Race Report: 2026 CCCX MTB Series #3 XCO - Men’s Cat 1/Expert
Race: 2026 CCCX MTB Series #3 XCO - Men’s Cat 1/Expert Age 19-39
Date: February 1, 2026
AVRT racers: Michael Matthews
Top Result: Men’s Cat 1/Expert Age 19-39 1st/9 (Men’s Cat 1/Expert Overall ~13th/60).
Course: Fort Ord is the venue again this year for the 3CX (CCCX) race series. The race was a traditional format MTB XCO race with a 4.6-mile loop. Per lap elevation gain was 450 ft. The course was mostly singletrack. The expert field did five full laps. Dry, sunny and crisp cool temps made for perfect racing weather. The features of a full lap included a few pitchy little climbs, flowy single track (going up some of the downs from Race #1), two longer dragging climbs, some loose sandy and some packed corners, and a few nice straight sections that you could hammer. Beach day!
Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/17255024073
Nutrition: Normal breakfast, banana, Clif bar and ~100g of carbs in a bottle for race nutrition.
Event Recap: Not in the callups list because I am not going for a series result. Pro and <19 boys/girls started a few seconds ahead. Good jump and got into a small group of three from my age category by the end of the first climb. We steadily passed slower <19 boys/girls. Once we hit the second climb, teenage fitness took off and I lost the lead rider of my group. Over the course of lap 1.5 to 2.5 I caught onto the group of the escaped lead rider. We formed a group of five riders from two fields. At the start of lap 3 I attacked the group and stayed away for about another half lap before getting caught. Five were back together and two others joined for a group of seven. In the first two climbs of lap 4 I put a steady pressure on the group in the climbs and dropped all but two others. In a group of three (none from my age category), I started cramping and needed to ease off and manage to finish. I had made the winning move and just needed to hold on. I managed the cramping through to the finish for the win! This felt like a real mountain bike race with group dynamics. It was super fun (and hard)!
