Thursday 14 October 2010

Racing for fun - the Nutcracker Rounds 4 & 5


Just back from our Summer holidays we should have been race fit for Round 4 of the Nutcracker Series at Fremlington Edge in Swaledale; a place we had never mountain biked before. Even as we parked the car I didn't like what I could see of the course - a massive grassy ascent straight onto the open moorland, not that you could see the moorland it was somewhere over the horizon! If there's one thing I struggle with its going vertical on grass ... I know I'm just a moaning minny. 


Time was of the essence if we wanted to get a practice lap in before Ben was due to start his race at 10am so we got going. Almost instantly it became apparent that it was a very tough course for Adam, 11 years old to be cycling so we took it steady while the other two disappeared into the stratosphere. OK it wasn't that steep but it felt like it. I had started using clip ins in the previous two weeks and thought I'd see how I faired with them on the course - badly was the answer! We were both out of sorts and it would have been a smart move to turn round and save our energy but unfortunately for Adam I was too stubborn to go for that option. We didn't make it back until just gone 10am when we could see Ben's race disappearing into the distance and Adam's first session on the Time Trial course was already under way. Poor kid, the rest of the field were fresh as daisies while he had been dragged round a seriously strenuous course for the last hour and had some nasty war wounds on his legs to show for it. Still he gave it his best shot and after both the timed lap and cross country race managed a very tired fifth place.

Photo taken by Enigmatic Photography; photographs of the event can be viewed on flickr
Meanwhile Ben was coping well with the physical ascent on the main course grabbing a few places as he toiled upwards and managing to hold onto third place during the very technical descent from Fremlington Edge and onto the finish line. A tough course and his best result to date - fantastic.

Photo taken by Enigmatic Photography; photographs of the event can be viewed on flickr
Once the kids had finished doing their thing the adults had a few hours to contemplate what lay ahead before lining up on the start line at 2pm. Unfortunately, I wasn't quite so successful on the grassy ascent as Ben had been and it was every bit as bad as I had imagined but once I reached the rocky moorland tracks I could get into my stride and the technical descent on the home bound leg of the course was pure focused adrenaline. I had ditched my clip ins for my beloved flatties but there was still a tricky little section that got the better of me. After the radical descent the track became barely a wheel width wide and clung to the contour of the hillside. On the first two laps of the course I found myself pitched off the right hand side of my bike into a steep bank of bracken and nettles at this point without quite knowing why. I'm sure toddlers often find themselves abruptly unseated as they struggle to gain command of legs and arms but as an adult it is a most bizarre sensation. Still I got the better of it on the final lap; a small victory but one I was happy to take. What's more I was the second woman vet over the line - or the last which ever way you want to look at it!

Photo taken by Enigmatic Photography; photographs of the event can be viewed on flickr.
Mark was the final Lewis clan member to cross the finish line and managed his own personal victory being the last man to complete four laps in the time allowed - although three laps more than enough for me. The kids did a brilliant job of supporting us throughout the afternoon; and I'm not sure they weren't going faster on foot than I was on my bike.


September saw us at Camp Hill to complete the Fifth Round of the Nutcracker and this time we got ourselves  a bit more organised. Mark and Ben did their practice lap in plenty of time before the 10am race. Meanwhile I hung out with Adam so that he could enjoy his Sweat Monster's event without being traumatised before he started. This worked much better and I still managed to fit in most of a practice lap before the elite race got under way. Unfortunately it was Ben's turn to suffer and he got a puncture very early on in his race. I was waiting for him at the finish line and was slightly anxious when he didn't arrive back as expected; then an ambulance crew was sent out to a boy having an asthma attack and I got really worried. Not that Ben has ever had asthma but being a parent is not always a logical thing. Finally word came back that he was running the entire course rather than have DNF against his name - I think I was prouder than if he'd finished at the front. 

The Camp Hill course was so much quicker this time in the dry than it had been during Round One in the wet; and since it is a much less technical course than the one at Swaledale I thought I'd give my clip ins another go. The combination of both factors meant I lapped at least ten minutes a lap faster than in April despite there being an extra lap in Round Five. Yeah, I know it's starting to sound like 'biking for boys' not 'biking for girls' how boring! Anyhow despite all that fantasizing I still managed to come last but hey ho I definitely beat all those millions that didn't even enter! While I had to settle for last place Mark had another good race and managed to finish about half way up the field - slow but sure improvement. So there we are only one more round of the series left which is a shame but hopefully we'll get to do it all again next year.



1 comment:

  1. Sounding a bit competitive Chris! By the way if thats the grass bank in the photo I don't like the look of it!! Must get some practice in, looks like family Metcalfe might be 'Nutcrakering' next year. OMG!

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