Gila Stage 1: Mogollon

Krogg race stage 1 Gila tomorrow. Stage 1 Gila straightforward: ride 85 miles into middle of desert, then climb Mogollon. This stage make Krogg cry on more than one occasion -- stage tricky. Now you think "Krogg -- you make nonsense. How stage straightforward and tricky at same time!?" Well Krogg explain. 


First off: wind. Wind blow very very hard in Silver City, so wind slam peloton all day long. This make bike race nervous; nobody want to be caught like caveman with bearskin around ankles in heavy crosswind. (Yes Krogg just use semicolon. Caveman learn how!) Krogg must be careful about wind. 


Second off: tactics. This first stage of stage race. Also, this first time in several years normal caveman will win race instead of Levi Leipheimer (who most certainly NOT normal caveman). Race wide open! This mean every tribe insist on having man in breakaway. Getting into breakaway harder than sleeping with daughter of chief: everybody want to, everybody try, and if other caveman see you about to succeed, he chase you down and stop you! 


Third off: Whitewater Mesa. This trickiest part of stage 1 Gila. Mogollon climb start with right-hand turn onto road with straight cross-wind. Then Mogollon start with brutally steep 13% kicker that last way too long. Of course racers go berserk over kicker at bottom, and totally shatter field. Then, road flatten out pancake flat, but still brutal crosswind for two miles! This mean it really really easy to get snapped off back of field and miss choo-choo train across Whitewater Mesa -- and if you miss choo-choo train across Whitewater Mesa, you lose minute in two miles, because you pull in wind alone (or with group of other dropped caveman). Krogg have bad memories of stage 1 Gila from 2006. And 2007. And 2008. And 2009. Ouch Ouch. 


KROGG PROMISE HERE AND NOW: GOOD MEMORIES OF WHITEWATER MESA WILL BE MADE TOMORROW!!! MARK KROGG WORDS!!!!


Oh, and you can read about Krogg disastrous stage 1 Gila from 2008 (when Krogg literally piss himself out of race), or 2009 (when Krogg blow spoke over Whitewater Mesa).