First Enduro taste!

I have had some great advice and encouragement from my good friend (and awesome MTBer!) Daniel Hansson over the last month or so while I've been researching about Enduro. He has been racing DH and Enduro for a long while, and is a pretty decent technical rider, who's enthusiasm for MTB (and life!) is infectious. About the same time I also started talking to another mate who I met over here, but is originally from deepest darkest Wales - Paul Jones. Paul is a bit of a DH legend, having been mechanic for world champions, national champions, around the sport since the beginning, and motorbikes before that. So you could say, what he doesn't know, isn't worth knowing!

Both had tipped me about a little group of guys who organise rides and little competitions through a closed Facebook group down here in Skåne. So I got the invite for the group, and then came the invite for a 'timed test event' at the end of Jan. No bike yet, but I managed to borrow a Banshee from John, a work colleague to give the Enduro format a first go! Got the bike the day before, so only really had time to set the suspension sag, adjust saddle height, change the brakes to UK spec, and ride up and down the road. Felt ok so far.

John's Banshee Phantom - 29" wheels, medium frame, 130mm fork and 105mm rear travel

Saturday, off to the secret meeting point bright and early to meet the others, I was met with a glint of sunshine through the trees as I neared my destinaiton..... This looked promising! Then, up and into the cloud for that wet, cold and unfortunately all too familiar winter feeling while we all got changed by the cars. But, the weather gods were actually on our side for a change, and the fog cleared to bright sunshine and blue skies. It was cold, but we were all soon pretty warm after some long climbs on gravel roads. After a good warm-up we reached the first special stage. The trails were pretty greasy and the roots and rocks wet. After a sketchy practice run it was time for my first timed run. Haven't been this nervous for a long time! The first run went ok, I got down unscathed - but it felt pretty slow.

That bright thing in the sky is apparently called 'Sun', or something.....

Some more uphills and on to the second special. Slightly more flowy this time, and not as steep as the first. Some muddy sections added to the fun, and I started to get a feel for the bike.

The third section was blind, no practice. It was short, but super sweet and really allowed us to open up the speed a little more.

Some more climbing, and a few people were now starting to feel the pace as we had climbed a good 700m by now. I was still enjoying the riding, and was pleasantly surprised by the climbing ability of the Banshee. It's obviously heavier than your average XC bike, and the geometry is slightly more biased towards going downhill fast than up. But still, the 29" wheels allow for good grip and a balanced feeling in normal riding too. The bike was set up 1 x 10, and I felt like an 11 speed cassette would have helped to allow a slightly higher cadence on the steeper sections of the climbs.

The fourth and last special stage was, epic..... Jumps, drops, mud, fast corners, slow corners, dry sections, super steep sections, and it was long too. Long enough for me to start feeling tired near the finish.

Prep time, and nervous chatting

After the last stage we all rode back to base nice and easy. Chatting was down to a minimum now as we all were feeling pretty tired. But I think all had a similar experience to me judging by the ear-to-ear smiles. I have to say it was probably the most fun I've had in along time with my clothes on. I must add a huge thanks to the guys who organised the day out.

I have definitely caught the bug for this part of our fantastic sport, and I look forward to some great training and racing with new mates.

Where the fork have you been?.....

Yeah, it's been a while since my last blog post.

I'll be honest, I've struggled a bit with motivation towards the end of last year. With the change in dates for the CX National Champs from November 2017 forward to January 2018, my training plan had to be altered drastically, and all of a sudden holding the form for such a long period seemed like too big a mental and physical task for me to cope with during a Swedish winter. Endless dark, cold, wet rides in mud on a CX bike, in a park. The one and only in Lund being St Hans. I got a bit bored of it all in the end. The end of November and beginning of December saw me longing for a decent long MTB ride on some fun trails with some technical features, and with mates.

Last year's CX season left me with a taste for more, and my late attempt at the Nationals had me thinking that an attack in 2017 with a proper season leading up to it was an achievable and fun task. Sitting writing this the evening before the CX Nationals in Gothenburg with no plans to race, I've resigned myself to the fact that my 2017/18 CX season is over. I needed to rest, regroup, and focus on 2018 in order to not lose motivation to do what I love best, riding and racing my bike, preferably a Mountain Bike!! :-)

Swedish National Champs 2017 - Bronze Medal

Since July last year I've obviously had time to reflect on my MTB Nationals, leading up to it I thought it was going to be my year, but fate had other ideas. Water under the bridge has allowed me to re-think, and ultimately be satisfied with my MTB season as it was. The Nationals result wasn't the one I wanted, but it was good anyway. Very good when you remember who my main competitors were, and how strong they are as riders. I also enjoyed the rest of the MTB season in a more relaxed and laid-back manner after that race as I knew that all the other races were lower priority in my head. But I still managed to win the Danish National series in Men B (Expert for you Brits), being no Men 30 category in Denmark, that is where I have to race with a Masters license. I took wins in the last two races, in pretty crappy conditions - proving I still had it in the mud and on technical courses. I also rode some pretty cool races including Snapphaneturen, the Musette 6 hour, and a mucky XCup in Malmö, all where I finished the race with a big smile on my face.

Snapphaneturen 2017 - smiles for miles

SRAMLiga Finals in Velje, lead from start to finish

Then, the CX season. The first race weekend was in Rävlanda, near Gothenburg at the end of September. The races went pretty well considering I started from the back of the grid. A tough, but rewarding course, and the first day was a stark reminder that even 50 minute races can hurt like hell if you don't pace it right.

Rävlanda Day 2

Next up in the middle of October was a more local MusetteCross on my arch nemesis course - Sibbarp. Made a great start, and had a fantastic race-long battle with the Icelandic national champ (who lives in Denmark) right up until the last lap, when I dropped my chain to the inside of the cassette. A bit of a panic to the finish then after I spotted a fast closing Björn while I was frantically pulling the chain out. A fall on the last steep climb allowed him to close in, then the overtaking maneuver of the year from him in the last hairpin before the finish left me third. Awesome race! :-)

Still in shorts in October! MusetteCross Nr1

After MusetteCross in Malmö, came, Malmöcrossen, again in October........ What a great CX season for Skåne!! This time we had a CX Trophy on the Saturday, followed by a CX Cup on the Sunday at Holma, close to Mormor Monica. Had a cracking couple of races this time, and felt great throughout both. Got a 4th on the Saturday, and then had a race-long battle with Hans Mård and Mathias Karlsson ending in a sprint for the line where I came out worst, but taking home a 3rd was ok for me.

Malmöcrossen day 2 - Tight finish

Another MusetteCross a couple of weeks later in a now very soggy Sibbarp saw me have mechanical problems from the start. This race was also the start of the end for me, I had trained pretty hard going in, and felt pretty tired during the race, and also took a unusually long time to recover. I limped home to 5th on the day, having to stop every so often to put my chain back on. The doubts had crept in after the race, and I already started to wonder if I should call it a day on this season.

My last CX race was at the beginning of December, and turned out to only be a race start. Lundacrossen (in Lund!) where I was feeling very tired and stressed, and had also been ill for a week before the race. In hindsight it had perhaps have been better to skip the race, but I took the start, and managed a lap before pulling off. Feeling pretty down and miserable, I also managed to make myself ill once again. That is when I decided that the CX season was over for this year. Time to recover, rest and regroup.

During this recovery time we took a trip back to the UK for Xmas, and I squeezed in some cracking MTB rides with mates, and on my own all on my old stomping grounds. Swinley, Yateley Heath, Blackbushe, Minley Manor and Yateley Common. It was a great way to recuperate and get my mojo back ready for some proper training after returning to Sweden. It also gave me that needed time to reflect, and plan. Was fantastic to catch up with family and friends too.

UK trip - Xmas 2017

So obviously, I started thinking about what to do in 2018. British Nationals? Danish series again? Maybe a Swedish series, some XCups? But then my mind started to sway. I've read Singletrack magazine for years and years, and have copies going back to almost the very beginning on a shelf at home. The thing I have noticed for a few years now, is how much focus Enduro riding/racing gets in the UK. It's not as popular here in Southern Sweden. Not wholly due to the fact that we don't have so many hills, but also because the most people ride XC, or XC style riding at least. In the UK when I go back to ride, I see people on big enduro bikes everywhere on the trails. Baggy shorts, long travel, bright colours, and generally riding in groups. Why has it become so popular?

Well, the more you think and read about it, the more obvious it becomes. It's like riding with your mates...... You ride your bike around, and then get your race head on to do a descent, then you chill for a bit and talk about that near miss, or that jump, or that slippery root that caught you out, then you ride some more, and repeat. I've just described how I used to ride with mates before I started training as structured as I do now, with intervals, and tempo rides, and late nights on the trainer, and so on. But, I've also just described an Enduro race...... For those reasons it appeals to me. That and the idea of a new challenge, something to scare you a little. Somewhere to be mediocre but have a great laugh. It's not that I don't love XC, and CX for that matter, and the training regime that goes with them. But I do feel like something else in the mix would help me get back a real love of just riding my bike, in the woods, with mates (and scaring myself). So, that's part of my plans for 2018. Some XC, some Enduro in Sweden, and then CX again going into the Autumn, hopefully with a nationals attack in November.

The plan is still to ride with Musette on a BMC, at least in XC. Being a bit of a test year with Enduro, I might go second-hand for the Enduro whip. I'll ride with POC helmets, Fizik shoes, Vittoria tyres, and hopefully with a smile on my face. Oh, and I'll race in Elite... Well, why not. If I was racing in Denmark and had won Men B, they would want me to move up to Elite (Men A). One year left until I'm 40 and will move into Veterans, one more year to pretend I'm still young, a year with a new challenge. So I won't be hassling for podium positions at most races, but I will be challenging myself, racing others, and hopefully enjoying myself. That is why we do this after all, right? ;-)