[Sasquatch]

The 11th Cascade Creampuff 100 mile MTB race was held last weekend, on June 26. The day saw some of the hottest temps ever on raceday, and made for a very tough day for everyone involved. Less than 50% of the field finished, and the average finish times were at least 40-60 minutes longer than last year. The winner finished in around 9:30 and the last finisher made it to the finish line after a grueling 15 hours.

I was volunteering in the middle of the course, at Aid Station #2, along with lotsa local Disciples of Dirt members, and other MTB enthusiasts. I didnt get much time away from my duties, so most pics are around Aid 2, but I was able to sneak away for a few minutes to go up the Alpine trail for a few trail shots.

We had a mini aid station set up at 5:30am for the racers to grab water after the first 11 miles.

Riley looked good coming into Windy Pass

Jared and John riding together

Chris and Adam

Steve, Tim, and Brice ride up together

Steve mixes his magic potion

local bike shop owner Mckenzie came out to cheer the racers on before heading off to work.

everyone was smiling still at 6am

by 10:30, things were starting to warm up.
Race leader, and three time champion, Erik Tonkin pulls through Aid 2, looking pretty good for 50 miles in the saddle

He didnt stay long, as he was being stalked by a new Puff racer who looked strong

Ben Thompson, training for the Trans-Rockies, plans on giving Tonkin a run for his money.

Boyd, a local rider is the first singlespeed through Aid 2. Boyd won the SS division, and came in 3rd overall 2 years ago.

 

[Sasquatch]

10:45am, and you could start to see the pain on the racer's faces as they suffered through the building heat

Louise Kobin, the first woman through aid 2 at 11:15am

by 11:15, many racers could tell that this would not be there day. General Coonskins decides to take an extended break at Aid 2.1

by 11:30, all the volunteers and spectators were hiding under any shade they could find

Abe pulls into Aid 2, looking for his girlfriend Libby, who has his food and drink waiting

time for a kiss to keep his mind off the pain

other racers weren't so lucky, but were happy for the lova and care provided by the Aid 2 volunteers

this racer needed help applying lotion to his nipples. It's all in a hard day's work for the Puff volunteers

Eugene considers whether to continue racing over an IPA and a burger

Jared does his best to stay well fed and hydrated.

12:20, and Ben Thompson is in first place as he returns to Aid 2 on his way uphill on the second lap. Drew gives him some food and drink before he sprints away.

Tonkin is only 30 seconds behind him. What a great race!

 

[Sasquatch]

many riders are still fighting their way through lap 1. Adam makes it down to Aid 2, looking strong.

As hot as the humans were, the dogs must have been pretty uncomfortable. This dog looked like he didnt mind it too much. but my dog hid under my truck for the entire day

Adam and Riley stop to pose with Kate and friends

12:35 and Boyd flies into Aid 2, trying to catch the 2 leaders, but with a 15 minute handicap, it'll be tough

Kat chases after Boyd to make sure he's got his goodies

Brice comes through Aid 2 for a quick shower

John enjoys a seat in the shade before heading down to finish his first lap.

Sean McGiness,owner/ builder of Calaveras Cycles enjoys a a visit with his pit crew

Conrad wishes he was home, swimming in Donner lake

This was the first year we had radio communication between the Aid stations, thanks to the Lane County Sheriff's Auxilary Radio team, a group of volunteer Ham Radio operators who use these type of events to train for when they may be needed to assist in natural disasters or other emergencies.
Thanks for all your help guys. It helped the race run alot smoother.

Chris makes it down to Aid 2. He's been suffering from cramps for 3 hours, but kept pushing along so that he could see his girlfriend.

He's happy to be off the bike

some racers continued to push through the pain

while others were happy to grab a beer and give in to the heat.

 

[Sasquatch]

I finally got a chance to sneak off into the woods to see some singletrack action. Luckily, the Jedi section of Alpine trail is just uphill of Aid 2, making it easy to get a few quick photos.

Steve makes it down to Aid 2, suffering from cramps, and generally miserable. Hopefully, the scenery made it better

Chad picked a good year to spectate, as he lounges at Aid 2.1 with the beer taps and Ted the cook behind him.

pet the dogs before heading back out to race

Candy tends to Steve, while Brandon surrenders to a hamburger, a sure sign that he is done racing

Big Fat Ed still looking good. He didnt finish, but he kicked ass under the circumstances, and he is looking forward to trying again

Patrick Cox didn't finish this year, but as a vet with 5 Puff finishes out of 7 attempts, he's on his way to a Puff record.

2:40pm, and Dana passes Boyd a water bottle on the run as he passes through Aid 2 one last time before heading down to finish the race, winning SingleSpeed again, and coming in third overall. Good Job Boyd!:thumbsup:
Dana was a great volunteer who worked until the very end of the race. Thanks Dana!

Lou was an integral part of putting on this year's race. He stepped forward to help with alot of tasks in the weeks prior to raceday, including coordinating the course prep, and "assisting" me at Aid 2, although he managed to spend most of the day on his bike riding singletrack, "checking on riders"

 

[Sasquatch]

Chris is ready to mosey on home.

But Jared won't quit. It's 3:30 and after 10 hours in the sun, he looks paler than ever. That can't be good

Tom from Hood River does his best to beat the heat

Brice rests in the shade for a bit

Louise cruises through Aid 2 at 4:20 on her way to win the women's field again

Adam and his sister Libby chat in the shade

Mike, another Oregon racer, pushes on

Christa,a local rider, has been designing feed bags that strap onto your handlebars. I saw this neat version of the "feed bag" in use, and the racer loved it.

Start snacking!

Jared comes through Aid 2 on his way to finishing the race! I think he was the only racer to eat a burger, AND finish the race. Good job J-Rod

In the end, Erik Tonkin was beaten by Ben Thompson, setting the stage for a new era in the Creampuff.

Next year will be an exciting race to watch, for many reasons.

Special thanks go out to Pedalpint (Eric) who worked so hard that I couldn't capture him on camera, and to Jefe, who requested I not "steal his soul":thumbsup:

Also, thanks to all the volunteers who worked at the 4 Aid stations, including the ham radio crews, and the medics, plus thanks to the Disciples of Dirt and the X-men for all the trailwork that they do to maintain the race course (including sawing out about 75 fallen trees and brushing miles of trails, some full of poison oak, in the 2 weeks before the race.)

Finally, thanks to all the racers who put their bodies on the line, suffering through extreme heat to try and finish the course. Your efforts serve as inspiration to the rest of us, and even in defeat, you are heroes.

 

[alphajaguars]

Mad props to all who competed in this event!

You guys and gals make me feel like the wuss I am

 

[STinGa]

What a hit

Thanks for the post. It looks like all of the riders were well taken care of in the heat with tons of fun had by all, riders and support crews included.

 

[pacman]

Early morning preparation

Pumping up

Posing with Shiggy. The red blotch is because on an earlier ride I had a close encounter of the dirt kind.

Just hanging out

Chatting before the start

Putting on the game face

 

[pacman]

The race gets going

The pace car is positioned.

And we're off

Cruising at the back

Someone is really late starting.

His car was packed.

 

[pacman]

Aid 3 (1) action

Riders arrive.

The late starter made up time

Take a break

And go on.

 

[pacman]

The aid station continues in the heat

No shade goes to waste

Did I say it was hot?

 

[pacman]

Aid 0

The finish (for me). 60 miles and my body is baked. (edit: Aid 1!)

Seems the people move with the shade.

They'll use any shade, even under a sign

Did I say it was hot? And windy? And a brutal sun?

But I'll be back next year!

 

[Sasquatch]

Thanks for posting your pics Pacman. Good job finishing the first lap, it was alot more than many riders could complete. Better luck next year.

 

[rkj__]

wow, that is a lot of pictures!

 

[Andy aka Rut]

Wow, the photo's really captured the heat. Those were awesome. For years Shiggy has been trying to get me to come up for that race. Maybe next year will be the year. Maybe.

 

[shiggy]

Wow, the photo's really captured the heat. Those were awesome. For years Shiggy has been trying to get me to come up for that race. Maybe next year will be the year. Maybe.

I have been trying to get you up here just to ride!

Mt Bike Oregon. August. Check the banner ads on the Oregon board

 

[Andy aka Rut]

Sorry Shiggy,
This year I am booked through September. It's been a pretty wild year so far and we have travel plans through Sept. Are you going to D-ville this year? Spartie? General C?? Anyone?

 

[shiggy]

Sorry Shiggy,
This year I am booked through September. It's been a pretty wild year so far and we have travel plans through Sept. Are you going to D-ville this year? Spartie? General C?? Anyone?

Not much traveling for me. Recovering from injury and the job search is limiting me.

 

[Mudflaps]

Thanks for the beer Ben!

"while others were happy to grab a beer and give in to the heat."

And a damn good beer it was. The ride from there down to Aid 1 with Coonskins, and the end of my day, was a relaxed pace, including being the mystery trail workers that removed a BIG log that we were able to push down the hill, causing lots of noise ("Gosh I hope there's nobody down there" - General Coonskins).
Flaps

 

[Sasquatch]

"while others were happy to grab a beer and give in to the heat."

And a damn good beer it was. The ride from there down to Aid 1 with Coonskins, and the end of my day, was a relaxed pace, including being the mystery trail workers that removed a BIG log that we were able to push down the hill, causing lots of noise ("Gosh I hope there's nobody down there" - General Coonskins).
Flaps

Ben certainly could brew some good beer. I enjoyed a few too many IPAs the night before the race.

Good job doing trailwork during the race Mudflaps! You certainly earned your X-man status. :thumbsup: