From Kellen: Pierre's Hole: Measuring Up to a God

Today was a very interesting day, I had heard rumors of Peter Sagan being at Pierre's Hole since Thursday night. But I was very skeptical about it.

We went to Targhee early and got signed in and went to the parking lot to get into our kits and warm up. While we are getting ready a very nice decked out sprinter van pulls up right next to us (Brian, Kelton, Joe, Steph and Myself). I am putting my shoes on and Brian says, "Look who it is." Needless to say I think all of us were a little star struck seeing a world champ in our midst. 

We finished getting ready while he got ready and Kelton and Brian and I walked over to see if we could get a pic. At this point it was very evident how serious Peter is. His bike (even though it's a Specialized) was a full custom with a new color changing paint that isn't available yet, and it was incredible. The computer on his bike was a special rainbow edition. Everything was well organized and had a place in the van. 

Peter himself was very impressive. The guy is solid rock! The dude has calves that would rival Tony Perkins. Peter is pretty soft spoken, humble and nice. Kelton and I both were like little kids meeting Santa when we got a pic with him. 

After that we all headed to the start line. There is nothing like a group of 70-80 riders sitting there then splitting right down the middle when Peter went to the front. Something about that whole lineup and his call up was special. Kelton and I lined up 1 row back from Peter (God of Cycling) Sagan!!!

This race is a 50K with 4000ft of climbing. The start hit and the race is straight up for 7-8 miles. In 3 minutes I was at 190 bpm and Peter was still pulling away much faster than I expected. Once we hit the switchbacks it was evident the wizardry we were dealing with. I pride myself on being a strong climber and every single switchback he would be another 3-5 seconds farther out and he was out of sight surprisingly fast.

I had a goal of a sub 3 hour finish and I finished in 2:42. I feel I had a decent race. The strongest locals around were all in the 2:20 - 2:35 range. Sagan finished in 2 hours flat and wasn't at full effort!!! I honestly think he could have knocked 5 mins off if he was going 100%. 

The bike handling he is capable of is spectacular; he and the bike are one unit. It's so special to witness in real life. Peter's wife took a liking to Brians new puppy Indy and Peter came over and gave Indy a blessing. That was cool. 

Today was an amazing experience and I am hoping he does very well in Rio. I love our crew that was there and I had a great time with everyone. Brian, Heather, Kelton, Cooper, Indy, Zac, Jeralyn, Joe, Steph, Tim, Eric and Gabe (Who was man enough to race the 100 mile!) Such a killer day and I am tired! Goodnight.

-Kellen