Penny S.
July 28th 03, 07:52 PM
miscellaneous observations...
Most if not all the DH riders are using some sort of clip system with their
pedals
Most if not all XC riders shave their legs.
I'll let you guys figure out what age group and type of rider gave me the
most lip when I was marshalling the crosswalk at the XC track where it went
through the village.
Saturday the people really started pouring in. The XC pro races started at 7
am but alas, I had to go back to Spokane to pick up a kid and then come back
so I missed it all. Craig and I got comfortable in the shade for the
mountain cross finals. Word has it that the riders thought the course was
pretty lame but what do I know? He was pretty tired after having to back
board two riders off the Dh course, a broken pelvis and something else. He
had to carry (with help of course ) down through 2 marshall stations,
through the willows and boulders, to a
vehicle pickup point. You want to talk about dirty and tired... this is the
kind of dust that you are picking out of every conceivable facial opening,
the kind that mud just runs off of you in the shower...
Sunday, last day, more races. Craig heads up the hill early for the various
pro and expert DH qualifiers and finals. The volunteer coordinator has
figured out that I'm a control nut in disguise, so she assigns me and
another gal to the crosswalk in the quad. The XC course loops through the
quad, so there is an opening in the gates with two lanes of race traffic
going in opposite directions, one is the end of steep corner. So we had our
hands full watching the guy up on the corner for his signal for when riders
are coming down the hill, plus watching for racers coming into the village
from the other direction. The morning's group of riders was
beg/sport/clydes/tandems/SS and jr Olympic kids. The kids were awesome,
there were racers down to 20 years old on the 10 mile course, some of them
may have been doing 2 laps (??). I stand by my statement that a lot of
clydesdales are not fat, just big men. It's really inspirational to watch
these
little riders stick it out. A couple of them had parents riding with them,
but as one dad of an 10 year old girl said, "she doesn't need me anymore!!".
Then the switchover to short track. The track was set completely in the
village for maximum spectator benefit. The only real problem is that the
course essentially cut the village in half, with no way across to buy
tickets
for the quad. I fault the ski area for not having a sign: the ticket
office was just across from my post on the course, with **no one** allowed
to cross for three hours while they ran the short track. Naturally the folks
that bitched the most about having to walk around the course are the ones
that should be walking the most. I started to get a little grumpy having
been at the post since 7 am, standing in the heat and sun and needing lunch.
They did bring me food when asked, nothing like a good bag of grapes on a
day like this!!
For those of you that have never heard of this event, it's just like a
criterium, but on mountain bikes and dirt. It was really exciting, a very
big deal was made out of the pro women and men. There were lots of action
moment... a rider clipped the fencing and took about a100' of it; pros with
large leads and battles for the finish and so on. I really wish I'd been
able to figure out what numbers went with what riders before the races. It
was hard to hear the announcer, and when I was out on a course there was no
way to hear who is who. I did get to see Allison Sydor (sp?) battle for the
finish of the short track, she had huge lead, was caught and then won it
back.
Then, finally all done. After that I took the quad up and hiked the DH
course just in time to watch the DH pro men finals, last race of the day.
Those guys were
amazing, every single one of them nailed each move; it was just a matter of
speed. Word is that the course rocked.
The people watching is always fun, from the race families and riders, locals
up to see what it's all about, and all the other craziness. I saw enough
boxer clad rear ends hanging out of saggy shorts, both on the DH course and
off it to last me a lifetime ( guys, it is NOT flattering at all, don't know
how you can ride like that....)
Today it's wash the dirt out of everything and regroup.
photos later.
Penny
Most if not all the DH riders are using some sort of clip system with their
pedals
Most if not all XC riders shave their legs.
I'll let you guys figure out what age group and type of rider gave me the
most lip when I was marshalling the crosswalk at the XC track where it went
through the village.
Saturday the people really started pouring in. The XC pro races started at 7
am but alas, I had to go back to Spokane to pick up a kid and then come back
so I missed it all. Craig and I got comfortable in the shade for the
mountain cross finals. Word has it that the riders thought the course was
pretty lame but what do I know? He was pretty tired after having to back
board two riders off the Dh course, a broken pelvis and something else. He
had to carry (with help of course ) down through 2 marshall stations,
through the willows and boulders, to a
vehicle pickup point. You want to talk about dirty and tired... this is the
kind of dust that you are picking out of every conceivable facial opening,
the kind that mud just runs off of you in the shower...
Sunday, last day, more races. Craig heads up the hill early for the various
pro and expert DH qualifiers and finals. The volunteer coordinator has
figured out that I'm a control nut in disguise, so she assigns me and
another gal to the crosswalk in the quad. The XC course loops through the
quad, so there is an opening in the gates with two lanes of race traffic
going in opposite directions, one is the end of steep corner. So we had our
hands full watching the guy up on the corner for his signal for when riders
are coming down the hill, plus watching for racers coming into the village
from the other direction. The morning's group of riders was
beg/sport/clydes/tandems/SS and jr Olympic kids. The kids were awesome,
there were racers down to 20 years old on the 10 mile course, some of them
may have been doing 2 laps (??). I stand by my statement that a lot of
clydesdales are not fat, just big men. It's really inspirational to watch
these
little riders stick it out. A couple of them had parents riding with them,
but as one dad of an 10 year old girl said, "she doesn't need me anymore!!".
Then the switchover to short track. The track was set completely in the
village for maximum spectator benefit. The only real problem is that the
course essentially cut the village in half, with no way across to buy
tickets
for the quad. I fault the ski area for not having a sign: the ticket
office was just across from my post on the course, with **no one** allowed
to cross for three hours while they ran the short track. Naturally the folks
that bitched the most about having to walk around the course are the ones
that should be walking the most. I started to get a little grumpy having
been at the post since 7 am, standing in the heat and sun and needing lunch.
They did bring me food when asked, nothing like a good bag of grapes on a
day like this!!
For those of you that have never heard of this event, it's just like a
criterium, but on mountain bikes and dirt. It was really exciting, a very
big deal was made out of the pro women and men. There were lots of action
moment... a rider clipped the fencing and took about a100' of it; pros with
large leads and battles for the finish and so on. I really wish I'd been
able to figure out what numbers went with what riders before the races. It
was hard to hear the announcer, and when I was out on a course there was no
way to hear who is who. I did get to see Allison Sydor (sp?) battle for the
finish of the short track, she had huge lead, was caught and then won it
back.
Then, finally all done. After that I took the quad up and hiked the DH
course just in time to watch the DH pro men finals, last race of the day.
Those guys were
amazing, every single one of them nailed each move; it was just a matter of
speed. Word is that the course rocked.
The people watching is always fun, from the race families and riders, locals
up to see what it's all about, and all the other craziness. I saw enough
boxer clad rear ends hanging out of saggy shorts, both on the DH course and
off it to last me a lifetime ( guys, it is NOT flattering at all, don't know
how you can ride like that....)
Today it's wash the dirt out of everything and regroup.
photos later.
Penny