Downieville Classic DH Race 2018 - All Mountain Part 2

[Jim Hewett]

I felt pretty fresh as I blasted off from the start tent on my DH run Sunday morning.  I started 9th, with a ghost racer behind me and Ryan Gorman in front of me, so I didn't anticipate any company.  I had recovered from the vision problems of the day before and made it to the start line with glasses.

I pushed hard on Sunrise and came close to my fastest time, keeping it up down the fire road and across to the single track.  I had reduced the rebound damping on  my fork to 11 clicks out and it was noticeably better. I tried to pedal hard and ride smoothly, though I did bobble twice in wet rocks and roots. I passed Nathan Riddle with a flat, but he caught me again on the climb up to 3rd Divide.  I felt like I was moving fast, but I wasn't watching my splits to confirm whether I was on track for a fast time.  I started to lose some heart as I crossed Lavezzola, realizing I was behind my fastest time.  I came onto the pavement at 48:30.  With around 2 minutes to go, I knew I would not be getting a PR.  Nevertheless, I gave it everything I had to the hay bail chicane at the finish line.

Surprisingly, my time earned me 13th place.  I had come in a second after 12th and a second ahead of 14th.

Though I had not broken my personal records for either course, I finally achieved a 10th place overall in Pro All Mountain!