I went into the Dirty Kanza XL pretty fit but I have been traveling a ton--Alaska, Italy, and a bunch of smaller trips around the states. Just coming off a work trip, I had 48 hours at home before heading to Kansas. I spent that time meticulously setting up my Salsa Warbird which had a bunch of new parts on it, including the new Shimano GRX Di2. I changed my handlebars twice in those days, the last time being hours before I headed out on the road. I am very happy to have done that.
I contemplated and dictated my set-up with my goal of trying to go as fast possible knowing comfort yields speed. I knew the field was stacked this year and some guys had been training especially for DKXL. I thought back to all the training I have done and recent race experiences. I knew I had a chance at winning, as long as I played the game right. Fortunately I felt really prepared and relaxed on the start line, and arriving a day early helped hugely with that. I've learned in all these years of racing that I can maintain a high threshold for a very long time and I have also developed the patience to let things unfold naturally but also make moves when appropriate. All this gives me the confidence to face these events.
 We still had time to #chasethechaise.
The start was strong and fast. (I may or may not have had something to do with that...) The lead group was six riders, eventually whittled down to three. Some people had flats or mechanicals. It happens to everyone. I spent a lot of time watching Jake and fellow teammate Matt, reading their actions, knowing they were two to keep an eye on. I was also keen on dictating the pace as I sensed early on that my pace was just a little bit more consistent and possibly a tick stronger than what they wanted to push. Those observations are always being noted. I was running a much lighter set-up than most, no backpack and only two water bottles, because I was treating the race like a series of 50-mile races with convenience stores in between.
At dark found myself in front, alone, where I was able to really focus and stop worrying or playing games with the other riders. I really enjoy riding alone as my focus and drive become very laser-like. I become a different person in my brain. Some people call this flow state, I call it warrior state, and it's a head space I like to be in. I had written a message to myself on my top tube: Power. Efficient.
 There was a hundred-mile section through the night with no amenities that I rode cleanly, then I rolled up to a gas station at 2:30 a.m. and it wasn't open. I had planned for that possibility at the last store and had a Red Bull and a bag of MnMs just in case, so I slammed those and kept pedaling. I only had a couple swallows of water for the next forty miles but that didn't bother me. I know in races that I walk a fine line and I could crater or bonk, but I'm pretty confident I won't.
I did have a sidewall tear in the morning that led to three flats total. I was constantly looking over my shoulder, racing like a scared rabbit. I didn't check the race tracker, because I wanted to maintain focus.
Then I hit a long section of two-way traffic as the stream of DK200 racers headed out. It was chaotic and made life a lot more challenging as I tried to hold my line and stay in the zone through the crowds. I was being yelled at and cheered on but eventually had to do all the yelling myself to stay relatively safe. It was kind of surreal after being alone all night and having ridden close to 300 miles already. Then I was alone again.
The morning became hot and humid and I felt nauseated, unable to eat or drink and already in the hole, but I charged the last forty miles to get to the finish. All I could think about was swimming pools and coolers filled with ice. I kept telling myself "just XX amount of miles, don't bonk now dude." I crossed the line among a lot of shorter distance racers and it took the race organizers a bit to realize I was there because apparently my tracker had malfunctioned.
After last year's first running of the DKXL, I thought that a 24-hour finish was the big goal that someone would break eventually, so I was pretty pleased to have finished in 22.5 hours even though it took until Monday to realize it, and happy that my body performed at that level for so long. My set up was so dialed, even though I finalized it with only two days at home. My hands didn't hurt and my back and shoulders never seized up. Check out my complete bike rundown on my website:
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