Last Sunday, time for round four of the BuDu race series, otherwise known as Cooking in the Kettles. Race venue was Fort Ebey State Park, not a bad place to hold a mountain bike race - pretty cool actually. Camping available, real rest rooms, great trails, and scenic views as the added bonus. Nice.
Last year, Racer Boy Ian, competed here in the U-12 division, younger riders doing the shorter 3+ mile lap with little climbing. This year, it would be Beginner class for 13 - 18 year old kids, on the full 7 mile lap, complete with 1100 feet of climbing. A bit tougher gig.
Oh-dark-thirty wake up call to catch the 7:00 AM ferry over to the Whidbey; quicker and much more scenic then driving. Ferry almost empty, with most vehicles sporting mountain bikes.
Compared to usual, just took a few pictures and posted 'em above slideshow style. Fair amount of racers at this event, me not included. I elected to continue my lame streak and enjoy my spring allergy hell. Sniffle, drip, curse.
Ian rolling in towards the finish, looking like a mini pro, pretty cool for 12 years old. Rolled in for last place today, idea being getting back into the racing groove. He's been on his bike maybe three times since 'cross season ended in December. Said he had fun and that's what counts. After loading up, we hit a pizza place in Coupville, before hitting the ferry for home. Sunny spring day, great father/son time. We'll take it.
Quick post and a few pics. Thanks for reading and stopping by the ol' blog. Until next time...
It takes guts to line up next to 18 year olds. Good job Ian.
ReplyDeleteYeah, for racing he's a bit in Twilight Zone right now. Actual age 12, racing age 13. Big difference between a 12 and 17 year old racer - can be anyway.
ReplyDeleteCyclocross season was a bit weird this fall also. Actual age 12, racing age 12 also. But rule changes bumped him into the 13+ age class, due to some UCI deal, if I heard correctly. Basically, all juniors bumped up one racing class. Technically, fair to all. But after racing 'cross for three years now, this would have been Ian's year of being the oldest in his class, with a better chance of doing well. It's all good experience, but could have been a confidence/fun booster year before going 13+. Big speed difference with that age group. First 'cross race of the season, we didn't know about the age rule change, so Ian raced the 9 - 12 class and won the race. Pretty cool. For the remainder of the season, did the 13+ class and did okay, a bit back from the really fast kids.
I honestly don't care where he places, as long as he tried and and it was a positive experience. Sure, it's cool to do well. Sometimes doing well is scoring a few places back on a tough course against faster kids. Or hitting all the races of a series to score high up overall. As long as his interest remains, I'll support his racing. It's all good.