2011 – The fun bits: Singlespeed World Championships and The Epic Blast

This is a piece I wrote back in the end of 2011, but never published for reasons now unknown to me. I thought I might as well do it now all the same, so here you are.

Although I enjoyed some competitive road and track racing in 2011, it wasn’t all about pushing the limits to the point of sweat, blood and tears on smooth surfaces. There was also some off-road action to ensure that fun remained the centre piece staple ingredient.

Biking.ie organised a series of races in the early season, four in total, known as the Biking Blitz in order to promote racing for beginners, yet catering for seasoned racer heads alike. The format was simple: Use the four existing Irish mountain bike trail centres and hold a race on each one. I volunteered as a marshal for round 1 in Ballinastoe, skipped round 2 in Ballyhoura and round 3 in Derroura and decided to ride round 4 in Ticknock, which also happened to coincide with the official unveiling of the trail centre by Minister Leo Varadkar TD, Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sport.

Biking Blitz podium.

It was my first XC MTB race since 1997 (excluding a couple of marathon distance races I did in 2009 and 2010). I entered the 1 lap race as I had no interest in doing anything longer than 30mins. It was a really fun event and as I came to take the chequered flag in my race, I decided to pop a wheelie for some style. It all went pear shaped as I lost balance and veered off to the right heading straight towards Minister Leo Varadkar TD who was enjoying the proceedings until that point. He had to jump out of my way, slipping on the grass in the process and ending up on the ground. Thankfully nobody was hurt and he saw the funny side of it and we all had a laugh about it afterwards.

The highlight of the Irish mountain bike season would undoubtedly have to have been the arrival of the World Singlespeed Championships, a celebration of the counter-culture of off-road cycling. All the world’s single speed specialists and aficionados were present for one big party. The special thing about this race is that the person who has the most fun ‘wins’ as opposed to the first person across the line like in the more traditional races. That is not to say that there wasn’t a ‘traditional winner’ in that sense., but the prize is also a little bit different, namely a tattoo. The unspoken rule is that if you don’t want the winner’s tattoo, then whatever you do, just don’t cross the finishing line in first place.

The nearly 500 strong troop of riders from across the globe were lead from Kilfinane village  with a Garda escort to the Ballyhoura MTB trail centre. The race started with a Le Mans style start, but there was a twist. The surprise element was that your bike may not have been in the same place as you left it as the organisers had thought it would be more interesting to mix up all the bikes and stack them in big piles!

A pile of single speed bikes.

The race covered 2 full laps of the 17km brown loop, otherwise known as the Mountrussel Loop. It was a hard fought battle out front, with Ireland’s very own Niall Davis from Biking.ie taking the title of Singlespeed World Champion much to the delight of the home crowd, followed naturally by the winner’s tattoo (see below)! Katie Holmes from the USA took the women’s title. The partying before, during and after the race was equally as hard as the race itself and everybody had great craic in true Irish style, making everybody a winner in the end. Click here for event video.

Heather Holmes, Women’s SSWC 2011

Niall Davis, Men’s SSWC 2011

The next big event on the Irish mountain bike racing calendar was the now legendary Epic Blast, Ireland’s answer to the Megavalanche. First run in 2005, it had become a staple in the Irish MTB scene. Run by club Epic MTB, it is a mass start downhill race held in Ballinastoe, County Wicklow every September. This year had something special about it, as downhill mountain bike 2008 World Champion and  2010 World Cup winner and Gee Atherton and his younger brother were in attendance.

The hounds and the fox.

There were two different races within the event, first the “heats” where small groups of 10 or so riders raced each other to then be split up according to their finishing position within their heat. Then all those who finished first in their heat were sent racing against each other, all those who finished second raced against their peers, and so on. This meant if you had a bad run in the first heat, you would have an ‘easier’ second round and a better chance at doing well. Once all the heats had run their course, it was time for the main event, The Blast. Here everyone raced against each other at the same time, but this year there was a twist! Gee Atherton would be given a handicap of 12-15 seconds and then would have to pass as many riders as possible on the way down. It was dubbed the “Fox Hunt” only this time with the roles reversed, with the fox (Gee) hunting down the hounds (all the other riders) ahead of him. In the end it was the 17 time national XC MTB Irish Champion Robin Seymor who took top spot just ahead of Dan Atherton in 2nd, with Gee finishing in 6th place. Click here for the event video.

The winning hound: Robin Seymour

2011 in review: Focus on road and track racing

First of all, I would like to apologise for neglecting my blog for the best part of a year. I will put it down to all the cycling I did and racing pursuits.

The season started on a good base mainly fuelled from a 35km round trip commute since early November 2010. The first phase of my racing season I decided to give road racing a stab to see what it was all about. On 9 March I lined up for my first race, the Navan Cycleways Cup. The hours of weekly commuting paid off as I took 2nd overall in the sprint finish. The following race on 14 March, the Naomh Finian in Clonard was a hadicapped affair where I finishing with the pack. It was third time lucky as I took the flag in the St Partrick’s Day race out in Dunboyne following a 300m sprint. On-board footage of the final kilometres can be watched here (sprint starts at 6:00).

Victory in the St Patrick's Day Race, Dunboyne

It was only one more race, the Des Hanlon in Co. Carlow, where after getting dropped on the 3rd of 5 climbs, I managed to pulled back a 1 minute deficit with a downhill Road Rage worthy performance on the last descent to finish with the main breakaway.

The second and main phase of my racing season was defined by track racing, again a first. The Wednesday Sundrive Road Track Summer League took place every Wednesday evening for eight weeks straight from early May. The Summer League was then followed by the Autumn League in a similar format. Different races were held with different ability groups all catered for every week to mix things up, making sure that all rider styles and abilities were catered for. Missing two out of the eight weeks in both leagues due to work commitments meant it was going to be nearly impossible to challenge for the overall. I enjoyed some good racing nonetheless and was happy enough with a few wins and some additional placings in the Elite group.

The first Omnium event of the year at Sundrive Road was the International Track Grand Prix on 3 July. The weather turned out nicely and the racing was spirited. I got a lucky break in the scratch race, not traditionally a forte of mine, by getting on the right wheel at the right time, allowing me to take 3rd in that race. I was more suited to the other events, including a flying 200m, a standing 500m TT and a Kilo Dash. Eventually finishing on equal points with the second placed rider, it went down to the combined 200m and 500m times, where I came up short by a few hundredths of a second. Not even having expected to feature on the podium, I was more than happy with the day’s result.

International Track Grand Prix: Putting down the hammer during the 500mTT.

The next big event of the track season was the National Team Championships on 13 August, which included the Team Sprint and the Team Pursuit. Also included on the day’s programme as a demonstration event was the Keirin. I was lucky enough to ride on both the Bray Wheelers Sprint and Pursuit Teams. The competition was fierce and when the dust had settled the Bray Wheelers Teams took a silver in each event. To cap things off, Jason Howick, also a member of both Bray Wheelers Teams took the gold in the Men’s Elite Keirin Demonstration event.

Bray Wheelers CC Sprint Team power out of the blocks on the way to a national runner up title (l-r: Jason Howick, Janos Köhler & Ordhan O’Caoilte)

Next up, the 2011 National Track Championships on 3 September, where unfortunately I arrived in a significantly fatigued state and experienced a clear under-performance as a result. I did manage to improve on any previous personal bests, which was a positive sign. There is always next year to look forward to!

A second Omnium event, this time a full Olympic Men’s Omnium was held over two days, Saturday 16 and Sunday 17 September, including no less than 6 events. Day 1 included a Flying 250m, a full distance 60 lap Points Race and an Elimination Race and Day 2 comprised of a 4km pursuit, the Scratch Race and finally the Kilo TT. It was D-day between Lucan Road CC and Bray Wheelers CC, with Lucan leading Bray by a single point in the rankings for Track Club of the Year. Bray would have to have a rider on the bottom step of the podium, but ahead of the best Lucan rider after the two days racing to share the spoils with Lucan. It was Derek Cunningham who rose to the occasion and went one better with support from his team mates to clinch the silver medal, with Lucan failing to land even a podium spot ensuring Bray received the honours of Track Club of the Year 2011!

Finally, the season finale in the form of the Leinster Track Championships took place on 24 September. The form was there, the motivation even stronger. It proved a winning combination as I took gold in the Elite Men’s 500mTT with a personal best of 36.56secs. Bray made it a 1, 2 when Jason Howick clinched the silver. Next up was the Scratch race and this time I had to settle for bronze. I was more than happy to be on the podium, as I had even considered not riding at all, so little had I fancied my chances. Jason again clinched the silver making sure Bray had two men on both podiums.

Leinster Track Championships: 500mTT podium (l-r Jason Howick, Janos Köhler & John Lynch).

Irish National Mountainbike XC Marathon Championships 2010

Mountain Bike Club Cork pulled off a great event in Ballyhoura in the form of the Irish National Mountainbike XC Marathon Championships. It was a calm, bright, but crisp cool 26 September that presented itself for the occasion. A 63km course, including 1560m altitude gain awaited the racers. Mike Jordan, mountain bike legend from the institution that is The Cycle Inn, provided team transport. Sign on, preparation, 11 o’clock roll out.

The first long opening fire road climb immediately forced a selection. Over the hill and down the far side, about half way down, I passed an unlucky rider lying in the ditch clutching a shoulder, one of the races two casualties with a collarbone fracture. The second casualty was to suffer a broken leg. While I did not suffer any injuries, my back tyre took more more than it could handle as I hammered down a steep rocky descent, resulting in a puncture. I attempted to re inflate the tubeless tyre, but due to some mud stuck inside the rim, the seal didn’t hold. Time for plan B: Convert to tube set-up.  Easy I thought to myself and whipped out a tube for the job, only to realise that what was written on the box, did not correspond to the tube inside! I walked to the next marshal point and luck swung back in my favour: The marshal had one last tube which he kindly gave me. Finally got the tyre back on, inflated it and was off again, but paid with a 40mins penalty for my unscheduled stop.

At this stage I was the lanterne rouge and due to the time loss had lost any motivation to fight on, since being realistic, it would not have amounted to  much. Nevertheless, I decided to enjoy the day for the ride that was in it, so continued to ride at a steady, yet not too strenuous pace. After a few hours, as I neared the finishing kilometres, it occurred to me that there were no more course markings. Not great form, clearing the course markers before the participants are finished, but I managed to find my way back to the finish nonetheless, or should I say where the finish had once been!

Mike had finished about two hours before, having stormed around with the top guys and was worried sick after hearing about the two casualties, thinking I may have been one of them, with every minute I remained absent. I even missed the prize presentation where Ryan Sherlock was crowned National Champion with Kate Elliot receiving the women’s title. While I didn’t end up finishing last, making back a handful of places along the way, I can’t boast about it being my most memorable ‘race’. When deducting my 40mins puncture repaire from my finishing time, it placed me firmly where I would have liked to have finished. Moral of the story: I f you want to do well, stick with what you’re best at, in my case shorter distances and make it all down hill while you’re at it!

Epic Blast 2010

This can only be described as Ireland’s answer to the Megavalanche. The event has been held in Ballinastoe Woods every year in September since 2005. Organised by Richie Byrne the Godfather of Irish mountain biking from Club EpicMTB, Ireland’s premier dedicated mountain bike club, this has to be the event of all events in the Irish mountain bike calendar, to decide the the title of “Deadliest Mountain Biker in Ireland”. It turned out to be a soft Irish day, ensuring that those who thought they had made a mistake by skipping a day at the spa to get mud facials, were in fact well catered for in the healthy mud bath that ensued.

The past three years saw Niall Davis of Biking.ie notch up an impressive hat-trick of wins and was one of the hotly tipped favourites once again. Among other notables who turned up, were none other than DH/Freeride legend Glyn O’Brien of First Tracks, podium finisher in the 2003 legendary Red Bull Rampage freeride competition, certainly also a top rider never to be discounted.

Niall Davis (front right) and Glyn O’Brien (centre) happy with the day’s racing.

Racing was held in two separate formats. The morning saw heats of no more than 10 riders race each race each other with the afternoon dedicated to the main event, the mass start Epic Blast. The initial heat was to seed the racers into groups of similar ability, with all the winners racing each other in the second set of heats, all second placed riders against each other and so on. A poor start meant I had to battle my way up through the field. A collision with another rider on an overtaking manoeuvre didn’t help, but I was up as quickly as I had gone down and one by one I picked off the riders in my heat to emerge in the lead about 2/3 of the way down. A poorly marked junction led to me taking a wrong turn and off course and with that any chance of placing well in my heat. I was not the only one to do so, as on my return to the same junction, I crossed at least a dozen other riders coming against me one by one. I eventually made it down to finish in 7th in my heat. The bright side was I would have an easier second heat.

The second heat went well compared to the first one and I made a point of pulling what most people described as a spectacular crowd pleasing no-hander off one of the drop-offs, ending in a safely controlled dismount from the bike. In the end Niall Davis won the ‘winners’ heat, followed by Glyn O’Brien in second and Conor Campbell in third, but the real Blast was still to come.

 

After the exertions of nearly 4 days on the road with only a few hours sleep during the Race Around Ireland during the week, I was simply too exhausted to participate in the main “Blast” event, preferring instead to watch the action from the track side. In the end it was Greg Callaghan who battled his way down the slippery course to take a deserved win for the title of Ireland’s “Deadliest Mountain Biker”! Niall Davis followed by Glyn O’Brien claimed the two remaining podium spots.

Greg Callaghan getting the winner’s mud special deluxe therapy to make the title of Ireland’s Deadliest Mountain Biker official!

Race Around Ireland 2010 – Team Wheelworx/Boards.ie

The second edition of the Race Around Ireland took place in the second week of September 2010. It is part of the Ultra Marathon Cycling Association (UMCA) World Cup series which includes other huge endurance races such as RAAM. The task was straightforward enough, yet certainly not easy: A non-stop 2100km ultra distance marked route anti-clockwise lap of Ireland. Solo riders and 2 man teams departed Navan on Sunday 12 september and had 132 hours to complete the race, with 4 man and 8 man teams leaving on Tuesday 14 September and having only 96 hours for the same task.

I had been asked only weeks before, if I would like to join Team Wheelworx/Boards.ie as a support crew member. I accepted the challenge without a moments hesitation. Along with a couple of riders from Swords CC, brothers Aidan and Peter Doyle, one from Orwell Wheelers CC, Tom Blennerhassett and Kevin Leavy (unattached), a total of 6 crew members joined the adventure. Click here for facebook page.

Chasing Peter down a seemingly endless road

The full team assembled in Navan late Tuesday morning for sign on and race safety debriefing. Everything was ready to go and riders readied for the 20:00 start. In the early stages the Team settled into 2nd position on the road and would not relinquish this for the duration of the race. Things got interesting in the early hours travelling along the north coast of Ireland as the wind picked up considerably. By the time the riders reached Malin Head, the winds were blowing at gale force strength making progress difficult. The next challenge encountered was in Clifden around about midnight where an unintended delay during a change-over saw the 3rd placed team make significant gains and come within minutes of us. Thankfully this was the last they would sniff of our trail, as all the riders really put the hammer down and by the end of the night the team had pulled out an even bigger time gap than ever before.

I will not attempt to recount every detail of the adventure, yet one thing that has stayed with me since the trip is the the incredible scenery I witnessed along the way, as the route travelled through some of the most beautiful landscapes Ireland has to offer, so much of which I had never seen before.

Racing through the night

One of the biggest psychological hurdles was overcome as we reached the point where the journey turn in a northerly direction from Kilmore Quay and back up towards Navan. Although very tired from nearly three days of straight riding, this seemed to give the riders the necessary boost for one last drive towards the finish line. The Wicklow Mountains provided the ultimate test of the journey, but seemed to have little effect on the cyclists as they continued to deliver what can only be described as super human efforts.

Just before the arrival into Navan, all four riders saddled up to ride in unison and after 3days 5hrs 20mins crossed the finish line together, as a symbol of what had allowed them to achieve an incredible 2nd place overall: Ex unitate vires.

An exhausted, yet elated Team Wheelworx/Boards.ie after finishing 2nd overall.

Third Coast Bicycle Festival including the 5th Annual Fixed Gear Symposium and the 3rd Annual Cherry-Roubaix Classic

The last weekend of August saw Annual Fixed Gear Symposium in it’s 5th edition and the Cherry-Roubaix Classic in its 3rd edition take place in and around Grand Traverse City, Michigan, USA as part of the Third Coast Bicycle Festival.

The programme involved a multitude of different disciplines making sure everyone had something to look forward to. A breakdown of the main events are detailed below.

- 27 August: Hill climb

The Hill Climb was held up Wayne Hill on Friday afternoon under the blistering sun, with local pro rider Larry Warbasse from team BMC (2009 World Road Race Champion Cadel Evans’s team mate) taking a commanding win as he stormed up to the top on his fixie, finishing over half a minute ahead of second place and setting a new hill record in the process. Marcus Bush took victory in the Men’s geared bike category.

Larry Warbasse (BMC) on his hill climb winning fixie

The woman’s victory in the fixed gear category went to Tracy Halsinski as she took her third straight win in as many years. Local rider Johanna Schmidt from Hagerty Cycling Team took 1st place in the geared  bike category.

Downtown Sprints

Friday evening witnessed a new event for the first time as part of the Cherry Roubaix Classic’s programme: Sprints in the form of drag races, i.e. standing start sprints. This proved to be a hugely popular event with both riders and spectators. Both geared and fixed wheel riders were catered for. The highlight of the event was without a doubt a local bicycle mechanic on his bmx who turned up to race against the swarm of lycra clad roadies. Not only did he handsomely hold his own, but he beat many of the riders he went up against, which was a huge crowd pleaser in every way.

DowntTown Sprints: Bmxer drops roadies from the gun

Event clip

- 28 August: Criterium

Saturday afternoon saw the first of the two big events of the 3rd Annual Cherry Roubaix Classic take place. A 1.22km (0.76ml) course through the old town, including cobbled sections like in the Paris-Roubaix, had been sectioned off and was to showcase the criterium race. This was also to prove a very spectator friendly event, as the riders would pass by frequently and often. The format was based around a set time rather than number of laps, plus one ultimate lap after the set time had elapsed. Larry Warbasse confirmed his status as pre-race favourite, firmly stamping his authority on the race. He took overall victory in the show topping Men’s Pro 1, 2 race, riding smart during the entire time before finally turning the screws and making the race winning move in the last lap to pull clear with his two podium standing adversaries who both finished barely a second behind, yet well ahead of the chasing pack.

Larry Warbasse (BMC) on his way to victory in the 2010 Cherry Roubaix Criterium (Mens Pro 1, 2)

- 29 August: Road race

The showdown was staged on Sunday with the road race tracing a 13.7 mile (22km) circuit over the rolling hills of Leelenau County, on a slightly altered version of the 12mile course used for the late 80s Michigan State Road Race. This time Larry Warbasse was a marked man from the gun, having to withstand one attack after another from every quarter. While in the end it proved too much due to the fact that he had no team mates to support him and was therefore racing alone against a plethora of well organised teams, he still finished in a very respectable 4th place.

However the real race I had come to watch was the Cat 4 Women’s one, staring one of the new 2010 stars to the Hagerty Cycling Team, Grand Traverse City local Barb Beauregard, along side her more seasoned team mate and climbing ace Bridgett Widrig. I would not be disappointed, as together they decimated the field, both simply riding away from the peleton from the first KOM, making it a superb display of dominance through positive team work and sealing a deserved and undisputed 1, 2 for Hagerty Cycling Team. Over four minutes separated them from the trailing 3rd place rider.

Bridgett Widrig and Barb Beauregard (Hagerty Cycling Team) following their impressive 1, 2 in the Women Cat 4 road race.

 

Red Bull Road Rage, Israel – Back on track with 4th place

A view of the course

Ready to put the disappointments of Latvia behind me, it was off to round three of the 2010 Red Bull Road Rage season. Another first in terms of venue, this time it was off to Israel. The venue could not have been better chosen, with the steepest road in Israel the course. A spectacular twisting descent including no less than 7 switchbacks along the Syrian boarder down off the southern Golan heights towards Jordan far below, would test the skill and nerve of every rider brave enough to take the high speed plunge.

Early morning sign-on

It was a 6 o’clock start to try beat the imminent afternoon summer heat that opened the day’s proceedings. The list of riders read like the “Who’s who” of Israeli cycling, with many past and current national road racing , cross country, marathon cross country and downhill mountain bike champions present. As an Irishman, I was the sole foreign rider to venture over for the event and was made feel most welcome from the outset. A pre-race safety briefing was held, with the most important information kindly translated from Hebrew for me by some of my co-competitors, including the following: “To the left of a road is a fence, behind which lies a mine field. If you land on the other side of the fence, don’t move! We will come and get you out. To the right of the road is a cliff with over 100m drop. Stay to the left of the barrier. If you fly out, you will truly fly. Just take care!”  Ironically the flying reference was not linked to the ‘Red Bull gives you wings’ slogan, although one might wish for those wings in this situation.

Pre-race safety briefing

Next up was a controlled pace course inspection and safety run, with scheduled stops to point out the most dangerous spots, including the signs that warned of mines and the tank crossing point where the road had been slightly damaged. Nothing was left to chance and every potential danger was address. Once done, it was time to start with the official practice runs, of which I got a couple under my wheels to properly familiarise myself with the course. It wasn’t long before it was time to get ready for qualifying. I was first up and so took up my position in the start gate. Heart rate sitting at 151bpm, my mind had informed my body of what was to come and yes, I was evidently ready for action! 5 beeps, the gate dropped and I was off.

Giving it all in qualifying

After qualifying, I waited in the racers paddock at the finish as the riders came down one by one. My time held for a long time until one other rider was finally able to snatch the top spot. It remained so until the end of the qualifying session, after which we were all bussed up to the start paddock again. It was decided to hold some pre-qualifier 4cross heats for the slowest riders only, to whittle it down to the desired 32 fastest riders. The top 16 fastest riders were able to rest as the others fought it out for the remaining 16 spots. This way it still gave everyone the chance to ride at least one knock-out round before the real racing would begin in earnest.

Ripping a hairpin bend.

Through the early knock out stages my tactic was simple: Use my power coupled with a 54-11 conversion to blow out a gap early on and then sit on that advantage conserving my energy for the next rounds. It worked well and I was still as fresh as an Irishman can be in the wilting 35°C heat by the time it came to final. With no weak riders left I really needed to be on top of my game to ride this one to victory. I sat in amoung the bunch watching for the danger men before I timed my attack in the chosen location. It stuck as I blew out a gap of 30m within a matter of seconds. So far so good! Around the next hairpin and down the steepest part of the course at 18%, around another couple of sweeping bends and into the next hairpin. Still holding my advantage I tackled one of the slight uphill transitions bringing me to another hairpin. As I entered it, my rear wheel monetarily lost traction as it slipped on the white line and out from under me forcing me to release the brakes and counter-lock the steering to catch myself… Saved! I desperately tried to get around to the exit of the bend, but the momentary releasing of the brakes had meant I was off trajectory and couldn’t avoid rolling with my front wheel into the gravel on the outside verge. The inevitable happened as my front wheel washed out on the ball bearing-like gravel stones and I was caught up by the protective straw bail that blocked my path to the guardrail and over the other side 100m down into the ravine. As I jumped back up onto my bike, I watched as my three competitors raced by. I started pedalling frantically, only to realise I had derailed, costing me an additional few seconds of valuable time. By the time I got going I was about 100m behind and faced an uphill battle if I was going to pull this back. Out of my rhythm and my concentration disrupted I mistimed the following right hand hairpin on the exit of a blind left hander. This cost me more time which didn’t help my cause. I gave it my all, but only managed to halve the gap before the finish line and so it was not to be this time as I took 4th place in what has to be the best Road Rage I have ever ridden.

Red Bull Road Rage podium, Israel (l-r): Janos Köhler, Daniel Eliad, Ohad Ben Hamo, Eli Wexler.

The prize presentation took place down in the valley, just across the Jordanian boarder in the hot water spring resort of Hamat Gader, where riders had a chance to refuel, refresh and relax. What a fantastic day!

Red Bull Road Rage, Latvia – One for the learning curve

Warning signs on the approach to the first bend.

Only a week after the Belgian Road Rage, it was Latvia’s turn to host the next event. This was to take place in the picturesque town of Sigulda about an hour east of Riga on the edge of the Gauja National Park. The venue was to be the national luge and bob sleigh track, with the service road being used as the race track.

70 riders turned up to try their luck on this technical, narrow and twisty yet short track. At only 700m, it was the shortest Road Rage to date. The road surface was less than ideal, with many dangerous imperfections, including cracks, developing holes, uneven drain covers, ripples and gravel in some corners. The track had obviously not been cleaned, even swept as a thin film of sand-dust was also present, which could be seen from the tell-tale signs picked up on the tyres. This did not bode well at all.

A briefing was held, followed by a controlled pace safety reconnaissance run. Next up was practice, with gate starts in the 4cross format. A couple of these were accorded all competitors and was enough to alert me to the inherent unsuitability of this dangerous track. Grip was at times nearly non existent as the thin film of sand-dust which covered the unswept track acted like micro ball bearings beneath the rubber. Qualifying was next and held in the traditional time trial style. I settled for a rather safe than sorry approach, clocking in a solid equal 6th place. Times were very tight and less than a second separated the top 7 fastest riders.

After a short break, it was time for the real racing to begin. I ran out a comfortable heat winner in my 1/16 final heat to progress to the next round. The round caused little difficulty, as I clocked the fastest time of the 1/8 final heats, a time which was not bettered again until the 1/2 finals. Things were looking promising, yet the course was beginning to notch up the crash victim count rapidly, mainly on the first tight right-hand bend where a huge crowd had assembled at this stage. With little room to manoeuvre, in terms of line and time, it was essential to get a good start. I did just that in the 1/4 final, getting my best start of the race so far. Down the first straight and around the first left-hand bend, where I suddenly lost the front end as the tarmac transitioned from smooth asphalt to a cracked uneven patchwork. I went down heavily, with the rider behind me ploughing straight into the back of me, unable to avoid me in the surprise developments. The other two riders also scattered left and right in a desperate attempt to avoid us. I jumped back up, but my front tyre and blown when it got ripped open, the handle bar was twisted around and the break levers were broken off. I knew my race was over, as I picked up what remained of my bike and started to walk back up to the start. My worst fears had been realised in relation to the atrocious state of the track and it was absolutely no surprise to see only mountain bikes present from the semi-finals onwards, for the first time in Road Rage history.

A hotly contested all Latvian final played out under the afternoon sun with John Balēvičs running out as the eventual men’s winner and Ivita Krumins taking top spot in the women’s final.

Red Bull Road Rage – Cycle Inn / Trajectoires Cycles rider Janos Köhler victorious in Belgium

La Redoute

La Côte de La Redoute in Aywaille, Belgium saw the opening of the Red Bull Road Rage 2010 season. This steep hill features in the Liège-Bastogne-Liège, often used for the decisive move of many eventual winners with attacks coming at the steepest 22% gradient section about halfway up.

About to disappear over the edge of the 22% drop

Saturday 22 May was D-day. 80 riders turned up to test their descending skills and athleticism in the quest to become Belgium’s first Red Bull Road Rage champion. The weather was brilliant and set the atmosphere for the showdown. Sign-on ran smoothly, followed by the customary practice runs. For the first time, qualifying took place in a 4cross format, rather than the usual individual time trial. After putting in a solid run it was back down to the race paddock to wait for the results. Finally the moment of truth arrived and the news broke of the top four seeded places all being occupied by four veteran Road Rage friends: 1. Janos Köhler (Cycle Inn/Trajectoires Cycles, Ireland); 2. David Lacoste (Cantal Team Road, France); 3. Guillaume Gualandi (Cantal Team Road, France); and 4. François-Xavier Plaçais (Trajectoires Cycles, France).

Next up, the customary 4cross format knock-out rounds were held, with the top 32 qualified riders going head to head in groups of four, two riders progressing each time and the remaining two riders retiring from the race. All the top seeds had comfortable wins and progressed to the quarter final round. Again as expected the top four seeds ran in as winners of their respective heats and progressed to the last eight.

Power slide with counter lock through the chicane

The semi-final saw some drama unfold, as I punctured about a third of the way down hitting a bar of uneven road. As I came through the chicane halfway down, I could feel the back end starting to squirm and knew I would need more than just skill to reach the final. I continued to hammer down the mid-section straight towards the last corner, as the rim started to make more and more contact with the road. I brushed off a significant amount of speed approaching the last corner hoping to gently nurse my bike into the home straight. As I fought the back end around the corner, trying to stay upright, F-X Plaçais tore by me on his way to take the semi-final round victory. Little did I know that the next rider was breathing down my neck, but I had not need worry as he completely overcooked the corner and ploughed into the hay bail barriers (see below) to give me the chance I needed to clinch that last spot and qualify for the final. The other semi final saw the first top 4 seed fall, as Guillaume Gualandi was eliminated by 7/100th of a second at the hands of German ex-professional road and track racing multiple Olympian and former world champion, Christian Lademann (Wiki article Eng/De).

Fighting a punctured rear end through the last corner with crash sequence during the semi finals

The moment had arrived for the big final. The tension had risen to unparalleled levels, as we all knew there was only one chance now. The countdown kicked off: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, Go! The gate dropped and we tore off like thoroughbred race horses out of the box. F-X got the best start as he nosed ahead of me, using his extensive 4cross start experience. I bit down hard and pushed forward with everything I had pulling level with F-X. Around the first right hand bend neck and neck we raced. I was at an advantage sitting on his left hand side with the next bend giving me the inside line. I made it count as I pulled ahead and into the lead. The 22% chicane was upon us in no time and a sharp, quick, short engagement of the brakes brushed off just enough speed to safely negotiate it. Immediately again, it was head down and full on the power. The last bend approached with a rush. Just go for it! Full tilt, holding on for dear life right on the limit. Into the home straight, now only 150m to go. A quick flick over the shoulder informed me I had done it, with my rivals trailing 20m behind me. This was the moment I had waited for so long, as I raced towards the finish line raising my fist in victory, punching the air. I was overcome with sheer ecstasy. Behind me 2nd and 3rd place were decide by the closest of margins with Christian Lademann beating David Lacoste by 2/100th of a second! F-X who had unfortunately derailed through the chicane took 4th place having fought like a real champion until the end.  As F-X caught up with me he threw his arms around me and said “We won!!!” Indeed, this was Trajectoires Cycles best road Rage yet. I went immediately to congratulate both David and Christian on their podium places, before we were ushered up by the marshals and Red Bull organisational crew for the podium presentation. It was quite simply such a moving experience. Photo shoot and interviews followed the champagne fuelled podium celebrations.

Podium Red Bull Road Rage, Belgium: (l-r) David Lacoste (F), Janos Köhler (IRL), Christian Lademann (D), François-Xavier Plaçais (F)

Full list of results here.

Revolution Cycle: Around the world by bike – The Homecoming

Homecoming Flyer

In November 2008, two young Irish men from Greystones, Simon Evans and Fearghal Ó Nualláin, embarked on an epic around the world bicycle trip – The first Irish circumnavigation of the world by bicycle attempt to date. Equipped with a KTM mountain bike each supplied by Mike Jordan in The Cycle Inn, Tallaght, Simon and Fearghal set off to complete at least 30,000km.

I will not attempt to recount tales from their journey as I would not do it justice, but instead invite you to visit Simon and Fearghal’s Revolution Cycle website where you will find more information. I was however present on Saturday 15 May for the homecoming, as a member of The Cycle Inn Support Team for the last official leg from Blackrock College to Greystones, which heralded the end of this spectacular journey.

A good 100+ strong group of family, friends and followers was present to welcome these heroes back home, with full Garda escort, an ambulance and The Cycle Inn Support Team van completing the cavalcade. Bar a couple of minor incidents, everybody made it to Greystones safely where the official welcome party was set up in the Greystones Rugby club. The bubbly was popped, speeches were held and food and drink was served.

A video clip of the arrival can be viewed by clicking here.