The
final round of the Merida Brass Monkeys had all the ingredients familiar to
those who had attended the previous rounds. Gruelling hills, grin inducing
singletrack and 7 miles of glorious mud! Storm after storm has battered the UK
this winter and with predictable timing the latest struck just as the riders
gathered for the start of the 4 hour race!
Some excellent results for the club, both on the day and for the series as a whole:
| Cat |
Name |
Race Result |
Series Position |
| 2hr Junior |
Will
Taylor |
1st |
|
| 2hr |
Olive
O'Leary |
5th |
3rd |
| 3hr Grand Vet |
Ian
Petherbridge |
6th |
3rd |
| 4hr |
Ben
Connor |
9th |
5th |
| 2hr Vet |
Andy
Goodyer |
30th |
|
| 4hr Vet |
Andy
Jarman |
42nd |
|
I’d
been readying my wetsuit and snorkel in preparation for the race on
Sunday. Much of the country is currently knee deep in water and the
weather forecast for Sunday was laced with phrases like “severe weather
warning” and “flood risk”. Yet I woke up
to a crisp, chilly morning which added the prospect of ice into the
equation. At the Ash Ranges venue bright and early, the grass was still
white with frost and there was an early detour in place to avoid a
stretch of sheet ice.
It was a tough course with little opportunity for respite. I’m
not going to say it wasn’t muddy, but the course was amazingly dry
considering the amount of rain we have had over the past month. The
challenge was finding firmer ground, riders tip toeing
along the sides of the trail, or even through the heather, in search of
traction. The woodland sections stood up well and remained grippy
throughout the race. Unfortunately the same couldn’t be said for the
open trails, which deteriorated as the race progressed.
What had been the best line only a lap before might be impassable just
40 minutes later. In the end, I was finding that due to its firmer base
the original track was often the best bet, once your tyres cut through
the upper layer of slop.
Plunging through areas of mud and mirk our chains and brakes began
to complain more and more. Each turn of the pedal was met by a
graunching, grinding noise as sand and grit was ground between chain and
chainrings. I’d fitted new brake pads before the
race, which was good as I could feel the resistance as the disk forced
it’s layer of dirt through the calliper.
Ian just missed out on anther podium, finishing a few seconds behind Rob Jackson in 4th. I had my best result of the series so far coming home 13th
in the 4 hour ace. Andy was 33rd in the 4 hour vets. I also passed Peter on his way to 45th in a large 2 hour field.
It was also nice to hear Olive cheer me across the line, having finished 10th in her 2 hour race.
