Skedaddle Spring Series cross country races and Ben, my 14 year old son fancied having a go, so we both planned a day of racing. Unfortunately with the clocks going forward we ended up rushing out of the house and in my haste I left my bike shoes at home, I also neglected to check the race worthiness of my bike having not been on it for a few weeks. Without my shoes and only in trainers I decided to enter the same race category as my son: the Fun category comprising just 2 laps instead one of the 3 lap more serious categories. The course was in great condition, a slightly damp surface on a firm base and the route was surprisingly hilly with a combination of longer gradual climbs and short steep hills. The downhill was quite technical with winding single-track to follow; not the ideal terrain for riding without being clipped in to the pedals. I bounced around the bike on the descents and having discovered soon after race start that my bike wouldn’t drop into the smaller gear set I couldn’t get any control on the damp root laden climbs; so I opted out of trying to get a fast time and waited for Ben then we cycled the route together. All in all a nice race in which to participate and Ben is now keen to enter round 5 in three weeks time. I am always impressed with the size and quality of the racing field at these events, having come from Mountain Biking in the Alps I have always had the impression that I am a proficient Mountain Biker but I generally fair pretty poorly at these events coming in the bottom 30%. I shall see how I get on during the Enduro in May as I have a few years of results to compare should be able to see if my l’etape training has helped my MTB bike fitness and endurance.
Monday, 30 March 2009
More Haste Less Speed
There are a number of mountain bike races organised throughout the year by a bike club called Gorrick. The club is based in Swinley Forest in the Crown Estate and they do a great job in maintaining the trails there, the routes are in great condition and are generally unaffected by bad weather. The club also runs the Gorrick Hundred Enduro Challenge which I try to enter in May every year. This weekend was round 4 of the Saddle 
Skedaddle Spring Series cross country races and Ben, my 14 year old son fancied having a go, so we both planned a day of racing. Unfortunately with the clocks going forward we ended up rushing out of the house and in my haste I left my bike shoes at home, I also neglected to check the race worthiness of my bike having not been on it for a few weeks. Without my shoes and only in trainers I decided to enter the same race category as my son: the Fun category comprising just 2 laps instead one of the 3 lap more serious categories. The course was in great condition, a slightly damp surface on a firm base and the route was surprisingly hilly with a combination of longer gradual climbs and short steep hills. The downhill was quite technical with winding single-track to follow; not the ideal terrain for riding without being clipped in to the pedals. I bounced around the bike on the descents and having discovered soon after race start that my bike wouldn’t drop into the smaller gear set I couldn’t get any control on the damp root laden climbs; so I opted out of trying to get a fast time and waited for Ben then we cycled the route together. All in all a nice race in which to participate and Ben is now keen to enter round 5 in three weeks time. I am always impressed with the size and quality of the racing field at these events, having come from Mountain Biking in the Alps I have always had the impression that I am a proficient Mountain Biker but I generally fair pretty poorly at these events coming in the bottom 30%. I shall see how I get on during the Enduro in May as I have a few years of results to compare should be able to see if my l’etape training has helped my MTB bike fitness and endurance.
Skedaddle Spring Series cross country races and Ben, my 14 year old son fancied having a go, so we both planned a day of racing. Unfortunately with the clocks going forward we ended up rushing out of the house and in my haste I left my bike shoes at home, I also neglected to check the race worthiness of my bike having not been on it for a few weeks. Without my shoes and only in trainers I decided to enter the same race category as my son: the Fun category comprising just 2 laps instead one of the 3 lap more serious categories. The course was in great condition, a slightly damp surface on a firm base and the route was surprisingly hilly with a combination of longer gradual climbs and short steep hills. The downhill was quite technical with winding single-track to follow; not the ideal terrain for riding without being clipped in to the pedals. I bounced around the bike on the descents and having discovered soon after race start that my bike wouldn’t drop into the smaller gear set I couldn’t get any control on the damp root laden climbs; so I opted out of trying to get a fast time and waited for Ben then we cycled the route together. All in all a nice race in which to participate and Ben is now keen to enter round 5 in three weeks time. I am always impressed with the size and quality of the racing field at these events, having come from Mountain Biking in the Alps I have always had the impression that I am a proficient Mountain Biker but I generally fair pretty poorly at these events coming in the bottom 30%. I shall see how I get on during the Enduro in May as I have a few years of results to compare should be able to see if my l’etape training has helped my MTB bike fitness and endurance.
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