Event: Fell Mountain Challenge

Name: Karen Henry

City: Elizabethtown

State/Province: PA

Country: USA

Age: 36

Place: 1st

Category: Expert

CLASS +/or Age group: Women 35+

Team: Team Harrisburg

XC Race Bike: Merlin Extra Fat

Tires: Not sure.

Conditions: Slick in spots, muddy in other areas.

How was your fitness level going into this race?

It was fair. I should have worked more on my climbing prior to the race.

Were you happy with your position going into the singletrack?

Yes. I think I was fourth or fifth heading into the singletrack.

Were you strong from start to finish?

No. I think the mud really zapped my energy. The second lap was tough. I was making a lot more mistakes the second time around.

When did you put the hammer down?

I didn't put the hammer down, but I tried to keep up the pace on the main climb.

Did you have any unusual problems?

I wish I could say I did, but my only problems were fatigue and Kristine. She caught me on the climb on the second lap and then I bobbled more than once shortly after she passed me. I was hoping to keep her in sight, but she was riding the singletrack much smoother than I was.

Were you happy with the way the race was run?

Yes. I thought the promoters did an outstanding job!

Did you have any interesting experiences during your race (exchanges with competitors/spectators)?

Yes, I had a few, but my favorite was hearing the dot.com man say, "That's it...I'm gonna start drinking goat's milk!"

Anything you would like to add?

My thanks to the race promoters! They did an outstanding job and their course was great (and challenging too). I also want to thank my teammates for helping to make the day fun and I especially want to thank our team waterboy (and my husband) for providing us with water during the race since he was unable to ride due to his hand injury.