Arduum

The first major feature was a skinny roll over to steep, techy-lined boulder garden to boulder roll over gap, with a steep off camber left turn as the run out. I got a little sideways halfway down the boulder field and was forced to really let off the brakes to stay straight, which resulted in overshooting the roll over gap super nose heavy, to the worried OH!!! of the crowd. Definitely got my heart racing, but I cued back in and continued as fast as I could down the steep, tight, off-camber root-laden upper section. The top half of the course passed in a focused blur, sliding and surfing my way to the best of my abilities on the lines I had practiced. I was really happy with how the tires hooked up, but around mid-way on the course my fatigue from riding Whistler all week started to catch up with me. The 3rd quarter of the course was my favorite to ride in practice, being full of a variety of tight, techy switchbacks on a sustained steep slope, but by the time I got there I was fading a bit and making little mistakes I shouldn’t have. I nailed the end of the steeps and carried really good speed onto the flats, somehow maintaining line over horrible slippery crossroots. The bottom of the course had a bunch of really tech gaps with flat sections in between, so it was crucial to nail them to carry speed. I sacrificed a bit of speed on the entrances to the features, but was able to nail all of them and pin all the way through to the finish. When I came through timing I was physically drained but still had more lungs left, so I was slightly disappointed with how my run came together until someone informed me that it had earned 2nd place. I was a bit shocked because I felt it wasn’t my best, but was thoroughly stoked with the result. The award ceremony was amazing, with the organizers securing tons of prizes from generous sponsors including a local brewery. As such, all the adult classes had chugging contests with their prize mugs. The pro categories won trophies, cash, mugs and beer, so we got to have a satisfying victory drink, a new decoration for the garage and pay for the weekend in one go, which was supremely satisfying. Props go to Tyler Gorz, who won the elite men category by nearly 9 seconds. Very Sam Hill.
The volunteers, sponsors and riding community came together to deliver an absolutely amazing event to participants and spectators alike. 200 riders took part in the event and the race was run flawlessly from start to finish in spite of an uncooperative mother nature and a busy first aid crew on course. Despite the difficulty and intimidation factor of the course, everyone I saw at the finish had a smile on their face and an enthusiastic story of their adventure to tell. We are all thankful for the opportunity to take part in such an event, and for all the hard work that went in to making it happen. Over the drive home the van held a new air of confidence and hope for the season, as well as a renewed desire to put success together as I define it.