0 expectations+ local trails+ good racing= a good day

Yea it was a good day.  Did I win?  No.  Did I get on the box?   No.  Did I have a good time?  Yes.  Did I consume a large quantity of cold adult beverages?  Of course.

Who's this old dude?  Is that the way I look?

It was the first race of the Florida State Championship Cross Country Series promoted by Gone Riding.  It was also my first race in the 50+ expert class.  I had been whining to any body who would listen about getting promoted.  Even going so far as to email the promoter begging to be allowed to stay in the sport class.  But to no avail.  My pleas fell on deaf ears.  I was sure I'd just be a rolling chicane for the rows starting behind me.  So, convinced of my lack of speed, and not concerned with my results, I lined up with 15 other old guys at Tom Brown Park in Tallahassee last Sunday.

Big Jim chasing Mr. Bonn, thinking about doing 4 of these.

When the whistle blew for the start I was in no hurry.  I hit the multi use in last and was content to sit there to see how things would develop.  They (fortunately) had us running 3 laps instead of the 4 that the other expert classes were doing.  Big Jim was envious of this but he'll be in this class pretty soon and he can complain when he gets here.  I was happy not to be doing the extra lap.

Why am I looking at the parking lot?

Anyhoo, my old nemesis from the base class in the Georgia Series, Hambone, was in front of me.  Just like old times!  So when he started to go around people I just grabbed his wheel.  When we hit the first section of single track we were still in a pretty tight group.  As we came to the third split where you could go either way I took the easier path, passing about 4 riders who got bottled up on a root on the other path.  "Local knowledge!" I yelled as I got in front of them.  I'm sure they appreciated that.

Hambone passed me back in the feed zone with a big ol' goofy grin on his face.  He stayed just where I could see him for the rest of the race.  Funny, sitting here now I wonder why I couldn't just get out of the saddle and catch him.  But I didn't have anything left in the tank at the time.  He must have reminded me at least three times at the finish how it was the first time he'd beaten me.

Hambone passing me.  Too far away to see the grin but it's there, trust me.

At a section called Wally World the locals had gathered to cheer, beer, and jeer.  I started yelling before I got there so as to get a good dose of motivation.  It sounded like a stadium.  Awesome!


The crew gathered after the race for beer and pizza (thanks Guardian Automotive!).  We heckled the white wave and told race stories.  In the end I enjoyed the day much more than I thought I would.  I like surprises like that.

The Kid got off to a good start but faded a little.  Still got a 4th.