Sarah’s 2023 Smoke n’ Fire
Since I’m writing this in early January 2024, I’ve had four months to contemplate my Smoke n’ Fire race but I’m still a little befuddled on what to say because it was so… extra. First off, the scenery and natural beauty were stunning. It is a truly beautiful route, which is helpful when it starts bringing the hurt (to wit: of 88 starters, 42 scratched). On my own personal subjective scale of hard stuff per mile, I think it’s the toughest thing I’ve ever done. The 2023 version of the route was extra spicy with new technical singletrack and long, steep hike-a-bike sections. Everything took much longer than I expected it to, resulting in repeatedly dialing back mileage goals throughout each day. The drama factor was a little higher than normal too. I was barked off an awesome camp spot by sheep dogs then chased by them at full speed for a half mile. I crashed a couple of times (nothing serious thankfully), dumped the bike countless times, and had gut, saddle sore, and GPS signal issues.
Race day 3:31am: Carey (left) and I about to ride to the start. Nervous smiles!
The highest of the high drama was in the last 24ish hours of the race. Tired math led me to skip charging my cache batteries at Redfish Lake (when I should have) which resulted in my Wahoo navigation device dying in the dark with 20ish miles to the finish. My phone was at 5%, my headlamp was running low, and I had no juice left in my cache batteries. Then when I started the descent in Bogus Basin, I couldn’t hold my head up. My neck was like a limp noodle, with my head bouncing like a bobblehead on every bump. I learned later that this was probably a condition called Shermer’s neck, likely caused by my new, heavier head lamp being mounted too far forward on my helmet and piling on the miles with it too quickly. I fashioned neck support by connecting the back of my helmet to my hydration vest with a Voile strap. That sort of helped, but also predictably restricted my ability to look down anytime I was off the bike. Moving my light to the handlebar mount only worked for visibility while walking, since the trail was so sinuous.
I was a hot mess, stumbling when on foot and dumping my bike repeatedly when I tried to ride. I finally conceded that I was a menace to myself and camped at 1am with what I now estimate to have been only about 6 miles to the finish. I didn’t sleep well since I was stressed about how I’d find my way out in the morning if my phone died but my neck benefited from rest. I wasn’t concerned about safety - I was close enough to town to not get lost and perish in the scrub. But I really wanted to follow the correct route and get credit for finishing the race!
I didn’t know it at the time but while I lied there fretting in my bivy, my friends Cori and Carey were in downtown Boise until 2:30am, waiting to cheer for me at the finish line. They were texting with Irena, all of them a little concerned and trying to figure out what was going on with me since my dot had stopped moving. I had not anticipated this in the moment and I now very much regret not messaging them to tell them I was camping. Cori, Carey, and Irena: I love you and am grateful for you.
The next morning, I was able to navigate by using a combination of following the tracks of other riders, using a trailhead kiosk map and Gaia (where I had the route loaded) to memorize the sequence of trails I’d need to follow, and sparingly looking at the route on my phone. I took a wrong turn twice but was able to course-correct quickly and rolled to the finish with 1% battery left on my phone. Cori and Carey were there cheering with cowbell, as well as Laura and Cody Heiner from Idaho Women’s Bikepacking and a number of other kind folks. Laura had a cooler stocked with cold beverages. I enjoyed a breakfast beer. I was so tired and dirty and couldn’t hold my head level but was ridiculously happy.
The community feeling in this race is incredible. Laura’s efforts to encourage and support women in lining up for the SnF grand depart have infused the race with a warm and welcoming spirit. I didn’t want to get too into the play-by-play weeds in this post but also don’t want to hold back on beta that could be helpful to women contemplating a go at SnF. To that end, I’m sharing my raw notes from the race, dictated into my phone each day from the route (except the last full day which I did after I finished). It is five pages of profanity-laced exhausted stream of consciousness run-on-sentences but may nonetheless contain a valuable nugget or two for someone. Additional data can be found in my nerdsheet that I made in preparation for SnF, with additional notes added after the race. Folks are welcome to reach out to me with questions.
Some additional random tidbits in no particular order:
We had pretty consistent inversion conditions (warmer at high elevations, cooler down low). If this is a standard occurrence in the area, it’s useful information for future racers because you can shoot to camp up high.
Being underfueled for the duration of this race (I couldn’t eat my usual bikepacking favorites due to dental work I’d had before the race and the new foods I was relying upon didn’t sit well) had unexpected repercussions at night. First, I was experiencing target fixation. Wherever my headlamp shone, my body (and therefore bike) followed whether I wanted it to or not. Second, I lost the ability to discern pitch when descending on singletrack and was picking up speed unexpectedly because the trail appeared more level than it was. Weird stuff.
Wild camping gives me a sense of peace and calm that I never find in campgrounds or in town. It sparks a childlike, primordial joy in my soul when I find the perfect little spot tucked away from the trail and I lie in my bivy looking up at the stars. It wasn’t always this way. I was pretty nervous the first time I slept alone in the woods and I know that is the case for many women. Similar to many aspects of bikepacking, it is not without risk but it can also be wonderful.
If the 2023 route between Stanley and Garden Valley is used again in future SnF’s: whatever food you anticipate you’ll need for this section and time you think you’ll need to complete it, double it.
Smoke n’ Fire was really tough but gorgeous and fun and I very much recommend it. Doing hard things is what keeps life interesting and fun, after all.
