I’ll admit to being nervous in the week leading up to the Mountain Mayhem 24hr race. However, this wasn’t because of the racing, it was the weather! After months of dry, dusty trails the forecast was for wind and rain.
I drove down with Ian on Friday afternoon and the first thing to hit me (after the drizzle) was just how big this event is – it’s HUGE! We drove past tent after tent before Ian identified the biggest marquee of all as the hub of the South Downs Bikes tented village.
Tim provided a warm welcome and Jayne a slap up pasta dinner. As the rain fell outside the mood was dampened further by news that Roger had fallen on a reconnaissance lap and broken his collar bone. This did mean slight reshuffling of the teams but we went to bed with full stomachs and eager to get started.
The race started at Midday with a 2.5km run which it seemed everyone was keen to avoid! Alex ran for our Vets team – mainly on the basis that he had trainers! Anyway he made a cracking start and we were soon up and running. The run gave us an opportunity to see the huge entry this race attracts from the Olympic athletes at the sharp end through to the guys dressed in Sumo outfits!
Showers came and went through the afternoon with the course changing dramatically every lap. Slippery decents, the blue-tac mud in the woods and the never ending slimey grass climb improved and then worsened again with every lap. Soon we headed into darkness but by then the rain had largely stopped. The handover area was filled with shouting as riders tried to identify their team mate in the dark. My fourth lap started at 3.30am so I raced into the hills to the sound of the dawn chorus and the welcome sunrise to warm the limbs as well as the spirits. The trails also began to dry and were almost bone dry by the end of the race.
In order to complete 6 laps each or 24 laps total we needed to keep lapping under the hour. We’d slipped during the night to almost half an hour outside this. However, in the morning lap times improved and Gary (Doddy) put in a brilliant lap that got us back within a minute or two of the hour. I knew then we had a chance and I gave everything on my next lap thinking it might be my last. When I crossed the line we were back under the hour by less than 60 seconds and I handed over to Alex with suitable incoherent screaming and encouragement!
I then had to sit in the marquee to see if I would have a chance to ride again. It seemed at this point that every returning rider from the other teams was getting back with an injury or story of a narrow escape. The mixed team unfortunately lost their lead but Alex and Ian (fuelled on fresh coffee and 2 caffeine gels) had kept us within reach of the 24th lap. I went down to the bike corral uncertain if I would ride again. The lurkers had massed along the sides of the trail waiting for the 24 hours to elapse before crossing the line when suddenly I heard Ian scream “Get ready Ben, he’s coming!” and sure enough Gary was pounding through the arena with the crowd cheering him on! I was the last rider to start a lap and our last minute push had brought us up to third overall!
The grassy climb was agony, the slippery singletrack had been a nightmare not to mention the lack of sleep, but the podium finish made it all worthwhile. It was a proper team effort and I’d like to thank Alex, Ian and Gary for the team spirit that pulled us through with no major incidents - well apart from Gary’s early morning slide in the arena!
The Mixed team missed out on the victory but a third podium in three years is a superb result.
Massive thanks to Tim and Jayne for providing such an excellent support service all weekend. Also I’d like to thank the entire team for pulling together and making the event so enjoyable. I for one am already looking forward to next year.
Ben
