Race Report: 3 Legged Dawg Mtb Race

The next day was the 3 Legged Dawg mountain bike race on the same course. I was going to race CAT 2 since I hadn't done any mountain bike racing and didn't have an annual license. The course was rough, but since I did well yesterday and I was already there, I decided to go for it. Some of the kids sprinted right out of the gate on the road to the trail. I wasn't all about using that much energy right out of the gun, so I settled into about fifth position as we hit the trail. One guy stumbled over the rock garden and I rode past him. Picked another one off pretty quickly too. Keeping on, I came up behind a guy and asked to get around. He said I was in his age group so he wasn't going to let me. So about 20 feet ahead I surged and passed his slow ass on a rocky section. Stubborn kid. There was one more guy in front of me and I closed in on him pretty quick and just followed him for a while. I yoyo'ed a bit but mostly set on his wheel for a while. I didn't want to use too much energy this early in the race to get in front of him and just give him a reason to go faster. We were starting to pass the single speed guys that started in front of us and some unusually slow CAT 1 guys. As we approached the back section of the course, my section of the course, I passed the CAT 2 kid and two more CAT 1's in a wide corner. We were on gravel path for a bit and I was keeping my lead. I gave the three of them the look back. I guess I really like doing this and giving people the challenge to follow me. While it wasn't intended to be a hard-ass move, it was. I wanted to check the guys number plate and make sure he was a CAT 2. He was. We hit the dirt single track and I was gone. I began pulling away and really establishing a lead. I came through the first lap well ahead of the entire CAT 2 field, dropped my bottle, grabbed two more, and headed back out for lap 2.

Lap two was more of the same. I knew I was leading so I didn't push as hard or take as many risk as I did on lap 1. I still had my lead and knew that I was the fastest on the back section of the course and could win it there even if someone did catch up to me. They didn't though. I was still catching and passing CAT 1's. That felt pretty sweet. I caught and passed Boomer who won yesterday's race. He was on a single speed, but he is seen as a great rider and one of the great Memphis Xterra athletes when I first started and I looked up to him. I was feeling pretty sweet and untouchable on the bike. I was closing in on the finish and getting ready and visualizing zipping up my jersey and riding across the line, hands in the air, dominating the field. I was also really looking forward to finishing so I could get some more water and cool off.

About half a mile before where the finish was supposed to be, I somehow got off course. I dismounted and trekked through the woods to where I thought the trail went. It wasn't there. So I trekked up to the road that I could see ahead. I saw a marshal and an entrance back to the trail. It was the wrong section though. As I started riding it, it looked really familiar. Too familiar. I came up on some more CAT 1's and asked if this was almost back to the finish. I knew it wasn't but I didn't want to face the truth yet. I was doing my third lap on the second half of the course. CRAP. I rode up to another section that I could see a gravel road from. I left the course and started trying to find my way back to the finish. Completely out of water by this time and really getting hot, this was hurting, both physically and mentally, searching for the trail that I had already ridden. I found my way back to the last section of trail before the finish and began to embark on the journey again. Little deja vu. I was approaching the finish this time and made the right turn. I don't know where it was or how I missed it the time before. It's just how it goes I guess. Really hurting by this time, but I found it in me to sprint past two guys in the finish line chute. After which, I collapsed and laid down under the sprinklers for a while. Very frustrating race, but for a while there I felt on top of the world. I felt fast, two days in a row!

Anyway, Live on to race another day and improve next year. Next race is in Gallatin on July 17th. I like that course so it should be a fun time. Look forward to that.
Finished 3rd in the CAT 2 19-29 age group.