Tuesday, May 08, 2007
Escape from the Inland Empire
Yo,
I just returned from the National Mountain Bike Series stop in L.A. I wouldn't say that it was a perfect weekend, results-wise. Though slowly, things are coming around and I am feeling the signs of super-fitness in there.
What's super fitness? It's when you feel like you're playing with your friends when sprinting and goofing off, attacking just for the fun of it; and it all feels good! You want to go hard because the harder you go, the faster you go. The wind roars past your ears making that sweet sound and the hum of the tires licking the ground. This must be what it feels like for fawn deer to first break stride into a full sprint. I guess deer don't have tires unless they are John Deers. They can lick things though...
I'm not sure what happened on Saturday, because my legs wouldn't go despite my fitness of late being at a top-5 level. I was covered in salt after the event, however I had no cramps. It was probably because it was chilly and cloudy the first two days I was in L.A. and I didn't get in a good "sweat ride" before the races.
By Sunday I got in the groove. I rocketed through the field from a mid pack start that had me at a standstill behind a crash on the second corner. I was in amazement to see way down the second stretch to the pack of lead riders and my teammate "Rad" Ross taking to flight on the doubles in front of everyone. The flashes of cameras were going off, and I cracked up laughing in the middle of the short track because the only time I could see Ross was when he popped up like dolphin jumping out of a sea of riders. Tomac should be proud!
After crossing wheels with Kabush and having to put a foot down, I ended up sixth.
After the race, I was super fired up to slam some tempo on a big climb and convinced our friend Manee the "Tico Gringo" to show Adam Craig, Ross and me the Santa Anna River Trail - a good singletrack trail north of Redlands. What would ensue felt like a great escape from the Inland Empire of concrete, asphalt and sand.
Stay tuned. You will dig the rest of the story. I'll fill you in later with more on our twilight ride after the short track.
Later, man.
JeremiahLabels: NMBS Recaps
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