Fuego XL - Specialized
Fuego XL 70 miles in Monterey, CA
Sea Otter Classic Race
EDGE Hydro Fuel watermelon & cherry
Haribo Gummy Candy
Never Second Gels
Fuel
Helmet - Lazer
Bike - Specialized
Kit - Big Wheel Coaching
Bag- ALMSTHRE
Gear
Sea Otter Classic
Monterey, CA - Laguna Seca Race Track
Staying at Seat Otter Classic
This year we camped in corral B. This site is located just to the left as you come in the main gate. It was a short 2 minute drive from the camp ground to the media center parking lot. I do want to say that every single camping staff, parking lot attendant, and lifetime team member was so kind and extremely helpful! Okay back to camping, we came 3 days early and we camped in spot 78. This spot overlooks the event space, you can climb the little hill and just sit in your chair and watch you kids charge the grassy knolls while the Sea Otter classic and all their vendors are loading up the lot with all the cycling goods ( this is what we did, it was amazing). The first day we were there though the Sea Otter Team had just began and the track was still home to race cars. We got to watch a few hours of them taking on the track before the bikes and that was totally rad! This spot 78 was reserved for the Sea Otter event but if you have the chance to swoop it up, do it. It's an amazing spot. It's huge, has a good amount of shade, located near the bathrooms, and the communal fire pit and community room.
After our time in spot 78 was over, we dumped the trailer at the free dump station just at the bottom of the corral b camping spots. Then made our way to our spot which was still in B. Our new spot was overlooking the long drive up the hill into the Laguna Seca Raceway and we could see the Porsche there which was so cool! The boys climbed trees, played with fiends, hit the jumps that the neighbors brought, roasted mallows, watched a projector movie, and howled at the sunset with conch shells with the rest of the camping community up there. It was the best! Friendly-friendly environment with tons of kids of all ages. One of our neighbors was Eric Porter the YouTube dad and pro Mtb biker! We really lucked out and are stoked to go back next year!
If you are looking for good camping make sure you are logged in and ready to book in July for the 2027 Sea Otter Classic!
The spot cost us $650 for the 4 nights and we added on a few nights at $51/per night through the Laguna Seca Raceway camping website.
Food at Sea Otter Classic
This year at Sea Otter we found tons of food. Not all of it was healthy by any means but it was good! We tried tacos, burritos, lots and lots of coffee, acai bowls, hydration drinks, french fries, pancakes, and so much more. I am going to have to do a post about the coffee because it was everywhere. There were booths giving away coffee and there were booths selling coffee, either way I'm here for a good coffee. My favorite was served by Rachel & Lachlan Morton at Pretty Great.
I think the boys favorite food was the tacos, they were simple and amazing. They easily all finished their lunch that day! My favorite was the Acai bowl from the acai boys. They have lots of topping options and they were all really great, plus they served it with a smile!
Since we were there a few days before the start of the expo we planned on cooking a lot. We made pasta, tacos, chicken rice bowls, breakfast burritos, and more. We did still make time to visit some of the local restaurants in Monterey and Carmel by the Sea. There was a Thai food place that was absolutely amazing! Then in Carmel by the Sea there was a place that served all different styles of artichokes, which we loved! You need to try them. I will list them here:
Pacific Thai Cuisines @ 663 Lighthouse Ave, Pacific Grove, CA92950
Pangaea on Ocean @ 5 NE Lincoln St, Carmel CA 93923
The Festivities & activities at Sea Otter
This year was a bit different than the last. Last year we visited the kids zone a lot. This year the boys and ourselves wanted to explore the expo more. We got to meet so many rad people by doing this. We found a few products that we really loved. I made an instagram post about the top 9 companies we would be proud to represent in 2026! I will list them on here too:
1. Pretty Great. (Instant coffee)
2. Redmond (Re-lyte hydration, they have natural and kids friendly products)
3. Prevelo ( Quality kids bikes)
4. Much-Off ( Bike cleaning solutions)
5. Ripped Jerky ( Beef Jerky but super bomb & they have a rad team)
6. Smith ( They make awesome helmets, glasses, and more)
7. ODI Grips (Grips for all sizes of bike)
8. ENVE (We don't have any of their products yet, but we did meet their amazing team Chris, The MOG squad, Alexey, and they are really genuine quality humans and I can really get being supporting real rad people)
9. Mountain Flow (Bottle company but they're making the bottles from plants)
10. Bike Tennessee (They were there sharing the new and improved trails in their state and we plan on coming to visit!)
Let's talk giveaways and swag..lets just say the boys came home with the following: 6 backpacks,3 pairs of grips, 200 stickers,9 pairs of socks, 9 shirts, 9 hats, 12 bells, 4 B&W cases, signed cards from pros, signed posters, a dog leash, so much mud-off supplies, 10 bags, 15 key chains, 14 koozies, 7 pins, 8 slap bracelets, 10 packs of water bottle cleaners, tons of snacks, 4 bandanas, and so much more. It was insane! We really need to pack a whole empty tote to bring it all back with us next year!
I had a plan to visit each booth and ask them " what does your company offer for kiddos?" but after a few stops I noticed this.. They make kids products but they didn't bring them to the expo. The problem with that for me was, why? This expo is full of parents with or without their kids. There is a specific day for families where kids get their parents into the expo free! So why? why are we as cycling companies putting the future of cycling on the back burner? This has to change. I am going to email Sea Otter and ask them to create a challenge for each of the companies involved in the event next year. "What does your company offer the next gen rider?" We want to know what's new and what's up and coming so we can get our kid's stoked about it. So that's my next goal. I hope to see all that these companies have to offer the littles in the industry in 2027!
As for entertainment the boys got invited by the Provelo team to sit inside the gates of the Air show. Which was the coolest thing as a momma! They got front row seats to the kids catching big air on their provelos. If you haven't heard of these bikes you need to check them out, they're quality kids bikes and some have amazing suspension! I took video and photos of them while they were launching and landing and let me tell you these kids are so impressive. Our boys were stoked and have now gained a whole new level of excitement for jumps. They can't wait to come back out next year and see them again!
Race day at Sea Otter Classic 2025
We woke up early on race day and got everyone locked and loaded and headed down in the van to the media center where we got free parking for the event thanks to our media pass. This was one of the very many perks of the media pass. I highly recommend applying if you've got the means to. Once we got down the hill and into the venue, we got some snacks and water from the media center and headed in for our day! Kevin rode down on his bike to get warmed up so all we had to do was meet him at the start!
It was packed down at the start, so many races were planned for the day and the energy was electric. Kevin go to the front of his corral, just like he wanted to. this was great because then the boys got to lay eyes on him as he took off from the start. We had a few friends racing all different categories so we made sure everyone was good to go, they had a fuel plan, and we help jackets for them if they need to get into their corrals. We cheered everyone on and they were on their way.
I set an alarm to check his strava at 1.5 hours. He was keeping a good pace so we ditched the expo and headed up the hill with the cooler backpack to feed him. We stood under the bridge for the feed, this gave us shade and good access to the track for an easy handoff. Once we were there we got comfortable. The boys got their lunch boxes and bells out. I got the cameras ready and we waited. It wasn't long before Brian McCulloch of Big Wheel Coaching ( Kevin's coach and our family friend) was flying down the hill to start his second lap. We grabbed a few photos of him as he high-fived the boys heading back up the hill. This man is such a genuinely great human, if you are looking for a topnotch coach please look into Big Wheel Coaching. Him and his wife really do a great job supporting their team of riders! Not long after that Kevin came flying down the hill to start his second lap. This means at this point he has completed 35 miles and has 35 miles to go! The hand off went smooth, the boys were stoked, and everyone got high-fives! High-fives are easily one of the best parts of the racing community. Look through those photos and tell me that high-fives don't make everyone supper happy! It's just a fact!
After we did our part feeding Kevin we headed back to the expo. At that point I lost one of the kids ( he flew down the hill on his bike and I was toting a giant cooler bag, there was no way I could keep up) . So I stayed put and sent one of his brothers to find him. This year we lost the kids like 3 times. It was just a mix of them being stoked to be there, them thinking they know where to go, and us giving them a little more space to explore on their own. It all worked out, we came home with the same amount of kids we showed up with!
A few hours later it was time to go to the finish and wait. The first person we saw come across the line was Coach Brian! We were stoked to see him get first in his category. Once he came through the finish we knew it wouldn't be too long for Kevin. So we waited at the end of the finish for him and then here he came. I am not playing with you when I say he was the fastest person sprinting to that finish that day. He was cookin' and smiling and cheering for us, while we cheered for him. It was a pretty epic moment. He got in a whole half hour faster than the year before. I don't remember what place he came in, but really that doesn't matter to me. He did it, and we all got to be there to witness it!
We can't wait to go back for the 2027 Sea Otter Classic!
Camping in Corral B
Last year we camped in "E" this year we booked camping in corral "B" and totally lucked out! We met some incredible humans and had the best week together. Every night they put the sun to sleep by their rendition of howling in the sky via a giant conch shell. By the time the weekend was over there were 4 conch shells and the sound echoed through the hills and brought easily 100 bystanders to celebrate the day together. We are throughly looking forward to more of that energy at the next Sea Otter Classic!
Race Info
The Sea Otter Classic Website & social media are both managed very well. They are functional and helpful in getting a pretty great perspective of the event! Can't wait to see you there next year. Stop & say hi to the fam!
Location
Laguna Seca Racetrack
1021 Monterey Salinas Highway, Salinas, CA 93908
Hot tips
-Good camping spots available to book starting July
-Bring winter & summer clothes
-Buy Sea Otter Classic Attire as soon as you get there so they have your size! They will run out!