No stalls, no falls, first place finish!
My wife, Rebecca, came down with some of the strangest health issues two weeks ago. What seemed like an anxiety attack turned into full-blown neuropathy - numbness down one side of her body, then both sides, then intense nerve pain. We've been in & out of the ER and her primary-care doctor several times and still haven't identified the culprit.
To relieve some of this stress, we decided to rent a cabin from Lydia Mountain for the weekend.
The day before our trip, I was working on my YZ250F when Rebecca asked me if I had any more harescrambles left this season. I mentioned that there was one last race that Sunday, but that I was fine missing it, given our recent situation. She insisted, though, that I sign up for the race and offered to come watch since the venue was only about an hour drive from the cabin.
With that, we loaded our vehicles with gear for the weekend and set off!
On Saturday we relaxed at the cabin and its hot tub, then enjoyed the University of Miami game that night. On Sunday morning, I woke first and headed toward Oak Ridge Estate. Rebecca left a bit later and made it to the start area to spectate.
Since this was only my second race for the season, placing high within my class was not a priority - staying on the bike and off the ground was!
Surprisingly, my YZ started after the first kick and I was off the start line in the middle of the pack of fifteen riders. In the woods, we quickly reached a group of slower riders from another class. Much of the first lap was spent in this train of riders, but eventually an opportunity to pass arose. Once free from this traffic I was able to reach the front of my class, spending the second lap trailing the first-place rider in my 40+C class.
Eventually, the leader made a mistake, affording me the top position. Later in that lap he snuck by me while we were both behind another group of slower riders. Near the end of that lap he slid out in a turn and again I found myself in the lead. For the final lap, I simply kept the bike between the trees and soon enough the checkered flag was visible. It was a great race and I was stoked to come away with the win, especially since Rebecca was there to see!
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