Race Report Okole Stuff Race Report 7/16/11

I can't say enough good things about todays event. Ron, and all those who volunteered, THANK YOU!

 

Okole Cup 2011 1st place and watch in a raffle I am blessed today I do think by the end of the year I should move into sport class, I think the watch is bigger than my phone I will get a wagon to carry it.

 

Thanks to all the people cheering on chutes. Made for a really fun and exciting downhill section!

 

I can not say enough about this awesome event...all the volunteers who did an amazing job and the cowbells and cheers sure helped! It was so great to put faces to names...I finally got to HUG DEN MOTHER! What a thrill....the coarse was perfect...the swag was awesome and I liked the cold hard cash...again hats off to the volunteers and vendors who put on an awesome event...favorite for me was the kids race...the next generation.....

 

nice job everyone! i was up on chutes cheering you guys on with nam. he had the blue jersey and i had the white/red jersey on. we were right at the top of that little grinder climb before you descend back down. it was nice to see some old friends today.

 

This race was a blast! What a fun course! Nice to meet you Giddy and congrats on the win buddy! Thanks to all the volunteers for making such a cool event.

Between the bitchen course, a great crowd cheering you on Chutes and AndyakaRut working the mic- I'm still smiling!

 

way to go my friend looking good and fit!

 

way to go my friend looking good and fit!

 

Rode over to Oaks this morning and road up Mtn Goat, I was going to go down Chutes Ridgeline then come back up "New Chutes" but they already had it quardoned off and I didn't want to break the rules, so I went down Cactus instead and back up Goat and drank some coffee and waited for the race to start.

4-5 or so other riders joined me at the outlook point at the top of Goat. We then went over to Chutes, where a number of other people had gathered, and went down the initial drop once the first riders came down the dam. I had a blast watching everyone go down the initial drops on Chutes and cheering the riders on, as did the rest of the people there. It was a lot of fun. Time flew--I spent over 2 hours up there before I knew it.

Then I descended Chutes (New Chutes), the switchbacks, and watched riders descend the steep tricky section in the middle for a few minutes then went to the finish line to meet my wife and daughter to check out the festivities and do the park thing (zoo, playground, etc.).

What a great event. Congrats to all of those who rode today--you guys were great!

I hope they do it next year. I think I may ride next year and get some friends to do it, but most of them were on the disabled list this year...

 

So much fun today!!!! Thanks everyone who volunteered, and coordinated and planned, and permitted, and cleared the course. I sure hope it was a great success. Would love to do another one, and hopefully next year I won't be riding Retro Rocket anymore Can't believe I got a medal!!! LOL!! SO COOL!

 

Great event! The course, location, and volunteers were all awesome. Congrats to Ron and the volunteers for an excellent event.

 

Great race today at Irvine Park and Santiago Oaks! I was simply excited to be part of the very first MTB race at a OC Park. My goals at the race was to stay focus, run my own pace, no crash and have fun. I honestly believe I achieved all my goals today which was amazing! I am part of the beginner 40 - 49 group and I started off just okay but not strong. I just didn't feel much energy the first half of it and fell behind of my group fast. However, I didn't want to push myself too hard just to catch up with the group as I knew there is still much to ride like climb Coachwhip and down Chutes. I used Bumble Bee to recover after the climb out of Goat. Good thing I successfully went over to Coachwhip from Bumble Bee without having to stop as I was never able to do that before. The first part of Coachwhip before the switchbacks always takes a lot out of me and it's no different this time. I was behind another racer while climbing it and I took advantage of the slow pace to recover further. Once the switchbacks started I felt more energetic and actually started passing others on the way up. I finally caught up with my friend in the same group on Barham Ridge as we rode toward Chutes. I was worry about going down Chutes as I am not very skill at technical stuffs like rock drops at the beginning and the steep technical descent after the intersection between Chutes Ridgeline and Zips. I only managed to ride down the entire Chutes Ridgeline on my own a week before the race but that was non-race pace. I saw people cheering on the side at the beginning of Chutes and at the intersection. That was a welcome scene for me as beginner racer but also made me nervous as I thought I better not mess up in front of those people. At the end, I was amazed that I went through Chutes with little doubt and even faster pace today. When I got to the bottom of Chutes, I can't help it but had to put on a big smile on my face knowing all the scary stuffs are done and I made it through in one piece! There were more people cheering after the sandy creek bottom crossing over to Roadrunner fireroad. I went through the single track section of Roadrunner without much trouble and led me back to Irvine Park. Once we get to Irvine Park, we went on to the last section of the course which also happens to be a tough short climb that the official never really mentioned in the course description. I was able to muscle up that climb right behind my friend and then it's all fireroad along the way and back down to the pavement. At the end, my friend and I rode back to the finish line together with a big smile on our faces knowing we made it.

When results came out, my friend and I both finished in 1hr 12mins which is nothing spectacular. However, the simple joy of being in this race and the satisfaction of finished the race will be something I'll remember for a long time. It also help boost my confident level as far as riding technical sections. I think I might go try Over The Hump when they resume the 2nd half of the season later this month.

Cheers,

 

Great job everyone; including the racers, the volunteers and the fans. The race (from my point of view) really seemed to go smooth. I can't imagine doing three laps with an average time of 40 to 41 minutes. OUCH!!
Congrats to all!!!

 

Are they going to post the results? Had to leave soon after the race so not sure how I did.

 

Had a great time at the Okole Stuff Race! What a fantastic event, thank you to Ron and the volunteers for all their hard work! What a great course, my favorite part was descending Chutes the crowd at the top was yelling "GO STR" what a blast! Hope we can do it again!!!

 

Check the Okole Stuff website in a day or so. I'm sure he will post it.

 

First of all, I wanted to say thanks to everyone that was involved in putting this race together. Ans congratz to everyone who entered and finished the race. Mad props to Enduro Stuff, The Path, Kona, and all of the other sponsors. It was my first race, and I had a blast. Not to mention that i came in second place in my age category, i also won the bike they had for raffle. A series held at santiago oaks would definately be the best. BTW, if anyone knows how I can get a hold of the photogs that were taking pics up on chutes let me know.
Thanks
Mondo

 

Race pics - Okole Cup

Congrats to all the racers! Great turn out for our very first XC race in OC. I was up top before the descent... seen some guys haul a$$ down the rocky section on their XC bikes!!! Awesome!

Here's a link to the pics: http://www.photoreflect.com/store/thumbpage.aspx?e=8124026

 

great pics Joe! I was posted up at the last little grinder of a climb on chutes with Bret. I had a blast cheering on the racers and shot a few with my water gun as well lol.

 

Found this through a friend. Great video of a lap and it doesn't take the whole hour to watch!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adqzs7jDFUA