Scott Cave Epic MTB Racer (Family Man)

Riding in the snow rules!

2004-11-27T16:59:00.000-08:00

I went out for a 2 HR singlespeed ride today. I'm working on my spin outside on the bike, and my strength and power in the weight room. I really enjoy seeing all of the strange looks on the average suburbabanite, as I ride by their SUV in the cold wet snow. Good times! Hey, check out Jeff Kerkove's blog. http://www.jeffkerkove.blogspot.com/ He's organizing an epic MTB race across Iowa. Sounds like fun!

2004-11-27T16:50:00.000-08:00

Happy 3rd Birthday Jacob Robert Cave D.O.B. 11/24/01!

2004-11-27T16:42:00.000-08:00

My wife says Justin is my very own mini me. He's only about 15 minutes old in this picture. His quads are thick and burly. I think he may be a 24HR MTB solo champion racer someday. Well for now, he'll just Eat, Sleep, Pee, and Poop. He seems to have all of these things mastered.

2004-11-27T16:33:00.000-08:00

We were blessed with another healthy baby boy. Justin Scott Cave. Born 11/21/04 8lbs 12oz.

Jeff Hall sighting!

2004-11-25T14:39:00.000-08:00

Happy turkey day! I went out for a mtb RIDE at Lebanon Hills yesterday and ran into Jeff Hall. He was on his way back from work, and decided to hit the singletrack for a quick lap. He had his commuter backpack on and was off like a bat out of hell. Needless to say, I never saw him again. I pounded out 2 Hrs in the awesome singletrack that MORC designed. This trail rocks! It now has it all. Kudos to the fellas at MORC for doing an outstanding job! I hit the trail again this noon, and cranked out another 3 laps. Good times. I must now go eat turkey like a typical American glutton should.

Iceman Update, Training, and Life

2004-11-15T19:21:00.000-08:00

Well, It has been a few weeks since my last post. I have been extremely busy with wrestling, family, and devising a plan to pay off my cycling debts. The Iceman Cometh was an all out roadie rage fest! My heart rate was 170-190 for the entire race. I wanted cold, nasty, and snowy conditions. This wasn't meant to be. The temp was in the 50's, and it was the fastest Iceman to date. I never really felt that great during the race. Geee, could it have been related to the 14 hour drive, or perhaps only getting 6 hours of sleep the night before the race. It was a flipping haul through the UP and into Michigan. Chuck, Sarah, Melissa, Jacob, and I didn't even get into town until 9:00 Friday evening. I finished with a time of 1:52, 20 minutes behind race winner Brian Matter. Brian is now the only rider to win the Midwest triple crown. He won the Ore to Shore, Chaquemegon 40, and Iceman this year. Congrats! Oh well, the highlight of the weekend was taking Jacob and Melissa down to the pool. Good times.

I'm now in rest and recovery mode. I started lifting with my legs last week. Lunges, leg curls, and leg extensions. I do six sets of 15 reps on each lift. I also do hundreds of reps on abs, 3 days a week. It feels great to finally get some good rest, and focus on taking care of my family. Michelle and I are expecting a new baby boy in 2 weeks. I'm going to start riding with the Flanders Bros. on Sundays and Tuesdays after Justin is born. These rides are epic! Six + hours of riding bliss. When the snow flies, I will be riding the snowmobile trails along the Minnesota River bottoms. This is really good pain for the legs. Happy trails!

Fall Training for the Iceman Cometh!

2004-10-26T09:47:00.000-07:00

I went on a 6 hour MTB ride down to the Minnesota River Bottoms trail on Sunday morning. It was beautiful! I left my house at 6:00am, with my HID Night Rider light system in tow. I stopped at Starbucks for a double shot on the way. This is standard, and a definite must for cold weather rides. It was a great ride, and was my longest since the 24Hr World's. I'm trying to prepare for the Iceman Cometh in 2 weeks. I understand that this is a 27mile rage fest, and the conditions may be cold + nasty. It usually takes me 27 miles just to warm up my legs so, this isn't really my cup of tea, but it should be good fun anyhow. I'm heading out to the UP with Chuck and his family. I'm taking my son Jacob along as well. My prego wife is staying at home to rest, as she is due on Nov. 30th. Chuck is getting VIP passes to the Subaru/Gary Fisher party after the race. We may get to drink beer and rub elbows with Ryder Hesjedal. We also plan to hook up with the Bell's beer boys. I hear they throw an outstanding bash after this race, not to mention that they are also scary fast on the bike. Should be a great time!

2004-10-24T18:45:00.000-07:00

Here I am, suffering from a serious state of Hypoxia at the 2004 Pork Chop Challenge Cyclocross. Kudos to Doug Swanson for setting a blistering pace, and making us all suffer that much more. Doug crushed the field for another victory yet again!

2004-10-24T18:34:00.000-07:00

Chuck grunting up a hill at the Pork Chop Challenge.

2004-10-24T18:12:00.000-07:00

Jacob and Melissa raising the roof at the 2004 Pork Chop Challenge cyclocross race. It was a cold day! The kids (including Chuck and myself), played hard. Jacob slept for the entire ride home. Good times had by all!

2004-10-11T09:12:00.000-07:00

This is my ride. This bike rocks! I started mountain bike racing 4 years ago, and have had the oppurtunity to ride almost every type of bike. This is by far the best all around cross country bike on the market! It rides like a dream! I also have a 2003 model in all black. Check out http://www.yeticycles.com/, to look at the best mountain bikes made in the U.S.A. I'm going to order another ASR SL frame for next year as well. Jay "Hollywood" Hebderson at the Gravity Lab, is going to build it up as a single speed! I f...in love bikes. As Hollywood would say, "Party On."

2004-10-10T17:18:00.000-07:00

Here's my son Jacob, and his friend Melissa (Chuck's daughter), hanging out at the Lake Rebecca cyclocross race! Good times!

2004-10-10T17:12:00.000-07:00

Lake Rebecca Park Reserve cyclocross race. This was my first race since the Rapture in Misery race. Speaking of which, the race organizer for this race contacted me to inform that I actually took 5th overall in the 12 Hr race. Nice! He sent me out a whole box full of goodies. 300.00 worth of schwag. Back to cyclocross. This race was a 60 minute interval rage fest. I am worked. I wasn't even going to race however, my good pal Chuck coerced me into it. I didn't even start feeling good until 45 minutes into the race. These Pro/1/2 roadies are scary fast. But can they ride for another 11 hours? Next week, I'm going to warm up for 2 hrs before the race. Good fun! Enjoy your evening.

"Flature" in Misery recap!

2004-09-28T10:53:00.001-07:00

Flats. I saw at least 10 people that had flat tires on the first 2 laps! I spoke with one guy who had 5 flats in 3 hours. My Yeti ASR SL bikes were flawless yet again. I wish I could say the same for myself. The course was almost 11 miles, and was extremely technical and rugged. It was hot and very humid. I was also riding solo, without any pit support. As always, the race started with a LeMans start. I hate this part. After all, this is a bike race and not a running event. Anyhow, In my haste, I forgot to put my helmet on. A spectator informed me of this fact after I mounted my bike, and took off down the chute. I laughed, and thought about the 24HR Solo Worlds in which Kerkove told me to go and put my helmet on before the LeMans start. This was probably a blessing, as I went back to my pit, put my helmet on, and started dead last. I wanted to keep a pace of 1hr or less per lap. My thought was that 11-12 laps would win this race. (11 laps did win the race) I managed to work my way up to 2nd place, as all of the rabbits began to fade. Except local hammer Eric Carter. (Returning 12 HR champion) My driving force in this race was to win the Specialized Epic bike frame, which was on the line for the winner. I'm in debt, and on the verge of bankruptcy. This frame would sell for good money on E-bay. But I guess it wasn't meant to be. Enough of this monetary talk, and back to the race.

I was in 3rd place, with 4 hrs left in the race. I somehow got behind on my hydration, and began to cramp all over with 3.5hrs left in the race. This was the worst case of dehydration I have ever endured in my life! I was on the verge of complete physical and mental shutdown on my 9th lap. I was passed by the 4th thru 6th place guys on this lap. I finally finished this lap, and called it quits at 9:00. I immediately went to my mini-van, stripped to the nude, curled into a sleeping bag, and shivvered violently for the next 3 hrs. I was sipping water, and eating pretzels in an attempt to snap out of this funk. I was miserable. I think I finsished in 7th place. Eric Carter won again. Congrats! I'm now done riding my bike for a week, as I need to make money. Epic bike racing rocks however, there's much more to life than riding your bike. I have a wonderful family, and look forward to spending more time with them this winter. Happy

Rapture in Misery course rocks!

2004-09-24T16:27:00.000-07:00

Literally. The course is 11+ miles with tons of rocks! This should be good fun! I rode a nice easy 1 hr pace for a pre-ride. I took the time to ride 3 different rocky sections twice. There's one hike a bike, and no major climbs! Hip. Hip. Hooray! Mountain climbs suck. Also, we get to hear the sounds of rifles firing shots in the near distance. A firing range is 2 miles from the course. I'm hoping that no stray buckshot comes my way. Anyhow, rumor has it that Cameron Chambers will be here. You know, the 22 year old that rides really, really, scary fast! I'm going solo on this one, no pit help. My plan is to have all of my food on board, and to only stop to change camelbaks, grab wotter bottles on the fly, and exchange my headlamp/helmet setup for the evening. I may be hallucinating by 10:00pm Saturday night.
I'll be thinking of my family, as I do this under the stars! I wish Michelle, Jacob, and Justin were with me however, I'm glad my wife didn't come as she would have been miserable! My darling is 6 months pregnant with our son Justin, and the Missouri prairie is quite hot! It's a 6am wake up call for me tomorrow. I must now go sit in a whirlpool, shower, and eat my self to sleep. Peace!

Chequamegon 40 lowlights!

2004-09-22T20:12:00.000-07:00

Chaquamegon 40 lowlights. Here's my Chaquamegon 40 recap. Chuck and I met Jay "Hollywood" Henderson at Rosie's field on Thursday afternoon. We pre- rode up to "OO", which is about half the course. On Friday, we again rode with Jay, this time from "OO", to the finish. We were having a good ol time until Chuck broke his chain on the fire tower climb. But wait, who comes to the rescue? Travis Brown and his buddy Dirk. Dirk has a chain tool, so we fix the chain, and immediately attempt to keep on Travis's wheel up the climb. He's riding a carbon cyclocross bike with dish wheels, and 700x30 tires. We kept up with him until he crested the hill, and it was good bye. Anyway, that was the pre-ride. Now on to the race...
To make a long story short, I avoided a crash on mile 2 of the leadout, my heart rate was 191 going through Rosie's field, and I blew up at "OO". This is a 2 hr 30 min + time trial. It's crazy fast. I was hallucinating on the Birkie Trail. Good fun huh? I finished in 2:49, 32 minutes behind Brian Matter and Steve Tilford. This guys are freaks of nature! Good for 204th place. I think I'm going to stick to 12 and 24 Hr races. Good day!

The Streets of Vancouver, Part 1:

2004-09-15T18:51:00.000-07:00

The streets of Vancouver, Part 1:
Chuck, Ron(Father in law), and myself arrived in Vancouver on Sunday evening. We were tired and cramped from being in the GLab truck for 12+ hours. We checked into the Holiday Inn in downtown Vancouver, cleaned up, and went out to get a bite to eat. Ron ate with us and then ventured off down the streets to see all of the worldly people. Chuck and I chowed down, and then went to a night club called the Roxy. Wow, what a scene this was. I guess I don't go out too much anymore and, can't believe what these people will do on a dance floor! Wow have times changed since college. Chuck and I sat there drinking Coke, while watching these girls and guys practically strip each other to the buff! Girls were half naked, while sandwiching guys. Girls were smacking each others asses! Kissing each other. Pulling down there pants to reveal there G-strings. Who needs to enter a Gentleman's club, when you can see this for free. Thank goodness I'm having another boy. I couldn't imagine what these girl's Fathers would think if they only knew. We left at 2 am, only to be harassed by the crack junkies for money. I wouldn't even give these creatures a looney! We walked down to a place called the Parrot, to get a bite to eat. On the way, we stumbled across 2 hookers looking for some action. These girls looked like walking petri dishes. Yuck! I'm not a big fan of fake plastic sized 42DDD boobs. What a circus! This gave us a good laugh. We chowed down, and went back to the Holiday Inn to crash. My father in law was in bed snoring like a Husqvarna chain saw. We told him to cool it, as we prepared to sleep for 10 hours. Our plan wat to ride for 2+ hours on the North Shore Monday afternoon. Good night!

Back in the saddle again!

2004-09-15T17:27:00.000-07:00

The day started out with kisses from my son and wife. I was planning on riding early however, it was pouring rain out. I hung out with my son at the Caribou coffee shop in Rosemount, and downed my daily 4 shots of Espresso with soy milk (This protein is great for recovery). The rain stopped and it was now time to ride. I broke out the new Yeti ASR SL to test ride it before Chequamegon. I rode for 2 hours, and the legs feel great. Both of my Yetis are running flawlessly! This is the best MTB bike I've ever ridden. I then went to Jessica at Krystals for my weekly 1.5hr massage. As always, it rocked. The healing power of massage is wonderful. I'm ready to throw down the gauntlet on Saturday. Chuck and his wife are meeting us at our house Thursday at 9am. We are heading up to Bayfield to stay at Sarah's(Chuck's wife) Fathers place. We are all looking forward to it. I shall now have a few Guinness, and fall into a deep coma for 8-9hrs.

2004-09-15T13:34:00.000-07:00

Here he is. A new breed of conditioned 24 HR endurance athlete. His parents have groomed him in the fine art of sleep deprivation, compounded under extreme physical work loads. Jeff Kerkove, fellow midwesterner. This guy will be winning some big epic races in the near future. Congrats on a 12th place finish at the Worlds!

2004-09-15T13:18:00.000-07:00

Another Mountain Biking legend! I was pulling for him to win this year. What a genuine guy he is as well. And boy can he climb! Climb Tinker, Climb! He's 43 and getting better with age. Congrats on a second place finish!

2004-09-15T08:41:00.000-07:00

This guy passed me on the last lap in Whistler. I almost laughed myself off the bike. This had to hurt! He may want to disinfect that saddle when he's finished!

2004-09-15T08:21:00.000-07:00

Home, Sweet Home! Our pit setup at the Worlds. Chuck and I are still refining this, but we have come a long way!

24 HR Solo World's Recap!

2004-09-15T07:29:00.000-07:00

It's now 11 days after the race and I think I'm fully recovered. I've been out on a few singlespeed Burley rides with my son Jacob. This is one hell of a workout. You should all try it sometime. Well, the race didn't go the way we anticiapted it going. I can say that one thing is for sure, I'm a flatlander that suffers on big mountain climbs! This is something I will certainly work on for next year. The singletrack, and downhills in Whistler are well worth suffering up the climbs! Here's a recap of the race:

The race started out with a 300+ yard LeMans start. I was in fairly good position, and was able to hit the screaming downhill with vigor. I arrived at the first singletrack section in the right group, and flowed right through it without any problems. I was running in the top 20 into lap 4, when Lesley Tomlinson came up on me. We rode lap 4 together. You can definitely tell she's from B.C., as her singletrack skills are tight! We were riding through a rolling section in the forest, when Chris Eatough and Andreas Hessler came flying by us. The straight line wind created from their speed nearly blew us off our bikes. These 2 guys are super freaks! Hessler ended up dropping out of the race shortly thereafter. I rode with Lesley until the big solo climb, and said goodye to her. Congrats to Lesley on a 1st place finish.

I kept plugging away, and had the pleasure of riding with a lot of big names. Tinker Juarez, Nat Ross, Mark Hendershot, and Christina Begy. Christina was last years 24HR Solo World Champion. She's definitely hot, as well as a charming person. She's all about style. Her Maverick bike is quite hot as well. I rode with her for quite a while on a few laps. Next year I'm going to bring my collectors edition of Dirt Rag, that has Christina naked on the front cover. Oh those legs. Maybe I can get her to sign it! Congrats to her on 5th place. Back to the race. To make a long story short, I got sick 60 miles into the race. I felt like I was either going to vomit, or soil myself. I stuck it out for a few more laps, until it was time for me to de-compress. I was dehydrated, and bonking miserably. My lap times went from 1:15 to 2:00+. Ouch! I stopped for 4 hours to take a hot shower, re-hydrate, and eat a hot meal. I was thinking, "Where's my MOJO."

Well, I never did find my mojo. I did however find 4 shots of hot Starbucks Espresso. Ahhhhhhh! Thank goodness for caffeine. I went out on an early morning lap, and finished 3 more laps. I ended up finishing the race in 37th overall in the men's Elite class. I'm disappointed, and excited in the same breath. I'm in the best shape of my life, and had aspirations of finishing in the top 20. I know I have this in my legs. Chuck(http://chuckjacobs.blogspot.com/) and I learned a few things, and will definitely be back next year.

Thanks to Jason and Jay at the Gravity Lab(http://www.gravitylab.com/bikes/), for helping me out. Jason was kind enough to let me use his truck and trailer for the 1700 mile journey to Whistler. Stop by the Gravity Lab for all of your Cycling, Skiing, and Extreme needs. They rock. Also, a very special thanks to my wife Michelle and my son Jacob, for supporting me in my Epic adventures! I love you both with all of my heart.
Congratulations to fellow midwesterner Jeff Kerkove (http://jeffkerkove.blogspot.com/), on a 12th place finish. He has proven himself to be one of the top 24HR racers in the world. And, he's still a young punk!
Thanks to my Mom for taking care of my son Jacob, while my 3 hr strolls turn into 6hr rides. God bless her soul! I'm a very fortunate person to have family like this.
Also thanks to Old Dutch and Land O Lakes for the donated food and beverage. The new Old Dutch Crunch chips rock. These are filled with plenty of good energy to help you conquer the trail. Chuck was instrumental in setting up these sponsors through his convenience store McG's in Eagan, MN. You rock.
Now it's time to get a mindset for the Chequamegon 40 this weekend. Keep the rubber side down!

2004-09-15T06:17:00.000-07:00

Riding to a disappointing 37th overall at the 24 Hr Solo Worlds. I was running in the top 20 until I got sick. I had to dial it back, take a shower, and eat a hot burger, before going back out on the trail. The 11+ mile course was awesome! A special thanks to my pit man Chuck for helping me out. We will be back next year!

2004-09-15T01:10:00.000-07:00

Here she is at the Worlds! Christina Begy, Epic MTB racing machine! Check out that bike. Rock on Christina!

2004-09-14T23:45:00.000-07:00

An early morning lap at Whistler. My Nite Rider light system worked flawlessly, yet again.

2004-09-14T23:40:00.000-07:00

Sucking on 2004 24HR Solo World Champion Lesley Tomlinson's wheel. What a rush that was!

2004-09-14T23:25:00.000-07:00

Doing my best Michael Jordan impersonation, while shredding gnarly Whistler, B.C. singletrack. It doesn't get much better than this.

2004-09-14T23:14:00.000-07:00

Grunting up an extremely steep bridge at the 2004 24 HR Solo Worlds in Whistler, B.C. All I have to say is that British Columbia rocks! God Bless Canada!

2004-09-14T22:46:00.000-07:00

Early Spring 2004 training ride. Can you believe it! A nail goes straight through my tire, I pulled it out, and rode another 200+ miles on it before I flatted. Rubino Pros Rule!

2004-09-14T22:06:00.000-07:00

This is our first attempt at organizing our pit, and racing together. Not too shabby Chuck!

2004-09-14T19:26:00.000-07:00

Finishing up 4th overall, at the 2004 Wemseries 12Hrs of Levis/Trow Mound after a hard bonk! I sat in Chuck's mini-van, shivvered violently, and ate 6 bowls of cereal. Ahhh.. Epic racing rules!