Race Report: 12 Hours of Santos

Final report for operation catchup! Our newest rider chimes in with his report for the 12 Hours of Santos. Ladies and Gentleman, presenting

, The Boyco's Report....

A Packed Pit Area

The 12 Hours of Santos is Florida's premier endurance event. There are always big crowds, a lot of racers, excellent, technical trails, and the weather is generally nice (if not absolutely frigid). Eric Norris and I wanted to try out a Co-Ed team this year and were fortunate enough to get Josselyn Gutierrez of South Florida and Zee Cakmis of Jacksonville. Both are very fast ladies in the State Series and we knew we had a chance to do well and, more importantly, have a good time.

I've found that It's always going to be a long, stressful week at work whenever you have a big race on the weekend. The more time you need to prepare for the race, the more tasks you'll find yourself needing to accomplish at work. This 12 hours of Santos was no different and after an incredibly stressful week, I managed to leave work early (at 12:45 instead of noon as hoped for) and finally leave the house by 2:30 (instead of straight onto the turnpike from work). My sister and I split driving up the van, which really means I paid gas and tolls, she did all the driving. It was expensive, but was (probably) worth the hour of sleep I managed to get.

Sleeping Arrangements

We finally reached the Vortex Pit around 7, found Eric Norris and the excellent camping spot he snagged for us and proceeded to put up the tent and meet up with the feminine half of our team for dinner. Eric ordered a pasta dish that sounded like an amazing thing to eat, but an awful idea for a pre-race dinner (classic Norris). After the week I'd had, I figured I was entitled to eat something that, despite dubious nutritional value, was going to be healing for the soul.

Yes, it was amazing.

We went to Wal-Mart afterwards to get several missing items and which was actually a lot of fun and involved a lot pointless meandering and cracking jokes. We got back to the Vortex, sat around with a fire and had a beer with the Tall Club (you might know them as the perpetually drunk and speedo'd single speeder crushing it at the FSC series) and shared a few laughs.

We spent a night freezing in the tent which culminated in a very early morning rain shower to prove the tent I borrowed is not very water proof. We woke up, made a whole pack of bacon and a few scrambled eggs before the propane tank ran out of fuel. Hard times.

We got ready for the race and I rode the first few mile of technical singletrack. I immediately got that "this is going to be really ugly" burn in my legs which made me laugh a bit because we weren't even racing yet.

Bikes lined up for hte LeMans Start

The start is a LeMans run up a hill. I lined up at the very front (not sure why) since I am considered the fastest runner of our team. At some point everyone shuffled up about 20 feet immediately followed by Dave Berger of GoneRiding telling everyone to go back 30 feet. Once we settled down, I was (naturally) at the very back of the group.

Dave blew a whistle and we were running. So many people clustered into a tight space plus my position at the very back rendered any running ability useless. I managed to sprint through a few gaps here and there, got to the bikes and stood around uselessly when I realized I wasn't sure where my bike was. Damn, so many bikes on the ground! I finally found my bike, started running with it and attempted to jump on. This part is blurry but I remember actually getting on the bike (second attempt), hearing Joss yelling at me to go while jumping and screaming, and I slammed my knee into the shifter. I got into the trails, and immediately had to slow down due to the heavy traffic. I was slightly annoyed but ended up being happy as this allowed me to ease into the race as opposed to going straight into the red.

Eric Norris

After awhile, it started to spread out and we were finally racing properly. To make a long story short, we raced for the next 12 hours - duh. We were initially top 5, eventually moved out to 8th (or just 7th?) before slowly coming back to 5th. We sat around, eating, enjoying the sun's heat and each other's company, eventually starting up a grill and eating some hot food. My other sister in Gainesville came by and brought a lot of very welcome goodies: Dunkin Donuts, Chipotle, frozen burgers, and some fancy beers.

Mike Boyco

Towards the end, we did some mental calculations and tried to figure out who would race the last lap. Eventually it was decided I would do the last lap. As I stood at the transition area trying not to shiver too much from the cold and thinking about going back to the fire, Norris rolled up and told me he had just passed two co-Ed teams! We knew we'd been in 5th, we might have just made the podium! I took off like a rocket and hoped no one would catch me. You can imagine my disappointment when a member of the Dirt Devo Junior's co-Ed team passed me shortly thereafter like a much faster rocket passing a much slower rocket that is realizing just how slow it is. *Sigh* I guess we might still have 4th. I finished my lap, met my team at the start/finish, chugged the most delicious and refreshing beer ever and proceeded to change out of my sweaty clothes. Later on I realized that the Dirt Devo rider was actually lapping us (damn). Those kids are truly talented and their lap times prove it. Also, I felt better as I hadn't actually lost us the podium; we were never in contention to begin with. We held on for 5th, solidly one lap ahead of 6th, one lap behind 4th, out of 19 co-Ed teams. So, still something to smile about!

We stayed up pretty late, eating, drinking, and trying to stay warm. We laughed a lot and had a great time. The 12 hours of Santos is always a great time and continues to be one of the best can’t-miss races in Florida.

Happy Trails,

The Boyco

Race Report & Pics: FSC 2012 #9 Santos

Since early September, Florida mountain bike racers have been traveling across the state through ten (including a possible makeup race) tough events, each with their own goals from simple personal achievement, to the select few who battle it out for the class championships. Eric G here with our race report for FSC #9 in Santos, the FINALE of the 2012 season!!

The Santos trails in Ocala are home to the most extensive trail system in Florida. The trail crew from OMBA tirelessly maintains a system so large that one can ride for several days without repeating any trails, a rarity in Florida. The course consisted of blazing fast singletrack split up by two technical, rocky sections with punchy climbs. Large, precariously located rocks, troublesome roots and unnerving ledges called for 100% focus from riders through the technical sections. Any lapse in concentration and you were off line or off the bike. A final winding choppy flat section would give riders some reprieve from white knuckle riding, but still called for technical skills to be fast. To sum it up, a celebratory parade course this was not!

Ryan Woodall

Going to change things up a bit and start off with the Pro report as there were many storylines on race day. While Bob McCarty had the State Championship wrapped up, Ocala local, and the only rider to beat Bob this season, Ryan Woodall would be in attendance this weekend. While Woodlall was on a different program that didn't include the full FSC Series, the duo had faced off several times already this season. A friendly public challenge by Woodall at McCarty's home course generated the buzz that the race fans wanted and the result was McCarty besting Woodall who would then take a break from the series. Fans lobbied tirelessly on internet forums and Facebook for weeks to Woodall to return to the series for the Finale to complete the "Home and Home" showdown. When he finally confirmed his attendance a week to the race, the stage was set. Not to be forgotten the battle for 2nd overall was still up for grabs. It would come down to Shawn Smith and Alex Zambrana, who'd both raced consistently all season and were only separated a couple of points. Zambrana would need to beat Smith by a few places to grab 2nd overall.

Alex Zambrana

The start of the race had everyone watching on edge. When the whistle blew Zambrana would grab the holeshot followed by Woodall. Smith and teammate Martin Cox would follow with McCarty in 6th after trouble clipping in at the start. Arriving at the first technical section it was Woodall in the lead with a 5 second gap over a chasing Zambrana. McCarty would gain a spot taking a more technical line and was now in 5th. After the strong start, Zambrana would be felled with a brief mechanical issue and dropped back to 5th. McCarty would make his move and additionally pass Cox.

Shawn Smith & Martin Cox

After a brief stint behind Smith, McCarty would set off in chase of Woodall and the stage was set for an exciting fight to the end. Smith would keep the gap to McCarty close for much of the race, while Zambrana would have an off course after confusion at the finish line. By the time he recovered, he'd be about 20 seconds behind Cox and start his furious chase.

For four long laps, all eyes were on the battle for the lead and Woodall wouldn't give up his advantage. A 30 second gap would grow slightly lap after lap, but McCarty never let go of the chase though. Expecting the longest race of the season he kept the pressure on until the very end. Ultimately it wasn't enough for McCarty and despite coming into the race under the weather, Woodall would set the fastest lap on the day and take the win! Smith would ride a strong race and finish 3rd to take 2nd overall in the series. Zambrana would close a 20 second gap on the final lap down to 5 seconds to Cox, but would run out of time crossing in 5th behind Cox. Final points standings on the season would be crown McCarty the Florida State Champion, with Smith, Zambrana, Cox and Woodall following. The final pro race of the season didn't fail to live up to expectations!

Florida State Champion Bob McCarty

As for me I had a brutal day. After a decent start I arrived to the technical section in about 8th. Got caught up in an crash ahead of me and had to get off the bike. I'd dismount to get around the carnage but then jam my front wheel into another riders pedal. After apologizing what felt like a million times in 5 seconds, I had to let him and a few other riders by as I checked my wheel. I hopped back on and was simply redlining in the most difficult part of the course. Add the fact that I lost a bottle on BOTH laps and I was feeling pretty miserable. I really thought I was actually rolling in last place. When I crossed the finish in 13th I wasn't necessarily happy, but more relieved that I wasn't as terrible as I thought. Considering this was my first race in Santos I'll let this one go quickly and look forward to a break and prepare for the remaining Coconut Cup races that continue in late January.

We hope you've enjoyed our reports throughout the season. While it's not always easy out there, we try to paint a picture of what's going on for our readers to feel like they were on course with racers. We'd like to thank all our sponsors, especially Bike Tech who gave us great support and access to great bikes all series. We'll be back in action in 2013 finishing off the Coconut Cup and the US Cup opener before taking a Summer break.

Enjoy the pictures below and thanks for reading!!!