Return racers to the podium fresh legs battling for 1st, fun photos, it was a great HH-IX!
As usual if all who said they would race would of raced we'd of had over 20 racers, but bowing down to wives, and sicknesses got the best of a few past racers. But the mad dogs were there, and some, like first timer Brent, still started the race even though he had to do it alone and without directions having traffic make him 20 minutes late. Good job, Brent!
And somebody mused, you don't want a DNF (did not finish), but it's better than a DNS (did not start).
Now to the podium!
1st Place: Murph(1:08) Murph, lucky charm marred by road rash earlier this season, was in prime form, battling off the newcomer Randy in the single track and special events to come up with a narrow victory! Murph stands alone with three 1st place finishes in Hillbilly Hill! Congratulations 3 time winner Murph.
2nd Place: Randy(1:09) Newcomer Randy leapt to the front early with most thinking he'd blow-up early like many first time young guns do, but the only thing exploding was his legs as they did piston like work of the mountain and the run, holding off Murph up till the Single Track. The new addition of a technical single track, short that it is, made the difference. Murphs breakneck pace forced Randy into some uncharacteristic errors and it cost him the lead. Randy faught back though and actuall entered into the special test in 1st place, but Murph nailed 2 of 3, while Randy (like me) missed them all. Murph held him off in the pool but Randy showed he will be feared in future years. Good job Randy, excellent 1st race!
3rd Place: Geoff (1:11) Returning to the podium after a year absence from the race, Geoff was stronger than ever. Holding pace with the sprinters, I never could gain sight of him again after the run despite pushing myself to exhaustion. The rugby trained legs and warriors heart always put Geoff in the hunt, but when you throw training into the mix, he is tough to beat. It was great having you back Geoff! Good job!
4th Place:(1:15) TDowns (me) felt fairly strong despite recent injuries and after surging past the pack with sprint in the wash, kept a strong pace trying to gain on Geoff to no avail. But the pressure from Danny kept him on his pedals and he was able to finish in the pool without too much pressure, only a couple of minutes off his fastest time.
5th Place: (1:20) Danny had a strong race despite fighting off a cold earlier in the week and like having his most stressful year ever at school. We both talked after how it was great to unleash the pent up energy of a mentally draining year by blasting up the hills of our mountains. Good job Danny, him and I the only 2 racers to have done every race. Next year, God willing, we'll both be the first to do 10, and a new category will be born, "Survived 10 Hillbilly Hill Races".
7th Place: (1:25) Michael had another consistent year, who is on track to be one of the top five to do 10 Hillbilly Hills! Way to go Micael, we appreciate your commitment and injury knowhow!
8th Place: Fred (131:12) Despite stopping to take photos for the blog, and the extra single track (added about 2-3 minutes to old times) Fred had his best race yet. Good job on race and photos!
9th Place: Don (132.58) Another guy who is reliable and on track to big top five to 10 Hilbilly Hill races, Don put in another top performance despite a tough year of injuries. Way to bounce back Don!
10th Place: Jim (134.12) Proving the Dad's still have it, Jim in his first Hillbilly on a 100lb bike kept ahead of his son Turner for a great finish! Good Job Jim!
11th Place: Turner (134.50) Next year will be interesting as the young gun, son of Jim tries to see if he can hang with his dad. Another first timer, it was great having the smiling youth as part of the race. Good job Turner.
12th Place: Brad (139.00) Yet another first timer who is ready for a big move next year, gets the award for last to leave with Jason, fireside chats were a blast this year, thanks for coming Brad, good job!
13th Place: Brent (2:11) Starting 20 minutes after official start time and not knowing the course, Brent still was a trooper in his first Hillbilly Race. Good job buddy, way not to quite and to finish strong.
14th Place: Ceaser (2:16) Winner of the "Bird Song" award for his appreciation of stopping to see the sights and enjoy the twitter of birds during the race, Ceaser never complains, has fun and always finishes...and that's what the Hillbilly Hill is all about! Great job Ceaser, great to have you back!
SEE YOU ALL NEXT YEAR, FOR THE BIG X....10 YEARS OF HILLBILLY, DON'T MISS IT, WE MAY GO BACK TO THE DOG TAGS FOR THIS ONE! START TRAINING NOW!
