Then we were off to Mont Du Lac to meet Wade, Julie, Gabby & Carter to set up camp and for Wade and I to hopefully get in a pre-ride. When we arrived we found the lot for camping was flooded from the rain all week prior. We then found some high ground and got camp set as the rain started to come down. No pre-riding to be had, we hung out and let the kids play in the mud.
There was a Ultimate Frisbee Tournament in Duluth that weekend and Mont Du Lac hosted a party that evening with live music by the Boomchucks and Charlie Parr along with Beer Sponsor SURLY! So a night of sweet tunes and Surly Furious was on Tap..Pun intended!
Saturday morning was forecast-ed with sun, but with fog and no sun to be found the race course was due to be a mud slinger, with a few riders doing an early morning pre-ride coming out muddy, but then it only got worse.
I was racing Sport and with a 11am start and still a pile of Citizen Racers still on course it was for sure going to be an interesting race. I started in the Second Wave and with the BIG climb to start I went into the single track in 2nd from my wave and in front of a bunch of first wave riders. The first hill found everyone off their bikes and pushing them which continued to be the trend the rest of the race. I tried to be on my bike as much as I could but found it hard with all the lap traffic, but not being much of a runner I found myself running with my bike trying to stay ahead of those in my wave. Towards the end of the lap was the roller coaster section and slightly drier which was nice to ride those sections and running into Jay Richards snapping photos was perfect timing as I was thinking just prior how this is the type of Mudder he always writes about being his favorite kind of race. So with the last climb/walk to the top and a slalom like downhill to the finish I rolled across 1st in my age division and 8th overall out of 91 riders.
There were a lot of angry and frustrated riders on course with bikes locked up with mud and broken derailleurs, it was nice being able to finish and not majorly damaging my bike which is now tore apart in the garage for a serious cleaning top to bottom.
Photo by Dana Schoppe Photagraphy
Eggbeaters doing their job in the mud with no issues clipping in.Eleni and Marlo both were signed up for the Shimano Kids Race.
5 and Under were called up with Marlo being the youngest racer at age 2.
She put forth a good effort with a smile and stopped mid race to tell me, "Daddy, she has a bike like ME!"
Kids Photos by Grizzly-AdamEleni Did her two laps in the 6 and up division. Good times for them which made them feel apart of the festivities.
Making the most out of a fun weekend for Sure!
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