NMBS #3 - Fontana

It's finals week at the U of A. However this does not mean I'm up all night studying hard and downing the coffee. I only have two finals this week, one is already over and the other is on Friday. So far, after only two days it's been a long week. I've already packed my bags and spent an hour peeling tape residue off my dorm walls. I think I'm ready to go home.

NMBS #3 in Fontana was interesting. Three laps of the cross-country course kicked my butt, laps two and three I couldn't remember how to race my bike. Last year at this time, I finished 20th in the cross-country and it was the best race of my life. On Saturday I finished 21st and thought it disappointing. For whatever its worth, Fontana is still my favorite. The venue is unusual because trucking yards, freeways, railways, and warehouses surrounds it--not the usual alpine ski resort. The course meanders around a rocky hill littered with remnants of abandoned developments and concrete water ditches. It's rough out there too--lots of rocks, ruts, culverts, sand, and hills. But the dust is the worst. It gets everywhere--hair, lungs, chamois. Maybe I'm a little uncertain why Fontana is my favorite. It's different, that's for sure.

I also had a good short track race. I finished 7th and felt strong throughout. The lap had a good climb up the 4x course and a technical descent followed by some singletrack--good for bottlenecking and some serious dust clouds. Spectators like that kind of thing and I guess I do too. I better start studying. Adios.