The Freewheel Frolic was last Sunday, the first race of the Minnesota Mountain Bike Series, held at Afton Alps near Hastings, MN. (Apparently, Freewheel Bike in Mpls is a sponsor.)
Having finished 50th of 59 riders in the Rec Class at the Thursday Night Mountain Bike Races at Buck Hill a few days earlier, I was eager to see how I could do in the 60 and Over age group.
I was a little apprehensive about it, as I’d heard a few comments about how Afton is the toughest venue of the entire series because of the climbing required. And on Saturday, the day before the race, temps were in the 90s. Turns out, race day temps were in the upper 50s with a drizzly sky. Perfect.
As I lined up at 9:30 for the Citizens Class, I looked around for other fellow 60+ geezers and found two: Gary Schildgen from Dellwood and Brad Beisel from Plymouth. "Guaranteed podium," we laughed.
The climbing was indeed tough. In three places on the course, I got off to walk my bike, not because of the sheer difficulty but because my legs were crying out for a different set of muscles to take over. I also discovered I could walk the bike up these sections faster than I could ride. Most other riders I saw did likewise.
Some of the downhills had bumpy washboard sections so you couldn’t really relax on those. And there were a few downhill turns that were flat with loose gravel. I wiped out hard on one and threw my chain, but got up without a scratch as I had my knee/shin protectors on and was wearing my new padded gloves, courtesy of a Penn Cycle swag drawing at Buck.
I was thrilled to pass a few riders since I’d only passed one rider the whole race at Buck. My 29’er flies on any kind of downhill so on Loop 2, I tried to position myself to make some passes just prior to a downhill. That’s the extent of my first attempt to think strategically. I have no idea if it’s sound.
I finished 35th of 59 and won my age group, earning me the right to stand on the podium, a classy medal, and a Kryptonite Modulus lock.
I’ve learned that a cross-country mountain bike race is a very different experience than just riding a single-track as fast as I can. The pure pleasure of a rolling, berm-and-obstacle filled trail isn’t there, at least not yet with the two race venues I’ve experienced. But the overall physical challenge is much greater and therefore the end result is quite satisfying. And the social environment before and after a race is definitely fun. I think I’ll keep doing it.
See the large slideshow of 46 photos (recommended) or SLOW CLICK this small slideshow:
