By Rob Lichtenwalner

Sunday, June 15th was the Stoopid 50 Mountain Bike Marathon, near State College, Pa. I and three of my visitPA.com teammates were looking clean on the scene as the race kicked off at 9 a.m. Since it was hot and looked to be a long day, it seemed like a fine event to try our new Deuter Hydration Packs. Matter of fact, mine was filled with 75 oz. of liquid, and the weight was distributed so well I barely knew it was there.

As the race went off, the leaders made it feel like your ordinary length XC race, setting a wicked fast pace. Among the top 20 at the start were visitPA.com's Mike H, Flyin' Ryan, Michelle S, and me (Rob L).

The hotter temps and humidity soon kicked in. Early on, Flyin' Ryan broke a brake lever. After doing a repair with some duct tape, a stick, some berries, and a feather, he was back on track and began to pick off racers one by one. Hebe was rocking an easy top 10, but he suffered a slashed tire; he said he saw a groundhog coming after him with a knife and luckily only got his tire. Big bummer for Hebe since the slash was too big for an on-site repair. Michelle had a problem-free event with an awesome time of about 5:45---always finishing with a smile, like it was nothing. She took home the big win for visitPA.com, dominating the women's division and, of course, beating probably more than half the men. I was back and forth at 5th and 6th place until teammate Ryan caught up to me and showed me how riding State College trails is done. The two of us eventually caught up to TJ and Martin (aka Superfly) and overtook 3rd and 4th. It was a real good time riding and finishing together, even though he shot me down when I wanted to cross the line holding hands. Maybe next time.

Thanks to our sponsors who make this all possible:

• visitPA.com
• Cannondale Bicycles
• Northwave footwear
• Rudy Project helmets and glasses
• Suunto
• Ergon
• Deuter Hydration Packs