Last weekend was the US Mountain Bike National Championships in Mt. Snow, VT. If you know much about my specialties in on the mountain bike you might know that I tend to concentrate on the long races. Normally I would skip this short racing kind of thing to go somewhere with a proper 5omile loop, but my competitive spirit got the better of me and made me travel north to try out my legs against the best guys in the country. My weeks had been pretty hectic up to this point, and Mt. Snow was going to be my third week away from home. From July 1st to the 21st I had slept at home a total of 5 days.
I'd never raced a Pro National race so this was going to be an experiment. I entered the men's Pro xc and the super-d. The later was the one I was actually the most excited about.
I got to the mount on Thursday at 12:30, which is when the lift for the super-d practice runs closed, and they technically wouldn't open again till an hour before the race on Sunday. So I rode up the mountain till I found the course and walked/ rode up the course, before turning around and getting one run in.
On Friday I did the same thing on the super-d course and got one lap of the xc course in between friends' races. It was good to see so many people I know out and ripping it up. Greg Montello was there, as well as Kyle Rodland, and Thom Parsons. I saw Mo Bruno getting ready for some xc and short track action.
Saturday I got up early to go and get some more Super-D runs in time to get home and rest before my 2pm xc race. Technically the course was not open but the lift that was the super-d lift was also the beginner and sport downhill racers lift. Why USA Cycling would open the lift but not allow the D'ers could only be chalked up to their history of good planning. The rain from the night before had not done much to the course and I was getting it pretty dialed on the 29er Ti Deluxe. I knew that my chances of winning were pretty much nil due to the course style and competition, but I figured every 6 inch travel bike I beat would be the feather in my cap.
On my third run down, as I was setting up to soak up a big bump my front wheel went out from under me and I hit the dirt hard. My finger, which I was pretty sure I had fractured in Downieville the weekend before, sustained more damage and now the swelling hasn't gone down in a week. I picked myself up and found that my hearing was wobbling in and out, my vision was sort of fading and I felt like puking.
Okay, I'm suffering a mild concussion, and I told myself to just keep moving because there was no one on the course to help me, and I was afraid that if I sat still I might black out. Riding was impossible so I walked for awhile down one of the steepest chutes. After about 5 minutes I felt well enough to get back on my bike and rode the rest of the way down.
A little shaken up I was worried about my finger and the xc race that was in 3 hours. I went home showered, ate and lay down to recover. When I got up I felt pretty good, so I got my stuff together and went to meet Greg who was going to feed me for the race. I got my warm up in and since the start was going to have a call up I didn't worry about getting there to early. I didn't really matter since when we got called up they didn't even have my name on the list. That's what happens when you never do these NMBS races. The official penciled me in, sent me to the back of 60 pro's from across the country, and we took off.
I surprised myself and quickly moved into 15th for most of the first lap, but I think I might have burned myself, cause on lap two I dropped back to somewhere between 25th and 30th. I thought I was done, and I decided that I was a terrible racer and should give in. Unfortunately I somehow had a bunch of people on the course yelling for me, or at me, and the idea of bagging it couldn't come to fruition. Plus a lot of them were on the downhill section of the course and I get a kick out of going faster when people are watching. So basically I fought through the uphills, to get to the downhills, and by the end of the race I was feeling pretty good. I passed enough people to secure a 20th finishing position, and since my goal was a top 20 in my first xc race I could call the day a success! Thanks to Montello and Thom and everyone else yelling. You guys are inspirational.
Now the super-d was my only obstacle left on Sunday morning. Supposedly the lift opened at 8 to get a practice run in before the 9 am start, but when I arrived at 5 after 8, the line was so long I didn't get to the top till 8:35. I asked the official if I had time to get a run in and was promptly told "no". To me that was total BS, and effectively meant that there was only 1.5hrs of open practice between Thursday and Sunday. Fortunately I poached a couple of runs on Sat. Then I learned that they changed the way the course finished and there were going to be three extra corners at the very bottom. Thanks usacycling! You really know how to screw things up.
Anyways, we line up for the mass start, and holding, not riding, we have to run with our bikes about 50 yards uphill mount and then sprint down a fire road for about 200 yards before literately dropping off the side of the mountain. I had a good position going into the woods and had Adam Craig on my tail for about a minute before he couch surfed around me. After that I had a couple of guys trying to seek up behind me but about the time they were on me we came to a section that I could sprint and put some time on them. It was close, and I admit to being on the brakes a bit more than I would have liked, but I was a bit spooked by my previous crash, so I was a little cautious. When we got to the last few unfamiliar bends Michael Broderick came around me, and I had to pinch the corners to keep another guy from taking the inside lines. It was a great 8mins of fun, maybe not worth the $55 dollar entry fee, but still a good time. In the end I got 8th out of 25 or 30 pros, so I was satisfied. Maybe a hardtail isn't the best bike for this super-d but I believe there is one out there I'll be able to win. So much fun.