Lacey races Rim Nordic #3

by Lacey Maxwell

On Sunday, July 24, 05 my Dad and I went up to Running Springs for the Rim Nordic race. My Grandpa and his wife came up to watch this one. It was also my first race on my new bike. It's a 2005 Kona Kikapu. Tani gave my Dad a really good price, and then my Dad had the Path guys build me a really light set of wheels, and he put on a lot of nice parts that he had from his old "light" bike, so it's really a Kikapu DEE-LUX!

OK, about the race. The start of the course was the same as my first race there, and then they changed it a little. It was while I was riding on the first new section that I crashed for the first time that day. The second one happened on the section of single track that is REALLY narrow, with A LOT of exposure on the left side. I came in a little to fast, and both tires almost slipped over the edge! That was a little scary! The climbs were all pretty much the same. Some I could ride, some I had to walk. My Dad said not to feel bad, that I wasn't the only one walking those climbs.

After going down the switchbacks (which I did better on this time) there was a HUGE tree across the trail that we had to climb over. I was able to climb up onto it, and then pull my bike up, jumped off, and then pulled my bike down. My Dad said that the man stationed there was supposed to help us kid's get our bikes over, well he didn't help me! The rest of the downhills were a lot of fun.

I ended up finishing with a time of 1 hour 34 min for 1st place in the Beg. Women 14 & Under. I came in 3 minutes ahead of the 12-year-old boy that started with me.

My next race is the AM Cup at Snow Summit on Aug. 14, then the Rim Nordic final on the 21st.

-Lacey =)