caitelliott.co.uk » wxc world racing

BMBS – Newnham Park, Plymouth

Cait — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 08:51:55 +0000

I love mountain biking.

After last weekend I was almost ready to quit cycling and had no interest whatsoever in going the final race of the year at the BMBS in Plymouth. I only made the effort because everything was booked and paid for but I went into it with very low expectations, only hoping that I could at least rediscover an enjoyment of racing.

elite women's start

Newnham is usually a good race venue and pre-riding the day before we discovered the course was better than ever before. 3 main fairly steep climbs which were all rewarded with long sections of slippery, rooty singletrack. I managed to crash on a new descent that wasn’t fully bedded in yet, taking the top off an old scar of my knee. Pouring blood and some over enthusiastic first aiders resulted in butterfly stitches and a bandage the length of my leg! muppet.

Photo credit: Bob Bogdan Williams

Race day. I didn’t get the best start but after the first singletrack I managed to move up to 5th and before long we had a gap on the rest of the field behind. Maddie Horton was just in front of me and I had to dig in to make sure she didn’t pull away on the longer climbs, and then fly down the descents to close the gap. Having barely trained for the last month I was surprised to be feeling pretty good and able to push hard. The trails were very much like Irish mountain biking, lots of off-camber rooty, fairly steep technical descents and greasy but fast muddy sections. The faster you rode the more fun they were!

photo credit: Bob Bogdan Williams

On the second lap Maddie didn’t seem to be any quicker on the climbs and coming to the top of the last steep one I put in an effort to get onto her wheel but couldn’t quite do enough to get in front before we hit a long, fast singletrack descent. Halfway down the trail split and I took a different line to sneak past and attack down the hill. Back being able to race, riding totally flat out, amazing!

Photo credit: Bob Bogdan Williams

Maddie and I came through the start area together and realised we had begun to close the gap towards Mel Spath and Lee Craigee ahead. We agreed to work together to get up to them and I let Maddie ahead to take a turn on the front. Into the next climb and suddenly my legs switched off! My calves still don’t seem capable of going race pace for the whole race and I had to watch Maddie ride away. Frustrating as it was, I was expecting this to happen at some point so rather than letting my head go down as with last week I pushed on as hard as I could for the rest of the race, enjoying myself on the descents and hoping that I had already done enough to hold off people behind.

Photo credit: Bob Bogdan Williams

The climbs were hurting a bit by the last lap but the thought of not having to ride hard like that until next year made it easier. I hung on to come in 5th and finish 4th in the series overall (results here). It was good to finish the season enjoying racing but I’m looking forward to party season now!

photo credit: Bob Bogdan Williams

Thanks to all the organisers, its been a great series and definitely the best course was saved until last. A big thanks to WXC for all the support and assistance both today and throughout the season. Thanks to Bob Bogdan Williams for the cool photos

World Cup – Nove Mesto na Morave, Czech Republic

Cait — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 14:16:10 +0000

The latest racing adventure was the 6th round of the World Cup Series, taking place in Nove Mesto na Morave in the Czech Republic. Mel Spath and I flew over from Ireland a couple of days before with time to check out the course, acclimatise to a new country and adapt to the incomprehensible language and strange money.

Set in a forested area of pretty rolling hills, the race was based around a biathlon stadium which created a great arena and starting area. The course was very similar to racing in Ireland, lots of natural forest singletrack with plenty of roots, twisty corners, kickers and a couple of rocky technical features to keep the cameras happy. It was a lot of fun and real mountain biking so I was looking forward to racing. There did seem to be more climbing than anything else though with a lot of it up very steep rooty trails, which kept things interesting but also made it a really tough course.

The Czechs know how to put on a show and the crowds were out if force on race day with over 20,000 spectators and an electric atmosphere. It was into the increasingly familiar routine of riding round in circles around a tiny start area waiting to be called up, pedalling backwards in the pens to keep the legs moving, onto the grid heart starting to thump, 15 seconds to go-focused, bang we’re off. We had a 10 minute start loop straight into 2 long steep climbs which I was hoping might split things up and avoid the usual first lap queues in the singletrack for those starting at the back of the grid, but it didn’t work and we were all together at the top. I spent a frustrating amount of time stuck behind slow people on the descents but as we went into the 1st full lap I’d managed to move up into the 50s riding in a group with a lot of riders I was targeting.

The killer climbs were made easier by the noise of the enthusiastic crowds, with the deafening noise helping to ignore the pain and push hard. As things began to string out there was more chance to ride hard on the singletrack but just as I was starting to really enjoy myself disaster struck. I took an awkward line trying to overtake someone over a rocky section and caught my wheel on a sharp rock. Bang, psssstttt…! Slashed the tyre and it wouldn’t seal with a CO2. I started to run but realised I was miles from the feed zone and didn’t have spare wheels there anyway. Panic. There was nothing for it but to pull out. I stood at the edge of the course for ages trying to put off the inevitable. Stepping under the tape was the worst feeling ever, a walk of shame feeling all the spectators watching me, looking from the side of the track as the race went on without me. It was the first time I’ve ever not finished a race and not something I ever was to experience again.

The organisation, course and atmosphere were impressive, probably the best I’ve been to so far and I’m already looking forward to going back next year to do it justice. Thanks to WXC for the tech zone support. Also thanks to Czech based team sponsor Sportique who provide us with some great products, enjoyed meeting them after the race.

Irish xc National Championships – Kilruddery

Cait — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 13:33:13 +0000

photo credit: Andrew Lowry

This year’s National Championships run by Robin Seymour and Team Worc really showed Ireland’s potential as a world class mountain biking venue. The race took place at Killrudery Estate in Wicklow, a place that is normally off limits to bikes, with the Little Sugarloaf mountain forming a spectacular backdrop. The course was incredible, full of tight twisty singletrack through the woods, wall rides, technical rocky sections, and since we managed to escape the worst of the rain it was almost bone dry and even dusty. The atmosphere, familiar friendly faces and hassle free travelling makes racing in Ireland one of the most enjoyable experiences ever.

To win the National Champion title you have to be Irish, but this year’s race was made more interesting as we acquired a stray German (Mel Spath!) who was able to compete but not eligible to win the Irish jersey. Winning the jersey was my main priority but I was also looking forward to the additional task of trying to win the race overall.

photo credit: Cieran Maunsell

As we set off across the start field Junior Claire Oakely (WXC UK) shot off like a bullet and led for the first part of the course. I jumped into second before we hit the singletrack, concentrating on riding smoothly on the tight corners rather than getting sucked into chasing Claire. I eventually got ahead on a climb and saw Mel (Cycleways) not far behind. Despite the course having very little climbing, there were several short but steep power climbs which are normally not too my liking at all, but I was feeling strangely strong on them – the feeling of good power in your legs as you jump out of the saddle to attack a steep section is hard to beat! In fact the first lap was amazing, everything was so smooth and I felt like I was only cruising but seemed to be flying pulling a bit of a gap on Mel, great. The last part of the lap was flat and fast though and I knew that was where I was in danger of losing time to Mel and sure enough she wasn’t far behind. I lost a few seconds stopping at the feedzone to straighten my saddle which had been driving me crazy since I knocked it into a funny angle early in the lap, but stayed in the lead.

photo credit: VC Glendale

Although on first look the course didn’t seem hugely technical it took a lot of skill to ride smoothly and carry speed through the corners to save wasting effort. There were however a few tricky rocky sections mostly positioned at the top of the steep climbs to catch you at your tiredest. On one of these I dabbed and somehow spun my bike 360 degrees (luckily jumping off in time!) giving Mel a bit more chance to close the gap. Back on and re-composed I was having a great time, flying down the bomb hole at full pelt, skidding around dusty corners and hammering the little kickers. Then on the final wooded singletrack of the lap I dropped my chain and when I hopped off to put it back on Mel jumped in front. Bad timing too as it was just before the flat fast section. She had 20 seconds on me but I held on so that it wasn’t increased as we went into lap 3, though I lost another few seconds with more seat straightening at the tech zone.

photo credit: St John Walsh

For most of the next lap she was just in front and the cheers of encouragement from spectators telling me there was only 30 seconds gap helped to keep fighting. The gap increased a bit more on the flat section towards the end of the lap so that although not far ahead Mel was mostly out of sight. I went into the final lap hoping to give it one last shot at closing the gap but looking back I’m not sure how committed I was to this idea – I was riding hard but I should have been utterly burying myself and didn’t for some reason. In the end I was a minute back and felt like the race was too short and there should have been another lap – frustrating, maybe I could have gone harder on the last lap (easier said with hindsight) and without all my faff stops it could have been different.

photo credit: VC Glendale

Fantastic race, great course, great atmosphere and organisation. 2nd in the race but a consolation prize of my 4th National Champion jersey makes things a little bit better (results here). A get out of jail free card but I’ll have to get my finger out and step up a gear if I want it again next year since Mel will fully turned Irish by then and eligible for the jersey! training started this morning.

photo credit: Cieran Maunsell

A huge thank you to Team Worc and everyone involved in course building and race organisiation. Kilruddery is one of the best race venues in the world and it was a super professional event. Thanks to the Think Bike support crew for the pro tech zone assistance and pre-race bike tuning. Thanks to Stewart Carr and Carrie for miracle massages over the last few weeks, nearly there! Also thanks to all the spectators out on the course, most of the time I had no idea who it was shouting my name but the cheers of encouragement make so much difference.

photo credit Martin Grimley

Next up: Lining up with the world’s best at theOlympic Test event at Hadleigh Farm in 2 weeks!

photo credit: Chainreaction cycles

photo credit: MikeArmstrong

photo credit: Cieran Maunsell

British MBS – Margam Park

Cait — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 19:23:33 +0000

Having defeated the killer Shingles virus and enjoyed a race free weekend since Wasing, it was back to the UK on Sunday for the 4th round of the British series at Margam Park in Wales. The week leading up to the race was very wet and Saturday’s pre-ride was pretty grey and miserable with rain, half of the course covered in clouds and extremely slidey, muddy trails (the fun part!).

Unbelievably by Sunday morning the sun had come out and with temperatures hitting 31˚C I had my dream race conditions of heat and mud. We set off straight into a long climb finishing on a tough, off-camber slippery singletrack before hitting a fast muddy descent. By the top cyclocross pro Nikki Harris (Scott Contessa) had already pulled a gap and I’d got up to 3rd following Mel Spath (Cycleways), with Lee Craigie (Torq performance) just behind me. The course was ‘proper’ mountain biking with several huge long climbs, some short technical climbs, and lots of great singletrack descents with spectacular views out to the coast. The combination of long climbs and technical muddy trails meant riders were very quickly strung out and big gaps developed as the race went on. I clung on to Mel for just over a lap but eventually had to let her go – still have to make up that killer 2 minute difference .

The final climb of the lap was a monster, 7-8 minutes with several false summits, a headwind and sweltering heat and on lap 2 Lee jumped in front of me towards the top. I had to dig deep to hold on but eventually into the next lap she pulled away. Although the hills were tough, mud meant there wasn’t much pedalling to be done on the singletrack so there was plenty of time to recover before the next batch of pain. The descents were awesome, mostly narrow rutted trails covered in a thick layer of mud making for lots of fast, fun sliding around. One steep chute through the rhododendron bushes was particularly fun – 20cm deep mud meant brake free ‘bike-surfing’ sideways at high speed was the only option to get down it!

Coming into the last lap I was starting to feel destroyed, I had given up on catching Lee again and could only hope I had enough left to get around without being caught from behind since I knew I didn’t have much energy left for a fight. Then at the bottom of the first decent I passed Lee who had punctured. I gritted my teeth and sprinted to get around the corner out of sight and then somehow found some extra reserves to ride hard for the rest of the lap, not daring to look back, convinced she was seconds behind me. It was only the thought of a medal that dragged me up the last climb and from there it was a long fun descent and a never ending flat grassy field to the finish where I crossed the line in 3rd, delighted with the result (full results here). With 47 minutes in my top heartrate zone I was certainly trying hard but it’s great to feel able to do that again, calves are almost sorted!

photo credit: James Milnes

Margam is fantastic course that really separates the ‘mountain bikers’ from the ‘xc racers’ and made for some great results for the all the Irish riders with Mel and Robin both finishing 2nd! Thanks to WXC World Racing for all the assistance over the weekend. Kenda Nevegal/small block was the ultimate tyre combination for speed and grip in the mud, and my Spanish hill training came in very handy for coping with the heat.

British MBS – Wasing Estate

Cait — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 08:24:20 +0000

photo credit: Tor Olav Kjøren

British MBS at Wasing Estate in Reading, a course I hadn’t raced before and having heard it was fairly flat and uninteresting I wasn’t expecting to like it. However after a practice lap I was pleasantly surprised, not much climbing but some great singletrack through pretty woodland (similar to Castlewellan in places though without as much wow factor). Until Thursday I wasn’t looking forward to racing, still having problems with super sore calves I knew I would be there making up numbers again which is no fun at all. Then I had 1.5 hours of deep tissue massage on my legs and the effects were miraculous, I still wasn’t 100% but only felt slight tightness rather than pain so went into the race with a bit of confidence for the first time in weeks.

photo credit: britishcycling.org

On race day my prayers for rain were answered and although it wasn’t quite muddy enough to slow the race down as I’d hoped, the singletrack had become nice and slidey making for some fun racing. I got an unusually great start and was soon into 3rd place sitting on Maddie Horton’s wheel. WOW, this is racing! I hadn’t had that feeling for so long, pain free legs and feeling strong, brilliant! For a couple of laps I was back and forth between 2nd and 3rd place with some great battling on a close course and several other riders hot on our heels. The twisty trails flowed really well with rain making wet roots and corners all the more interesting.

By the end of lap 2 Mel Alexander and Mel Spath had caught me and we rode together for a while. By this stage my calves were beginning to tighten again and I felt like they were reeling me in from then onwards. The two Mels got a gap on me when a junior crashed in front of me and I got stuck behind another one – one your were into a singletrack section it was very difficult to pass and then hard to close a gap. I could see them ahead for the rest of the race but couldn’t do enough to get back up there, instead enjoying the increasingly slippery trails and keeping an eye out for other riders close behind.

photo credit: BritishCycling.org

Under normal circumstances I’d be annoyed for throwing away a couple of positions but 5th (results here) is a big step in the right direction and most importantly I got the race buzz back and feel like I can go at some proper training now and get back on track. What a relief. More killer massages this week will hopefully get me fully sorted, bring on the hills of Margam! Thanks to WXC once again and great to see the team dominating the podiums.
Check out the race video here.

Racing aside it was a very English weekend with tennis on the lawn, stonehenge, winsor castle, a tour of Cambridge, pots of proper tea and real ale. I like England. Identity crisis, haha.

WXC World Racing video – episode 1

Cait — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 20:16:31 +0000

WXC World Racing episode 1 – behind the scenes at the Dalby World Cup from Cait Elliott on Vimeo.

World Cup – Offenburg

Cait — Tue, 31 May 2011 11:27:01 +0000

After Dalby, team-mate Carla and I spent a few days sightseeing and training on beautiful flat, cold, windy roads around York before a major overnight roadtrip down to sunny Strasbourg (France) where the team would be based for the next round of the World Cup in Offenburg (Germany!).

Offenburg is a well known name for anyone involved in xc racing and has a reputation for great crowds and a technical course so to actually be there was pretty exciting. The course didn’t disappoint, it is an awesome combination of flowy fast trails, singletrack climbs and some super steep potentially head wrecking drops, all based around a small area of forest surrounded by pretty hills and vineyards. There were a few parts of the course that you role up to initially and peer gingerly over the edge thinking ‘oh god! how am I going to get down there?!’ but once I’d picked a line and got my head in gear they weren’t so bad. Then it started to rain torrentially turning the dust to greasy mud and making the roots wet and sketchy but a fast pace wet lap was a good confidence booster to know it could be done whatever the weather.

The next day we hooked up with Mel Spath and Maxine Filby for another couple of laps to get the lines dialled in, and since practice was limited to a 2 hour time window, everyone was riding at the same time and there was chance to ride behind some of the top riders in the world to see how they did it (fast!). After soaking up the atmosphere and hot sun watching the u23 men’s race it was back to the hotel to get the legs up and make some final race preparations.

Race Day
A good warm up, herded into the pens, hanging around trying to stay calm and focused, finally called to the start line as hundreds of people stand watching. 15 seconds to go, ready to snap into action. Bang, pedal hard, oh theres a crash beside me, get past them quick. Argh shit, suddenly I was sucked into the crash and on the floor, ending up watching the pack disappear in front of me as I was last out of the start field. I got back onto the last riders but stopped myself getting sucked into blowing my lights trying to get back up there, instead trying to settle straight into my own pace and pick people off gradually.

Supporters lined the course the whole way around and with beer tents, loud speakers and pumping cheesy euro music at each of the major technical sections the party atmosphere was incredible. Germans certainly know how to put on a mountain bike race. I took a while to get into the race, the bad start messed with my head, but as it went on my legs came around a bit and I had some good battles with a few girls around me. The highlight of the course is around the feedzone zone where two parts of the lap pass by each other, the ‘wolfsdrop’ a massive rooty drop on one side, and the ‘snake pit’ a technical maze of bit roots on the other. It forms a big arena area for spectators and the roars of the crowd as you come into it gave me goosepimples. It required concentration though as its a spot for lots of crashes, the first aiders had a busy weekend and hearing ambulance sirens midway through a race was a little worrying!

I felt a bit better than last week, at least I was actually racing, but still felt my legs weren’t performing up to standard. A very short lap meant the chances of getting pulled before the end were even higher so on lap 4 I put in an extra effort in an attempt to stay in. Coming towards the last steep climb I saw the evil 80% people blocking the way at the top so realising it was over got ready for one last sprint to get past a girl I’d be racing since the start. My tired brain somehow made me shift into the big ring rather than dropping a gear and I came to a standstill, loosing a place and finishing 69th about 40 seconds off staying in for the final lap – doh! (results here). I think there is still something wrong with my calf muscles and its time to get them sorted, I’m sick of not riding at full speed.

Watching the men’s race in the afternoon was impressive, the speed they hit the technical sections is incredible, Absalon especially seems to float around the course on a cushion of air making everything look so easy. That evening Mel and I joined pro American rider Krista Park and her husband for a German bbq feast up in a crazy old house in the hills surrounded by forests and vineyards. The next day after a lazy breakfast on a hot sunny terrace, a tour of the Black Forest and yummy icecream, it was time to head back to Dublin where the pro-racing bubble was quickly burst with a return to reality and a 20°C temperature drop. Its been an amazing couple of weeks not just for the racing experiences but seeing new places, catching up with friends from uk races and meeting loads of friendly like minded riders from all over the world.

A huge thank you to WXC World Racing for all the support and assistance over the weekend.

World Cup – Dalby Forest

Cait — Mon, 23 May 2011 12:33:13 +0000

Lungs, legs and head – 3 key elements to a good mountain bike race, if one of them is slightly below its par then the whole experience can change from being one of the best feelings ever to feeling like a lot of hard work and suffering.

We arrived at Dalby a few days before the race with plenty of time for training on the already familiar course and chance for some pro-style race preparation with the WXC team staying in some super comfy cottages alongside the Merida Multivan and Trek Subaru teams. The run up to the race went according to plan and I was all set for a showdown with the big guns of xc racing.

photo by Toby Rose

Race day. Good warmup, nerves starting to build up. With 15 minutes to go we get herded like cattle into the starting pens and I sat pedalling on the turbo to stay warm. Finally called up to the starting grid, surrounded by crowds and heart is pumping like mad. Loudspeaker calls 15 seconds to go, oh god its really happening now! Bang, we’re off, pedal like crazy. I got off ok until suddenly someone crashed in front of me, I saw Mel get caught in it and swerved to avoid the worst but lost a few seconds. After a bit of elbows out aggression queueing to get into the first singletrack it was just a case of following the wheel in front until the start loop was over, a flat first part of the course means there is little chance to split the field up.

photo by Danny Elliott

The first lap was really frustrating, a mixture of going really hard and stopping in queues when the course narrowed, so no chance to get into a rhythm at all. Eventually things began to string out a bit and I was able to ride. The atmosphere and crowds were pretty cool, people lining the course and huge roars at some of the more technical parts as riders went by, it really helps to motivate you as you struggle up some of the horribly steep climbs along the course.

photo by Danny Elliott

By lap 2 I was into a racing rhythm but it wasn’t the speed I wanted to be going, things just didn’t seem to click and the race felt like a real struggle. The descents at Dalby are always great fun but I didn’t feel the sort of buzz you get from a good race. I spent a lot of the race gradually closing a gap to downhill world champ Tracey Mosely and towards the end of the 4th lap I almost had her. I was psyching myself up for a real all out effort on the last lap but as I approached the start/finish area I was pulled in due to the 80% rule. Not impressed, a real anti-climax I wasn’t expecting and I felt like slamming my bike on the ground. I finished 72nd (results here).

photo by Danny Elliott

I’m not sure what was the problem but I felt like I just couldn’t reach top gear all day. Even worse is that I did a race pace lap on Thursday that was over a minute quicker than any of my laps on race day. The number of competitors and the significance of the event meant that the race felt more about learning to deal with the pressure of competing and fighting for position as I scrapped around at the back of the starting field than about going out and racing hard as you normally would. Next week will be better!

A huge thanks to WXC World Racing for all the support over the weekend, the racing didn’t go according to plan but it was a fantastic experience and it’ll make me work hard so to get more of it. Also thanks to the Elliott/Wilkinson family and Yorkshire supporters for cheering me on, always a big help!

Biking Blitz Dublin

Cait — Mon, 09 May 2011 11:05:51 +0000

This weekend’s Biking Blitz race on Three Rock marked the opening of a new trail centre 20 minutes ride from my house in Dublin. It was a perfect, pressure free way to get back into racing after Spain and build some confidence before the big races start in a few weeks. I’m generally not a huge fan of manmade trails, but the new trails are set to be hugely beneficial for increasing awareness and participation in mountain biking, especially as they’re so close to Dublin. Providing you don’t ride them all the time, they can be a lot of fun, and their all-weather construction will be very useful in winter.

photo by Morgan O'Connell

I signed up for the 3 lap ‘racerhead’ category meaning I was racing all the elite s1 guys. After an official opening of the trails by government ministers and other VIPs, we set off with bang up a long hard climb, firstly tarmac and then singletrack. I was using the race as training and wanted to concentrate on having a fast start, this worked a bit too well as I launched myself into competing against the fast lads and got sucked into going bananas for the first lap, which of course wasn’t sustainable! I got into a good hard rhythm and already tired legs were soon burning with a blustery headwind making it more of a struggle (I hoped small hills would be easy compared to Spanish mountains – not so!). Once we made the top it was into an extremely fast long singletrack descent with plenty of rocky drops and swooping corners. The adrenaline was quickly flowing and I was pleased to remember how brilliant racing can be.

photo by Mike Wyley

Another climb, catching a few guys, and into another long descent, a really physically demanding trail that takes a lot of pedalling and upper body strength to ride fast. Luckily the faster you go the better it gets and I my legs felt like they had some good snap in them despite a lack of racing recently.

photo by Aine Conneff

Despite a bit of to-ing and fro-ing with a few of different guys, after the first lap the race very strung out and without a close battle to make me dig deep I couldn’t keep the pace going as we hit the climb a second time so had to slow down a bit. It seemed several people around me had also gone out too hard though so I wasn’t losing places. On the final descent I could see Mark of MAD closing in on me, I held him off until the bottom but he nipped passed as I struggled with slow gear changing before we turned uphill into a kicker before the finish. As he faltered on the kicker I tried to squeeze past but couldn’t get enough power in the short distance to the line so lost a place, grrrr!

photo by Aine Conneff

I finished 1st female and 15th overall (results here), winning a really cool trophy made out of a huge rock! Far too heavy for my jersey pocket so I had to find a lift home for it.

Thanks to Niall and Tarja from biking.ie for a brilliant, very well organised event. Fantastic to see racing so close to Dublin and getting so much recognition. Also thanks to Bart Felle for the feed zone support, Think Bike and WXC World Racing.

British MBS – Dalby Forest

Cait — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 10:50:04 +0000

I seem to have hit a period of bad luck the last few weeks, beginning with extremely sore calve muscles as a result (or cause?) of a bad race in Sherwood that limited me to nothing harder than steady riding for 2 full weeks. On Saturday I flew back from Spain for the next round of the British national series but as the day went on I started experiencing stomach ache and feeling feverish. I hoped that a good night sleep would do the job but instead woke up feeling worse and if I hadn’t made such a long trip to come over I would have rolled over and gone back to sleep. Talk about bad timing, I never ever get sick!

I pre-rode the lap to warm up but increasing the intensity made the stomach pain worse, by the time I got to the start line I could barely think of riding around the course let alone racing hard. I tried to concentrate on the task in hand but struggled to put in enough effort to get into a good position approaching the first singletrack. The first half of the course is descending with some nice technical features so I was able distract myself from the pain and move up the field a bit, but each time we got to a climb I had shooting stomach pains that got worse the harder I tried. Not good.

As time went on I had a few battles with different riders but couldn’t hit the extra gear needed to attack and fight for positions. Luckily the course at Dalby is a good one, so there were some fun parts but most of the race was uncomfortable and painful so I didn’t enjoy it anywhere near as much as I should have. The stomach pains got worse as the laps went on, and I started to get fever like sweats. I began to think that I’d love to drop out, but something in my head won’t let me do it. I’d rather suffer like mad than give in completely, at least that way I can at least say I tried my best. I pushed on, only thinking as far as the top of each hill, finally getting to the finish where I doubled over in pain, unable to stand up straight and relieved it was over.

I finished 9th(results here), although very annoyed and frustrated overall, under the circumstances on the day I was glad to survive the race and still pick up a few UCI points. I thought I was better yesterday but had to lie down half an hour into an easy spin, hope I can get it out of my system soon I’ve got work to do before the world cups!

Thanks to the WXC World Racing for all the assistance and the Elliott family support team.