2010 MTB: Return on the Jedi Weekend, Merlin, Oregon, June 5-6, 2010.
by Elaine Bothe
In which Elaine learns the meaning of the word “EPIC.”
Saturday morning: Short Track! Yay, my favorite, the first of my season. I rode very hard, and very well. I got faster as the laps progressed. I win! (I'm the only Category 1 woman, oh well...)
1 mile course, at elevation (approx 3000 feet) talk about huffing and puffing. 8 laps, as I got lapped by the pro men, I got to follow for a little bit through the trickier sections, taking notes. What a great experience.
Saturday afternoon: Super D!!!! Wheee! The scariest part was the ride to the top of Onion Mountain, on the back of a stake-side flatbed truck, holding my bike with 19 other people. Moooo. On a winding, bumpy road with steep dropoffs.
The ride: 9 miles down, well, mostly down, with some climbing on the gravel road and a rolling, super fun Jedi trail back into camp. I debate about whether to take my new 29er or my old Klein... since I'm trying to get as much time on my new bike, and after a quick spin around camp on my old bike... eeek... I go for my new one.
What a confidence builder, (with the Specialized Captain tires now mounted up), what fun. Oh yeah, I win ; )
Sunday, XC. I was nervous all weekend, I know this is a hard, hilly and long Pro/Cat 1 course. I looked at the map, 30 miles, lots and lots of elevation gain, I planned for 4-4.5 hours and who knows what they are referring to as "technical"... sometimes they mean it, sometimes they don't... well this time, they meant it. I rode up AND DOWN some of the most amazing long rocky stairsteps I have ever seen, let alone ridden! But I crashed later on some stupid stuff... oops... like trying to ride through a fast moving creek, a root I stared at a picosecond too long.... bike's fine!!
Oh yes, then there was the wrong turns... apparently somebody removed a bunch of the course markers. This isn't the first time this year that the courses have been sabotaged by people against mountain biking. I think they have no idea how badly somebody could get lost and if they got hurt out there... I didn't think of this part until the drive home.
The unfortunate part is, since I was the last of the Pro/Cat 1 riders going through, and some of those guys made the same mistakes... I followed the wrong road that had a lot of bike tire tracks! Three or four guys, plus doubling back make for 6-8 SETS of tire tracks, which could be considered the pack!!! Total additional miles, approx. 2. plus some climbing.
I did get overwhelmed emotionally, this was by far the toughest ride or athletic pursuit I have ever mustered. But I did not give up, at one point I considered it while I was actually on the correct trail, but not having seen any markers for miles, I stopped at a crest in the middle of this stunning forest, alongside a gorgeous creek, thinking to myself, if I'm lost, this looks like a typical creekside hiking/biking trail, they always end up someplace with cars... I contemplated a bit, got back on my bike, and not even 150 feet later, I pop out on a road at an aid station. What a morale booster that was.
Still, I had 9 miles to go, with half the climbing yet to do.
I knew I had the endurance to last a long time, and since I wasn't actually racing anyone but myself, I wanted it to be good practice for a 50 mile endurance ride later this month... for food, pacing myself, truly riding my own ride on a challenging course (though it won't be as technically challenging). But getting lost beats you up mentally more than I knew, I don't recommend it.
My 1st place trophy is more of a proud certificate of completion than a prize, but I'm still proud of it. A race--well, ride-- I'll be talking about for years, thus, qualifying as the very definition of "EPIC." Plus I won $50 for having the lowest combined total time of the Cat 1 women (just me, a small but mostly friendly field) and earning the title "Jedi Master!" It was all great fun, a truly wonderful venue and weekend.
Maybe next year it won't rain...
Photo courtesy of Shane Young, Oregon Velo. Thanks!
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