Jackson Day 3 - Race Day!

Mandy's Race

Mandy was ready for her race. She was excited, because she had rode it the night before and liked the course and thought it was a lot of fun. Mandy got off to a good start and was doing well. When I passed her on the trail she let me know she had gotten off to a good start. That was last time I saw her. As I went through the course I saw she was staying with most of the group in her division and doing pretty well. I was pretty sure I would see her at the finish line when I got there.

When I got to the finish Mandy was not there. Of course due the Deer Valley scare I was a little worried, but soon riders from our team started coming in and letting me know where she was. When Mandy finished, she was discouraged and disheartened. She had weeds in her bike and looked like she need a good hug and a talk.

Mandy's race did not turn out how she hoped. There were a lot of people passing her and she kept having to get off her bike and then when she tried to get back on more people would come. She slipped off the trail and almost fell to her death on the cliff (those who do not know this course there are no cliffs on this trail only steep slopes)., but she didn't fall to her death and was able to get back on her bike and ride. Her feelings were hurt because everyone yelled to get by. She came in last again and was very discouraged.

My guess is most of the people were pretty polite, and just loud in passing. This is the first time Mandy has been passed by adults, and it can be very intimidating and overwhelming. I didn't think about it before the race, so I feel bad I did not prepare her for all of the people that would be passing her. We've talked and hopefully it helped. She did tell me she was done racing after this year, but then she said she wanted to race in St. George next year, so I guess we'll see. I always leave it up to her.
Mandy off to a good start.
Coming across the finish line.

My race got off to a tentative start. I had been in the bathroom a lot before the race and I was not sure if it was nerves or something I ate, but it sure seemed like something I ate. I was a little worried as my stomach was definitely not agreeing with me. Turned out Jolene was having the same problem, so I am thinking food, water or something else.

We started this race with the beginning women. I got off to the start really well, although going up the hill my legs were a little tired and not wanting to go. However my brain took over and the legs went. I stayed at the front, but could hear the group behind me. This trail makes it difficult to see who is directly behind you , so I kept going and all I could hear was the person breathing behind me. This was good, because I was breathing, but knew I could turn it up if I needed to. I kept going and it was not long before we came upon the 10-12 group of racers. Passing these racers kept us on our toes. They were good about letting us pass, but they did not quite know how to move out of the good line. I learned I can go over very tricky routes when I need to. I imagine by the time we got to them they were pretty frustrated with being passed, but they were all good sports and let us by.

After passing some of the 10-12 group we finally hit the switchbacks and I saw it was Tiffany following closely behind. This was okay for me as she was not in my division and I could settle into a good pace. We rode most of the uphill with me leading the way until just a short distance before the 10-12 turnoff when I had a slip and told her to pass. I then followed right behind her and up the first steep singletrack we went. I kept with Tiffany for the uphill until I bounced off the trail, and at the same time three riders came up right behind me and asked to pass. Of course it is okay as I am off the trail.

I continued going, following closely behind Tiffany, but she started to slow up on the hill. She asked if I wanted to go in front, and I almost did, but we hit a section of downhill, and I knew she could fly on the downhill, so instead I stayed tight on her wheel. Tiffany is good on the downhill, and I used her to draw my lines as we went down. On the final down she came out first on the road and then I came out a little bit later. There looming in front of us was the hill.

As we headed up I went by Tiffany and told her we are going to climb this hill all the way to the top. She agreed, but I could tell she was not convinced--the day before she only made it half way. Going up we passed a lot of people and kept strong to the center line. At times this was difficult as people were walking up the middle and they were not always quick or willing to move out of the center to let you pass. Luckily they eventually did and both Tiffany and I made it all the way to the top. However, the first minute of going down was tough. I actually stayed in my granny gear as I rode just trying to recover from the hill climb.

This time on the downhill I led up until we hit the 12 and under portion of the downhill and then had Tiffany pass for the remainder. As long as she was not in my division I was fine with her going ahead, especially since the down hill is her forte. We both finished and it was great having someone to trade off back and forth with and encourage each other along the way.

Getting off to a good start.

Finishing the race and happy.

After the race we had went down to Jackson to have some fun.

Time for some grub.

Happy faces now that our tummy's are full.

Mandy & Royce on the chair lift towards the Alpine Slide.

Royce going down the slide

Mandy posing in front of a huge statue.

The boy scouts collect these elk horns and sell them.

Watching the evening town square shoot out.

Time for dessert--a good way to end the day.