Dirksen Derby: Day 2

When it comes to a banked slalom competition, the worst possible turn of events after a day of pounding rain would be a massive temperature drop. The mushy berms would turn to solid ice, and on a course such as the one for this year’s Dirksen Derby, fly outs and tree collisions would be a given. This is a fun event for a good cause though, so even that bitch Mother Nature, who taunted the event with some of the worst possible weather on the first day, decided to cooperate, and that didn’t happen!

On December 12, things were warm and slushy and sun the even came out towards the end of the day at Mt. Bachelor. Of course, certain competitors (ahem, Jake Price) still managed to hit the trees, but that was more a matter of how aggressive they were getting. The divisions for day two included the token skiers, the elites (consisting of riders who’d previously placed in the top slots) and the men ages 14-49 (one division, a whole lotta’ dudes.) As with day one, each rider a one run through each course and then as a bonus got an optional “Mulligan” where they could try to best one of their times. The catch was, no one was told what those times were, so there was a chance you could actually make your time worse.

In short, people went fast, turned left and right, and ate Chowder from the Parilla Grill between runs. The smiles were plentiful, the course was fun, and a good time was had by all. When the final times were tabulated, Austin Smith came in with the fastest time of 53.46. That would have bested the “elites” too, but as Austin’s only previous Derby appearance was on a sit ski, he was not qualified for that division. However, his time topped Elite champ Curtis Ciszek by almost a full second. In addition to his golden glove and goodie pack, Austin was also treated to a rousing round of Happy Birthday at the awards (in honor of the fact it is his in two days.)

The Dirksen Derby is the best. While winning is awesome, just being there, putting a smile on Tyler Eklund’s face, and drinking beers from a keg in the parking lot is what it’s really about. Personally, I can’t think of a better kick off to the best season ever.

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Mens

1. Austin Smith 53.46
2. Allister Schultz 55.46
3. Ryland Bell 55.71
4. Logan Beaulieu 55.82

Elites

1. Curtis Ciszek 54.31
2. Jake Price 54.60
3. Adam Haynes 55.31
4. Bryan Fox 55.35
5. Brandon Luzier 56.44
5. Travis Yamada 57.35
6. Jason McAlister 101.94

Token Skier

1. Rex Shepard
2. Lucas Wachs
3. Hames Ellerbe