2014 Napa Valley Dirt Classic

[Jim Hewett]

The Napa Valley Dirt Classic is one of the first big NorCal races of the year.  It usually comes at the beginning of a fitness peak for me, one I have been working toward since November or December.  This year has been different, as some big life changes have disrupted my training.  I've been riding a good bit, but without structure and with relatively little intensity.  Despite my lack of preparation, I couldn't resist doing this race, which is one of my favorites.

Shiloh, Phil and I drove up from Marin together.  This would be Phil's first time doing the Dirt Classic, and his first year doing more mountain bike races than road races.  Shiloh and I enjoyed reliving past races here by describing the course and how the race would likely unfold, hopefully giving Phil a good picture of what to expect.

There had been rain earlier in the week, but race day was warm and sunny.  Some sections of the course would inevitably be muddy, but most of it was tacky and fast.  The Dirt Classic is not a long race, usually under 1.5 hours for me.  We work our way up and out from the start on fast fire roads, go in and out of singletrack in the trees out to the bottom of the valley, and then climb the brutally steep fireroads back.  It's short enough that you have to go pretty hard from the start, but the climbing in the last third rewards those that have kept a little in reserve.

I was surprised to see a small pro field this year.  Kona pro Kris Sneddon was in the area training and preparing for the Sea Otter Classic and he would be the favorite to win.  Fast local pros Mike Hosey, Ryan Chandler, and Clint Claasen all would be gunning for the podium.  Phil was looking to prove that he has what it takes to go fast on dirt.  It wasn't a very deep field, but it promised to give some serious competition.

The start was slightly less painful than last year.  By the time we had passed the climb to the observatory, the selection had been made and Sneddon, Hosey, Chandler, Phil and I had gotten away from the group.  Sneddon made his move not long after and Hosey went with him for a little before falling back to our group.  Unfortunately, Phil fell victim to a broken derailleur, which left me to battle Hosey and Chandler for second place.  I hung back a little for awhile, not pushing them but not letting them get away.  On Angwish HIll I closed to them and came around.  A probing attack revealed some hesitation, so I made my move to the front and pressed the lead on the descent to the bottom of the canyon.  I crossed the creek and climbed the first steep muddy bit with each of them seconds behind me.

The next 15-20 minutes were a slow-motion battle up the rutted and loose fireroads.  While I wanted to distract my mind from my burning leg muscles, the climbing required a lot of focus.  I tried to remain seated and turn a smooth, if slow, cadence.  Spinning out and losing momentum could be physically and psychologically disastrous with such a short lead over my two pursuers.

I successfully stayed away as Hosey fell back and Chandler surged hard a few times.  I avoided cramping (thanks OSMO!) and pushed hard to the end, finishing well behind Sneddon in second place.

[Rob 'RJ' johnston]

Awesome writing again Jim congratulations on a nice race!