This is actually the first time Sponsored Racer, Kim Finch had submitted a race report. Kim is well rounded racer that does XC, Super D and even Downhill. It’s really fun to watch her put some hurt on her competition. Read what she has to share about her race experience from the Triple Crown Series.

It’s almost sad to see the end of another season. This Southridge Racing Challenge was even more exciting with the addition of being the third race of the Triple Crown Series combined. I spent a lot of time of the bike in the prior weeks to this race. I find that out of all the races I have entered the Southridge course is the most technical. It may not be the longest race course, but it is the most exciting! The climbs are grueling and I feel like they will never end, but just at that very moment here comes the “Single Track”! I love this single track I find it almost rejuvenating and ready for the next climb! I would like to thank our sponsor Ergon for the awesome grips. They made a world of difference! I love them!

While waiting on the start line with Priscilla I could feel the anxiety growing. We chatted with all the ladies on the line. We could cheer as we saw Eric “Animal” take off from the start. Joe was in the group behind us all of us that just seemed to want to get on the course! All the ladies were fun to talk with about what they expect of the course or were they had trouble. Pricilla’s group moved forward and off she went! GO GIRL! Then finally after what seemed like hours our group was off and running.

The course starts quickly to short climbs and a quick little single track. Then it is “The Road” climb. Joe and I were working each other for help and encouragement. Joe is a great motivator even when he is taping his own limits! We cheered each other on through almost every climb. Priscilla was doing great she had a rider down on a very sandy section but she recovered quickly.

I managed to finish with my best time ever on this course 1:01:48 however, I placed third, but I was thrilled with the finish. This was also great because I finished the Triple Crown for the Colorful JERSEY. Let me tell you it match my bike perfect! After a quick bit and relaxation I headed back up the mountain with Moe for the Super-D race. I was the only woman in my group but there was one Pro Lady & one Sport Lady. Both of them very nice and fun to chat with. The course was fun. It started with three climb right away then down my favorite single track! Was a little chewed up after all the X-C races had been through numerous laps, but it never lets me down on the excitement level. Always testing my bike handling skills! I finished the race & took 1st place! Moe did very well and was glad to see him at the finish line as this was his first race!

Like thank RL for doing such a great job keeping all of us encouraged, fed & hydrated. He is doing and awesome job!

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This past weekend was a busy one… I raced both XC (Sat) & DH (Sun) at the 17th Annual Southridge Challenge, Fontana, CA.  Saturday was the last leg of the XC portion of the Triple Crown Challenge (TCC).  The 1^st was in Bonelli Park, San Dimas, CA (Oct) and the 2^nd at Mt. SAC in Walnut, CA (earlier this month).  We had a strong showing from our Team in different disciplines of the Fat Tire – XC, SS, Super D and DH.

Saturday:  I was faced with 8 other competitors.  Three were familiar faces from the other two segments of the TCC.  Two were my regular nemesis (friends really) from the 2008 racing season.

                                     Clydes

At the starting line, we were grouped with the Women’s 35+.  At GO, we sprinted on a flat dirt road which quickly turned into an elevated left-handed U-turn.  Here is where I experience the first hold up.  At this turn, series leader Mike D. falls, then a lady from the 35+ group.  Half of the racers that were stuck behind them (including myself) were forced to either dismount or find an alternative route which caused us seconds that counted.  As I made my way past the crash, I sprinted to chase the pack.  From here I would stay behind teammate Kim Finch.  Approaching the first real climb on dirt (where the DH starts), Kim and I pass our friend Val (he looked exhausted).  We passed him then made our way to the winding singletrack.  At the bottom we caught up with our other team mate Priscilla Policar.  We would ride together for a bit, while motivating and encouraging each other.   Passing the smokestack-like structure is another climb.   From the bottom I see Scott V. (a clyde in my class) reaching the top portion of this climb.  From here I broke away from Priscilla and Kim in hopes to catch Scott.  (There is history with Scott and I, as we battled throughout the year.  We took turns placing better than each other at various races.  He is currently one-up on me so I was really motivated to catch him!)

I made my way down another singletrack segment, through the paintball field, then up the final climb… I can see Scott up ahead.  I continued to grind up.  I knew I had to close the distance.  When he reaches the final singletrack descent he’ll open up the gap.  Through the singletrack at the backside of Southridge I tried to go as fast as I can.  Reaching the left-handed drop into the culvert, I see Scott on his way back on the flats.  In front of him was Ner (Val’s brother) with a big smile.   On the flats I big-ringed it back.  From the distance I see Scott and Ner pulling away…man these guys are fast!  Coming around the riverbed/aquaduct area I see Ner but not Scott… uh oh!   I knew we were almost finished and this was not good.  I finally caught up to Ner and passed him but Scott was no where in sight.  I ended up finishing last in my class.  Despite not catching Scott, I was please with my race.  I came in last but my finishing time was better than any of my previous races in Fontana.

                                                                                       Overall I felt good about the race and my performance of the series.  Prior to the awards for the overall results of the TCC, they posted me as 3rd place and totally omitting Mike D. (series leader).  As RL stated on his post, I took the liberty of advising the officials that Mike was not even on the list and should be.  After recalculating the points, Mike was on top and I was bumped down to 4^th.  Bad thing is there is no recognition of 4^th  as they only went three deep for the awards.  Never the less, I was pleased with myself for racing all three races and finishing each one.

Sunday: Armor time… I’ve ridden on Fontana’s DH course several times but have yet to race on it.  This was the day.  Around 8:30ish, I met up with RL, Priscilla and their kids.  After preparation and seeing the line for practice, it would appear that we will only have time for one practice run.

As I stood on top of the mountain, I have to admit that I was very nervous.  With this many people and not familiar with the course I was intimidated with the pretty much everything.  RL went first on the practice run.  I gave him about 5 seconds they off I went after him.  I tried to stay on his heels as I wanted to follow his lines but as soon as we started winding through the upper rock garden panic set in.  The rock sections were fairly easy but after not seeing which lines to pick I stalled out.  I have to admit I walked several sections but had every intentions of re-doing it.  As I made it down to the bottom, before the lower rock garden, RL was waiting for me.  As I neared his position, off he went and I followed.  I stayed behind him heading into the rock garden then… he was OTB!  All I see was his green bike up in the air.  Fortunately he was ok and got back up, then rode to the bottom.  I followed him shortly after reviewing the lines through this section.  At the same time the course officials were telling everyone to ride through as practice was over.  Darn, that means I’ll only have one run.

From the end of the practice until our start time was a good 1.5 hours.  There was plenty of time to think about the course and the lines to pick.  But for me anxiety was kicking in.  I was nervous, MORE than any of my other DH races that I have entered.  For some reason the “rocks” were really intimidating me and I could not shake it from my head.  Often I found myself pacing or just trying to walk around to stay calm.  This is typically not me.  About an hour prior to our start time we lined up for the shuttle.  RL was first to be taken to the top then I followed shortly.  Reaching the top and seeing RL was a relief.  Still nervous, I made small talk with several other guys that I have seen in previous races.

As my group lined up, I was first on the list.  The group in front of me was a Women’s group.  They will give the last woman (Lala w/Incycle) and I a one minute gap as oppose to the 30 sec between riders.  With many thoughts of the course running through my head, I tried to stay focus.  Donny says “Joe, go on 1”… At 1 I sprinted down to the bottom.  Approaching the upper rock section (where I walked in practice) I put my trust in my bike and maneuvered through the rocks.

                                        Upper section. Pic by Dino Brown

There were a few areas where I slowed down, such as the corners with huge ruts, but I managed to get through them smoothly.  Somewhere in the upper section, I heard Johnny D (racer after me) on my heels (on the video posted by RL, you’ll see Johnny go over the bars right behind me).  Reaching the bottom, by the cul de sac, I was very close to catching Lala.  She heads into the lower rock garden but slows down just before the spot where RL went OTB (in practice).  By this time I was literally on her rear wheel… With no momentum and thoughts of crashing, I dismounted off my bike, placed it on the step down and got back on.                                                                       Lower rock garden. Picture by Christopher Wood

I rolled through the remaining rocks and headed to ‘the wall’.  Here is where you test your legs as it is a long sprint on a 40+ lbs bike. At this point I finally pass Lala and make my way to the finish line!                               Picture by Sharky

In the end I finish 4^th out of 6.  I was very relieved that I made it to the bottom unscathed.  I know I wasn’t going as fast the others but it was a big weight off my shoulders and a relief mentally just to complete the course.         

I had a great time participating in the Triple Crown Challenge and the DH on Sunday.  I cant say it enough that our Team rocks!  This weekend we had racers in XC, SS, Super D and DH. We podiumed in each category! 2008 has been a great year in racing!

Many thanks to our sponsors – MtnBikeRiders.com, BikeCommuters.com, Evomo, Ergon and Hoss!!!

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In case you didn’t see the video yet, I just want to say that “YEEEEA, YEEEEA, YEEEAH…I WOOOOONNNN!!!!!!!!” I am so excited about this weekends race. Southridge is one of the most technical and difficult trails for me to ride so I am so happy to have barely made it out of there in one piece!!

I actually had no plans to ride this race up until a month ago. I promised myself though that if I made podium at Mt Sac then I would have to ride this race for a chance at that Champion spot. It took a lot for me to muster up the courage though. The first time I rode this trail (which was about a year ago), I literally ended up in tears because I was so terrified out there! No kidding!

For the most part I felt pretty good out there this past weekend. I keep thinking back on all my what-if moments. My regrets - not hauling butt quick enough on the first big climb. I ended up stuck behind some riders that rode a little sketchy and slow on the singletrack. And I ended up munching it on a downhill section as I was trying to avoid my competition that had crashed in front of me. I took a clean fall but it really cost me some time. The mom in me - I had to make sure she was okay before I could take off! This gave me the opportunity to get in front of her again but not by much as the climbs really kicked my butt.

Through the majority of the ride I knew I had been passed by two other women already in my category. So I was riding hard for that 3rd spot. And my competition was never too far behind me. Near the end of the race as I was flowing through some sweet singletrack, I took another bad fall. I really can’t recall all that it entailed but I remember my rear tire hitting something and I immediately was thrown to the side of the hill. It was bad. The wind was knocked out of me. My head slammed on the rocky hill side and my backpack saved my back. I couldn’t say the same for my knee or the right side of my body though. My right hand was used as a face saver…I really thought I had sprained my wrist. It took me a minute to gather myself and then it happened! My competition passed me and I was in 4th place again. There was no way I was going to lose that 3rd place and I had to finish anyway so I jumped back on my bike after her. I was frustrated because I found myself on her tire most of the time…but on a singletrack there is no where to go! I lucked out when we came to the downhill portion of the singletrack. You have an option to take a steep gutter pavement down the hillside or some dirt. She hesitated, so I dropped down to the gutter…and pedaled on down past her and hauled butt to the next climb. My wrist was fat and throbbing by this time but I was determined to finish 3rd place.

I think the pain in my body motivated me to haul butt to the finish line….I was in some serious need of ice and pain killers! I was happy to finish in 3rd place after all that. And my 3rd place secured me the Champion Spot for the Triple Crown Series. Lucky for me there were only a few of us that had competed in all three races. ;D

And I think I am healing well. I felt like I had been hit by a car when I woke up yesterday, but I only have one oozy boo boo. The rest are bruises and surface scrapes. My doc gave me a tetanus shot and she threw in a flu shot for kicks. It’s all good.

I am loving my jersey!!! So proud of everyone out there. Kim did awesome as well. She took home her Champion jersey as well as 3rd place for XC and 1st place for Super D. That girl is amazing! I am actually looking forward to more rides and maybe more races out in Fontana. Good times!!!

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Here’s the video!

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As we all know, Eric Hunner has earned a nick name of being the ANIMAL because of his ferocity and his massive size of man. Plus he’s got these gigantor hands that surprises anyone that shakes them. We’re pretty lucky to have him part of the team. As in traditional fashion, Eric wrote a race report that talks about the world of Single Speed Racing.

Race Day is not just a day for me, it is an event that is weeks in the making. I think of these races as a report card to myself to see how my riding is progressing and where I stand in the pack of local riders.

In order to get good grades on my report card I had better do my homework. Southridge was the last stop in the Triple Crown for our Team. I was the only person on the team that had not ridden Southridge before. Planning for the race included making time in my busy schedule to preride the course.

Time was short, but I made it out to Southridge by 4pm two days before the race. Thankfully I left my lights on the bike from an early morning training ride. The sun was falling fast, I was lucky enough to run into some other racers that were packing up to leave, and they pointed me in the right direction of the trail head. The trail head consisted of little orange arrows spray painted on rocks to lead you on your way. Some of the arrows are are far apart so preriding this course is a bit of scavenger hunt especially when the sun is going down. When making my way back to the parking lot I ran into Griffith Vertican. I proceeded to ask Griffith questions about the course and he was nice enough to show me some of the turns I missed on my preride, we ended the tour with some high intensity sprints up the hill to the water tower.

Saturday: Race Day. I am entered in the 34 and under Single Speed. I am sitting at the start line and I hear RL Yell out Go get those skinny guys Animal. The race starts I am amped, and feeling good. All of Single speeds left 5 minutes after the pros, at least ten SS together riding in a pack all pretty even paced for the first mile. The terrain at Southridge can be tricky rocks and ruts that are not avoidable, you need to be on your “A” game.

I make it though the race almost without any problems. On the second lap after some jarring downhill sections it feels like I am pedaling with the rear brake dragging. I try my hardest to just pedal and try to keep some distance in front of Andrew a fellow competitor in my class. I later discover after the race my rear SS specific hub was letting its life slip away, another rear hub with trashed bearings.

Now my other problem surfaces; holding off Andrew with my rear hub sucking the life out me. Andrew was geared a little faster than me I think he said he had to walk the hill in the back of the course, I was able to pedal up this nasty hill running 32/18. When the two of us hit the flat straight he pulled ahead, until the last major hill climb I pushed my bike and body to the max, I took the lead and held it until 10 yards from the finish line.

Andrew tried to pass in the last turn of the finish and crashed into the racers in front of us, then tangling handle bars, pedals, and plastic fencing together with me he got out of the fencing first. The difference between 3rd and 4th place ONE second. I ended up in 4th place, Andrew apologized for the mix up at the end. I kept my cool and was glad I finished the race in one piece. I did however collect a very nice Trophy for the 2nd place overall Single Speed in the Triple Crown Series.

The www.MTNBikeRiders.com Racing Team made this enjoyable team experience possible with all of our sponsors help in supporting us.

www.HossMTB.com, Ergon, Evomo Clothing, www.bikecommuters.com

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This race was something the whole team was looking forward to. What made this event unique is the actual races being hosted that day. They had the XC race in which this was the last of the Triple Crown Series, Super D and Downhill.

Priscilla, Joe, Kim, and Eric as well as our friends Val and Ner were all racing in XC. Rather than me spoiling how everyone did on the race, I’ll let them post their own reports so you can find out. Let’s just say, the MtnBikeRiders.com Racing Team did REALLY well in XC.

Then there was Super D, both Kim and Moe raced in this event and again I’ll have to stand down from announcing how things went.

Waiting for the shuttle. Check out my new POC helmet and goggles.

So here’s where the Downhill Racer report comes in. I’m not so sure if I’ve really mentioned it, but I raced in the DH event on Sunday. Sport racer Tony Finch and Joe Solancho both raced DH as well. After the XC race on Saturday, Tony and I decided to get in a practice run. But since the line for the shuttle was super long, I was only able to get one run in.

The “Mountain”

During my practice session on Sunday morning, I managed to make it without any problems down the mountain but when I was coming through a technical rock garden, I totally munched it. I struck a large rock and OTB (over the bars) I went. Luckily I was wearing my Sette Impact Protective Suit and Knee/shin guards to keep me safe. As I flew in the air and eventually rolled on the ground, I saw my bike, the Ibex Ignition 3 flying in the air. After I bounced back up, I looked around to see if Priscilla and the kids were there since they were waiting for me to come down the mountain so they can take some shots of me. But instead I was greeted by 50 people laughing and cheering at me. Hey what can I say, I like to entertain! In all seriousness, I’m glad I wasn’t hurt.

After that crash, it really messed me up mentally. I knew that one section of the trail was going to be the thorn on my side. But fortunately, Joe told me that once I hit that rock, the officials decided to remove it since I dislodged it from the ground and was deemed unsafe.

nasty rock garden

As race time approached, we were shuttled up to the top. Since this was my first DH race, I didn’t know anyone there and tried to strike up conversations with other riders. Funny thing was, one rider says to me, “weren’t you the guy that crashed earlier?” I say yes, he responds, “THAT WAS AWESOME MAN!”…again, I like to entertain.

As they call out riders’ names, we all line up. Joe gives me a fist pump and wishes me luck. As I get up to the make shift starting line/gate, they count you down from 30 seconds, 15, 10, 5, 4,3,2,1…and I was off! everything seemed to have gone mute. The only thing I could hear was my breathing.

While I’m riding through the technical single track which was married with big boulders, rocks and ruts, I felt good, but suddenly I noticed something strange. My Marzocchi 66L fork wasn’t working properly, I look down, and I saw that I was fully compressed….LOCKED OUT! NO! Since I couldn’t really figit with the fork on my way down, I just rode the bike like my rigid SS.

In the video you’ll see me coming down the mountain and if you look closely, you’ll notice that the fork was compressed. Anyhow, on the last leg of the actual mountain, I come around the corner, and I see Tony Finch cheering me on, then further down the trial was Moe, and Kim. It really was encouraging to see them there, it gave me an extra push to work even harder than I already was.

Once I got down off the mountain and headed towards the rock garden, (where I had crashed and currently where over a hundred people were watching) I was able to mess with the ETA valve on the 66L. I turned the dial and POP, the fork bounced up from being locked. Now I felt even more confident in being able to ride through the garden.

Photo courtesy of Sharky

While maneuvering through the obstacles, I can start hearing cowbells and cheers from spectators, then pass my crash site, and then I hear the words, “Go Daddy!” and something along the lines of “babe.” That right there gave me my last burst of adrenaline and allowed me to sprint to the finish.

The end result, I cam in 15th out of 23 racers in the Beginner 27-34. I was hoping to do better, but then again this was my first race and I was going against some really good riders that rode on bikes that were at least 5 times more expensive than the Ibex Ignition 3.

Overall I was glad I made it through in one piece. My 3 goals for this race was to finish, catch the rider in front of me and not to let a rider catch me from behind. I recall right after I pass the finish, I quickly looked behind me to see if the dude after me was on his way. But fortunately he was quite a distance.

This really was a great experience for me. At first I wasn’t so sure how much I liked racing DH. I mean, I love riding technical stuff and enjoyed the trail. But the pressure of it wasn’t all that great for me. But the more I thought about it, the more I want to go back out there and do well. I know I could have done way better than I did. The Southridge Winter Series is coming up in January, so I may try my hand at it again and see how well I do.

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The entire MtnBikeRiders.com crew raced at the Southridge 17th Annual Challenge this weekend. Priscilla, Kim, Joe, Ner, Eric and Val raced XC, Kim and I raced Super D, Tony, Joe and RL raced Downhill. I was actually excited about racing Super D for the first time, since I had an idea on how steep the climbs were, I liked my odds of doing well on the race.

I made a few minor changes to the KHS Flagstaff 29er, I added the super comfortable Ergon Grips and I swapped the front tire to a Serfas Krest 9er for better traction:

We got shuttled to the water tank, then we were lined up and we were released 30 seconds apart. Right off the bat, we were welcomed by a short but steep uphill. The air quality was so bad that I felt my lungs burning right away. We then descended onto some loose singletrack. The trail had already been battered by the XC racers and it was not in the best of conditions. My choice of tires paid off, the Serfas Krest 9er hooked up very well and I was able to go downhill with some speed.

I was exceptionally happy with the Flagstaff 29er, most of the riders had 4 to 5 inch travel bikes, I was the only one with a Full Suspension 29er. As I stated on my review of this bike, the bike rides as if was a 5 inch travel bike except when you go uphill, the front tire never leaves the dirt, the opposite happens to me when I ride my KHS AM2000 or the KHS XCT 535.

I think that Super D is the type of race that suits me, short uphills and long downhills. My race featured only 219 feet of climbing and 531 feet of downhill, now that’s what I call a good pay off! Don’t get me wrong though, Super D is not easy, you have to go balls out from start to the end. Here’s my Heart Rate graph from the race:

I was riding over 170 bpm the entire race!

I ended up placing 8th on the beginners category, not too shabby considering that I was racing against racers WAY younger than me. I can say that I really enjoyed racing Super D, I was also lucky to have Kim as a Super D racer, she gave me the low down and she really encouraged me the entire time.

I want to thank the entire MtnBikeRiders.com crew for the encouragement, Ergon for the grips, HossMTB for the shorts, KHS Bicycles for letting me use the Flagstaff 29er, Serfas for the tires and sunglasses and Evomo for the super cool hoodie.

What’s next for The Moe? The SRC Winter Series baby! I already bought my SRC membership for next year and I’m looking forward to January 10th’s race!

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As most of you know the Team MtnBikeRiders has been representin’ strong in our first few races. The team has been training hard these past few months and we’ve been having a great time out there! RL has done a great job with setting us up with some of the best companies out there for sponsorships and we are so proud to have their names on our jerseys!

This past weekend Jeffrey over at Ergon set me up with the girlie Ergon backpacks since the boy pack packs were a little big for Kim and I. I am a huge fan of Ergon grips and I wouldn’t ride without them….so I was excited to try out their backpacks.

I instantly fell in love when I opened the box! As much as I love the trademark green for Ergon, I have to say that the all black backpack is super sleek looking! Perfect fit for my curvy frame and I just love all the bells and whistles on this pack.

Here is the description for the boys BD1 pack:

A cycling backpack featuring a revolutionary carrying system. The central Flink® Link ball joint allows for huge freedom of movement for the upper body. Pressure is evenly distributed on both shoulders, protecting the back. This makes for a completely new and comfortable carrying sensation. Gender specific carrying systems each in two sizes. The BD1 is the perfect lightweight compact daypack. The BD1 features a large top opening design and includes one small external gear pocket, hydration bladder sleeve, helmet holder and integrated rain cover.

As a woman, I love small details - it really shows how much a company values their product when they put the extra time and money into small details. My favorite details in this pack - great padding on the straps, the built in whistle on the front buckle, the built in rain cover on the underside of the pack, the fact that it sits up right when placed on the floor, the design of the bag keeps it off your back…(no more sweaty back) and I love the flexible link system. If you ever get the opportunity you must try on this pack. I was amazed when I picked up the pack filled with items - it feels heavy in my hands, BUT the instant you put it on your back..AMAZING…it feels weightless! NO KIDDING.

I often hesitate when filling my backpack because of how heavy it feels on my back but that really isn’t an issue anymore with this pack. I can’t wait to put it to full use on an epic ride, filling it with all kinds of goodies!

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This past Sunday I entered the first annual Mongoose Hillbilly Bike Bash held in Vail Lake, CA.  This event was put together by no other than the legend Eric Carter and company.  This was a two-day event - Super D (Saturday) and DH (Sunday) however I only entered DH.

Like all other races that I have entered, the night before I was restless and anxious for what the next day has to offer.  Technically this would be my third DH race.  The first two are from the Keyesville Classic and Sea Otter earlier this year.  This would also be my first race on my Intense SOCOM.  I bought this bike back in July of this year and had very MINIMAL time on it.  Other than this weekend, the only time I rode it was on a weekend ride at Fontana in August.   I was anxious to get to the event early so I can have as many practice runs as possible.  We left the house a little after 7am.  There was light drizzle when we reached Temecula and the temperature was in the low 50s… brrr!

                                 Intense SOCOM, 8″travel w/Marzocchi 888 Bomber fork.  Photo by DownHillPhil

The Practice: After suiting up, I took the shuttle up to the starting point. Now I have to mention that the ride up was literally more jarring than our actual ride down (with our bikes).  Though the hard work of the drivers are appreciated, they just need to slow down a bit.  I had a total of three practice runs.  On the first ride up, the driver hi-sides the hill and the kid standing in front of me literally gets tossed up in the air like three feet… Crazy!  On the second trip up, the driver takes a corner and the truck drifts… not a good feeling when you are seeing the hillside…yikes! On my last trip up for practice, the wooden gates (panels) used to keep the riders in, became loose.  First the left side pops off and hangs from the end of the truck; we stopped and he fixes it.  Then up the road he hits another bump and the right sides flies off.  Fortunately no one was injured.  Memorable indeed…

The Course: It winds down to many turns and a few steep rollers.  There is a wallride before you reach the two ladder bridges towards the end and a double (jumps) by the Finish Line.  Conditions - fairly packed in the morning however quickly turned into sand in many corners as riders practiced.  There were several ruts that were significant in size.

On my first practice run, I did several re-dos of the first section and a steep roller.  I did this by walking my bike up the hill.  Not that easy pushing up a 40+ lbs bike.  Unfamiliar with course I took precautionary steps before riding through.  On my last two runs, I rode through the course with out any stops.  I did put my foot down on several turns, but I was fairly confident that I can handle it.  After a practice ended there was a brief lunch break for the drivers then onto shuttling the Pros for the start of the race at 12:30 PM.

Race Time:  My class wasn’t scheduled to start until 2:17 PM.  However at staging while I was chatting with Eric Carter’s mom, they told the racers to better catch the shuttle now; that’s over an hour ahead of my race time.  Not wanting to miss it, I took the shuttle up.  Here is where you test your patience of being last on the list.  As a Beginner, we were set to go last as they start with the Pros, Semi-Pros, Expert, Sport, then… the Beginners.  One good thing about this is all the fast guys are ahead of you, so there is NO pressure of someone passing you. 

Through out the start of the race there were many names that were called out and were no shows (DNS).  Many riders said that the names were there for practice but were not at line-up… maybe they missed the shuttle or maybe they changed their minds.  Finally when our class was called, several names in my class were DNS which left us with only three guys.  My run to the bottom went without a hitch.  On several corners I got semi-stuck in the sand but managed to power through them.  A racer in my class (behind me) caught up and blew past me towards the end of the course.

                                      Photo by Sharky

                                                                      Photo by Christopher Wood

The Podium: Eric Carter started the awards with Pros, Semi-Pros, on down… As they were calling out the top 5 in the Experts, they discovered that the timing results were wrong which caused them to stop the awards.  By now it was approx 4:45 pm and getting dark.  He was embarrassed and disappointed as this was his inaugural event.  He asked for everyone to return in about 45 minutes or mail-out the trophies which I thought was great.  For me, with only three racers in my class, and one passing me, I took the liberty of conceding to third place.  I had my family in the car and have been out all day, so we were anxious to get home.  Eric gave me my 3^rd place trophy and if by any chance I got 2^nd, we’ll swap the trophies.  Cool guy!

I had a great weekend and looking forward to Fontana in two weeks.  Below is a short video of my race. It’s mainly pictures with short video clips as the course was a little difficult for my fiance to hike-up.

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Just ask Steve Peat and Nathan Rennie… they’ll tell ya! 

But seriously, I have to give props to RL Policar for all of his hard work these past two races.  As a Team Captain/Mgr role he has been more than supportive for the entire Team.  He’s provided everything for us from a tent (shelter from rain), food, energy supplements, tools, you name it we have it…

Memorable examples from this past weekend at Mt. SAC:  On my second lap approaching the Feed Zone (FZ), I see RL yelling trying to get my attention.  On one hand a fresh bottle of water with Motor Tabs and on the other a Heineken.  Tough choice!  To me this is comical as it breaks the monotony of the grind.  Off course I grabbed the water bottle.  RL did this for all the Team members, keeping us hydrated during our race. 

                                           RL at the Feed Zone for me and KIm.

On Priscilla’s race - as she approached the FZ, RL was going to give her Clif Shot Bloks.  At this time I was done with my race so now I was taking pictures however I was situated on higher level than the FZ.  I wish I would have captured the next events on camera…

There was a fumble with the hand-off to Priscilla.  Apparently RL couldn’t get the Shot Bloks out of his pocket and at the same time trying to keep up with Priscilla as she is riding by.  He ended up tumbling up the hill… none the less great effort and I have to commend him for that!

Through out day he ran back and forth at different prime spots to capture the Team on video while lugging a heavy duty tripod for a heavy duty video camera. 

                                                                                     RL moving from different areas of the race on his Xtracycle.

To top it off there were two separate race times.  At the end of each race, not only was he there to meet us at the Finish Line,  but he went straight to the tent to start the grill so we can eat.  This was like a Four Star treatment - man what service!!!

                                                                              Grilling salmon and burgers…

So who else says RL is Super Cool - Team MtnBikeRiders.com says he is!  Thanks RL!

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