Hopton NPS 2012 By Hannah Ferguson

For the first time this year I was packing a bag that didnt have any winter clothes. In May Scotland had been hit with heavy rain, snow and now glorious sunshine. I was not looking forward to the 6 hour van journey down to Shropshire for round 3 of the British series because the van would be really hot. Stocked up on pies and salads we hit the road at 7 oclock in the morning! Picking up some fellow Scottish cyclists on the way we started trucking down the motorway. 6 hours a few stops and a bag of mint imperials later we arrived at a grass field. After signing on I checked in with the WXC guys. We went back to set up our tent, us cyclists live the life of luxury at races. Practice wasnt till 5 as there were some races going on and I had a team meeting with the other girls to go over the race the next day. Tactics and a few tips under my belt I went to get ready for a pre lap. Even though it was 5 in the afternoon the weather was still so hot and to start with their was a 3km climb to the top of the hill, 30 minutes later I got to the top shattered and so hot, best make sure I dont blow up on the hill tomorrow as 3 laps up that hill will be torture especially in the heat. I was really hoping for some good decents after the long climb and boy was I in for a shock. The downhill was about 3km of singletrack back to the start; it was fast, flowed, smooth and so good. Finishing the lap I had a big smile on my face the decent was definitely worth it after the climb! Dad couldnt be bothered cooking so we went out for a meal and I tucked into a 8oz gammon steak...mmm. I certainly would need the salts tomorrow I convinced myself. Bed time was creeping closer and after some harmless banter involving piggy back and wheelbarrow races we called it a night and went to sleep. The tent was hot and light so it wasnt the best night sleep. But as long as I was rested it was fine.

Race day. The joy of camping is that you dont have to travel anywhere in the morning, you can be relaxed and eating breakfast with no fuss needed. The temperature was starting to pick up but I was constantly drinking my accelerade hydration drink so that I wouldnt dehydrate in the race. Warming up under the shade of the team tent was just what was needed before the start, something I almost missed as I got a bit lost. The main objective in the race for me was too not blow up on the first climb. By missing the gridding I ended up in the worst possible place for the start and when the gun went I found myself on a slight climb. Everyone was rushing around and flying off the front and I had to stop myself from trying to stay with them, I knew I needed to push myself on the hill but nothing positive would come from me using all my energy in the first few km of a endurance race. By the top of the hill I was in 6th and could see 5th not far infront, time to focus on my own race though. There were youth boys around me all the time and in the first singletrack, first corner I found myself on the floor. Not a good start to this race. Nothing hurt so I picked myself up and got going again taking the corners a little bit easier, not how I would have liked to have come down the hill but I would quite like to finish the race in one piece. Getting to the bottom I went to take a drink and realised I was almost out of water. I had made up a drink for my dad incase I did run out and thankfully he was in the feed station ready to give it too me. Being at the bottom of the hill again was a daunting feeling but the thought of some good decents at the top kept me going. I took a bottle of water at the top of the hill, some of which I drunk but most of which I poured over myself to cool down. At this point 5th place was even closer and I was catching. Pushing even harder on the pedals I was closing in. Now just to stay on the bike down the hill. Another bottle change and some more water to pour over myself I hit the climb for one final time. At this point I could see the rider infront, she was struggling because she was looking behind, although struggling myself I kept pushing trying to catch her by the top of the hill I was within a meter of 5th place but no matter how hard I tried I couldnt find the power or energy to get past. We were both tired going into the decent so I just had to get down in one piece and it would be a good race. Coming into the arena I made one final push to the line, it was over. The race was finished. A hour and a half of pushing your body to the limit made even worse by the temperature. I congratulated Yuka on making me work hard and for her staying away from me. After a cool down on the road and no actual showers Jenna and I went to find the tap. A freezing cold attempt of a shower after a hot sweaty race was just perfect. Shorts on and camera at the ready we went out to take some pictures of the boys race. Checking my times on the result sheet I found myself 11 minutes behind the leader which may sound like a lot but when you finished 27 minutes down at the last one its a great improvment. After the long weekend I figured I deserved a ice cream and had a nice conversation with the ice cream man over the weather I went back to help pack the van up. Stocked up with 'recovery' food we started the 6 hour journey home with a extra person. 5 hours and 30 minutes and a loss of £2.50 on a game in the service station we found ourselves back in the borders and dropping off Jenna and Ryan, it was the home straight only half a hour and we would be home. Back in the van we went to start and discovered we werent going anywhere, the van had broken down! So close to home and we were stuck. Having called the AA they told us that the van wasnt going to be fixed there and then but thankfully we had broken down next to our friends house and we swapped a few bags over and borrowed there car to drop Tom off. 7 and a half ours later we made it home.
Thank you very much too the WXC mechanics without you I wouldnt have had a bike to race or been able too cool down during the race, bet you enjoyed that more than me! Also to Accelerade for there sports drinks and gels which kept me hydrated throughout thhe whole weekend and stoped me from dehydrating. A weeks rest and its the Scottish championships, time to defend my title....

Dalby NPS 2012 By Hannah Fegruson

Dalby dalby dalby, of all the courses in England this is the one that is the best comparison to any of Scotland's courses and this weekend had some typical Scottish weather as well just to make us a little bit more at home. RAIN!!! Rain is a bit of a understatment to the weather we had when we first got there, it was more hail (that was laying like snow) followed by downpours. Nevertheless the training kit was out on and it was time for a practice lap. A lot of Dalby is man made which is great for a person coming from Glentress but parts are natural or not quite a man made trail, by the time we got to the famous Worry Gill the gully was a river, I decided against practicing Medusa because the weather had turned the course into a bath and I didnt want to crash either in my race or the day before, chicken run it was for me. The one thing that I dont like about the dalby course is that you do most of the downhill in the first half of the race, others usually have the hill at the start, so about 3km to go there is a really long hill that feels like it lasts for such a long time. Ive done it myself when I have been chearing my friends on but the last km (contary to what anyone says) is not flat and one of the hardest slogs ever that you feel like you are turning the pedals but not going anywhere. The course finished in the same field that we started in and desperate to get in to some clean, dry, clothes we decided to only do the one pre lap rather than two. A quick change and we headed of for our accommodation, thankfully my dad had looked at the weather prior to leaving and decided not to camp (great decision dad!!!) so he booked a backpackers barn, which was literaly a matress on the floor but there were showers and a roof so as far as I was concerned so much better than a tent.
THE SUN WAS OUT!!! Oh no that was just my dream. Race day. After, supprisingly, a good night sleep we set off to the race course. And the water had started falling already, and I thought England had a water shortage... Thanks to Keith my bike had been cleaned after practice so I just needed to lube the chain and we would be ready to race. Before I knew it warm was done, under the shelter of the WXC tent, and we were standing on the startline ready to race. I must have picked the worse possible line to start as I seemed to be traveling much further. By the time we reached the first singletrack I was already wet and muddy but was done in last place, the pace was a lot slower that what I would have wanted but there wasnt much I could do about it. When we reached a little climb I took a different line and jumped up a few places, I could now see 4th, 5th and 6th infront of me but by the time I got to the start arena again they were just in sight. The chances of me catching them soon were small so I tried to get into a rhythm and see if I could pull them back over the whole race. By the time I got to medusa I had caught the girl in 6th and kept going at my pace rather than get intimidated by the people around me. But for the remainder of the race I didnt see anyone in my category. The long climb was harder everytime I got to the bottom of it but the bit I disliked the most was the last bit of singletrack and the grass field at the finish, with all the women and younger males having already gone through by the time I got to the finish every lap it was a boggy wet muddy slow field. But I amused some of the people watching by almost crashing a few times. By the 3rd lap I couldnt wait to finish my legs felt like they were going to give in very soon and a few times I came very close to giving up but I finished the race which for me was a great achievment considering I gadnt wanted to even start the last lap. Race finished and the sun comes out, typical. Everything was soaking wet and filthy my mum is going to love me when I get home. Rather than stay around the start we went to watch at worry gill and the elites and juniors made the course look easy compared to how I was riding it. 
Thank you to WXC for there continued support and enthusiasm towards racing, and a especially big thank you to Keith for cleaning my bike afther practice!!!

Glenifer Braes SXC 2012 By Hannah Ferguson

Nothing worse than standing on the start line and you realise you arent racing anyone. This is bad because you dont have positions to fight for but also kinda good because you can race your own race. A good thing about the Scottish races is that all the girls start together so although I wasnt directly racing anyone I could still have a good race with the people around me. My start didnt go to well, I think I actually went backwards, but I got going and started to settle down into a rhythm, the back break pads had only recently been replaced so the back wheel was a bit stiff and everyone went passed me at the start of the road climb nevermind the top was in sight. Having not pre ridden the course the first technical decent caught me off gaurd and I hit a stone wrong and went over the handlebars. Another steep decent shortly after which was longer and steeper but I folled the pperson in front down and stayed on the bike. The course ventured back into the start arena and I thought that was the lap finished but as it turned out that was only about half way!! There was a short steep climb that I didnt even attempt to ride and chose to run up but when I junped back on the bike my legs seized up and I had to change into a easier gear to try and spin off the lactic acid in my legs. A short quick decent lead to a water crossing, no one told me about this, and it was. Yet another race where my feet were wet and cold. I had made up some time on the people around me and it felt like I was more involved in the race. For most of the second lap there were people around me so I continued to push on trying to get equal lap times, managed to finish the lap without crashing this time. At the start I had been told to do two laps but for the first time in my life I asked if I could do more because it didnt feel like a long enough race, I didnt regret my decision either going into the third lap if anything my legs felt like they had just warmed up. That feeling had gone when I reached the top of the climb. There was no one else around me and I was starting to lack motivation but some moral support from people round the course kept me turning the pedals and pushing all the way to the finish. The race had finished and I came first and last, makes a difference to the last race I had done by myself as I got disqualified in it. My legs were tired by the end of the race and I was glad that I did three laps and finished in one piece. 

British NPS Sherwood 2012 By Hannah Ferguson

“Beep beep beep.” Half past 6 on any morning is bad enough but it’s especially bad on a Saturday morning. This was however the time I needed to be up at to be ready and left at 7 to travel down to Sherwood Forest for the first round of the British XC Series. I was staying with some friends in Edinburgh as I needed to be at the race venue early to have a team meeting with WXC World Racing. We hit the road (not literally) and our first stop was a bakers in Moffat to restock on food. 5 hours later we reached Sherwood Forest but because all of my kit and bike equipment was with my dad I couldn’t even sign on. I popped in at my team tent and had a catch up with Trevor and Keith before meeting a few of the new girls on our team I got given some of the kit I would be racing for the year and it looked so good that I couldn’t wait to get it on and go for a spin. The meeting had been put back till after the first practice session but I still had to wait for my bike to get here before I could go for a practice lap. By the time my bike arrived the sun was shining and it was shorts and t-shirt weather for our pre ride. The course was sort of what I expected from Sherwood; flat, non technical and suited for the more powerful cyclists but none the less it was still a good and challenging course. There were a few steep uphill’s that under race conditions would be easier to just run as people would be stopping. After practice we had the team meeting and were given the low down for racing in a World Cup team, there was lots of new faces for this year and although I only spoke briefly with them I am really looking for to getting to know them over the season. After our debrief we headed off to find our Travelodge and a shower and change before we went to find somewhere to eat. Presented with a menu in front of me I choose the gammon steak with an egg on top and all the sides. To the amazement of myself when the food arrived in front of me I was silent for about 10 minutes and the entire plate had been cleared, I am guessing I was hungry. Even managed to find a space for some sticky toffee pudding.


Race day. For the past few years Sherwood has fallen on the weekend when the clocks go forward and today was the same. We had to be left by 8 but my dad realised at 7:55 that he couldn’t find the keys only to find them in the room in his jacket pocket. Finally we got to the venue only half an hour late. No time to mess around today we had just over 30 minutes before gridding so it was a quick change and onto the turbo for warm up. Being one of the older people in the category I got gridded 2nd so could choose a good line for my start. The groups ahead of us started and soon it was us standing with the commissaries announcing the whistle would go soon. I got a good explosive start and was sitting in second going up the first fire road but people started overtaking me and I didn’t have the spark to stay with them or get past so I found myself at the back going into the first bit of single track which was not good and I could tell the race was not going to go as well as I had hoped. The one big change in the course was that there wasn’t as much fire road and a lot more single track which some people preferred but it meant there wasn’t much chance for overtaking. The number of laps we were doing had been reduced to two which in comparison to 3 laps feels more like a sprint. Going into the second lap I hadn’t drank much but decided to change my bottle anyway. I grabbed the bottle of coke from my dad which I was hoping to be flat only to find bubbles in my mouth which meant it wasn’t. I was getting caught by some of the youths so I managed to stay with them and push myself to the finish. The race had finished quicker than it had started and for once I felt like I could have done another lap but didn’t have time to moan about how bad my race went as I needed to cool down and get changed. The boy’s race would be starting soon so we grabbed a sandwich and went down to watch the start. The sun was sinning and I had packed my shorts so maybe a bit of tan time as well. The boy’s races proved eventful to watch as there were a few close finishes and quite impressive sprints for the line. Van packed up it was time for the 5 hour van journey back to Scotland.

British MTB Series Round 4

So yet another round of the British MTB Series has now passed; this time in the far away land of rainy Scotland! With its reputation for its weather conditions, wet weather gear was essential and the first thing packed before the long journey to the highlands.

BRITISH MOUNTAIN BIKE SERIES R4

KIRROUGHTREE, SCOTLAND

RACE REPORT BY CARLA HAINES- ELITE FEMALE

Saturday was cloudy, miserable and raining, but despite the weather I had a fun pre ride around the course in the mud! Due to the fun race later in the afternoon the conditions for the race the next day were a whole lot different but very enjoyable.

Race Day

6.15am wakeup call and the exact same preparations were made for the morning. I was in quite a relaxed state of mind, or maybe I was just still half asleep but I didn’t feel that nervous. This is the first occasion I have felt this so it was kind of strange but quite nice in a way too.

Arriving at the event arena in good timing I could relax, gather my thoughts and focus on the race…my race! A last minute adjustment was made to my shifter as It was too far under the handlebar, which slightly interrupted my warm up slightly but it need to be done so a backup warm up was in place!!

I was gridded third which meant I was on the front line; a good position to be in and a clear run of the start. With 3 laps of the course, which sounds short but considering the conditions it was just right, I was ready to race. I felt like I was waiting to go in to a battle with armour and weapons prepared for a tough fight! The gun when and I hit the pedals as hard as I could up the fire track. My start was pretty good and I was a comfortable position. After the sharp right hand bend to climb up more fire track other riders were passing me; despite the situation I wasn’t bothered, I just kept pedalling ‘myself’ up the climb in ‘my way’.

Hitting the first bit of single track I was slowly pulling riders in. At times there were sections in the woods where we all had to run as it was just too muddy and slippery to ride. Most of us Elites were still close together and when it came to the descents I was zooming down. I gained at least 4 places whilst others were running with their bikes which made me feel so confident for the rest of the race.

Myself, Maxine Filby (Velocite UK) and Jessie Roberts (RWD Brakes Factory) were riding together..or shalI I say running!To be honest I found it quite amusing  the amount of times I was hopping on and off my bike, at one point I laughed so much I couldn’t get on my bike; I had to throw myself on it otherwise I would have ended up in the trees; not that I hadn’t already!

By the end of lap two Maxine had made a break and it was myself and Jessie battling for 4^th and 5^th position. We had a good race together- it was the last descent that got me 4^th place; a quick inside line on the A line resulted in a 10sec lead to the finish.

I was so happy with my performance; I raced comfortably, relaxed and felt like I was floating around! It sure felt good to be on the Podium at a National Round for the first time. Things are looking up now that I have finished my final year at Uni; bring on the rest of the season!

Thank you to WXC World Racing for their fantastic support as always and to all the sponsors for making it happen on the Podium.

British University's Cross Country MTB Championships 2012

At last the MTB Cross Country Championships had finally arrived. It was very touch and go whether BUCS were going to hold it, which would have been very unfortunate; but the date was set and preparations were made.

Dronfield in Sheffield was the venue; a former Midlands Round so I knew it was going to be a pretty nice course.

Arriving Saturday afternoon I was able to pre ride the course…..with a twist!!I noticed two Range Rovers hanging about; blacked out windows the lot. It seemed pretty suspicious but I carried on with my 2 laps. It was muddy and slippery in a few places but to me that’s just what I like! When I got back to the car, the two Range Rovers had gone and there was a rather nice looking helicopter in its place! According to my mum, Elton John was air lifted and then transferred in to one of the cars and taken to Chesterfield just down the road where he was playing that evening! Well I never expected that the day before a race!

Race Day

I went about my normal routine prior to the race, as its second nature to me and helps me focus. I was confident that I could win it but I didn’t want this to override my concentration because anything can happen in a race!

A good warm up on the rollers and fully hydrated I was ready to rock and roll. I was actually nervous, but not the same nerves as I get in a National or World Cup. The men went off a couple of minutes in front as it was going to be bedlam weaving in and out of the slower riders in the mud.

The gun went off and I hit the pedals pretty hard. I had an ok start, not as fast as I usually go off but just enough to get in the lead. I lead up the grass field and had already caught the guys off the bad off the mens race. There was a longish muddy slippery climb which was a nightmare getting up with so many riders everywhere; ttyres were slipping and people were coming off left right and centre it was quite a laugh! I decided to get off and leg it up as fast as I could as it was much quicker!! Then it hit single track in the woods where there were more queues and even more mud! More gaps were forming so I was weaving in and out of the guys as quick as I could to gain more places and increase the gap between 2^nd Place.

By the second lap riders were much more spread out so it was easier to ride properly. I was in the lead and riding pretty well; picking each rider off bit by bit as I rode through the mens field. The descents were really fun; not to slippery but pretty fast and flowed well with speed. I made a couple of silly mistakes but nothing that cost me the race or delayed me too much. I had a bottle every lap to keep my energy levels up but as they were pretty short laps I didn’t need so much.

The final lap I was passing the slower females and encouraged them as they let me through; they were relieved to see the leader as some of them looked pretty exhausted!

It was a good fun race and was so happy with winning. As its my final year at Uni I wanted Gold; the previous years I had 2^nd and 3^rd so it was definitely in my sights for the win.

In came Ruby Miller, Cardiff University 2^nd place and 3^rd Anna Buick, Manchester University; both familiar faces on the XC scene, so it couldn’t have been a better podium J

A great way to finish my years at Uni- Thank you Marjons :D

Now its time to live the dream.....