18:15 Youth U 16 and U 14 - 30 mins - entry fee £4

19:00 3rd and 4th cats  - 40 mins- entry fee £7

19:55 2nd and 3rd cats - 50 mins - entry fee £7

Well last weekend was the return of Mountain Mayhem at Eastnor Castle in the Malvern Hills, and what a weekend it was. We had two teams entered, the Red Kite All Stars (Nick Dunn, David Eaves, Deborah Whitehouse, Ben Thomas and Adrian) in the open mixed category and a four man team (Rich Harding, Thom Phillips, John Laughlin and Euan Adams) in the open men.

Our support crew headed over on the Thursday in order to set up camp at a good spot near the halfway point on the course, next to the lake. Most of the riders arrived on the Friday after work/uni. A pre ride in the afternoon showed us that there were few new sections to course from last year, with a really muddy bit of single track in the first half due to rain that day. The course was also longer than last year’s with more climbing to boot. This meant thta, according to our Garmins,  a lap come in at just over 9 miles and we estimated lap times of between 50 min and an hour.

Race day dawned and the course had started to dry out a lot with people pre riding past the camp looking much cleaner than we did the day before. As with all 24 hr mtb races, it started with a le Mans style run start, with triathlete Thom starting for the men’s team and shop manager Nick starting for the All Stars mixed team. Thom put in an awesome run to come in in 17th to pick up his bike and start his first lap, with Nick coming in around half way through the pack.

After the first lap Thom passed the baton on to John who set out on his Whyte E120 to put in a solid, lung opening lap to hand over to team captain Rich and then on to Euan, who put in a seriously fast lap of 45min. After Nick came in (still suffering from the run) he handed over to Dave ‘Mr Consistent’ Eaves, who then handed over to Deb. The All Stars team had to manage with 3 riders for a few hours until the remaining riders arrived after work.

The rest of the afternoon passed without major incident with everyone putting in solid lap times and most importantly really enjoying riding in a beautiful spot. After 8pm all riders had to leave with their lights on whether they used them or not,  although wasn’t really dark till well after 10pm. Thom was the first rider to do a proper night lap and had to do the first half of the lap without his light as he couldn’t turn it on, a quick pit at the Red Kite camp changed that and he went storming round the rest of the lap. As the darkness came, the temperature plummeted and staying warm in between laps was vital to conserve energy. At 12.30am Euan headed out on his first night lap to record one of the fastest night laps only 3minutes slower than his fastest day lap! Despite the darkness and low temperatures everyone managed to keep pretty consistent with their lap times, making good progress up the results sheet.

As the sun came up at around 4.30am, riders spirits did too, giving everyone a new lease of life after a cold dark night. As everyone was now all awake at the same time, it gave them a chance to calculate roughly how many laps they had left to do and see who was going to be doing the last lap. After a quick bit of maths it looked like it was going to be Nick for the All Stars and Euan for the men’s team. Nick was able to ride comfortably round without having to worry about times and enjoy his last lap. Rich came in with 46minutes to go to hand over to Euan, which meant if Euan put in a really fast lap they would be able to go around again (although there was no offers to do the extra lap) and possibly move up the results. Euan rode hard but got held a little towards the end of the lap by riders counting down the timer and came in in 48min to just miss the cut off, and thankfully not go out again.

The All Stars completed 22 laps in 24:01:48 to take 24th place in the Sport Mixed category and Red Kite Cycles Men’s team completed 25 laps in 24:02:58 to finish 14th in the Open Men’s category. Everyone had a fantastic time and are already planning for next year. A massive thank you to all our helpers (Mike, Sarah, Anita, Ben ‘Man Up’ Harding) over the weekend whose support and heckling was invaluable.

Bring on next year!

[View with PicLens]

Red Kite Cycles is delighted to be supporting National Bike Week with a range of activities.

On Tuesday 22 June we are repeating out popular evening bike ride just for women, leaving the shop at 6:30 for about an hour and a half.  Our Belles on Bikes ride around the local lanes is for any women regardless of their ability or experience. With staff and experienced cyclists on hand to advise you on how to get the best out of your bike and enjoy your cycling it’s an opportunity not to be missed.

Wednesday 23 June is late night opening until 8:00pm.  Our staff will be on hand to discuss our wide range of bikes and accessories for all types of cycling. There will be an opportunity to test ride some of our bikes and learn about the Cycle to Work Scheme which could save up to 49% on the cost of a new bike. And the coffee is free!

On Friday 25 June the Velocity Health and Fitness Cycling Club regular ride will be leaving from the Village Hotel at the Green Business Park at 6:30.  This will be for about an hour along the local lanes finishing back at the hotel where there is ample bike parking.

The elite wave  is really the only time you would have to worry about bunch riding. There will probably be a lot of people on the course even if it is an age group non-drafting race, but they tend to stagger the race starts quite well so that it shouldn’t be too bad in terms of crowding and having lots of people around. They will probably find a lot of people not quite sticking to the drafting rules (I believe it is around 10m but this will be made clear to them on race day at the briefing) and getting too close for too long (i.e when they aren’t overtaking) but I would always advise them to try to be as careful as possible with this as if you are caught by a marshall there is a chance they would be immediately disqualified or at minimum face a time penalty (added on to their total time at the end) and t’s always better to finish knowing you didn’t ‘get away with something’ even if others do it.

Other than this I would say just to treat the road as if it is theirs - by that I mean don’t worry about other people around them trying to pass etc. If someone wants to pass you and you are in the way, it is their job to let you know so you can move over, not your job to ride on the side of the road the whole time in case you are in the way. It is much better to take the shortest route, and therefore the racing line so look for this round the corners - and there are a few places where you can take advantage of this at Blenheim.

Blenheim isn’t massively hilly but it s a fairly ‘bumpy’ course so I would advise controlling the pace throughout the first half of the bike and then building through the second half - particularly as the run also has a decent hill in it that has to be climbed twice. Going out too hard on the bike could spell disaster onto the run, but a more controlled approach and building throughout the race means they will probably finish much stronger than they imagine they will.

It is always good to use other people to pace off on the bike - obviously I don’t mean draft off them - but after the first few kilometres on the bike, once they start to settle into their own pace, have a look around, see who is near and who is riding roughly the same pace, or maybe just a little faster and try to stay the same distance from them. It always helps to have a target and someone to work off so this is a technique that a lot of pro long distance athletes use.

It’s really important to remember to drink on the bike - you get a lot more dehydrated than you think during the race and your run leg can suffer hugely if you haven’t taken on enough fluids on the bike so for a short distance race I would advise trying to get through around 600ml on the bike in average conditions (high teens, low winds) but in higher temperatures up to a litre may be necessary. As my race is drafting I tend to need slightly less so I drink around 500ml on the bike in ‘normal’ conditions during a sprint race like Blenheim, but in an Olympic Distance race I’d drink more than double that - at least a litre even in cold conditions and up to 1.5l in hot weather - half energy drink, half water. I don’t tend to use gels on sprint distance races but a lot of people do so if they are used to this then definitely carry on with it on race day. If they haven’t used gels before, during the race is not the right time for a trial!

As for swimming in open water, the most important thing is not to panic, particularly at the start when there will be a lot of people around and it can end up a little bit like a washing machine!! Just stay calm an concentrate on your own stroke - I find you don’t even need to try ’sighting’ in the first hundred metres or so as you just follow all the splash and you can’t really go wrong!! If they are particular nervous about being stuck in the middle of a big group in the water and possibly getting knocked around a bit (which is perfectly normal and if you just ignore it as best you can and try to get on with doing your own thing it isn’t a problem) then starting as close to the edge of the group as possible is probably the best idea.
The swim at Blenheim has always been fairly straight forward in the years I have done it - straight up for around 500m (along a lane rope too so it’s pretty difficult to go the wrong way!) and then a sharp left turn around a large turn bouy into the shore. Taking th inside line around the buoy is a good idea as it’s the shortest route, but your chances of being bashed around are higher s if this is a worry, take it nice and wide and keep out of the ruck. I really think the most important thing is to not panic in open water - it’s a bit mad but just try to enjoy it and settle into your own rhythm!

The likelihood they will have to do a lot of ’sighting’ is slim, but if they are in the situation where following the splash isn’t quite enough then they should always look at both the bouy ahead and also a fixed object that is directly behind it. Try to find something at the start (like a big tree or building) but if the bouy is too far away at this point then the first time you look at the bout during the race is the time to check out the background for something to use. If you only look at the bouy for sighting then it will always look like you are heading in a straight line even if you are wildly off course, so having something else to line it up with is really useful.

The transition onto the bike at Blenheim is up a pretty long hill so just relax and take it steady up there as otherwise you will be cooked by the time you get onto your bike!!

The most important thing is really to just enjoy yourself - what’s the point otherwise hey? - but also to focus on doing your own things right (racing line, fluids, pacing etc) and not get too caught up in what others are doing.

I hope that helps - not sure if this is the sort of advice they are after but hopefully something in there is of use!!

As for my first race, it was a pretty long time ago now but I do remember I made all sorts of mistakes!! It was a pool swim in May 2005 and my first mistake was to completely forget my number belt so I had to run back into transition to get it! That wasted a lot of time! I then ran past my racking position in transition so had to go back to find my bike. Onto the bike and my positioning was pretty awful on the road and I was rubbish at judging distance for the drafting - I was warned by the marshalls once to keep my distance too so was lucky not to come away with a time penalty. I was very unsure of the dismount and ended up getting off my bike about 10m early as I didn’t want to be penalised by riding over the dismount line! As you can see - lots of mistakes, and lots of room for improvement but I still really enjoyed it and was ready for the challenge of an open water race. I can honestly say I have never forgotten my number belt again, nor have I messed up my dismount so badly! I rarely race non-drafting so I’m not sure how my skills at judging distance are but I have on odd occasion (twice in 5 years isn’t too terrible though) ran past my bike in transition. To combat this I normally practice running into transition on race morning and use external markers (such a tree or an advertising banner) to know where my bike is. I like to think I am a fairly established athlete these days but I still struggle with some of the technical elements of triathlon even now and there is nearly always something that I could have done better in any race. A common one for me is fumbling my helmet clasp in T1 when I am trying to get it fixed quickly. I’ll keep working on these small things and striving to get as many things right as I can in every race - ‘ticking the boxes’ as my coach calls it, but let’s be honest, nobodies perfect right?!

Elite mens podium with Ross in 3rd

Starting 1min behind the Elites, Euan had high hopes in the expert race. Having not raced at round 1, Euan was gridded on the 2nd row so had to fight hard to get towards the front. Going into the second piece of singletrack, Euan was sat at the back of a train of 7 riders and managed to pick off a few places as riders made mistakes on the twisty course. At around halfway through the first lap Euan had pulled away with David Beskeen and had began to put some good space between them and the chasing pack. Just before the finishing climb on lap 1 David made a small mistake which allowed Euan to get a gap of around 10s at the end of lap 1. Euan kept extending his lead lap on lap, also making his way up to 6th place in the elite race which started ahead of him. By the end of lap 4 Euan came in to finish 53s ahead of David in 2nd and over 6min up on 3rd. The heat had played a huge part in the fatigue of the riders throughout the race with most riders collapsing straight after crossing the line. This win takes Euan to 3 straight wins and with confidence high he’s looking forward to round 3 of the National MTB series at Margam Park this weekend.

Expert mens podium, with Euan in 1st

Next up was Euan in 2.3 cat race, racing the same circuit for 50min plus 5 laps. After a quick start Euan managed to break away by himself after 3 laps but was chased down by a group of 6. This group of 7 then worked well together for a few laps until a few of the guys started sitting on and missing turns. Sensing the bunch wasn’t far behind, he attacked going up the slight hill on the finish straight immediately getting a good gap. The attacked worked well as the group was quickly swallowed up by the chasing bunch but they couldn’t make any inroads into Euan’s lead, as he continued to pull out a substantial lead by himself. With 2 laps to go the bunch finally gave up chasing and Euan came in to win by half a lap, and very tired. This has cemented his lead in the series with 2 more rounds to go, although he’ll be missing the round to compete in Mountain Mayhem.

[View with PicLens]

12►

Just discovered your website, it’s great!  What you don’t mention is what fantastic friendly staff you have.  Craig was really friendly when i took my first uncertain steps into your very male oriented shop.  I really needn’t have worried,  he put at ease straight away, and really knew his stuff, when he helped me choose my first bike (well, since i was about 10…..yes, a very long time ago).

Nick, is always very helpful and patient, even with my somewhat ‘dippy’ work colleges and always manages to keep calm, however busy the shop is.  All the other staff i have come across seem, polite, knowledgeable and happy in their work.

And last but not least, a big thank you to Mike and Sarah for the Belles on Bikes rides on Tuesday evening.  What a great idea.  Not only do you get helpful advice from Mike and Sarah’s many years of cycling, you’ve got the confidence that one of them will sort your bike out should there be a problem, and you get to meet some really nice ladies.

I can’t recommend these rides enough, keep fit, meet new people and have a chat.  For any single ladies like me, who haven’t got a husband to go out cycling with, its the only chance i have to get out on my bike other than the daily commute to work.  Can’t wait for next week!

Keep up the good work everybody

Bye for now

Elaine

Wilier

On Wednesday 30th June Red Kite are going Italian! Wilier will be bringing their fleet of demo bikes for customers to use for test ride. These include the Cento 1 model as used by the Lampre Team as well the Izoard and Mortirolo models, there will be at least one equipped with the new Shimano Di2 electronic shifters as well.  For female riders we will have the Mimosa to try.

Two ride sessions are planned for the day:  6:00pm and 7:00pm, with a limited availability of places booking is essential to try these Italian Cycle Exotica.

To keep the Italian theme going we will have some Italian food, wine and coffee available for all participants. No hard sell either so why not come along and try something different.

[View with PicLens]

I’m not used to racing after the men as I’ve nearly always raced first and then had the luxury of sitting around and cheering on the guys afterwards. Well this weekend was a reversal, and even though I couldn’t help be a little jealous of them when they were wandering around after their exertions chatting happily about their races fuelled by the adrenalin, I think us girls got quite lucky really as a 7a.m start time meant a REALLY early morning for the gents! Us girlies got away with a more reasonable 6a.m wake up - just like any other training day really!

The conditions for racing were nigh on perfect and even though the temperatures rose throughout the race with the sun shining down on us, it never got exceptionally hot and there wasn’t much humidity so it was a hell of a lot nicer than two weeks ago.

I had a high start number given my low world ranking but still found a good place on the pontoon right next to my training partner Kate Roberts. The claxon went and within about 20strokes I had some clear water. I felt good – strong and comfortable and I could see where everyone was. The two fastest swimmers were on the far left and I’m convinced they went pretty wide allowing me to take advantage and stay at the front. As they cut in for the first buoy I found myself in third, just off their feet, and I stayed there the remainder of lap one. I worked really hard to get onto the feet of those lead girls but they were just beyond me so as we ran down the pontoon for the re-entry I made the decision not to bust a gut trying to catch them on lap 2 and instead to settle in and let someone else take over the charge. Big mistake!  As soon as one came past, another came past, then another swam over the top, then before I knew it I was in the middle of the ruck and finding it ten times harder than up at the front even though I had been just off the pace of the best swimmers. Still I came out of the water in a reasonable position, just off the back of the first group. I was with a couple of great athletes so with a swift T1, and a little work up the first hill we were soon into the lead bunch which continued to grow throughout the first two laps as more and more girls caught from behind.

The bike then became a bit of a procession with about 35 girls in the pack. Most of the time it wasn’t moving very fast so the main challenges were positioning into the corners and keeping near the front of the pack. I made sure I stayed hydrated and got myself as close to the front as possible for T2 and the all important run leg.

I exited T2 in the main bunch …and it was a big bunch! About 15 girls ran the first lap together before it started to break up a bit. I managed to take a tumble round a corner on lap one…there was a hole in the road and being tucked into the bunch I didn’t see it…I went straight into it and landed on my backside!  I scooped myself up instantly and worked hard down the hill to catch back on to the group, which I managed, but in hind-sight I think I paid for this later on as I really started to struggle on the last lap! I held my position in the top ten for most of the run, passing a couple of girls and having a few others pass me and going into the final lap I was just desperate to hold on for a top 10 finish! It hurt like hell and I’m sure it wasn’t pretty but I got to the line in tenth – a result which I am really pleased with. It’s early days for this year and there is more to come I’m sure.

It was also another awesome day for Darren’s girls with Barabara Riveros taking her first major victory in style and 4 of the squad in the top ten. Not a bad average eh?! We also must have been the most well supported group there…I literally can’t count how many people came to watch the action from Canberra (and further afield) and it was just fantastic to be cheered on every part of the course. Thanks guys!

So now I am just chilling out in Sydney for a couple of days to recharge the batteries and enjoy this beautiful city before heading back to Canberra tomorrow where the next solid block of training begins. Let’s hope the good times keep rolling and I’m celebrating again in Korea in 4weeks time!

Thanks to everyone who has contacted me since the race, lovely to have your support and to hear from you all.

Vix xxx