Man Versus Machine
The Ring
For the last several years my friend Jeremah has been diligently following the times of runners finishing The Massanutten Trail Circuit Run, a.k.a. The Ring--arguably one of the most difficult mountain trails on the east coast. This might not seem odd were Jeremiah a runner, but he’s not. He’s a mountain bike racer. And a world-class one at that. But you see, until this year no one had ever ridden a mountain bike around a full circuit of The Ring in a time anywhere close to the Fastest Known Time (FKT) for a runner. In the spring of 2017, a full hour separated the fastest mountain bike time (15:45) from the fastest running time (14:46). Yes, that’s more than 14 hours of total effort we’re talking about. Later that same year, Adam Watkins put another 30 minutes into the running vs riding gap with a seemingly untouchable run time of 14:23. But Jeremiah wasn’t ready to give up hope. He’d done the numbers, he’d looked at the attempts. While there were sections that a runner might have the advantage, he knew there was a chance that a mountain bike could be faster on a number of sections. But the rider would need to have a lot of fitness, a ton of technical skill, and a little luck on their side to beat the running mark.
Lindsey all smiles for miles (photo by Sam Skidmore)
A number of riders have attempted to close the gap between riding and running. In 2019 there were several successful “full pulls” around the entire Ring in one shot, but no rider came close to Adam’s run time. At least one attempt by two riders started at record pace, but both riders fell short after bodies and equipment failed. And then when no one was watching, Paul Jacobs raised the bar again with a new running FKT of 13:29. I wasn’t sure if it could be done faster on a bike. The Ring was simply too hard. But a few riders held out hope, including Lindsey Carpenter, who in September of 2019 set a new Women’s cycling FKT of 16:40 (incidentally 42 minutes faster than the Female running FKT) and set off a chain of events that would prove Jeremiah’s predictions correct.
On October 26th, Pennsylvania transplant Madison Matthews took his second “full pull” on The Ring. Growing up in central PA, Madison cut his teeth on the rough-and-tumble trails of Rothrocks and Bald Eagle State Forests before relocating south to Harrisonburg. Last year, his first successful completion of The Ring was a mostly blind attempt--a go-for-broke but committed ride, but with little foreknowledge of the trail other than what he’d read online. This year his goal was not only to finish but to make his mark, which he did in commanding fashion. I met up with Madison during his pull by riding backwards along the course, and was surprised to find him well ahead of my back-of-the-napkin prediction. I was moving a downed tree when he came bombing along, and when he let up to chat I waved him off. “Keep going, I’ll catch up” I said. But I instantly regretted my comment as I had to hammer to find him again. He was moving. Ultimately, Madison laid down a tremendous effort and set a new cycling FKT of 13:54--less than 30 minutes behind Paul’s running FKT. But what was even more surprising was the comparison of their moving time using GPS data: Madison’s riding time was actually 30 minutes faster than Paul’s running time--it was only in stoppage time that Paul ultimately came out ahead. You see on The Ring, it’s clock time that matters. Your time starts when you leave Signal Knob parking lot, and it stops when you return, the long way around. Jeremiah texted me that night. “That’s rock solid and confirms that the running time can be beat!”. Yes, it did. And four days later, it was.
Madison on his FKT Pull
Eddie and Charlie on The Ring (photo by Charlie Snyder)
Sam on his record-setting Pull (photo by Lindsey Carpenter)
Sam Skidmore and Charlie Snyder are well known in the Virginia cycling community. Charlie holds the record on the RockStar Gravel route (270 miles in just over 24 hours), while Sam recently wrapped up an impressive season racing Pro Enduro (2nd overall, WV Enduro Series). Both are wizards on technical trails like The Ring, and both know the mental tenacity needed to endure mile after mile of unforgiving terrain. But more importantly, both are veterans of The Ring, and have held the previous cycling FKT records prior to Madison. So on October 30th, fueled by Madison’s high mark, they set off together and made history--both completing a full pull on a bike faster than the running FKT: 13:13 for Charlie and a scorching 12:22 for Sam.
Sam and Paul were both gracious enough to share their GPS files with me, and being the data geek I am, I decided to do a little analysis of their respective ride and run. Note Paul and Sam circumnavigated The Ring on different days, but since their routes were identical we can match up their GPS files and visualize what it would have been like had they been competing head-to-head. A few hours of scripting and a little Excel magic, and here’s what I learned about their achievements. The results might surprise you as well.
Difference between Sam’s cycling FKT and Paul’s running FKT (baseline Sam)
The above graph represents the difference between Sam’s riding effort as compared to Paul’s running effort. The horizontal axis is distance along the course, in miles. The vertical axis is time, in minutes. The red line is their difference in time, in minutes, at any given point along the course. When their times are equal, their difference is zero, represented by the black line. When the red line is above the black line, Sam is ahead. When the red line is below the black line, Paul is ahead. Finally, the green represents the course profile, in elevation, along the course. Note their time difference increases exponentially at the finish, and due to some GPS drift there could be slight mis-alingment between the two efforts. Regardless, the trends are still noteworthy and show just how close man versus machine really was. A few general observations:
First, I was surprised to see how close they were throughout the day. Every time the red line crosses the black axis, it represents times when Sam and Paul were dead even. Had they been riding on the same day they would have been literally side-by-side. Notable meet-up points include at Veech Gap, along the east ridge, and the top of Short Mountain.
Second, it was interesting to see that Paul was consistently faster on the uphill sections, where he would put time into Sam. Most notable was the first stretch up Shawl Gap, the slog up Waterfall, and the push up Wanoze Peak. Sam, on the other hand was consistently faster on the downhill sections, as could be expected for a rider of Sam’s caliber. Note only did he make up his deficit on Shawl while descending the north side of Veech, he also made up significant time down to Waterfall, down Moreland, and down Wanoze Peak.
Finally, I was most impressed to see Sam’s finish, where he went from a 10 minute deficit at the top of Wanoze Peak, to finishing an hour ahead by the bottom of Signal. Logically, this makes sense as the stretch along the West Ridge is some of the fastest, most rideable sections of The Ring, and the climb to Signal is basically a gravel road. Using segments as listed in Strava, here’s a bit more detail of how their days went in comparison to one another. For each section I’ll report Sam’s riding time, Paul’s running time, and for reference, the Strava “King of the Mountain” or KOM time, which can generally be assumed as the FKT for that particular segment as ridden by all riders for the last several years.
Shawl Climb - 1.71 miles
Sam: 20:47
Paul: 19:37
KOM: 18:39 (Mike Danish)
The traditional course for The Ring starts at Signal Knob and runs clockwise around the Northern Massanutten Formation. After a short hop to the Elizabeth Furnace recreation area, the trail head up Shawl Gap to the east ridge. Initially non-technical, the trail increases in difficulty and steepness, culminating in a short hike-a-bike section that is virtually impossible to ride up.
Sam made a steady effort up the initial climb, but was more than a minute behind Paul at the first intersection on the ridge. Paul’s run was fast, but was in turn a minute behind Mike Danish’s KOM--although Mike didn’t have to go on to ride another 12 hours the day he rode. Paul would continue to put time into Sam up to the summit of Shawl and across the ridge.
Ride it if you can. Most cannot.
The burn section above Veech Gap is bumpy
Shawl to Little Crease Shelter - 5.56 miles
Sam: 54:04
Paul: 59:08
KOM: 53:47 (Charlie Snyder)
From the saddle at Shawl Gap, the trail undulates up and down over the east ridge, cumulating at a lookout near the north side of Veech Gap. Some portions of this section are extremely challenging to ride, either due to grade or terrain. However, once past the lookout, a long double-track, fairly wide descent awaits the athletes.
While Sam and Paul for the most part were even along the ridge, the long descent down to Veech Gap allowed Sam to recover his deficit from the initial climb and close the gap, drawing virtually equal to Paul at the Little Crease Shelter. Incidentally the KOM for this segment was set by Charlie Snyder the same day as Sam’s pull, only 17 seconds ahead.
Veech Gap Climb to East Side - 0.87 miles
Sam: 13:58
Paul: 12:50
KOM: 13:54 (Mikal Davis)
From Little Crease, the trail heads uphill on an old wagon road nearly straight up to the ridge. The terrain is relatively non-technical, but long and steep with some loose surfaces.
Once again, on the steep climb Paul pulled ahead and put time back into Sam, beating Mikal Davis’ cycling KOM by just over a minute.
No, Sam didn’t ride drop bars. But he could have going up Veech Gap.
Bump and grind is the story of the east ridge
Veech to Milford - 3.27 miles
Sam: 29:52
Paul: 31:30
KOM: 24:41 (Barry Croker)
Once atop the ridge above Veech Gap, the Massanutten trail once again undulates along the east ridge, sometimes steep, sometimes mellow, always rocky. Frequent interspersed rock features mean riders must balance their efforts given the long day ahead.
Sam and Paul were virtually neck and neck across this stretch of the east ridge, never more than 2 minutes apart. In the end, Sam’s split was just over a minute faster than Paul, but still five minutes behind the KOM set by yours truely.
Milford Gap to Horse Parking Lot - 10.27 miles
Sam: 1:44:28
Paul: 1:52:38
KOM: 1:22:11 (Jeremiah Bishop)
The next long stretch on the east ridge is challenging to both runners and riders, and only allowed Sam to build his first major lead. Mostly ridable with some hike-a-bike sections, Sam had a several-minute lead by the time he turned downhill near Kennedy Peak. Once pointed downhill, Sam had the clear advantage and his overall gap ahead of Paul grew to nearly 20 minutes. Although Sam’s pace along the ridge was fast, Sam’s time ostill fell nearly 22 minutes short of Jeremiah Bishops’ KOM, set during a prior-year’s Tour de Burg stage. It’s worth noting that Jeremiah’s pace represents that of a world-class athlete during a shorter overall effort. His pace during le Tour would certainly be much faster than could be sustained for a 10+ hour effort around the entire Ring.
Best thing about Mountain Bikes: they all come with a free hiker.
Finally a break from the rocks. Briefly.
Duncan Hollow Climb - 5.43 miles
Sam: 52:05
Paul: 58:40
KOM: 47:11 (Jeremiah Bishop)
After the bumpy descent to Camp Roosevelt, the trail mellows for several miles along an old logging road up Duncan Hollow, towards the south end of The Ring. Although in recent years this trail has been in bad shape, recent use has begun to re-compact the trail and rideability has significantly improved.
After a short breakfast stop by both (Sam’s slightly longer than Paul’s grab-and-go), both rider and runner were equally matched up Duncan. With a steady grade and relatively non-techncal terrain, the long climb up Duncan Hollow was the first climb that Sam didn’t lose significant time to Paul. In fact, the segment time shows Sam actually finished three minutes faster than Paul, but still 5 minutes slower than Jereminah’s KOM set during a previous Ring FKT attempt.
Massanutten Connector DH - 1.56 miles
Sam: 9:11
Paul: 15:20
KOM: 9:11 (Sam Skidmore)
Once at the top of Duncan, the trail once again heads downhill, sometimes smooth and sometimes frighteningly rocky, towards the bottom of the Waterfall climb.
Sam’s Enduro prowess was clearly visible during the fast descent, beating Paul by more than 6 minutes and setting a new KOM in the process. At this point, Sam had his largest gap yet on Paul--more than 20 minutes ahead of his virtual race partner.
They don’t call it “waterfall” for nothing
Party train up Waterfall
Waterfall Mtn Ascent - 0.62 miles
Sam: 20:30
Paul: 14:50
KOM: 18:02 (Mike Joos)
Waterfall is a beast, riding or running. Only 0.6 miles long, the climb gains more than 800 vertical feet, and tops out at over 25% grade in places. The reality is you have to walk no matter what way you set off doing The Ring.
Sam’s time up waterfall was only 2 minutes slower than Mike Joo’s KOM, but more than 5 minutes slower than Paul, who didn’t have 30 pounds of machine to drag up with him. For the record, Mike also had a light-weight hardtail during his KOM. A short, but well-deserved rest at the top of Crisman hollow also eroded more than half of Sam’s lead at this point.
Kern Mtn - North - 4.64 miles
Sam: 57:55
Paul: 55:33
KOM: 57:55 (Sam Skidmore)
Kern Mountain, or “Jawbone” is the first of two insanely technical stretches of The Ring, and a segment where a runner could certainly have an advantage over a cyclist--and a tired cyclist at that. While it starts gentle enough, it soon deteriorates into rocky, narrow, often overgrown sections that require a rider to conserve energy and choose what rock moves to make big efforts on.
While Sam set a new KOM along Jawbone, he was still 3 minutes slower than Paul, and his lead shrunk to only 5 minutes by the time he reached Jawbone Gap.
Jawbone starts innocently enough
Chunky Monkey. (Photo by Jeff Dickey)
Jawbone Descent - West Side - 1.55 miles
Sam: 11:32
Paul: 15:22
KOM: 10:00 (Sam Skidmore)
Descending Jawbone is just as chunky as the ridge, only the downslope gives the rider a great advantage.
As expected, Sam used the descent down to Moreland Gap to his advantage, and while he rode slightly slower than his own KOM time, he still managed to descend several minutes faster than Paul and increasing his overall lead to nearly 15 minutes.
Short Mtn S to N - 6.21 miles
Sam: 1:22:15
Paul: 1:18:51
KOM: 1:22:15 (Sam Skidmore)
Short is the second brutal section of The Ring, with multiple sections barely rideable by a cyclist with fresh legs, let alone one with 8+ hours of riding under their belt. Large rocks, rock fields, and piles of rocks all sap the energy of riders or force them off their bikes altogether.
Sam started Short Mountain with a near-15 minute lead, but near the top, Paul had closed the gap and was virtually ahead of Sam with a slight lead. Only the long descent to Edinburg Gap allowed Sam to recover some advantage. Overall Paul traversed Short nearly 5 minutes faster than Sam, even with Sam setting a new KOM.
Short is not short, but full of choss.
Rob and Travis checking out the spring on Wanoze
Powell Mountain Trail Climb - 1.69 miles
Sam: 32:39
Paul: 27:36
KOM: 20:08 (Nick Waite)
From Edinburg, the trail goes back up again towards Wanoze peak along a narrow, sometimes rocky, but always steep climb.
A brief stop at Edinburg Gap, and a long slog up to the peak put Sam at his final deficit to Paul. Nick Waite’s KOM would still have been well ahead of both Paul and Sam, but once again was set at a Tour de Burg pace. At the top of Wanoze Sam was near his largest deficit to Paul, almost 10 minutes down.
Wanoze Peak to Mudhole - 11.24 miles
Sam: 1:36:50
Paul: 2:01:37
KOM: 1:14:53 (Bryan Lewis)
From Wanoze, the trail traverses the West Ridge along fast to rolling terrain. While there are some rocks, the trail is mostly fast and flowing with a net elevation loss, clearly to the advantage of a cycling. The West Ridge is one of the most ridable, and most enjoyable, sections of The Ring.
Once Sam descended Wanoze he rapidly caught up to and passed Paul. From this point on, Sam opened his lead and never gave it back, riding the 10-mile stretch nearly 25 minutes faster than his virtual opponent. However, he still was nearly 20 minutes slower than Bryan Lewis’ KOM from the infamous Twin Towers stage of the Tour de Berg.
Ready to roll
Gate to Blue Hike-a-Bike - 2.71
Sam: 19:17
Paul: 29:26
KOM: 14:53 (Jeremiah Bishop)
At Mudhole Gap the trail turns from ridge singletrack to valley gravel road, slowly climbing towards Signal Knob.
Sam had a clear advantage when the terrain was flat to rolling, and added another 10 minutes to his lead, 5 minutes off Jeremiah’s KOM pace.
Signal Knob Fire Road Climb - 0.96 miles
Sam: 16:40
Paul: 14:08
KOM: 8:24 (Zach Ghalayini)
While the climb to signal is still fire road, the pitches of nearly 20% are physically and mentally exhausting to a rider more than 10 hours in.
As he gradually crawled upwards, Sam’s lead began to erode slightly. Afterwards Sam told me he started coming apart physically and mentally on this stretch. The fatigue of his long effort started to kick in, and the weather at his heels started to let doubts creep into his mind. Losing 5 minutes of his lead, he soldiered on up and over the last major push of the day.
Signal Knob climb is a road.
Signal to Meneka - 0.89 miles
Sam: 14:12
Paul: 11:44
KOM: 9:06 (Barry Croker)
Just when you think you’ve had enough rocks, The Ring throws two chunky sections at you: Signal to Meneka and Signal itself. What was once rideable now becomes a challenge to push, and the only motivation is the finish line at the bottom. A short up, and a short down, but both with large rock moves and sketchy lines.
Again, Sam admitted walking more than he wanted to along this stretch, but it was the best his body would allow after the effort of the day. Once again Paul was several minutes faster up and over the last climb of the day before the final descent.
Signal Knob Descent - 3.4 miles
Sam: 27:57
Paul: 45:28
KOM: 22:50 (Graham Smith)
Signal Descent is brutal. Period. You might think it’s downhill, so it’s an easy finish, but it’s not. It’s chunkier, rockier, and rougher than just about any other section of The Ring. Many riders cannot ride Signal with fresh legs, let alone with 65 miles under their belt. To add to the challenge, Sam said it began to rain at this point making some of the rocks treacherous.
With the weather moving in, Sam threw it into high gear and churned out a time only minutes slower than Graham Smiths KOM. His Enduro skills clearly showed an advantage, while Paul, slowed by the long sections of rock fall, finished nearly 15 minutes behind.
Epilogue
Both Sam and Paul, and anyone else who has attempted or finished The Ring, should be extremely proud of their achievement. Lindsey Carpenter’s FKT is also a monumental achievement that will likely stand for years to come. I had a lot of fun putting together this analysis. If anyone has ideas of other ways to slice the data, drop me a line at barry [at] 2wheeldad.com. And if you’re interested in giving The Ring a pull of your own, here’s some resources for you!
Ride the Massanutten Ring (Facebook Page)
King and Queen of The Ring