The plane, for a change, held few, if any screaming toddlers. Having received very little sleep the previous eve, I looked forward to napping on the bird. It worked. I blacked out before we were in the air and woke up in a different place, Reno, Nevada. An odd place to say the least. A sea of neon strip malls juxtaposed within the setting of the immense Sierra Nevada Mountains. National jackpots or national treasures?

Why head to the casino when you can get good action in the airport? Every grandma in Reno was pulling slots at 8am. Why play bridge when you can rip apart a one-arm bandit for two bits? Yikes.

Hertz lost the reservation. Our man Riley at the front desk gave us a Subey wagon for the corporate rate anyway. Our Subey carried us to Carson City, where a "got beer?"' sign at a joint called Smitty J's told us that it was time for breakfast. Smitty J's took almost an hour to serve us bad coffee and good omelettes, maintaining that it was the fault of the 20-plus seniors one table over. Thankful to be out the door, we continued south on legendary highway 395, gawking at the incredible mountains and immense lakes as we rolled into California and then Mammoth Lakes Resorts.

Arriving at the Alpine Lodge, we checked into our cabin and immediately traveled back to the Eisenhower era. Real wood paneling, old gas stoves, and a hand crank on the phone system spelled trouble for this tech team, but then, nothing ever goes the way you think it will on a cybercast.

The receptionist charged us half the going rate because she liked Lucas' pretty smile. She didn't mention the Mammoth-sized rats that run the floorboards all night, leaving you hugging your pillow, hoping they don't crawl into bed with you.

Such are the incongruities of cybercasting. And there is only one answer — go large. Drink, write, shoot pics, drink, talk, record, drink. Forget sleep. File transfer protocol, servers, teams, tents, trucks, rides, races, bikes, bettys, Yetis, Bombers, Aussies, and Kamikazes...both kinds. Go large, young man...Mammoth-large.

Mammoth is not a direct reference to size, but rather a reference to scale. The Mammoth scale. Mammoth is about going large, on everything.

Mammoth is the NCS season closer, the finals. Mammoth has the same events as every other NCS national, and it also has the observed trials, the hill climb, and an extra downhill comp. Because it can. Mammoth has a giant statue....of a mammoth. It is the season-ending final, and holds serious sway in the collective subconscious of the industry. Everyone looks forward to Mammoth, and everyone pencils it in. Other events are skipped to prepare for Mammoth. Marla Streb is bungee-ing her bad leg to her pedal for the Kamikaze. Mammoth is serious and so is Streb.

All of the members of this year's US Olympic Mountain Bike Team are here: Alison Dunlap, Ruthie Matthes, Ann Trombley, Tinker Juarez, and Travis Brown are all scheduled to compete in Friday's cross-country. Some may also race in Saturday's short track cross-country.

Keeping with the "go large" dictum, Mammoth has also enticed several international Olympians to race this weekend. Aussie Mary Grigson will swing by, as will Russian Pavel Tcherkassov, and Argentinian Jimena Florit. Good practice for the XC in Sydney.

Steve Larsen will also be on hand to mix it up as he is the current points leader for the cross-country.

In the dual slalom, Cheri Elliot hopes to unseat Katrina Miller, and Eric Carter and Brian Lopes will be going head to head. Carter is also looking to take the overall points lead for the stars and stripes in the Visa Velocity Downhill, and the women's race, between Elke Brutsaert and Missy Giove, promises to be spectacular. Everyone goes big for the national title.

Mammoth is also something more than going large for the jersey. When asked about plans for Mammoth, the big one, instead of sweating it, almost everyone lights up and says something to the effect of "I'm really looking forward to Mammoth. It's going to be so much fun!"

Mammoth, you see, home to the oldest downhill event in mountain bike racing, knows how to go large on the soul. Mammoth has the best parties, the best courses, and has the best feel of any of this year's Norba National Championship Series races. And there is only one way to properly cover an event of this scale.

Go large, young man.

— Michael Wolfson, going large for MountainZone.com