Do Not Quit your Day Job….

            The summer is flying by at the speed of light.  The days are shorter, the nights are cooler, and my boys have only two weeks until their summer vacations come to an end.  I love Colorado summers and I am enjoying the last breaths of summer before fall sets in.  One of the things that I have really enjoyed about racing Xterras is all of the amazing places that I have visited over the years.  Places that I may have passed by, had their not been an Xterra there.  I could talk for days about all of the amazing trails that I have been lucky enough to ride.  When the schedule came out this year, I noticed a new race in South Dakota.  I love the Black Hills and asked Paul about taking a trip up there.  He took one look at the word Aberdeen and said no way.  “Do you have any idea how far away that is?”  I mapped it and I was shocked when I read a drive time of almost 13 hours.  I hate riding in a car and thirteen hours would push me to the outer limits of my sanity.  Not another word was said regarding the race until I revisited my suggestion two weeks ago.  We only had two weeks until the boys returned to school, to soccer, and our lives return to chaos.  We had not had a family vacation since last Christmas.  Unfortunately for our boys, our work schedules leave little time for days off and long family trips.  I did some research and discovered Rapid City was half way between Boulder and Aberdeen and there was a hotel with an indoor water park attached there.  All I had to say was Water Park and the boys were jumping up and down with excitement.  Paul was excited to have some time with the family and away from Boulder.  Since I have to ask for all my days off months ahead, I already had the days scheduled as off, so I finalized the plans and off we went.

            Day 1 had us in the car and South Dakota bound before 7am.  After a six hour drive we landed in Rapid City.  We started with a quick trip to Storybook land.  After Paul reminded me that our boys are no longer toddlers and the boys showed no interest, we decided to hightail it to Acme bikes to inquire about the best trails in the area for the boys.  IMBA has done of work in town on their trail network and there is an extensive trail system right in the middle of town.  By the time we got to the trailhead, it was nearing 100 degrees.  Paul and I packed extra water and set out.  The boys rode like troopers.  Even with the heat, they were smiling and riding up things I would have never thought they would.  By the time we finished their little faces were beet red and we were all wet head to toe from sweat.  We cooled down with a couple of laps through the jump park and pump track.  After a quick bite we headed to the hotel and jumped into our suits.  We were all laughing until our sides hurt as we took runs down the toilet bowel and on the other slides.  By the end of the night, we were all chlorine logged and exhausted.  The next day we slept in and headed out to Aberdeen. 

            As we pulled into the lot we noticed Will Kelsay’s van and started to smile.  Any race where Will is, there is guaranteed to be fun.  He has an infectious level of enthusiasm for the sport that will make even the most serious athlete crack a smile.  After Paul drew a portrait of Will in the dust on his rear windshield professing his love for Xterra and Shelby, we suited up and headed out. The course was two seven mile loops, so we decided to take the boys on one loop.  They had a blast except for being eaten alive by the mosquitoes.  Mason left with huge bites on his face and ears, but only managed to complain after he took a spill.  We headed over to the hotel and Paul took the boys to explore the pool, which happened to have another huge water slide.  I drifted to sleep, until the boys returned to tell me all about their water adventures. 

            The race had a late start of 10 am, so we got some extra sleep and headed over to the swim start.  It had rained the night before, so I was stuck in a dilemma.  My bike is great, but neither my drive train or my bike are fond of mud, as I had discovered last year in Nebraska when my rear wheel stopped spinning and my shifting was limited to a couple of gears in my middle chain ring after a deluge of rain.  Instead, I opted for Paul’s 29er which would give me greater clearance in the mud and the SRAM 2 by 10 shifts like a champ even in thick mud.  The only issue was that I had only ridden Paul’s bike once, so it could be a shot in the dark. 

            The race was a sharp contrast to my previous Xterra.  At Beaver Creek there were hundreds of us, here there were less then one hundred athletes total and only six of whom were women.  At the same time, there was no pretense, no posturing, just a bunch of people excited to go play in the woods.  A quick prerace briefing stated the water temp at 78 degrees, wetsuit legal.  I decided that although I may loose some time, I would wear my fast skin.  I would rather loose a couple of seconds then risk overheating in a wetsuit.  I was mesmerized by how clean and clear the water was as I warmed up.  We lined up and Jen Marsh sent us on our way.  Will took off like a shark and I was smiling with excitement as I got to see how much his swimming has improved.  Before the second buoy, I was swimming alone.  I got caught in the moment enjoying the warmth of the water and the feeling of swimming; just me, my breath, and the feel of the water.  You can not dream moments like that.  I got out of the water and headed up the hilly run to transition.  Will caught me and we set out on the bike together.  It was not long until I heard Will laughing.  He had forgotten to take his speed suit off in transition and had to stop to stash it under our truck.  I think we have all been there.  It was not long after I turned into the woods, that the lead men caught up to me.  They were very sweet and all complimented me on what they considered an amazing swim.  I knew I had to ride fast to maintain my swim lead as I have been in the same place so many times before.  I struggled with Paul’s bike and went down in a sharp mud filled turn within the first mile.  The course was a blast and kept us popping in and out of the trees.  The boys and Paul ran around the course cheering me on.  As I approached the first tight section, I really began to struggle with Paul’s bike.  I kept hitting the bars on the trees and not taking the corners wide enough and I could see the second and third place women nipping at my heels.  I knew I had to kill myself to open the gap on the flats.  I managed to pick up some time on the open sections, but another tight section had them coming into transition right after me. 

            We all headed out on the run together.  I knew I had to run my legs off, if I wanted a chance at being in the top two.  I managed to hold one woman off, but the other left me in the dust.  I struggled in the humidity to just keep pace, but finished in second overall.  The best part was that I had managed to win $300.00 and a set of Xterra DVDs.  I gave the DVDs to Will and took the boys and Paul out to dinner.  There is no way I could have done as well as I did without them there and their encouragement and support.  The next day consisted of more water park time and a trip to Bear Country.  The boys were in awe as we drove inches from black bears, wolves, and lions.  Although they all live right out our backdoor; it is rare to actually see them.  It was obvious some of the people had never been around bears as we watched the inquisitive bears remove pieces of their cars looking for food.  The boys thought this was one of the highlights of the trip as we watched a poor women in her car realize that one of the bears was chewing on a piece of her car.  Of course upon my return everyone asked me if this changed my mind about quitting racing after this year and no, it has not. If the reason for my quitting was my lack of winning, I would have never even started.    It has just left me with another fond memory of my Xterra days to file away with the many others.  I have a crazy month ahead of me with a couple more Xterras and my Brother’s wedding, not mention soccer and school for the boys.  As I am sure it will all fly by, I am just trying to take it all in and enjoy my final days of Xterra. 

Be safe and have fun!

Becky