"The Night Pig"

Known for it's professionally cut trails and glow in the dark reflective arrows, "The Night Pig" race attracts all sorts of riders from near and far.  Looking around the riders' meeting is like looking around at a field full of aliens.  Cyclops lights, brightly colored gear, and bikes strewn with glow sticks makes for quite a sight!  At 8:00 pm sharp we all set out to try to familiarize ourselves with the 10km course before total darkenss set in.  I had an excellent start and took the holeshot out of the first corner to spread my lead out over the first 2 laps.  I stopped after my first lap to have Stephen's Dad turn my helmet lights on for me. Stephen's parents help out at most of the races and run a tight ship when it comes to their pit stops!  Shortly after the start of my third lap I was hanging onto my lead when I suddenly heard a death rattle coming from my bike!  I stopped immediately and began inspecting everything.  My bike wouldn't roll forward, so I thought maybe something was stuck around my disc or brake pads.  After peering in every nook and cranny with my helmet light I finally spotted the problem.  A rock had lodged itself inside my countershaft guard and refused to budge!  Luckily I carry tools with me, so after a short minute I had the guard off, rock jetisoned, and the guard back on.  The approximate 5 minutes it took me to resolve the death rattle allowed 2nd and 3rd place to sneak by me.  The remainder of the race went well with a nice combination of tight woods sections and faster skidders all cleared out perfectly to accomodate the night vision issues.  After 7 laps equaling 70 km's in total, I finished the race with a podium finish in 3rd place.  I slipped into bed just after midnight.  My carpal tunnel attacked me with a fury and made for a long night. The sun rose early and those of us who battled it out during the night race may have had a little more trouble than usual prying ourselves out of bed to face another day of racing!