Did my first US Cup on Sunday at Vail Lake, it wasn't my day but that was due to a mechanical (chain suck) and falling twice - not really the course to blame for those. The course was fun and held up very well after the rain - some slippery/muddy sections but nothing to really slow anyone down. I was bummed that they had two categories of us go at the same time (Cat 2 40-44 and 45-49) so there were some 40 people that went out of the gate at the same time. Had my chain suck happen within the first 2 minutes so had to slow down to get the chain back on track. HR monitor never worked - it had worked for me for many races but this time my Garmin was picking up everyone else's monitors (multiple monitors found) - so my HR reading was like 120, then jumped to 99, then some other number....then just displayed blank. Only thing to grumble about would be the folks who shouted and complained when riders had to get off the bike. I mean, it's such a useless thing to do - shouting isn't going to make anyone go faster people! In fact you will get people flustered and it will take LONGER. Credit to those tho didn't curse but said positive things instead - that helped people be more relaxed and they got on the bike much faster that way. I noticed a BIG difference between the folks in my class who would cuss and shout - then there was Tinker, who came up behind me and just said a polite "on your left". A guy in front of me slipped off his bike and I had to get off as well. But did Tinker complain? Did he curse and shout at folks who were just trying to do their best? Nope - he just quietly jumped off his bike, hustled to the top, then jumped right on to continue his way. I think that guy understands that it's all just a part of racing - and if you don't like it, then maybe you shouldn't be out there. Just a thought... Anyway, I didn't finish the race with the time I wanted but was just glad to finish at all and looking forward to UC Cup #2 at Bonelli Park on 3/16. It looks like our category will be able to leave the starting gate alone. Kudos to all who came out! :bang:
Because of the format they used for this race, I happened to come upon a lot of lap traffic and I can tell you the difference between Tinker and normal people (myself being normal people). When Tinker comes up behind someone and says, "on your left" everyone knows it is Tinker and lets him over because we all know he is a legend. Now, us normal people say, "on your left" and the people in front of us don't always move over. Maybe they have headphones in? Maybe they are just hard of hearing? Maybe they are looking for a place to pass? No big deal, if they move over in a short amount of time. Now, if they continue to not let us by, or look back and pass many easy passing places and not let us past, we get frustrated. I didn't yell at anyone, but I did get frustrated behind stuck behind slower people who wouldn't let me pass. I made sure to call out that I was in the endurance race, but they must have thought I was racing against them because they always seemed to try to block me.
Tinker is a class act! And most other pros are as it relates to trail and race etiquette. It's the weekend warrior "I need this race to prove something" types that you have to worry about......
Good points. However, I had no idea who it was that was saying "on your left" (he was behind me after all). Only realized who it was once he passed me. Of course I get frustrated when I have to get off the bike because someone in front of me has trouble. I just don't curse out the guy, it just makes an already frustrating experience even more so.
'Twas better than last year. Maybe starting the Endurance 30 minutes earlier would have helped...I started lap 3 and caught the tail end of the last Cat 3 riders going up the first small climb and a few walking down the first steep rocky section. Not a big deal for the endurance riders unless you happened upon the few who are still learning about racing etiquette...look for a place where you can be passed safely and without putting either yourself or the overtaking rider in danger...if there's only one line, it's the lead rider's line and the faster rider behind has to suck it up until there's a spot to be passed by the train behind...you don't have to pull off for everyone and lengthen your own race. Its frustrating in the moment, but the best part about the endurance event is that over the course of 3-4 hours, there's plenty of spots to make up that 30-60 seconds of lost time (I say that having come in second by a mere 3 minutes). You also tend to be a little more mellow unless you're part of a train of 4-8 riders hanging together, and get broken up. The best courses are also usually the ones where it's most difficult to pass when coming up on slower riders from other classes. The Cat 2 classes from 35-55 are usually the biggest ones...people who have been riding for a few years and have the $$'s and discipline to make the most of their training and equipment. It's all part of the racing game. I do my best to be nice, but it doesn't always happen...same with others...Bonelli and Fontana are tighter tracks and more popular with bigger fields. Good Luck...and you'll hear my bells chasing you down.
I was thinking similarly. I would have no idea, who could be calling out behind me. I would like to believe that it's about experience: If someone is on my ass, they didn't get there by magic and vise versa.
I did my first Endurance race it was a blast. I was in third for half the race then caught up to second on the start of the fourth lap. What epic conditions we had for this 3:48 minute race. I couldn't be happier with how I performed and finished, not being 100%, I can't wait until the next one. Fighting off cramps on the third and fifth lap. I was almost putting myself in a trance to get rid of them and some how I did. Not getting lapped by Tinker was awesome, I did get to chat with him after he did flat so he most likely would have lapped me. I too hit the XC riders on the third lap. Those switchbacks seemed to get way tackier and sloppier after they had hit them. I missed the bottle hand off from my wife on the last lap so I picked up one on the last part of the big climb after the switch backs. Not sure what it was but it was purple. So much fun though double the price of the regular races but I say totally worth it. Great photos too by Called to Creation and PBCreative.
Do you have links? Can't seem to find it on the US Cup site. Found 'em: Called To Creation PB Creative
I did my first US Cup as well but I DNF... I slammed into the hill side in the back single track area after getting caught in a rain rut. I'm sure it was my fault trying to cross it but I was so damn tired from the first big climbs I don't remember trying to Manual the bike over the rut and the tire got sucked into it but I managed to ride to the start/finish line. But either way the course did hold up well, it was still a Little soggy and I made the mistake of putting on a 2.3 Hans Dampf on my Enduro which made it even harder to push thru the soggy dirt and it felt like I had an anchor dragging behind me. I never ride in the rain so this was a totally new experience for me let alone race in it. We'll see how Bonelli play out next round.
I wish I would have been ready and able to give this one a go but maybe next time. Looking at the results reminds me, dang, some quick finishes. Time for some practice and training, training, training… Glad to hear the course held up and congrats to everyone who made it out.
Ton of folks pre-riding the Bonelli course today. Lots of new sections. As always US CUP and Bonelli aim to deliver. Best XC race in SoCal and now the pro race on Saturday is a UCI HC race. Highest cAtegory short of a World Cup race. Should bring the best of the best out to our corner of the world.
