Race Report, Pics & Video: FSC #1 2013 Tallahassee

September is here and it seems like just yesterday the Coconut Season was wrapping up. This weekend hundreds of racers in new uniforms, new bikes and full of new confidence from working hard over the Summer, converged at Tom Brown Park in Tallahassee for the start of another FSC Season. Eric G here with our race report of the kickoff event of the 2013/14 Season! Making the trip for us would be Eric N, Alex, and myself. Eric N. (XC3-30+) and I (XC2-30+) would be changing classes this season so we were both jumping into the unknown. Alex returned to XC3-40+ with a bit of form after a solid Summer of work.

Eric G riding "The Wall"
(Photo Courtesy of Mickey Rivera)

The course would be a little different from recent years with an added flat loop to stretch out the legs at the start. Gone was the Kudzilla downhill section unfortunately. Nevertheless the course was challenging with plenty of elevation changes mixed in with fast single-track. The racing would start right away, with an ITT scheduled for Saturday afternoon, giving racers the opportunity to burn some extra energy before the big race. None of us were completely familiar with the course so we treated the ITT as a hard effort learning loop of the shortened course. The ITT winner on the day would be last year's FSC Champion, Bob McCarty.

Eric N on the move

Race day was here and the weather was a little warm, but great for a race. I lined up in my new class pretty calm. Admittedly my Summer training was a bit derailed by a back injury so I knew this was going to be more of a learning race. 3 laps at race pace was still a mystery to me. If I could stay somewhat consistent on my lap times I'd be happy. I'll cut to the chase. Had a rough start, got pinched at the whistle and almost shoved into a tree putting me last into the trails. Perfect actually! I could just try to keep my own pace. I stayed comfortably with a group of four on the first lap. Got a little disconnected on lap two and kept my pace. Lap three though...ohhh lap three hurt. It really took all I could to finish and my pace showed it. My saving grace was not finishing last. First Sport race in the books. Can only get better from here hopefully!

Alex S kicking it to the finish

Eric and Alex had an adventurous start in their wave. Seems a disgruntled local wasn't too happy with a race at his trails and took the liberty of rerouting some of the course markings. Racers in the first few classes would wind up turning the the wrong direction a few times before the issue was figured out. Eric and Alex were both affected and lost some of the momentum from their decent starts. After the mayhem settled down, Eric would battle back to gain two spots on his last lap, ending 13th on the day. Alex would settle in to a personal battle for much of the race. Admittedly tired from the early course problems, it took all he could to hold off his chaser in a sprint to the finish, ending 19th on the day.

Now what everyone really wants to hear about, the Pro/Expert race! Fresh off their Pro XCT campaign, Bob McCarty and Ryan Woodall were both present and looking to continue their battles from last season. McCarty was the Series Champion, but Woodall was the only man to beat him in Head to Head match ups. Additional Florida strongmen included Shawn Smith, Martin Cox who can always put up a fight with the best. Newcomer to the class, young phenom Alex Meucci would also make his debut as an expert in the series. In total 13 of Florida's fastest would take the line for the top class.

Woodall leads at the start
(Photo courtesy of John Koch)

The racers were off and Woodall immediately put the pressure on, taking the holeshot with McCarty on his wheel, and by the end of the first lap Woodall had a small advantage over McCarty. A chase group of Cox, Smith and Meucci formed and that's how it remained for the first two laps. Misfortune struck Meucci and he would DNF after lap two (Unconfirmed mechanical as the cause). The consistency at this level is truly amazing. After gaining the early advantage, Woodall couldn't get away any further as McCarty kept the pressure on. Woodall though would fight hard and keep the same margin from lap one all the way to the end to take the victory
by about 10 seconds, with McCarty rolling in 2nd. Teammates Cox and Smith would keep the chase going but ultimately battle it out for 3rd, with Smith getting away on the final lap. Earl Bradley (Sorry, don't know much about his race) would round out the podium for 5th.

First FSC race is in the books. Not many pics this time but we got a video together with bigger production plans for the next race. Follow along with us the rest of the season for additional coverage!! Enjoy the pics and video!

FSC #1 2013 Tallahassee from Eric Gonzalez on Vimeo.

Race Report & Pics: FSC #1 2012 - Tallahassee

Eric G here. Sometimes late is better then never, so here's our race report for FSC #1!! The first race of the season had arrived to Tallahassee's Tom Brown Park. Team Eric (Eric G & Eric N) would make the 7 hour trip this time. The weekend schedule called for an Individual Time Trial on Saturday and the main events on Sunday. This year it seems the weather gods were also interested in participating as well. Racers such as ourselves who arrived to Tom Brown Park on Saturday, were treated to passing showers in the morning, eventually developing in torrential downpours in the early afternoon. Conditions were deteriorating quickly to the point where there was FLOWING WATER in the trails and pit areas. Race promoter Dave Berger made the tough call and had to cancel Saturday's ITT due to the conditions. At about 3pm Eric and I decided we still needed to get a look at the trail no matter the conditions. We managed about 1/3rd of the race loop before the skies opened up again, this time with lightning, so we had to call it quits. While we were out, conditions were awful. Instead of finding puddles in a trail, you would find dry sections. That's how much water was out there. We wound up packing up our gear and meeting our great friends Steve Mace, Matt Donovan and so many others that I can't remember, for a few brews and the largest pizzas I'd ever seen. If you can't ride, you might as well talk about riding with friends!

Race day arrived and it was like Saturday's rains never happened. Short of a few puddles, the trail drained magnificently. We'd learn that morning that the Park had requested the two most unique sections of the trail be removed from the race loop as erosion would do too much damage during the race. A tough decision, but understood.

Eric N through the splash zone

Eric N would start the 19-29 class like a rocket. After the race I caught up with him and here's what he had to say. "Having never been on the trails at Tom Brown and thanks to mother nature, I was unable to see much of it before the race. So needless to say I was wiggin' out! Having trained with some of my competition this summer, it was clear in my mind who I wanted to pace and who I was going to let by. So the whistle blew and we're off. I got a pretty good jump, clipped in quickly, and found myself in 5th position going into the trails. My goal was to let someone lead me the entire first lap as I had no clue what to expect. That plan was working great, the first couple miles I was climbing strong and keeping a solid pace with 3rd and 4th in front of me. I even felt that I had more in my tank but was going to save it until I figured this place out. Apparently, it was way more of a pace than I was ready to hold. I blew up quickly and had no idea of where to recover. Just not my day! I lost pace and was on my own trying to figure out any flow. 2nd lap came around and I was feeling it! In a whole new way that is! A mile into my second lap I had this sensation as if I ran into a thorn bush or something alike because I was in some pain. I quickly realized that for whatever reason a swarm of yellow jackets were pissed and were taking it out on me. I had dozens flying around the rear of my saddle, a dozen attached to my pork loins and as am I trying to ride and swat them I'm getting stung on my arm and shooting these things down my leg! I was doing my best not to scream like a school girl instead tried to remain the cool, rugged, hardcore mountain biker I think I am. Ha! Definitely the highlight of my race and a good story for my grandchildren someday. Sorry to my fans for the let down, but next race I'll be better prepared! I'm marking this one off as a good day of training."

Eric G coming out of Cadillac

My story is short but felt like hours to me! I started the race nicely. The first section of the course involves mostly gradual climbing, not usually my strength, but I've been working on it all Summer. The gun went off and so did we. I managed to be just outside the Top 10 getting into the first climb and wouldn't you know it, I felt DECENT!! I was pacing myself with someone who usually climbs much faster than me and didn't feel like I was going to blow up. I was excited that when the going got flat or down and technical, I'd be at my strengths and was looking forward to the rest of the race. That is until we hit the first fast technical sections and my brake levers began closing closer and closer to my handlebars! Apparently the pre-ride in terrible conditions did a number on my brake pads, and about 15 minutes into my race I had about 20% stopping power. That's right about when I took my first OTB, of which unfortunately there would be several more. Racing without brakes is quite frustrating as you start building up confidence on how to manage the speed, until BAM...too fast and off the course you go. I finished the race anyways as I didn't drive 7 hours to not ride, but I was never able to do anything when the going got flat or down other than pedal just enough to get out of people's way. I actually wounded up treating it like training for climbing since it was the only time I could put a full effort in. I'd finish a sad 25th on the day...

Earlier in the morning Pro's put on a show between Ryan Woodall and Bob McCarty, staying together for the entire race, with Ryan ultimately holding off Bob in a sprint finish! A rare site for us!

Woodall takes the Pro win

Next race for us is this weekend for FSC #3 in Gainesville, a Series favorite with it's long climbs and downhills. Mechanical issues have been taken care of as we've acquired new team bikes!!! Scott Sparks & Scales will be our steeds from now on!! Stay tuned for some reviews on those as well. Thanks for reading and enjoy the pics below. Let us know in the comment section how your day went!!

FSC 2012 kickoff weekend is HERE!

There's been eight months of training, pain and suffering, injuries, recovery, losing weight, gaining weight, dropping body fat, gaining muscle for racers all across Florida. From the beginners looking to improve, to the Pro's trying to stay on top, the last 8 months of sacrifice and hard work (or lack of it) come down to this weekend and the next few months that follow. The best in the state know one thing...The FSC is here!

It all starts at Tallahassee this weekend. Fast and flowing with constant elevation changes. If you're not going up, you're going down. Nothing too steep in either direction, but a blast in EVERY direction. Throw in Kudzilla, an extended downhill run, brilliantly carved from the available terrain, and a killer finish on a BMX course to tear up the racers legs just before the finishing straight. If you have a weakness, this trail will expose it.

It's a long season. Gone Riding takes us to nine exciting races, all at unique trails. Alafia, Hailes, Markham, and many more. It all starts now. See everyone at the races!!!

Check out some Kudzilla action below!!

FSC #1 2011 - Tallahassee Race Report & Photos

FSC #1 is Here!

Eric here with our race report for FSC #1. After the long summer break Florida State Series is back for 2011. Everyone's had their time to train and participate in the off-season training races, so now it's time to line up and see who worked hard and who needed to work harder. (Guess where I wound up??)

Julio and I made the trip to Tallahassee and were really looking forward to it. Last year was my first visit after a long summer recovering from my broken ankle, and promptly ended 3 minutes into the race with a torn rear tire. So I figured the course OWED ME! Saturday was the fun/recon/Time Trail day, pre-riding the course and catching up with fellow racers we hadn't seen for awhile and then lining up at the end of the day for a Time Trial. After spending the Summer racing around South Florida, I forgot how many racers we see from the whole state. It was great seeing everyone. Julio skipped the TT, so it was up to me to represent the team. I didn't want to burn my legs out so I started pretty fast, but backed off a bit when the going got tough. Just used the TT to get to know the course. I wound up 17th in the big XC3 30+ class.

XC3 30+ Start

Sunday rolled around and conditions were perfect. Starting temps must have been in the low 80s and the trail was in perfect condition during our warm up. 34 Racers lined up for our class and off we went. I promptly butchered the launch and took forever to get clipped in and wound up way back right away. Julio managed better and wound up in the Top 10 going into the first trail. Undulating is an accurate way to describe the course as you're constantly climbing or going down. Nothing too steep in either direction, but enough to separate the racers according to their strengths (This would come to play later for me) Since I was already 20+ riders back I knew I wasn't going to gain any ground early. I followed the quick pace and passed when I could but wouldn't force anything. I'm not the best climber so I couldn't be as aggressive on the climbs, but still managed to gain a few spots.

I thought to myself at least Julio is doing well, and then I saw him fixing his bike on the side of the trail....Not good. Turns out he took a minor spill on a sandy turn and dropped his chain. By the time he got rolling he was behind me and a long way from 6th where he was. Despite the setback, Julio fought back and picked off riders quickly and came through lap 1 in 14th. The descents and technical sections suited me, but the climbing was a weak spot. I decided I'd back off a bit on the climbs and not waste unnecessary energy. My strategy worked out as my new good racing friends Pablo Valdeviso, Kirk Ivy and I went at it for pretty much the entire race. They'd catch me on the climbs, and I'd try to pass them as they recovered going back into the trails. Back and forth we went until the final major climb after the Kudzilla section where sure enough Kirk passed me then I jumped around him going back into the trail as hard as I could. I'd manage to hold them off through the end for 18th. Julio had a quiet solo lap and finished 14th on the day.12th-20th were within about a minute of each other, so a better start might have given me a better result.  Not the results we wanted, but at least it was a fun tactical race for me.

Ryan Woodall:
Fastest Mustache in the South

The pro's lined up and were flying at the start. I managed to catch a view of eventual race winner Ryan Woodall putting down an attack that got him the gap he needed for the victory. Watching the fast guys in action is always interesting, but when you can catch a defining attack it's pretty impressive to see how it all goes down.

Enjoy some pics from the Yellow Wave below. Feel free to keep any you find of yourself. Thanks for following us. Our next stop will be in Gainesville for FSC #3. See you all then!