The mtbchicks got to experience REAL mud in wild and wonderful West Virginia. Although Tonya is from Ohio, and knows mud quite well, her skills were no match for the 1 mile long section of thigh deep mud puddles and a ruined drivetrain. Mara, who had never ridden mud before this race, was having a blast on the first preride- but soon learned that constant downpours can change the condition of a trail from rideable to barely walkable in a matter of hours.

Tonya, 34th Pro Women XC, 31st Pro Women STXC; Mara 4th Junior X women XC

From Colorado to West Virginia- Tonya's account of the first half of a very long trip:

There's nothing more exciting than getting ready for a racing trip- unless you are driving, and the drive is going to be almost 5,000 miles. Nonetheless- excited I was as i packed the rented mini van (emphasis on MINI) for the long haul out East. Day 1, of 12 hours, brought us joy and pain for Mara, her dad, and me.

The first night we stayed with Mara's grandparents. We ate hot dish and cake and played Wizard- a ferocious card game that became, for me, a test of my own strategical abilities. You could go crazy playing that game. Anyhow- Mara and I did a nice short relaxing bike "ride" to kind of wind down after the long drive. So far so good. The retirement center had some nice trail system in the woods- so we indulged.

Night #2 brought us to Louisville, Kentucky (lou- uh- vul- compliments of Mara's grandpa- not loo iss ville, like they say it in CO). We stayed with Gene and his wife and dog Mo- a giant Great Dane. Gene took us out to some local trails at Cherokee park where we met up with some other mountain bikers and got to see some local trail color. It was great fun riding some roots and doing all the short power climbs involved in Midwestern mountain biking. Our legs were shot after 2 days in the car, but hey- it was a great ride! And we may have picked up another mtbchick- Kyle. If we can find a pair of flower power shorts to fit him- his bike is already stickered up with mtbchick.com stickers, so he's half way there. Apres riding, Gene's wife hooked us up with some killer pasta and bread and salad. A great mountain biker meal. If we ever get the chance, we'll go back to Lou uh vul, because the people were great and practically gave away their house for us (and we are thankful for it!)

Day 3. Time to drive to West-by-god-Virginia. Wild and Wonderful. Estimated time- 5 to 7 hours. We locate, thanks to Navi, the only Wild Oats on our drive and load up on expensive organic tofu and milk. We're set for a week of living in West virginia. You know, the Boulderites have special needs. So after 7 hours of driving almost exclusively in the rain (oh i forgot to mention a HUGE THANK YOU to Pedal Power in Lexington for hooking us up on some supplies! You have an awesome shop!!!) we arrive in Snowshoe. It is a familiar drive for me, as i have traveled to Snowshoe many times from Cincinnati, back in the day when i used to live there. We skied and biked Snowshoe in those days.

Anyhow. We were able to hop on the course for a quick ride. It was muddy, but it was totally fun! All of the course was 100% rideable. Ready to rock. Yep, i love mud!!! Day 4- The next day, we ride the course again with a SoBe rider and find that the conditions have deteriorated what with more RAIN and that. hm. not looking like a whole lot of fun. at least not as much as it was the day before. bike wash. I get a massage from this little soccer player west virginia accent- very good. i'm out for the count.

Day 4. Mara's race day. I carefully prepare for her race, feeds, number, etc. God i miss Troy- the glue of the team. The one who misses no detail. I tell Mara to meet me at the start. As I am walking up to the start, i see and hear the Junior X women taking off for their first lap. My first instinct is to panic. After that fades, I have to somehow find Mara. She thought she was starting at 10:30, but her race actually started at 10. How to find her- no idea. I begin walking up the hill behind the announcer's stand, and there she is riding down the hill towards me smiling. Great, i think. I am going to ruin her day right here and now. And how can I do so tactfully? "They started your race" I said. I thought it sounded better than "you missed your start". Anything I could do do dampen the pain of missing sa start. Horrified, and obviously probably going to cry, she doesn't know what to do (apologies) so I have her ride over to Frosty and he sends her out on her way. She is about 3 minutes behind. After she takes off i think of many things, like I should have had her remove her arm warmers. Well, she's just going to have to go. And she did. And she did awesome. She managed to pull herself up to 4th place, moving up one step on the podium. Great job girl! You can only feel her pain since she has still not even stood on a mtb starting line 10 times yet! Bike wash.

Later on during the Experts race, we sit on our balcony and bang spoons on pots to cheer on the experts who had a wet soggy course with fog and everything! Mara goes to the manager's meeting for me. What a great team mate she is!

Day 5. My race. After all this rain and racing, the course is in horrific shape. I try to ride the technical sections, but i find myself crashing left and right. I can't get it together. Then I get to the 1 mile hike a bike. I used to complain about the hike a bike in Big Bear. No More. After slogging through 1 mile on thigh deep mud- give me Big Bear! My mud skills disappeared at once. I was miserable. The climbs were not long enough to give me redemption. Girls flew by me running with their bikes through the mud as i struggled to stay upright on my feet. A lot of seasoned cyclocross riders run by. Yeah- i am going to have to start running now.

I finish 34th. highly disappointed and sad. This was going to be my breakthrough race. No such luck. Bad energy now. Bike wash again.

Day 6. Short track. We pros always feel vengeful on short track day- like we have to prove we don't suck as much as we really do. That was my attitude until i saw the course and the pouring rain, and i knew i was had. I had a great start as usual, but got mud on my contacts and couldn't see and nearly crashed and killed myself. Another lackluster performance and if it doesn't stop raining i am going to have a breakdown! Bike wash again. (did someone clean my bike for me this time?)

After i get cleaned up and we thoroughly clean the condo- we are outta West va like lightening. drive away and leave your troubles behind. We stop to eat at Chili's. Decent enough, and the Dell Dude is our waiter. it was everything we could do not to say, "Dude, you're gettin a Dell". Who knows what the reaction would have been- he must get it all the time. Mara really threw him off when he stopped by to ask how we were doing with our food. "Just fine, how about you?", she says.

We spend the night in a shady Econo Lodge. Our window was broken once, and now it is taped over with packing tape. We feel safe. right. It really doesn't matter, cause we are no longer in West Virginia. (continued on the Vermont page).

mara racing in the rain

mara after her race- see the rain???

Mara on the podium, note the hands in the air?