Beezley Burn Recap - Matt Lynch

I did not attend the short track race on Saturday, but I hear that Gavin talked Henry into doing it, and he won! Not bad for a guy who showed up to camp, not race, on Saturday.

I made the trip over the mountains to Ephrata early Sunday morning, too early for a weekend, and arrived to cool, clear weather and about fifty minutes to spare before the start. Lion Park was buzzing with activity as racers gathered equipment and warmed up for the start. I registered in the open category, throwing it in with the big guns, after learning that Perry Roper was racing open. I seem to keep chasing that guy, so why stop now?
For those that have not attended the Beezley Burn, the race starts on a canal bank on a level access road of thin gravel on dirt. After about a mile or so the course takes a hard left hand drop onto single track, descending twenty or thirty feet very fast and into a powdery right turn, and off it goes. Four laps of 7.75 miles that run up and down along the Beezley hillside through always challenging climbs and rapid descents, winding, hand built trails, rocks and sagebrush.

The start was very fast, so fast that I rapidly realized I had to grab a wheel and hang on, or risk being popped off the lead group right from the start. Apparently, there were no weenies allowed in this group. The generous $2000 cash payout had gotten the attention of everyone present, and there'd be no screwing around before setting a hard pace designed to cause plenty of pain. Needless to say, the race sorted itself out fairly quickly, with riders getting strung out along the course, and Perry settling in on my rear wheel for the first lap. We passed two very strong riders with flats on lap one, and back on the canal bank for the start of lap two I let Perry come through while I took his wheel. Funny, but I couldn't quite keep hold of that wheel for too long. He's making his move too early, I told myself. I'll reel him in on the climbs... I'm sure I was gaining on him on the climbs, he must be about to crack, or so I thought.
That was my mantra for the all of laps three and four, but the gap continued to grow while I paced my effort to make sure I had the gas to complete four hard laps. I was passed once more by one of the super boys who had flated early, truly an amazing comeback, and I settled into seventh place with the goal of not ceding anymore ground while remaining upright to the finish. Not an easy task on this course at race pace.
In the end my finish of 2:32 was five minutes off Perry's pace, and fourteen minutes off the winning time. I finished seven out of twelve and I'm perfectly satisfied with that, being old and all. To wrap up a very nice day the race organizers saw fit to call my name last in the raffle so that I walked away with a new wheelset. Nice schwag! I'm not sure how Henry and Gavin did in the cross country races, although I know they came through intact and feeling good enough to drink a few beers under the trees in Lion Park while the festivities ensued. Thanks again for the Heineken Henry! Lots of fun for everyone, so I recommend putting this race on your calendar for next year!

Cheers. Matt