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This being my first year on the EFTA circuit,
every course holds its surprises, even one as non-technical
as the Watershed Wahoo. Flat, fast, moderate hills, pretty
basic overall. I enjoyed the course, but considered it to
be more of a spinning workout than a mtb race.
The first lap went well and according to
plan. I fell in behind the leaders in my division and got
into the "flow." 
The second lap held a bit of disappointment
and re-taught me a lesson I have known well for years. MTB
is not just about strength, but about experience and the ability
to ride a clean race. Coming down to a hairpin turn at the
start of the 2nd lap, I overshot and had to hop-off the bike
to quickly change gears before heading back uphill. I lost
the riders I had been drafting with, but decided to make a
move, go up a gear and catch back-up. Within about 2 miles
I was back in position, but hurting from this early sprint.
I sagged mentally and 2 miles later took a nasty fall on a
rocky downhill section. No major injuries, just ugly scrapes
and bruises, but enough to keep me on the ground for a bit,
then walking for 90-120 seconds, plenty of time for 20-25
riders to fly by. But, as I got back on my bike and moving,
anger welled-up and the mental fatigue was completely replaced
with a need to catch as many riders as humanly possible.
The third and final lap was relatively uneventful,
the open course making passing relatively easy. The final
hill was a fantastic opportunity to get back into the race
standings and with a final kick, sucked in my gut and passed
a good number of riders to finish-up the race in 12th place
in Senior II Division, 23rd overall for Sport. Once again,
only seconds behind the main group. Without the fall? Heh,
that's the breaks in MTB racing. Maybe the Bradbury will hold
better luck and mental fortitude.
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Beautiful
day for a race. Sunny, 70-75 degrees, no wind, just a sweet
day for a ride. It seemed like everyone on CR was on-hand
for this one.