First US Cup of the season AND a home race for the Zerouno Factory Team in Temecula California. I always enjoy spending time in SoCal for warm weather and great riding but this week was COLD. It was the first event with the full team. It was great to put a face to names and get to know everyone a little bit. This was my first time in Temecula since 2020 where I could only race short track before everything paused due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was great to be back!
The course at Vail Lake had been reworked, with a few added technical features in order to stay relevant with the demands of modern XC racing. The designers did a great job staying true to the historical style of the venue but adding new single-track sections and technical features that produced exciting racing across all categories.
The first team event was also a new bike day for me! I received my new MAG SL decked out with spaziale components, Suntour suspension and Shimano parts. I skipped out on short track to get a little bit more time on the new bike dialling in fit and suspension. The bike felt great on the course. It was super high speed and slippery due to the dry California dirt (yes, it did dry out after 2 days without rain). Full suspension is always the way to go these days! It gives the body just that little bit of extra recovery and grip through corners allowing you to dig deeper on the fitness portions of the course. The Mag was perfect for this course.
My race performance was disappointing. I started ok, in around 20th with lots of room to move up but just didn’t have any legs to push. My lap times were consistently slower than I would have liked them to be and I finished up in 22nd. I know I have a lot more in me and expect more out of myself as an athlete. I have put the work in, which makes this result very difficult to swallow. The positives of the day were I road well through the techy portions of the course. I was able to push hard on climbs and lapped very consistently. The negatives were the speed of the lap times and my pace on the flat power sections of the course. I have addressed the performance with my coach and am confident that I will be on pace come the second and third rounds of the US Cup.
After the race I flew right back to North Carolina to move out of the winter training house. I spent a few days at my girlfriends house in Columbia SC, soaking the last of the southern warmth! It was a nice quick recharge week!
Arkansa race week! 3 UCI races over 5 days, this is one of the biggest MTB events in North America in 2023. Fayetteville was not always a mountain bike destination but with some extensive investment from the Walton Family, Northwest Arkansa is definitely on the map. There are hundreds of miles of trails and millions of dollars have been put back into the community to create this cycling scene. The investment has attracted big MTB event organizers to bring UCI racing to Arkansa. The area also has played host to a number of big gravel and road races, as well as the 2022 UCI Cyclocross World Championships!
I was traveling out from South Carolina, a 12 hour drive straight west. I passed through lots of farmland and arrived on Sunday night, giving me 2 days to learn the course and shake the travel out of my body. The course in Fayetteville is super unique. It is all man made with lots of sharp rocks and punchy climbs. It is full gas with very little time to recover. I always run tire inserts to prevent flats and like to add a few extra PSI in to play things safe.
Wednesday was the first race of the week, a C1 with All the big riders from across North America in attendance. The weather was hot and dry, leaving the course very fast and dusty. I completely missed my pedal off the line and shot backwards through the group. I was fortunate to catch some lucky pinches in the start loop and make a number of passes to get myself back into a respectable position heading into the first lap. I was consistent for the first 3.5 laps, riding with a small group of riders fighting for the top 15. On the 4th lap one rider made a move that I fought hard to respond to on the toughest climb on course. I went over my limit. I was in survival mode for the remainder of the race. I bled time all the way to the finish and rode in for a 21st.
Friday was short track. The elite and U23 fields were combined, meaning there were 90 starters for this one. A good start would be important. I got off the line well and was able to slot into the top 30. The start of these races are always tough as everyone is trying to move up quickly. The front usually goes out hard before looking around at each other and launching. Typically you need to bridge during this short slow up in order to get to the group early and recover for the fireworks at the end. I was not successful in bridging, and rode in the second group for the majority of the race. We worked through a number of riders that got shot off the back of the front group. I finished the day in 19th. I was happy with how I felt and raced.
Saturday was the big one. HC class, the most points on the line. There was a chance of thunderstorms throughout the day leaving tire choice right to the last minute. The women's race was called short due to thunder and lightning in the area! Despite the threatening skies, the cells just missed the course leaving everything fast and dry. I had a strong start and rode my first lap in the 12-18 group. I struggled early with the high pace and slipped back into 23 going into the second lap. I found myself riding with a strong US rider for the majority of the race. We worked our way through a few riders and put down consistent lap times. I was able to shake them with 2 laps to go and another Canadian on the last lap to finish in 20th place. Interestingly, I went 3.5 minutes faster on the same course on the second XCO day but only finished 1 place better. The pace was fast!
It was a good week in Arkansa. I gained some UCI points and got a-lot of quality racing under my belt. I hope to keep moving in the right direction. I am now back in Canada after a 16 hour drive home. I have a recovery week this week before getting back into the hard training!
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