By Northampton Cycling Club
Published 10/04/2022; Updated 10/04/2022

Henri Dumont, age 11, reports on his Ghost CX experience.

This weekend was the Ghosts Cyclocross Race in Amherst. The day started off cooler than expected and remained pretty cold. When I arrived, I was greeted by many people including my friends from Trail Blasters, Jasper and Günther. At the NCC tent, there were munchkins for sharing and a kids course to warm up on (thanks Tom H!).

Inconveniently, I got a pinch flat, where my tube, in my tire, popped. I was very concerned that I would not be able to race. Luckily, Doug B. came to help and was able to take off the tire (after we tried, many times), and a nice man (thanks Tony!) let us borrow a patch kit which saved the day. After my dad patched the tire, Tom H. helped put the tire back on.

When it was my group’s turn to race, I was cheered on by so many kind people, some I knew, and some I didn’t. I raced the Juniors 9-12 group with about 8 racers. I saw a couple familiar faces from the cyclocross community as I raced against them at Hydra Cross and Treehouse.

The course was just about 2 miles. Because I had a flat, I didn’t have a chance to pre-ride the course so I had to race without really knowing it. There was a nice down hill start, followed by a bunch of climbing and a small drop. I slid out at the “spicy corner” which unfortunately allowed a racer to pass me. I stayed close and crossed the line in second place.

 

 

I was also really happy to cheer on my younger brothers who raced in the Juniors 6-8 group (and they did great!).

In the end, everyone was so nice and kind, and it was just a really fun event. The cyclocross series has been so much fun and I can’t wait for next year.

 

 

Tags:

2 responses to “NCC Junior Member’s Experience at Ghost CX”

  1. Jonathan O'Keeffe says:

    Awesome race report Henri! Getting a flat right before a race really disrupts your pre-race routine, and ratchets up the anxiety level.
    You did a great job to work through it. Congratulations on the podium finish!

  2. Melissa Warwick says:

    Great write-up Henri! It was awesome to see you out there. Sorry to hear about your flat!