2019 Season Recap: Bailey Hundito



This was the first Pro race of my season last year. I surprised myself with a good race, finishing on the podium. But this post isn’t about that. This is the story of my race crew’s incredible experience behind the scenes.

Bailey Hundito Pre-race Day:

I make a point of helping my crew prepare for each race to assure everyone is comfortable and on the same page. I want their day to flow smoothly too.

One aspect of this involves scouting the race course feedzones ahead of time. It’s important for my crew to have an easy working knowledge of how many feedzones there are, where each one is located, how best to get to each of them, in which direction the race is coming from, where to park and set up at each site etc...

The reconnaissance was made more challenging at the Bailey Hundito as the course featured several feedzones along a single 50-mile loop. The loop was also completely within one wilderness area so my crew would have to circumnavigate the course from outside the loop’s perimeter, meaning much more driving.


Bailey Hundito Race day:

After staging with me through the start of the race, my crew took off in our rented minivan. They drove 30 miles via several twisting mountain highways to get to the first feedzone. Then, they parked the van and had to hike over a mile away on foot to reach the right spot.

My crew parked, grabbed all the supplies they needed and made the hike, successfully feeding me as I came through at the front of the race. My crew then started the mile hike back to the van. On their walk back they spotted a beaver in a stream. They took a brief moment to enjoy the beauty of the mountain forest, watching the beaver work on its damn.

At the van they learned they had paused a bit too long at the beaver pond. They would have to work quickly to get to the second feedzone ahead of the race. My crew would have only 20 minutes to get there. Sure enough, they arrived at the second feedzone only to see me speed passed on the bike still at the front of the race.

Luckily, we had pre-scouted the area so my crew kept a cool head. There was a prime feeding area close by, but they would have to move quickly to get there in time. They hit the gas pedal in the rental van.

The course marshals were blocking the road for the race and stopped the van from crossing the course. My crew pointed out that they were only trying to feed their rider at a safe spot just ahead. Meanwhile my crew was watching me race down the trail just beyond the road. The course marshals as it turned out were helpful to my crew as well as observant of the race. My crew was allowed through at a safe time.

My crew maneuvered through and pulled into the alternate feedzone’s parking area. They jumped out of the van with bottles in hand just in time to hand me the second feed of the race. I had no idea of the events transpiring in the operations of my crew.


My crew breathed a collective sigh of relief. They then jumped back in the van and retraced their route driving the 40 or so miles all the way back taking the same roads on which they had come, passing the starting area, and making it to the finish line  just in time to arrive before I finished.

 Scouting the driving route for my crew proved profitable. Their race day experience was just as intense as my own. I’m grateful for their support and proud of their perseverance!





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