I have never won a race. I have come close a few times. I was within a minute at Sweat Shaker in 2014. Closest I have ever been. Fast forward to 2015 and I came close again. I had multiple occasions where I was on the second step. But how close was I really.....
Not real close. I don't count 6 plus minutes a close. I would say that my finish at Yankee (11th) was very close to being top 10. I was 6 seconds out of 10th. That is close. 6 minutes at one race and a staggering 16 minutes at another.....not close. Yes, big picture those second place finishes look 'close' but in reality not so much.
But.....as Nelson Mandela put it.....you can learn without winning. I have been thinking about my season and pondering how I can improve in 2026. In order to move ahead, I had to take a look back. I wondered what went right, what went wrong, and what really stood out. I also started to take that big picture and break it down into smaller sections for analysis.
The Good
When things went good, they went good. In general, things went good on courses that I know well. Yankee, Luton, and Custer two different times. Yankee was very encouraging as I barely missed my goals of breaking an hour and finishing top 10. The Custer Stampede was good in that I finished on the podium. I held on to the leaders for a mile or so and felt comfortable for the whole race. At Luton I was able to push the entire race. At the Custer finale I reeled in Charles and pushed him to the finish line.
The Bad
While Traverse City Trails fest wasn't super bad....it was kind of bad. The starting debacle aside, I wasn't able to get into a fast rhythm and push. The traffic didn't help, but there is more on that below. I didn't clear one of the climbs. This was after a long push after a singletrack section. I pushed too hard and wasn't able to push on the climb. Lesson learned, but that was pretty bad on my part.
The Ugly
I had my moments this year. Fast Fitty tops the charts here. I had no choice but to pull the plug because things just got ugly. I had pain. I was mentally checked out. It was hot. It started good, but ended ugly. Another ugly one was the Addison Oaks race. I started strong, but fell off the pace. Then lost another place towards the end. It was another ugly event.
Since I didn't win......what did I learn?
I really had to go back and watch some of my footage to get a reminder of how things went. I also dug into my memory banks to remember how I felt, and how the week led into any given event. Because I want to improve next year, I wanted to cover everything I could. Here is what I determined.
The weakest Link
Climbing, hands down. Yes I have dropped weight, but I am still not the best climber. I am much better, but I know this is an area where I need to improve. My plan is to work more on core strength this winter to help. I can work on more intervals and climbing through the winter as well as dropping more weight to improve here.
Aggressiveness
In looking back I realized that I am not as aggressive as some other riders. I am not talking about riding like an asshole, I am talking about seizing opportunities in tight quarters. Attacking on a climb. Jumping at a chance to pass. Starting super hard. Just being more assertive during an event. Some missed opportunities to move up or even put a hurt on a person were missed. I made a strategic move to stay behind Charles at The Last Stand. I could have passed him and possibly dropped him. It was a tactic because I knew I had him beat. However, I could have lost 2nd place by staying with him. If another guy was coming I could have dropped back and lost my position. It was in the back of my mind, but I gambled and it paid off. Basically, I was racing Charles and nobody else that day. The goal for next year will be to keep my nose in the mix. Fight for positions. Be more assertive in the group. Just don't be a dick ;)
Group riding
This one kind of snuck up on me. In general I am comfortable riding in a group.....on gravel. For the most part I am riding with people that I know and I understand their tendencies. In a bigger event it is harder to know what people will do. In the Fast Fitty I was ok for the most part. I was able to jump on a wheel and hold on as long as I could. The speed didn't bother me. But I noticed something different at Addison and again at Traverse City trail fest. In a bigger group of mountain bikes I am not as comfortable. I don't think this is due to my abilities, just the lack of riding in bigger groups on wider and 2-track style trails. I know at TCTF that there was a big mix of beginner and sport riders, but it still took me a minute to find my groove. Once into the singletrack I was comfortable riding right on a wheel. But the surges were having an averse affect on me as well. Its hard to simulate big groups on the trails, but I need to join more group rides on gravel next year. If I can get my comfort level back on gravel it will be a natural transition to the trails as well. Goal, more group rides in 2026. Part of this will be being assertive at the start as well. Establish a position and hold onto it.
Passing
This one isn't too shocking. In general I have never had to pass. I have always been the guy that has to move over and let people around him. It has been a rare occasion over the past 10 years that I have had to pass someone. When I did, it was usually a super duper slow rider compared to my super slow riding. This year I got stronger and faster, so passing was a welcome outcome. I am just not the best. This comes with experience I know. I truly wish my gopro had stayed working at the Last Stand race. I was hooked to Charles' wheel and we were picking off some riders on the second lap. My passing here was the best it had been all year. This makes sense because it was my last race. Addison Oaks is where it really stood out that it was an issue. My footage showed it very clear. We were in a long line of riders. A guy a few people ahead of me stalled on a climb. Everyone else (or at least it felt like everyone) was able to get around him and keep going. Even a few behind me took advantage and generated a gap back to me. I worked hard to close down the gap, then had to pass another guy and got gapped again. My pass was far from clean, even rubbing the tire of the poor guy ahead of me. Because of my bad passing choices I had to work harder. Passing and aggressiveness come together. The more aggressive I can ride the more passes I will have to make. Hopefully with more opportunities I will get better. The goal here, be fast enough to generate opportunities to learn.
Handling
Last but not least....my handling skills. I am an average rider. On some trails I can handle the bike, other trails I am a wreck. Part of this is due to my lack of riding in 2024. I had a new bike (Mudhorn) and had not really put a lot of time on it. This bike took me from a 27.5 back to 29er wheels. The handling is different, and I am still learning how to ride the new bike. Yes I got better, but I know there is room for improvement here. When I focus on relaxing and leading into corners I am a better and smoother rider. A lot of my rides this year were choppy and rough out of the corners. Sometimes I would come into a corner hot and nearly leave the trail trying to recover. Because I am faster it means I have to ride different. Mentally, I was riding like the weight was still on. I did have those rides where I was focused and would lead into a corner instead of trailing. That means I would start to turn before the corner or curve was under me. No different than a race car starting a turn before it reaches it. If they go into the corner and turn late....they come out wide. But hit the corner already turning and they come out fast and on track. Part of this is just learning to ride faster. There are a lot of pieces that have to come together, and I know I will get there. New bike. new body. New skills. My goal will be to ride more and continue to improve my handling skills as my speed goes up.
So there you have it. I won't deny that I had a good year. I just know heading into 2026 that the areas listed above are the places I want to improve. It will be a new season and a new group of guys to ride with. The only thing I can do is improve myself. Continue to lose weight. Work on my core. Ride more groups. Be more assertive. Learn how to pass effectively. And keep the rubber side down.
Seems pretty simple....right?
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