So I didn't win...

...but I came wicked close, it turns out.

Let's just say that my race weekend was just kinda so-so... HA yeah right! I had a really fun weekend, it was good to see everyone down in Nathrop to dice it out on the dual slalom and Original 4X tracks. The short version is this: 6th place qualifier and 2nd place finish in dual slalom, 5th place qualifier in 4X but put out in the 1/4 finals.

In dual slalom I raced Expert Men 30+ and I qualified tied up with my friend Jerry, but won the coin toss so I was seeded 6th and he 7th. Either way, this was the first time since I started racing dual slalom in 2000 (or was it 1999?) that I lined up in the gate in my first round knowing that i qualified faster than the guy next to me. I was STOKED. My first round was against Brian Bailey, and he crashed in the first heat giving me a 1.5 advantage, still I rallied in the 2nd heat just to make sure, and took the advance.

In the second round I went up against Mike Patterson, who I lost to at the LAST race when I missed a gate in the first heat. Between motos I let him know I wouldn't be missing any gates THIS weekend! Mike is a great rider and an even better guy, it was all in fun. First heat he narrowly beat me by .19 of a second - that's about half a wheel length! I knew I had my work cut out for me, but I also knew I had the red track in the second heat, which is faster in the bottom. I stomped the track and beat Mike in the second heat... by .19 of a second. Too close for comfort, and a straight up TIE. Lucky for me, advance always goes to the winner of the 2nd heat in the case of a tie.

As for Jerry and I, each of us had won a couple of rounds and then met in the semi-finals for a showdown. I don't think I raced a slow character all day, Jerry included, and truth be told I was nervous not only because Jerry is a competitor, but also that I had to race the blue track second, which has a slower bottom half. I turned up the heat on that sauce and brought it to a boil, narrowly winning both heats to take the advance. Whew!

I lost by first heat in the finals by a bit of a margin... less than a second but more than what was comfortable. I had a bit of a bad gate and I think I was still in shock from making the finals for the first time, ever, in dual slalom. I wasn't going to be beat as easily in the 2nd heat. I got a good gate, and rode really strong and aggressive. In a section about halfway down, I miscalculated a roller and got bucked off to a harsh, flat landing, and felt my trick ankle™ compress all the way into Painesville Station. I had no power going into the most pedally part of the track, and although I managed to maintain somewhat of my position I lost the heat by less than a half a wheel.

Still, 2nd place is good by me, I am an extremely happy camper! Not to mention tired, hungry, and thirsty at this point.

Sunday's mountain cross was über fun, despite the fact that my legs were screaming at me all day from racing so hard on Saturday. Classes were combined for 4X, and I had ALL Expert Men 19+ as well as the Pro and Expert Women to contend with... a big field for sure. I stomped my qualifying run, only worried about a couple of mistakes I made and feeling good about the whole deal. It was honestly the best qualifying run I've had on the Original Track since we built it in 2003, so imagine my disappointment when I was told that I would have to take a re-run because the timers missed my finish!

DANG.

Instead of being upset and frustrated, I took it as an opportunity to fix those little mistakes I had made... And it went Okay riders let's set 'em up... rider's ready... beep beep be - SNAP! out of the gate pedal pedal pedal step up pedal pedal pedal spine roller pedal pedal no brake through the first turn, over Taf's Table, and through the S-turns but KEEP IT LOW IN THAT BERM this time (which I did) and then pedal pedal pedal BRAAAP! explode over the Table of the Winds and dive pedalling into the 4th turn, suck up a roller and the face of a little table then POP! off the table to a perfect roller backside and then SPRING off the double out of the rhythm into the last turn. Slight brake check here because that step-up is TINY but WOAH did I almost still overshoot that and then power-pedal up and over the big roller up the face of the last big jump and SOAR into the air and then Darner yelling at me "Power to the finish! Power it all the way to the finish!" and the only thing I could think of was "Dang I need to get back on the ground so I can pedal!" STOMPED the landing of that jump, threw down what seemed like a dozen pedal strokes into the last four rollers double double smooth style and then pedal pedal through the line...

All that in 30.27 seconds.

Turns out of all the Expert 30+ guys signed up I qualified 2nd fastest, and was 5th seed overall, including all the young bucks out there! STOKED. My rounds went pretty well, I decisively won the first moto, which felt great! In the quarter finals I learned that I need to work on my gate start... after getting snapped by the two fellas on either side of me I just didn't have the juice. I came into the first corner in 3rd, and started planning my move for 2nd to be in the 4th corner, after Table of the Winds and before the rhythm section. I had the speed and the setup dailed, but I don't think I was as aggressive as I could have been , came unclipped, and didn't make the pass stick. I remained unclipped for the rest of the track, and crossed the line 3rd. Ahhhh... racing!

I met a lot of goals this weekend, and I'm happy and proud of the way I rode. I raced strong, and I didn't give up ever. That's the creedo this season: Don't Give Up. I'll have to find a more poetic way of putting it, and then write it on all my bikes in a place where I can see it while I'm in the start gate. One of my good friend's Ross does this... he has a small sticker on his handlebars right by his grips to remind him what to do. It says, simply:

KILL