2008 XC: #5 The Steer-A-Thon

OK, the count is off, I know.

It's five races into the So Cal cross country mountain bike series, and I'm finally posting...

I've done three races now, having missed the first two because I lived in Oregon until recently. My heat exhaustion last place finish in Santa Ynez, and my win in Big Bear will get their stories told in due time.

But first, Elings Park in Santa Barbara.

Urban hill with miles of single track wedged in between the tennis courts, soccer fields and glider port. Most of the trails loop back on themselves, endless elbowing s-turns. Up, down, around. We only got to climb fire road at the start of the first lap; the next two we went up the switchbacks. Yay.

One would think that three six-mile laps wouldn't be that difficult, but it was the hardest race I've ever done physically. Sprint up the hill, turn, turn, turn, turn, hold on for the chatter bump downhill, get passed by the juniors on the way down, pass the clydesdales on the way up, repeat, repeat.

I only laid my bike down twice, which was an improvement over the morning's preride. I offered to show a friend one of the downhill sections. A newly cut trail starts with an off camber hard right turn overhanging the paved road sixty feet below. Orange construction netting may, or may not, catch the rider who takes the corner too wide. Then a ledge blasting straight down; don't look left or you'll be off the side.

Whose idea was this?

I was nervous, excited, and every so slightly forgot to let the brakes off at the bottom, sank my front wheel into the gravel, and cartwheeled the bike and myself. I somehow rolled to my feet in time to see the look on the other rider's face. He'd stopped just short of running me over, and his display of amusement and horror deepened my embarrassment.

"That was spectacular."

Shut up, all right. I'm fine.

Why do I pay money and drive long distances for the privelege of seeing how much I can force myself to either suffer or be scared?

This race was a long grind, with few moments of pleasure, despite my vow to enjoy every race I'm in. I did have fun catching Sue Fish, legendary world champion motocross racer and downhill queen, on the climbs.

Why she wants to put herself through learning cross country at fifty plus, I haven't been brave enough to ask. Maybe it's because she has no agemates in Super D.

In any case, she'd literally fly past me going down, and I'd work hard to pass her going uphill, only to hear her behind me time after time on the descent. Once I was trying to stay ahead of her, and she got to watch me slide out on a turn. Why is there always an audience for my navigational misdeeds?

I made up for it by beating her in a sprint finish to the line. Which only speaks to my relative youth, but it was fun to hear the crowd cheer.

I came in third, a very decent result for a course that favors short girls on teeny full suspension bikes.