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Race Report by Dave Longinotti Skyline Park Mtn Bike Race 2000 Sorry I missed the Olympics, but I had already pre-regged for this race... I raced at skyline park the last time that they held the world cup there, which was in 1999. I wanted to race there again because of what the GaleForce Brochure called the Stairsteps descent.. I think it deserves a more dramatic name, maybe, Satan's Staircase or somethingl=D6 The Eagle Cycling club put on a great race.. The starting order, course, scoring, was all great.. The racers were somewhat unprepared for it to be a NCNA race.. At the pre reg line guys were going.. (You mean a they don't accept a NORBA License???) The course was VERY similar to the old world cup course except that=20 there was an extra loop at to Lake Marie and back.. But I made some=20 errors on my preride.. I tried to follow directions from the=20 sponsoring club, but I went the Wrong way on the Bayleaf trail, and=20 also came back on the Lake Marie TRAIL instead of the LAKE MARIE=20 ROAD!(as the race course did).. This make a HUGE difference as the=20 LAKE MARIE TRAIL HAS ROCK GARDENS EVERY BIT AS HARD AS PARTS OF=20 ROCKVILLE!!..Also on my preride, the hardest parts of Satan's=20 Staircase were closed.. Lucky me I figured=8A(NO SUCH LUCK, they=20 reopened it for the RACE!!) The UCI World Cup Race in 1999 was a mud fest. I wanted to race the course dry. This year they started all the Sport Class age groups=20 together together.. But they used the tear off system for=20 scoring.. (a tag on your number plate). They also put an LETTER on=20 you plate that identified you age group.. This was really cool, because at the end they tear the tag and staple it to a board, and you can count the number of your own letter ahead of=20 you and you instantly know how you did.. (or within 10 minutes of=20 your finish which pretty quiick.. They started the entire Sport field at once, there were about 60 riders.. It was daunting.. I was in the second row. ( Heh, I'm no dummy!!).. .. The parade lap was C shaped.. Like about =E6 of a high school track=20 on except on grass, at the end of the C you take a Left onto the=20 mail trail system. . I was somewhat intimidated, but I figured=20 that this race wasn't going to be won by seconds///!! We go up the Lake Marie road, the field thins somewhat..( these Sports are fitter!!)..Two year ago I was leading at this point!!..(but that=20 was racing with 20 45+ and 55+ beginners).. The Parade Lap thru the Arena area was pretty hairy with 60 Sports or=20 so, they were going a lot harder than Beginner race.. Up the Lake=20 Marie Rd climb, my legs were really burning.. I was pushing the=20 same gears as my preride, the sprint thru the starting loop must have=20 really been harder than I thought.,.About have way up the climb I=20 caught up to John Hillstrom and passed him.. I was sure he'd pass=20 me back later and he did.. It's nice to have team mates around.. Once we got to where the "Disco Flyover was at the WC we actually=20 went straight up Paddini road(just like WC), (that really STEEP_ASS=20 climb with section of ROCKs where a lot of people get off and hike..=20 On this first lap this was a gridlock with guys off their bikes so I=20 just accepted reality and and ran it passing a bunch of guys.. At=20 the top the course turned right (and for the life of me I can't=20 figure out how the WC course connected there because somehow you=20 ended up on same trail as the WC but you didn't end up in the same=20 place(the WC came back down tot he Flyover) and this course headed up=20 the East side Of Lake Marie, descended to a Water Crossing and then=20 came back around the lake thru a very Knarly Stairsteps section=20 (carved out of solid ROCK!) that EVERYONE HAD TO Hike.. I gained my=20 time here.. Not having preridden the Lake Marie Road Descent(even the the Lake=20 Marie Single Track was really HIGH QUALITY ROCK GARDEN), was a big=20 mistake, it was laced with light and shadow, was very rough to VERY=20 ROUGHER, to VERY ROUGHEST!.. At the end of the road you get back on=20 the last couple miles of WC Course=8A AND THE DEVILS STAIRCASE WAS=20 ADDED BACK IN!!.. Coming up on the worst section I was just behind=20 John Hillstrom, I had thought about attempted to ride it, but when I=20 saw John dismounted, I figured that's It, I'm getting off BEFO:RE I=20 =46ALL OFF!!.. I road the rest of the stepped Swtichbacks pretty well=20 (for ME), but John was faster and he disappeared from view.. On the=20 climb at the start of the second lap, I got within about 70 meters=20 of John, but in the 1Track he disappeared again.. On the Paddini=20 road climb, I almost cleaned it stalling out just 15 meters fr;om the=20 top.. I passed a couple guys and back on the single track I expected=20 to have to let them by, but oddly I managed to hold them off all the=20 way to the back of the lake and then I managed to lose them on the=20 hike a bike.. The rest of race was pretty mundane except I tried=20 to improve my speed over all the LOG JUMPS they hadded to the end of=20 the course.. There must be 30 or 40 of these 10 or 12 inch logs half=20 buried, I was afriaid to take them at full speed at first for fear of=20 blowing the jump and endoing, but I got better at it.. At the end,=20 I was behind the other guy I figured was a age group or two younger,=20 but he didn't seem to want to let me buy, so I lit him up in the=20 first sprint, trouble was that the score keepers were about 30 feet=20 beyond the finish line and I intended to sprint all the way to the=20 line,, they got pretty upset for a few seconds!!!..
Within about 10 minutes my tag was posted, and it was apparent that I=20
had won my age group, and was about 29th of 58 in the overall Sport=20
Class.. I got a nice medal and a bottle of wine.. Not to shabby..I=20
forgot to check John Hillstroms result, he might have made top 5, He=20
was a minute or two ahead of me). I''ll have to wait for the stuff=20
to get posted on the NCNCA site.. (Eagle Cycling said they would do=20
that).. |