Mountainless 3 Hour
Sunday just gone I was in Mildura in north western Victoria for a 3 hour race held by the Coomealla-Mildura Mountainless Bike Club on the banks of the Murray River. The course used for the day was similar to other races I've done up there in the past, but with some additions to extend the laps a little bit.
The weather was perfect with lots of sun shine, a bit of a breeze so it was set to be a great day. I would post some pictures but I don't have access to them at the moment, they're on there way.
The race had a good turn out with about 40 or so riders on the start line in a number of different categories which was good to see. Off the start line I was happy to follow the lead rider for a while to get a look at the course. Unfortunately he had a very spectacular, but harmless, crash about half way through the lap on a jump. From then on I was pretty much on my own for the rest of the race and tried to ride a solid and consistent race. All was going to plan until I got a flat tire from a rogue stick that put a rather large hole in my rear tire on what was to be my 2nd last lap. While fixing this the rider in 2nd place managed to pass me, this however didn't last very long as the angry pills that come with flat tires ensured I was soon back in front of him and was able to finish the race in the lead.
Some out there might be thinking that a 3 hour race on a flat track would be a walk in the park, but the race was actually harder than I thought. I really missed the small rests you get on descents and the large amount of sand made for a tough time out there. I chose to ride the hardtail RXC Team for the day, but the bumpy course had me wishing for the comfort of the Virtue Team by the end of the race.
Well done to the local club on putting on a well run race, hopefully it will be going on to bigger and better things in the future.
The weather was perfect with lots of sun shine, a bit of a breeze so it was set to be a great day. I would post some pictures but I don't have access to them at the moment, they're on there way.
The race had a good turn out with about 40 or so riders on the start line in a number of different categories which was good to see. Off the start line I was happy to follow the lead rider for a while to get a look at the course. Unfortunately he had a very spectacular, but harmless, crash about half way through the lap on a jump. From then on I was pretty much on my own for the rest of the race and tried to ride a solid and consistent race. All was going to plan until I got a flat tire from a rogue stick that put a rather large hole in my rear tire on what was to be my 2nd last lap. While fixing this the rider in 2nd place managed to pass me, this however didn't last very long as the angry pills that come with flat tires ensured I was soon back in front of him and was able to finish the race in the lead.
Some out there might be thinking that a 3 hour race on a flat track would be a walk in the park, but the race was actually harder than I thought. I really missed the small rests you get on descents and the large amount of sand made for a tough time out there. I chose to ride the hardtail RXC Team for the day, but the bumpy course had me wishing for the comfort of the Virtue Team by the end of the race.
Well done to the local club on putting on a well run race, hopefully it will be going on to bigger and better things in the future.
posted by Jack Lamshed at 9:17 pm
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