Carson Benjamin's Blog – April 2017 Archive (2)

I did a solid block of training after SoNoMas and felt I had enough top-end speed back in my legs for a 90-minute XC race. Sea Otter has been a HC-level international event since last year, which means that it is only one step below a World Cup in terms of prize money and ranking points awarded. This distinction also means that laps must be less than 3.5 miles long to be spectator friendly. The Sea Otter race organizers must have built the course with a lawnmower, because most of what we…

I learned that SoNoMas isn't a race for position, it's a race of survival. It was one of the few mountain bike races in Northern California I hadn't done, so I had no idea what to expect besides a long day in the saddle. 

I had completed a hard block of training the week before the race and barely ridden in the days leading up to it in hopes of a good result. The list of registered riders, which included the likes of Ted King, Peter Stetina, Barry Wicks, and my teammate Jim predicted…