Luton Park Time Trial PREVIEW

 Next up on Father's Day is the Luton Park Time Trial.

This will be race #5 in the Michigan Off Road Championship.

Before Maybury last weekend I was still sitting in a tie for 2nd place. I can't find the results so I will need to wait until they update the standings to know where I stand, but I am confident its not 2nd place anymore.

While I have ridden Luton quite a bit, I have never raced here. On my last ride when I was just out for another lap my mind started to wander to many years ago. Custer Cyclery had a big group head up and do a team ride. Luton had only been around for a few years at that point, and we loved heading there to ride. It was a funny ride because one of our team lived up in Cedar Springs and had been riding more, so he was talking a lot of shit. Our first lap made him quickly realize that he needed to ride more. lol. We took sections that he never rode. So he was getting fast, but it was on the easiest sections without any climbing. Take the red loop out and that is what he was riding. lol. So we killed him on that lap, and then headed out for a second. Good times. 

This course is a lot of fun, and its where I have been riding since the Yankee TT. I wanted to get a good understanding of the course, even though I already know it. Little differences in line choices or hitting a climb will make big time gains. I will break down the course how my mind sees it. Below is a map to match up with the colors I will use. 

Green (start) to  Yellow

Heading out of the parking lot you start on the green. Look for the P in the upper left hand corner for this area. This little section gives you a great idea of what this trail system offers. It is a fast and flowy section to get the legs moving. There is one tricky curve in here that can sneak up on you. Its a left hander right after a tree that has a tree right in the middle of the exit. You can take it at speed if you know its coming. Then you cross the first bridge and find yourself on the Blue trail. This is a fast and wide section to really turn on the jets. When the trail opens up keep right to stay on Yellow. 

Yellow

Yellow starts pretty easy. There is a spur that goes off to the right, but ignore that for the race. Just go straight and ride the flow to the first climb on the course. This isn't a rough climb, but you have to make sure you are warmed up. Probably the 2nd longest climb out there, you just have to get after it to the top. The rest of the loop is up and down with some flowy switchbacks, some armored corners, and a few rocky sections. Nothing terrible here. Maybe a little kicker of a climb. The last descent takes you back down to the clearing and the Blue trail connector.

Blue to Orange

On this wider trail its important to take a drink and just keep mashing your way around. It starts wide, then as you get to the top of the meadow it narrows down to single track again. Stay right again and avoid the root filled section that stays straight. Here a two track will take you up a small climb before you find more single track around the edge of the hills. One last gravel style climb up to a big clearing and you are at the Orange loop. Stay right, because the Blue trail is to the left. No cheating. 

Orange

This is by far my favorite section of Luton. It starts tight and twisty before eventually flowing into the woods again. A mix of gravel and dirt winds its way through until you find a small climb. At the top is a rock garden. I figured out a better line on my last ride, but I am not sure I want to share it. haha! Normally I would follow the trail to the right and around the tree. On my last ride I stayed left and rolled much faster through the rocks without losing any speed. Then a short gravel filled kicker and a few flowy turns before you start the small climb back out to Blue. Make the final right and you are met with a fast descent. 

Blue to Black

The descent is again part of the Blue trail. It is a wide and fast descent that swings right and stays wide all the way to the 2nd bridge on the course. This is a strange intersection on the trail, but easy to follow once you know it. (Plus the course will be well marked for the race). You start up the hill and head right into the Black trail. You are roughly 1/3 of the way done with the lap!

Black

Here is where the trail gets really fun. The Black is a longer loop that goes up and down and around a hill on this side of the property. It is very helpful to know the course here because some of the corners are blind from the trees or growth in the forest. There are a few root filled climbs, the first of which you find pretty quick. Feels like the climb will just keep going, but once you get over the top you have a lot of flowy trail to find rhythm. The mix here is good, so just keep going as fast as you can. There is a switchback that can sneak up on you, but then hold your speed and you can roll for a long time. The trail splits off to the right, but from what I have seen this part isn't used for the race. So stay left here and then left again over the root ascent. Its a faster line. Just after that second split you turn left and there is the 3rd bridge crossing. Carry speed and be ready for a sharp left immediately afterwards. Tackle this climb and then bomb the rest of the way into the pines. Instead of the normal straight at the trail crossing, the race hangs a right back onto the Blue trail. 

Blue to Red

This is short section and a good place to snag a drink. The lap is about 2/3 of the way done now. When the trail splits and you are forced to go right, you are almost to the Red. One little section and you cross the 4th bridge. Hang a right, you reached the Red trail. 

Red

This loop doesn't welcome you very nicely. It starts with a climb. Most would say it isn't that bad, but I believe it is the worst climb on the entire course. It finishes with a little kicker and a bit more before the Red shows you what its all about. Flowing and fantastic trail. There is a bit of climbing on this section, but it is broken up between all of the fun sections. You can see many other parts of the trail in here, but unless you know the area well...you won't know if you are ahead of or behind the other riders. You go all the way back to nearly the start of this loop and are rewarded by a descent down the hill you climbed to get in here. Stay right and take a little climb into the flowy finish. Its such a great section with multiple terrains and surfaces. It finishes with a fast descent back onto the Blue. 

Blue to Green

Keep holding your speed in this short section. Roll into the turn for the Green where you are welcomed with multiple line choices filled with roots. Choose wisely and you can roll thru pretty quick.

Green to lap/finish

On the short climb you will see a trail shoot off to the right. As far as I know this isn't part of the race. By going straight and cutting that section you get a short section of single track before a climb out. At the top is a wide section of trail that rides around before finding more flowy curves heading towards the finish. After the last curve you can see the sign that says "lap" or "finish". Take the left to do the laps you need to do. It spits you back onto the Green where this story began. If you are finishing, push as hard as you can to the parking lot. Its a short haul, so leave it all out there. 

I know the course fairly well. I believe I can sneak in under the 1:30 mark for the two laps. As far as I can tell there are currently 4 Clydes signed up. Based on finishing times, I believe I can land firmly in 2nd place. If C.G. shows up he will beat me easily like he did at Yankee and Custer. So I will be racing for 2nd. This is ok, and I will gladly take any step they let me stand on. I have a few rides planned this week just to keep building and to keep the legs moving. If all goes well I will do a preview video as well. I just am not sure if time will allow me to get it done. 

Big goals. I have never taken the top step at a race, and I will never stop trying.

Keep moving forward.