Too many mistakes for me to overcome today, all self inflicted. First was at the start, for some insane reason I decided to line up under the big "START" banner, only to find out the start is along the long strip of ribbon to the left. If you line up to the left end of the ribbon it is much closer to the woods, by the time I line up I was pretty far right. Had a decent start however and hit the trail in the top 20 of the entire expert mass start. By the time we reached the scenic vista on lap one I had moved into the top five and was feeling good. Then I made mistake number two as I picked a horrible line and slammed the front wheel into the sharp edge of a large rock. Rode a quickly deflating tire out to the next double track and went to work changing the tube. The repair went smooth and it was now chase time instead of defending my position time. PJ kept me updated on the progress each lap which really helped me mentally. Next mistake was a missed turn, don't know why, I made the turn the first two laps. Gave back a couple spots and a little bit of time, but luckily realized the snafu fairly quickly. The last two laps went well considering all the different levels of riders on the course. I was as polite as possible and so were all the novice and sport riders, making the best of tight conditions for all. I think I got to see all the Team Pinnacle riders during the race. The extra room you all gave was much appreciated. Ended up finishing with a very satisfying second place. The Vet class had the 4th different winner in 5 races, turning out to be a quite competitive group this year. Special thanks to Mark for his clean up efforts on Saturday, made a big difference and was much appreciated by all.
 
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The course was great fun. At the mass start I set up next to Chris thinking he would have selected the best line for the funnel start. The signal to go is given, I put my foot down and I roll off my front chain ring. Why I don't know but I was the very last one out. Get the chain on and I see my glove is now stuck between the chain and the ring. This stinks. After the first lap I hit something with the rear hard and knocked the rear wheel way out of alignment. Anyone riding near me heard the rotational noise of my tire hitting the chain stay. The noise drove me nuts. Made my way through a bunch of riders and had a decent few laps take 2rd Master Sport. This course is going to be fun I'll be back. Congratulations to Sunapee Lions and OutSp[oken Bike for a good event.

BTW Dana I have your Gold Medal. Thought I would keep it on my garage wall display for a few days then bring it to you. It looks good there.
Dan

I had a good race - fast (for me) and uneventful except for one endo where I bounced on my head right into a novice rider who was off his bike. So much for my passing style.

I was not alone in my trail efforts: Van Webb's son (Tyler?) mowed, Brian (aka Javy) weedwhacked, and Dave Maz spent hours trimming and clipping. Will Hurley staked and arrowed. The course was so much better than my first ride last Tuesday. Thank you to all who pitched in.

I'm thinking the course might be well worth riding in reverse - the old way, and we could always reintroduce the infamous root canal.

The kid's race proved a challenge for Liam, but despite his protests, he dug deep and finished. One pre-rider offered advice to Liam: "You tell him - I wouldn't want to race on that bike." And then to me: "Dude - buy 'em a new bike!"

I'm trying to convince Rhonda that Liam NEEDS a carbon Epic with full XTR...

Tell his Mom that something in a size medium that he can grow into would be the best thing to do.

I had a fun race and it was good to meet more of the Pennicle folks. Thanks to PJ for cheering me on!

Brian
 
When in doubt, ride

The course was cleaned up nicely and fast. Thanks to all who spruced it up. However, I was about 3 minutes slower than last year. Got to train harder. I was first out of two of us Novice Masters.

Thanks PJ for the support through the lap/finish area, and Brain of Newport as he carried me along for a few seconds as he blew by me and several sport riders. Then with a few miles to go Brian of Sunapee went by to finish a couple of minutes ahead of me. I never saw Ethan Willey after the start as he won the Novice Juniors with a 58:03, nearly 17 minutes ahead of me.

Just after Brain (Javy) went by, Kate Turner passed me, but I was able to stay with her and sprinted by on the little steep hill just before the finish to get her by a few seconds. I usually compare my efforts to Kate's finishes (I think we're about even). She has competed in al NECS races.

Other than the humidity it was a great day at the races.

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