Racing Up

Since I started racing off-road, I’ve had a dream to race as a professional mountain biker and this weekend marks a big step towards that dream. But that realization only strikes me right now as I sit here post-race. The focus has been other places like making sure everything is packed and that the legs are set. That’s the way it should be.

Day one really started when the clock struck midnight while my roommate Sam and I made our way down from Wisconsin all the way to Birmingham, Alabama. We didn’t stop for a hotel until about 3am when we pulled into a Best Westen just north of the city and fell asleep about as fast as a person can. With only a few hours of sleep we finished the drive to Oak Mountain park just south of town. We pulled in and found a parking spot right near the start line.

First impression was that it really wasn’t anything too big. Participation was smaller than a WORS race and the race was run with much less order. But I began getting ready, warmed up and headed to the start line only to find that they decided to run the PRO race separate from the Cat 1 race as planned. Hard to say this hurt me, but it threw me off a bit if I’m being honest. As the Cat 1s had their race, it was tough to keep the legs warm and ready. But we finally toed the line and unsurprisingly there was a serious lack of communication. They didn’t have a timer for the racers, and no real way of letting us know how much time and laps were left. Now I don’t expect these things at every race I go to, but this is a PRO XCT, so I was expecting something better than that.

But once the race started it was all out of mind because with only about 15 or so racers, I started behind Todd Wells and next to Jeremiah Bishop. No time to be star struck though (well only a few moments) as the race was off. The start was pretty easy and I felt pretty good, but that feeling faded after a few laps. But I could tell I wasn’t the only one feeling that way as I was battling in the second group for 4^th place and making up ground on the leaders. Things were going well but as the last few laps came around, something just wasn’t there. I sat on the back of the group and let the race unfold in front of me, eventually losing contact with the group. Don’t know if it was the legs, lungs, or the head, but something wasn’t there. I rolled in for 8^th place.

I followed that up with a ride on the XC course and I was blown away, the trails are pretty sweet. The end of the long loop and the majority of the finish loop were on a trail called Jekyll and Hyde. We ran it backwards with the Hyde part first. It was a flowy fast tour of the ridge on the south end of the park. There were a lot of jumps and little berms, it was a blast and very fast. The Jekyll section was much different. A 1 kilometer climb through some of the toughest rocks I’ve ever had to deal with. It really put the grind in bump and grind. But the reward was ample. Once at the top we descended blood rock which featured a few tight rocky switchbacks, then 4 or 5 major rock garden drops. Finally the trail opened up into a fast loose section all the way down the mountain. There were a few small jumps and a lot of rocks. It was very fast and I was on the limit of grip the whole time. I got to the bottom and was so charged up to race on it. We packed up and headed to a hotel for the night. I spent the night cleaning up and getting my head ready for what was to come.

To my delight the XC race was better attended. When we got there the crowd was forming. People coming just to watch and people just finishing the race were lining up around the finish area. Again, it wasn’t much bigger than a WORS race, but there is still something special about having the big pros there. We arrived a little late so my warm up was cut short. I made it too the line and started getting in the zone.

Quick little side comment. I’ve been “getting in the zone” more. A racing buddy Tim and I talked about on the way to a race and it seems to help. Telling yourself it’s going to hurt, preparing your body and mind to deal with it. It gets your heart racing and you blood flowing and some adrenaline going as well. I think all in all, it helps a lot.

But back to the race, I was in the zone. When the race started I was able to quickly make my way up from almost last into a top 15 or so. From there the pace was fast but nothing too crazy so I was able to handle it. The group stayed together for the first 5 miles of single track but when it opened up onto a long gravel road the top dogs opened up the taps and I just couldn’t follow. Luckily neither could anyone around me so it was a fight for the back. This long 5 miles mile section of gravel hurt the legs more than anything else in the race. I pushed hard but I was only losing ground. At the end of the long stretch was a noticeable 2 mile climb up to the top of blood rock. I was able to find some power on the climb but only enough to hold the gaps.

I was pretty lonely on the descent from blood rock, but I was ok with that because I was able to have a lot of fun. And at the bottom riders began to appear and motivation was back in a big way. I metered my effort on the way back to the start area and got ready for the last 10 mile ascent and descent on blood rock. Metering my effort worked very well as I was able to pull back rider after rider. I took it easy near the bottom so that when I reached the rocky ascent portion I was able to really hammer and stay smooth. By the time I reached the top I passed 2 riders and at the bottom I was hot on the tail of another. For the final 2 miles I kept telling myself you can do this, you can do this. I made the pass coming around for a tight downhill. After coming around him I hit the gas hard but couldn’t drop him. I was feeling the burn and getting more and more worried that I would get caught. It’s always tough to get caught for the line. I was battling for 12^th, but at a certain point even battling for second to last feels like fighting for a win.

I saw the 1 mile to go sign and for that last 5 or few minutes the only thought that went through my mind was that I could do anything for a mile. That if anything was going to slow me down, it wasn’t going to be my legs. I was giving everything to stay ahead. I came out onto the road and looked back. Nobody was there. Rolled in for 12^th.

All in all it was an amazing weekend. The trails there are amazing. I can’t even do them justice talking about them. The freedom, atmosphere, and the focus on the race. Everything was so immersive. If I wanted to be a pro bike racer before, I really want to be a pro racer now. I want to live that life.

This video is of a guy climbing blood rock, we descended this section.