Opa-Opa Beer Cross Men's B Race
=========
The event:
=========
Very low key… no license checks and no officials (that I know of), just show up and race. There were A-B-C and women’s open fields. I opted to do the B race.
=========
The course:
=========
It starts around the outside of a running track (not on the track). Then left hand u turn up a rise to a sand pit which was ridable most of the time. The rest of the way around is a mix of what looks like old orchard roads (open grass/dirt) and short single track connectors. There is one large unridable run up near the end that is followed by a tricky single track downhill that returns you to the track area. New this year was a series of tight turns before the run up that had you almost to a stop to make the last two. With the added rain from the night before and the off and on shower that day the course was covered with fast mud. Fast mud has a thin slick top with a hard slick base under it (as opposed to slow mud, which is thick and deep). The corners were very tricky and low tire pressure was a must. I knew with the sand ride that bike changes were going to be needed if things clogged up. Jean was ready in the pit with a bucket and brush if called on. I ran very low pressure on the bike I started on (28-30ish) and 5 psi more on the pit bike in case the roots were too harsh at speed.
=========
Results:
=========
Wayne Cunningham – Men’s B Race – 5th
http://www.bikereg.com/Results/2008/11/15-Opa-Opa-Beer-Cross.asp
=========
The race:
=========
Fast off the line and we hit the sand in mass. The rider in front of me stopped in the sand so I hopped off and ran the rest as the field was riding by. I looked back to see I had only two riders still behind me. I was able to move up on the open section and at the hurtles. Tom Stevens helped out by sliding out and going down in one of the turns and blocking two riders so I could squeeze through the inside. Then I moved up again on the track. By mid race I was still on a charge with Bo Fuller on by wheel and third place 20 seconds up. I blew it in the sand, though. I crossed up my wheel and went down. When I got up the rear shifter lever was covered in sand so I swapped bikes at the pits. I learned if you think anything is going wrong or may go wrong on your bike you should switch right away and not wait to be sure. However that extra 5 psi in the pit bike was too much and made cornering even more challenging so I had to ride a lap a little slower to stay up. I swapped back after a lap and asked Jean to lower the pressure a little bit. I did not get past Bo again and finished off in 5th. Still a very good day on a very fun course. I would recommend it to anyone wet or dry.