Todd Wells

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  • http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/SBCBkFamily.jsp?sid=12EpicFSR&scid=1100&scname=Mountain

    S-Works Epic

    The fastest, lightest and most efficient performance mountain bikes...

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    Stumpjumper FSR

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  • http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/SBCEqProductList.jsp?sid=2012EquipHelmetMTB&pscid=1009&scid=1136

    S-Works MTB Helmet

    The lightest certified helmet in the world, worn by 2008 UCI World XC Champion Christoph Sauser...

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  • http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/SBCEqSelectSection.jsp?scid=1128&pscid=1009

    Specialized Gloves

    Made to keep your grip sweat-free and your bike control precise ...

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  • http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/SBCEqSCLander.jsp?scid=1008

    Tires

    The product that started it all.....

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S-Works Epic

I started racing mountain bikes in the fall of 1994. I won the collegiate National Championships in 1995 and 1996 for Fort Lewis College. In 1996 I also started racing with the Specialized Mountain Dew team and won the inaugural Semi Pro Norba National Series Title. In 1997 I turned Pro and raced the NORBA series, U-23 World Championships, and domestic World Cups until 98. I took a few years off cycling, finished college in Arizona and got a “real” job with IBM. I quickly realized racing bikes was more fun then working and started training again. I started racing again in the middle 2000 and joined the Mongoose Hyundai team at the end of year to race World Cups, NORBAs and cyclocross. In 2003 I switched to the GT team and have ridden for them until switching back to Specialized this year. Over the years I have won two cyclocross national titles, one mountain bike short track national title and been a member of two Olympic teams. I have won NORBAs, numerous UCI cyclocross races and stood on my first World Cup podium this year. I am looking forward to adding to my list of achievements over the next three years with the Specialized Factory Team.

Achievements

2011 US Cyclocross National Champion
2011 La Ruta de los Conquistadores 1st Place
2011 Leadville Trail 100 1st Place
2011 US Cross Coutry Mountain Bike National Champion
2011 Sea Otter Classic XC 1st Place

Leadville 100

August 16, 2010

That is one long race! This past weekend was my first mountain bike hundred miler and maybe my last. It was unlike any race I have ever done before. The Leadville 100 is a one hundred mile out and back mountain bike race that takes place mostly between 10,000 and 12,600 feet.

The course is made up mostly of fire-road, asphalt road and less then one mile of single track. It rolls most of the time but has five major climbs that are pretty long but all ride able. The downhills have a few rocks but are mostly wide open and fast. There isn’t that much

shelter on the course so a lot of the time you’re exposed to the wind whipping up the valleys.

The race starts at 6:30 AM in downtown Leadville. All 1,400 competitors start together and do a neutral downhill start for four miles. It’s pretty scary rolling downhill while it’s still partially

dark and forty degrees with all the racers of different ability levels going about thirty five miles an hour bar to bar. After the neutral start we hit the dirt road and the race started to string out. We had to dodge a few cows before hit the first climb.

I thought we would take it easy in the beginning but I was breathing hard after just ten minutes into the race and we went over the first climb with a group of just six riders. The group swelled a bit on the road descent and by the time we started the next climb we were a group of maybe twelve. The second climb was only about twenty-five minutes and when we reached the top we were a group of only five and Ned was in there along with JHK, Levi and Shriver. That was when my day took a turn for the worse.

We were rolling across the top and I was on Levi’s wheel when he suddenly slammed on his brakes and turned off course while going about twenty miles an hour. I didn’t have time to react and slammed into him crashing hard and ripping out the spokes in my front wheel and

flatting. I was dazed but by the time I got up Ned was giving me his front wheel and I was off again and caught the group going down the Powerline descent.

We rode together in a group of about ten until the 3,000 ft Columbine climb at the forty-two mile mark. I couldn’t follow the pace of JHK and Levi and had to let go after about fifteen minutes of climbing. I rode with Bishop to the top and was hoping to keep the gap small and

close it on the descent. That didn’t happen though and I was two minutes behind JHK and Levi going through the aid station at the bottom of the climb and had dropped Bishop so I was on my own. After dodging racers coming the opposite direction for about fifteen miles

and having some very close calls I rode the rest of the race by myself. I had about fifteen miles of rolling head wind before the climbs started again and I would have given anything to have someone to swap pulls with.

I was pretty much done by the time I hit the last two climbs and couldn’t believe I made it up them because I was riding so slowly. I also ran out of water and had the dehydration white mouth thing going but I think everyone did. I managed to hang on for third and was pretty happy to get off my bike after 6:30 of riding. First thing I did was chug a few bottles of water, press conference and then off for more pain of cleaning out my wounds.

I’ll take the pain of an XC or CX race anytime where you don’t have time to think about how much pain you’re in until after the event. This race was a notch lower so you could fully take in the state you were in the entire time. I couldn’t believe how many citizen riders finished in the twelve hour cut off time and how many had really fast times. I hope I don’t have to do that race again for a long time.

Thanks for your support….

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