Enduro racing is scary. Not Halloween scary, not zombies with bloody parts scary, but rip-roaring downhill scary. The Highland Mountain enduro, part of the Triple Crown series, was the final leg of the series and couldn't have been at a better time. The enduro format involved four different downhill runs, called specials, with three untimed hill climbs to tie them all together. The folks at Highland picked a great mix of terrain ranging from sketchy, newly cut single track 2 established flowy down hills 2 flow we trail riding. It really combined all the different elements that make up a good enduro and demand a rider to possess hey wide range of skills and strengths.
It has been a good year for me, riding wise, and I really wanted to finish off the season with one more race. I had a great time at the Carrabassett Backcountry Cycle Challenge, and had a ball with my kids up at the Nordic Trail Festival in Presque Isle, and this would be the 3rd race event for the season. I thought it would be a nice addition since the other two races involved more endurance and XC riding.
Justin Qualey, accomplished downhill and enduro rider, and I headed down to Highland late Friday morning to check out the course and register. We arrived early afternoon and after a bit of a wait getting the paperwork completed, we were ready to go. The race promoters had taped off all of the specials to everyone but foot traffic, so we decided to get out and walk the course. The weather in the past few weeks has been fantastic and the course was dry in all but a few places. We worked our way up the 4th special, which looked no less intimidating on foot than it did on the bike. We were almost over run by a few riders that had taken it upon themselves to follow their own rules about preriding the course and snuck through the barricades despite the posted signs.
As a side note, it blows my mind that people in an amateur race will deliberately break rules in order to give themselves an edge. I don't compete much, but I am wicked competitive when I do. I can lay back and ride casually when I'm with friends, but if there is an official race and I'm going to take it on, I don't want to hold back. And when I see people that clearly disregard the rules and standards for a competition, it makes my blood boil. It is like the amateur 40 and 50 year old racers that use EPO or get a prescription from their doctor for testosterone so they can get jacked for races. Seriously? It seems to me the point of rules with in competition is to establish clear standards for everyone. If you don't like the rules, don't participate. This isn't some issue like civil disobedience for a greater cause; it is just amateur competition for recreation purposes. Alright, enough soap boxing...
If you like riding down hills fast, and you like to play and jump around on your bike, I can think of no better place to go then Highland. It is truly a park and the range of runs and terrain is wide open. There are fast flow e-courses with big berms to flow through, pump tracks and huge table tops, freeride drops and gaps, and even a couple of kickers that launch riders skyward before allowing them to land in an inflated crash pad that must be 40 feet by 30 feet wide. They even have a place for little kids to practice going over pumps and dropping off small risers. I felt like I was at one big amusement park for mountain bikers.
We set up our tent in the parking lot, along with about 20 other campers and enjoyed a calm evening under a full moon that was to become partially eclipsed around midnight. Wispy clouds, semi-transparent, skated across the sky and highlighted the rainbow Corona moon had cast. We hung out for a while in one of the fields near the base of the mountain and listened to the blaring Iron Maiden and other metal music coming from the indoor bike center. If the mountain wasn't enough, there is an entire park built inside a soft shell barn where riders can practice aerials & freestyle. After around 11 p.m. The noise settled and we drifted off to sleep.
After a fine breakfast at Pauli’s, a downtown eatery in Tilton, we headed back to the park and prepared. The organizers were a bit slow to get things started in the morning, and the registration and assignment of ankle sensors took a whole lot longer than anyone expected. We ended up riding up to one of the specials in order to get one run in before registering, waited in line for about 45 minutes and then headed up the chairlift to ride a couple more. Since Justin is so fast I figured I would lay back a bit and take it at my pace, and it was probably a good idea since I felt like I was gonna bail a number of times even at my relative snail’s pace compared to him. We checked in each time at the bottom of the hill and the actual race got started a bit later than expected, with a few hiccups along the way,due to timing issues and communication with the riders. However people maintained a positive attitude and the actual racing went off without a hitch. Justin started before me since he is in the 30 to 39 age bracket, and so I took another run to work on the flow, of which I was clearly lacking. Perhaps the best thing to say at this point is that I was keenly aware of my limitations and realized that I would do best if I just stayed relaxed.
For those of you who haven't used them, timing chips are pretty cool. Each person starts separately at thirty second increments. There is a countdown and then the rider begins, but the timing only starts after the rider passes over a wire buried in the ground a few feet after the start. The ankle sensors mark the time the rider passes over the wire at the beginning and end of each special, so that the data is electronically transmitted to the timing house at the base of the mountain.
Once the racing actually began, it went pretty quickly. We finished each special and proceeded to make our way back up to the next special. I was surprised to see the number of riders pushing their bikes back up the hills, perhaps to save energy, rather than peddling. I guess this is where all of the miles of commuting have paid off, since it didn't seem to be much of a chore riding back up and in fact, was probably helpful to keep my legs warm. The first special was about two and a half miles long and consisted of flowy park riding followed by trail riding on a course that had been cut a couple weeks beforehand. It was pretty fast throughout and not nearly as technical as later events, but also really demanding insofar as my legs were not ready for the length of high intensity output. I was definitely feeling it about halfway through the ride and wished that I had more time to warm up beforehand. It seems that my legs have gotten less adaptive to intense effort as I've gotten older, & I need to be really warmed up before I can put out a lot of intensity for a while. The second special was fast and flowy as well, with a couple of quick punchy climbs to mix it up, and was perhaps my best stage. It's a good thing, because the third special was definitely the most sketchy and scary. It started with a steep descent over a granite minefield followed by a newly cut course down loamy, rocky rooty terrain. I came screeching through the first section with my stomach in my throat, and worked my way into the fresh cut. I bobbled a number of times, and after rounding over one corner came into a steep drop that was covered in moss the day before, but now revealed exposed cubes of granite and large cedar roots. I reacted by grabbing both handfulls off brake and shot sideways off the hill, came off my bike and tried to pull the bike down back over me to get back on the course. Fortunately the bike was intact and so was I, and I continued along trying to balance the need for speed with need for self-preservation. I made it to the finish, headed back up the hill, and passed about 20 riders who were huffing and puffing while pushing their bikes up the slope. This was good, because when I got to stage four my legs were ready to go and I only had to wait about 2 minutes before pushing off. This special was challenging as well, and very technical and fast, but it was an established trail and as a result there were a couple of options for lines. I felt like I was moving quickly and flowing over it the best I could, especially since I have been riding and xc bike rather than majority of people around me who are on trail or all-mountain bikes. It became evident that 100 millimeters of travel and xc geometry are just not the right fit for this sort of racing. After one last dab rounding the final corner, I dropped down the chute to the finish and it was done. The timing van was nearby and I checked in to see my status, and soon learned that I was in second place for my age division. Holy crap.
Justin and I had planned on getting a few more rides in after the competition was over, so I dropped off my ankle sensor and headed back to the car in order to meet up with him.
Enduro racing might also be Halloween scary or zombie with bloody part scary. Justin was moving towards me from the car, right arm in splints and right leg covered in blood with gauze wrapped around it. It seems Justin was trying to make up time on the third special, and where I was grabbing brakes he was putting on the gas, and at that speed one error can be catastrophic. Fortunately, he was still walking and no head injury, although he's in the market for a new helmet if anyone has any good deals. We checked in with folks at the event to make sure we were all done and headed home, with a brief stop in Concord to visit the local hospital and tour the emergency room and x-ray department.
All said and told, I ended up in third place for my 40 to 49 age category. Justin is on the mend and I hope anyone reading this well send out healing vibes his way. Good thing he is tougher than all hell.
I like the way Eric Roy introduced the positives and negatives for each event that he has documented, and am going to copy that format.
So, the positives:
Highland Park is absolutely amazing. Great riding if you like going fast.
Enduro racing is a great vibe and gives people a chance to socialize in between specials,
which is really fun in comparison to the relentless exertion within endurance racing.
Enduro racing requires people to apply a number of disparate skill sets, and doesn't favor someone who is purely well conditioned. I like the demand for versatility.
Negatives:
The organizers can work on the registration and logistics related to getting racers up the mountain to begin. I'm sure they will.
If I'm going to continue this, I'm going to be looking into a different bike that can handle the descents well. An all mountain bike would kill it here. Hmmm... Maybe this is a positive?
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