Lochloosa Enduro

Saturday, August 28, 2010

So it is 1:15 on Saturday afternoon and we are finally headed out for Trey’s first enduro. Unlike Hare Scrambles, enduros are considered one day events, so we weren’t in any rush to arrive. After stopping at Subway for lunch, Michael and Michelle’s for oil, and BP for gas…we were finally “on the road again!” This time we are off to a new place for a new race adventure.

Adventure is definitely the right word!!! Even after all of the stops we made before leaving Lake Wales, we still managed to arrive at the racetrack with no ice. So we set up the camper and asked around for advice on a good place to eat. As silly as it might sound, I was thrilled to hear that there was a Sonny’s Barbeque in the next town. Loaded up in the truck again, we set off for some Sonny’s and (hopefully) ice. We ran into Austin and his dad, Ronnie, as we were leaving, so they hopped in and headed to dinner with us.

It wasn’t long until we found the barbeque place formally known as Sonny’s, now renovated into “Diane’s”. Disappointed in the finding we decided to try a local hot spot, known as “The Yearling.” Curious about this place I decided “Google” it as we headed that direction. I soon discovered that is had been around for many years and has been a recipient of the Golden Spoon Award by Florida Trend magazine for the past eight years. Okay, this place must be good. As I researched a bit more I found that they had a sampling of their menu listed on their website. Grilled chicken, catfish, steak…followed by what they called the more “traditional” selections…soft-shell clam, gator, venison, and cooter. Yes, I said they served cooter. Needless to say, the waitress (who was very patient and understanding) finally had to ask what had us so tickled all through dinner. We couldn’t ask her about the cooter. But, as she turned and left the table we realized that the back of her shirt was covered in big letters, “Eat Mo’ Cooter”. I love this place!

The evening finished up with a gourmet dessert from the local convenience store. I believe we left with a miniature tub of “Crybaby” ice cream, a pre-made snowcone, and a Kit-Kat bar. Oh – we got the ice too. Now it was back to the camper and into bed. Tomorrow’s racing begins at 9am. Looking forward to it!
 
Sunday, August 29, 2010

Bright eyed and bushy tailed was not exactly an accurate description of myself as I fixed Trey a ham-egg-and-cheese sandwich this morning. It’s not that I mind fixing breakfast for my darling, who is about to ride 66 or so miles on his bike. It’s just that the camper was so cool and my bed was so warm. Not to mention how fluffy my pillows are and how well I sleep on that silly little camper mattress. And how the air blows right on my back and sometimes I get chills so then I pull the covers up and cuddle them under my chin. But I didn’t mind leaving all that behind to cook breakfast…really. Anyway, Brianna was just starting to awaken and you could hear bikes beginning to warm up around the camper. That can only mean one thing…racing is about to begin!

Time flew by as it always seems to do on race day, and before we knew it Trey was in his gear and heading for the start. Brie and I grabbed our goodies and headed after him as fast as our little legs would go. Having never been to an enduro we really didn’t know what to expect so we wanted to get there in plenty of time. It was right at 9am when we made it to the start and the first row was just leaving. I was aware that these starts were different from that of a Hare Scramble, but it was not what I expected. Every minute one row of five riders was started. As Trey was in row 17 and Austin was in row 19, Brie and I had quite a while to wait until we got to see our riders.

We decided to be brave and cross the starting line between rows in hopes of getting a better view. Semi-hidden in the trees, we were able to get a clear view of the riders as they waited for the starter to release them. Row-by-row we watched until finally it was Trey’s turn to leave the line. As with the previous rows, this start was rather dull. The bikes were already running and the riders simply drove off as if they were leaving their campers. Dull as it was, Brie and I were still cheering as the leader of the MTB crew took off.

This enduro was comprised of two laps totaling about 66 miles. After the first lap, the riders made their pit stops back at their camp. This gave them an opportunity to refuel the bikes as well as their bellies. Trey and Austin had about 30 minutes to down some liquid and put enough calories in their bodies to get them through the next lap. Thinking a 30 minute pit stop is plenty of time, we were all pretty relaxed. But we soon came to realize that it was time to get back on the trail.

As the boys were completing the first lap, Brie and I had gone back to the camper and passed the time playing games in the air conditioning. When that got tedious, we decided to explore the track and see if we could find a good location to watch the boys pass by. We had carefully maneuvered our way through the cactus and over a barbed-wire fence to find the perfect location. As the boys were following the same trail for their second lap, Brie and I decided we would follow the same plan we had tried this morning. Games…exploring…spectating!!!! We watched Trey make his was through our section and waited for Austin, but he never came. After realizing that we were only about six miles from the finish, we decided that we should head back to the camper to wait for them.

Unfortunately, Austin had taken a pretty rough bounce through a few trees and was unable to complete the second lap (glad we didn’t wait any longer to see him ). It wasn’t long until Trey arrived at camp and filled us in on the in’s-and-out’s and up’s-and-down’s of the race. It was awesome to hear the excitement in his voice from a new experience. Next weekend, he is off to South Carolina with a few of the guys from FTR to take on the “Little Brown Jug” enduro. Sorry, I will miss it, but I know that he will have a blast!