This race has been on my to-do list for the past few years. Normally I don't like racing so early in the season because school can get in the way of training but with the direction I'm taking this season, the early races are a must. I love riding a bike but the every day grind of training suck and I am a firm believer of racing into shape. I like testing to see where I stand and evaluate what I need to do from race to race to better my riding.
After Barry-Roubaix my confidence was pretty low, I just got a Cat 1 USA Cycling license for xc/endurance mountain biking and what I showed at that cold March day in Hastings was not what I am all about. I am a much better rider than what I proved that day and I was so pissed at myself for not putting in the work and so flustered by how much this semester's school work was interfering with my training. Yes, school is more important than racing these silly bicycles but its what I have a passion to do and what I sacrifice so much for. To me racing bicycles isn't just something I do to fill the void of not racing motocross anymore. Cycling, especially mountain biking is what I feel at home doing. I feel like I belong on a mountain bike. It's the best possible cross over from the motocross world.
The month and a half between Barry-Roubaix was longer that what it actually was. This semester was kicking my butt. I was taking a much larger course load that I have ever had. The classes I was taking took up a lot of my time and my riding felt it. School was not fully at fault for my lack of training. I will take the blame for being lazy at times and not wanting to get on the trainer or rollers. The semester course load really took its toll at the beginning of April. I did a few all nighters just to get projects done. In the past I would have put projects and school aside to make sure I was training but this semester I needed to setup to the plate and get my grades up and survive this grueling semester.
The week going into Mud Sweat and Beers just happened to be finals week. Unlike most college students, finals week for me was fairly easy. Compared to the two weeks prior, finals week was a chance of me to catch up on sleep and get some minor riding in and get the bikes and everything else ready for the race weekend as well as the week I was going home (downstate) for to train in some warmer weather.
The night before the race I got my stuff together and left the frigid Soo around noon and took off for Traverse City, Mi. Thankfully I have some helpful friends (Cody and Wes Sovis) that allowed me to stay at their house.
The morning of the race the weather was a tad chilly. According to the weather radar there was going to be a big rain shower going over TC at 9am (the start of the Elite racers). Once I got to Mt. Holiday I got stuff organized and ready to go for the race. I had about 2 hours to get things around and warm up. I rode around a little bit before I warmed up just to shake the legs out. With about an hour before the race I started my warm up. I rode the first mile or so of the start and the last section of the race that winded down Mt. Holiday. My parents were coming up for the race so When I got done w/ my warm up they showed up.
9:03 was the start of my wave. I was riding the 18-29 Expert Class. There was 5 of us signed up so I was hoping for a top 3. Knowing that Alex Schultz was there I knew that there was going to be at least one if not more heavy hitters in this class. By time my wave rolled up to the start the rain was coming down. The course was already muddy prior to the start because of the rain that TC was getting all week. As the race started, everyone took off hard like any race I have ever done. I started in the rear of the pack so I quickly made a charge to the middle of the group. Since my training was pretty minimal, I had no clue what my legs were going to do. I got out like I wanted to and just slowly started picking guys off and getting into a good pace. Once the race entered the single track I started making up time and was able to slow down my heart rate. The single track was a tad slippery at first and I was only going to get worse through out the race. I just focused on my race and tried to ride a smart race. This hills on this course were smaller than what I have normally seen at races last year and at Barry-Roubaix. The course was very fast and it was an all out sprint. As the race proceeded the rain got heavier and the course got slippery. You had to be very careful on how you put the power to the pedals. By the end of the race the single track was a mess. If you charged the corners hard enough you could actually feel the bike skate away from you. Thankfully my Schwalbe Rocket Ron's hooked up amazing. The last few miles of the race were very fast. they slightly overlapped the start section. Flying through a sub-division and back into the woods for one last climb before weaving down Mt. Holiday. This finish section is so far my favorite finish section. It was so fast and had a few jumps in it. Since I was racing my Trek Superfly 100 (full suspension), I got to feel how the shock really worked.
Mud Sweat and Beers 2014 was a successful race for me. It was the first race on the full suspension and it was a great race to test out the legs and see how I stood. I took third in the 19-29 Expert class. I know I have a ton of work to do yet but for being early in the season I felt not far off of how I finished last season.
I want to thank those who helped me for this race:
Cody and Wes Sovis
Mom and Dad
Hammer Nutrition
Breakaway Bicycles of Muskegon
Crank Brothers
Spy Optics
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