The Newnan course is not the same as it was a few years ago. Although the first 4 miles are nearly same, the last 2 have been radically altered. New singletrack has been cut, and sections of the old race course have been left out. The race starts with a brief jaunt through a grassy field before going into the singletrack in the first 150 yards of the race, which makes for crazy starts as everyone jockeys for a good position. Pile ups occur as the large fields of riders move into the singletrack. The trail takes a right hand turn through an old building before starting the decent that takes riders down several large rocks. A brief uphills is followed by "The Whoop," which most closely resembles a water slide. Riders have to stay on the high sides to avoid going into the loose rocks in the galley down the center of the Whoop. After a steep switchback, riders are treated to a half mile of flat, sandy trail that is interrupted only by one stream crossing. The trail then begins the first climb up out of the valley and onto a ridge top. Roots are scattered about, taking a toll on riders' backs and arms. Several uphill switchbacks are interspersed among the otherwise steady climb. After one last steep section, the trail comes out to a brief flat run. One of the most fun parts of the trail is next-about 1/3 mile of rocky downhill drop offs. They key is to keep your weight back and not let the bike get ahead of you. A short hill ends the downhill run before the trail turns back towards the dam. The flat dam crossing either gives riders a break or a place to power through and try to gain time on competitors. Hell's Hill is next up; its steep, loose ground has been the nemesis of racers in Georgia for years. The trail from this point on takes a different look than the old race course. All of the singletrack is new and very tight in contrast to the open singletrack of the first 4 miles. Interspersed among the tight singletrack are several short, granny gear climbs. There is virtually no recovery in between. After crossing a gravel road, riders are treated to the start of the final climb. The first few hundred feet are through twisting singletrack littered with boulders. A powerline section bakes riders under the sun. The final stretch is a middle ring sprint up a double track hill before coming out in the start/finish area.
Over a dozen Sport Women lined up to start the North Georgia Pines Classic. This was the biggest field in nearly a year! It was great to see so many other ladies at the race! I got a starting position in the middle of the first row. I wanted to get a good start in the singletrack because I did not want to be caught behind any pileups. With a GO, we were off. I immediately went to the front behind Paula (Porterfield Tire-Sunshine) and Rachel (Girl-Zilla). They were flying through the field. We hit the singletrack and kept going. I don't think I've ever flown down that part of the course so fast. My brain didn't have time to react, and I was going on pure mountain bike instinct alone. If my brain had been functioning, I would probably have ridden more tentatively. My nerves were acting up a little bit because of my fall at Yard Sale three weeks ago. We continued to fly through the woods at an incredible pace. Within the first 1/4 mile, the leaders dropped us. I won't say "not to be heard from again" quite yet. Dana was following me, and there were several people right on our tail. When we hit the flat section, Dana passed me. I glanced back and saw the others within about 15 seconds of me. I continued to ride my own race. We hit the next climb and continued up the ridge. My pace and heart rate were consistent. The ground was a bit loose in some of the corners, so I had to concentrate on keeping my bike upright and not sliding out. I took advantage of the next straight away and drank some water. I came into the rock drop off section with one rider on my wheel. She was following a little too closely and was making me nervous by bumping my rear wheel. I told her to back off, and I flew through the drop offs. I thought I'd put some distance between us, but on the steep hill exiting the drop off section, she tried to pass me. As she did, she fell over, taking us both out. Visions of Yard Sale flew through my head. Luckily, I was in once piece this time. After a brief "that was a really bad place to pass" and "you need to let others know you are passing", I took off again. I dropped her on the flat section by the dam. As I was going up Hell's Hill, she passed me. Oh were for art thou flat race course? Where for art thou? I picked my way through the short steep climbs and the tight technical section. I had to dismount on one switchback when my rear wheel spun out. Crossing the gravel road, I noticed how high my heart rate was. There was no recovery on this section of the course, and I had no way to bring it down. I continued on and decided to see how hard I could push myself through the next lap. I was passed again going over one of the boulder sections but was not worried as she was in a different age group. As I came out onto the power line climb, I began to roast. Thankfully, the climb was not that long. I bounced out of the turn and headed towards the last doubletrack climb. I went into my second lap feeling strong.
Consistent was the word I kept saying to myself. Keep it consistent. I flew down
the first singletrack section, trying to enjoy every drop off and rock that I
rode on. There is still no riding feeling like that of going at speed through
singletrack and feeling at one with the bike. A small group of spectators was by
the Whoop and cheered me through it. What a great feeling! Moonpie and I were
dancing. I powered through the flat section with the creek crossing. My front
wheel slipped a little bit in the mud, but it was no cause for worry. I looked
ahead and saw someone that passed me earlier. We would continue to play
"pass each other" throughout the race. I would catch her in the
technical sections, and she would pass me on the smooth climbs. I caught up to
her and passed her. She passed me again shortly after we started to climb up the
ridge. I could feel my back fatiguing slightly. The roots on this section of
the course began to take their toll. I'd taken my gloves off because my hands
got hot during the first lap. My hands were starting to get sore. I glanced at
my HRM and saw that my HR was where it had been the entire race, which I took as
a good sign. I used the next straight section to recover before dropping into
the next downhill. I concentrated on keeping my weight back over the bike as it
floated beneath me and went down the drop offs. I dropped into my granny gear
and spun up the exiting hill. A minute later, I came down the small hill to the
dam. Whoosh! I gust of wind caught me off guard. I had to use my balance and
correct myself to keep from getting knocked over. I tucked down as far as I
could on my bike to make myself more aero, which is not an easy task on a
mountain bike. One more time up Hell's Hill was enough to make me breath hard
again. I recovered a little bit on the next technical section before dropping
into a small gear and spinning my way up the next steep hill. I found myself
behind the other gal once again. We both walked the switchback. I was starting
to breath very hard. I continued to push myself as hard as I could thought the
next technical section. My rear tire spun out over one of the boulders, so I
cyclocrossed over it. The powerline climb was just as hard this lap. I was glad
to get to the top and have a little relief before beginning the final climb. My
legs gave the first indication that I was tired. I had been trying to climb the
doubletrack in one gear harder than I normally do. My legs objected, and I
dropped down one gear. I came through the start/finish area and powered into the
third lap.
For the first two laps, I had been in my zone. Towards the beginning of the final lap, I lost my concentration. I began to feel the burn in my legs and my heavy breathing. The roots had taken their toll on my back and made it very tired. It was not sore like all of last year but just fatigued. I rode through the singletrack section a little more conservatively than the first two laps. I wanted to save my back a little bit. I flew through the Whoop, which is always a fun part of the course to ride. My legs quivered up a small switchback before not objecting the big ring on the flat part. A quick jaunt through the stream crossing, and I'd caught up to the other gal again. Ok, I've GOT to work on my climbing. I've been saying that for 5 years. Technical sections are not a problem for me. Climbing is. I glanced up the ridge and saw what I thought was one other woman and a few of the Vet Sport men. As soon as we came to the climb, the other gal took off. I settled back into my "I don't want to blow up and die" climbing routine but saw that my HR was not as high as it had been on the other laps. I decided to pick up the pace a little bit. "Legs? Legs? Hello?" My thoughts and my legs were not connecting. I tried to make my mind push my legs to spin faster, but it was in vain. My mind was fresh, but my legs were dead. I had to continue at a slower pace than before. I watched the other gal fade into the distance. I made it my goal to try to close the gap between myself and the Vet men. I popped onto the straightaway and saw one of the race leaders. I asked her if she was ok, and she held up her crankarm that had fallen off. Uh oh! I refocused my concentration back to the course. Once again, we danced down the drop offs and up the exiting hill. My back was tired; I could really feel it now. I couldn't put any power to the pedals. Across the dam, I recovered. I focused on breathing deeply and rhythmically. Hell's Hill posed no problem. My legs were a little refreshed by the deep breathing session. I came though the singletrack and up the next granny gear hill. I hopped off to run the switchback. I was by myself on the trail, but suddenly, I saw the other gal ahead of me. I tried to tell my legs to push it a little bit more, but they would not listen. There were done for the day. I had to be content with finishing as strongly as I could without totally dying. My lack of mountain bike racing this year was rearing its ugly head. I spun up the powerline climb and began the ascent to the finish. I picked up the pace towards the top; I think my legs anticipated that the finish was nearby. I crossed the finish line strongly and in 3rd place in Senior Sport.
Overall, I'm happy with this race. There have not been very many mountain bike races early in the season this year as there have been in years past. My lack of racing showed in the final lap. I have a little bit of work to do in the endurance category, but I'm not worried about it. Newnan is a tough course that beats riders up. The next few races won't be as technically challenging. I'm on track for the year.