Rebecca Rusch

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Rebecca Rusch wasn’t thinking about world championships when she joined the Downers Grove North High School cross-country team. “I just wanted the free track suit,” recalls Rusch, who, 28 years later, finds herself among the ranks of the world’s elite endurance athletes. In July of 2009, Rusch won her third straight mountain biking 24-hour Solo World Championship.

Since donning those gray cotton sweats and Lycra shorts, Rusch has outfitted herself in the kit of numerous other disciplines: racking up ascents of big walls from Yosemite to Zion, paddling on the world-famous Offshore Canoe Club’s women’s outrigger team in the brutal Molokai crossing and winning adventure races around the world.

When not training in one of the five mountain ranges surrounding her hometown of Ketchum, Idaho, the 41-year-old known as the “Queen of Pain” can be found chasing adrenaline from Tibet to New Zealand to Kyrgyzstan, constantly adding titles to her impressive and extensive resume.

In addition to those three 24-hour solo mountain bike World Champion rainbow jerseys, Rusch is a three-time national champion in 24-hour team mountain biking. She’s Idaho’s Short Track state championship (twice), and its Cyclocross state title. An accomplished Nordic skier, she’s won the Masters Cross Country Skiing World Championship, in addition to taking the top prize at Raid Gauloises Adventure Racing World Championships. And although that’s just cross-section of her palmares, it’s easy to see why Rusch has been profiled by Sports Illustrated, Outside Magazine and Adventure Sport Magazine.

Talking about age draws a laugh as she gestures at her surroundings. "People around here are all 10 years younger than they actually are. And I don’t mean they just look it; they are actually 10 years younger," she said. "Everyone’s out there constantly doing stuff, from biking to skiing to hiking. There’s a collective mentality that if you don’t use it, you’ll lose it."

This mentality, along with what she calls "perfect terrain for training," provides a home base for the typically itinerant Rusch. She is part of the community; for more than two years she has been a stalwart volunteer emergency medical technician and firefighter for the Ketchum Fire Department, and a homeowner. On breaks from her race schedule, she works on her condominium, though the domestic idea continues to bemuse her; the last home she owned was a 1975 Ford Bronco.

Absa Cape Epic, Stage 5

March 26, 2009

I hate road racing. That’s the title of this posting for stage 5 of the Absa Cape Epic. Today’s stage was the last super long one, 111km and “only” 1546 meters of climbing. As usual, the first hour of the race was hard for me. I don’t have a stitch of fast twitch muscle and I usually require a long warm up before events. Logistically, it’s not possible here to warm up, so when the gun goes off, I’m pinned immediately. For many of the stages there are long sections of dirt or paved roads, so being able to stay with a strong group offers a huge advantage and the opportunity to rest and recover while still moving at a fast pace. Unfortunately, my diesel engine has not allowed us to stay where we want to be for the first part of the race. Once I’m warmed up and moving well, we then have to pick our way back up through the field and try to close the gaps between packs of riders. It ends up being like a very hard interval session that goes on for hours. Most days we end up passing people for the second half of the day, but today we really paid for the extra work.

Today felt like my weakest day of the whole race. I’m not sure why I was extra tired. Perhaps it’s the 500 km we’ve already ridden and 6 intense days of racing. I just wasn’t my normal self felt like I was working way too hard. I am really feeling the lack of miles under my belt, the heat and the challenges of a racing style that is not my forte. I know this is a long race, but each day is 5-6 hours with a very fast, explosive pace. Over 6 days, we’ve raced about 22 hours. Normally, I’d race that amount of time in on day.

The last 20 km of today’s stage was very hilly and the heat was intense. I struggled into the finish today and unfortunately we dropped from 5th to 6th in the mixed ranking. I was really affected by the heat again and am trying to take full advantage of the recovery this afternoon. Natasha and Claire have been incredible taking care of us with massage and nutrition. Our Specialized camp scene has been a welcome reprieve at the end of each day. It has been great to roll in, sip on recovery drinks, watch Benno and Dylan completely rebuild the bikes and share race stories from the day. There is a constant flow of people coming by Camp Specialized to say hi, get mechanical help and just hang out.

I am looking forward to the final finish line in Lourensford in 2 days. However, I will miss our nomadic lifestyle and the camaraderie that has developed around this race.

Tomorrow’s stage is 86 km with 1546 meters of climbing. It’s rumored to be the most technical stage in any Cape Epic race ever. Perhaps it will be less of a road race and will suit my strengths a bit more.

Stats for Rebecca Rusch are coming soon.
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