The Inland Empire

After a successful weekend of racing at the "National Mountain Bike Series Race Number 2" in Santa Ynez, CA, Sam and I got a chance to hangout together for several days of riding in Santa Barbara. We then made the trip down to Fontana, a city in the middle of L.A., for the third race in the National Mountain Bike Series.

For a course in the middle of suburbia, it is surprisingly fun. It is sandy, rutted, and steep. Its always interesting when you pre-ride a course and realize that when you race it the next day it is nearly a guarantee that you are going to go down. The only consultation is the fact that the dirt is relatively soft so it won't hurt that bad.

Well, that guarantee came true in a big way. Both Sam and I went down more then once and I think that you would be hard pressed to find a pro at the finish of the race who wasn't covered in dirt or didn't have a little blood trickling down their leg.

Most mountain bike races take place in resort towns at ski hills so racing in the middle of L.A. puts a new spin on things. For example:

View from the top of the course in L.A. = Suburbia Sprawl


Course markings in L.A. = Graffiti


River in L.A. = Concrete Channel


Green-space in L.A. = Power-line right-of-way


53x11 Coffee in L.A. = The best brew around