There was a time once, long long ago when I once thought I was a fast mountain biker...
Then came SERC #2, Tsali, North Carolina...
Tsali was a blast. I learned so much and made every moment count. I feel very blessed to be a part of the MTB community. It is inevitable, you will have bad races, but when you do, you can always count on your friends!
In all honesty, Tsali was not a bad race for me. Everything was spot on. I felt good, my legs were good and I cant say anything really went wrong. I got beat by 9 other racers that were better than me. I'll try and run through the race the best I can from memory even though I was cross-eyed and seeing red for 2 hours straight...
I was upset with myself at getting to the starting line late and I was forced to start 2nd row. Tsali had 24 pro riders, I knew position was key in this race but oh well what can ya do? Gun goes off and the hammer drops. The start was a 200ft gravel climb leading into a wicked fast downhill that was doubletrack leading into a 120 degree turn to even more downhill but on singletrack. My heartrate was so high from fighting for position on the climb the downhill was hardly any recovery and that's the story for the entire race. I felt like I never stopped pedaling once for the entire 2 hour race. I was top ten heading into the singletrack and had arguably the best wheel to follow on the DH in all of the PRO field, Tristan Cowie(hope I spelled his name right). I remember him from Mellow Johnnys because he whooped my ass there! Tristan can freaking fly DH and we bridged back up to the lead group in no time with his effort. I burnt all my matches trying to stay on his wheel on that stretch of DH and by the time the overlook climb came, I was spent. It was there, THAT soon in the race, I said bye bye to the elite group of guys in the front. On the last half of my 1st lap while in No Mans Land, Cory Rimmer bridged the gap up to me and it was great having some company. Turns out Tristan was never too far ahead of us and we were determined to bridge back up to him. Starting the second lap and riding up the gravel I pushed the pace with Cory in tow. I lit my last match too soon. Cory was able to come around and get on Tristans wheel and I watched them ride that same DH stretch together away from me just like in the 1st lap of the race. That pretty much sums up my race, I rode the entire last 16 miles alone until one last guy caught me in the last mile of the race(Omar Fraser). It sucks not being fast enough to hang with the top dogs but just fast enough to hold off the chase groups. Gotta start somewhere! Needless to say, I need to work on my downhill and power output.
Tsali is a powerman's course. Momentum and flow will do you best. I averaged 15mph in a 30mile XC race which is the fastest race I've ever done to date. I'll take this 10th place finish with a grain of salt. There is some killer talent in the southeast and I am just blessed to race alongside them in the PRO field!
This is a pic of Cory and I in hot pursuit.
I did manage to pull out a podium on Saturdays Time Trial Race. It was a 4.5 mile effort with little climbing and alot of flowy DH.
Thanks for reading. Next up is SERC #3 in Winder, GA.
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