Day 5, Race Day

It is 6:30am and everyone else is in bed.  A quick check of the weather shows that it is 61 degrees and the radar is clear.  Forecast is a high of 69 degrees with a 50% chance of showers and thunderstorms, calm wind becoming 5 to 10 mph out of the east.  Looking like a great day.

So I met Raymond for breakfast and then we headed to the starting line of the Soft Rock.  Weather was perfect for the race.  There were some wet spots on the trail from rain over the previous days.

Ready to race!

Anxiously waiting the start.

From the first turn of the pedals I knew it was going to be a good race.  I started mid pack and ran into a few traffic jams.  I started passing riders as space allowed and quickly moved up.  I finished 18th in the Single Speed class and 322 overall.  There was a total of 922 riders in the Soft Rock.  I topped my previous best time from 2009 by 3 minutes, 1 hour 53 minutes.

28 miles later.

I was back to the hotel for rest and relaxation.  I really felt good after this race.  So we watched a movie and had lunch then prepared for the Junior Rock.

We arrived at the starting area at the arena with plenty of time.  The bikes were unloaded and given a once over.  The boys were ready to go.

Headng out for the warm up.

A pre race photo.

So they started to line up for the race.  JJ asked for a few tips on what he needed to do.  I told him to get in the front row and go as hard as he could.



JJ ready to start.

So off they went.  JJ had a good start and had set his goal for this race.  He was really excited and wanted to do well.

JJ finishes his race.

JJ finished 8th in his class and 31st overall out of 206 in the Junior Rock and 115 in his division.  His time was 18 minutes 34 seconds, 8 minutes faster than in 2010.  He is already talking about racing the Soft Rock next year.

I rode the Junior Rock with Brendan.  He started out well and I coached him as we went.  He slowed down a few times but would pick up the pace when needed.  He did really well and took 9 minutes off his time from 2010. 

Brendan (center) takes another racer at the finish line!

He got third place!

It was a great day for the boys and they are looking forward to next years trip to the UP.  I will post up video of Brendans race later after it is downloaded.

Tomorrow we head for home.