Ashland, Oregon 12 mile super D.

There’s not much to say about this race except it rocks! It is fast and flowy with enough power climbing that it hurts. The fire roads will either scare you or scream beneath your tires and the switchbacks at the end will cramp your fingers if you curl them too tightly around the brake levers.

Kirt was filming for NWD up near Radium Hot Springs B.C. prior to the Super D and banged his knee up so he took the weekend easy. He did a practice run and decided to race but his steed suffered two flats in the first 10 minutes of the race, so he hiked back up and cheered me on!

Lindsey Ashland Results: 1st Expert Women

Bike: Med Carbon Blur XC with RockShox Reba fork. The most amazing bike I have ever ridden in my life.

After Ashland, Kirt headed back up to Invemere, B.C. for more NWD filming at a trail called Swansee and I continued to guide mountain bike rides, teach kids camps and prepare for my last year’s nemesis, The Downieville Classic.

Side note: Kirt and I rushed to Downieville the Monday before the race, did practice runs Monday and Tuesday, then had to drive 9 hours to Irvine to walk in a Fox fashion show and ride with the Fox reps down in Laguna. Wed. after the ride we drove 9 hours back to Downieville in time for a few more practice runs, then raced Saturday and Sunday. It was a LONG week!

The Downieville Classic – All Mountain Race – Cross Country Day 1, Downhill Day 2 …

This race deserves a decent write up. Last year I went into this race not really knowing what I was in for. The 8 mile, 3000 ft fire road climb at the beginning of the race is enough to make you never want to do it again. But I couldn’t stay away. I felt I needed redemption. (Last year I bonked after the climb, and later found myself lying on the side of the trail waiting for my leg cramps to subside. The next day in the gnarly, technical, rocky, fast Downhill I was exhausted and went too slow into a wet rock garden. I tipped over, split my leg wide open on a rock and hiked back up to the medics. With 13 stitches and a broken morale, I left Downieville vowing to never put myself through that torture again).

Well, that didn’t last long. I needed to finish that race.

Day 1: Cross Country. I went into the cross country with a very clear goal; Do not bonk, just survive. I climbed the fire road slowly and steadily and never felt out of breath. When the climb was over, I actually had energy to mob the burly, rocky, rooty, technical downhills. BUT unfortunately, by taking it easy on the climb, I found myself behind some racers who did not know how to ride the downhill. So I sat on my brakes and forced myself to “zen out” and enjoy every minute of it. I had no choice, as passing at that point can be deadly and pointless.

I finished a lot slower than the 2:40 I had hoped for, but I didn’t care because so many people were splayed out on the side of the trail with flat tires and cramps so I felt successful just finishing without any mishaps. I was especially proud of how good I felt at the finish, unlike the previous year when I wanted to cut my legs off to prevent any more pain.

Day 2: Downhill. I woke up scared and full of doubt. I did have a crash the Friday before the cross country and a small one during the race and I was a bit banged up. Upon awakening I felt a little like I’d been pitched out of a moving car. Make no mistake, that xc race is not smooth. My upper body was taxed, but thank goodness, my legs were feeling pretty good.

The goal for the DH was to take the top half easy and pass my point of no return where I crashed last year. I was going a little slow out of the start and crashed in a washed out corner. Damn! I was bummed, but figured that was my crash and it was out of the way! Time to seriously focus and stay strong! Once I cleared those rocks and the infamous waterfall rock slab (which I got off and ran through) I felt a surge of relief. My upper body just needed to hold on and guide my bike through the rough stuff while my legs needed to kick it up a notch.

We started in 1-minute intervals and I had already passed 3 women by the time I was ready to pin it. I played leapfrog with a woman down a fire road, but she bobbled on a short, rocky climb, so when I got by her I decided to never let her see me again and I took off. I gave the end of that race everything I had. The hour-long downhill is not all down so I pedaled vigorously through rock gardens, around steep cliff ledges and up any incline that presented itself in front of me. I let off the brakes and sped down the sections I was comfortable with and pinned it to win it. In the end I kept the rubber side down and full of air and I must say I’m pretty proud of that. The people who race Downieville are no joke and I was honored to race with everyone and make it out alive. Will I do it again next year? Hmmm? Oh yeah, Kirt played around on the water jump for the spectators but rested himself for the DH at the National Championships in Sol Vista, Colorado coming up.

Lindsey Downieville Results: 3rd XC, 4th DH, 3rd Overall – All Mountain Expert Women U34

Bike: Large Carbon Blur LT with Rockshox Pike fork. The second most amazing bike I’ve ever ridden in my life.

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Lindsey Voreis
ALLRIDE, LLC
2285 NW Torrey Pines Dr.
Bend, OR 97701
www.allridetour.com
www.santacruzbicycles.com