Knob Scorcher

Race: Knob Scorcher 
Date: 4-4-2004 
Place: Tsali Trails, Bryson City, NC 
Distance: 19.2 miles 
Speed: 10.6 mph 
Time: 1 hour, 48 minutes 

The Knob Scorcher at Tsali is probably the largest mountain bike race in the Southeast. Promoted for years by the Nantahala Outdoor Center, the torch was passed on this year to the Florida based Gone Riding. GR is known for the SERC series as well as races throughout the region. 

The trails at Tsali are smooth, fast, and rolling with a few good climbs. Although the course changed slightly from years before, racers were in for a classic Tsali race. The course started out on County Line Road about 1/3 mile up from the expo area. The first half mile up County Line Road began with a short climb followed by an even shorter descent before riders took a right onto the last half of the Right Loop. With such a short opening stretch, positioning going into the singletrack would be critical. The Right Loop continued with gently rolling hills for about 5 miles before tying in with the Left Loop. Several muddy areas from recent rains and slick creek crossings challenged riders when they were hit at the high speeds many were riding at. The course went up a very steep hill to the Overlook before pointing downward again. The next several miles were rolling along smooth singletrack on the shores 
of Lake Fontana. At the .5 mile to go marker on the Left Loop, a climb tortured riders as they made their way up to the starting area. The course climbed a half mile up County Line Road again before taking the same turn onto the Right Loop. From that point, it was 3.7 miles to the finish area. Most of the first half of the Right Loop is downhill with one large steep hill in the middle. Many riders had to walk the first 30 feet of the hill because it was so steep. The last two miles were open and mostly downhill. The finish was on pavement in the expo area. 

Tsali has never been a good course for me. It is too open, too "roadie." I prefer tight, technical singletrack. I made up my mind that I was going to try to go for the holeshot (be first) into the singletrack. While I do not mind letting faster riders pass, I hate trying to pass slower riders and getting bogged down by doing so. By getting a good start, I hoped to make it a mile or so into the trail before having to let anyone by. Thirty four Sport women showed up on the starting line. That is the largest single class I have ever been in during my 7+ years of racing. They would split us up 19-29 and 30+ for prizes. I lose my status late this year as a "20-something" and decided to make my first foray into the Master's division. Yes, that word I thought I would never use I am....I am now a Masters racer although I'm still 29. The thought of racing down an age category crossed my mind, but I decided to stick 
with my true category. Since we started about 15 minutes after the first group of men, I had plenty of time to make my way to the center of the first row, the ideal starting position. After freezing in 20 mph winds on the starting line for a few minutes, the NORBA official-Sandy, started us. I shot off the front like I was trying to get back into the Tuesday night crit at the top of the hill. Who knew getting dropped so many times would be beneficial? Going up County Line Road, I had the lead. One girl passed me on the descent, but I passed her again on the short hill before turning into the singletrack. My legs were screaming at my lungs to deliver more oxygen. They seemed to know how crucial the start would be to this race. I was first going into the singletrack. A quick glance back revealed a long string of women behind me. The closest was about two seconds. I continued to tear through the first half mile of singletrack. Finally, one woman wanted to pass. I waited a ways before the trail widened and let several by. This happened a few more times, and I found myself in the middle of the pack by the first climb. Unlike some of the other racers, I rode the whole climb by dropping into my granny gear and spinning. I passed one woman. The next few miles rolled along one after the other. I was pushing myself as hard as I could. With my recent fall, I have become a chicken on sketchy sections, especially loose gravel. Tsali had plenty of loose rock and gravel to make me keep braking and losing speed in and out of turns. Brake, turn, sprint, brake, turn, sprint. 

As I came into the Left Loop, I saw two women ahead of me about 30 seconds. I made it my goal to catch them within 2 miles. It would not take one. The first major obstacle on the Left Loop is the 1/3 mile steep climb up to the Overlook. Once again, I got into a very low gear and spun my way to the top, passing several women who were walking. Riding is usually faster than walking. My legs still felt good, and my breathing was regular. I flew through the next downhill section. The Left Loop is always fun because there are large stretches that make it feel like you are not working at all. Unfortunately, two women that I'd passed going uphill passed me going downhill. Although I was in my big ring and felt like I was going fast, they were faster. The chicken in me came out again on some of the parts of the descent where loose gravel lurked. I could not make myself take the turns faster than anything 
other than a crawl for fear of falling. A short climb provided me a small advantage, and I nearly caught one of the women that passed me on the previous downhill. We started to descend before I could quite get her, though. I managed to put about 30 seconds on a few women that were right behind me. When I got to a spot on the course that you could see above, they were not there. I was determined not to let them catch me. For the next 4 miles, I continually passed men that dropped off the pace from earlier races. Some of them had a ten minute headstart on me. I also watched the turns because if I overshot one, I'd fall about 50 feet down the bank into Lake Fontana since water levels are so low this time of year. A muddy creek crossing came up on my quickly. I didn't have time to react as my front wheel hit a large root and slid out. I felt my left shin hit something and send pain signals back to my brain. When I fell over, I was still clipped in. I untangled myself from the bike, got up, ran the rest of the creek crossing, and got back on. The pain in my left shin was pretty intense, but I knew it would be nothing more than a bad bruise. It took a minute for me to refocus on the race. I got back into my rhythm. Two miles and many gravel turns later, I was glad to see 
the half mile marker and the climb up to the starting area. I looked back and saw one woman coming from behind. Her kids were at the top yelling "Go Mommy!" but I heard more people on the County Line Road climb yelling "Go Trish!" That's a great feeling and really helped to keep my going. When someone is screaming your name, it gives you extra motivation to ride hard. The other woman passed me, though. 

I turned onto the right loop for the final 3.7 miles. The flatish/downhill section provided a nice relief from the climb. I cruised for a minute to get my breath. Before I knew it, the climb was upon me. I spun as quickly as my legs could go around, but I had to dismount when the climb got extremely steep. Not one person was riding this part. I looked back and saw another woman behind me. As quickly as I could, I got back on and into my middle ring. Not one usually to ride climbs hard (I climb like a boat anchor), I deiced that this was the race that I needed to try to. I flew through a short downhill and used the momentum to carry me partly up the other side of the hill. I stood up and powered over the rest of it. My legs screamed with lactic acid and begged for mercy, but I was not going to let anyone else catch me. Since I've been working on my time trialing skills for the road, I decided the last two miles of the course would be a good test for them. I shifted into my big ring never to see another front ring again during the race. The chicken inhibitions were thrown out, and I raced like I know I can. I pushed the hardest gear I could and went as fast as my 
legs would take me for those two miles. I stood up over the short power climb at about half a mile to go. I blew by the photographer and stood up to sprint into the finish. I nearly collapsed as I crossed the finish line, but I'd finished strongly. I was very happy with my race. 

I wound up in 16th place out of 34 Sport Women and about 7th in Master 30+. I was happy with the way I rode my race. I reached my goal of being first into the singletrack. I pushed myself as much as I could where I could. For April, I'm not in bad shape.