Dan McGimpsey regularly runs about 40 miles or more a week, but that didn't necessarily mean he was prepared to race on a mountain bike from Hovander Homestead Park, near Ferndale, to Bellingham's waterfront Sunday.

"I rode it for about three minutes yesterday, so that was my training," said the 25-year-old man from Olympia. Not only had he never ridden the course, but he had to borrow a bike from the captain of his team, Super Doopers.

He's been in smaller competitions, like Yakima's Gap2Gap relay, but Ski to Sea was the first race of this magnitude for him.

"Right now, I'm definitely a little shaky getting ready to get on this thing," he said, kneeling in the grass next to the bike. "I have no idea where I'm going. They say there's cones and volunteers, so I'm going to have my eyes peeled, for sure."

WIPED OUT

Brad Hendrickson, 28, had two goals: ride his mountain bike as fast as possible and don't wreck.

"I didn't do well in either," said Hendrickson, a Birch Bay resident from team Beaver Meet Service. As he crossed under a bridge approaching Squalicum Harbor, Hendrickson had to bicycle on top of loose bark and took a nose-dive over his handlebars.

He wasn't hurt, but the spill cost the team precious seconds. Hendrickson, who said he bikes 15 to 20 miles to work about four days a week, didn't let the wreck ruin his day of racing.

Instead, he focused on the breezy but beautiful weather.

"This has been the nicest Ski to Sea yet – aside from the wind," Hendrickson said.

PIECE OF CAKE

Nine miles of mountain biking was nothing for Scott Young, who's used to more difficult endurance challenges.

Young, of team Callen Construction Road Graders, said he normally competes in adventure racing – 24 hours of racing where each participant competes in every portion of the race.

Young, 44, crossed the finish line with a bloody left arm after taking a spill into some thorn bushes. But he looks forward to competing in Ski to Sea next year, either as a mountain biker or kayaker.

Originally from sunny southern California, Young said he recently moved to Bellingham because it offers more of the outdoor activities he enjoys.

"Paddling, kayaking – it's all here," Young said. "It's a real cool town."

'NO PRESSURE'

Desiree Casson-Wald has never competed in the Ski to Sea race before, but that didn’t make her nervous. Resting on the grass with her head propped on her bike seat, she read an Organic Gardening magazine.

"Why get nervous?" she asked. The Bellingham resident and speech and language specialist for Bellingham School District wasn't looking to wallop the competition. It''s "just totally for fun. No pressure," she said.

She and her friends decided to compete while having drinks at Nimbus, she said, hence the team name: For Giggles … and a drink wouldn't hurt! She took the mountain bike leg because "this was probably the least worst of the options," she said.

At about 12:45 p.m., she got a call from a teammate who was supposed to do the canoe leg. Because of the cancellation, they were having a "sad party," she was told.

CARBS AND BEER

Carly Stump came from Maryland to visit relatives in Bellingham and ride the mountain bike leg in Ski to Sea. She runs 15 to 20 miles a week, but she rarely bikes, she said, leaving her a little nervous before her leg.

The first and last time she competed in the mountain bike leg at Ski to Sea was in 2004.

One of her favorite parts? Having a carbohydrate party of pasta and beer with other competitors from Better Late than Never.

"It's a good excuse to get together, drink some beer," she said.

Last year, she took 66th in her division with a time of 45 minutes and 23 seconds.

"I just want to beat my time I got last time," she said. "Try to not let to many people pass me."

A RACE AND A WEDDING

A nine-mile mountain bike race on Sunday. A wedding on Friday.

That's what 23-year-old Kevin Spees was facing Sunday afternoon, as mountain bikers exploding off the starting line rode by in small groups.

"These people are riding much faster than I will," he said, as three bicyclists raced by.

The Washington State University graduate didn’t really train before Ski to Sea, although he did start riding his bike from his home to the Home Depot where he worked in north Spokane until he quit a week ago, he said.

Last year, his bike's brake was rubbing against the wheel as he competed, a problem he fixed for this year.

He got started because his older brother, 25-year-old RJ Spees, started a team. This year, RJ, who named the team Bringing Sexy Back, returned briefly from military service in Afghanistan to attend his brother's wedding and to compete in the canoe leg, which was cancelled because of dangerous river conditions.