There was a big turnout for the Stump Jump today. Which was good to see, but made for some crowded trail conditions. I raced CAT 2 40+ which started near the end of the final wave. This meant racing in a class of 29 riders and then catching the next group of riders and dealing with that traffic, plus stragglers from any of the other fields. Of course everybody else is dealing with the same conditions but it comes down to balancing between how nice of a guy you want to be versus how aggressive you want to be. I have to say most riders dealt with this balancing act pretty well.
1. The race starts with a quite a bit of climbing on double track before entering the single track. You just simply have to bury yourself here because there is quite a bit of time after this that is mostly tight, lightly downhill singletrack. Use this time to recover.
2. There is quite a bit of really flat, smooth single track. Go fast here. This is NOT the place to recover. Pass in the grass, or do whatever you need to do, but you can put a lot of distance on your competitors here.
3. The lap is only 7.5 miles and the course is fast. This is a relatively short race. Pace accordingly.
4. If you are a climber, make up time on the Lizard and Outlaw trail. If you are a more technical guy, there are some twisty, up-down rooty sections on the main (Southside) loop and Fern Gully to show your stuff.
Congratulations to all who raced today!
See you on the trails...
No comments:
Post a Comment