2017 Northern Kettles Fall Epic

The WEMS race at New Fane is one of my “A” races each season. New Fane is the closest mountain bike race course to my home, I practice there frequently, and I have a history of modest success at the Northern Kettles Fall Epic. Today I added to that history, placing 9th out of 30 in the men’s 3-hour open division. I knew in advance that today’s race would feature several very strong riders who missed it last year when I placed 4th, so my goal was to secure a Top 10 finish.

I was outside of the Top 10 for the first half of the race, but I didn’t panic. I remembered that in 2016 I finished Lap 1 in 11th place but moved steadily through the field as the race progressed. Today I finished Lap 1 in 14th! I moved up 1 spot on Lap 2, 1 more on Lap 3, and 2 more on Lap 4. That got me into the Top 10. I jumped up to 9th on Lap 5 and then consolidated my position on Lap 6. The fastest guys were able to squeeze 7 laps into the 3-hour time limit. I was the quickest of the 6-lap finishers. I did slow down slightly with each successive lap, but my main rivals fatigued more dramatically.

Team Pedal Moraine had 7 racers in the men’s 3-hour open division. Matt Millin (2nd) and Matt Grady (6th) joined me in the Top 10. Team Extreme’s John Muraski, a 36-year-old Cat 1 from Campbellsport, took the win.