This was my first time at the Wythe Raceway, and it was one to remember! The start of the race and each subsequent lap was through the infield and outer loop of the banked dirt oval track. It was an eerie and exciting feeling to slide around the corners on the edge of control.
In the woods, there was relatively grippy mud, with offcamber root sections to keep you on your toes. Near the end of each lap, the singletrack widened and a motocross section emerged underneath the cover of trees. To say the least, this was my favorite course so far.
I had a decent start, and was near the front of my class of seven riders before sliding wide on a corner and chasing them into the woods in fourth place. Eventually I did reel them all in, showing 2nd place on the timing board as I headed into my second lap. On the start of that lap was the infield section. I passed a couple more riders (not in my class), but bumped the final rider in the middle of a turn, stopping my front wheel and forcing me to bail off the bike. I walked back to the bike only to watch several pass by. I slowly picked them off in the woods and was back in the hunt for first place within my class.
Eventually I caught the first place rider, Brent Lilly, and passed when an opportunity arose. As I approached one of the hillclimbs, I saw a mass of stuck riders completely blocking the way. My friend Lory went partially up the hill, but eventually came back down to where I was waiting for a path to emerge. Brent showed up and immediately tried to get around - and did! I was there for maybe a minute longer before deciding I could sneak around the outside to pass the struggling riders.
On the final lap, I decided to settle for second place since Brent probably had a decent lead after the hillclimb logjam. I let Lory by me so that he could battle for first in his class, which he successfully did. When I reached the finish line, I saw that Brent bested me by about a minute. I was glad to have made the decision I had in order to get through the day without incident.
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