Monday, May 4, 2009

Escape from Granogue "Race" Report

The second "race" in the MASS series was yesterday.  Escape from Granogue, as it is appropriately known, is historically one of the more difficult races in the series.  Yesterday was no exception.  The weather has been uncooperative around here lately.  It rained more or less all week leading up to the "race", heavy the day before, and even heavier the day of.  The sport riders got at least one good lap in while the trails were still trails, but by the time the Expert/Elite riders were let loose only ~2.5 miles of the 7 mile loop were even remotely rideable.  The remaining miles were a heavy, cakey, muddy, swamp...hike.  

Its taking all of the restraint that I can muster to keep this blog post from dripping with contempt for the "race" promoter and/or bristling with expletives about how the "race" should have been cancelled.  Suffice it to say that the situation of the Granogue "race" was...regrettable, and the "race" promoter's decision not to cancel the "race" was...unfortunate.

Despite the unfathomably horrible conditions, Team LoweRiders fielded a respectable team.  Some of us did very well, the rest of us didn't finish.  Results from the "race" are as follows:

Podium Finishes:

Sport Senior II - Dan Dix, First Place
Sport Veteran II - John Plewa, Third Place
Sport Women I - Linda Mattioni, First Place
Sport Single Speed Open - Douglas Morrell, First Place
Beginner Junior III - Daniel Stein, First Place

Finishers:

Elite Open - Bill Showers, Eleventh Place (a.k.a. BShow)
Sport Senior I - Michael Wells, Fifteenth Place (a.k.a. Wellsy)
Sport Senior I - Mike Trahey, Sixteenth Place
Sport Veteran I - Danny Deao, Seventh Place 
Sport Single Speed Open - Bud Mauger, Seventh Place
Sport Women I - Jessica Eckberg, Fourth Place

Those that DNF'd:

Ron Harding
Kathleen Harding
Adam Joelssen
Todd Strauss
Michael Campbell
Steve Collina
Martin Eckberg

(If I missed anybody I apologize.)

Ronaldo