ChiliMan Podium (well, sorta)
To spice up the winter training blues, a somewhat "out there" throw down challenge was presented to the local cyclists who ride all winter and might consider throwing on a pair of running shoes on occasion. The "challenge" included an informal group bike ride for 1.5 to 2 hrs followed by running in the Chilly Chili 5k right after. The first person who (having rode earlier) to post the fastest 5k time would be crowned the "CHILIMAN".
So, at about 9:45 am this past Sunday (Jan 24), a few brave souls began filing into the Caz High parking lot for the unofficial ChiliMan Challenge. Temps were single digits with a slight, yet sharp wind from the north. There were a few laughs as the ChiliMan challengers compared their options and techniques for staying warm (or at least trying on some level). Needless to say, it did not look like a mid-July club ride. There were downhill ski helmets, Carhartts, duct tape, goggles, all sorts of mittens/gloves/over-mitts/liners, hand warmers, toe warmers, hats, face masks, balaclavas, neck gaiters, and general layers of this, that & you name it. It looked like part mountaineering expedition, part bike ride and all just a bit questionable from a sanity stand point.
The ride headed south out of Caz with 5 "official" ChiliMan candidates and a sixth rider who, well, was just looking for more saddle time having already been out for a while. Once to New Woodstock, we turned east towards Erieville over the rollers and then were rudely reminded that there was a north wind as we zig-zagged north & west back towards Caz. The irony was you wanted to push the pace a little to get the furnace going and produce some body heat while on the other hand, each mph faster hurt exponentially as the wind was downright painful in its bite.
We rolled back into Caz after about an hour & 50 minutes with most sporting frosty eye lashes and/or other frosted facial hair or face coverings. We started the process of changing from "ice-cyclists" to runners and refueled with munchies & liquids.
We lined up for the Chilly Chili 5K and wiggled, jumped, and fidgeted all over trying to stay warm like the entire crowd. The gun went off and the runners went sweeping through downtown and then northward up what seemed like all gradual uphill for the first 2 miles - with a bit of a kicker in there as well. When the dust (or frost) settled, the first ChiliMan challenger to cross the line was Randy H. Many of us who know Randy realize he's a pretty strong cyclist but he isn't exactly a slouch of a runner. The dude finished 9th overall .. like 9th of 800+ entrants. And it's probably quite reasonable to assume that not many of the folks he was racing on the front end of it all had just ridden for nearly 2 hours.
With his first place in the ChiliMan Challenge, Randy was ceremoniously presented with a 750 ml bottle of Belgian style recovery beverage (aka Three Philosophers) and the coveted ChiliMan Talisman/necklace. Second went to Team Ommegang - Syracuse Bicycle newcomer Dave B who was top 30 overall. With second, Dave claimed the "single-serve" size of a Three Philosophers. Third was presented to Skinny Phil but a protest by Jeremy B indicated he did actually finish 3rd. Actually he didn't protest, we just couldn't find him after the race until we had already had the awards "ceremony". (So Skinny Phil owes Jeremy a PBR pounder.) Lantern Rouge honors went to Drummroll whos legs and knees simply wondered why. While uncertain of Dave's and Randy's pre-race prep, Skinny Phil was on the bike Sat am for some decent saddle time on the backroads while Jeremy B and Drummroll were spotted at Highland at a snowshoe race the day before.
So the first ChiliMan challenge is in the books. No frostbite, no flats, two snowplows, and lots of makin the best of what's out the door here in CNY.
Chilly Chili Results & some pics here: http://blog.syracuse.com/sports/2011/01/results_from_the_cazenovia_chi.html
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