2009 Over The Hump Race Report and Pics

I just want to thank the folks who took the time to take (and post) pics of the race...especially those who posted them someplace where they are downloadable for free. Professional photographer or not, I'm sure there are others out there like me (nowhere near pro) who appreciate having a couple cool shots for the personal photo album.

 

Over the Hump Video/RR

The inaugural Over the Hump Series Race was a blast. Seeing as my training wasn't as it should have been, I'm fairly satisfied with my result (Sport 30-39, 11th Place, 54:10). I KNOW I'm faster, but since I didn't put in the proper saddle time, I got the expected result. I was 3:06 off the winning time and I'm more than capable of making up and bettering that time gap.

This race was exactly what I needed to get the racing spark back. I didn't expect to be competitive, but I needed this event to actually test where I was physically, under race conditions. I've got a little over two weeks until Race #2 and my goals are a Top 10 finish. I want to cut off at least 30 seconds a lap for a 52:30 finishing time. Race #1 time was 54:10.

Breaking down the laps, I blazed out with a 16:58 for the first one, 18:57 for the second, and 20:15 for the third. That was NOT the best way to run this race. I had a bad start and I put out way too much effort in the first lap getting through all the riders. Each successive lap was steadily slower...

...I should have eased the brakes on the first lap and knocked out consistent 17:30 laps. That would have gotten me an 8th place finish. Consistent 17:00 laps would have gotten me the win.

So it's gonna be a little more training. Now that I think back to Wednesday...I didn't eat anything all day. I was busy in the morning re-Stans-ing my new wheels and getting the Rock N' Road tent to set-up at the venue. Food is a pretty good source of fuel that I could have used during the race. I'll be sure to eat something for Race #2. ;-)

As I did with the Pre-ride Video, I strapped on the GoPro (thanks TowMater!) and did some more filming. I decided to just do the first lap for video as that alone is over 18 minutes long. The length of the vid is too long to post on YouTube.

You can view/download it here: http://gallery.me.com/ceedubb/100067

 

Thanks for posting that. I was just ahead of you for a little while. When you were flying by people on that first climb I was in that first group towards the top that you didn't pass (white and gray Don's kit). I had my lap times at 16:58, 17:20, and 17:13, finished 4th in S2 30-39. With so many people racing it made that video really fun to watch.

 

nice job on the race footie. are these trails accesable to anyone who enters irvine lake or just race days???

 

article in OC Register

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/race-bike-around-2547415-mountain-time

Monday, August 31, 2009
I rode my first mountain bike race and lived!
Over the Hump Mountain Bike Race Series kicks off at Irvine Lake with great course, spirit and camaraderie.

David Whiting
Columnist
The Orange County Register
[email protected]

Pedaling up the first rise at the newest mountain biking race in Orange County, I take a sip from my hydration pack and nearly gag: coke, two different brands of energy drink and water.
I'm not testing a new concoction. I'm just desperate for liquid. It's Wednesday evening, hot as heck – and it's only five minutes into what for many will be an hour-long race.
What was I thinking letting the race directors talk me into the Over the Hump Mountain Bike Race Series? It's been a long time since the county saw such an event, they said. It'll be fun they said. It'll be easy, they said.
"One 40-50 foot single track downhill, but that's the only technical section," John Russell promised in an e-mail. "No rocks or anything."
Yeah, right.
I'd walked into my garage the night before and stared at a mess. It'd been almost a year since I'd ridden my road bike, and far more since I'd ridden my mountain bike. I had allowed one hour to prep the dusty 1991 machine before a date with my wife. Digging it out took 50 minutes. Ready or not, here I go, I figured as I tossed the bike and a water bottle in my car.
Irvine Lake sparkled in the sunlight when I pulled in an hour before the 6 p.m. gun time. Plenty of time for a much-needed shake-down lap. Or was there? My bike computer was dead. And I realized I'd forgotten a watch as I wobbled toward the course, trying to remember how to clip my shoes in the pedals.
Cycling muscles sure are different from running muscles, I thought, huffing and puffing my way up the first hill. What was that word I used to take seriously? Ah, yes. Training.
Holy jamolly! Well, that's not exactly what I thought, but you get the idea. Ahead was a steep dirt grade with loose rocks followed by a hairpin turn.
Neurons in some primordial part of my brain sent a message: "You promised to replace your break pads, you idiot!" I skittered and slid around the corner only to face another off-camber turn, then another.
Shaky, thirsty and exhausted, I pedaled back to the car. And the race hadn't even started.
I fished around for my keys. Locked out.
"Hey, what time is it?" I hollered to a random cyclist.
"5:40," he said looking curiously at me slithering on the asphalt and flailing around under my car.
Opening the door with my secret key, I fished around my stash of emergency drinks. I dumped them all in my CamelBak, made a few adjustments to the breaks and rushed to the start line. At least hardly anyone will show up for a debut race.
A sea of 315 cyclists crowded the gate. The race was sold out. It was testimony to Orange County's thriving mountain bike community, the expertise of the Over the Hump race directors and the support of local bike shops such as Surf City, Switchback, The Path, Jax and Rock n' Road.
After choking down my bizarre home brew, I follow a kid about 12 with spindly legs and sneakers splayed out on his pedals. If he can do this, maybe I can. Remembering to follow someone's line, I hug the wheels of some cyclists as they thread through the turns.
Swoop, swish, swoop. I clean the corners. Why had they seemed so difficult before? Yoda's voice comes from some strange place: "Fear is the dark side." The course isn't all that tough. It was my stupid brain.
"Flow like water," I remind myself, a lesson I learned when I discovered mountain biking in the '90s.
A blond woman goes down in front of me, scraping the right side of her body. Will I hit her? She performs a graceful Cirque de Soleil stunt. Pushing off with one arm and foot, she remounts and rides off with less than a second lost.
A colorful, flowing ribbon of mountain bikers of all ages, sizes and abilities winds over, around, up and down a bare dirt hill along the lake's south side. It's like watching an Imax movie, but you can smell the warm air, taste the dry earth – and then it occurs to you that you are actually in this movie.
I start my second lap of the 3.75-mile loop. Cyclists pedal like crazy ahead, behind, to the sides. It's intense but mellow. Polite but competitive.
A giant cloud of dust envelopes us. Against the setting sun's rays, misty silhouettes of bikers disappear around a bend, moving together in dance of strength and love for the sport.
Thighs pump, sweat evaporates, muscle memory returns. I focus on racing. Effort melts away.
Crack. Yikes! My seat post breaks.
Without a seat, I ride-walk more than a mile back to the start line, taking shortcuts. It's my first DNF, did not finish.
"Wow. That's awesome. No seat, huh?" an impressed hard-core biker says as I pedal by.
"Oh, yeah," I deadpan. "It just takes training."

 

It's a closed course, only accessible on race days. Pre-ride will be on race day 4:30pm-5:30pm.

Minhster and Nekit we got a piece of your trail in, just a slight diversion from the original, so lap times should be spot on, and everyone will dig the change, adds some fun single track...everybit counts. Should relieve the bottle neck drop to the beach.

 

Wait a sec. Gotta make a correction. You were ahead of me not for a little while...you were ahead of me THE WHOLE TIME! Great job! You had some pretty consistent lap times. I kinda blew up after going by all those riders. With my crappy start, I didn't want to get caught behind 50+ people.

Don's used to be my home shop when I had my house out in Rialto. I miss Scotty, Wayne, and Ben. I haven't seen them in ages!

 

Scott, Wayne, and Ben are still around all the time. If you're ever in the area you should stop by. I'll miss the next OTH race, but will look forward to the series next summer.

 

The next time you stop by, tell 'em I said "Hey!" I make it a point to drop in there whenever I'm in that area.

 

Looking forward to the race next week, plan on taking photos and cheering on some friends entered.

 

will we get issued new number plates for next weeks race or to we bring our orig plate?

 

The web site said to bring your old number plate.

Are you running your single speed again?

 

Hell no!! LOL I'll be on my geared bike.. Hopefully I can make more speed in the flats.

 

My only bike is that single speed so I need to make it work. I am going to put a smaller cog on there and I have been working on pedaling like a hamster in a wheel.

 

here is something from the friendly folks at MBA;

http://www.mbaction.com/ME2/dirmod....0&tier=3&nid=C91AD467266C46BBB4737439B5C3C7D4

 

Since the race starts at 6:00 pm are lights required? :?:

 

the last person to cross the finish line last time was around 1.5 hours. So if you're the last person, it should only be around 7:30pm which should still be enough sunlight for you to ride to the finish.

 

This is where it gets fun! See you guys out there tomorrow.

 

God, please let there be a water truck tonight....... I think I just got that bit of dirt out from last time.

 

I was considering wearing a mask if there is no water truck