Mud Sweat & Gears 20....13!!!

grony

Didn't realise there had been crashes at BH3, I thought it was good fun. I must say though, I didn't enjoy this one as much as previous rounds either; a real slog in places but the team made the most of the landscape available.

Cube, the next Thetford race is the Summer Enduro next Sunday.

WindyG

My wife said there were loads in the open male cat, we watched the afternoon race and the leading elite went OTB first lap followed by about 3 more as the rest of the riders came through, they needed to slow for the downed riders so this stopped a few more crashes for a short while, a couple had tyres blow and other mechanicals and then there were some more crashes! I thought it was all going to happen at the first BH, those logs at that ditch caused a few problems too.

pilch

I really enjoyed it, best course so far IMO, had a bit of everything, tech, great flowing single track, bit of purgatory... epic!

IhateDNS

lots more woods this time ?

Edit: Any video of Ickworth loop this year ?
have tried google.

paulbingham

Cubeical - the race lasts 3 or 4 laps (thetford was 3 Ickworth4) But if teh race leader hits thier last lap before an hours up, all those a lap behind are stopped when they next cross the line. So in my case, i did 3 of 4 laps at ickworth.

This course was definiatley different from Thetford. More grass for one, and very bump on it too. Alot of times i had speed coming outta the woods only to lose it as i tried to hold onto the bars when i hit the grass! As for teh Bomb holes, i did teh first one, wasnt too bad, chickend teh 2nd as my brakes didnt feel too hot and there was too much mud, and almost flew over teh tape on teh 3rd at one point! The 3rd was by far the best BH on teh course, a steep drop, short rise, drop and rise again! Hitting the 2nd rise with speed made me feel like flying, so can see why some went OTB.

Only bit i really didnt liek was the slog up that muddly, gravelly hill in teh woods. Talk about sapping strength! WHeels just kept spinning, so walked it on 2 laps as quicker!

WindyG

I didn't mind the muddy climb in the woods I had good grip and could get a decent pace it was the uphill grass sections that did it for me, everywhere else I was fine. I just hate grass it drains me.

CUBEical

wow you guys are really selling it to me sounds great. What is the enduro like xc ?, i did 14 miles in hour last time i went out, think i might try and hit 18 every time now to get set for the enduro ?

stylish

It was the best lap so far this year I think, really good fun and quite challenging. The bomb holes were certainly tricky.

Balaclavas

My first ever MSG, though I've been loitering around taking photos, marshalling and being Matt and G's dogsbody on a few occassions. I have to say I absolutely loved the course. It really played to my strengths and I was steadilly picking up places all the way through the first two laps.

Unfortunately I was one of the riders who came a cropper in the morning race going far too fast through BH3. One written of helmet and i rode to the finish line and withdrew, oops. I'd ridden that BH without looking as soon as I arrived on Saturday evening and thought, 'well that was easy, I'll pick up time through that'.

See you all at the, not so secret nuclear bunker!

evo3ben

I have to say, i thought that was a tough course! No problem with the bombholes and technical bits but the hills, long grass and boggy ground made it difficult for me personally. Mind you, i did enjoy it I thought it was very border line for an 'Open' cat race considering it is technically a beginners category and with only 51/93 completing the full 4 laps and a fair few crashes on the last bomb hole it was slightly pushing the boat out. Still, good course though.
Missed out on a top 10 place for the second time this series and a little disapointed tbh lol. Going to have to make some changes to my training as i feel i have been doing too much high intensity and not enough endurance and strength. Got 4 weeks to turn it round before round 5 at Kelveden Hatch (nuclear bunker).

bigdawg

Ive missed the last two just because I haven't got the time to travel as far as needed, shame as the description of the climbs here makes me think I could have done better than norm...

Will be back for Kelvedon and looking forward to it...

VWsurfbum

just incase any of you fast racy types are interested?
viewtopic.php?f=40089&t=12928016

pilch

Bit quiet on here considering the next one's on Sunday... nobody going? looks like a good course

bigdawg

Im going - just hoping my forks will last the course!!

Was talking to the organisers about the Olympic MS&Gs race last week - still not sure whether to do it or not - too many places for accidents, oh and my forks def wouldn't last that course..!

WindyG

Passing on this round, too far for the 10am start for me

IhateDNS

Yep on the Open cat.

evo3ben

Well, that was warm! Great course, very dusty and top marks to Matt, Graham and the rest of the crew for a top set up! Scored another top 10 result so im mega happy

bigdawg

Personally I hated the course..!

I enjoyed the in the forest bits with the singletrack, climbs drops etc... but I actually got bored riding round the outside of bumpy fields, totally uninspired - just my opinion and not a dig at anyone, or any of the work that was put in by the organisers.

The heat didn't bother me at all Ive usually gone really well in hot weather, but Ive also had a stinking cold the last week or so and maybe I just wasn't in the mood

Saying that first lap was a stormer 17 minutes, second lap was similar but after that I just really lost interest and started lapping in the low teens / 20s - this morning my legs feel fine but Ive got blisters on my thumbs!

Never mind, wont be doing the next round as just too far (but I think Ive got 2 whipstakes races in quick succession) but really looking forward to Langdon hills.

VWsurfbum

Big difference in lap times from the Fast to the average guy!
part of me wishes i went, but i had done no xc race training and from what i have heard about the start and the bottleneck, it would of just annoyed me

bigdawg

Oh and the bloody coffee van buggered off before I had a chance to get changed and back to get a coffee...!!!! :evil:

Seriously theyd make a whole stack of money if they waited another half hour or so...

stylish

I take my hat off to Matt and Graham, they surprise us every time, in my opinion, it wasn't a bad lap, something for everyone, but next time (if there is one) drop the field loop, its crap! really enjoyed the wooded sections, but I was starting on the back foot, went down hard on the big drop on my practice lap, ripped the arse out of ny shorts and now have some nice bruising to show for it. After a 2 hour drive to get there, I wasn't going to not try and start, did 3 laps until I had to stop, struggling to pedal up the hills. feeling quite sore today and annoyed with myself if im honest for crashing on my lap....

cycleclinic

The heat was not an big issue for me but as I ride a rigid bike the plouged fields were. I lost alot of speed in those parts. Also I lost my nerve for the tech bits and used the bail out routes a bit. I almost went for swim on the second lap but I thankfully managed to avoid that. I like XC and I do not mind a challanging trails and round 2 was perfect for me, the obsticles in round 5 were a bit to much.

Still I did finish 7th in the Master mainly because I finished. Hard work though. Those bail out routes cost me alot of time I think and lossing my precious water bottle on the bumpy bits and had to slow down in subsquent laps as I did not want to loose it again.

evo3ben

I must admit they do seem to be getting a bit more adventurous each race with technical bits. I do hope that it doesnt get to a point where it starts putting people off. Its not the National series and some riders especially in the Open cat would find it off putting regardless of a chicken run (oh, sorry 'B' line lol). My wife and daughter were watching and they said that there were quite a few riders that came off at bomb hole 1 & 2.
I didnt mind the fields too much to be honest. Gives you a good indication of how far in front people are and how close people are behind you so you know you need to speed up a bit.
Im all for single track through woods etc but i also do like the open tracks and fire roads to get the power down and speed up. Horses for courses i suppose but a bit of everything keeps everyone happy, mostly lol

VWsurfbum

http://www.flickr.com/photos/randomoldbloke/

WindyG

I agree with you Ben, I think they might be pushing it a little too far now, it seems every bomb hole/pit has to be bigger and tougher than the previous round. I thought Codham was as hard as it needed to be for this level of racing.

bigdawg

I agree with the 2nd bombhole, its pointless having something there that only the elite 5% in each field can do, with everyone else getting a 40 second plus penalty per lap, but saying that I did enjoy those hills on the chicken run.

Someone did think that the harder sections are being put in to build people up for Hadleigh, but after speaking to matt a couple of weeks back it sounds like there will be non time gaining chicken runs for pretty much each thing there and you can do the hard bits if you want - the only thing that will not have a chicken run is the final chute back into the arena, as theres literally no where to put one.

Roll on Langdon hills, I was feeling really good before this race and a combination of the course and pedal problems (my foot kept unclipping everytime I tried to accelerate) I lost interest...

paddyatkinson

From what I saw of the afternoon races, hardly anyone went down on the last bombhole or the first, and I tried out all the lines in practice and there was practically no time lost by taking the B line. I don't actually think that anything in the race was very technical at all, the first was just a case of rolling over it , and everything else just needed the right speed going into it. I would have preferred to see some more technicality in the course actually, and a time penalty for taking the B line, as mountain biking is a combination of fitness and technical skill, so places should be lost not just for a lack of speed, but also for a lack of skill. If we have A lines that everyone can ride, then they aren't really A lines anymore are they?

berm bandit

LOL : Some of the people some of the time eh?

The series finale is at Hadleigh. The sport is largely about decision making. We never put in anything technical without offering an alternative. There was nothing at either Ickworth or at SNB that is in any way close to the technicality or the penalties for failure at Hadleigh. It would be reckless of us to ignore those facts in our run up to that event. Therefore, we are keen to work up to a level of decision making that makes sense in that environment, as we have no desire to hurt anyone. Simply putting B lines in doesn't cut it. People have to realise their limitations and make a reasoned choice.

For that reason there have also been coach led rides all year at Hadleigh, we have offered coaching exclusively for youth and female riders there too. We have also gradually increased the differential between A & B lines over the course of the season where practical to do so.

As Paddy has pointed out, in fact what was on offer on Sunday and at Ickworth is frankly not "that" technical. All lines were careful selected, and we ran a variety of riders through them repeatedly before settling on the final choices. We also made certain in the briefing that the fields were appraised of what lay before them. In both cases, the A line simply required a line choice, and a confident and committed approach at a sensible speed.

The difficulty is, what I call the Black Route syndrome. That is someone who has ridden the so called black route at Thetford and then thinks that they are on a par with Hans Rey. Guys its flat as and really should be graded blue, and I should know I used to be the chairman of the trail builders there.

So, how about you fellas, how would you approach it?

bigdawg

to be fair you did ask on facebook about A lines - and all the replies were positive

On the first bombhole I don't think there was that much of a penalty, maybe a couple of seconds, but the second one I was told there 40 seconds difference.. As I didn't attempt the fsecond one can't really comment

stylish

Graham, the first pit was fine, as you say it was all about getting the line right, the second one was in hindsight more mental/positioning, and im happy to admit that I just got it wrong, I had watched the morning race there, and made my own choice to try it, it didn't pay off for me and im a bit sore, but will be back on the bike and smiling again.
The penalty for taking the second b line was a lot less than 40 seconds if you got a smooth clean run at it.

Keep up the good work, we do enjoy your efforts and thankyou.