Wow, this was one hell of an event. My first time racing in Mammoth was a blast! (My parents) and I arrived at Mammoth on Wednesday evening after a great drive through the Yosemite Valley. I took a quick ride around downtown and was feeling the affects of being up around 7500'.

The big event on Thursday was the pre-riding of the XC course. About 1pm I was up at the mountain riding the Sport course, which includes a 7.8 mile east loop, the middle(Broadway) Loop of 2.3 miles, and the West Loop which was 4.5 miles for a total of 14.6 miles. The ride was amazing, the single track rocked, but the hills were a little rough, so I just spun up those and took my time enjoying the nice weather and the fact that I was in Mammoth. After the ride I felt a little beat, but I took some time to walk around the venue which was actually much bigger than I expected! I walked by the Azonics tent and met Missy Giove and got her to sign a t-shirt. Also ran into Anthony T. who was getting ready to practice the downhill course. She is a really nice person! I was a little surprised! That evening my family and I took a drive out to Mono Lake and enjoyed the beautiful scenery out there. The best tiem togo out there is during the last afternoon when the shadows cast by the Tufa along the shore are really dramatic.

Friday came along and man was I tired, that pre-ride took me out. We took a morning drive up to view all the Mammoth Lakes. I basically spent most of the afternoon in vegitation trying to get some rest. I did go up to the venue later and ran into some Dave Longiotti and Joel who invited me up to the TWW condo later that evening. So after dinner I went up there to relax for awhile and watch Pete and Joel do some serious modifications to Pete's new downhill bike (it was actually quite entertaining!) Oh, earlier that evening Alison Dunlap and other GT riders were doing a meet and greet at the local bike shop, so I cruised down there and got some free food and a poster signed by her.

Saturday was the big day!

Woke up and got up there around 9am and relaxed for a bit. I warmed up around the shorter Broadway loop and got to the line. At 11am they send off the first group and my group started about 8 minutes later. I had a great time out there, I was keepin up pace on the singletrack sections of the first loop, but was really conserving a lot up the hills (probabaly too much). I did however bust my ass on the last loop and flew through the single track back there. The XC riders had a Kamikaze downhill of their own right at the end and that was really no problem even though it looked treacherous as hell. I felt good and I made very few mistakes. So I ended up finshing in 1:22 or so and placed.....14 out of 15! This shows I need to get my butt on my bike more for next season if I'm gonna stay in Sport.

The rest of the day was spent out on the venue. I stayed and watched the Short Track XC finals. Talk about high paced racing! FOr dinner I met up with TWW at Roberto's Cafe for some good Mexican eats. That evening I went back out to the TWW condo and basically finished up the trip watching Kranked II and lounging in the HUGE twelve person hot tubs for an hour or so!

Thanks to the TWW people for having me over to the condo and for a good time out there!

Race Report by Ron Chai

Well... you have to figure that a major high speed crash would have to happen at some point in my DH career but why now and why mammoth. I've been running it through my head over and over again and I've been beating myself up on things that I could have done to prevent the crash. I could have slowed down a little, I could have leaned into the turn a bit more, I could have bunny hopped the obstacle yadda, yadda, yadda..... Other than my ego and pride being seriously hurt, I think I'm lucky and I faired very very well considering the speed and object I hit. My bike and my helmet (see attached) took the force of the impact. Good thing I landed on my head or I might have seriously hurt myself. Also I attribute the lack of major injuries due to the full DH gear body protection and that the crash happening so quick and so fast that my flailing limp rag doll-like body didn't have time to react as I was flying through the air.

The Course:

This was by far probably the best courses I've ridden. Enough technical terrain to make it interesting and challenging but not unrideable. The top section was the most difficult. Real loose and rocky conditions with several steep rocky chutes coupled with 12" to 18" inches of loose pumice made things real interesting. During practice, these sections would easily line up 10 to 15 riders deep. The top section opens up to a super fast 200 yd+ straight away. This will put you into the lower section. The lower section was filled with technical switch backs with one big table top jump, several log type jumps and rock obstacles. By far the easiest portion of the course.

The Race:

My race started early, 8:43:30. I was one of the first 50 or so riders to go. The early start time gave me barely enough time to wake up. The cold morning air at the 10,000ft+ starting line didn't help me to wake up either. But the butterflies and the energy I felt at the starting line kept me awake. 30 second intervals also kept me alert as there was very little time to make adjustments or collect your thoughts. My time was up, I left the gate full of energy. My thought was that at 30 second intervals, I was either going to be passing people or I was going to get passed. Sure enough in the top section at the first major chute, I pass the first rider as he fumbled. As I approached the second chute, I passed another rider. At this point I was thinking to myself that I was riding well. I cleaned all the hard stuff while passing two people and now the straight and the lower section will be easy. I now entered the fast straight away.

The Crash:

During my practice runs, I always hit the straight section pretty fast. It's a super easy section that gives you time to catch your breath and prepare for the lower section. Each run through I would tell myself that I can go faster. Right before my race start, this was going through my head. I told my self to downshift and pedal and haul ass through this part. As I entered the straight, I did just that. Down shifted a couple gears and pedaled about the first 20 to 30 yards. You can tell by the hum of your tires that you reached a good speed. This hum is what I was hearing. I was really moving at this point, I'm guessing 35 to 40 mph. About three quarters of the way through the straight section, there is a slight jog to the left. Barely noticeable, but at the rate I was traveling it was very noticeable. I was drifting wide with my left foot hanging out and then I was off the main path. As I was slowly coming back on to the trail, I noticed a culvert approaching me, what could I do? "Oh SHIT"! was last words out of my mouth, before I knew what hit me, I was on the ground. Though somewhat disoriented and in some pain, I limped down the hill to get my bike and continue on. When I got to my bike, I noticed that my front wheel was completely destroyed and from the looks of it, my forks were also bent. I only ended up with a few scrapes. Both my wrists and left knee are pretty jacked up but they are already feeling better. I'm still sore all over but nothing that 1000mgs if advil can't help.

Ron

Race Report by Anthony Thaulad

Ron did a great job describing the course so I will not bore anybody by doing that again. One thing I have to agree is that NORBA really did a great job cutting the course. It was tough enough but not unrideable.

My first practice day went smoothly except for the interuptions on the technical sections (too many people stopped and actually walked it). After my 2nd run I was feeling really good because I was able to clean all the sections. I decided to call it a day and was looking forward to the second practice day.

On the second day, I met Ron near the chairlift and we went up together. I took off and decided to take it easy since it's the first run. The run was going well until I hit a section with a small rock drop and gap. It was actually not a difficult section if you carry enough speed. I was coming in too slow and when my front wheel hit the gap I knew I didn't have enough speed to carry the momentum and my front wheel just stuck. I went over the bar, caught my knee on my handlebar (which caused my shin guard to slide down) and hit my knee on the rock. I got up and checked out my knee and it was not looking good. I gathered myself, finished the run and my practice day.

A thought of not racing crossed my mind since I knew I'm gonna have problem pedaling the next day. But, I've paid the $40 race fee so I decided just to do it. The 1000mg Tylenol didn't help too much as I sit on the start line ready to go. My run actually went pretty well despite crashing twice. I finished 7th/21 (5 people DNF) which was quite surprising because of the crashes.

At the end, I'm glad that I decided to race despite my bummed knee.

Can't wait 'till next year!!!!

Race Report by Loren Thomas

High Sierras, heart pounding climbs, awesome descents, hundreds of people, lots of excitement, food for an army, great company, hot tubs and hot springs……can you say MAMMOTH? The Mammoth Mountain Race was certainly one of the best events of the year. Team Wrong Way camped in style at a cozy condo a few miles from the racing event. We had 14 great people representing TWW as racers, and spectators; Rich Henthorn, Pete Rudnick, Robert Ouye, Loren Thomas, Dawn Weathersbee, Joel Northrup, Anthony Thaulad and his wife, Ron Chai and Susan, Linda Palmer, Dave Longinotti, Rob Butner, and Mike(a new guy). We all walked away with smiles on our faces in disbelief of what a great weekend we experienced.

For most of us, Friday was our first day at Mammoth. A leisurely pre-ride of the XC course followed by all-you-can-eat spaghetti and entertainment featuring Joel and Pete grinding on components and assembling a downhill bike got us prepared for Saturday. Saturday morning a few of got up early to watch Ron conquer the downhill course, but after about twenty minutes with cameras ready, we got the news that Ron had proved those big beefy wheels weren't indestructible. He suffered a disappointing crash on the fastest section of the course. Pete was next down the hill. No pre-ride, but "The Natural" blazed his way to a second place finish in the Sport Velocity downhill event. Next up was the XC. The course was great. The smile producing single track made those fire road climbs all worth while. TWW made their presence known at the awards ceremony with Pete and Dave finishing 1st and 3rd in Sport and Loren finishing 3rd in Beginner. That calls for celebration, so off to Roberto's Mexican Restaurant we went for great Mexican food and several pitchers of margaritas! A long day at the races called for a relaxing soak in the hot tub……what a great day!

It's hard to beat Saturday's events, but TWW made the attempt. Up early Sunday morning for a nice ride on Uptown Trial. We checked out the incredible talent being displayed at a timed trials event, and had to demonstrate some of our own on the Dual Slalom course. We left the wonderful mountain on a 6 mile downhill trail that spit us out next to the BMX course that could not be resisted. All this activity deserved a soak in nature's hot tub. Hot Creek Springs was wonderful. We waded around for an hour soothing our bodies and our spirits. Sound like fun? You should have been there!!

Race Report by Dave Longinotti

Summary:

Great TWW Company, Linda Palmer, DawnW, Joel, Rob Butner, Loren, RichH, Antony &Spouse, Ron Chai & Spouse Bob, Pete R, and a Joels friend Mikael. (Hope I didn't forget anybody) Great Weather, Great Course.

I was fortunate to have a good results. (Third Sport 45+ XC) Partly because I was born in 1950 and my age category is never at DEEP as the 35-44 class, partly because I prepared very hard for this race. (3 previous road trips to the Sierra's for XC races, Beartrap Basin-28 miles -6000 ft. climbing @7000-8000ft elev., Northstar Xc and Northstar 24 hours, 14 and 40 miles-4500 & 6000 ft climbing@6300 to 7800 ft elev.)

Weather was great, just cool enough to avoid dehydration..

Report.

Drove us late Thursday.. Slept late, got out to the Expo right at the start of the Pro XC race about 2ish. Barely watched t Pro's as I was picking up my Reg stuff, and figuring out the courses. A bunch of us rolled off to preride about 445ish..

The course was very much as I expected and I was really jazzed that the I was finally starting to click with the loose corners. (But don't be suprized if I ride like a TOTAL CLUTZE the next we ride on a hard smooth place like Rockville.

Ever since the 24-hour race and up until I actually arrived at Mammoth, my legs have felt like TOTAL KRAP!.. I had only ridden 100 miles the week before the race, but as usually happens on Friday they were finally coming around, although I tried to climb as EASY as possible in the preride.

The course was really cool, ever since I got my MTB I've fanatized about those two hairpins near the bottom of Broadway where your traversing across ski run and then blast thru the big berms throwing dirt all over.

When I first saw the extreme section I balked, but I back up and managed to clean It.. Later when we realized we hadn't done the West Loop, the others went back to the Condo but I went ahead and rode it.

The West Loops consisted mainly a hard road climb of about a mile a descent around Reds Lake(pond).. A short singletrack climb and then a very fast bumpy, banked and tricky to do FAST section..

At the end of the West loop and I did the extreme section again and cleaned it.

Since the others had gone to the store to get pasta ingredients for dinner, by the time I got back to the car went the store and got some stuff and then won the "GUESS WHERE THE Chamonix CONDO's ARE:" Trial and ERROR game, everyone was pretty much thru eating, but I went ahead and cooked more sauce and generally got in Linda's way, and got to watch the late nigh bike building(Pete's DH Bike) marathon.

I thought about saying something about the old rule of never working a bike after the bike shop is closed the night before a race.. But thought I better not jinx it..

Race morning rolled around, I rode the initial road climb to the turn onto the singletrack and the second time rode the first 100 yards to get some feel. Getting to the 1Track as soon as possible in the race was crucial..

On the start line PeteR and Gary Anghinetti (beat me at Bud Light by about a minutes) were the only ones I knew.. I diced with Gary at Laguna but I had a feeling in the thin air that I could put enough gap on him in the climbs that I could hold him off. Especially since, it appeared that at least UP THERE, I wasn't really giving much time on the descents..

I went hard at the start and got to the 1Track 5th behind some Costa Mesa Guy named Tom Finley, PeteR, and two other guys> Gary was right behind me.. We were already passing 35-44 backmarkers before we finished the 1/2 mile climb to the 1 Track?..

In the 1 track there was more dust than the preride and the single speeder (experts?) Were just screaming thru us.. Gary managed to get behind of these guys and then "freight trained by me" when the expert went to pass. On the road section of the East Loop ( the first part of Paper Route), there are a couple fast loose corners then a short BUT STEEP CLIMB. I passe Gary again and did some damage to the tune of about 30 secs.. But into the 1 Track was total GRID LOCK with slower Young Sports.. With 25 guys in front of me I didn't see a lot of point in passing 1 or 2 guys, but then Gary passed me again so I figured I had to pay attention..

Shortly we reached the far end of Paper Route and a short WIDE climb, I hammered it(In the BIG RING IT TURNS OUT).. In the processing passing a S.cal guy name Tom Sitton that had FANS EVERYWHERE CHEERING HIM!.. and everytime I'd pass, he get out of the saddle push back ahead.. (There's no advantage to doing that on a MTB where there's no draft and I figured If I could keep pushing him which out extra effort on my part eventually he'd blow up..

I had cleared must of the gridlock and was chasing Sitton thru the Paper Route return 1 Track.. He did a better job of clearing some slower riders and had a small gap when we read the Road Climb returning to the Main Lodge. On the series of Road Climbs, short descents and single track sections I felt like I was making good time and Gary hadn't caught me back..

Back to the Main Lodge, starting up Broadway I passed Sitton for the last time. I felt like I had to give it almost EVERYTHING to gap Gary and Sitton enough that I could cruise to the finish.. Descending Broadway was super fun, even I didn't feel as "creamy Smooth" as in the preride.. +Because of traffic, I LOT of Dust was streaming around my Ray Ban (shooter's )glasses. Starting the West Loop I felt good.

On the Last Climb and Gave it everything and passed a TWW jersey that I in my Delusional state thought was Pete, but it was really Rob Butner.

On the return descent I was stuck behind a couple guy that I couldn't easily get past since they were almost as fast as I.. Rob got in a train that made us move over and went by me.. I the process I got past one but not the other.. We now crossed the last bridge and it was basically follow the leader done the Extreme section. (Not point in heroics here, If figured I was 4th or so and Nobody nearby was in my race..

I sprinted for the LINE.. (The Scorekeepers always hate that!)..

After a lot of waiting around, it looked like we were top 5, and initially PeteR was listed 2nd, and myself 4th with Gary Fifth. But at the awards they announced Gary 4th, me 3rd , and Pete the Winner.

Piece of advice.. PETE AND I SHOULD HAVE REALLY WATCHED THE RESULTS AS THE GUY KEPT RIPPING THEM DOWN AND POSTING NEW VERSIONS BECAUSE WE LET THE 15 minute PERIOD EXPIRE WITHOUT KNOWING They'd MADE SIGNIFICANT CHANGES!!!.. This time it worked out in our favor.. Pete and I were Bewildered about what happened to the first place guy, but he wasn't at the awards which hints to me that the didn't think he was the real winner although he had about 30 meters on Pete going into the track.. But I have no desire to give back the Bronze medal either..

Pete rode two great races on Sat.. The guy is awesome.. Thanks to everybody that came!!!

Trip Report by Dawn Weathersbee

Holy fantastic bike event!

Well, I've been to Mammoth twice before to snowboard, and I love the place. I had never before checked out the mountain biking, and now I love the place even more!

How much fun can one girl have? I think I was at my limit this weekend.

Thanks really do go to the following folks:

Loren for coordinating and inspiring me to come along.
Linda for getting that condo. It was so fun to relax on a sofa, sleep in a bed, and eat spaghetti with my pals.
Rich for coordinating a carpool and being the very patient and enduring driver of the Aerostar, which just turned 200,000!
Joel for going back to the store and getting the coffee - love that morning brew!

Highlights:

Riding bikes, of course!
The Velocity Downhill course - holy inspiration to get good at downhill riding!
Pete's night-before-the-race-building-my-bike-I-don't-know-my-start-time-placing-in-my-first-downhill-race-experience
Hot springs!!!!
Ron calling from the gondola as he flew overhead - "Dawn, I crashed!"
Walkie-talkies
Ron's wife whose mouth is as foul as mine! Go sister!
And, of course, being surrounding by cyclists of every persuasion! Heaven on earth!

If you didn't make it this year, plan on going next year! It's good clean fun!

Race Report by Linda Palmer

Wow, what a weekend! I kept thinking I was on an extended vacation - beautiful weather, great scenery, getting to know other TWW'ers better, and a great course! Perfect! Everything was fun; there was even time to relax and just "hang out."

The funniest part to me was Pete - working hard on his downhill bike late at night before the race, Joel filing away at some big piece of metal which eventually went back on the bike and worked great. And then truly a "team" effort to get him to the starting gate in the morning, from which point he took it on...amazing!

I had a great time in my race *and* narrowly managed to avoid being DFL in the women's sport 30+ class (18th of 19 listed - though I swear there were more at the start!!!) Identified some strengths & weaknesses, got a sense of pacing, and got motivated to keep training for next season. I love those swooping trails through the trees up there. Big fun -- thanks everyone!!! --Linda

Race Report by Pete Rudnick

Mammoth - September 2000

I was informed to keep this short and sweet, the book version is available on special request. And autographed hard copies can be purchased just as soon as they come off the press!

Fun, fun, fun, no other way to describe it. Couple that with great weather, good people to be with, and being in biker haven.

I really want to thank all that contributed to the makings of a super event, Linda, Rich, Joel, Robert, Loren, Dawn, Ron and Susan, Rob, Anthony and his girl friend, Dave, Mike, and my girl friend, Kari.

This year has been one of my best, and what a way to go, placing in two categories the same day!

I think the key to having this much fun is the teamwork that goes into it, Thanks Team Wrong Way!

Be seeing you on down the trail -