Fall MTB Season Opens!

We weren’t exactly sure what kind of weather we’d get for the second TMBRA series race at Forrest Creek, just outside Austin in Dale, TX. 

The first pre-ride a week prior left us dusty, hot and defeated. The nearly rock-free track had us begging for speed, but the loose dirt constantly reminded us that it was risky. 

Rain in the forecast for race week had us a little more hopeful. Even through the humidity, the pre-ride before race day left us in a good mood. We saved our legs even though we wish we didn’t have to. It rained a little more shortly after we left, leaving us to wonder: What would it actually be like on race day? 

Perfect conditions? We sure hoped so. 

Well, Mother Nature delivered, and it was a gorgeous day for racing, albeit a little hot. 

A small group of us from Galaxy Bicycles in San Marcos raced the Forrest Creek course, and it was so exciting having friends out there that day to cheer for in all three categories. 

I personally raced the Cat 2 women’s, 19-39 (I think?) age group, though all of the ladies started together, which was nice. 

From the starting gun, the course follows a jeep path with a steady incline. The rain left a nice big mud puddle around the first turn, which helped split the group. But what created an even bigger gap were fitness and pure power output. 

If there’s one thing I can do well, it’s cranking out some power on a hill. I slowly moved into the lead (as one does on a hill), and to make a long story short: that’s where I stayed, winning a first place spot on the podium in the Cat 2 category and my age group. 

But that would be a boring end to the blog, so I’ll share more about the day with you.

After the climb and a couple of turns, there’s a sharp turn into the actual trail system. This is where the singletrack begins. 

The loop makes the most sense divided into 3 sections. The first part has the most climbing, or at least that’s how it feels through the longer incline sections. It’s steady in parts just simply putting the power down on a straight away. Turns and berms are there but not in as much abundance as the third section. They weren’t as sharp, either, so this part had the best flow. 

It was also hard to catch your breath after the hard start here. The beginning ended up amounting to a 3-minute VO2 effort, and if you’ve ever done a 3-minute VO2 effort, you know that the want to breathe and rest for a few is extremely high … but this section didn’t really give that to you. I started feeling nauseated – this ended up being a common feeling among everyone I talked to as well – and had to stop drinking water and punching out power for a little bit to let my stomach settle. 

The good news is that it did, thankfully, somewhere in the second section. These turns really required you to slow down. Fewer berms and a flatter surface made for a little less flow, but there were still some fun roller coasters and some downhill sections to catch your breath. 

The second section is where the sticky dirt really helped speed things up. This part was extremely difficult in the dust. It also went past a good amount of spectators, so you’d see people cheering and feel the love! 

The last part was a tangle of berms, turns and hills. If I had motion sickness, this would certainly get me. 

You really had to manage your gears here and prepare for what was ahead, and what was ahead often came up so fast that you didn’t have much time to react. Speedy descents around tight corners were followed by immediately steep punches. If you had the momentum, you were fine. 

But being small and light, momentum is not my strength, and even though I felt like I have improved on the berms since first riding them a week prior, I still could have ridden them better. My power meter registered 814 watts on one of these uphills, if that’s any indication of just how hard the legs were working in some areas. 

And then there was the big rock jump / drop / roll thing. That thing is sketchy. I am not a big fan of it. The landing for the jump is too far toward a drop off on the side of the trail, not to mention that it’s mere feet from the arc of the berm. The rolling line has a slight lip that can grab your tire if you’re unlucky. And then the B line (which I took on race day) goes awkwardly into a dip on the side of the trail in soft mud. 

I spent the entire race dreading that darn feature. I made it through twice with no issue. But I was definitely grateful once it was over and I could focus on getting to the finish. 

I didn’t really see any of the other ladies for the majority of the race. I felt ecstatic that I had found flow, and that I had finally discovered what it feels like to be confident around turns when my wheels grip dirt instead of shifting and gliding over rocks. 

I even felt downright powerful on my Pivot Les hardtail. It wasn’t quite its first race – we spent the day together at the Leadville 100 MTB in August – but it was the first time I really pushed its limits with vigor and aggression. She responded right back. I think that’s how she likes to ride, and that’s just fine with me. 

I’m looking forward to the next couple of races with TMBRA to close out an incredibly busy 2023. First, we’ll head up to Bentonville to try out the new Lil’ Sugar MTB marathon race. Then it’s back to gravel for Big Sugar. If all goes well, the Austin Rattler will follow along with a few more marathon races. 

I love my endurance races, but I’m excited to be adding a little bit of short track into the mix too. It’s got such a different feel. The rush of crit racing was something I loved – the crashes on pavement, not so much. So I’m glad this fills that desire to get a little bit of breathlessness and chase that deep burn in my muscles. 

Ah, it feels so good. 

I’m also excited about the trails. Having a new system close to home that’s different than what’s around me (aka just rocks) is really cool. The owners of this trail system have put in a lot of work here, and it shows. Over the last year, sections have been improved and updated as feedback comes in. I know they’re only going to get better over time. 

Plus, it’s exciting to hear that the trails will be open on a more regular (though not entirely regular) basis, so there will be more opportunities to ride there. If you want updates on dates and times, follow along in the Facebook page. 

A day-use fee will apply, but 100% of the proceeds go to Restoring Hope Asia. You can also make additional donations there if you believe in the cause as well!