This summer I found out about a new race at one of my favorite riding venues - Tiger Mountain. The race format was intrigueing .. lots of riding (4+ hours in the saddle); but they only time the descents. hmmmmm ... I figured I had to gie it a try since there was one at Tiger. Here are the details ...
By the numbers:
- Hours ridden: 4.5
- Miles ridden: 38.5
- Vertical feet climbed: 3500
- Total of all timed sections: ~32 min
- Finishing place: 3rd
It went pretty well considering it was my first rodeo :) The first section felt like cheating - I ride that course so much as part of my training (well, not a lot this year - but normally) that I can almost ride it in my sleep. It's technical, twisty, rooty, rocky, and oh so FUN! I give it a 8 for technical difficulty. and a 10 when you are trying to go fast. for my Ottawa readers, this is harder than Fortune. Much Much harder! also so much fun to ride down! The second section was new trail and really tough. deep mud for the first 1/2 mile had me off my bike and running ...and it was over really fast! The third section as also familiar territory and I managed to rock that one out too. good times!
OK OK, enough about the timed sections - lets talk about the race format and why I enjoyed this type of race. They had designated start times so I got in a 2 hour warm up before we even started. fun. i love riding at tiger. Each person started 1 min behind te person in front of them to ensure minimal passing. Goodness! The race organizers and volunteers were awesome - friendly and fun. Oh, and it was raining. I am not talking about a gentle Seattle drizzle ... I am talking full on rain. As in buckets of rain. As in so hard I can barely see where I am going rain. This is where the 'able to ride the trail in my sleep' skill really helped :)
After each timed section it was pretty chill. There were three of us girls that kind naturally landed together and we rode to each section together. yes, these are the 2 that beat me :) It was fun to chat and be chill in between sections where we tried to beat eachother. Adds more social dynamic to the race. Add to that the fact that I wasn't feeling 100% and didn't have any kick ... well, I was glad they were only timing downhill sections :)
All in all, a great race, organized by good people! Thanks to Element Cycles for their support - not just to me - but also to the race - they were a key sponsor.
