Fish Rock Race Report from Glen A (2021)

Fish Rock Road connects the coastal Point Arena to Route 128, the road to Boonville.  The road includes 15 miles of dirt, gravel and odd occasional rocks with extended grades over 10%, peaking at 18%. It’s a hard road to ride.  It’s also beautiful: sweeping views of the coast, shaded by pine and oak forests.  The Fish Rock Bike Race starts and finishes in Boonville.  Riders leave Boonville on Mountain View Road and head for the coast. Like Fish Rock, Mt. View climbs the coastal range in steep, uneven pitches punctuated by fast, rough descents. It totals 4000+ feet of climbing less than 20 miles.     

With the Death Ride cancelled and endurance to spare from training I signed up.  In the weeks heading into Fish Rock I spent hours climbing the dirt roads in Tilden, Wildcat, Sibley, Redwood and Chabot parks. 

The steep climbing begins mile one in Fish Rock, this is not an ordinary bike race. There are no easy miles to roll along with the pack, no steady grade climbs to find your rhythm.  It’s more like running an ultra marathon - how high of a pace can each rider hold and for how long? Training for the Death Ride and later for Fish Rock, I practiced hours of aerobic riding: eating, drinking, riding.  That’s how Fish Rock went.  By the time I hit Fish Rock Road three and a half hours of hard riding in, I had downed 4 bottles of sports drink, an Ensure drink, one bottle of water, a few cups of coke, an espresso, a granola bar and a rice crispy treat. My blood sugar and mood were good.  On a road bike with a 34 tooth chain ring and 36 cog, the steep dirt climb of Fish Rock was difficult.  30mm road tires don’t have great grip on dirt and I could have used a lower gear, so the way to get up was by grinding out a slow, steady, even cadence to keep the power on the rear wheel and not break traction.  Legs, back and mind all suffered to the top of the 3 ½ mile initial pitch.  Descents and climbs followed where the key was to manage speed, avoid a pinch flat or crash on the loose road and keep the power to the ground on the climbs.  And then at mile 55, five plus hours in, the dirt ended.  

The final 17 miles into Boonville were mostly descending, with a few short climbs and a blazing hot seven mile stretch in 100 degree heat on the fresh black tarmac of Route 128.  I rode the last 45 minutes fast, strong and steady.  

The whole race is a management problem: physical effort, drinks, food, equipment, and driving the bike.  I practiced this problem for many hours on Mt Diablo, and in the local hills and regional parks.  On race day I managed the problem well.  I finished the Fish Rock Bike Race in 6:00:45, 24th of 55 among men 50-60, 12 miles an hour, 72 miles with 9670 feet of climbing.  I don’t think I could have ridden faster. 

Race report from Glen A

https://www.ridefishrock.com/