It was a mudslinger no doubt!

We woke at 6am,  slipped into our Team Dirt sweatshirts and excitedly gathered around the breakfast table. The boys were thrilled that their 1st kiddy race of the season was finally here! Trevor and I indulged ourselves in their excitement, although the heavy rainfall throughout the night was not exactly the motivation we were looking for.  The night before each of them carefully gathered every item of their race "kit" and placed them in the duffel.  We ate our breakfast as we discussed our days plan of attack. 

Snuggle time with Alleck

Of course, we also had to laugh at the weather, as it had been raining now for about 2 weeks straight with no signs of letting up.  Mike Ripley, the race director had sent out an email to all the participants earlier in the week stating that there was more water on the course this year than ever in the history of the race.  Since this was the 25th year of the race and there are stacks of muddy testimonials to describe its past, it looks like we are in for a Mudslinger to remember.

We worked our volunteer shift at the registration table, and listened to the rain pound the gymnasium roof. I stalled getting changed into my race clothes until the last minute and squeezed in a 7 minute warm up AT THE MOST.  I decided to wear my Icebreaker wool jersey, and my  Showers Pass rain shell over the top to ensure that I stayed warm.  Although I heated up quick on the climbs, I was happy to have the layers for the descents.  What I could have done without though was my lobster claw winter gloves.  Although I enjoyed the toasty hands and fingers, they made my fueling attempts pretty difficult.  I fumbled with my jacket zippers, and even crashed when the outside layer caught on my brake lever as I reached for my water bottle. 

Just getting started.  Mud where?

The race was everything that I expected it to be, with plenty of gravel roads to climb and muddy trails to challenge my stability while descending.  This is where I was so happy with my bike, the Kona King Kahuna.  That bike climbs like a champ and the 29inch wheels add superb traction in the mud.  I really felt solid and in control on most of the trails as long as I kept my momentum up.  It was when I would slow down and hesitate that I felt the most squirrelly.  Collar Bone Alley gave me grief as I have yet to muster the courage to bunny hop the water bars, but Panama Canal was a blast.  As muddy as it was, I was surprised at how fast I was able to go.  I would bet to say that I was one of the loudest riders down that trail as I hooted and hollered with a wide smile and mud in my teeth, TWICE!

Trevor rips down Super Tree

I came across the finish line and went straight to the van, where Trevor was already cleaned up.  The boys were dressed in their race kits and ready to start their race.  I made sure to drink some recoverite immediately, and began to wash away the layers of dirt.  We brought a huge garbage bag for all the muddy clothes.  Smart move Trevor!  We were a mess.  Seriously, we probably took 3 pounds of mud off the course EACH!

Happy to have finished!

Now it was the boys turn. The race was on.  Seriously, this is the best part of the day.  I just love seeing my boys riding their bikes and having a blast doing it.  All of us parents, tired and cold from our day on the course, get a surge of energy as we cheer the kids on and sometimes even run along side.  Keller rides his blissful race with a wide smile, where Alleck is the serious one who huffs and puffs his way through. 

Alleck tries to make his move early!

Keller is all smiles!

It was a good day for us all.  Trevor placed 2nd, I 3rd and the boys both managed to stay upright throughout their race!

A great day spend with our Team Dirt friends :)

I was utterly impressed by the efficiency of our clean-up.  As we arrived home, the rain continued to fall.  The boys jumped in the bath, and Trevor and I began our attack. 4 mud covered bikes and a huge bag of muddy clothes to deal with, and we have our system down.  Not an hour had passed, and we were all snuggled on the couch awaiting the delivery of our pizza dinner.