Sport 35+
15th place out of 22

Another great event put together by the BikeMonkey people, this time with and exceptional turnout of 130+ riders.
The course was great as always and particularly challenging: there are a couple of creek crossings that scare the bejezus out of me. Rutted and rocky descends, short and steep climbs but more than anything kick-ass singletrack.

As per my race, my fourth one this season in sport class I got another 15th place out of 22, apparently there are always 14 riders faster than me no matter what I guess that’s the way is going to be for the rest of this season.

I averaged 2+mins faster laps than last year, same course, but much worse trail conditions than last year (plus I had one extra lap this time) so I’m pretty happy.

The first lap was a rude awakening from the previous 3 ’smooth’ races at CCCX. The course is technical and challenging with several steep creek crossings and steep short climbs, this time with slippery terrain.

I clearly remember at the end of the first lap thinking “there’s now ay I can do 2 more of these…” but I did, the pain settled during the second lap and I got more confident with the techy sections during 2nd and 3rd lap. Still I’m fading as the race progress and my laps get slower: I need to work more on endurance and keep pushing myself even when there’s no-one in sight to try and keep up with.

The party at the end with burgers, hot dogs and beers is always great and the overall vibe at these Lake Sonoma races is alsways great. Looking forward to next one, in summer.