Challenge Roth Race Report
The Venue
Roth is a small town about 20 miles outside of Nuremberg, Germany. It is a 900 year old town of about 20,000 residents, very picturesque, surrounded by rolling farmland. The land reminded me a lot of the Madison, Wisconsin area. The people are very patient, very polite and welcoming. The majority of the locals look forward to it and regard it as a festival and an economic opportunity rather than an invasion or imposition. This vibe makes a big difference.The Challenge series is a family owned operation competing with the IM brand. They have several other races around the world.
The Prologue
We arrived in Nuremberg a week before the race to 90+ degrees and no a/c at the hotel. The heat wave here is the heat wave there except for the a/c part. The hotel I booked in haste through a travel group (do not do this) was sketchy and the room was a broom closet. We rectified this and moved into a larger broom closet that could hold us and the bike boxes. There is a great train to Roth that cost about 6 bucks and loves bikes. We took the train and rode the bike course and then came back to Nuremberg- about a half hour train ride each way. It was cool seeing Nuremberg for the first few days while we unwound and then we got hooked up with a family stay in Roth for race weekend. We were very lucky. Our hosts were amazing and had 2 young boys, Jens and Jan. (Jensy, of course was my favorite.)
The night before the race, the neighborhood had a barbecue. Most of my pre-race jitters disappeared as I had some great food and was ribbed and generally treated like family by our hosts. I got a solid 6 hours of sleep. (Btw, wearing eye shades seems to help with the sleep. Your mind may be racing but the blacked out eyes, I think helped. It’s like throwing a blanket over the head of a drugged rhino.)
I did the 2 am wake up and had my smoothie. There is no Ensure over there; they don't allow the unnatural ingredients. They are pretty stringent with respect to foods. Coke has real sugar, and the veggies and cheeses etc are all local. The country's diet is not yet determined by the mega producers; the food was great. So mine was a banana smoothie. Then at 4am, I had a real banana and peanut butter and sipped more banana smoothie on the way to the swim start. Felt like swinging from a tree by day’s end with all the bananas.
The Swim
My friend Christiana (who did Roth in 09 and raved about it) and I arrived at the swim and T1 to the requisite "Chariots of Fire" soundtrack blaring away in the pre dawn. The announcer was welcoming everyone in both German and English and the English translation included "Roth eez thee race where you will all day have zee goose bumps feelings". Zee goose bump feelings were mentioned several times. I went into the swim loose and happy to be finally racing. Just before zipping up, a Scot came up to me, put a finger in my chest pointing to my EN top and said, “Patience! Mile18!” Word is getting around.
It is an out and back in a canal that they close to commercial traffic on race day and for the practice swims. It’s like the world’s longest outdoor lap pool. The water was excellent and you can swim along and see folks riding their bikes along the canal and cheering. The two bridges you swim under are jammed with people. (It is estimated that along the race course throughout the day that there were 250,000 people.) There are about 20 waves and mine was 17th so a lot of sitting around, which I'm used to by now as an older athlete. I lay around and watched Ferris al Sultan warming up on his bike trainer. He was doing the bike leg for a relay team. No, ladies. No race speedo on Ferris. He looked more like Kid Rock with ball cap backwards, unfortunate facial hair, and camo shorts.
My wave went off and I settled in behind a group of about 5 guys. I counted stokes and worked on form. Every time I thought about front quadrant and over the barrel, I would end up running up into the group. I thought to pass but decided to sit in the draft, at least until the turn. Made the turn and aside from one guy who I’ll call 2XU guy who clonked me on the head a couple of times, the ride back was smooth. I went very easy and came in at 1:15. Into T1 and I promptly grabbed some French dude named Christophe’s bag instead of mine. I ran back out, handed him his bag as he had just shown up, said pardon et moi, dude and grabbed mine. A smooth transition otherwise and onto the bike.
The Bike
The course is 2 loops, through farmland and pretty villages. There are some hills and some roll; not unlike Wisconsin but faster overall, I think. The road surfaces are excellent and after you see the villages once and figure the angles, you can really bomb through them. There is one climb, in Solar that is nothing but people singing, clapping, yelling “Hop! Hop!” which is “Go! Go!” They part as you come through. Skittish riders have been known to hit the brakes and unclip thinking the crowd would not get out of the way. I was grinning ear to ear and my watts were through the roof. I couldn’t wait to go through again.
I went fast where I could go fast with little cost, stayed aero, spun up the hills, and just rode steady. My np came in at exactly 220, or .69. I had 2, 800 cal Infinit bottles and 4 full waters and Nuun and 4 half bananas. The feed stations are excellent and well organized with water, eso (sports drink), gels, banana, water- in that order each time. They allow you to have your own support, within 100 meters after, not before an aid station. I had the amazing Margaret reload me after loop one with 3 new bottles. There were 2 Mavic bike repair stations on the course and many moto course officials who took their job seriously. I saw several penalty boxes being utilized.I knew the last 20k to be trending downhill and quite fast so I checked on my watts and hammered in, using my size and momentum. There were times when I was going 30-35 mph at about 50% watt. There are some very fast stretches. I came in at 5:45 feeling pretty fresh.
The Run
After a T2 that included dropping trou while an attractive German woman rubbed sunscreen on my back, I headed out with my legs feeling better than they usually do in a 70.3, thinking maybe it was the sunscreen. I quickly settled into my mule’s pace of around 11 and pretty much stayed there. The run is dead flat and goes through a couple of small villages and along the canal. There’s not much to say except that I slogged along, hitting all the aid stations, walking 20-30 steps and back to the run. I remember getting grumpy thinking that unless I knock a minute off of my long run time, I probably won’t do too much more triathlon. Long course or short, I’ve normally had average swims, above average bikes, and below average runs. And it really is all about the run.
I saw the amazing Margaret at about the halfway mark and she gave me some nutrition, a couple of Advil, a woo hoo, that smile, and I was good to go. I plugged in my ipod briefly and just as I did one of the neighbors from the night before yells Chris! He and his wife had come out to cheer me on. I was really touched. We had talked rock and roll the night before so I pulled over, and put my ear plug up to his ear. The Stones were playing. He smiled and yelled "PERFECT! Hop! Hop!"
I hit kilometer 30 and tried to pick up the pace for the last 12k. When I got to town, I continued running up the one real hill on the course while others walked it. It's an EN thing. The last 2.5k takes you through the old town section, on cobblestones and past outdoor cafes where folks were loud and maybe a little loaded. I usually find crowds and cheering and “looking good!” to be just a distraction and I know there’s no way I’m looking good. But this time I let them in. Their unabashed enthusiasm, their genuine passion and regard for our efforts filled the streets. As I “flew” through the old town to their cheers of “Bravo, Christopher!” and “Supa!”, their joy became my joy, and I was forced to abandon my own deeply held cynicism about my efforts and abilities and be proud of myself. I guess if complete strangers can be that happy for me, then it would be impolite not to join them.
I came into the little stadium where you do a short loop before the finish line. Smiling ear to ear I crossed the line, was decorated by Queen Wellington, made a smart ass remark to her that got me a smile and an eye roll and I stumbled off to recover. With zee goose bumps feelings.
12:20:03
Epilogue
Chrissie had finished 8 hours before the last runner in, but she was there to meet and give the last athlete, to the roar of the crowd, her finisher’s medal. Roth has a tradition of a fireworks display and the crowd singing and holding sparklers as the last athlete crosses the line. It is really moving. Chrissie was in tears as were many others. It is a rare event, still genuine and real and joyous and intimate. By the closing, I had found my way to a shower at the athlete’s tent and had a beer and food with my pal and training partner Melchior, who against long logistical odds had a great race. Just two guys pushing 50 talking smack over beers- one more time.
While racing long is about doing the math, the race itself was more than the sum of its parts. Roth is a special venue and a fun race. I recommend it highly if a 10 day trip (including travel) can be arranged so that the area and the people can be savored. If EN went International at Roth, I’d be in again. It’s great.
Thanks for reading.
Comments
Oh- and it didn't hurt that you got to go to France for the tour afterwards either. What a great way to spend a vacation!
Chris,
Tremedous race and report. You painted quite a picture with your descriptions of the area and the people. I'm so glad you had such a good day. You worked hard and reaped the benefits of your efforts. I'm glad you let them in at the end. I'm glad you were able to enjoy the event as you sufferred through the physical pain. Enjoyment is why we do it, right? Well done.
Dave
I got zee goose bumps reading your report. What a great day and experience you had! Very solid effort. I so want to do this race now!
I have wanted to do that race for years. Everything you say has been echoed by others. I've yet to hear a bad word about it.
Glad you had such a fantastic time--and a fantastic day, I might add! Congrats, Chris!!! You worked like a dawg forever, and there's the payoff. I don't think you could have done it any better! Little hard on yourself re the running--it is what it is. You worked to your best, and what more is there? My new favorite quote of the week is--"Don't be concerned with what you can't do. Work on what you can do - then count your blessings." --Alan Robinson, 56-year-old partially paralyzed marathon runner. Your blessings are many, and I think you did yourself proud every minute of that day. Revel and enjoy the afterglow. Congrats again!
Great race and report. Seems like a race everyone should do. Whatever happened to the beer mile?
Loved reading your story...like Matt said gave me zee goose bumps! Felt like I was right there taking in the sights, sounds and smells of Germany! Roth sounds exciting and worth trying....someday
Thanks for the great report, giving the full flavor of this unique venue - I had no idea the town was that small! Sounds like a well executed race, too, on your part.
When do we get Part Deux, leTour?
@Tucker, I knew someone was going to remember that solemn pledge.
Congratulations on a great race! Your RR painted an awesome picture of the experience!
@Tucker - I took a beer from some frat guys at about mile 22 of the Boston Marathon this year. It was about a half full regular beer cup, and the crowd went WILD when I pounded it and then just kept on running. Highly recommended!
Hey Chris - between ToC and your trip to Europe, how are you going to top it next summer? Congrats on everything you've accomplished. I look forward to hanging again next ToC and give me a call for a ride if you are in LA before then. Don't I at least you a dinner at LA's finest for the broken wheel?