Category: Competitions

Posted on

MTBO Camp – Middle Race

The weather improved dramatically overnight and we all enjoyed the fantastic coastal scenery on the hours drive out to the venue for the middle race. Some bemused scouts, gathering for their Saturday morning meeting, soon got used to the 150 mountain bikes tearing around, warming up, and making sure bikes still worked after the sand of the long race the day before.

I started well but lost about a minute on control 3 after taking an early track junction. It took me a while to get my flow again but I picked a much better route choice than most on the way to number 8, opting for the fast forest roads rather than the more direct route. I did this again on 9 and found I was pulling past riders normally much faster than me. I had a wobble coming out of 14 and ended up losing the track completely and thrashing around in the brashings before breaking out onto a major track and relocating.

I had the last couple of controls on a bit of the map flapping away to the side of the mapboard in mid air as it was too big, but having such a good ride I didn’t want to lose time to refolding, instead however I lost 40 seconds or so after missing a track junction on number 17. I gave it all for the line and felt I’d had one of my best races for a while, especially physically. Having passed a few ‘names’ in the forest I knew I’d done well, but I was particularly pleased with 20th, and a few minutes faster would have taken me up a few more places.

Poor fellow GB rider Alan Hartley had a  bad day at the office, following a coming together between his rear mech and a big stick early on. Unfortunately this ended with him in singlespeed mode for the majority of the course but fair play for getting stuck in and finishing it, just a shame he coudnt get it to work on the middle ring.  I think he might need some sponsorship from http://www.onefgear.co.uk !

Posted on

MTBO Camp – Long race

Wind and sand, in fact so much a land yacht would have been more useful than a mountain bike. Stopped at the traffic lights even the minibus was being blown forwards by the powerful gusts, and after parking it was like being in sand blasting booth.

The morning was spent training for the long distance race in the afternoon. We all cut it short, worn down by the sandy conditions and vicious winds, and escaped to McDonalds, the only warm ‘cafe’ we could find for lunch.

Following a well earned McFlurry I felt ready for anything lining up for the start of the long race, which was only 15km due to the sandy conditions. I started at a run on a horrible, sandy track, but got going onto the better tracks and felt I rode really well. I struggled slightly with the map on number 3, the tracks seemingly not joining up as indicated but I soon relocated and was then joined by GB newbie, Dan Mathers, for a few controls. Luckily he was there to see me nail probably the best bunny hop I’ve done in years, over a log, which but a big smile on my face. The riding in the first part of the course was excellent with lots of technical single tracks (even if the map was a little ropey) and we were sheltered from the wind.

I lost about a minute or so on the way in to 10 in the complex path network but got a good clean route somehow to 11 where I caught Alan. We both slithered our way down a very steep sandy ride before the long leg across the map and the turn for home and back into the wind. I made a silly mistake taking an unmarked track on the second last, and Alan pulled back ahead. Punching the final control I took a risky route choice down a sandy track rather than out and round the road which was a mistake as the going was really tough, but throughout the course you won some and lost some to the unpredictable sandy ridability.

I felt fairly pleased with the race, feeling much better, my cold pretty much nearly gone. I was even more pleased to see the results – 25th, mid-table, top Brit and 16 mins down.

Posted on

MTBO Camp Night race

It was a bit of a shock to the system after a mornings training and an afternoon sprint race to be donning smelly cycling kit to go out after our evening meal for the longest race of the day, a night middle distance race.

Even more of a shock was the provision of a colour photocopied 1:15 thou map not 1:10 as advertised on the start line which we all really struggled to read, particularly the brown roads which were invisible. Although there was practically no climb the stiff breeze and sandy conditions on many of the tracks made the going very hard at times.

I rode fairly cleanly, just stopping to much and just wobbled on a couple of controls, struggling to read the detail on the map but it was my legs that were the problem tonight. Not so much sore, but just very tired which made my navigation even more careful. I was really hungry all the way round, and my slow pace made it worse the longer I was out. I’m not sure if it is a hangover from being ill, or doing too much in the day as I certainly felt I had eaten enough.

The course snaked its way round the plantations of this army training area and included off track riding on some solid yellow areas and some intensive navigation in the dense forest blocks.

Turning for home after number 27 was a relief with the wind behind me for just a short while and I was glad to finish feeling completely drained. Rather than going to bed straight away, a few of us treated ourselves to post race analysis with a well deserved beer in the officers mess which went down very well.

Posted on

MTBO Camp – Ultra Sprint

The venue for the ultrasprint was Krabbesholm, a forested slope in Skive itself. The 1:7500 map had a dense network of tracks and was ideal for a sprint.

Still feeling a little grim sorting the bike out, I perked up whilst warming up and started well up the first hill. I missed the first track junction and didn’t see the second under the red line so doubled back, losing 20 seconds or so, and I didn’t see the better route choice round to the north which would have given a faster in and out. I rode the middle part of the course well, but made a mistake at 9 going up an unmarked track that many took, losing about 45 seconds. I was a good boy and came back out to the road rather than cutting across (in Denmark you have to stick to the tracks), but I was still reprimanded by an irate W50 local. It seemed unfair when most people just cut across the forest to the control instead. I lost another 20 secondss on 10, too, taking the wrong track until I picked it up on the compass.

Other than overshooting another track junction, skidding past it on a descent, I rode the rest cleanly and razzed the finish, flying down the steps.

I really struggled on the hills generally, not feeling strong at all, my cold taking its toll and the splits show it.

The rest of the British Team struggled a little with mechanicals but Chris BB had a fantastic ride to take 22nd place. The winner Eric won by 1.30 an awesome performance.

Posted on

Danish International MTBO Training camp – SKIVE

It was with trepidation that we queued for check in at the BA desk in Manchester as fellow team mate Chris BB was led away by two officials following a scan of his bike bag. In the end the rest of us checked in fine (although you never know what small print in the baggage allowances you may have missed for the bikes, which always brings worries of extra charges at the airport). We then decided that having a coffee was a better way to kill time, while waiting for him to have the rubber glove treatment, than worry about where he had been taken.

Thirty minutes later, a sheepish Chris returned with an official bit of paper saying his gas cartridges were actually OK and it was only his bike that had had an intimate examination!

Our plane today was dinky, a Dornia with only room for 30 passangers, my hand luggage only just fitting in the overhead lockers.

The GB team for this years training camp is much bigger, with lots of new faces all going out to gain valuable international experience in 4 days of intensive mountain bike orienteering.

Joining the already experienced Emily Benham and Chris Brand Barker are Dan Mathers, Mark Mc Phillips, Alan Hartley and Steph Fountain, oh, and me….

Staying in an Army barracks in Skive in Northern Denmark, we will be racing and training in the various MTBO distance formats, plus some special training exercises to concentrate the mind on various techniques. We even have a middle distance race at night which will be fun.

http://www.mtbocamp2011.dk/

Posted on

D&W Winter League Success.

The Dark and White Winter Mountain Bike Orienteering Series league results for 2010/11 have now been announced. After 5 years competing in D&W events I have finally had a good consistent season and am really chuffed with 2nd in class and 3rd overall behind Darren Alexander and Killian Lomas. Over 350 competitors have ridden in the six 3 hour events throughout the Peak District this winter, with conditions ranging from sunshine to snow and freezing temperatures. As always the Dark and White team have provided good quality challenging events with a friendly atmosphere, suitable for all levels of fitness and ability. It was particularly good this year to see so many female entrants.

I was worried as I missed a round before xmas through illness and also missed the last round as I was skiing that I would not have any leeway with the scoring, it being the best 4 scores from 6 to count. This was compounded by the fact that 8 people cleared the course, therefore being placed 1st equal, on the round I missed before xmas putting me at a disadvantage.

I really feel that the concentration on strength training this winter, particularly on the hills is what has brought me this result and puts me in a great position going forward into the international season starting in April.

Thanks too to Dark and Whites Sponsors, I wonder if anything might turn up in the post soon 🙂

http://www.darkandwhite.co.uk/results/d&wwinterleaguefinaltable1011.xls