12 Hours of SantosFebruary 15, 2020
Ocala, Florida
Jess second solo open female
Joel sixth solo open men
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12 hours of twisty, turny, whoop-doopy fun sums up the 12 Hours of Santos race put on by Gone Riding in Ocala, Florida.
This was the second trip by the Nankmans to this race. It happens at the same time as 24 Hours in the Old Pueblo, the 24 hour race in Tucson, Arizona that Joel and I also have done multiple times before. We like both races, so this year it was a decision of Santos or Old Pueblo. Old Pueblo: 72 hours of driving, two weeks off from work, potentially sub-freezing riding temps during the race. Santos: Just a few days off from work, 28 hours of driving, and knowing we can ride in shorts and short sleeves the entire event. Santos easily won out, and was well worth the trip down there.
The approximately nine mile race course is held on part of the 80 mile-ish Santos Trail and Florida Greenway traill system, with the race happenings centered around the Vortex Area. The Vortex is the "jump" area, there are dirt and wooden jumps, bridges, and skinnies. The Santos trails in general are packed sand trails that are twisty and turny with some nice longer flat spots that one can really get pedaling. One may think that Florida is flat, which the trails overall area, but where the race is held there is quite a bit of climbing. Nothing sustained; all are short, steep, punchy climbs that often go straight down and then right back up. They certainly are enough to make a riders legs burn and were a hike-a-bike for some, especially as the miles added up. The same goes for technical features. Overall the Santos trails are smooth and non-technical, but the race location has a surprising number of little rocky areas, which by Eastern Pennsylvania standards are straight forward but yet after hours and hours of riding they can become challenging. In addition to the 12 hour team and solo event, there was a six and three hour competition also.
The race venue is set-up like many 12 and 24 hour races are. The parking area is at the start/finish section of the race. Riders can park directly along the course, which is ideal for solo riders so they can have easy access to their pit areas with food, hydration, and gear. Teams often set-up their pop-up tents directly along the course but then park RVs or put up tents in a large, communal field just a few minutes walk from the course. Word of wisdom, if one wants a prime spot at this race arrive on Friday and get there early. The first time the Nankmans raced Santos we arrived at the race site late morning on Friday, and had ample parking spots to choose from that were directly along the course. This year we arrived late afternoon and had only a few spots along the course to choose from, and they were all just OK, not great. And anyone who arrived after us really had no directly-on-the-course spots. What complicates things for us is that not only do we want a good spot for racing reasons, we want a good spot for our dog Clifford. He needs easy access to good roaming and walking spots and somewhere that he will fee comfortable being in the van for the day. Interesting enough, we were parked next to a group of riders from Ohio, some of whom we had met at North East races before. It was a little section of East Coast Rocks invading Florida. Great for cheering and heckling each other since we had things in common.
So now onto the actual race. My goal was to stay consistent and strong the entire time; to not go out too hard as to blow-up part way through but yet to know I put in the best effort I could. By watching my heart rate and my lap times I felt I did a decent job of doing that. I definitely felt the effects of racing around hours eight through ten, but I was then able to get a second wind for the final laps. My Liv Pique Advanced was perfect for this course. It's nimble and responsive for the twists and turns. It's a comfortable fit and light on the climbs which makes for good riding during all those hours in the saddle. Riding this bike just always puts a smile on my face and Saucon Valley Bikes makes this possible by keeping the Pique running smooth. I stopped at our pit only every other lap (which was about every 100 minutes) and grabbed two bottles and enough Honey Stinger nutrition to get me until the next stop. The combination of my favorite Honey Stinger waffles, bars, and energy chews kept me going strong and kept my belly happy. When the night laps hit, which are my favorite laps, my Lupine Lights Piko lit the way. I really enjoy the night laps; creatures come out, you can see all the lights from other riders moving about the forest, and things look surreal in the shadows. The Piko is just perfect for night riding, it's light weight and gives amazing light. After 11 hours and 40 minutes of racing with barely any stop time, I finished second female. And this truly was a race; the top three women were battling it out and not to far from each other during the entire event. None of us could ride easy and we all had to earn our spots on the podium.
The awards ceremony post race reflected the entire event, people hanging around, socializing, and cheering for others. Sure, there were a few speedy team racers who were grumpy and wanted to pass ASAP, but overall other racers were friendly and talkative. I chatted with many other riders while out on the course, and later in the race had many of these team riders giving me race splits and offering help if I needed it. Spectators were numerous and were out there the entire 12 hours; thank you for that, your enthusiasm goes a long way. The solo female riders were all supportive of each other and friendly, yet competitive, both during and after the race. So not only a fun course with a good race venue, but also a friendly group of people to be riding with.After two trips to 12 Hours of Santos, we can say it's a race worth returning to and would recommend it to others. You can bet the Nankmans will plan to escape the Northeast cold and head to Ocala Florida again for this race in the future.
- words by Jess
- video by Joël
- race photos by Bobby Fishbough and Gone Riding