NSIM 2016 Results

[Spencer.Berry]

Results are here:
http://www.mtecresults.com/race/show...nline_Marathon

Wish I could have made it. Darn, maybe next year.
Looking at the results, I see a few "skateloggers" and other friends had pretty good results. Congrats to everyone!

[ese002]

It was unexpectedly soggy. At the start, the road was a little damp but it had not rained for some time and most was focussed north of Two Harbors. I (and I think most other racers) expected to see rapidly drying roads in the early stages and then fully dry for the remainder.

This did not happen.

The dampness increased. Somewhere nearly mile 18, we started getting heavy drizzle. It didn't get heavier than that and there wasn't any standing water but the course was slippery from beginning to end. A1, always a dangerous wave, was especially treacherous. The dividing and reforming lines, which normally end before mile 5 where still happening at the mansions. Changing lines usually meant crossing rain coated vinyl stripes.

That's where I dropped off the lead pack. I was near the back and could not enough traction to handle a surge across multiple stripes. If I had realized it was going to be this wet, I would have swapped at least my back wheels for Storm Surges. I thought, with MPC's reputation for being good in the wet, that my Black Magic XXFirm's would be enough. They were not.

The drizzle continued through the tunnels. Even without pack dynamics to handle, the gaps between the tunnels were very very sketchy. The down ramp to the finish was curiously dry. At that point, though, there was no one around me and I could not be sure that it was a dry as it looked. I came in slow.

[kufman]

Light rain or just wet roads is the worst possible thing to skate in. The oils and other road dirt don't get washed off and just tend to sit on the water. A good steady rain is easier to skate in (in my opinion).

[sxevegan]

I skated on Friday with my Matter G13 (125s) that I normally love, but when I hit a very very very small patch of water, they slid badly. I bought some XFirm black magics (125mm) at the expo, just in case it was wet.

The rain seemed to stop pretty early in the morning, but it never dried out. I was glad that I had the MPCs. The XFirm seemed to grip really well, up until the oil slicks in the last 2 miles. I don't think there is any wheel that would grip on a wet oily road.

One tip is to NEVER push over painted lines when it is wet. You need to just roll over them with your feet about shoulder width apart. Those will be slippery no matter what wheel you are on. You're much better off staying the middle of whatever lane you are in. Even in the elite race, I saw skaters digging in hard as they stepped on the painted lines and nearly went down. It's similar in bike races. You always need to be careful turning a bicycle when you are going over painted lines. Once your front bike wheel starts sliding, it's pretty rare that a rider can save it and not crash.

[bjvircks]

am I missing something or looking for the wrong name? I'm not seeing you in the results sxevegan.

[gopherfan]

Originally Posted by bjvircks

am I missing something or looking for the wrong name? I'm not seeing you in the results sxevegan.

The top finishers for both Pro Masters 30-39 and 40-49 are not showing in the results. Both were won by Simmons skaters so start the conspiracy theories.

[gopherfan]

Originally Posted by kufman

Light rain or just wet roads is the worst possible thing to skate in. The oils and other road dirt don't get washed off and just tend to sit on the water. A good steady rain is easier to skate in (in my opinion).

Agreed. I did not have any issues with G13s (4x110) until the concrete areas at the end. As Rob pointed out, I'm not sure much of anything would have gripped there. Before the race I put rain wheels on one foot and warmed up to see if I could tell a difference. I couldn't so I went with the G13s. Having something that would grip at the end would have been a huge advantage, but I'm not sure how much it would have hurt for the first 20+ miles.

[sxevegan]

Yeah, for some reason I was left out of the results, and so was Francisco (2nd place). Ryan and Danny weren't called up for the 40+ race either. We got it figured out at the awards ceremony, but it hasn't been fixed in the online results.

[bjvircks]

from what I saw it seems there was little to no wind this year. yes/no? Wish I could have made this race this year ... the crew I usually hang with did well

drove a friend to the start of the 1/2, we left the DECC before pros finished.

[ese002]

Originally Posted by bjvircks

from what I saw it seems there was little to no wind this year. yes/no?

There was a mild head wind in the final 1/3 at least. It probably would not have been significant if the roads were not also wet.

[blizzard77]

Didn't notice any wind--more like a constant wet mist.
I was on old narrow One20Fives...not great, but would probably have been worse if they were new. Hard to get them moving again after the push.dead.stop. accordion effect. Had to jump or dodge a falling body every mile or so for the first five; (thank goodness for session skating with the kids!).
First time I've experienced that kind of draft--exhilarating but seemed to negate any benefit to switching lines? Feel almost guilty getting carried by a 50-person line; took so much less effort than anticipated. I do regret was not moving up the line further before climbing that last hill--got blocked in.
One question: what was up with people t-stop braking on the downhill around the DECC??!

[usask8er1]

Man were those paint lines fun with the mist, almost ate it a few times

[ese002]

Originally Posted by blizzard77

One question: what was up with people t-stop braking on the downhill around the DECC??!

The finish stretch is a sharp downhill turn with cracks, heaves, and holes. Even in a dry year, crashes there are rather common. If it had been slippery like the tunnel exits, it would have been mayhem.