We finally got back to racing out west after a long summer break. Unfortunately, the early september weather was still dry and hot. My training over the summer consisted of BBQ's and sunday drives. I've never felt less prepared for a race.
I met up saturday afternoon with the usual crew. It was 360 miles to the track, so it was an all weekend trek.
Honey Lake is an incredible natural terain track, situated on the side of a mountain in the eastern Sierra Nevada north of Reno. It is rough with huge elevation changes. The track owner has a good watering system that makes the conditions perfect all summer long.
As usual, I picked a spot in the Vet A row. I've raced here before, so I knew what to expect. Lots of rocky washes and whooped out trails added to the MX track made about a 3-4 mile course.
The gun went off and I got a better than average start, 5th place. My plan was to push hard for a few laps and see if I could keep that pace. After about 4 laps, I knew 2 hrs was going to be incredibly hard. I had been passed twice but also passed 2 people. I settled into a steady pace that I thought I could hold to the end. After an hour and 15 minutes I was out of water and spent. I plodded along, knowing everyone else was hurting too. I thought I was on my last lap, but I made it to the finish check with 42 seconds still left in the race. One more lap! I stopped for gas and cruised the last lap. At the end, I was told by our pit crew that I had done well. I ended up with my first top 5 in vet A, 5th place and 26th overall, my first top 30.
All of us were exhausted afterwards. It took me 4 days for the aches to go away. I was lucky to do as well as I did. I guess I'm in shape now!
I met up saturday afternoon with the usual crew. It was 360 miles to the track, so it was an all weekend trek.
Honey Lake is an incredible natural terain track, situated on the side of a mountain in the eastern Sierra Nevada north of Reno. It is rough with huge elevation changes. The track owner has a good watering system that makes the conditions perfect all summer long.
As usual, I picked a spot in the Vet A row. I've raced here before, so I knew what to expect. Lots of rocky washes and whooped out trails added to the MX track made about a 3-4 mile course.
The gun went off and I got a better than average start, 5th place. My plan was to push hard for a few laps and see if I could keep that pace. After about 4 laps, I knew 2 hrs was going to be incredibly hard. I had been passed twice but also passed 2 people. I settled into a steady pace that I thought I could hold to the end. After an hour and 15 minutes I was out of water and spent. I plodded along, knowing everyone else was hurting too. I thought I was on my last lap, but I made it to the finish check with 42 seconds still left in the race. One more lap! I stopped for gas and cruised the last lap. At the end, I was told by our pit crew that I had done well. I ended up with my first top 5 in vet A, 5th place and 26th overall, my first top 30.
All of us were exhausted afterwards. It took me 4 days for the aches to go away. I was lucky to do as well as I did. I guess I'm in shape now!
