Original Source Mountain Mayhem 2009

Before the race

I'd tried to enter Mountain Mayhem in 2008 but despite the warnings I sent in the entry a couple of days after the entry forms became available and missed out, the event already filling in the first 48 hours, an amazing feat considering they allow upto 2500 riders to enter. I think that there are several reasons for this. Firstly, it's one of the most widely publicised and longest running endurance races in the UK cross country mountain bike racing calendar. Secondly, it's easily accessible for people who have never raced before, allowing joe public to dip their toe's into the world of XC MTB endurance racing. Thirdly, due to the number of novices entering and also the larger teams (up to ten riders) a lot of spectators and supporters turn up to watch the racing and support friends and family. Finally, it's also a qualifier for the 24 Hours of Adrenalin, the World Championships for endurance mountain bike racing. Add all of this up with years of organisational experience in Pat Adam's, add a bunch of high profile sponsors and you've got a big event, very big.

Arriving at Mountain Mayhem I had no idea just how big the event was going to be but when Gill told me to meet the rest of team in campground three I was beginning to get an idea. There was one road acting as an artery to the whole event running right through the campgrounds so finding the team was easy enough but maybe getting off the site on Sunday probably wasn't going to happen in a hurry. No problem, I'd probably still be lying in a tent trying to make my legs bend at the knee at that point or stumbing around like an incoherent drunk, purely through exhaustion and a lack of sleep, not because I've had a sniff of alcohol and in my weakened state it's sent me rocketing skywards. Even if I'm staying overnight on the campsite I usually hit the beers when I get home and can drain a few cold ones safe in the knowledge I can snore like a tractor sprawled across my sofa having had the usual two showers and a bath to try and get myself cleaned up.

Phil (team captain), Ben, Matt and Gill were already set up in camp when I arrived and the banter was already flowing freely which was good to see and I immediately felt right at home in the relaxed atmosphere, albeit a northern monkey sat in camp with a bunch of shandy drinking southerners! Dave was also present as our pit bitch, his duties consisting of looking after us, keeping the bikes ready for the next lap with his new DirtWorker and also taking the p*** at ever opportunity...nothing it would seem was sacred but knowing how hard it can be during these long events I knew he'd definitely keep our spirits up when we started to flag...as long as he didn't drink all of his cider in one sitting and then need to 'go for a little lie down'. I'm not saying Dave is a lightweight on the booze, but he is a Southerner!

• 
  The map of the course, click for a larger version. Blurb says ...8.75 miles, 1272 feet of climbing, a 12 stone person lapping at 10 miles an hour (54 minutes) will burn around 700 calories each lap...

Talk soon turned to the course. Due to Mayhem's 'come one...come all' policy I'd heard that the course was usually quite tame by usual mountain bike cross country course standards and this was apparently the case again this year. I suppose if people are going to enter the race with some friends just for the crack or to raise money for charity then the course has to try and be accessible to them whilst also showing them just what cross country mountain bike racing is all about and providing a challenge for everyone else other than the ludicrous amount of time we would be spending in the saddle over the next 24 hours. Although I'd much rather have a more challenging course with a higher proportion of singletrack and less grassy sections, I think the course designer came up with a reasonable course with a good variety of challenge although there was a high percentage of jeep track and some of the singletrack was going to be unridable if it rained due to it's muddy, off camber nature.

There were one or two sections on the course to watch out for including one very tricky section which was the cause for some concern over it's inclusion but there was a non-technical option for people with less technical skill or, like me, had to drive themselves home the next day, limbs in casts or otherwise! This is my only real concern at races. I dread having an off which could prevent me from being able to drive myself home; hopefully one day I'll manage to blag my own driver or talk someone into regularly sharing the driving. For now I have to make sure I get myself to the end of the race in one piece. They say if you're not having the odd off then you're not really trying but I find it difficult pushing myself just that bit beyond knowing I'm responsible for getting myself home. Maybe I'm getting old and I need to sometimes just say sod it, give it some stick man!

During the race

• 
  The weather for Mountain Mayhem is usually rain, rain and more rain. This year the weather was a lot better, but it was still changeable and we'd still get soaked a couple of times and see plenty of mud

We'd had a brief chat a race strategy the previous night (Friday) but there had been some disagreement. We were in agreement that the best approach to start with was taking it in turns to do a single lap which should give everyone a chance to of completing a lap before it got dark and also it should keep the lap speed pretty high as you'd cane it for a lap knowing you'd have two or three hours break before your next stint. Some of the team then wanted to go with a double lap stint through the night to give people a chance to get some sleep. I can see the sense in this but I'd rather keep to single laps and keep the speed up. Sleeping during a 24 hour race doesn't feel like in keeping with the spirit of the event to me, although as Phil pointed out, we all had a long drive after the event on the Sunday so staying up all night was going to make that drive extremely difficult if not a little dangerous. Good point, double laps and a four hour kip during the was beginning to seem like a sensible plan as there was a distinct lack of drivers to get us home safely. It may sound soft but until you've done a hard event and then had to drive yourself home for more than a couple of hours you've no idea just how hard it is.

Our strategy...

• Take it in turns to do a single lap until we'd done two laps each (around midnight)
• Phil and Ben pair up, continue doing single laps and do two more each
• Myself, Matt and Gill continue the single laps and do two each
• Continue with the single laps, try to get the fastest laps in to cram in as many as possible (depending on how people are feeling, who is still fit, etc)

• 
  The Original Source Mountain Mayhem start/finish straight, Eastnor Castle in the distance. The trade stands extended for another couple of hundred yards off to the right and ran the full length of the side the picture was taken on...a big event!

So, time to get cracking then! By the way, the photo's are not exactly in chronological order.

Lap 1 : 1:05:54
Phil, our team captain, started the ball rolling. He also started his ankle rolling as well by going over on it during the Le Mans start whilst he was smiling and running past someone taking his picture (the Le Mans start is a short run of a mile or so to thin out the field before they got on their bikes, this should minimise queuing when the field hit the narrow singletrack). Very unlucky! Still, he smiled through the pain and put in a decent lap.

Lap 2 : 53:57
Ben put in a cracking first lap. He's recovering from a hip injury so if he was fully fit he would have no doubt been sub 50 minutes.

Lap 3 : 56:57
My first lap and considering that I initially thought it was over 58 minutes I was well pleased when I saw the official time. The course was not the most exciting one I'd ever ridden due to the large amount of double track and riding through fields but it was still a challenge and at the end of the day that why we were here. The course did have a reasonable amount of technical challenge, even in the dusty conditions and although I didn't have an off there were more than a few people who did.

The first half of the lap saw you run alongside the trade stands on both sides of the arena before exiting the arena, dropping down to the bottom of the field before entering another field and steadily climbing up to a ridge. Riding along this ridge you then doubled back through some trees and then dropped down a very steep embankment to a road. A fast kilometre was then put under the wheels on the road which turned to a slight grassy climb before steeply climbing up into the woods, heading back towards the arena. A flat, fast and reasonably long wooded section brought you out close to the ridge you had climbed to earlier where you again doubled back and then hit a wide forest road for around half a kilometre which then dropped down into the woods on the opposite side of the road (now doubling back again towards the arena) which was around a kilometre of rough, rocky double track which was very greasy under the wheels (no idea why it was so damp and muddy here) and I saw more than a few riders stack going quite slowly or suddenly take a ninety degree turn off into the undergrowth. The final couple of kilometres brought you down from the woods and alongside the arena before crossing the river (bridge, no ford so fortunately no white knuckle river crossings!) and crossing a field to the second half of the course and the Kenda Klimb.

The Kenda Klimb was a steep climb on tarmac road. Most people ground their way up it but I have no doubt the whippets were sprinting up it like their tails were on fire. There were timing mats at the bottom and top and if the lights were flashing when you went through it meant that you were being timed and the fastest climber won a pair of tyres...nice incentive but surely given the amount of effort people were putting in maybe a wheelset would have been a more just reward. Caning that climb could ruin a lap or end a race if you pushed too hard! The Kenda Klimb ended and led you into a singletrack climb up through the woods, very nice too, before finally climbing out onto the top of the hill with some stunning views of the surrounding hills and valleys, if you had the time to look! A nice swoopy descent led you back into the woods and a challenging section which rutted up quite badly and never got any better than quite boggy. I pity the poor souls scrabbling around in there in the depths of the night, no doubt cursing their luck and wondering what the hell they were doing - we've all been there! The trail then descended through the woods with some tight singletrack (very reminiscent of West Virginia in places) including some off camber sections which would be interesting if and when it rained. This was followed by a mixture of wet and muddy forest road which was treachorous, a quick traverse of the odd field followed by some nice steady double track climbs.

• 
  The final descent really gave you a chance to give it your all

The final kilometre was a grassy run back to the arena with beautiful Eastnor Castle providing a stunning backdrop. It's worth pointing out that there was some excellent support around the course, most of all the group of nutters on the final descent who were making more noise than most with cow bells, air horns and cheers of encouragement, brilliant!

• 
  Matt descending into the arena to finish his first lap

• 
  The view of Castle Eastnor on the final descent

• 
  Riders descending the final descent

Lap 4 : 58:55
Matt made short work of his first lap. He's been struggling with fitness for some time so we were just glad he was able to ride.

Lap 5 : 1:37:49
Gill reported no problems on her lap and was clearly enjoying herself.

Whilst I waited to do my second lap I took the opportunity to walk back up from the arena along the end of the second half of the lap to take a few photo's. I caught Matt coming back on his lap (see photo below) and got chatting to an old fella who was out walking and spectating. He was an ex-roadie and time trialler and we spent a good hour walking the course, me answering his questions about the technology used in the modern mountain bike and he telling me what it was like racing back in the fifies and sixties. A great way to while away a couple of hours waiting for your next lap!

• 
  Competitors were a good mix of first timers, weekend warriors and of course full on lycra clad XC racers

• 
  The national team was present and looking very quick and very cool in their new Sky sponsorship kit

Lap 6 : 55:13
Good lap from Phil, even with his sore ankle!

Lap 7 : 53:19
Ben's also upping the ante.

Lap 8 : 59:32
My second lap could have gone better. It was at this point that I realised trying to get 'one more race' out of my very dodgy looking drivetrain was probably a mistake. As Dave would comment later, "You're chain rings are knackered, I've never seen so many hookers". Got round ok, just had to stay in the middle ring for most of it so couldn't really put my foot down on the flat sections. Had an off on the slippery forest road on the second half of the lap. Really annoying as it looks like a section you can really hammer through but it's like riding on ice! On the descent down towards the arena they were putting on a firewords display with Eastnor Castle as the backdrop. I couldn't help but feel very lucky to have hit the descent during the display, it was a real treat. Also, coming back through transition and back to the campsite I rode through a carnival atmosphere trackside with around 30 people putting on a tribal drumming show...again, fantastic!

Lap 9 : 1:04:58
Matt has the first lap with the "lights out".

• 
  Riders descending through the woods before crossing the river and attacking the Kenda Climb. There were spot prizes for the fastest sprinters up the climb which was long and steep, never mind having to ride up it every lap!

• 
  Lights were ablaze throughout the night with the unusually good conditions meaning no rider or team could afford to relax

Lap 10 : 1:54:43
Gill completes here second lap in the pitch black of night and comes in to hand over to the night shift of Phil and Ben who will run single laps for the next four laps giving myself, Matt and Gill a chance to get some kip.

Lap 11 : 1:01:39
Phil first night lap. It starts to rain. I am tucked up in bed though so I'm completely oblivious to the carnage occuring out in the woods. Phil's ankle is now starting to swell up rather badly.

Lap 12 : 1:02:40
Ben's first night lap. Conditions are deteriorating rapidly in the continuing showers. The wooded singletracks sections are now a horror story.

• 
  Original Source provided much needed showers and as much shower gel as you could carry

Lap 13 : 1:10:17
Phil returns from his lap and wakes me up. It's around 4am. I ask him hopefully what the conditions are like, thinking he'd say it was fantastic and just getting faster and faster (I hadn't heard the showers). It's awful, the course is treachorous and bloody hard work. I get ready, optimistic for improving conditions as at least it isn't raining and there are no flattened or floating tents that I can see. Common sense and past experience tells me not to expect too much, when you get into the woods you're usually only disappointed at how bad things have become! Still, I had my mud tyres and I was up for it so was looking forward to my lap. Phil and I did a quick calculation of when Ben would be coming into transition. We did a double check and were agreed. We didn't know it at the time but we'd already miscalculated and Ben was also getting faster, not slower as we thought. We had also not added any contigency to the time and were therefore already heading for trouble.

Lap 14 : 1:00:49
I had plenty of time and headed to get some breakfast. The queue was huge so I hung around for a few minutes, there were some very tired people in the queue. I gave up and headed for Transition with what I thought was ten minutes to spare and found Ben there already waiting, he'd been waiting for ten minutes. To say I felt like an idiot was an understatement. I'd broken one of the basic rules of team racing, get to transition on time. I hid my shame by getting on the bike and getting out of transition as fast as I could so I could curse my stupidity in the darkness rather than in front of my racing partner.

• 
  James's number board. We had chance to have a catch up and some food whilst waiting to go back out. James was also interviewed by the sponsors, Original Source, about his knowledge of their products. It was probably because he looks better on camera than me, although I told myself at the time it was probably because he looked and smelt like he needed a shower more than I did!

Lap 15 : 1:10:41
Persevered with my ailing gears, just using the middle ring again. This race is rapidly becoming a race of schoolboy errors! I head back to the campsite for some food whilst Matt is out, there would be plenty of time as he was doing post hour laps now. Gill has done the couple of laps she promised us, Phil's ankle looks like it has an egg growing out of it and Ben can barely walk from his chair to the kettle to make a brew. Phil's not looking very happy at all but Ben swears he's fit for racing despite the words of caution from the rest of the team.

Lap 16 : 1:17:40
Matt comes into transition, it's around 8am, six hours to go. "It's just us two now, Gill has done all she can, Ben is struggling with his hip and Phil can barely walk on his ankle", I was pretty knackered so it didn't really register. I just grabbed the wristband and ran to the bike and sprinted out of transition, Matt cheering me on as I jumped back on the bike and rode through the arena, grinning as I could hear Matt shouting and bawling across the arena, it felt pretty good to be back on the bike.

Lap 17 : 1:07:37
The course was improving fast and getting a lot quicker. It was only early morning but the day already promised to be another cracker. The lap went well, no real problems aside from a few moments trying to navigate the by now heavily rutted wooded sections. The course was still fun to ride, you just had to find the enjoyment in sections that you would normally take for granted as just sections that led you onto better parts of the course. At the end of the day I knew we were in a privileged position being able to ride this course as most of it was on private land so I tried to take the enjoyment where I could and just enjoyed being out on the trails and the banter with the other riders.

• 
  Transition was always a busy place to be with 2400 riders competing

• 
  James was riding for Pronghorn Racing, putting in some very fast laps he was clearly feeling it

Lap 18 : 1:13:49
I was waiting in transition for Matt. We might only be down to two but a pair can still be fast, we just needed to pace ourselves over the final four hours and we'd be fine. A couple of laps left each and then we're done. Matt comes into transition looking very fast, he hands me the wristband, "Ok, you're on your own now", although he looked fast I can see he's completely shot and is done for the day. Off to the bike again.

Lap 19 : 1:12:27
I tried to ride at a reasonable pace and not think about doing a three or four lap stint, I just kept telling myself that it was like riding half of the Wiggle Enduro 6 and to take it a lap at a time and just stay reasonably quick and consistant and to ride well and not fall off. I then fall off on the narrow cobbled track which leads back to the grassy banks of the arena which is now extremely slippy although it has been a bit dodgy for most of the race. A good lap, nothing fancy, I just ground it out.

• 
  The weekend warriors were no slouches and had some pretty bling kit of their own. Nice wheels!

Lap 20 : 1:23:43
I come into the arena and the team are waiting for me with no less than six bottles of various energy drinks! I figured I must have looked like I'd needed it when they saw me part way round the last lap. I was a little wired by that point but I could swear Dave promised me a pie after my next lap which was all the impetous I needed - pie power! The lap was going well and I felt like I was pacing myself rather well. The bike was sounding very second hand by this point, not to worry, we're nearly done. On the Kenda Klimb things started to go a little wrong when knee felt like it was trying to lock out. Unsure how serious this might be I persevered but felt twinges in it occassionaly as I finished the lap and couldn't help but wonder how I might drive home if my right knee was too painful to drive with. On returning to the transition I told the team that I didn't want to risk going out on another lap when my knee was showing signs of becoming really painful. The look of disappointment on their faces was plain to see and felt like I'd let them down at the final furlong. Looking from face to face it was hard to see anyone who was physically capable of going out for another lap, we were really like the walking wounded for one reason or another and everyone looked uneasyily at each other hoping someone would just do it and then this awful silence would come to an end. "I'll do it", Matt stepped forward, to say I was relieved was an understatement! It's not easy getting back on a bike when you're physically exhausted and mentally you've spent a good while telling yourself that you're done for the day and you can start winding down and relaxing. Now he was looking at an hour or more on the bike, not a pleasant task at this late stage in the race but at least he'd bring us home with an official finishing time rather than a DNF.

Lap 21 : 1:21:53

21 laps in 24:24:32

57th out of a field of 123 teams in the Mixed category

In retrospect Mountain Mayhem was everything it promised to be and the only real downside was the realtively straightforward course, but I knew that would be the case before the event and at the end of the day it was still a very big and well ran event. I had heard that they had to change the arena layout a couple of days before the event due to some problem or other so they've clearly got a good team behind the scenes making sure everything runs like clockwork. With hindsight I should have bought a new drivetrain from the vendors at the event rather than ordering it from my local bike shop as there were some fantastic deals on offer. I learned a few tips watching Dave blag a decent discount of the USE Lights guys! Having showers available for after the race was a godsend although someone had decided to use mine as a portaloo which I didn't notice until I'd got in, grim! Still, I felt like a million dollars afterwards, rather than having to drive home for several hours in the heat of the day smelling like a used tramp.

The only real gripe I have about the event is the timing or rather the viewing of your times. They had a couple of screens showing top ten positions in the different categories and you could look your own lap times up on the second screen but unless you were in the top ten you had no idea of your overall position. Why not have a screen which shows your lap times and overall position, a screen showing who has just gone through and their position and then a screen showing all positions in all categories? I'm surprised they don't already do this as Timelaps have been doing something very similar for some time now.

Things to change

Maybe trying to get one more race out of a knackered drivetrain isn't really a good idea after all.