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

Ron's Sea Otter XC Recap

The weather was perfect this year. It was mid to high sixties on Friday and Sunday. The course was loose and sandy in spots, but very, very fast.

I had a good lap (1) coming across in 1 hr, 25 minutes. On lap (2) I went "kersplat" at about the two hour mark. Despite injesting a whole flask of Gu gel, my blood sugar was completely depleted. I also crashed twice (hard) and had some problems with my chain (in my spokes) that cost me about 3 minutes and 2 or 3 places in the standings. I also ejected one of my water bottles on the first lap, so, I was more prudent with my hydration than I would have liked. This may have effected my energy level. The 40-44 field was one of the strongest Expert fields at this years event. All of the riders in front of me finished under 3 hours.

On Friday, I managed to squeak 8th place out of the 40+ Short Track. Only 9 riders finished in the lead lap and the other 15 or so riders got waved off the course. I was just happy to finish with the big boys. The course was hard, fast and bumpy.

Perry Roper represented Washington State well winning the Expert 45-49 X - country race and 40+ Short Track. In both races, he beat former national champions. He was absolutely dominant. I spoke to several local California boys and he definatly got in their heads.

Joel Burklund - First WNWS Race

The weather was warm for the early race, but quickly chilled the minute the sun dropped below the tree line. The course was dry, tacky and very fast. Wick setup the course up to take advantage of a new section that was very bumpy, loose and had a great burm on a corner. I think I really like banked, burmed corners. Over all the course was just fun. Nothing too technical and a total blast throwing the bike into the high speed (well, high speed for me anyway..) corners. The racer turnout was not too bad for the first race and not too much warmth. I would say maybe 40 or so racers for the beginner cat's and the same for the Sport\Expert. The last lap of the later race of the night was almost done by brail as the darkness was setting in. My saving grace in the race was the racer in front of me and hugging his rear tire so I did not miss a line. Thank goodness he did not wreck.



How the team did:

Jackson Burklund - raced in the beg Jr and did all 3 laps. I believe he might have come in 2nd or 3rd out of 3 or 4 Jr's. He did great finishing up as the Sport\Expert racers were taking off.

Nick Valison - He survived

Joel (me) - I survived also and set a new high water mark for my HR. Pushed hard in the 2nd lap to stay with a small group and almost hurled. It was awesome. I think I found my motivation finally this year.



It was great to hit some fast single track. See you all soon….see you this weekend for sure.

Joel