Aspen Valley XTerra is AWESOME!

What a FANTASTIC summer. Full of racing, riding, and playing!

After Boise 70.3, I got ready to race in Aspen Valley, CO. This race was the 25th of July and I'd been looking forward to it for over a year. Last year I was unable to put it on my schedule so, I made sure to fit it in the 2015 season. I was not disappointed!

This venue is open once a year- for XTerra only. It is located on private property with miles of awesome, very technical trails, a private lake for water skiing, where the swim takes place, and the run starts on a wooden path over a pond! Very unique and beautiful.

I was more nervous for this XTerra, however, because my husband and two boys were coming to join the festivities. I get nervous knowing they will be out on the course and I pray nothing happens! I am a racer, but a mother first, and my protective instincts take over.

We all did a pre-ride after the long car drive. There wasn't much elevation gain on the course in one lap, but it was very, very technical and the climbs were all short, steep and came after sharp turns. It is a power course. No way to use momentum to get through the climbs. The downhill sections were not fast and flow-y. My mom "radar" was peaking in the red zone.

Kids enjoying the pre-ride.

My kids can get going very fast. They ride technical stuff a lot. They sometimes crash. They asked me why I was nervous. When I said races make me nervous, they responded, "That's CRAZY! All we think is, I GET TO RIDE MY BIKE TOMORROW!" What a great attitude. It's just another opportunity to RIDE! Their attitude was contagious and I began to calm down.


The day of the race, the weather was perfect. The swim went off in 4 waves. The twins were in wave one, my husband was in wave two and I was in wave three. I realized with this system, the twins would be done long before me. They might even have enough of a lead they could pass me on their second bike lap before I finished my first. It didn't happen, but it was close!

Beautiful Day for a swim!

I came out of the water and met my husband in the transition area. I made everyone rack their bikes together so I would know they made it out of the swim okay. My transition was very messy because my kids were very messy! Their stuff was thrown EVERYWHERE. I made a mental note to tell them that is NOT cool and they need to be more considerate to those around them. (Me, in this case!)


I stayed on my bike as much as possible and rode as hard as possible.On my first lap, Aussie pro Ben Allen came flying by. That was pretty cool. When we looked at the results, I was proud that my kids were only 9 minutes behind him on the bike portion. That's a WIN! My husband passed me after the first couple of miles. I wondered on the second lap how far ahead of me he would finish the bike. When and IF I would catch him on the run.

The funny thing about mountain biking, is that these thoughts are momentary. There isn't time to think about anything but biking. Just what you are facing at that particular moment. And then you move on to the next obstacle. That's why I love mountain biking. It takes full concentration and I can completely lose myself the entire time I'm out there. No thinking about laundry, work, dishes, or daily problems, or even how you are doing compared to others that pass!

Transition before the tornado.

I came into transition for my running gear and couldn't believe it! It was worse that before! It was like a tornado had hit our rack. In fact, one lady had shown up late and squished her bike in the middle of our family. I didn't mind, because I have no problem sharing, but I suggested she move to the end and we'd all move over. She said she was fine where she was. I'm sure she had changed her mind after arriving in transition!

This is the family before the race. With an organized transition area.

The run started across a pond which is fantastic. Usually it begins straight up a steep ski hill or something. A nice flat across- a -pond got my legs under  me. I passed my husband in the first mile, which was quite surprising. The twins had already finished and were cheering for me as I finished the bike and started the run. They did great. They loved the course and FLEW!

When I passed my husband, we didn't say much. I wondered how far ahead of me he finished the bike. How much time had he taken in transition? I probably gained minutes on him. I set my sights on a few people and ran just barely faster than them. With about 1.5 miles to go, I passed probably the last person I was going to pass and looked ahead. We were to run in a large grass field with a large wooden bridge in the middle. I realized I was gaining on three more people and if I pushed, I might catch them before the finish. Suddenly, I realized I was on the WRONG path! How did that HAPPEN? The girl I passed earlier was running up over the wooden bridge ABOVE me and I was running UNDER! I had gone the long way around. I hurried and ran up the bridge, but she was now ahead of me and pushing it. I had lost any chance of catching the other three. I came close to re-passing the girl in blue, but it was not to be. She finished just seconds ahead of me.

When we all talked about this mistake, no one could figure out how I could have missed the HUGE RED SIGN with an arrow at the beginning of the field that would have shown me the correct way. I've done this so many times in so many races. My husband says I'm too focused and my tunnel vision kicks in. It's weird. Unless I'mm herded with a group, I tend to take the wrong turn on the run. I have absolutely no sense of direction!

First, Second, Third

We finished feeling that great sense of accomplishment. Sharing the day with my family made it the best and I was so proud of them. They enjoyed it, which makes it that much more fun for me. The boys took first and third and I took second.

The twins getting their medals

My husband has no knee (basically) and uses a brace for the run. He does awesome, but the run puts him at a disadvantage and yet, he pushes on. I think it's because everyone makes a huge deal about his hardware when he crosses the finish line, and he deserves it. I am more proud of him than ever when he grits through the pain to finish a race. He is an inspiration and it reminds me to be grateful when I see him overcoming his difficulties.

Waiting for awards with Jacqui Slack

Pros Jacqui Slack and Ben Allen joined the race because they were in Colorado for a big training block. They both took first (obviously). Jacqui helped me get in the surf in Maui and I thanked her for that. We sat and chatted in the grass and I realized how down to earth and easygoing XTerra people are.



Another great race. Another great day. XTerra is nothing but AWESOME!