Macky Franklin Blog: Breck Epic Stage 4

Today was a good day for me. I felt strong (if a bit light-headed from riding hard) and took back the lead in the SSSRWC (Single Speed Stage Race World Championships) race. After riding together for an hour or so, I got a bit of a gap on Brady and on the dirt road after Aid Station 2, put the hammer down and rode myself into 4th place overall for the stage. Unfortunately, while descending the screaming-fast-and-super-fun descent between Aid Stations 2 and 3 (sorry, can't remember the trail name) I noticed a hard right-hand switchback too late and when I hit my brakes the bike slid out from under me and I crashed. Fortunately I only suffered some dirt rash and was able to finish up the stage around 8 minutes ahead of Brady to give myself a 4-minute lead in the overall. Two days left, now I just need to maintain the lead (and stop having crashes and mechanicals)!

Pre-race

Post-race (while cleaning out my road rash)