2024 Hawes Enduro

DOANATE TO THE HAWES TRAIL ALLIANCE
hawestrailalli...
STAGE 1
This was a brutal stage, but also extremely fun and rewarding. The stage included Gidro and Boulderdash. I had ridden Boulderdash when it first opened in March 2023 and decided it was an AMAZING trail built by @dougbuildstrails, @oldmanbagby, @jlambinator, @adrnln_jnkex @meatman_mtb, and friends of the @hawestrailalliance, but too much for me at the time.
Fast forward 20 months and the @mbaaraceseries announced about 10 days before the race that it would be part of the 2024 Hawes Enduro. I knew I had my work cut out for me. Part of me was nervous, but I was mostly excited to dig deep and get to work learning a rideable line for me in time for the race.
A week before the race, I was able to scope out lines with @oldmanbagby, @spencespins85, @aj_steeber, @jwinsor20, and @rideandlaughpodcast. We spent over an hour learning lines and that helped tremendously.
A few days later, I rode it solo and attempted to do a full pull. I made a few mistakes, but otherwise felt good that I could pull off a clean run for the race.
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Race day arrived and I was ready. I'm stoked to report that I had a clean run! Partway down, you will see that I get passed by two riders at the same time. I wasn't holding them up at all as they passed at the perfect time without having to slow down. It might have been the cleanest enduro pass in history, haha.
Kudos to the @hawestrailalliance for hosting a fantastic race and to the awesome hecklers on this stage including @yomp_mtb and @kylezf that gave me a huge boost of energy.
STAGE 2
This stage was nearly the opposite of Stage 1. The stage included "Secret" which was an XC style leg and lung burner with only a few minor technical sections. I'm far from a conditioned rider, so I had a clean run, but struggled to finish with a good time on this stage. Need to work on turns and fitness!
STAGE 3
This stage was a trail that I had ridden 7 times in the past, so I was a little more familiar with it and that proved to be helpful. The stage included "Mine" which has a mixture of chunk, tight turns, and flow. I ended up finishing this Stage with a top 8% all time on the "Mine Trail Downhill" Strava segment. I even had time to say hi to my buddy Ryan from @singletrackhats as he took my photo! 🤣
I finished 8th out of 9 riders in my 50+ Masters Category and 86th out of 110 that completed the three stage race. While that might not seem great, I was happy with my effort and was buzzing the whole day about the experience! The vibe was fantastic and I had a blast riding with @spencespins85, @aj_steeber, @all_terrain_thomas, and @byclas_mtb. I also met some new friends including @wyattcolville_! From the groms to the masters, the stoke was high all day!
The @mbaaraceseries did a phenomenal job organizing the event and the @hawestrailalliance was a great host for the event!
I want to express my thanks to the many people involved in putting on this race! I can't wait until next year!