be perfect for post-race meal. I already knew that I was going to order some delicious shrimp tacos and tall, cold ale. Yes, this was going to be a good day. But, I forgot one thing. My iPhone is my alarm. It wakes me up almost every morning. I say almost because it doesn’t wake me on the morning I don’t set it and it didn’t wake me on this morning. So, when you create a new alarm on your iPhone (obviously I did because I don’t commonly wake up at 3:10 AM) be sure to choose an alarm sound. If you don’t, the alarm will go off but it will not make a sound.

Shit. I went specific measures. I placed the phone on the other side of the room so it would make me get out of bed to shut it off. I did not sleep well. I woke periodically and forced myself back into my pillow because I knew that damn alarm would make a deafening sound at any second! My mom woke me up at 4:30 AM. “Honey, did you forget to set your alarm?” I jumped up and wen to my phone to realize the alarm went off but it was set to play no sound.

Part of me wanted to g for it. I could jump in the car and just try. The reality is I would not have made it. I would have arrived late and mad. What was the point? When things like this happen I have to stop and think about it. Before I shut my eyes last night I prayed that God would guide my travels. I asked God to direct me along my journey and give me safety. I asked God to teach me from experience and allow this weekend to show me growth in spirit. Though, I am not going to race today I’m sure there are a lot of great things that will come of this day and this weekend. I will probably ride somewhere else, I will be able to revise my sermon a little longer, and I will be able to spend more time with my family.  

I think it is important to accept the cards God deals. Especially when we ask God to deal them. As I sit here and think longer about the story I get a little excited that I have perhaps witnessed an answered prayer. I asked God to shape my weekend, protect me, and make the road safe. My iPhone alarm could have been the vehicle God used to do this. As I wrap up this post I feel very blessed and very thankful. And, I must keep in mind that there will be February and March races to look forward to.