Discussion
Wow! It's NEXT Sunday? Where has the time gone? It only feels like a short time since the Brass Monkeys winter series.
I'd completely lost track of this event, and when it was due, so I've nothing to ride it on right now. I shall have to enter into some delicate negotiations with a) my son, for a loan of his bike, and b) my wife, for a leave pass for the day.
If I don't ride the event, then I may well pop up to Caesar's Camp (in a PH jersey) to "sample the atmosphere" and maybe offer some support. On the other hand, SWMBO might already have plans for me that day, so at the moment I'm really not sure about it at all...
I'd completely lost track of this event, and when it was due, so I've nothing to ride it on right now. I shall have to enter into some delicate negotiations with a) my son, for a loan of his bike, and b) my wife, for a leave pass for the day.
If I don't ride the event, then I may well pop up to Caesar's Camp (in a PH jersey) to "sample the atmosphere" and maybe offer some support. On the other hand, SWMBO might already have plans for me that day, so at the moment I'm really not sure about it at all...
it just make hard enough to ride the longer versions Very disappointing race for me today! First lap was ok - wasn't anywhere near the start line so didn't get a particularly clean getaway, but managed to bag a few places before the singletrack started, where overtaking was hard. Fairly tough course - spongey pine-needle blanket on the flat sections, and very technical twisty bombhole bits (local riders, think "Tank Traps" in Swinley for ages). Think I did the first lap in just over 40 mins so was on track for 3 laps in the 2hr race.
Halfway round lap two noticed I was losing grip at the back, though tyre still looked inflated. Got worse until I had to pull over - indeed, a puncture. Swapped a new innertube in, then noticed my CO2 pump was empty - ffffffffffuuuuuuuuuuuuu
Luckily there was a marshall there and he kindly lent me a pump. Next problem, the crappy Continental "supersonic" inner tube has a valve that unscrews as you unscrew the pump connector! So, back to the original inner tube and patches. Found the puncture, tyre back on, still hissing. It was then I noticed two shiny new steel tacks in the tyre. gave them to the marshal who said that another chap today had also had two of the same tacks in his tyre. Cant believe some a
hole would scatter them around...
Anyway, was there about 30 mins faffing about, so by the time I completed lap 2 it was almost the 2hr limit so I pulled in, despondent. Along came Benji though, so we had a chat so that was ok. He was waiting for his 4hr race to start - rather him than me, I was cream crackered.
Bit of video may follow later
Halfway round lap two noticed I was losing grip at the back, though tyre still looked inflated. Got worse until I had to pull over - indeed, a puncture. Swapped a new innertube in, then noticed my CO2 pump was empty - ffffffffffuuuuuuuuuuuuu
Luckily there was a marshall there and he kindly lent me a pump. Next problem, the crappy Continental "supersonic" inner tube has a valve that unscrews as you unscrew the pump connector! So, back to the original inner tube and patches. Found the puncture, tyre back on, still hissing. It was then I noticed two shiny new steel tacks in the tyre. gave them to the marshal who said that another chap today had also had two of the same tacks in his tyre. Cant believe some a
hole would scatter them around...Anyway, was there about 30 mins faffing about, so by the time I completed lap 2 it was almost the 2hr limit so I pulled in, despondent. Along came Benji though, so we had a chat so that was ok. He was waiting for his 4hr race to start - rather him than me, I was cream crackered.
Bit of video may follow later
I did ride up to the event today, but for various reasons I didn't get there until about 1510hrs. I had a trundle round while the last few riders completed their final laps. I had a look for you chaps, but I presume you were both away by then?
As the strip-out of the course got underway, I did a couple of laps on my old road bike. First one, I got around OK as most of the tape was still down, and I was getting passed and re-passed by the motorbike marshals as they rode around stripping out the tape. That lap was marred by my Garmin being switched off for the first part of the lap. I turned the damned technology back on as soon as I realised, and the second lap went well until I lost the course (my own fault the first time) where the tape had been taken up. By the end of my second lap, on slick 700 x 25c tyres, rocking a 39 x 23 lowest gear, I was pretty much done in, and headed for home. Great lap, I thought. Save for the very loose 'virgin' surfaces that were new for this race and not even slightly bedded in, it was quite fast in places, if a little bumpy. I rode all but two loose uphill stretches, and one very loose 'bombhole' (with the dead bird next to it). I even rode a 1997 steel road bike down the big drop-off near the end of the lap, mainly because there wasn't anything 'technical' at the bottom to worry about.
Today's ride... https://www.strava.com/activities/325476341 ...amazingly, I'm not dead last on any of the off-road segments!
Disappointed to not get there earlier, but I was busy at home. It'd have been nice to meet up with you both again. As local as it is to me, I can't do the Torq in August, because I'm going to be at Reading Festival all weekend.
As the strip-out of the course got underway, I did a couple of laps on my old road bike. First one, I got around OK as most of the tape was still down, and I was getting passed and re-passed by the motorbike marshals as they rode around stripping out the tape. That lap was marred by my Garmin being switched off for the first part of the lap. I turned the damned technology back on as soon as I realised, and the second lap went well until I lost the course (my own fault the first time) where the tape had been taken up. By the end of my second lap, on slick 700 x 25c tyres, rocking a 39 x 23 lowest gear, I was pretty much done in, and headed for home. Great lap, I thought. Save for the very loose 'virgin' surfaces that were new for this race and not even slightly bedded in, it was quite fast in places, if a little bumpy. I rode all but two loose uphill stretches, and one very loose 'bombhole' (with the dead bird next to it). I even rode a 1997 steel road bike down the big drop-off near the end of the lap, mainly because there wasn't anything 'technical' at the bottom to worry about.
Today's ride... https://www.strava.com/activities/325476341 ...amazingly, I'm not dead last on any of the off-road segments!
Disappointed to not get there earlier, but I was busy at home. It'd have been nice to meet up with you both again. As local as it is to me, I can't do the Torq in August, because I'm going to be at Reading Festival all weekend.
BadgerBenji said:
Now that's an impressive ride YellowJack, there were a few people with mountain bikes walking down that 
Walking down it? 
How?I only rode down it because I couldn't see how it was possible to get down otherwise, without falling on my fat arse. We are talking about the same one? Big, steep drop, maybe 10ft or more, straight into a flat right hand corner. The 'landing' was quite forgiving, with plenty of space to rectify any mistake made on the down slope, and no real 'technical' bits at the bottom.
There was another bit I particularly enjoyed too. It was like a reverse drop-off. Going in fairly level, there was quite a steep, but relatively short 'kick up' and the first time I hit it I was certain that it would drop steeply back down the other side, but after a slight fall it went straight and level off the back side. So I attacked it a bit on the second lap, confident that I would be OK.
The biggest problems on a road bike were traction on the uphill bits, the 'ripples' in the surface on harder packed sections (very unforgiving on rigid steel forks) and the rooty bits, where I was convinced I'd get a pinch puncture, having stuck 80psi into the tyres beforehand. The fully independent four-point suspension system I'd fitted seemed to work OK though...
A little bit of video of the start, and me being overtaken a lot by those rascals on 29ers.
https://vimeo.com/130787114
https://vimeo.com/130787114
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