^^^^^Dude^^^^^

Not to make you feel any worse, but you could have had my tickets. Once I had my credentials, I didn't need them.

It was quite an experience.

Two more things I didn't mention. When you took a position on the course where you couldn't see the rest of the course, it was an incredible sound to hear the crowd noise surge towards you as the racers, or as a favored racer such as any American, got nearer. And the crowd noise was loud and raucous.

There was a hill that spectators were trying to navigate that turned into a mud slide. There was almost as much cheering for people flying uncontrollably down on their butts as there was for the racers.

Most local racers sign up for the OVCX season late summer. I'm afraid you have to earn you palmares before you get to do an upper level race. I think any schmuck with a day license and a legal bike can do any of the open races, as long as you don't mind being pulled from the course for being DFL by the second lap.