SERC #6 Tanasi

All smiles after the racing was done.

Wow, what a fun whirlwind of a weekend!!! Almost the whole team was here (Shannon we missed you!!!), the weather held out, and we raced at one of my FAVORITE trails. Tanasi is just over an hour from my house and it is a "local" trail to me. I love riding there and I have been so excited (and a little bit nervous) about this race. It was definitely on my list of races I wanted to do well at this season. Not that I don't always want to do well, but there are definitely some races that are more of a focus.

I was thrilled that we were not only all going to get together, but that we were going to do it in NEW CLOTHING!!!!! I love the new stuff. And I really love that we are now able to properly promote all the sponsors that are supporting us this season.

Kym and Anina are 1,2 again!!!

We started the weekend on Friday with some car drama. Now I know NOTHING about keeping my truck running except that I ask Mark to fix it when something goes wrong. All 221,000 miles of my Xterra are doing great, it's an awesome team vehicle and it has seen more of this country than most people have. Thursday it stopped running. In my driveway. Okay, we'll use the car and some of my teammates cars and deal with it next week when we have time, right??? Nope. Mot Mark. Let's just see if we can get it running and put more gas in it just to be sure.... So, now instead of having a dead truck in my driveway, we have a dead truck parked down the street. This is after it died on Highway 153 and we had to coast/tow it into the neighborhood using the Scion XA as a tow vehicle. Yes, we got the redneck award of the week in our neighborhood. At least I can laugh at myself... a little drama is still better than a car payment.

Anina arrived shortly after the car drama was over and we had a nice relaxing dinner and then her and I went shopping for the feast I was cooking for the team the next night. She was very helpful and even offered to make us a yummy and very pretty dessert.

Saturday was the team pre-ride and we looked HOT in our new stuff. The course was in great shape. We beat the afternoon storms (barely) and all had a good time. We got out of there just in time, the skies opened up and we got HAILED on as we drove home. Good timing.

Saturday night was dinner like no other. We all converged at my house and started cooking. I made wild rice with cranberries, Emily and Catherine assembled salad, Star did the veggies and Anina made us a really yummy, (mostly except for the chocolate) healthy, and PRETTY dessert. After a short team meeting it was off to bed. The course was a drive in the morning and we had to be there early.

Amanda takes 3rd after an exciting sprint finish.

We awoke WAY too early and headed to Tanasi. From the roads appearance it had rained up there all night. Hmmmm, things were not going to be super fast. They might even be a little slick. Fun. I warmed up on the first part of the climb and my suspicions were confirmed, the trail was slippery. There was one section near the start that was all roots and was going to be a determining factor. We lined up a strong field, including my former teammate Paula. I love Paula and it was great to see her but her presence definitely meant that the bar was raised one more level.

We had a nuetral start and when the moto pulled off, I waited for Paula to take the lead. I think she was waiting for me to do the same. We rolled side by side to the trail head with Anina close on our wheel. As we approached the singletrack climb I decided that as long as no one was killing it, I was going to take the hole shot and set the pace. I jumped, got the lead and spun up at a reasonable pace. I cleared the slippery roots that I had practiced in my warm up and kept rolling. I looked back a minute later and the field was gone. Everyone was gone. I had the lead. Sweet. I just kept rolling and tried to remain smooth. I know this trail and I really wanted the win today. I helped build these trails, I ride them all the time, this one was MINE. My bike and body cooperated well. I rode strong and consistent and never saw anyone again. I won by over 7 minutes. I also took the fastest lap prize. WoooHooo!!!!

We LOVE the new kits.

Apparently Anina broke her saddle in the first 100 meters of the race and rode the whole thing with a broken saddle. She caught and passed Paula to take an impressive second place. Amanda had a 3 way sprint for the Cat 1 finish. Unfortunately she had to brake-check to keep from impaling a small child. Still a great race for her. The rest of the girls rode strong and finished well with the exception of Emily who flatted. Bummer. Better luck next time girl. All in all, a great weekend for the team.

Thanks for reading...