Date: April 16, 2000
Event: 10th & Final Michaux Ironmasters Classic XC
Class: OPEN
Category: Pro
Length: 27 mi.
Time: 2:20:03
Conditions: Sunny - 70s and humid
Bike: Gary Fisher Sugar One (with a DEVO custom paint job)
Tires: Front: Maxis MoFo
           Rear: Maxis Worm Drive (semi-slick)
Justin ran about 65 psi tire pressure making sure not to flat.

Did you do anything special to prepare for this race?

I pre-rode the course on Thursday with Chris Eatough and David DuVall and just kind of took it easy the two days leading up to the race.

In the last two months how many hours a week have you trained?

About 15 to 20 depending on the week.

Were you strong from start to finish?

No. I finished stronger than I started. I started out pretty conservatively cause the start was kind of sketchy and kind of slow in that first single-track section. There was a lot of traffic so I just kind of hung out in the top ten to fifteen. I took my time. I knew it was a long race.

When did you put the hammer down?

On that long grassy climb (Dead Women's Hollow). That's were I started to crank it up a notch and put the hammer down. I started the climb with Jed (Schober) and about midway up I dropped him. I could see James Futty way up there and Ryan DeWalt. I was just reeling them in and kept hammering. By the time we reached the Three Mile Trail I caught Futty. In the Three Mile Trail Futty dropped me but I caught Ryan DeWalt. So when I came out of the Three Mile Trail I was ahead of Ryan DeWalt.

Did you have any unusual problems?

No, everything went pretty good. My bike worked good. I felt pretty good - I didn't feel excellent but didn't feel too bad. Can't complain.

How do you rate the course?

I don't know if I can say that I liked it a lot - it was brutal and I was glad I did it. I'm glad I accomplishment it. I guess because my skills aren't quite as good as those other top guys... but I definitely liked it. It was a lot of fun. I think I could have done a little better if it wasn't technical but.... it makes me a better rider so.....

How does it feel competing with seasoned Pros being 16 years old?

It's great. I could have done the Junior Expert and probably made more money if I'd won but I had fun. It's definitely worth it to be racing against the faster guys getting pushed the whole time. If I had done the Junior Expert race and I was having a good day I probably wouldn't have been pushed. I don't know, I'm just guessing but.... it was worth it.

Were you happy with the way the race was run?

Definitely - they do an excellent job here. I've been to a lot of races and I think these people are top notch.

If you could do the race again, would you do anything differently?

Not really, except I would try to get a little bit better start. There was a lot of traffic in front of me. It ended up working well because I saved my energy. When we hit that climb a lot of the guys had gone out too fast. I was still pacing myself and just warming up so.....

Is there anything you would like to add?

It was good. There were a bunch of Wooden Wheels guys out there - it was definitely a fun race.