Midwest MTB Racing Report
Survival of the heat was the story for folks racing this past weekend. Some of the hottest temps of the summer blazed down from the summer sun as racers hit the hilly slopes at Afton Alps for the Minnesota Series race and a select group in North Dakota hitting up the Dakota Adventist Academy trails outside Bismarck for race #1 in the Dakota Off Road Series. Reports from both locales plus a look ahead in this week's report.
Afton Avalanche
Minnesota Series racers hit trails at Afton Alps which generally run up, or down. The course features some of the longest climbs in all of the series races and definitely favors those that can "climb like a goat". The toasty day only added to the challenge as racers had to keep hydrated and keep the internal thermometer from redlining. Making the jump to the Elite class this year, High School state MTB champ Jordan Horner notched her first win this year and files a report:
I'm not sure how most people feel the morning of a race, but I was not as pumped as I normally am. I had been up late the previous night volunteering at the Lakefront Music Festival and wanted a nap more than I wanted to race, but watching my siblings race got me a little more excited. Speaking of the younger Horners, they smoked their competition! Wyatt finished 3rd overall in the kids comp class and 1st in his age group, Devon placed a solid 11th overall in Citizen and 2nd in his age group, and Taylor placed 12th out of all the sport ladies and 2nd in her age group.
My pre-race routine was actually so dysfunctional and only added to my stress about the race. I decided it was warm enough outside for only a short warm-up (maybe a little too warm) and I hung out under our tent the rest of the time. I rolled to the start line about a minute before they said go, thanks to forgetting my back plate in the trailer, and snuck in between Sophia and Kjerstie. I jumped off the start at "go" and pulled behind Sophia's back wheel up the first hill and through the first set of single track, just to see if I could keep up with her pace. Down on the road I decided to try something risky and pulled ahead of Sophia, seeing how far I could hold a lead. I try hard not to look back when I race, so I only imagined that everyone was right on my wheel. Up the southern switchbacks I began to realize that fellow teammate, Eleanor had stuck with me and we had gapped most of the girls; I knew this was going to be a fun race.
The first lap seemed very long to me, being the first time doing the whole lap since the 24 hours of Afton when I was 11, and had a lot more climbing than I remembered. Some of the hills got a little difficult with my 1x10 setup but I never walked. The course was in perfect condition but a little weird, muddy in some spots and too dry in others. It is always fun though. (Photo: Todd Bauer)
I didn’t have much of a lead going into the second lap and Eleanor ended up passing me on the southern switchbacks. I tried my hardest to stick with her but I fell off a bit. I knew I would have to take advantage of the technical downhills in order to catch back up, so I let go of the brakes on every part I could, and before I knew it, I was passing her up a hill and feeling great. My legs were screaming at me but I kept pedaling when I could, I didn’t let myself walk up Manhandler and it helped. According to my dad, I had a good 45 second lead going into lap 3, but I still wasn’t positive I could hold this. I worked my way past a couple Elite guys and used them to pull me up the hills. I broke my rule and looked back every once in a while, trying to find Eleanor, but I couldn’t see her anywhere. That worried me so I continued to push harder and harder. My parents were on Manhandler the last lap and told me I had a little under a 3 minute lead, that’s when I realized I had the win and I was overjoyed. I crossed the finish line with the biggest smile on my face and really couldn’t believe what I had just done.
I'm not really sure if I'll be able to do this again, but I will definitely cherish this feeling and take advantage of the new confidence. I can't wait for the day when I can hold my own with ladies like Jenna and Rebecca. For now I enjoy having the competition and can't wait for the next race.
Dakota Adventist Academy Race
Back in the late 90's, the Dakota Adventist Academy was host to the North Dakota State Championships. I raced the later years of that decade and always remember the heat being a factor. I also remember cows and rattlesnakes on the course which added to the challenge. Great stuff. I miss racing in North Dakota as the fun factor on the sense of adventure scale was always high. Steve Wenzel made a last minute decision to hit up this years edition which was the first race of four of the Dakota Off Road Series and provides a report:
I made the last minute decision to jump in a van with fellow Fargo racers Tom Heilman, Zach Johnson and Jamestown rider Steve Aesoph. Our destination was the first of four Dakota Off Road Championship Series (D.O.R. C.S.) races at the Bismarck Dakota Adventist Academy Trail about 10 miles north of Bismarck proper.
The Adventist trail system is a 15.1 mile single track loop that utilizes all of the terrain on the Adventist property. Punchy climbs, long switch back climbs and descents, off camber cross sections and everything else associated with riding in the prairies of North Dakota Sundays race was two loops, over 30 miles.
As forecasted it was HOT. With the race starting at noon and minimal tree cover we were hitting the heat of the day without a cloud in the sky. +25 riders toed the line with all knowing we were in for a long race. Once things got spread out on the single track I found that I was in survival mode rather than all out racing. My personal goal was to keep the pace steady and manage the liquid/food intake required - hopefully I would pass some guys in the process without cramping or getting heat exhaustion. (Photo: Steve Wenzel)
Deep into the race I had minimized any cramping and was still holding a steady pace. There were others that weren’t as lucky as I passed guys pulled over in pain or overall exhaustion. A lot of work went into this trail and I appreciated it greatly, enjoyed every pedal stroke regardless of the heat. Nice work to the Bismarck crew for the organization and dishing out the pain.
USA Cycling MTB Nationals
A handful of riders from the Midwest, mostly from Wisconsin, made the trek to the US MTB Nationals with some solid results posted. Coming off a stellar Pro XCT race in his home state, Brian Matter nailed down two top 10 finishes in both the short track and cross country. Matter has some great recaps on his blog. (Photo: Matter blog)
Related: USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Championships
Looking Ahead
A quite weekend on tap as far as series racing in Minnesota and Wisconsin. The Sunburst Challenge, which was slated to be a part in the Wisconsin series, had to cancel it's event earlier in the year and was unable to fill a venue in its spot.
Dakota Offroad Championship Series
Race #2 in the North Dakota series takes place in the northwest part of the state (Minot) if anyone happens to be passing through the area and looking to shred some cool prairie singletrack!
This Thursday (July 24) there is a museum preview for the new Cycling Museum of Minnesota featuring cycling related items. There will be a mountain bike racing section where Jeff Hall will have his Breezer bicycle and jersey on display. They are requesting an RSVP so if you think you'd like to stop by, let them know and they will include you. There will be free snacks and drinks. There will be other opportunities to check out the different stages of development for this museum, too, so have no fear!
New Trails
Next week's report will feature a first hand report of mountain biking opportunities along the north shore in Minnesota as new trails are being built this summer on top of a growing network of flow, raw and old school trails. Also a quick review on the new trails just opened up at the Piedmont trail system in Duluth.
Keep the wheels moving!
 | About the author... Jay Richards maintains a very active lifestyle. He somehow finds time between managing a full-time resort (Maplelag) and bringing up a family of four boys with his wife Jonell, to compete in both mountain bike and a few cross-country ski races. Jay rides for Maplelag Resort, manages the Maplelag/Paramount/Podiumwear mountain bike team and enters his 24th year of racing and promoting mountain bike races. |