Coming off a late shift week was probably not the preparation I had in mind heading into the Rocky Trail weekend at Dargle Farm. But so it was, fighting sleep deprivation and an out of whack body clock we arrived early Saturday morning for the crispy cool start of the JetBlack 12hr. Arm warmers and wind vests were a must as the temperature hovered around the one to two digit mark. Team Enduro Pulse all had arrived with our dedicated support crew, excited to get out on the bikes, ride and have some fun.
With a simple plan in mind for the next 12 hours, I wasn't going to get bothered by the racing up the front, just keep in my heart-rate zones, transition fluidly, ride smart and have a ball on the Yeti. It took a lap to settle in and just a couple of laps to sort out the best of the chosen lines. The track was in fairly good shape and in most cases got better as we went on. A mixture of open fire-trail, rocky single-track traverses, berms and pumps, with just about all the downhill sections being single-track. I even managed to use the 27 tooth cog, finally a climb tough enough!
After some solid hours out on track I got the word my laps were consistent and I was sitting comfortably in the top 20. It seemed like everyone was out for a good time, happy to chat and offering room to pass. There were few incidents that I saw, the occasional flat of the first few hours, a couple of chains broken and a few of the unfortunate stick V’s hanger outcomes especially after the 5km mark along the flat. There was a generous vibe and relaxed atmosphere over the course of the 12hrs, can’t forget a big shout back to those people encouraging me throughout the race.
At the half way point I swapped onto a spare bike for one quick lap while the Yeti received some TLC from my support crew. Then once we had swapped back it didn’t seem long before I was told I would have to put lights on, bring on the darkness. The darkness brought with it a temperature drop and out came the arm warmers and wind vests again.
A massive effort that was made look easy by Jason English, Male Solo winner of the event, backing up after the Merida 24hr and managing to keep even the top teams in check for most of the race. James Lamb and Ashley Hayat rounded out the podium. I placed a solid 7th with 21 laps and Team Enduro Pulse member Craig Baylis in 10th with 19 laps.
It didn’t go well for all with many riders cracking around the 10 to 12 lap mark and not being able to ride on. But the other podiums of note included an easy win for Katrin Van Der Spiegel in Female Solo and Brett Bellchambers making the Single Speed idea look so easy. Team Hoax Racing Australia claimed the Male Team of 4 top spot with 26 laps and managed to edge out Jason English as overall winner during the late stages of the race.
A big thanks to my supporters for their real food, real advice and keeping me riding. Thanks to Team Enduro Pulse and our team partners who keep us on the trails and racing. Keep an eye on Enduro Pulse for a full report and the next great event.
In other news Sean “Bozz” Bekkers is the Ay-Up Dusk to Dawn 2010 Champion, check his report out soon here, watch out for Bozz and Andy Fellows come October.
With a simple plan in mind for the next 12 hours, I wasn't going to get bothered by the racing up the front, just keep in my heart-rate zones, transition fluidly, ride smart and have a ball on the Yeti. It took a lap to settle in and just a couple of laps to sort out the best of the chosen lines. The track was in fairly good shape and in most cases got better as we went on. A mixture of open fire-trail, rocky single-track traverses, berms and pumps, with just about all the downhill sections being single-track. I even managed to use the 27 tooth cog, finally a climb tough enough!
After some solid hours out on track I got the word my laps were consistent and I was sitting comfortably in the top 20. It seemed like everyone was out for a good time, happy to chat and offering room to pass. There were few incidents that I saw, the occasional flat of the first few hours, a couple of chains broken and a few of the unfortunate stick V’s hanger outcomes especially after the 5km mark along the flat. There was a generous vibe and relaxed atmosphere over the course of the 12hrs, can’t forget a big shout back to those people encouraging me throughout the race.
At the half way point I swapped onto a spare bike for one quick lap while the Yeti received some TLC from my support crew. Then once we had swapped back it didn’t seem long before I was told I would have to put lights on, bring on the darkness. The darkness brought with it a temperature drop and out came the arm warmers and wind vests again.
A massive effort that was made look easy by Jason English, Male Solo winner of the event, backing up after the Merida 24hr and managing to keep even the top teams in check for most of the race. James Lamb and Ashley Hayat rounded out the podium. I placed a solid 7th with 21 laps and Team Enduro Pulse member Craig Baylis in 10th with 19 laps.
It didn’t go well for all with many riders cracking around the 10 to 12 lap mark and not being able to ride on. But the other podiums of note included an easy win for Katrin Van Der Spiegel in Female Solo and Brett Bellchambers making the Single Speed idea look so easy. Team Hoax Racing Australia claimed the Male Team of 4 top spot with 26 laps and managed to edge out Jason English as overall winner during the late stages of the race.
A big thanks to my supporters for their real food, real advice and keeping me riding. Thanks to Team Enduro Pulse and our team partners who keep us on the trails and racing. Keep an eye on Enduro Pulse for a full report and the next great event.
In other news Sean “Bozz” Bekkers is the Ay-Up Dusk to Dawn 2010 Champion, check his report out soon here, watch out for Bozz and Andy Fellows come October.
Thanks for the comment on my blog. Good luck with your preparation. Not long now!!! I'm getting excited. See you there.
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