Fun in the Sun... er... Wet, Mud, Snow and Wind.

This time last year I was looking forward to multiple warm weather training camp but not this year, reality is kicking in and my university dissertation seems to have been taking a little more priority, but not by much.

Back on topic! Carrying a few war wounds from my 1^st races of the “new” season or winter season, last weekend I headed down to Glentress for a bit of duathlon action, my first in quite a while. I love trail running and mountain biking so couldn’t go far wrong with the Glentress duathlons, it was a super fun race. Regardless of physical fitness it’s a real tough challenge for everyone, which is what is so appealing to me, as you know you’re giving it your all and so is the person chasing you which keep pushing you to and past your limits. I even ended up leaving skin in multiple locations round the bike course! Along with; ripped leggings, gloves and jacket. 

Looking slightly concerned on the start line.

Racing on a mountain bike is pretty new to me. Racing my flat mate doesn't really have the same principles and is definitely a race I rarely have to defend the lead, I usually end up chasing. So... actually onto the start line, I recognized no one next to me and it’s always quite a daunting experience not knowing if the guy next to you is a bit of a machine or just has amazing kit, in the case of this race, not to sound cocky but I wish I knew I was the machine they should have been looking out for. I always look at the other racers bike/gear and think their bike look so good or they look the part but then again my low budget Chinese carbon 29er is also incredibly nice to ride and fast even without the “gofasterbranding” that makes people’s heads turn, which sometimes works to my advantage. Sometimes I really doubt myself and anyone who knows me will agree and I just need to focus on the fact that I’m a very solid rider and not far off being professional. I finished with a loose front wheel and had 3 pretty big crashes that in training I probably would have sulked home over or stopped most other guys in their tracks, this all happened within a 35min bike and I still produced the goods leading the field in off the 12km bike by over a minute. I had a big enough lead that the risks I took were un-necessary and probably would have ended up quicker in the long run but one of the most important things I remember being told is that; in a race you give 100% and hold nothing back because if you do you don’t just let yourself down, you let the ones who support you down and no one wants to hear you were going easy on them and insulting their efforts by your actions. I pushed the grip of my tires and my skill level past their limits but there was only one way to find that out.

Leaving transition a little worse for wear and damp but feeling okay

Heading out on the run I had no idea of how big or small my gap was I just kept pushing on trying not to look back and wondering how much time I lost in the crashes. Few words describe how tough the run was but brutal is probably as close a description as possible. Off road trail, wet underfoot and steep territory put me a little out of my comfort zone in terms of familiarization but the hurt is definitely something I’m not afraid of and feels like 2^nd nature these days. Reality of how hard the run was going to be didn't kick in till I started to see the double pointing arrows realizing I was going to have to dead turn at some point losing my advantage of keeping out of sight and giving the chasers a goal to aim for where I just had to keep pushing till either I get caught or my legs give way. I thought I’d made it till the last little descent when the fastest runner of the day Tom Owens, a member of the National Salomon trail running team went past me and road racing legs didn't have the turnover to keep up and he created a gap I couldn’t close quick enough back into my territory of the fire trail.

Finished, Tired, and the actual hurt kicking in!

I finished in 2^nd place by a mere 14 seconds, which could have easily been made up from one less crash. I also had the 2^nd fastest run time of the day. The two of us pretty even matched overall and had around a 7 minute gap till the next finisher. The next race should provide a good battle and maybe the outcome will be in my favour. But you never learn to appreciate a win till you learn to lose so when I get my next win I will certainly not let it go easily. But on the day I wasn’t the fastest but next time that will be a different story. 

Time to log off, get some sleep for tomorrows testing session for a friends masters project.