The 2012 Shasta Lemurian started off in usual fashion - Pretty much a non-segregated free-for-all which allows the short, medium and long course riders (think Cat 1, 2 & 3) to intermingle and go for their moment of glory off the start. I admit that I am not comforted seeing short course riders lined up in front of me on the countdown...but they did get there first AND unlike years past, I didn't hear any sounds of bike parts sparking as they contact lycra ripping pavement. I don't care how the start is structured as long as everyone gets off safely. I'm not exactly sure who is in this picture, but I think I can make out Quadzilla Racing Head Honcho Jon Smith who put it to me, as well as overall winner Jason Moeschler riding his WTB / Cannondale plush-mobile...someone was having fun on the descents!

For those of you who can't wait for dessert, here are the unofficial results until the club gets the real thing posted up for all to salivate over...

As you can see the long travel bikes once again trumped the feathery hardtails, but for Summit Cycling's Jim Hewett (who wrote up a great report HERE) he posted his best ever time on sub 20lb Santa Cruz High Balland Clint Claassen (who may have been slightly influenced by my suggestion of riding his Santa Cruz Tall Boy over his High Ball) said that next time he would race the High Ball, too.  

In fact, one class that always seems strong at this event is the single speed contingent. And when Bicycle Emporium's Billy Damon went screaming past me on the first ascent with one gear I simply cheered inwardly. Anyone who sets out to tame the two mammoth ascents of the Lemurian with one gear certainly gets my respect. Not that Billy hasn't already earned it with a sweet stars & bars jersey from Sun Valley last year...If not for a wrong turn, his time and finish position would have been dramatically better.

Beyond the outright rugged and challenging course conditions of the Lemurian, I love to see what tools people choose for their craft and this course seems to attract a wide variety with no one bike seemingly being preferred by all.

As for the race itself, I would describe the course as nearly perfect this year. The week prior to the event brought rain and had the trails in just about perfect condition. Myself, Bri (fresh off her Sea Otter yellow jersey performance!), brother Brett, my parents and even Bri's parents came out with her father signing up for the LONG course despite mountain bike credentials that might suggest that as a lofty goal...well, I always say, bite off more than you can chew and start chewing like mad! In this case her dad gnawed feverishly at the course and came out with a very respectable finish in what amounted to his first full-on rugged and full length mountain bike race. Well done!

As for the rest of us...

Brett survived again and was looking good in his sweet Fox Racing kit!

Bri was like "What's up Lemurian! Is that ALL that you got???" I think after the race she was ready for another lap...She ended up taking second place for her first ever "long course" effort. I am just totally stoked on her riding performances and glad to see all of her hard work paying off!

I on the other hand was completely content with shade and the delicious post race burrito that topped off a perfect day of racing! I must admit, the highlight of my day was when Aren Timmel passed me towards the end of the race - NO, I was not in front of that monster, he had flatted early on and was still slaying the course all the way home! BUT, as a typical front runner at this event, he had some pretty sick lines that I got to follow down towards the finish - until he dropped me in a masterful skill move where he dropped into a very sharp, steep creek crossing and then deftly levitated up the equally steep AND muddy exit side without a single dab in what I will remember as one of the coolest "moves" I have seen recently!

Even better than the race itself was a fun weekend at the lake with family and friends. We managed to make some new friends in Craig and Alicia Weaver. Craig normally races single speed, but brought out his geared Trek 29er dually to successfully tackle the terrain. Wife Alicia was stoked on her new Giant XTC 29er and was so focused on racing that she missed a course marker and ended up riding farther than any of the racers! Fortunately, our Sunday ride revealed the errant corner and she got to enjoy the goodness of the Brandy Creek trail in all of it's rocky glory.

Lastly, we set out on a fun filled group ride to see the infamous "Sun Dial" bridge in downtown Redding. Our motley crew consisted of the Butler and Spiersch family and we  were a fairly mixed group with dirty mountain bikes, a step through hybrid bike, brand new riding kits (for the "Moms" of course!), mud stained & smelly kits for the rest of us and most importantly HUGE SMILES as we cruised the bike path and took in the fun of a relaxing ride with what may have been "too many stops" for the "Moms" as they just wanted to get their hard core ride ON. Sorry Mom, next time we will do more riding and less stopping to take in the sights :)

Some people will find this funny, since my significant other is also hugely musically talented, but I have ZERO ear for music. I know what I like and don't and I usually remember my favorite lyrics, but beyond that, I suck. However, I always remember Kid Rock coming out at some huge concert in the past when "Bawitaba" was insanely popular and he launched straight into it. Asked afterwards why he didn't hold it until the end of the set, he said, these fans paid good money to hear their favorite $hit, why wait? For that reason...and because I am SO EXCITED FOR HER GREAT RIDE that I can't stand it, let's just go to the good stuff...

Bri inflicted a clubbing upon the Sea Otter XC course that any non-PETA supporting person would gladly laugh at. I mean, she was hauling some serious ass (and as the result of some recent diet preferences, that is a much smaller and cuter ass I might add....). En route to visiting the podium for the first time EVER in her Sea Otter history, she did it in class by Top Stepping that sucker all the way!

She didn't REALLY CLUB an OTTER, see, she LOVES FURRY ANIMALS!

She allowed me to miss her start to get in an insanely fun ride with our resident pro for the weekend, Clint Claassen (who also wrote up a GREAT BLOG HERE) and in stark contrast to the assaulting heat of the previous two days, we were nearly soaked to the bone after ripping singletrack in fog laden trails all morning prior to my first planned meeting spot with Bri - the main feed zone. As nervously waited in the feed zone I tried to banish all of the negative thoughts that had plagued her in the past and focus on her coming through smooth and fast at the front of the...HOLY CRAP, SHE IS RIGHT THERE...and going F A S T!!! What in the heck did I do with that gosh-darn bottle anyway? I barely had time to locate the bottle and hand it off as she wizzed by and out of sight - definitely in the lead group.

I jumped on my stead and tortured myself for the umpteenth time up "Mimi Hill" (formerly Black Death) in an effort to intercept her again. This time she was all alone...and still R I P P I N G! I mean, head down, legs driving and no time for any of my antics! "YES! She is WINNING!" I thought to myself!

Is that fog or is she smoking the wheels from going so fast?

On to the next post and this time I literally climbed a tree to see her coming down the road from one direciton and then would be above her as she passed underneath me on the singletrack. Other than startling her a bit (she always knew I was a monkey, but maybe it's more of a fact now...) I let her know that NO ONE was even in sight as she continued her relentless pace.

One more spot to view her and I was off pedaling like mad to make sure I could beat her to the last intersection (if only I had THESE LEGS during MY race, ha!). Upon my arrival I noticed another woman that had been lurking in the shadows come by. Uh oh. I WAS TOO SLOW! Ugh! I took off to the finish and hoped I wouldn't be too late...Fortunately, her pace was plenty strong and she came through in first place - although we didn't officially know her result because if you have ever spectated an XC race, then you know it's next to impossible to discern who is who and what class each is in.

Fortunately, the confirmation came in the form of a blasting loud speaker announcing her victorious finishing position. AWESOME! It was a dream come true for her and a worthy reward for the time and effort that she has tirelessly been putting forth. I can't remember the last time I was so happy for anything. Ever. Seems like some women are proving the worthiness of the 26" hardtail as everyone else has put them out to pasture...

As far as the rest of the weekend, we can sum of my XC race with "not a great day". Yup, I think that about covers it. Fortunately, later that evening we had an amazing evening of dinner and fun with our favorite couple from Sun Valley at the Baja Cantina where we ate, traded stories and had a very memorable time.

The Saturday pro race was loads more fun than I expected too. I decided to spectate as much as possible and that resulted in almost as much fun as racing. Random notes...

I noticed Jim Hewett (GREAT BLOG HERE) was riding a very lightweight Santa Cruz High Ball, so light in fact, it didn't have a bottle. I had a bottle for Alex Wild and Clint Claassen. The "nice guy" in me indistinctly offered Jim a bottle when I saw he was without anything wet in the 100 degree heat. It was only a half bottle (what was left of the ice that melted) that I had for Clint later in the lap. He seemed happy to take anything.

This meant, I didn't have a bottle for Clint who was also High Ball mounted. Uh oh. Fortunately, I packed heavy and simply emptied my sports drink laden bottle and then refilled it with plain water (I didn't want to surprise him with a "mystery mix" drink when he was expecting water!). I think he preferred getting a bottle with more water rather than the "halfie" we had planned on though...until after the race when I told him what I had done with his bottle...he was like "Doh! You gave JIM my bottle!!!???" But, I am pretty sure he was joking. I think. :)

I was also carrying bottles for aspiring U23 rider Alex Wild and after waiting at the designated bottle drop spot for "what seemed like too long" I began to worry. I was PRETTY sure that I hadn't missed him. And if he missed the only guy dressed in PINK on the course, then I am pretty sure a simple bottle of water wouldn't have helped his state...Finally, I saw a dirt stained Rastafarian coming down the trail. Alex crashed. Hard. He looked like "ouch". He took the bottle and soldiered on, but I felt bad for him...knowing that it's mentally tougher to be at that point of the race than any pain inflicted by bumps and bruises...

After that it was awesome to see the Pro women charging home. With Krista Park outta the race, I am partial to Allison Mann who also wrote a GREAT BLOG HERE:) She was RIPPING on her Specialized S-Works 29er hardtail! I assume that the heat was not as much of a factor for her (and her super strong husband / umbrella boy Justin Man) as they hail from the land of sultry heat most of the year. Both of them did fantastic...They are nearly mirror images of one-another, on the same bike, in the same Bikes 4 Boobs kit and at the same end of the field - the front!

On the sharp end of the women's race, Georgia Gould proved that the heat wouldn't result in another "almost" like Santa Ynez a few years back. She put her 26" Orbea hardtail on the top step followed home by Catherine Pendrel and Emily Batty.

After an awesome day of spectating, me and the boys from ENVE Composites decided an epic "pipeline" session was in order...more accurately, they said they were headed in that direction and I couldn't resist being late for my dinner party in order to absorb just A LITTLE BIT MORE riding goodness. And was it ever worth it! Johnny and Jake ripped my legs off on the climb, but the shred session down pipeline was the thing dreams are made of. I'm not sure if I had more fun than ever before because it was the first time I have dropped that trail on my super sick ENVE WHEELS or because of the great company. Hmmm, I think we will call it a tie!

Happy Trails! Did I mention that BRI WON THE SEA OTTER!!!?? :)

We want to give a shout out to Mike Grifall at Grifall Family Chiropractic in Morgan Hill. Not only is he a friend of ours, but he is a GREAT doctor! He always keeps us in tip top shape for racing and he fixes us whenever we are out of whack.

This is the Super Special Erchonia Laser, you can check out more here.

Bri with PINK Kinesio Tape, you can learn more about it here.

Dr. Mike Grifall and Brian

What a great race day out at CCCX #3. As per usual Scott Mosher was out there taking some sweet pictures. Thanks Scott!! Here are some pictures from the race.

Brian overalled the race! Congrats babe!! I won my class, but my high schoolers are kicking my butt!! Congrats to my littles who are having a fantastic season so far!! :)

Photo by Jeff Lindenthal

Photo by Jeff Lindenthal

Photo by Jeff Lindenthal

Photo by Scott Mosher

Photo by Scott Mosher

Photo by Scott Mosher

Emily and Kristen on the Podium! Yeah Girls!!

Bri Podium

Photo by Patty Kintz