Pine Island 2023 Race Recap

Let me start off by saying that I need to complete these race recaps immediately in the days following the event completion. I know that I will miss fun little details that happened during the event, but I will do my best to recall them. Time gets away from us!

June 10th, 2023. Pine Island Lodgepole Voyage 210 Mile Gravel Race. In 2022 I came away with 2nd Overall and 2nd Age Group so I was really looking forward to this year's event. I've experienced some extremely fun events over the years and THIS is my absolute favorite. As you can see from the photo above it was a wet one. That photo was taken approximately 2 miles into the race while we were being led out.

We arrived the afternoon/evening before the race and checked into our AirBnb which was conveniently located about a block away from the race check-in and start line. John Berry was already in the hills finishing his support of RASDAK, and I still needed to get him my bike for the Berry blessing and for him to make the needed repairs after Unbound Gravel. John was waiting and I handed over the bike. This is what it sounded like before.

John looked over everything and sent me this photo as we were checking in. Brought some grass and mud home from Kansas.

Check-in was extremely smooth and we made our way to the local grocery store to buy some last-minute snacks to add to our drop bags. I really enjoy Pine Island for the fact that I can stage drop bags (Race Provided) at the four checkpoints along the 210 route. This allows me to truly run self-supported and know that I'll have the things that I need at each point. Thanks to 2022 I have a very good idea of what works well for me. I pre-mix my Embark Maple into the bottles and put 2 bottles into each bag for easy trade-out. This year I also put 1L water in my bags to quickly fill up my Camelbak as well. Time off the bike is wasted time. Also, new this year was the Strawberry Banana Body Armour that I included. I try and chug one of these at each checkpoint to top off any nutrients I'm missing. This took me about an hr. to prep. Emily and I joined a couple of friends, Al and Jason, for some pasta and John had the bike prepped before we all tried to get some sleep. It was going to be about a 3:30AM wakeup with a 5:00 AM race start.

3:30 AM rolled around and of course, the rain was coming down. I knew it was going to rain but prayed that it would just be overcast and mist throughout the day. Time would tell! I ate some oatmeal with peanut butter powder, and a banana, and avoided all caffeine for the morning. I started up my race tracker (Watch the race replay at the link) and we made our way to the start line. Both John and Emily woke up early to see me off. Thanks guys! I debated about wearing the rain jacket at the race start. It's light but if any effort is given I knew I would start to sweat. Temperatures outside were hovering in the high 50s, and would only warm to the low 60s that day. I ended up taking off my arm warmers and just wearing the rain jacket.

The race started and the rain came down. Perry led us through town and as soon as we hit the gravel and a short punchy climb the race was on. Jake AIsenbrey the year before put a solid dig into this hill and broke away from the entire group for the entire race. I was going to try and do that this year, without Jake being present. I did just that but had two riders just behind me, Jay Petervary and Ben Doom. Two riders I was not familiar with but would learn more about later. We rode together for about 50 miles sharing wheels and working very well together. We started to hit a few decent ascents and I could feel that the punch in my legs was still in Kansas. I was able to bring them back on the first couple, but both Jay and Ben began to pull away in the rain and it was the last I saw of them. It was the last I saw of anyone for the most part!

By this point, I didn't know if my arms were soaked in rain or sweat. I knew I was heating up and had already unzipped my rain jacket a bit. The rain was coming down enough to build up on the roadway. I knew if I took off my jacket that I could potentially get very cold, so I decided to lower my pace, unzip my jacket a bit more, and keep the jacket on. I was coming up on mile 65 ish and knew checkpoint 1 was just ahead and I could reassess the jacket then. I heard a noise behind me and before I knew it the 100 milers were flying past me. At the front was Adam Saban who yelled, "Yea Wollmann!!" I yelled back, "You guys are fucking flying!" They were gone already. It was just me, the rain, and my bike.

I rolled into checkpoint 1 to a nice-sized crowd cheering everyone on. Checkpoint 1 was also the new turnaround point for the 100 so I saw them fly by me again on the way back home. I was NOT at my halfway point. As I refreshed my bottles, water, and food I kept my jacket on. I wanted to see how I felt before I took off. Sure enough, I was shaking a bit and knew I needed to keep my jacket on in order to stay warm. Back on the bike, I was in and out of checkpoint 1 in about 4 minutes.

Having done this race before I have the pleasure of remembering different points of the course. I knew what I had to look forward to and I really enjoyed that. It has been the only ultra race that I have done twice. After checkpoint 1 you have the opportunity to really hit the best of the Black Hills as you make your way to Mt. Meadows Checkpoint 2. The rain continued to come down consistently. Before reaching Mt. Meadows there is a very consistent downhill. In 80-degree heat this is wonderful! To this point, I was regulating my body temperature by pedaling and working hard. I now found myself flying down the hills not pedalling. My body core temperature dipped considerably and I soon found myself shaking while riding the bike. Not good. My hands were only protected by my riding gloves, no fingers, and I was not sporting rain booties. My hands and feet were not in good condition. As I finally made it to Checkpoint 2 this was clearly the low point in the race for me at mile 123.

I stumbled off my bike and was shaking uncontrollably. I began to try and replenish my water, bottles, and food, but just couldn't operate. I asked a lady nearby if the two riders ahead stayed awhile. She stated, "They were here for about 20 min. deciding what to do." I stated out loud, "Like they were contemplating quitting!?" This boggled my mind. On one hand, I couldn't see them quitting. On the other, I knew that they were not in good shape either. I decided to take some time as they had, and I entered the store to warm up. I was served a hot chocolate and stood beside the stove they fired up halfway hoping my bike would be stolen while it sat outside. Countless people asked what I was up to and were all supporting the idea of quitting. I was covered in muddy gravel and shaking. I asked to use the restroom to regroup. "You might need to use the women's, the men's is completely wrecked." I looked down at myself and back up at the woman behind the counter. "Mam, I'm not about to make it any better. I'll use the men's" She laughed and I proceeded with my business.

In the restroom, I thought to myself. Is being cold, shaking, and uncomfortable a good enough reason to quit? The simple answer was no, it wasn't. I could still perform mental math and my body had warmed up enough to quit shaking. As I exited the restroom I saw Joel Mckillop roll into the checkpoint. His brother was helping him resupply in the parking lot. I said out loud to my new friend I had met, Dick,"If he doesn't come inside and warm up he is a new breed of man." Dick sipped his coffee and looked out at Joel, who was clearly not coming inside to warm up. "Isn't that the man who is in 4th?" Those words stung. "Yup, I better get going," I said and I left my new friends at Mt. Meadows.

I swung by Joel to get a read on how he was looking. He didn't even appear to be shaking. What an animal! I continued forward thinking that Joel would be cruising up to me at any corner. I had forgotten that the next 30 miles or so were the BEST of the course. Significant downhill portions and the Mickelson trail section. To top it off, the rain was only misting at this point. This was the most enjoyable section of the race. I felt like I was riding on a new planet as I entered the cave portions of the Mickelson and listened to the waterfalls and river nearby. I came into checkpoint 3 with a point to make it a quick turnaround. Joel had not caught me yet and I knew I was close to the finish. I had no idea where Jay and Ben were. I believe checkpoint 3 is around mile 158. I was in and out quickly and on my way to checkpoint 4, which is around mile 178. It is the same as Checkpoint 1. I skipped it in 2022 and planned to do the same this year.

I flew by checkpoint 4 and made my way to Rifle Pit. This section of road is an absolute nightmare dry and I could only imagine what I looked like after 1.5 inches of rain. I wish I could have taken a photo of it but it was a sloppy mess. Thankfully the texture of the mud didn't stick to the bike and wheels like Unbound mud, and it was ridable. Slow, but ridable. One eventful moment while riding nice and slow in the uncontrollable mud was when a skunk decided to cross paths with me. It came about 6 feet from me as I was riding 3 mph trying to stay upright. It turned its behind toward me and I braced for incoming fire. Thankfully the skunk decided I wasn't worth the effort, and retreated into the tree line. Maybe he caught a whiff of my smell and decided he couldn't compete. Phew!

After rifle pit, I knew there was one more climb, and that the last 10 - 15 miles were downhill through the beautiful Spearfish Canyon. I put in one last solid effort up that hill and started the downhill just as the sun was setting. It was in this moment of pure bliss that I thought to myself of David Goggins. "You don't know me son!" This is a quote he often states, meaning that nobody understands the mind of Goggins. I laughed and said this line out loud. I then thought to myself, after all that I had endured that day, that we truly don't know ourselves! It doesn't matter what others think of you, especially when you truly don't know what you yourself can truly accomplish. "I don't know ME, son!" I laughed again at this revelation as I flew down the canyon at 20+ mph watching the light fade over the canyon walls. I passed by Spearfish Canyon Lodge and saw all the guests enjoying the warm comfortable fireplace in the foyer. I so wanted to be them. There was a race to finish though. I flew down the paved section of Spearfish Canyon, almost smashing into a deer on the side of the road at one point. It was now dark and hard to see even with a headlight. I came to the final corner where John Berry met me on a bike. It was so wonderful to see a familiar face again. I rode the bike path and crossed one of the most wonderful finish lines of my life. SO many people stayed to welcome me. I was overwhelmed. 207 miles completed.

I was able to come away with a 3rd place overall behind two extremely experienced ultra athletes, and 1st in my age group.

As I always say this event is a must-attend. The atmosphere, location, and race organizers are Top-notch! Perry & Kristi Jewett, thank you for all your time and energy in putting this event together. What an adventure! The rain was miserable but what I think really got to me was that I had just completed Unbound 200 the weekend before which was also a rainy muddy mess. I'm ready for a race that is dry!

As I transition careers from law enforcement to aviation, my time on the bike has been hard to hit. I hope to put one more solid ultra in at Garmin Gravel Worlds 300 in August. If you are at RAGBRAI this year, both Emily and I will be riding the Des Moines section with our close friend Jason. We will also be at Steamboat Gravel 100 to crush some beautiful scenery with friends!

Berry Fast Bicycles, Taste & See, Adam Foland and his team at EXIT Realty in Madison, Madison Family Dental, Sunshine Foods of Madison, Stemper Autobody, and of course Embark Maple. I can't thank these supporters enough! They each have helped in their own unique way in my ultra successes.

We are still raising money for the Semper Fi & America's Fund. If you could we would appreciate your support!

Mathew Wollmann