This certainly isn't dust bowl country.

Leaving the predictable weather of sunny San Diego behind on Wednesday, April, 11th I pointed the truck and trailer North towards Monterey, California for the famed Sea Otter Classic. As I pulled out of the office I knew I had a long day of driving ahead of me starting with the Los Angeles freeway/parking lot system. Sure enough I was in traffic in about an hours time, but I put the iPod on random and succumbed to things beyond my control. John Carpenter's "Escape from L.A." dominates my thoughts.
With L.A. staring at my taillights things were looking up. Northwest of Bakersfield I merged onto Highway 46 and headed West through oil fields, crop fields, and the intersection where James Dean lost his life. Ghost towns littered the drive and conjured up images of bustling farming communities and trucks loaded with fresh produce. I finally hit the 101 and knew I was getting close. I hit Monterey at about 9:45 and went straight to bed, Thursday would bring a lot of work.
Laguna Seca Raceway is the stage for the Sea Otter Classic, it's an amazing raceway nestled in the mountains above Monterey Bay -- very cool. The vendor expo has become somewhat of an early trade show for the cycling industry and attracts company heads and media galore. Gary Fisher was even kind enough to stop by the NiteRider booth to chat about upcoming projects. I must admit it was pretty cool to see the pro riders and industry heads walking around the vendor expo amongst your everyday cycling enthusiast. Sea Otter is a must-see event for any cycling fan!
Saturday's forecast was rain. Of course. Last year at Sea Otter rains mired the festival and turned it into a mud-fest, our minds shuddered at the thought of a repeat. As expected the rains came and they came hard. It poured for about an hour soaking the festival grounds and sending festival-goers scrambling for someplace dry. Some of the vendors were unlucky enough to have been issued an area in a flood plain, floating some items at the Syncros booth. The NiteRider trailer was a nice dry oasis amongst a rain-soaked tent city, I was happy to be where I was. We had a great view of the dual slalom course which even at the rains loudest roar was packed with fans until they postponed the races. Dedication at it's finest. John Steinbeck lived just miles from here and it really makes one understand the story of The Grapes of Wrath; The Joad's packing up everything and leaving the Oklahoma dust bowl behind for a place where crops and people prosper. These certainly were crop drenching rains.
Sunday was the final day of the festival and
a welcome sunny day, windy but sunny. The previously muddy expo was baked dry before noon and packed with fans even sooner. It was a fun and busy weekend and I highly recommend the Sea Otter Classic to anyone whether you're a fan of BMX, Road, Mountain Biking, or just rain.