Giver8er: the High Road and the Dry Road

After a sort and hard day at the Deadgoat Summer Solstice race yesterday, I awoke at 7 feeling slightly groggy, weary of the weather forecast, but unwilling to relent on riding.

Fortunately Andrea and I were teaming up for the Giver8er mixed category, and she was feeling slightly less eager than myself. I've learned the hard way in past years that XC racing saturday and enduro racing Sunday is a sure way to guarantee you feel like a bag of potatoes until Wednesday. This year I am even more conscious of a few less matches in the book, so the decision was made that we would both do an XC-length stint of racing and be prepared to call it a day.

I drove out of my parade to pouring rain, only to receive a call from Bakke who was a block back and in the same. As we drove and deliberated the merits and implications of a long wet day, the rain ceased and appeared to be downtown-isolated.

I took to the start and dry ground. Craig Stappler and I rode a fast and enjoyable 3 laps together in the lead. It was great to have the racing camaraderie and the Deadgoat presence at the front of our big race. 3 laps and and 90 minutes passed quick, but not before I was able to repeat yesterday's performance by crashing on an innocuous area 3 minutes before the end.

The skies held out for all but the last lap, and even then it was more grease than mud. I Handed off to Andrea relatively clean - just in time for the skies to open up.

Everyone who rode from that point on was a tougher man than I (even the girls), and those like Erik who were on a solo mission kept grinding on. I felt conflicted between the convenience and utter gutless-ness of my situation! In the end Giver8er was reduced to the Giver5er, but those tough ones who slogged until then got much needed respite. Tim, Ted, and all the club put on a great race.