The Barry Roubaix in southwest Michigan kicked off my 2010 racing season. It was painful, and impressively so.

I was not ready for this race. Sure, I had done a couple of 30-mile road rides, but none on my mountain bike. The race was 23-miles of beginner hell. Oh, sure, I am a seasoned rider and I know how to maneuver a bike over roots and rocks, but the fact is that lots of weight gain and several months later will totally suck any endurance out of a “seasoned” rider.

I liked the Barry Roubaix for two reasons. One––the race was put on by Rick Plite. Rick is a good guy. I wanted to do one of Rick’s races––the Lumberjack is his other race. Two––my friends were doing it. Yeah, okay, I totally succumbed to peer pressure. I am a sucker.

The race was like any other race I was used to. Don’t forget, I started mountain biking in the Keweenaw and that is where I spent the last four years. The race was hilly like the Keweenaw races. In fact, the last climb was super, super long, and the stock saddle on my mountain bike wasn’t exactly the best “choice” for a climb that long. My toosh went through hell.

The Barry Roubaix was also different from the races that I was used to. After the race, many, many people hung around chatting and drinking excellent beer. Now, I’m totally used to people drinking beer after races, but these people were hanging around after mostly everything was said and done. Most of that beer was splendid Michigan microbrew. I got to chat with friends such as Nick, Marty, Andrea, Ali, Glen, and Cathy. I love seeing fun people at races.

The Stuff that Matters

I really had no idea which bike to use for the race. I was on the fence for using my cross bike, Jake, but after reading the MMBA forums, I decided to go with the mountain bike. Bad decision. This experience confirmed that forums are often filled with advice from people who either don’t have the technical experience I have, or who like to embellish a bit. The course was definitely a cross bike course.

I did 23 miles in two hours and fifteen minutes. It most certainly would have been faster on the cross bike, but as someone else told me that day, doing that race on a mountain bike was “hard,” and I am proud of my effort.

Hopefully, next year, I will have the bright idea to look back at this post prior to racing next year’s Barry Roubaix. Di––use the cross bike!