After arriving at 8am, I was quick to register, set up my bike, and scout out what other racers were wearing to combat the chilly morning air. My warm up laps could not have been more pleasant. I was falling in love with a great course, enjoying the brisk air, and catching up with my friend Dan that I haven’t seen in 2 years (who, coincidentally, turns out to be friends with pretty much everyone on the team). I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. Good people.
The course itself consisted of four distinct portions: The start was a short road stretch, followed by a grassy-switchback-spaghetti-bowl portion, followed by a wooded single track section, ending in a double sandbox. The grassy portion of the race was beautifully architected with off kilter turns over deep-rooted grass. A stair set and a couple barriers were thrown in for good measure. The wooded section was fast and straight, but was the fairy of the many flat tires that were sprinkled around (I received one in the C race and one in the B race). The sandbox grabbed a few front wheels, including Dan’s, but almost everyone choose to battle through the deep ruts over dismounting. Craig generously loaned me his Igleheart— I couldn’t have been more comfortable in the ruts, which were 8 inches deep for the B race, and even deeper for the elites.
After my final race I grabbed a cold beverage while I shared stories of catastrophes (and near catastrophes), cheered on the racers in the next race, and soaked up the conclusion of another memorable day of cycling.
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