KENDA Dark Mountain North Carolina Super D Championship Race Series Race Report
by Kathryn Kim

Approximately 60 racers showed up to race on a cold day. It was in the 30's most of the day until late afternoon and then got up to the low 40's for a short time. The wind was blowing hard, making the wind chill pretty low. Practice started at 9am and the race started at 12:30pm, with the awards over at 5pm. It was a full day.

For me, I was in 2nd place, after the first run, behind Ellen Adams, a pro racer (and dear friend) from Wilkesboro, NC. Then, on the second run, I was having a fantastic trip down the course. When I was almost at the end, I crashed. It was kind of funny. Just over-cooked a berm and slid out. No big deal except that I got my darned foot stuck in between the frame and the brake cable and the latch on my shoe kept getting caught as I tried to pull it out. How does one do such a thing??? By the time I got it unstuck and got back on my bike, it was too late. So, I came in third for Pro/Expert Women, behind a collegiate racer from Lees-McCrae college. Looking forward to next time!!!

As for the course, it was a good combination of technical and endurance challenges. Started off with a slight downhill run with a fast left sweeper, slightly uphill then down again over a couple of rollers/mini launches to a choice of a 2 ft. rock drop/launch or a log pile (penalty for the roadie types). Then a slight downhill again to another couple of rollers to a longer, slightly steeper climb. This climb was the most challenging part of the race from an endurance perspective. This was where the roadies/XC racers had their advantage. Then it dumped into the top of the DH course where you dropped over a log drop to a sharp right turn then to a section with a triple and a double jump. This followed to the top of the rock garden where, after going over a couple of log piles, we skirted the right edge of the rock garden and then followed the XC course around some hairpin turns with some small hill climbs. Then it took a turn down into a gravity cavity with an off-camber uphill sweep around a tree and down again into the downhill course. The A-frame jump was converted into a small table. Tricky if you went too fast as you'd overshoot it, but otherwise smooth. Then the longer table and a double to a fast left hand sweeper to a log section, another roller, then home to the finish line. The fastest pro men's time of the day was 3 minutes and 8 seconds I believe. 

All in all, it was a fun time. Matt Adams and crew did a great job converting the area for the Super D race. For the reasonable entry fee of $20.00 ($25.00 if you needed a one day license), you got a full day of riding/racing and a Blimpie sub after the race. For prizes, Kenda stepped up to donate lots of tires and bike shops around North Carolina donated gift certificates.

 

Sorella racer, Kathryn Kim catches some air during her race.