The Fat Bike Birkie is a fat bike race held in February in Cable, Wisconsin on the American Birkebeiner ski trail — the same trail system as the Chequamegon 40. It’s 25 miles of groomed snowmobile and ski trail on fat bikes in winter. The course is fast for a fat bike race and draws a big field. I’ve done this one three times. fatbikebirkie.com
At a glance
| Location | Cable / Hayward, Wisconsin (Birkie Trail) |
| Discipline | Fat bike race |
| Distance | ~47 km (shorter options) |
| When | March |
| Official site | fatbikebirkie.com |
Results and Race Recaps
2019
Results
| Steve (106 mile) | 59th in 2hr 10min |
Bike setup
| Steve | Bike: Trek Farley · Wheels: Bontrager Wampa · Tires: Bontrager Barbagazi · Drivetrain: Sram Eagle |
Note: I did something a little different than I have in the past… After a short intro, I provide some recap notes on topics that are likely of most interest based on questions I get about races; such as the course conditions, gear, nutritions, etc… that can be more useful in planning for future races. It’s also a good recap for myself to note what went well and not so well as I’m trying to continuously improve as well.
Fatike Birkie keeps getting better… I mentioned this in a Facebook post after the finish, but I was really just happy to be there and glad to get out and race again. I’ve done 3 Fatbike Birkies now and this was probably my most enjoyable. I hadn’t ridden my fatbike since December and had only ridden twice in the fall to recon and course plan for the Solstice Chase Fatbike Race that I was race directing.
That said, I’ve had a good base training regiment going on my indoor trainer, so I wasn’t coming off the couch by any means. Even though it wasn’t training for Fatbike Birkie, all that tempo and sweet spot work I’ve been doing the last couple months is really helping to re-establish my base after having such a poor year of training last year. I wasn’t fast, but I was able to steadily crank along for 2 hours and 10 minutes.
I was sluggish on climbs as I’m the heaviest I’ve been in almost 7 years, but I was strong on the flats and downhills. I ended up finishing in 62nd place out of 455 racers in the long race (47k). This was about 20 places better than last year.
Fatbike Birkie Recap Notes
Anyway, here we go with those recap notes in no particular order…
Course Conditions
The course was a little soft in spots and from what I heard, got softer and more tore up as time went on. I had one hill that I had to jump off and push up the last bit as it got steep and soft, but that was it. I was able to climb the rest of them. It could get squirley at times, especially at speed in the turns. I feel pretty comfortable in those situations and that’s where I was the best. I would lose spots on the uphills and gain them back in the downhills.
Tires
I was set up perfect, but don’t really know what I had them at. I rode around the demo track a little bit and added or let out air according to how it felt and never checked it with a gauge. I was set up on the firm side and would go the same route again, even though it caused some occasional traction and squirreliness in the soft stuff. The tires themselves are the Bontrager 27.5″ X 4.5″ Barbagazzi. They give up some traction in loose stuff, but roll fast.
Venue
It rocks! Great post race atmosphere with friends, food and beer. It was nice catching up with friends.
Nutrition
I had 1 bottle with 1.5 scoops of Endurelite and a second bottle with just water. I also had a Gu gel flask with 4 gels in it with a little water to help mix it. I used my Endurelite first and then switched to the gels for the second half. I feel like everything worked out great. My gel flask was in a top tube bag. It was just warm enough for it to stay thin enough to work out. Any colder and it may have been an issue. I meant to throw a hand warmer in the top tube bag to keep it warmer. My bottles were purist insulated bottles, which worked out awesome and much easier to squeeze than the polar ones. To do it again, I probably would have just done the Endurelite in both bottles and skipped the gels, but I hadn’t raced with the Endurelite before and didn’t want to go all in with it.
GPS / Computer
I didn’t have one on my bike and just wore my Garmin Forerunner 935XT watch. I still had a chest strap for more accurate heart rate, but I never looked at it during the race. The only data I had on the watch was time and distance, but I also only looked at it a few times. I think I enjoyed the ride more without looking at data much. It was nice having the info afterward and also nice to check distance occasionally as well. Since owning the watch, I’ve mostly switched over to it vs my Garmin Edge as it’s just easy and I wear it all the time like a normal watch.
Tools
I only carried a multi-tool and 2 air cartridges. I’m a fan of the Topeak Hexus multi-tool as it comes with tire levers and a chain tool.
Bike
I’ve got a carbon Farley with the Bontrager Wampa 27.5″ carbon rims and 4.5″ Bontrager Barbagazzi tires. It’s mostly a SRAM GX Eagle drivetrain, but with an XO crank. Very similiar build to a Farley 9.8 with a couple of exceptions. I love the bike and it comes in around 25.5 lbs with the pedals on.
Start Gates
There were 4 start gates for the 47k race and I was in gate 2. However, I did not stage my bike and ended up in the back of gate 2 and a bit mixed in with gate 3. I initially went to the gates about 8:45am and my gate was pretty much full. I slid across the back of it to find a spot without blocking the entrance. However, I opened my top tube bag to realize I didn’t put my gel flask in and must have left it on the dashboard. I looked down at my watch to see it was 8:49 and decided to ride back to the car to get it. When I got back to the starting gates, they had already pulled up the separation ribbons to let people fill in, so I just slipped in the back of the gate 2 entrance on the side.
Getting to the race
I drove up in the morning, leaving my house just before 5:00am and arrived around 7:30am with plenty of time. Bib pickup didn’t open till 7:30am anyway and I had plenty of time. I wasn’t late in the start gates due to time, I just chose to hang in my warm vehicle and take a short spin on the demo course vs dropping my bike off in the start gate. I would do the same thing again.
Riding gear
I wore a Bontrager Windshell Balacalava under my helmet, which has worked well in the past for winter riding and skiing. I had too much glove on with the 45NRTH Sturmfist 4s as my hands ended up really sweaty, but that was better than freezing cold. If the race was a lot longer, I would have been concerned about sweating more, but it was short enough that I was able to get out of wet gear before freezing. I wore my 2 piece ski kit with a cycling jersey over the top. I wear a cycling jersey when I ski as well. I just like the pockets in the back of cycling jerseys. It was warm enough for sunglasses versus goggles. I have a pair of Toffosi glassses with some decent sized lenses that seem to work well for winter.
Race Effort
I rode pretty consistant the whole race. I didn’t have a great starting gate position and had to work around a few people once they cut us loose in the powerlines, but I just rode my ride for the most part. I might have put some extra efforts in here or there to try and carry some momentum up a hill or get around somebody that I thought might get in my way on the next downhill. Overall, I felt like I was working my way up a bit during the first 1/3 of the race and eventually found myself going back and forth with the same people for the rest of the race. My heart rate data shows me at a consistent subthreshold effort for the entire race with only a few short blips a couple bpm above threshold.
Fatbike Birkie Course Info
Overall Course Map
The course starts and ends from the American Birkiebeiner Trailhead. This year it went south on the classic ski trail to OO and then returned north on the skate trail. This is opposite from 2018.
Overall Elevation Profile
My Training Peaks and Strava accounts both show a little over 3,000 ft of elevation gain.
Course Breakdown
The notes here are much shorter than I’ve provided in the past. I didn’t jump into the details of how the racing played out from section to section this time, but just tossed down a short note or 2 per section of trail. You can open the images if you want to look closer into the trail map, profile or lap data.
Start to Timber Trail
As you can see, you are generally working your way up through the power lines and the first section of the course. The key is and stays true throughout the entire course, is to carry as much speed as you can downhill and back up into the next.
Timber Trail to Fire Tower
You can see the highpoint on the trail and there is a sign trailside as well. Once you hit highpoint, then you are generally working your way back downhill to OO with a minor exception between Fire Tower and Boedecker.
Fire Tower to Boedecker
As mentioned, you are generally working your way back downhill to OO, but about halfway between Fire Tower and Boedecker you do have to work your way back up a bit to Boedecker. In general, course is really just up and down. I think it helps mentally to think your are generally working your way up or down as it helps work your way through the course milestone by milestone.
Boedecker to OO
OO is the turnaround point and kind of signifies the halfway mark.
OO to Boedecker
I do remember the super fun downhill shortly after OO. I probably only remember it as I’ve skied north of OO a couple times.
Boedecker to Fire Tower
It’s a long climb up to Fire Tower, which isn’t quite the top.
Fire Tower to Timber Trail
As I mentioned, Fire Tower wasn’t the top and you still have to climb out of there a little bit to hit the high point. After that, you get a long downhill. I had to walk about 20 feet up one hill and can’t remember if it was in this section or the next.
Timber Trail to Finish
It’s never all downhill, but this section seemed fast. The powerlines will still zap your legs, even though you’re generally headed downhill. The rolling uphills are just big enough that your momentum won’t roll you up them and your legs are likely fried at this point.
Lap Splits
My effort seemed fairly consistant throughout the race as I just cranked along. I had very few surges in effort. If I put in a little dig it was just to get around a couple folks here and there that I thought might get in the way on a downhill. As I mentioned, I was rolling the downhills fast.
Heart Rate Data
I don’t have a power meter on my fatbike, but here is the heart rate data. I didn’t look at it during the race at all. The only info I had on my data screen was time and distance and I only looked at it a few times. For reference, I estimate my cycling heart rate threshold to be 172 bpm and set my heart rate zones up using Coggan’s method.
Strava
2018
Results
| Steve (106 mile) | 79th in 2hr 7min |
Bike setup
| Steve | Bike: Niner RLT 9 RDO · Wheels: HED Emporia GA Pros · Tires: 43mm Panaracer Gravel King SK · Drivetrain: Shimano GRX 810 |
This was my second Fatbike Birkie and I had a little better overall finish than my previous. That being said, I felt fairly miserable for most of the race. I just couldn’t get my legs moving… They felt heavy and I just couldn’t get warmed up and moving. I felt like I was in trouble as soon as we hit the first hill and I started falling back.
Course
I like point to point races, but it sure is nice to finish in the same place that you started… I think I like point to point because I get bored of repeated laps, so a course like this with 1 big loop is the best as it feels like a point to point, but you don’t have to find a ride back to your car. The course followed the American Birkebeiner skate course out to OO and then took the classic course in reverse of the American Birkebeiner back to the start.
As you can see, the course is a constant up or down. There is very little flattish areas of the course. My elevation gain on Training Peaks came out to just over 3,000 feet. That’s a lot of climbing for a sub 30 mile course.
Gear
Bike
Trek Farley Carbon w/ Bontrager Carbon Wampa 27.5″ wheels and 4.5″ Barbagazzi Tires – I continue to ilke this bike and set-up.
GX 12sp Eagle with XO Cranks (was a closeout on the cranks when I built the bike) – I’m sold on the 1 x Eagle drivetrain and it’s pretty affordable now in the GX level.
Shimano XT brakes with non heat sink rotors – hard to beat these brakes.
Spare Parts & Tools
Topeak Hexus Multi-tool
25g air cartridge with Genuine Innovations Air Chuck
Sram Power Link
Nutrition
I can’t actually remember exactly what I did for nutrition, but I believe I had a bottle with Carbo Rocket and 1 with water. I think I also had a package of CliffBlocs. Somewhere along the way, somebody handed me a can of Mountain Dew also. I haven’t had one of those in years, but it was good at the time; although a bit sweet for my liking.
Race
To Timber Trail
The start of this race is awesome with such a crazy wide trail. The gate is super wide, so even if you are in the second gate, you end up only being a few rows back from the front line once everybody rolls up. I do remember during the rollout, one of the gate 1 guys yelling back at people to stop moving up because it was a neutral rollout…
Not to poke… but I found it amusing in a couple of ways… For one; the trail is 50ft wide and people are going to fill in the gaps and squeeze up. If they don’t, they’ll just start losing spots to everybody else that is squeezing up. Secondly, what’s that guy have to worry about if he’s a gate 1 racer… He afraid some gate 2 guy might beat him…? Anyways, I didn’t see anything going on that was out of the ordinary for any other typical rollout.
So the race was on and I was somewhere up in the mix between the gate 1 and 2 folks as the pace started dialing up. We hit the first hill and then I knew it was bad. I didn’t really feel the greatest anyways, but I just didn’t have it and felt like I was going backwards. This whole first section is uphill with some downhill dips along the way. Things started spreading out fast and I went from being in this thing mentally for a decent race to damage control in a hurry.
I hadn’t had a chance to warm up or loosen my legs before the race as I had gotten there just in time to get my number plate, chat with a couple of folks and then drop my bike in the gate. I wish I would have been able to spin the pedals for 10 minutes at least. In hindsight, it actually probably wasn’t all that bad when I look back. It’s not like I was a slug, but I just wasn’t feeling it that day.
This went on through the entire first section of trail and then some.
To Fire Tower
The overall elevation continues to gain and I was remembering some of these hills from the American Birkebeiner a couple of weeks prior. I struggled to get up the hills on my skis also. My power is actually up a little from this time last year, but my overall weight is up also. Losing 8 to 10 lbs would do me some good.
I still felt terrible through here and actually was probably feeling worse at the end of this section than I did at the end of the previous section. I was actually getting to a point where I just didn’t even want to be out there anymore. I had some bad attitude problems for a while. Don’t get me wrong… This was far from some sufferfest slog that the long endurance races bring. This was simply just not feeling it and suddenly just not wanting to be out there anymore.
Regardless, I kept pushing on.
To Boedecker
So after feeling like I was going backwards since the start of the race, I hit some downhill sections and gave my legs a little break. My head wasn’t quite in it yet, but I was now 45 minutes into this thing and at the end of the day… I wasn’t going to quit even though I didn’t want to be there in those moment(s). I wasn’t suffering, I wasn’t in pain, my hands weren’t frozen, etc… I was just tired and didn’t have the legs that I wanted that morning (happens more often than not I guess…).
Anyway, I think by the time I hit Boedecker I was starting to come around from the point of not wanting to be out there to… Well, I’m here and I need to finish the job the best I can.
To OO and Back To Boedecker
By the time I hit OO my legs were actually starting to feel like they were ready to race. I didn’t have the power that I wanted, but I was starting to get my head into the game more. I made the turnaround at OO and knew I was past halfway now and just needed to bring it home. I started working a little harder on the flats and taking some more risk in the downhills. The risk in the downhills was helping me pick up some places and bringing back my motivation while stomping out the whiny negative attitude in my head. I still wasn’t climbing well, but I was mentally getting back in the game.
By the time I got back to firetower, I was mentally in full race mode… About time as I was over an hour into a race that wouldn’t take much more than 2 hours to finish.
To Fire Tower
I was starting to race harder now. You can see it in my average heart rate for these last 2 sections if you look in the lap charts. My average heart rate was up 4 beats per minute in the last 2 sections of the race. I was still struggling on the uphills, but I found myself fighting harder to stay with people vs just letting them go. I would then make up places on the downhills. I was actually starting to race my bike…
To Timber Trail
I think I mentioned this in my Birkebeiner ski race report… But, these trails all kind of just blend together for me. It’s not like singletrack where I remember very specific sections of trail… This is wide groomed highway through the woods. It’s amazing, but it does blend together for me mentally.
The further I got into this thing, the more serious I was feeling about racing and I actually started making up some spots on the climbs now. I don’t know whether that was the fatigue of others or me working harder. I think it was a mix of both.
To Finish
On to the finish… You keep thinking that it’s all downhill from here, but like I mentioned earlier… It’s all up and down. You might lose overall elevation through a section of the course, but you are going to climb repeatedly on your way down. I was in race mode here. I think I continued picking off a few more spots on the way to the finish, but I was still struggling on the climbs. My legs were fried when I crossed the finish line, but I felt better in my head as well for having pulled things together and getting into race mode.
I ended up finishing 83rd overall out of 486 racers with a time of 2 hrs and 7 minutes – 18 minutes back from the winner.
Wrap Up
All said and done… This was probably one of the best winters I’ve had for winter sports in general. I got out on my fatbike quite a bit, went skiing a few times and even did my first American Birkebeiner. That being said, I’m ready for summer now. It’s been a long, but great winter. Until next time…
Strava
2016
Results
| Steve (106 mile) | 94th in 2hr 8min |
Bike setup
| Steve | Bike: Specialized Fatboy · Wheels: Stock Wheels · Tires: Specialized Ground Control · Drivetrain: Sram 2 X 10 |
The Fat Bike Birkie would be the end of my first season of fat bike racing before immediately jumping into my first 100 miler. The Fat Bike Birkie turned out to be a really great event and one that I hope I can make it to every year.
Pre Fat Bike Birkie Race
My buddy Mike dropped his bike off at my house Friday night, so I could load it up in the jeep and be already to go first thing in the morning. We were planning to leave my house before 5:00 am to make the drive up to Cable. It is about a 2 and half hour drive up to Cable and we arrived with plenty of time to grab our race numbers and get set up to race. They had a really nice set up with a heated tent and were well organized for the check-in.
I was getting excited to ride, but still planning to treat it like a big group ride, since I was racing a 100 miler in Utah the following weekend. I’m not in good enough shape yet to continue racing back to back weekends, especially with a 100 miler thrown in the mix. That being said, it is hard to go out and ride in a race and not push yourself and race mode was starting to settle into my head as I put my number on my bike.
I ended up going for a short little spin up the road to make sure everything was good with my bike and gear. I adjusted my tire pressure a little bit and decided I would try and get a decent spot in the starting gates. I had a Gate 2 starting spot and was able to set my bike up about 3 or 4 rows back in Gate 2 and then headed inside the tent to stay warm until the race started.
The Fat Bike Birkie Race
Good times were about to be had… The National Anthem was sung, the gate tape was pulled up and we all rolled forward in preparation for the roll out. It was a good roll out down the snow packed gravel road as people jockeyed for positions. I think I fell back in the pack a bit on the gravel… I get a little nervous in the big packs as everybody is squeezing into any open space in front of them. In the grand scheme though, everybody played it fairly safe and I only saw 1 close call up in front of me. We soon hit the groomed trails and the racing began. The corduroy was awesome for traction, but there was still a few soft spots.
The Birkie is full of rollers and there was some good sized ones along the power lines. I’ve made good improvements in my climbing over last season and was able to make up any lost ground during the climbs. I don’t think my Specialized Ground Control tires roll very well, but they had great traction on the climbs. The downhills were fast and fun, but you had to be a little careful of catching your front tire in somebody’s rut and I found the untouched corduroy to be the safest route.
We soon hit the woods and traffic started to thin out a bit. I was having fun and starting to get wrapped into racing a little more each mile. I found myself pushing my pace, not over pushing, but I was running around threshold for sure and feeling good. At some point, I said the heck with it and figured I was here to race and I would worry about next weekends 100 miler… next weekend.
I usually break down my race reports by sections of the course, but quite honestly the course was more of the same throughout, except for the never ending Birkie roller climbs. I don’t say this with any negative annotation at all, I loved riding / racing the Fat Bike Birkie course. It was a ton of fun and my first time riding a groomed ski trail. It was a totally different fat biking experience and I relished every moment of it. I had a blast bombing the downhills and hanging a foot off the side as I banked around the corners at the bottom of the hills.
There was one snowmobile trail crossing halfway down one of the fast downhill sections that created a little flat section that I caught some air from… it was a fun ride. I did well on the climbs, but there were a few strong climbers that dropped me on a few climbs. As we neared the finish, we were dropped back out on the power line section of the trail with some fast descents and some big climbs that I lost a few places as I was not able to hang on to the line of 3 or 4 riders I was with when we entered this section. I hit the gravel road and pushed myself to the finish in 2 hours, 8 minutes and 57 seconds in 94th place.
Post Fat Bike Birkie Thoughts
I hadn’t planned on racing too hard, but I did push myself into a race pace for most of the race. I wouldn’t call it a full 100% race pace, but I was pushing it hard for sure. The Birkie course was fast this year for sure, compared to the previous year. Like every race, I always want to finish better… but I was quite happy to finish in the top 100.
Fat Bike season is over now and I had some good and bad experiences. I never quite figured out the nutrition and hydration part of it, but I haven’t really gotten that figured out either for the summer races. I still don’t know if I am interested in doing any of the ultras. I might keep winter racing to the shorter stuff and save the endurance stuff for the summer. You never know with me though, so we will see what happens next winter.
I ended up racing in 5 total Great Lakes Fat Bike Series Events; Solstice Chase, Cuyuna Whiteout, Frozen Forty, 906 Polar Roll, Fat Bike Birkie and ended up finishing 21st in the series. I am not sure I could tell you what my favorite race was, but I am leaning toward the Birkie. If weather had been better, the 906 Polar Roll might have been it or Solstice Chase may have been the one if we had snow on the ground. It is safe to say that I will be racing my Fat Bike again next year. Until then, enjoy the summer race reports!