2025 Southridge Winter Series, XC Race #1

 Here I thought today was to be a day of respite from those Banshee winds that have screamed death and destruction from one side of Los Angeles to another. At first it was that way, barely a breeze to raise the flag from its mast but then, and quite suddenly as frequently happens on those hills below the funnel of Cajon Pass, those winds swept in and, in the words of one racer, "they changed everything."

The first race weekend of the 2025 Southridge Winter Series got underway on a Saturday morning that most people would be hard pressed to consider anything other than perfect, and though evidence of recent fire on the hillsides across which the trail wound where widespread, the evidence of the fires currently ravaging other areas of the great metro basin were but a brown smoky haze on the distant western horizon.

What else did I hear up on the heights? "I forgot just how tough this course is!" from the lone woman competitor I saw, and that was before the wind started blowing stuff around. Tough, challenging - two words to describe what Southridge has always been, and always will be. That never changes. One thing has changed this year though, the start / finish of the cross country (XC) race has moved. Gone is the parking and registration area, and open overflow area where racers would camp out for the weekend, buried beneath tons of rough graded dirt; as a result the race starts off a bit higher up, meaning just that much...

dang it, just ran my fingers through my hair and found another rock - windy? Yes!

anyway, as I was saying, just that much less climb each lap. Of course, that bit of climb is not "The CLIMB," (you know what I mean) perhaps making for only small consolation. 

But what about the racing? Well, see that rider from the Cyclery leading the bunch up the first piece of rough climb in the photo below?

From this point forward for the next three laps, the race was completely his to dominate. Make no mistake, there is no disrespect to the others in that; I am sure some of the others were cranking around quality times for their respective categories, but...  wow. Fast. As you may know, there are five more races in the series, every other weekend through March. If you think you are ready for a challenge, rocky, windy Southridge may be the place for you. 

alive on one side of this ridge...

a blackened moonscape on the other

when you have a commanding lead after one+ laps, it is easy to smile

riders from Bear Valley Bikes have long been in the hunt at Southridge

Of course there is a lot going on in our local world right now, stuff that makes a mountain bike race seem infinitely less significant, so stay safe everyone, and i will see you in two weeks. Until then there are more photos in this album.