Huge turnout this year and especially for the Ultra. Usually the regular century is the big draw since this is one of only two US qualifiers for the Gran Fondo World Championship every year. But everything has been growing and I think this was the biggest yet. 1200 riders. Always far fewer fellow masochists sign up for the Ultra but this was easily the biggest Ultra field I've seen. Very cool to see. Now these past couple of years the Ultra wave starts 3 minutes after the last age groupers from the century and so there is absolutely no chance whatsoever of us catching the front pack of each age group (3 waves for 3 age groups). But every year you can bet a couple fast folks will try. So the first little gradual climb up White's Gap is raced at a completely unsustainable pace for anyone but it's worth it to try to hang on because afterwards is a very long and quite flat highway section. Along the way we picked up lots of stragglers that dropped off the century groups. We swallowed a few little groups this year and the pack was quite large. Absolutely no reason to do any work at all because there's always someone willing to push the pace here for some reason. Along the way we passed a fast looking guy finishing up a flat change, an soon enough he bridges up to us and worked his way to the front and pushed the pace so hard it became sort of difficult to even sit in the middle of the pack on the little rises. But finally we arrived at the Skyway and I really had no expectations but hoped to stay with the front group of the Ultras at least. There appeared to more that 20 in the group at from what I could tell. We lost most of the big peloton that joined us and I managed just barely to stay in contact up the first climb on the Skyway. I had to back off a bit after that and by the time we hit the timer for the first time up Cheaha the fast folks were well and truly gone, and quite a few of them. I reckoned that I was at least as far back as 10th, perhaps more. It gets real confusing at the beginning who is racing whom as everyone is mixed up. So I was constantly scanning bib numbers to see if it said ultra in the middle. I settled into a slightly more sustainable pace after this, but still quite hard. On the descent down to Lake Chinnabee I passed everyone that was ahead of me as it is an out and back purely to make the 2nd Cheaha climb longer with more elevation gain. Figured I had a top ten and tried to settle into an all day pace. Got passed by a couple Ultra riders on the climb up, and kept one guy in sight for miles on the Skyway but he slowly pulled away. As always the return trip down the Skyway drags on for much longer than I think it should, but mercifully it ended and I dropped down to the highway again. Worked with a couple of century riders here until my turn off to Bains gap. Another out and back up a ridiculously steep climb, both sides equally brutal. I always get a bit of Dr Pepper at the rest stop on the Anniston side and that actually made a difference in how I felt. Well that and the oatmeal creme pie. So good. Here though I could see all the folks that I was racing ahead of me and I lost count after 10 so I was rather confused to my placing. No matter, as I was well out of the podium for sure. Just for pride's sake. I was holding up well but my legs weren't used to all the intensity and I was worried I would cramp. My legs really hurt all day but I never did cramp. After Bains gap I allowed myself to "notice" what mile I was at on the ride and found myself pleasantly surprised, Fewer than 20 miles and only 2 climbs left. This lifted my spirits a bit and I pressed on. Survived the not so bad in comparison Cottaquilla gap climb, and actually felt serviceable by the time I rode in to town only to have to ride away from town again up by far the hardest climb of the day up Chimney Peak. I saw a fellow racer up the road about 3 minutes ahead, tacking against the steep grade. I rode fairly hard with what I had up the first steep section but he never got any closer so I rode the rest a bit easier. Plunged down back to town sufficiently exhausted but happy to have another Ultra under the belt. I did it in 7:30, good for 9th in the end. Only 3 minutes slower than 2019 when I finished 3rd. Winner finished in a silly 6:15. Amazing.