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I rode the Arctic Fever Fat Tire race yesterday. Challenging race with temps around 0F and large patches of bare ice on the lake ice sections. The course was 11 miles, mostly on the ice of Lake Minnetonka, some single-track sections, and a couple short rail-trail sections. The lake was very difficult mix of bare ice and deep snow drifts; transitioning from bare ice to 4-inch deep drifts was a very unique challenge! The bare ice created interesting challenges too; to stay upright while avoiding all the riders and bikes that didn't! Most riders were riding studded tires, but many rode with only one stud on the bike.
I finished 37th place of 133 finishers (200 riders registered) with a time of 1:04:43. I happy with this, since my primary goals were: avoid frostbite, avoid bruises, and finish it. I achieved all three goals!
I actually overdressed and worked up a sweat, which made the 7-mile ride home interesting. Happily, I have nearly all wool gear so wet gear wasn't an issue.
The finale of the day... riding home was really tough and I was super slow; I blamed my tired legs and the -5F temp for making me weak. But when I found myself on bare pavement I could hear my rear tire, didn't sound right, and I got off to check and find it was damn near flat. I was two miles from home, called Lisa to meet me with the car. She met me about a mile from home to save me the last mile of walking. Looks like my tubeless sealant wasn't happy with 5 hours out in sub-zero temps. Time to look for new sealants that can handle the cold.