Trail Rider Magazine

30 Trail Rider www.TrailRider.com Surprisingly, a period of clearing skies combined with decent drainage saw the course round into de- cent condi ons between the beginning of prac ce and the race one gate drop. Ominous clouds con- nued to march across the sky, but it's best to focus on the great racing taking place on the hillside that houses the majority of the Black's Hollow track rather than fearfully watching the radar screen on your favorite weather app. The track is quite a sight, and quite a fun ride too. Several treks up and down the stepped hillside with just the right amount of approachable man- made jumps is mixed in with a flat-land sec on that wraps around the back side of the pit area before returning to view on another climb to the top. But whether you're watching a radar app or not, the weather manifested in liquid form will let you know quickly that it has arrived. That was right around the snap of the rubber band signifying the start of race four when large drops of rain began pel ng the reclaimed strip mine. The moisture quickly con- verted the tacky clay to something resembling ma- rine grease mixed with Play-Doh, fi ngly extruding itself through the holes in my KX250 sprocket cover like "spaghe " from the Fun Factory playset of youth. From here on out it was a strain to keep bikes upright. Certainly, some riders, bikes, res, or combo thereof are be er suited to these condi- ons, but there was plenty of people struggling to crest "Horsepower Hill" in each race to make my tribula ons comple ng a lap less embarrassing. A er an evening of more intermi ent showers, where gatherers around a campfire churned the ground into an ooze befi ng a barnyard, Sunday morning arrived with…more rain. With the course layout at Black's Hol- low, there are only so many places you can go without encountering a hill or off camber terrain as the loop descends several shelves of terrain. The riders must return to the upper eleva on of the property, some- mes with steep climbs with li le run-up or abrupt transi ons. The difficul es were set to con nue. As the vintage race took to the course, the outcome of the struggles was laid bare in vastly different running orders observed each me the pack crossed through scoring and the quite obvious monotone shade of brown displayed by all bikes and rider's gear. At some points hills were nearly impossible to tackle in one shot. Mul ple posi ons were gained or lost in a fif- ty-yard ascent. As the race mercifully came to a close, the rains had diminished, and Mid-Atlan c regional coordinator and his trail-boss Mike Zdybak set out to re-route the impassable sec ons. It wasn't long before showers returned yet again. The Eurythmics 1983 hit "Here Comes the Rain Again" began to loop through my head. Yes Annie Lennox, it is raining with me, now make it stop! All the work put into diver ng around the nasty areas was much appreciated and race two's post vintage pack was greeted with a very challenging, but navigable, path. No falls, no stalls, maintain forward mo on, survive… whether you chanted them to the melody of the aforemen oned tune or not, these were the mantra

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