2005 NMBS Mt Snow

After slogging through all the mud at Snowshoe, I can’t tell you how happy I was to arrive at Mt Snow and to hear that it was dry. I did a quick tire swap on arrival and had a great pre ride on the XC course. It was quite enjoyable just hanging out in the cool crisp Vermont air and not have to scrape mud off everything.

Short Track:
This year I decided to try my hand in the Short Track race, something that was rather new to me. Not being a road racer, I had no real expectations of how I would do or even if I was capable of being competitive among the younger girls. It was cool to all line up, ages 13 – 55, me being at the older end at 47. The start was real fast and it seemed like everyone came by me in the first 100 feet. I held my ground on the climb but took the first down hill turn way too hot and lost time trying correct. On the next lap I was able to make a pass on the climb but had to recover on the downhill and voila… the turn on the bottom was much smoother and faster. So that became my plan for each lap and it paid off as I passed a few more ladies on the climb during other laps. One thing that I love about racing at Mt Snow is that there are so many local NJ/NY racers there to cheer you on. The pace was so fast that I couldn’t see anyone in the crowds, but I heard my name all the way around the course. I really appreciate all the support from friends. You guys were great! It made the race so much fun! I felt strong and finished 8th, which is much better than I ever imagined.

Cross Country:
Well, so much for the dry conditions as it started to rain 45 minutes before the start of my cross-country race. Oh yes, those slippery, wet roots DO haunt me every year. So I finished my warm up a little early but didn’t want to stand around getting nervous. I was passing the dirt jump area that seemed to be a magnet for little kids and I just turned in and railed a berm and took some tiny jumps. A little girl riding across the field screamed out to her mom “ look, a big kid ”. So now you have my thought for the race: Even 47-year-old kids, and especially mtbchicks like to have fun on their bikes. The start was a little hectic and I could only identify one other woman in my class. So as far as I was concerned, it was me her and the roots. As it turned out, I handled the roots quite well, thanks to my Magura disc brakes. I finished strong enough to win my class and a sprint at the finish with someone not even in my class. Just having fun, right? Thank you Tonya and mtbchicks for reminding me to have fun playing on the bike. I really must do it more often.