SUTTON CYCLING CLUB
Cycling With Youth in Mind
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SUTTON CYCLING CLUB Cycling With Youth in Mind
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MONEYMAKING MOUNTAIN MAYHEM!Mountain Mayhem is the biggest event of its kind in the UK and some say the world. It is a 24 hour mountain bike race, taking place in testing countryside close to the Malvern Hills. Although I have taken part in the event several times as captain of a team of four, this year prompted by a regular riding partner, I decided to take it on solo. The race has a simple format of seemingly endless laps of a 9 to 10 mile course starting at 2:00pm on a Saturday in June and finishing 24 hours later, or at least when you finish your last lap after the 24 hour hooter has sounded. There is a slight catch in the form of a ½ mile running start before you even see your bike! Unfortunately as the photos show, my riding buddy and I were a minute or so late at the start but this was made up for by the cheers of the good natured crowd. I promise that I did catch up with the rest of 2000 plus riders and even got in front of some, Fortunately this year the rain that usually makes the event a Somme-like mud-bath held off for most of the weekend with only a couple of sticky patches in the woods to catch the unwary. Strangely, doing the event solo was a lot easier than leading a team... you've only got yourself to think about. The start of the race went well. I was taking it very easy to let my body get used to a slower pace and I treated myself to a re-fuelling stop every couple of laps. Keeping the calorie count up is one of the hardest parts of this sort of event especially since you have to ride on top of that highly diluted Pot Noodle you've just gulped down... luckily I like my food. I was determined to ride as long as I could without a proper rest break but I still have family and work responsibilities so after slipping on one of the more treacherous parts of the track two laps in succession I figured it was time to chill out. I finished my last night lap at 1:45am, went for a massage and shower and had a well earned kip until 7:00. I know, it's a 24 hour race but health comes first and I still needed to drive home early on Monday morning. Next year I promise I'll try to ride through the night... slowly! Amazingly, getting back onto the bike in the morning wasn't half as difficult as I though it would be and the morning flew by. What I thought would be interminable torture was actually not too bad and I found myself wanting back some of the time I had slept to get another couple of laps in. I managed to cross the finish line 18 minutes after the final hooter had sounded with 13 laps under my belt. I had climbed and descended the equivalent of over half the height of Mount Everest on a course that gives no time to sit back and rest. This put me in a far from commanding 51st position out of 250 solo male riders. I wasn’t too disappointed for a first time soloist, especially as the field includes some of the country's top riders. For interest the winning soloist, Team Wiggle's Matthew Page, completed twice as many laps as me and only stopped for a maximum of 2 minutes during the whole race. This kind of puts the top cyclists into perspective, especially since he had the energy to get down on one knee to propose to his girlfriend on the finish line! I would like to thank all those who supported my efforts with sponsorship. I managed to collect over £400 for Sutton Cycle Club and £560 for Cancer Research UK. 
Click on any picture to see a larger version. Graham Degg Click here to read other articles |
