Days 2 and 3: DS Mudfest

So, my first day at Sea Otter found me scrambling in the morning to get to DS practice only to find out that we were only getting one practice run on each of the two courses! Normally I would have let this really bother me, but I am taking a new approach this year: Don't waste energy on the things you can't change. This isn't to say that I have given up the fiery attitude some have grown to hate me for. It just means that I won't be expending energy in places where it has 0% chance of helping! We did two practice runs and then qualified, and it only took about 5 hours! Yea for amateur practice, soon to be a thing of the past!!

Well, after some consultation with Lee, I had my qualifying strategy figured out. It included pedaling as hard as I could on the off camber-cross-the-hill section that would later be taken out of the course. I started out on the blue course and was doing great out of the gate. I came across the off camber section and was psyched that I was pedaling as hard as I was until suddenly I ran straight into a mud bog at least a foot deep that wasn't there when I did my practice run. Hmmm, well, needless to say, I had my weight totally over the front of the bike, as I was pedaling pretty hard, and I ended up stacking it up really badly. I sank nearly to my elbows in stinky mud when I tried to "push" myself up from the ground, and then I couldn't get my bike out of the bog. I was surprised that I even qualified, as my blue course time was almost 30 seconds slower than my red course qualifying time. Lame!

I love the mud!! (Sorry pic is so small, I couldn't get it to be the right size)

Off to try to clean off the bike. Luckily Damion let me use the Yeti super power sprayer which was nice because then I didn't have to stand in line to use the piss poor no pressure hoses that were available to everyone else!

Damion with One of the Team Yeti Bikes that he Washed Many Many Many Times

Friday brought an hour of DS practice and then the finals. Well, we only got two more practice runs for Friday's practice, and they decided to change the course to include the "classic Sea Otter" berms. They're not so classic when they are full of smelly boggy mud, but even still, it was cool to actually get to ride them. So, we got our 2 practice runs on each course in and then we're ready to race, no wait, we're not ready to race because the race officials have decided that it would be way more fun if we change the course again and not let any of us ride the course again! Ughhhhh, the reasons to upgrade are getting longer and longer! The courses were not very even as far as the times on each course went, and it ended up being sort of the luck of the draw...If you got the blue course first you probably were going to win it. Unfortunately I got the red course first against Caroline, so that's where the hopes of winning DS at Sea Otter (or even getting 2nd) ended. Oh well, 3rd isn't the worst place, I guess it's still on the podium. =)

Checking Out the Course with My Personal Bike Sherpa, Shawn. He Adopted Me at Deer Valley DS Last Year and Insists on Pushing My Bike for Me At All of the Races! Thanks Shawn!!