It just had to snow right!

Lets face it November's weather has challenged the best of us! Part's of the country have experienced almost a years rainfall in 24hr, the Tweed almost doubled in size over night and on more occasions than I really care to remember I have had to contend with soaking wet feet (don't you just hate that!). So it was of no surprise when I woke up on Sunday morning, looked out the window and I saw the rain streaming down the window (first thoughts were this bike is gonna be fun and slippy), but I wasn't prepared for the snow that was about to follow - it defiantly has to be the first of the Glentress Duathlons with weather like that ............ha ha!

For the first time I can remember the first duathlon was completely sold out - it's really nice that the series is seeing the support that it truly deserves. Pete, Elspeth and the rest of the gang had once again set up a flawless race course that only ever guarantees one thing . . . . . . . . its gonna be tough out there but surprisingly fun too (don't be fooled normally the fun part is only sensed when you are actually finished and alot of the time I think it is just relief :) he he!)

At twelve o'clock sharp we were off (thank goodness because it was freezing!), it was as rapid as usual as everyone battle for a position on the firetrack road, the lungs got a bit of a shock with the lack of recent racing and just the sheer coldness of the air. The course was the same as last year but due to the wet weather the descents were a little more interesting - I was loving the slippy-ness! It caught more than a few people out as I watch some rather sore looking face plants in front of me! From there it was up and down, up up and down with a little more up before returning to the transition area. By this stage my hands were pretty numb and the whole task of taking off a pair of biking shoes and attempting to tie up laces on running shoes was providing to be just a little too difficult - after a few to many minutes I was off out on my run. My stomach was going berserk, it kind of sounded like a washing machine - yuk! The whole run was a bit torturous for me as I just really felt that I didn't have a lot of energy, at which point it really started snowing (check out how happy I am in the photo below), it was made slightly worse by the fact that it was an out and back run so I could see the girl leading and the other competitors chasing me down-eek! I managed to hold on to second place after Elke Schmidt who was flying at the front of the field taking a convincing win and finishing in 8th spot over all! The whole race was pretty tough and I never really felt like I had a second gear - must have forgotten to pack my gear box!

Once again a really great tough event!

Thanks to the bike patrol - that half covered digestive biscuit and cup of tea at the end were the best I have ever tasted! The only thing that was missing was a bit of Carl's banter, but you guys did him proud!

Happy to have a rest today!

Les

Something green and shiny to make you smile during the dark winter months!

Another season down . . . . . . .

I don’t think I’m alone in the feeling that the 2009 SXC series was defiantly one of the best yet! There were surprises around ever corner, some great new courses, some great twists to old courses and as always some great folk out there competing and supporting! However the mere mortals among us drew a great sigh of relief as we crossed the finish line at Drumlanrig as that signified the end . . . . . . at last time to put the feet up for a while and recovery.

Don’t get too comfortable thought! Winter is fast approaching and if you get stuck inside too long with you feet up, well it may just become a bit of a habit . . . . a bad habit! As the nights draw in and the nip in the air turns into a bit more than a nip, that bad habit might just become to tough to break- be careful (eeeekkkkk)!

Winter is a funny old time especially in Scotland, the weather is unpredictable to say the least and even with his best efforts Michael Fish has a pretty poor chance of predicting what is actually going to happen! But that kind of adds to the excitement I guess, I enjoy being out on the mountain bike when it is wild and the wind is blowing a hooley around you, it’s pretty cool! Last winter however my patience got tested on more than one occasion after getting frost bite on the road bike, being blown with my bike completely off the track and for more times than I care to remember attempting to cycle in snow that was just silly deep (great for playing the longest skid though!). But my biggest hate of the winter has to be that after every ride you seriously have to strip your bike if you want the components to last even half the winter, and that’s just boring! Especially when it’s freezing outside and I would rather be sat in side with a nice cup of tea and a biscuit!

But this year it’s going to be different . . . . .

With a little help from my buddies at The Hub (the bike guru’s that they are) my eyes were opened to a hidden little treasure . . . . . The Genesis IO-ID. Genesis are pretty smart cookies and at a last somebody has actually designed a bike suited to withstand British winters and all that they can throw at us, plus they are pretty sweet to ride too (always a bonus). The IO-ID is a pretty trusty little stead, it has a really nice geometry, an apple green Reynolds 520 double butted frame (it’s cool check oot the pic’s), Rockshox Recon race forks and Shimano 575 brakes. But that’s not the impressive bit, the rear hub is a Shimano 8 speed Alfine that proves to be a winner on so many accounts – the restricted gear ratio is ideal for improving power over the winter, there is no derailleur so go mad, ride over heather and such like without a care in the world yee hee! The bike is a little heavier than a normal hardtail because of the rear hub but again the weight gain is perfect for winter training. But the genius bit that just makes me smile is the reduced maintenance, no rear cassette or derailleur to clean after ever ride only a simple chain! Thus meaning I will be spending less time cleaning my bike and more time enjoying the nicer things in life – remember the tea and biscuits!

IO-ID’s are extensively used on The Hubs hire fleet, but are only used a maximum of 35 times before retirement, at this point good homes are sought for each and every bike! The only prerequisite is that when you purchase one of these little babies you promise to have fun on it! Each bike is fully serviced after every ride and again before going on sale (many with brand new components) so in many ways it’s as good as new. So if you fancy grabbing yourself a little winter bargain you can pick up an IO-ID for only £499, check them out at http://www.thehubintheforest.co.uk/Bike/Bikes_For_Sale.html or head along and have a chat with the dudes at The Hub (they really do know what they are talking about!). Still not convinced? Hire one of the bikes out for the day and take it for a whizz around the trails, then if you decide to buy the bike you will be refunded the hire charge – spiffing!

So tell me what you would rather be doing this winter . . . . cleaning your bike or drinking tea? It’s a no-brainer for me!

Yee ha

Les

Tinto Tinto it aint no disco disco!

The 2009 season was a tough one that was for sure! I had peaks in my fitness that were just incredible and on the whole was stoked with the outcome of the year! It is a pretty full on year racing straight through from April to September, so by the end of the last race I drew a big breath of air in relief for the rest that lay ahead. I took a month off training which gave me time to recuperate and regenerate in prep for 2010, it was great catching up with family and friends and hitting the trails only for fun helping me to remember why I started mountain biking in the first place - yee ha!



As October approached it was time to shake off the cobwebs and get back into training! Its so bizarre how quickly your body starts to shut down after a period of rest and the first few weeks of training were quite intense! But somewhere along the windy road my body started to remember what training was and I started to recover between sessions - relief big style! So for now its full steam ahead.



Saturday the 7th was Tinto hill race and I just had to go back and try it again. It's funny when you participate in sports events and you forget all the bad memories and only remember the good . . . .dam it :) It was a cracking day and that attracted lots of runners with a record 298 people attending! When I was stood at the foot of the hill I was flooded by bad memories of what lay ahead and they did not disappoint! I always find it really bizarre during running races at the volume of people that are around you, talk about people coming into your personal space . . . . . at one point I looked up and I had a guys ass in my face . . . not so pleasant! The climb was tough as usual and all the false peaks got me again :( but I was faster to the top - yipee. The descent was pretty loose and slippy in bits but fun . . . . as the gradient flattened out towards the end of the race I got passed by more than a few whippets - gutted! On the whole though I was a whole 3 minutes faster than last year - result! I finished 160th out of the 298 runners, 10 spots up on last year :)



The last few days have been tough, my body is broken and stairs are my nemesis!



A slighty tired



Les

The Big Finale!

Its gone . . . its over . . . . 2009 sxc done!

The last round this year was at Drumlanrig Castle, and as always it was a great end to the season. The course was pretty slippy on Saturday, probably the worst I have ever ridden it . . . . . at some points I felt like I was in a ping pong machine with my little hardtail, loose as a goose! The course was great, some of the roots are now super exposed and its just a real hard core race out there, not much opportunity to let off the gas! The new section of the course was fabby, really flowing but you had to be careful not to lose your front wheel in some of the loose corners! By the time Sunday had arrived the sun was shinning and most of the course had dried out- it was just the perfect end.

The race was a UCI cat 2 so our start was delayed until 2 o'clock, I would be telling fibs if I said I didn't enjoy the lazy start to the day! Melaine Spath (DU Cycling club) won the elite females, with Lee Craigie (Square Wheels) having a great race finishing in 2nd spot and Lily Mathews (100% Me) in 3rd spot. I finished in 4th and was chuffed to bits with that! That result also secured my 2nd place overall in the series - sweet!

The rest of the Glentress Riders were lapping up the technical course too with Lucy Grant taking the win the the girls juvenile field. Katy Winton won the youth females closely followed by Hannah Ferguson. Lewis Kirkwood also had a good race finishing 4th in the youth males with Sam Waterston in a great 6th place. Jake Law sat this one out spending some quality time with his newly born daughter - aawwww! Graeme Short had to deal with a tough Irish invasion finishing in 13th in the male vets.

Another season gone - that is such a mad feeling!

I have loads of shout outs that's for sure!

To my sister Kerry for traipsing the whole country with me, putting up with my bad moods (normally because she cant read a map - he he) and with out fail always being there on race day feeding me and trying to give me encouragement, even though I look like death sometimes!

The G man for his time and dedication to my training. Without his support I would not be where I am now!

The hub and everyone there for looking after my bike, giving me great advice and support, and putting up with my banter all year :)

Squirt / Luvians / Bloc / Tunnocks / Polar and Baillie Gifford for all the support during the season.

The Wednesday night gang! Training is always an easier thing to do with you guys around. Cheers G, Gary, Graeme and Rue!

A big thanks to the SXC for another great year and everyone else involved that makes the season run so smoothly.

And anyone else that I have missed - thanks!

Time for a bit of feet up before winter training starts . . . I'm excited already

Yee ha

Les

Aviemore at it's best!

Round 6 can you believe it? In some ways I can . . . . . . my body feels pretty tired but I'm just not really sure where the summer has gone, but it certainly has gone that I'm certain of! The nights are drawing in, night lights have been rescued from the back of the cupboard and dusted off - eek its all a bit mad!

Aviemore what a course! . . . . its gruelling, technical and tough and everybody loves it! Seriously I have never heard anyone say a bad word about Aviemore. It has been puzzling me why the course is loved so much, especially when it is pretty technical at sections, but my conclusion is that somewhere down that descent no matter what your skill level is you cannot help but smile because it is great fun, sure there are some pretty challenging bits but that's what we all need to make sure we get out on our bikes out of the shed and practice. The firetrack road is tough and it exposed every rider without enough miles in their legs, the natural climbing was great and slippy, the descents were awesome ranging from varied sweeping single track to rock drops and that great section at the end of the course that was just uber fast . . . . .love it! But I think the course at Aviemore sends out a really strong message about the mountain biking community, they like to be challenged so lets not shy away from some of the great tracks Scotland has to offer and race on them more! A big shout out has to go to everyone involved in the course design at the weekend, those guys got up super early on Sunday morning and pre-rode the course just to make sure everything was ok for the race . . . . cheers guys!

The race for me personally was a shock to the system, in August I picked up a viral illness which resulted in me being off the bike for a month and boys could I feel that, I actually felt like I was going backwards on the firetrack climb but it was all made worth while every time I got to the top for the descent - yaaaoooo! Ciara Macmanus made the trip over from Northern Ireland and took the win in the Elite females, followed by Lee Craigie (Square Wheels) and Ruth Fraser-Moodie (Pedal Power) in 3rd, eventually I finished in 4th spot but was pushed all they way to the end by Mona Petrie who subsequently finished in 5th! Gid racing.

Fellow Glentress riders were doing a great job out there too: Lucy Grant took the win in the Juvenile category. Katy Winton won the youth. Lewis Kirkwood finished in 5th in the male youths and Sam Waterston in 11th. Finally Graeme Short finished 11th in the vets.

Hopefully I can find some climbing legs for Drummy

Yee ha

Les

Team Ingram get Durty down at St Mary's Loch!

Really has it been a year??? It would appear so . . . . it was time for team Ingram to dust off the cobwebs and prepare for the DURTY triathlon 2009 yee ha! The team was made up of my sister Kerry - the swimmer, me - the biker and my sister-in-law Lisa the runner! It was truly a horrible day down in the Scottish Borders . . . . literately started raining from the minute we woke up, but I would be telling fibs if I didn't admit to having a slight grin on my face because the rain only signalled one thing in my eyes . . . a slippery sleek mountain biking course ha ha!

Team work . . . . . or Kerry doing all the hard work you decide!

So Kerry was off on the first leg and was skimming along the water like a dolphin . . . . . . well actually I couldn't really see her because there were so many people in the water but that's how she was swimming in my mind! It took her a mere 16:47mins to complete the swim, get the wetsuit off, swing it around her head and tag me! Yippee now for some fun! I was feeling pretty good out there knowing that I only had 2 main hills to climb, the first one was going well and I was reeling people in all the time so that was a great motivator, after the first descent I could only see another 2 riders in front - yikes. On the final steepest hill I caught one of the guys and the other was in throwing distance and putting up a pretty good fight. When I got to the top of the ascent I knew there was a tough boggy section before a fast loose descent, I put the work in along the bog section and caught the final guy at the start of the fast descent . . . . I was on my little full susser so I have a lot of fun getting down that descent! It was a bumpy ride back to the transition where I tagged Lisa for the run (not before she gave me stick about having to be the first runner out . . . no pleasing some people ha ha! See the photo above). Lisa whizzed the 5k 26:16 minutes - sweet! We won the team event and were 2nd overall in the sprint event! Check us out below in the roasting Scottish summer!!!

It was a great day out and such a nice way to spend sometime with the family! Thanks to everyone who came along for the day to cheer us on! Oh and nice one to my little nephew Adam who has recently learnt to ride his bike and was showing me his skills! Next generation of Ingram mountain bikers in the making already - get in!

Yee ha

Les

The Garmin Challenge Glentress

This year so far we have been getting slightly spoilt with the dusty dry courses that have prevailed upon us in the land on mountain biking, but it looks like Scotland has remembered its original climate (boo!) and has returned to being rather bleek! On Sunday the guys from Bike radar and Garmin descended upon Glentress for the 3rd Garmin challenge event! It was a bit rainy and a bit yukky but pretty good fun out there on the mountain bike I have to say!

The event was class, really easy, pitch up, sign on , get a Garmin unit attached to your bike and follow that route! Check out the full report at:

http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/winner-of-scottish-garmin-mtb-day-revealed-22589

I'm going to have some fun with my new Garmin Edge that's for sure!

Yee ha

Les

This is what its all about . . . . . The British Champs 2009

It's been a while since I have felt like this . . . . . . it is now Tuesday, my body is officially broken, if it doesn't hurt or is not bruised it has just decided that right now it doesn't really want to work properly! I went to the limit this weekend at the Champs - holy smokes it was fun!

Innerleithen what a place! For ages now I have always wondered why the Scottish Borders lacks mountain biking events especially since in a relatively short radius you are absolutely spoilt for choice! This weekend the small usually quaint (except on Saturday nights) town of Innerliethen played host to both the Downhill and XC 2009 British Championships! It was super exciting and the whole place looked awesome!

The XC course was not for the faint hearted, the climb was mega with enough steep little kickers in there to keep pain levels above threshold . . . the descent was mental and the field . . . . god that was just horrible! It was proper mountain biking and it was so refreshing! My race was hard, probably the hardest race that I have competed in yet. There wasn't much space for a breather out there and I had my fair share of problems but at the end of the day that's just what racing is all about! An eventful third lap resulted in me ripping my cleat out of my shoe - seriously I still have no idea how that happened. Anyway it left me trying to descent by putting the carbon sole of my shoe onto the pedal, yip it wasn't that much fun and pretty scary to be honest! I was just chuffed to get to the bottom, kind of in one piece, where Graeme kindly lent me his shoe for the final lap, it may have been a few sizes too big and my heel kept popping out on the climb but it was so good to actually be able to ride like I know I can on my last descent. Hats off to Sue Clarke (SIS) who took the win in the women's field on a proper hardcore track! Followed by Jenny Copnall (Look RT) in 2nd and Sharon Laws (Halfords Bikehut) in 3rd. I finished 8th and am mega chuffed with the result, first top 10 in the British yee ha!

The rest of the Glentress riders were on form too with Katy Winton taking the win and becoming youth Champion, Hannah Ferguson returned to racing after a pretty horrible accident mid week and finished 4th - good riding girls! Lucy Grant was 2nd in the Juvenile catgegory. Lewis Kirkwood also made the podium finishing 3rd in the Male youths and Sam Waterston finished 12th. Jake Law and Graeme Short claimed to take this one easy but they seemed to be motoring when I saw them! And Last but by no means least Neil Wilson won the Vet's Downhill category - sweet riding guys!

I'm still buzzing from the whole weekend, it was so cool to race at home and have so much support out there so thanks to everyone who came along to watch! The marshals were awesome too thanks for all the chat along the way! The course was awesome and everything ran really smooth on the day. I think it was really cool that both events came together for the weekend as it something that never happens and it was really nice to catch up and watch friends and team mates riding in the Downhill, for the future I reckon it would be good if both events could run together but possibly on separate days for example like they use to do at Fort William for the World Cup. After all its the British Champs, its a really big deal to all the riders involved and each and everyone one of them deserves the limelight for a day!

G man you are cool, I never would have managed those hills without your wisdom! Kerry respect as always! Sarah thanks for the last bottle!!

Special thanks to The Hub, Bloc, Luvians, Baillie Gifford and Tunnocks.

Time for some more sleep I think

Yee ha

Les

Girls are Loud . . . . . . boys are rubbish :)

This weekend Kirroughtree played host to the next in the series of the No Fuss 10 hour events! Seriously what a host and what a course! At last a course that wasn't made up of relentless hours of firetrack road it was sweet!!!!! There was just under 300m of climbing per lap (see the course profile below!) and it was a real course for the power houses of the mountain bike field! The bitterness of the climbs and hard efforts were immediately whisk away by the fast flowing singletrack descents! If you didn't smile out there seriously you need to have a word with yourself! There was one relentless climb (you all know the one I mean!) in there, where the lactate filled the legs, it was always a relief to get to the middle section of the climb where it eased off for 1 second or so before the rest of the climb kicked in - ouch!, its only saving grace was its shortness and you knew when you got to the top a treat was in store all the way to the finish line! It just goes to show that you can actually put together a proper mountain bike race without an overkill of fire track! Two big thumbs up to the organisers at No fuss for this one yaaaa oooo!

The weather even held up! It was proper scorchio during the day and the rain that was due to arrive a tea time was delayed for a few hours until the race was finished! Well done to whoever was in charge of that one ha ha!


To the race - yaaaaooooo! After the solo efforts at 10 under the Ben I decided to kick back a little on this one and entered the race a part of a female quad . . . . . only thing was that there wasn't much kicking back as I was part of a totally magic team! Team name: Girls Are Loud, members : Lee Craigie (Square wheels), Emma Guy (Glentress Riders), Tracy Brunger (Glentress Riders) and myself (Glentress Riders). Since we were the only female quad and being the competitive little animals that we are, we competed in the male quad category! The laps were fast and we were all truly loving it out there, chasing people down, hoping for a clear run on the descents and just having some good old fashioned fun on our bikes! We didn't really know where we were in the standings for well over the first half of the race, when Lee went to check. We were pretty happy when she returned informing us all that we were in fact in the lead by a staggering 50minutes . . . . come on boys ha ha! Anyway that was kind of job done, the boys just couldn't catch, imagine that girls that can really mountain bike! We finished 12 laps in 10 hours 24 minutes a whole lap ahead of our fellow competitors! Check us out on the podium below wearing our make-shift beards to fit in with the boys ha ha:)

Graeme short also put in a impressive performance completing 10 laps in 9hour 49mins and finishing 3rd in the solo male vets! It was his first podium - yaa hoo! Nic Jenkins and his team Lady and the Cramps just missed out on third spot in the trios - good effort guys! Nic was definitely having way too much fun out there, showing off with bunny hops and all!

Big thanks to all the team for making it such good fun! El Captanio Kerry for time keeping, holding bikes and keeping everyone in line as normal! Lee's Aunt Ruth for great banter and cousin Sue for amazing legs massages before our 3rd laps - god that so helped me round! The guys at No fuss for another cracking event, all the marshals for their time and encouragement out on the laps! And as always my sponsors : The Hub, Bloc , Tunnocks , Polar, Luvians.

Champs next weekend at Inners . . . . . . . . its all gonna be a bit mad!

Les

Fort Bill hosts the Scottish Champs and boy what a course!

Fort Bill played host to the Scottish mountain biking champs and it was a refreshing change from the previous 2 years at Paisley! Anyone use to the course at the Bill will automatically think of the characteristic massive uphill, followed by the long winding man made descent! But when I arrived on Saturday I was so surprised by 2 things . . . . . the lack of midgies (it's a miracle) and the totally awesome course that unravelled right in front of my eyes! The start was pretty much same old same old, up the boardwalk, the horrible dusty fireroad climb (that still reminds me of the first 24hr race I competed in, not nice!) catch your breath over the bridge (formally from Glentress), along a flattish part of track and prepare yourself for the horrible climb . . . . . .or maybe not it was taped off yipee! The rest of the course was awesome, very little climbing (what there was it was steep and sharp) a great natural descent that put a big smile on my face from ear to ear! Well done to the course organisers so refreshing to race on landscapes that are representative of what Scotland has to offer the mountain biking community!

Race day

Once again the sun gods blessed Fort William for another scorchio day of racing (don't believe me??? Look at how blue the sky in in the picture below!)

Preparation phase:

Getting the race number sorted on the bike (left), and yes G is making sure I'm doing it right :)

Chilling out and having a laugh on the right (my arm isn't really that big!), but I will claim it as muscle!!!

Racing time

Before I knew it was 11 o'clock and off we set. Pictures below are of the start, Lee Craigie (Square Wheels) in the Blue, Sue Clarke (SIS) and myself in the Glentress Riders colours. The start was as rapid as ever up a dusty firetrack road before we looped onto the race circuit.

I had a pretty good race and felt I was riding well. Unfortunately I had a massive stack on my third lap just over cooking it slightly on the natural descent! I was wearing a GPS unit from work (GPSports Pro) which also has an accelerometer built in so you can measure the G-force during impacts. I hit a massive 12.4 G on that stack - gee whizz!!! I so would have made Emma's sequel video with that effort- ha ha! It left my handle bars slightly squint but I manged not to lose too much time and was stoked to finish 3rd in the race and 2nd in the Scottish Championships - yee ha! Sue Clarke rode an awesome racing taking the win and Lee Craigie in 2nd spot (also taking the Scottish Championship).

It was a great weekend for the team too . . . . . Lucy Grant and Katy Winton were both crown Scottish champions in the juvenile and youth categories. Lewis Kirkwood finished 4th in the race, getting a podium 3rd for the champs. Sam Waterson put in another good performance finishing in 10th. After severe blood loss from midgie bites (I didn't see any) Jake Law finished 5th in the Masters- he he! With Graeme Short picking up 11th in the vets!

Accommodation for the weekend was the Stronchreggan in Fort William where Bronwen, Graeme and family gave us a very warm welcome! Those guys have some of the best beds I have slept in away from home! Nice rooms, good food and what a view from the front room . . . the dolphins even gave us a visit in Loch Linnhe - that was pretty sweet. Check them out at : www.stronchreggan.co.uk

Great weekend, great course!

Yee ha

Les

10 Under the Ben

I'm not sure if I took a wrong turning on the road on the way up to Fort Bill this weekend, but it felt like I was in France . . . scorchio! The best thing about the heat . . . .nae midgies, the worst . . . . . . I had 10 hours of cycling to do! Ouch!!

So after a few years of entering such events as a team, G and I decided it was time to go solo, yikes!

Look left, thats me on the podium (in the middle). . . . . . pretty happy it's all over! (8 laps in 9:49:11), Katrina Brown (blue top) 2nd (7 laps in 9:27:19) and Helen Findlay 3rd (7 laps in 9:57:12).

Here is the story of how it went:

The start . . . . oh the start! The start is always an interesting one at 10hour events. Take a few hundred people and some how try and spread them out on a firetrack road before entering singletrack sections of courses, lets be honest its always gonna equal disaster! This year a couple of trials guys led us out on motorbikes to try and spread the field. They held a relatively easy pace (something that was nice when compared to the madness of the XC races), however instead of speeding up to spread the field more, they held the pace, before long we turned off the main road, the track narrowed, people slammed on their brakes and the carnage started! It was pretty mental cycling along as everyone jostled for places, a few guys hit the deck! At one point one guy cycled into me, we locked handle bars and then he was sent flying off to the side, bit to close for my liking! Before you knew it you were into a small descent where I lost my first water bottle of the day - doh! I didn't panic though knowing I would be through transition soon enough where I could collect another bottle!

Lap 1 - Felt good, it was really warm on the open sections of firetrack road, there were a few hold ups at some of the natural sections of the course, on the whole I was pretty happy with how things were going!

Lap 2 - Everything was ticking along nicely until about 5 minutes into the lap when I reached down for my water bottle to find there was nothing there noooooooooooooooooooo! First reaction total panic, thinking in this heat a lap without fluid could be race over! First plan . . . to check out everyones bikes and see if anyone was carrying a spare bottle, I got slightly fixated by this, more so as my mouth got dryer (so sorry if I saw you out there and I was looking rather strangely at you!). Anyhoo that plan wasn't working, no one had a spare bottle oh oh! Then just like a knight in shinning armour a motor bike guys went scooting by, I managed to shout him and ask if he had any spare water . . . . . . luckily he did! He went up to the top of the hill and gave me a bottle as I passed! So I had fluid and managed to finish the rest of the lap in an ok fashion!

Lap 3 - hated it, it felt horrible . . . . . I wanted to go home! It was hot, hot hot!!!

Lap 4 - Felt better again but it was starting to get soooooooooo hot! Feet were getting a bit sore!

Lap 5 - My feet hurt really really badly! Not a good lap, could hardly stand on the pedals during the descent. Started to question my sanity (yip that was an easy one to answer :) !!!)

Lap 6 - Straps were undone on the shoes, two clicks of the ratchet on (they were hardly on my feet!), stream dunk every lap, water need . . . . more water! Couldn't really remember what number of lap I was on, everything was merging into one! Met some nice people on the course, good banter!

Lap 7 - Its all downhill from here I'm pretty happy!

Lap 8 - Last one woop woop! Great feeling, wrist feeling a little sore but so delighted to almost be finished!

Feet were painfully sore, lay in the back of the van for a while and felt a bit sorry for myself! (I know I can hear the violins playing!)

So that was it 8 laps in 9:49:11. I finished 1st in the female solo category and 14th overall out of 177 male and female solo competitors! Yaaaaaaaahoooooooo! God that is such a good feeling! On reflection I really enjoyed the event, some parts of the course were a bit boring but guess you will always find that cycling around and around and around the same course!

Graeme Short (Glentress Riders) also put in a great performance completing 9 laps in 10:30:21, finishing 5th Vet and 10th overall, yee ha!

I was maybe out there doing the cycling on the day but 3 great people made it possible for me to achieve what I did - Kerry, G and Sarah! Those guys stood out in the baking heat for hours making sure that at the end of every lap I had everything I needed! Kerry suffered from heat stroke because it was so warm but that didn't shift her and she stay right to the bitter end making sure I was cool. G is not only responsible for getting me to the start line in such good shape he also kept my biking running smooth, had a few mad dashes to the other side of the track when I had forgotten a bottle and kept me up to date with what was going on behind me! Sarah was a little Pikka, running around like usual making sure I was tickety boo!

Kerry and I stayed at Achnabobane Farmhouse for the weekend! We got a lovely welcome from Neil and Elizabeth and truly enjoyed staying there. Although its called Spean Bridge the accommodation is only 2 miles up the road from the Nevis range so you don't have to worry about all the Fort William traffic . . . . perfect! Nice rooms and great breakfasts! They also love mountain bikers :), if your up that way check them out at - http://www.achnabobane.co.uk/.

Ok, this blog has been a bit of an epic but a few more thanks are in order - to No Fuss Events for another well organised event! All the marshals / helpers that were out there on the day always cheering and asking if you were ok! And last but not least all my sponsors (The Hub, Bloc, Luvians, Baillie Gifford & Tunnocks).

Fort William next weekend for the world cup???? Who's gonna win? Come on Rue!

Yee ha

Les

Baggies to the death!!!!

Peebles cycling club held their first open time trial of the year so I decided it was time to bite the bullet, leave the mountain bike in the shed (boo hoo) and entered the world of the road monsters/time trialist's . . . . . . scary!!!

It was all a bit of a mad rush to get down the road, get changed, pick up Gary . . . . . . sorry change into the Goonie mobile so we would arrive in style ha ha! I had no water, no bottle . . . forgot my purse mmmm it wasn't looking too good :) When we eventually arrived at the sign on we got a few special looks as we spilled out of the van in our MTB baggies, we didn't really fit in with the whole aero theme that was going on that was for sure :) Don't think matters were helped when Gary asked if it was ok to use elbows ha ha!

The course was an out and back and although I have cycled that road loads I didn't really understand where turning point was, I'm a bit rubbish like that so just nodded my head and pretended I knew! Karl (bike patrol) was at the half way mark . . . however we were told that we had to cycle round him . . bit difficult when he was standing in the gutter :) It was pretty tough that's for sure10 miles of pain . . . I think I almost coughed up a lung when I finished :) Finished in 28:58 and I'm happy to take that for my first go. Gary Forrest pulled off an impressive 27.12, with Dick Hamilton getting 29.36 . . . he was wearing flatties and five 10's!!!!!! Jake Law schooled us all finishing in 26.38 and last but by no means least Hannah Ferguson finished in 32.52!

Really enjoyed the event . . . . . maybe one day I will venture to the dark side once more!

Les

Lots of laps at Laggan

Friday was abysmal, winter appeared to have returned and the weather wasn't looking too hot for the race at the weekend! I headed home to Fife on Friday to get some TLC from the family Ingram before heading up North on Saturday. I arrived up at Laggan just after midday and headed around the course for a pre race reckie! One thing is for sure at Laggan . . . . . you know it's going to be a fast race! The course was similar to the one I had raced a few years back apart from a natural section that had been added to the climb and a smoothing out of the descent . . . . . mmm slightly disappointing!

Out of no where the sun was shinning on sunday which was ace! The Elite/Expert females had one of the biggest fields that I have seen in Scotland which is such a great thing to see! The start was mental (but it always is) as everyone tried to battle for a position before entering the singletrack descent! On the first descent their were riders and bikes sprawled all over the track, it was quite a sight! Lee Craigie was as dominant as ever and took an impressive win, followed by Anne Edwing and myself in third - yaaaaaaaaaaaoooooooo!

To the Team . . . . . Lucy Grant continued her good form finishing in second spot in a very tight race. Hannah Ferguson had a day of misfortune, after suffering 2 punctures resulting in her having to push her bike round most of the course she later found out she had been disqualified because her dad helped her realign a wheel that wasn't working right . . . . maybe I'm being cynical but the fact that she was the only one in her category (Youth Female) and she pushed her bike so far not giving up should we not be praising that . . . . . . .some people and power just don't mix! Rant over :) Lewis Kirkwood and Sam Waterston finished 4th and 10th respectively in the youth males! Jake Law finishing in 5th in the masters race. Last one Graeme Short finished in 10th in the vets! Yee ha well done guys.

After the race everything got launched in the van and once again Kerry, Chi Chi and I hit the road . . . . . destination Fort Bill to catch the tail end of the downhill. G was over all weekend collecting some data from the boys (Gary & Graeme) during their race! It also gave me a chance to catch up with the downhiller's in the team, with Neil being very quick to point out it was old man 1, whipper snapper Alex nil . . . . . his words not mine ha ha! Good Craic at the Bill!

It turned into a bit of an epic day and I had a slight boob that made it even longer by failing to turn off for Edinburgh on the M9 - doh and promptly headed for Glasgow! That is such a pain in the bum I tell you . . . you have to drive for miles to get back on track! AAAAAAARRRRRGGGGGG! One day I'm going to drive to and from a race and not get lost, miss a junction, hit a animal and so on and so on . . . . . . one day!

2 weeks til 10 under . . . . . yikes what have I done :)

Les

Dalby got it so right . . . . but sadly I got it so wrong!

Last week was just one of those weeks, every hill I encountered was just a little tougher than usual, parked automobiles were playing tricks on me, the wind was always against me (why does that always happen when your tired), my eating was crap and it just generally felt like something was missing/not quite right . . . . . . but could I put my finger on it?? Its always a tough one, I tried not to worry about and instead be positive, relating it to the reduced volume of training and hoping my body was just being a little lethargic in preparation of what lay ahead at the weekend, I was pretty sure it would all return to normal . . . but that didn't really happen! Time for a bit of re-evaluation I think and possibly a little less chocolate this week :)

It took a little longer than I expected to travel down to Dalby, mainly due to the fact once you leave the motorway you have to follow tight, twisty little roads through a number of very busy and slow moving villages. Even when the roads opened up into the country there were so many 40mph drivers cutting about whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy???? :( The journey also had a bit of a yukky twist when a pheasant decided it would be a good idea to jump out in front of the van, I thought we had missed it but it did that whole start to fly then sink 2 feet thing that they do . . . . . and oh dear no more Mr pheasant! Chi chi (my van) kind of got splatted with all this horrible yellow stuff . . . seriously what is that? And clear jelly looking stuff . . . yuk! So we had to take a detour to find a car wash! Put me off my food for a good 5 minutes that did!

This was my first trip to the Yorkshire dales and I was not disappointed. They have hills and some of the gradients you had to drive up to get to the race venue were well exciting (I know it's sad when you get excited about hills). The work that has been put in at Dalby is fantastic, it's a real mountain bike course that's for sure! It's hard packed surface makes the course roll fast but you have to be careful of the speed at some sections as it's fairly lumpy and bumpy and I got a little too close to a few trees at some points. Then there is the drop . . . a whole 6 feet that provided enough comedy on the day that will see many fans returning to watch mountain bike racing forever! On practice day it was face plant central and those that escaped luckily did a massive endo that was so out of control it made you feel a little sick! The mass of 30 or so riders gathering around it on the practice lap lead me not to have a shot, thought I would just save that for race day . . . . makes it more interesting ha ha! The climbs were brutal, the granny gear was out and you had to work so hard just to keep the front end on the floor at some sections. I really hope that Dalby is successful with the bid to be a venue for XC racing in the World Cup, I think it would be really sad if the UK did not have an XC round!

For loving the course so much I was a bit disappointed when things just didn't go my way on race day, think I forgot to pack my climbing legs (you always forget something right!). I loved the descents and was riding so smooth through them, even the drop I nailed it. Don't get me wrong it was fun but more of the p.a.i.n kind of fun! I finished in 11Th spot. Katherine O'shea (Torq Australia) took the win in the Elite females. Hannah Ferguson continued her impressive form finishing in third spot and Lewis Kirkwood in 6th - well done guys!

Accommodation for the weekend was the pent house suite at August Guest house near Rosedale! Mary and Michael certainly give a warm welcome. Michael likes to think he is a bit of joker however his jokes about the Scots were a bit poor ha ha! Maybe he will have some better ones for the next time we visit :) Racing brings alot of travelling and that can sometimes be a difficult thing, but when you find a bed and breakfast like what Mary and Michael run it makes it all worth while. The food is also amazing in the morning its just a pity I have to limit myself so much on a race day - Mary did try her best to force feed me mind! Thanks for making me want to come back and spend more time in Yorkshire! Check them out at http://www.augustguesthouse.co.uk/ and be sure to pay them a visit if you are down that way!

Onwards and upwards for Laggan

Les

Throw away the slicks, get some studs on and prepare for Aberfoyle!!!

The SXC series made a very welcome return to a golden oldie this weekend returning to Aberfoyle. This was my first race at Aberfoyle and if all the pre-race hype was anything to go by it was going to be a goodie . . . . . Yaaaaaaa! The course was tough from the onset steep technical climbs with steeper more technical descents . . . it was a dream come true. Hat's off to the course designers at Squadra Porcini (www.squadraporcini.com) you guys know how to put together a MTB course that's for sure! During practice on Saturday the course was stowed out, the craic was good as loads of folk were falling off and screaming as they rode the descents . . . I even did a swan dive a one point (I reckon is scored a 9 and a half!), best to find your limits on practice day . . . . . ha ha!

To the race . . . . . it was a flying start like usual with Hannah Ferguson (fellow Glentress Rider and Youth Female) taking the lead . . . . . . man they are like whippets :) It wasn't too long until Lee Cragie (Square Wheels) took over the lead and did her usual pace setting. As Lap one passed I managed to get on Lee's tail, both being closely stalked by Hannah. Lee continued to dominate the race in front of me for the remaining 3 laps although I kept getting painfully close to her at the bottom of the last descent only for her to scoot off again on the climbs! Lee took the win but I was so chuffed to finish so close behind her . . . looks like that hard winter training is starting to show!

Hannah continued to look impressive for the remainder of the race and took the win over Katy Winton. Lucy Grant continued to dominate in Juvenile field. In the Youth men Lewis Kirkwood finished in 6th and Sam Waterson in 9th . . . good work guys! Last but by no means least Jake Law finished 3rd getting his first podium . . . yee ha looks like the whole team were enjoying the tough technical race!

Accommodation for the weekend was the Braeval Old Mill Bed & Breakfast. Those guys were brilliant, very warm and welcoming and biker friendly too! They even locked our bikes away in the garage over night so they would be nice and safe! Breakfast was great and those guys certainly know how to make fresh bread that's for sure! If you are ever up that way go and give these guys a visit. Check them out at : http://www.trossachs.co.uk/ad-braeval.html

Thanks to Kerry for standing in a rather miserable feed zone for a few hours, The G-man for getting me in shape to do the damage that I did, Emma and Tracy for those shout outs around the course, and all the marshals / organisers and supporters!

The sheer toughness of the course has left me feeling a bit wrecked today that's for sure . . . . but that's what a proper course should do isn't it?

Time for a bit of feet up :)

Yee ha

Les

Slicks were in order at Sherwood.

It was an early start on Saturday morning to head south for the start of the British XC series. Things were going well, the van was all packed up nice and early, the tunes were on and Kerry and I were on the road . . . yippee! I forgot one important factor though . . . . . . Kerry is no TOM TOM and she takes shortcuts like my Dad, on average adding 15+ miles to your journey grrrrrr! (could be worse I suppose the last time we were heading for London).

Sherwood pines played host to the first round, the course was certainly different to what I am use to that's for sure! Really flat and fast, I did have to giggle when I saw that the roots and tree stumps were painted white just in case your eyes failed you and you couldn't see them :) If they plan to paint the roots at Inners someone better start the job now because it will take them a while he he! After the practice lap I changed to slick tyres as there was really no need for anything else! To keep my sanity during the lap I created 3 jumps that gave me a little something to smile at each lap. To be honest I though I was going to hate it out there from start to finish but I didn't, it was just a different kind of challenge. It was a case of putting the bike into a big gear and pedalling until your legs would no longer go round! Where a course like that sits in terms of mountain biking I'm not sure, but maybe we are just spoilt for choice up in Scotland!

So I finished in 15th spot which I am well chuffed with. Last year at this time the big guns were taking a lot more out of me during a race so it feels good to see something coming back after a gruelling winter! Hopefully its a sign of better things to come!

Hannah Ferguson was on form finishing an awesome 5th with Katy Winton finishing in 7th spot. Lewis Kirkwood was also flying round the course at a great pace finishing 11th overall, well done guys!

Its good to be home and in the hills again!

Les

A fast & furious start to 2009

Winter seems to have flown past at an unbelievable rate this year (can't say I'm too gutted about that!) and within the blink of an eye the snow has melted, spring is in the air and the new racing season has commenced- yaaaaa!!!!

The first round was at Kirroughtree, a new venue to the SXC circuit and a brilliant opener to the season. Kirroughtree is not known for hills so I didn't really know what to expect from the course. However it was a physically demanding course that encouraged you to get your bike in to the biggest ring you could push and try and grind it out for as long as possible! The roots started to polish off nicely as the laps progressed which kept you on your toes and oh that stinger climb was a fun one (you know the one I'm talking about!!). Although the climb may have left you starry eyed, it was impossible not to smile during the descent that followed! Job well done to the course designers at the break-pad it was a fun opener!

The race was also the first event that featured all the XC member of Glentress riders . . . . . . check out our cool new logo above! So to the race, man the first lap was tough, my legs were screaming at me the whole way round but somewhere during the second lap I managed to find a better rhythm that kept me going til the end if the race. I finished in third spot behind Lee Cragie (square wheels) and Adela Carter. I'm pretty chuffed with the result, winter has given me a good base and hopefully a few more races will help with speed. Looking forward to the next one already in some sadistic way:)

Lucy Grant put in a blinding performance, smoking me on the first lap to win the juveniles. Katy Winton was equally as impressive winning the youth category, with Hannah Ferguson pulling off an impressive 2nd spot! Lewis Kirwood finished 4th and Sam Waterston 14th in the youth males those guys were flying! Graeme short took a hefty tumble during an epic sprint to the line, which messed him, his bike and the other competitor up pretty badly. In the end up he had to run it in, still finishing in 7th spot . . . .good man Graeme! And last but by no means least Jake had to encounter a gruelling 5 laps, finishing 7th in the masters race - yahoo!

Thanks to Emma and Tracy for their cheering throughout the race, Kerry for feeding me and supporting as always. And everyone else who gave a shout out as I grunted my way through the course. Also job well done to the SXC organisers - great opener!

For anyone heading over to Kirroughtree in the near future the place to stay is conifers leisure park (http://www.conifersleisurepark.co.uk/), check them out! The lodges are awesome, completely biker friendly and just topped off a great weekend!

Not long til the next one, feet up and some easy pedalling this week I think.

Thanks as always to the G - man, everyone at the Hub, Squeezy, Luvians , Polar, Baillie Gifford and Tunnocks.

Yee ha

Les

Some proper XC racing at Inners - ya hoo!

Innerleithen has featured heavily on the downhill race circuits for years now . . . it has taken a while but at long last the XC market is moving to the venue too! For those of you who have not ventured to Inners yet you are missing a trick! The courses are sweet, tough climbs, awesome downhill's and lots of natural stuff along the way! This weekend Inners played host to the Alistair Lees memorial time trial. The course consisted of a 20km loop not set out for the faint hearted, the climbs were brutal, mixed with some awesome descents. God it was like a proper hardcore XC mountain bike race . . . . it does make you ask the question should they not all be like that? Ok so that's a discussion for another day but the short answer to the question is YES!


I loved the race on so many levels because it was a true test of a whole variety of skills. The weather even behaved which was a pleasant surprise! I managed to finish in first position which was awesome, picking up queen of the descent along the way! G fitted me up with a GPS unit before the race and I managed to clock 40.6km/h down Cadonbank - sweet! (not bad on a hard tail eh). I was out on my new racing weapon an Orange Evo 8, which the guys at the Hub sorted out for me the week before - yipee! The bike was sweet it's tres exciting!

The G-man once again was unable to race but fingers crossed he will be back in action ASAP. Jake fellow Glentress rider put in an impressive time while lugging a lot of suspension around the course . . . . . . . . . . his hardtail will be in the huff! Graeme Short also put in an impressive time . . . . . life in those old vet dogs yet :)

And last but by no means least welcome home to Mississippi Forest . . . it was such a nice sight for me after I had finished the race to be presented with a nice white bum and shaved legs! Some people will do anything to go faster ha ha! It's good to have you back Pumpy Pie the chat just hasn't been the same without ya!

Cheers to the organisers and marshals

Les

DOMS they really are not nice!

Day two after the race and things are just getting tougher and tougher. I swear if I stop moving for too long I am going to get stuck in that position! Anyone want a game of musical statues? I would so win at the moment! Oh the joy of DOM's!! Stairs have now become my nemesis - you should see how many I have to tackle at work its not funny (and thats just to get a cup of tea!).

Reports in from Jake yesterday were that he had turned into John Wayne . . . . god help him today!

Oh they joys of racing on the hills.

Going to try and spin the legs out later on the rollers to help remove some of the rubbish!

Here's to tomorrow and hopefully a less painful body.

Les

Fun and Frolics at Glentress

It may have been muddy and slippy under foot but the sun started to shine on Sunday (1st March) at Glentress. It was the last in the series of the Glentress duathlons and Pete and Elspeth made sure they put together a gruelling course! The bike course was tough, enough steep little climbs to keep the legs screaming and a few muddy descents to keep you on your toes and make you smile!!!! I was slightly concerned the whole way round the bike route as I had a little too much play in my headset! Thankfully it held together, but I'm not sure that I would like to ride with it like that again!

With the bike over it was time for the run and again it was a tough one, steep climbs with lots of boggy sections! I was pleased to get round the run unscaved and boy was I glad to get over that finish line! So I finished in first and with it took the series - yee ha!

Jake was on fire on the bike but think the run was a little harder for him! But lets be honest anyone who enjoyed that run is just not right in the head :) Yee ha to the Glentress riders! Unfortunately the G man had to sit this one out, hopefully he will have a speedy recover though I'm missing my training buddy!

Ta to everyone who turned up to support on the day your cheers were much required! Also a big shout out to everyone involved in organising the series it was a cracker!

Not long til the start of the XC season now - yee ha!

Les

Wiggle it just a little bit!!!

With the new XC racing season fast approach it is now the time to get all your kit and equipment ready! G purchased himself a sweet Rocky mountain XC bike from wiggle this week. Yahoo!! Seriously it really is that exciting! But what is even better is that the lovely people at Wiggle are offering a refer a friend scheme at the moment, where if you refer a friend (must be the first time they have used the site) and you are an existing customer, Wiggle will donate 10% of their first purchase in vouchers to you to spend on what ever you want! So G finally succumbed to my constant nagging about Wiggle and joined up. Sweeeeeet looks like I’m almost sorted with kit for the new season now too!

Check it out at www.wiggle.co.uk

Yee ha

Les :)

In the words of Gary Forrest G is a monster!!

Saturday the 14th of February was the famous Carnethy 5 hill race! This one is not for the faint hearted taking in 5 peaks in the Pentlands! Of course that isn’t quite tough enough for the hill runners so this year they decided to throw some snow into the equation too! I wasn’t that upset about watching this one from the side lines especially after the long road bike I had put in on the morning. So Chris and I donned our cheer leading outfits . . . . . . . ok maybe they were more wellies and as many layers as possible and went to watch the G man race! (Its was cold!).

The conclusion from the race is that G is in fact a monster! Finishing an awesome 11th in the record breaking field of 499 finishers that dude was well chuffed! Yee ha looks like all the hard training is paying off!!

I guess we will need to watch this space to see if I am still on the side lines next year!

Les

Skids are for kids unless your having fun :)

With most of the UK covered in snow it is of no surprise that my training has been taking all types of unexpected twists and turn!!! Every morning there is a fresh blanket of snow covering my street and conditions on the hills are mad! This weekend brought on a rather unusual form of mountain biking . . . . . . on the road! The climb out was brutal not really made any easier by the horizontal snow slamming into you face!


On the route back G and I had loads of fun playing the longest skid competition which G won, or I let him so he wouldn't cry :) Check out the pics of us attempting to get some descending in!


However after a week of running and biking through knee deep snow on sunday I decided enough was enough and headed North to sample the skiing conditions! They were amazing, best snow I have ever experienced in Scotland. There had been another 2 foot drop of snow over night so it was as good as powder in the morning! Whats even better there was no wind (honest I am not telling fibs) and the sun was shinning (thank goodness for my trusty bloc eyewear)! Yee ha!


Hopefully the weather will improve soon as I am missing proper mountain biking so much (I need my fix)!

Les

Another cold one at the Tress!

So it was the second winter duathlon at Glentress yesterday!! I tell you what this series has been named well (WINTER), frozen solid in the first round and snow in the second, my family were building snowmen and sledging at the transition (Some mums just never grow up, ha ha!) To be honest I was really looking forward to the race and had a slight glimmer in my eye at the thought of racing in the snow . . . . . it's not like I haven't had plenty of practice this winter after all! But unfortunately it was deemed to dangerous and the bike route was shortened for everyone's safety.

To mix things around the format of this race was changed with the run first followed by the bike . . . this was going to be fun! The run was great, a really nice 5k loop winding through the forest with enough slippy bits to make sure you were paying attention! There were more than a few fallers that's for sure! I managed to survive the run, make it through transition with all the kit I required and get on the bike in what I consider not too bad a time :) So it was the Fusions official return to racing after being out of action for a few years!!! The guys in the hub fixed it up for me a few months back and it was loving being back in racing action. I was shocked when I cycled past G after only 10 meters to find out he had a puncture when he got to his bike, total bummer after a strong run! I found it more difficult to settle in to the bike but think that was just due to the run being first and my body not really having a clue what was happening to it! I managed to start picking people off on the climb and a few crazy maneuvers in the snow on the descents gradually saw me starting to move up the field! I even managed to catch up with Jake and we played a game of cat and mouse for the rest of the ride . . in the end he beat me by 4 seconds grrr!!! Ha ha thanks for all the support out there Jake! The bike was just a little too short for me on the day and I finished in 2nd position overall behind Mhairi MacKenzie. I'm starting to get a nice wine collection on the go due to the prizes!

So another great day of racing. Thanks to everyone involved in its organisation I'm sure it was a bit stressful because of the snow.

Oh and a special shout out to the bike patrol guys for providing tea and coffee afterwards, helped me warm up a little . . . . just a little. And one more thanks to the nice guy who won a helly hansen baseball cap as a spot prize and gave it to my nephew, you made his day so he could show off to his brother.

Off for more training

Les :)

Festive fun but please no more turkey!

I was hit with the cold just before Christmas which put a stop to training for a while and left me lying around on the sofa watching trashy telly!! I was frustrated even more by the fact that I had just got a new road bike and also my old Fusion race bike had been rebuilt! Two clean bikes sat in the flat are not healthy for recuperation thats for sure!


So the festive holidays have come and gone in the blink of an eye just like usual! I spent some great time out on the trails having loads of fun, instead of trying to cram everything around a working week. I was back at home for christmas although my visit was a short one ths year, that most certainly didn't stop my mum trying to feed me up!


So 2008 has now gone and past and all the excitment of 2009 and a new race season lies ahead. I am already tres excited about it! The start of this year has been cold (was out running in the snow last night)but it has made some of the natural trails so perfect to ride on! I know G has a few training treats up his sleeve for me in the coming few weeks. Yee ha!


Mississippi (Gary Forrest) is still living the high life in NZ! Oh I am bitterly jealous!


Here's to a fast and furious 2009


Les