Course starts with nearly a 4 mile climb of 1,200 feet. My plan was to go out hard and separate myself from the group knowing I would get some time to recover on the single track. Plan worked well as when I got to the top, it was just me and one other guy.

At the first water crossing (high lake level), I chose to dismount and run with my bike through the lake. The depth was about 12 inches and 20 feet in length. It was doable, but I didn't want to submerge my bottom bracket. I've been having some problems and didn't want to listen to grinding bearings for the rest of the race. I kept pace with the other guy who decided to ride the section. I ended up with wet feet, but my bike was good to go.

The guy next to me floundered on the technical section after the lake and I passed him on the switchback. From this point on, I caught a couple of guys from the earlier waves, but no one came up from behind. I find it hard to be in the lead so early in the race. You don't know where the other riders are behind you. As such, I find it hard to determine how hard to push the pace. I tried to keep the tempo up and do my best to keep out of sight by choosing lines that would hide me from behind in case someone was approaching.

I did have one little, innocuous fall. There's a portion of the Flume Trail that has a mandatory dismount from a slide. As I was approaching the area, I had clipped out of my pedals, was on the right side of my bike standing on one pedal, and looking forward at the area for dismount. Well, I guess I should of been looking a little closer to my surroundings as my bar end struck the boulder on my right and sent my out the front. No harm, no foul. Only unfortunate part was it got captured on film!

Be faster :) There was a spot where I made a shifting mistake. However, without knowing the exact turn, it would be nearly impossible to anticipate. I had just gone through a creek which was pretty much encased in vegetation obscuring visibility. As you came out of the creek though, the trail made a hard right hand turn on a steep incline. Which, by itself, would of been doable, but add the 6 inch deep sand and this became a problem. I ended up "sucking" my chain while trying to shift out of my large ring at a low cadence. I dismounted, spun the chain back onto the ring, ran to the next little plateau in the climb, mounted, and rode up the remainder. I probably didn't lose that much time, but I hate making these mistakes!

Course ended about 4 miles from the start. So, just an easy descent back to the finish.


The altitude is always a factor for me. Living at sea level hurts when the majority of the races are at elevation. I feel like I'm competing with one arm tied behind my back at some of these races.


While the official results are not out, I believe this race put me into the lead for the series with one race remaining!