It was a great weekend of racing in Northern California at the Sea Otter Classic. We had perfect temperatures for racing, unlike some of the past years where heat has been a major issue.
Short Track took place on Friday morning. It was a longer course than last year, laps were close to 5 minutes with a flyover bridge, deep sand corners and plenty of spectators! Despite some very crazy travel (our airplane to Monterey couldn't land so we were sent back to LA to spend 5 hours in a hotel then re-routed to San Jose...) and very little sleep I placed 14th.
Saturday's XC race was an hour longer than we normally race. 2 x 17 mile laps. I knew it would take me close to 2.5 hours so I wanted to partition my energy so I could finish strong. I didn't want to lay it all out there in the first 45 minutes and start going backwards in the field during the second lap. Around 30 minutes in I was stuck behind a train of riders on some climbing single track and I knew I had more, much more. So when it opened up I passed 5 girls all at once! Shortly after I caught another girl and after that I rode mostly alone for the rest of the race. I caught one other girl on the second lap and Erin had a mechanical so I caught her then she passed me back. I kept pushing up every climb hoping it was enough to maintain my position. I rolled across the line in 12th place with a time of 2:33. I felt great after the race and I'm ready to keep the good energy rolling!
I raced my Jamis Dakota D29 Team. A hard tail was the only choice for both races in my opinion. There's essentially nothing technical on the Sea Otter course, just power is needed, so light and stiff is key. Last year I raced my Geax Mezcals on this course but decided to stick with my Saguaros since some of the climbs seemed a little looser. Am I beginning to sound like a broken record with the Saguaros?! It's true, I love them in every condition!
I was also concerned how my hands, feet, and seat would handle pressure on them for this extended amount of time racing. I'm thrilled to report that everything I use works great for me no matter the distance or intensity. The Mt. Borah custom chamois combined with the WTB Silverado saddle was comfortable the entire time, I stood up a few times to give my legs a different workout but never because I needed to relieve pressure from my rear! My custom ESI grips kept my hands happy and my new Gaerne Kobras kept my feet happy! All of my equipment is dialed in so I can focus on the race!
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| Sea Otter XC |
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| Sea Ottter STXC |
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| Standing next to Melissa R. before the start of XC |
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| XC Start |
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| STXC Start |