Back to Baja… and beyond!

I’ve always been a bit hesitant to identify myself as a “professional” cyclist and with recent events I have almost been embarrassed to do so. Sure, I have a couple cards in my wallet that classify me as such, but those are really just admission tickets I buy every season. That is where my commonality with the most professional cyclists you know ends. My mother has often told me that while cycling isn’t my profession, it has been my chosen occupation and I believe that may be the best description of my life “behind bars”.Last week, I traveled to Ensenada, Mexico for what has become one of Mexico’s premier endurance MTB events the Baja Endurance 100km. I finished third there in 2010 and it was the first time since children my wife accompanied me to a long distance race. Maybe it was to rekindle our spirit of adventure after 12 years of marriage, but most likely by mistake on her part since even she has forgotten what the “charmed” life of a REAL pro cyclist is all about!

After landing in San Diego, a master racer from Ensenada picked us up and we drove to Chula Vista to meet Tinker Juarez before continuing our journey south. I have raced with Tinker many times over the years, but I’ve never had occasion to get to know him. Despite being the most notable US professional mountain bike racer of all time, our brief conversation has caused me to number him among the real pros! He has always had a great reputation for being approachable and generous with his time, but I also witnessed his unmeasured love for the sport that gave even me reason to pause. As we traveled on and got beyond our pleasantries, conversation inevitably turned to the current state of affairs regarding the cheating and fraud in professional road cycling. On that drive, I felt like I had discovered a kindred spirit coming from the opposite end of the “professional” cycling spectrum. Tinker had made a living racing most of his life and was a true champion when MTB was at its peak while I was just daring to dream about racing at the highest levels. All this during a time when road racing seemingly reached its zenith of popularity and at the same time stooped to the lowest level of moral and ethical performance.

Don’t get me wrong–there are undoubtedly many cheats in mountain bike racing as evidenced by the sanctioning of a handful of top riders over the years. Our driver even told us about a few years ago when a certain French “champion”– a multi-time Olympic/World medalist and World Cup winner showed up to the race in Ensenada. His first requested stop? A pharmacy to purchase PEDs! So much for honoring a grass roots event with his attendance! Our collective naive response: “no wonder he was always so fast!”
I asked Tinker about racing the on the world stage and in humility he described how awesome it was to race for the famed Volvo-Cannondale team and how financial stability and team support finally enabled him to do more than make ends meet. He explained how this made all the difference in taking him to the top of the domestic contingent even while watching the Europeans ride away with more dominating performances than ever. Truly the mark of a classy individual as he counted only his blessings despite having every right to feel short-changed racing the sport he had pioneered and poured his life into!

We arrived at our the hotel to discover that it wasn’t the host hotel for the race but just an overnight pit stop. Apparently the event promoters had decided to save some cash and keep us hopping, so after a late dinner we fell asleep with our bags still packed. We hurriedly got up and checked out without breakfast so we could make it to the “host” hotel in time for the pre-race press conference. Of course, we couldn’t check-in so I set about assembling my bike in the parking lot only to discover that my rear brake had mysteriously quit working properly during the trip. By that time, we had to rush to the conference to say our few words and sit listening to the promoter expound on his event in Spanish for the better part of an hour. Even the press had left by the time he was done, but luckily our rooms were ready.
Tinker and I agreed to meet to pre-ride part of the course and we set about making ourselves at home in the beautiful beach front resort. Our ride went well and we were glad to know the start and finish portions of the course on race day. When we returned, I dropped my bike at the service area for a “routine” brake bleed from the local bike shop mechanics. At first I asked to borrow their tools and do it myself but they assured me that they had it under control.

I suppose it was at seven that evening (the night before our seven AM start) that my wife re-discovered the joy of being a real pro’s travel companion as we started bleeding the brake ourselves in the dimly lit confines of our hotel room! The “know-it-all” mechanics had broken an adjustment bolt, filled my brake with another brand of fluid, and installed yet another brand of brake pads to “fix” the problem! By eight PM I had returned their tools and pads and had a perfectly adjusted brake that still works flawlessly today–with my brake pads. Next, we went to the grocery store to buy some dinner and made it to bed to at a reasonable (for a real pro) hour.
I was up with the night owls at 5AM only to discover that it wouldn’t be light until the race began. After circling the dark parking lot in a futile attempt to warm-up, I had already decided my number one suggestion for improving the event would be a later start time! Eventually we assumed our positions and rolled out of town in a neutral fashion prior to immediately climbing straight up the side of a mountain. The promoters were big on King Of Mountain prizes and had put a substantial amount of cash on the line for the summits of the first two climbs. After my previous experience and looking at the svelte Mexican riders, I quickly concluded that it would be in my best interest to forget about those potential bill payments and instead focus my efforts on a high overall finish. The leaders immediately split the field and I crossed the KOM a couple minutes behind giving chase on the flatter terrain that followed.

Tinker and Carl Decker (another real pro from Bend, storied pizza delivery specialist and professional rally car driver) had consolidated the front group of seven as I towed several others across to them. As we approached the bottom of the next major climb, I moved to the front keeping the pace high hoping to soften the fury that would inevitably ensue. With more cash on the line at the top, the pint-sized climbers unleashed their attacks and only Tinker could respond leaving first me and then Carl to wallow in their wake. I managed to lose a couple minutes again, but Carl showed his form by regaining the group and setting a tempo that kept me chasing the remainder of the day. Tinker flatted and discovered his spare tube already had a hole in it. In real pro form, he ran his bike a couple miles to the next aid station and continued on to finish ninth place. I passed two of the flagging domestic riders and managed to barely achieve a non-paying podium spot in fifth. Carl distanced his adversaries and sealed the deal to win one for all the real pros.

I was stoked none-the-less, I had ridden better than two years ago despite finishing a couple spots lower and without any gas money. Which brings me to the real point of this story: it is all about the ride for most of us. Whether it is racing through farms and barrios in Mexico or chasing a faster time on the Strava segment only YOU have ridden, we share a singular objective. From the moment we realize that the training wheels are gone, and we have outpaced the helping hand as a child, we find freedom and exhilaration in the ride. Some of us dream and chase our rainbows racing, while others travel to the corners of the earth on two wheels experiencing no less accomplishment. Recently there have been a few who have chosen to soil our passion with their greed and dishonesty, but human beings have always had to overcome the temptation to compromise all for a fleeting sensation. Real riders (pros and you included) pedal though that illusion and even with wind, rain or mud in our faces, experience the same addictive satisfaction every time we climb aboard our bikes.

So if you are weary of the the news and believe that there is no hope for the sport, realize that there are more of US than them and we are out there for you, for the dream–for all those who will inevitably ride and find the joy we share. We brave the elements and beg to make ends meet, we give our last measure to make the last ride our best and in the end we get the highest prize a bicycle can offer–the chance to share the sport freely and participate in it openly and none of us will ever be ashamed of that!

Happy trails, roads or paths and thanks for reading!