Another Dam Race Parker, AZ - Feb. 26, 2000

The first skate race was a 30-minute criterium. Each lap of the camp- ground road loop was about 1 1/4 miles. Shortly after the start, Dana Bergman and Stan Bunn took off on a flyer. The rest of the pack was content in letting them go, so their gap only increased for the rest of the race. Down to the wire, Dana attempted to break away from Stan on the back stretch. But with the headwind, Stan managed to draft while Dana tired himself out, and sprinted past Dana for the win.

Many of SDSE's members were away at the Tahiti races. But SDSE was still represented at Parker. Brandon Thorsten finished 6th, quite impressive for not having been able to train much recently. Andy Pele suffered from an equipment problem (his front wheel flew off) and was forced to retire early.

The second race was a 1750m sprint for masters competitors only. Since Brandon and Andy weren't anywhere close to this age category, we were not present for this race.

The last race of the day was a Last Man Out. To reduce the running time because of the long laps and number of competitors, the last 2 skaters across the line each lap were removed until the final 4 who sprinted to final placements. This time the pack stuck together throughout the entire race. Stan Bunn was once again the winner. However, a difference of interpretation in the scoring rules between the judge and the event organizer led to a confusing dispute of the remaining results.

The skate races were very disorganized, and with many skaters having expected so, partially explained their absence. Very unfortunate, since this was unlike the cycling events that weekend.

Next year the organizer of Another Dam Race will take back control of the production of the skate races again. SDSE and AISA have accepted his request to serve as advisors. We truly believe that the venue is excellent and plan to make the 2001 event the best. We promise! Look for information in the upcoming months and plan to attend next year.

Howard
SDSE-IR