2024/25 FTR Golden Master B HS Champion!

Golden Master B Finale and Championship

Wow, what a race and season finale! Coming in, there were three of us in Golden Master B that could win the championship – myself 3B, Joe Winkler 1B and Walter Winchester 47B. Knowing I needed to finish 3rd or better had me really stressed out. I didn't sleep the night before and come race morning, my stomach was a mess. I couldn't eat or drink, I was nauseated and I felt like I needed to live in the bathroom!

OK, I struggled to even get dressed for the practice lap as I was trying to clear my mind. It wasn't working so I headed out for practice feeling like I would soil myself, throw up or both! The practice lap was uneventful until I reached the endurocross split. I chose to go the hard route since I didn't see any riders laid out ahead of me. I had watched this section during the Saturday race and knew it wouldn't be too bad if I maintained my momentum. I had the big tires on my mind as I entered the endurocross section. I guess I was thinking too far ahead as the first set of rocks took me down! I fell to the left on top of the large rock shaped like a piece of coral! As I stopped rolling, the pain was off the charts! My left thigh was in pure agony along with my left palm and my already injured left shoulder. I was laying on the ground in tremendous pain when another person moved my bike off the rocks. A while later Scott Fischer approached me and asked if I was OK. Scott, who was not racing, is a fellow Golden Master B racer that I've ridden with for years. Scott stayed with me and eventually helped me back to my feet. Thank you Scott! So, I finished the last section going the easy route while my leg was on fire.

Upon my return to my pits, I stripped off my upper body gear and slowly rolled my pants down to see the damage. Wow! It looked like raw hamburger meat and was swollen almost twice as big as my right leg – a humongous charlie-horse feeling! This was through my pants, biker shorts and my long knee brace socks. The pain continued to intensify on top of the nerves and anxiety being in full force. I tried my best to relax, but my dog, Dara, wanted to play, not understanding Daddy was hurting! LOL

Finally, I gear back up and head to the starting grid. Same mental issues are in play in addition to the pain in my leg, hand and shoulder. I get to the grid and I'm trying to just keep to myself. I'm not talking, laughing or interacting with others as I try not to move the left side of my body or throw up. Scott comes by to check on me and offers to start me. Scott does a great job and gets me off to the holeshot!

The great thing about 10 seconds AFTER the start is all my mental issues go away once I'm on the bike and racing. No nerves, no upset stomach and thankfully no bathroom needs! LOL I'm leading but I can feel the heat from Joe and I see Walter not far behind.

Last lap... My body was screaming at me to back it down but I willed myself through the pain. I maintained the lead until we came to the endurocross section again. Should I risk it or take the safe route (since I'm not sure how far behind me they are)? I see the checkered flag and choose the easy route. That was a mistake as both Walter and Joe beat me to the scoring chicane! At some point, Walter got around Joe. So, we finished Walter, Joe and me. I was able to secure the title with Walter and Joe getting 2nd and 3rd for the season.

I am more proud of this race finishing in 3rd than any race of my life. To overcome the nerves, the injuries sustained in practice and to ride as hard as my body would allow is something I'll never forget. As some may have noticed, my jersey pays tribute to my parents. I lost my Mother, my dog Candi and then my Father in a 13 month span. Prior to their passing, caring for them kept me out of racing for over 2 seasons and this is only the second season since 2014 that I was able to complete an entire series.

Finally, most know I always GoPro my races and this was the race of a lifetime for me. So, you can imagine my disappointment that my mount failed and I had to deal with the GoPro swinging around on the lanyard beating me up the entire race! I don't have a video to remember anything more than the start, but the memory will leave me fulfilled. Just thought I'd share...