UK Gravity Enduro - Dyfi, 19th & 20th September 2015

It's the Dyfi race weekend, HUZZAH!

It's Robyn here, I completed the big Dyfi loop on the Saturday prior to completing the seeding.  Having got myself back onto flat pedals for a couple of rides prior to the weekend I was feeling a lot more at home with the bike. From the start you could see for miles, it was a great grassy track with natural jumps over rocks as you descended which give you the opportunity to just let it all hang out on the bike and have fun.  I really enjoyed the slalom style section at the bottom and clocked in one of the better times of the season on my Orange Five.  Couldn't fault my bike set up at all, the Manitou Revox rear suspension came into its own element on the big rock jumps, so smooth and supple.

The stages throughout the races varied from freshly cut steep mud to rocky trail centre affairs. The Michelin Wild Rock R2 enduro tyres really are absolutely incredible on the rocks and roll really nicely, I haven’t had a flat running tubeless on these all season.  Later in the day I few off the bike moments as fatigue set in and was pleased to complete stage five completely clean after a long 5 hours out on the bike!  I came in 19th courtesy of my off the bike moments, I'm happy with that though as the whole weekend has been fantastic.

Dyfi hosted a superb finale to the UKGE series2015. It was a great opportunity to race against a fantastic set of rides. The food from The BillyCan was delicious – lentil soup is perfect before heading up to seed. Steve, Charlie, Liz, Chris and all their workers have put so much into these events and I’m already excited about the return to gravity enduro racing next season. Before I finish my year I have one more Welsh Gravity to complete and then I will start thinking about the 2016 season.

Robyn x

UK Gravity Enduro Round 5 - Dyfi, 18th August 2013

Steve and I first raced at Dyfi last year for the final round of the UK Gravity Enduro!   The track compared to the rest of the rounds with it being pretty damn fast and loose, sick!  We liked it so much that we headed back down there in February for Steve's 30th Birthday Bash. But, sshhh!

We rocked into the venue on Thursday evening and it didn't half piss it down all through the night.  Met up with Helen Gaskell and Sarah Newman who had brought along Helen's little sister Bex Baroana who turned out to be the secret missile of the weekend!  I have to say that one of my favourite bits of the weekend was following Bex down Stage 3 and hoping to god I wasn't going to follow her over the side of the cliff!  One word for Bex: 'Loose'!

We all rode together on the Friday to practice the stages and my legs just felt dead, I had changed my whole group set to Shimano which meant I was pushing a harder gear, good for the long term though I must admit!

Practice went well, some of the stages were brand new and we sectioned some of the lines which seemed to be getting a bit blown out from the rain. Steve Parr and his merry men fixed it all up for race day though, hats off to those guys.

On Saturday we took it easy and just practiced Stage 5 which was also the qualification track.  It was really grim during the quali's though, incessant rain and windy.  I didn't seed that well, I didn't really have the best of tyre choice considering the course conditions to be honest.  The track consisted of a lot of flat grassy turns.  Steve seeded OK but again similar issue with tyres.  

Photo copyright of Doc Ward

Here's Steve with a run down: qualifying was on the crazy side especially due to our tyre choices. The track was super wet and down a field so you can imagine the battle on a worn out daft tyre... nonetheless I scrapped my way to the bottom a little sideways.  Think I qualified somewhere in the top 15, further back than I would have liked as this kinda track usually suits my riding. .....

(Angie) Race day came around and Steve felt he had his work cut out, originally his aim for the weekend was a top 10 but after qualifying he knew he would be happy with a finish in the top 25.  It would be hard though as much as we both love riding at Dyfi, we both knew that the race pace was gonna be off the map!

Stage 1 was cancelled for us due to some dude breaking his hip or something along those lines, poor bugger!  Wishing him well.  This kinda played in Steve's favour because that particular stage a had a pretty big pedally section and like me his legs were knackered!

This was also Steve's first time using the new Thomson dropper seatpost and he was getting some envious stares from other riders, ha!

Sunday is an early start for the girls, we're always off first but it does mean we get to watch everyone finishing which is cool.  My first three stages were OK however on Stage 4 my chain came off, then after hearing a 'Pppppssssttt....' noise and thinking it to be a flat tyre I stopped, got out all my puncture repair kit stuff and then realised it was just water hitting the hot disk brake rotors!  Looking back I can laugh about it but at that point in time I was fuming! Gggrrr!  

Photo copyright of Doc Ward

Still on Stage 4 I trucked on and came into a fast left hand berm, it was here that the bike stopped dead and I went face first mouth open into the biggest puddle ever. I kid you not it was huge.  (Think of those old Thelwell horse cartoons and you're not far off!)  My goggles filled up with water and I couldn't do anything but jump back on my bike with twisted bars and laugh manically the rest of the way down!

Copyright of Thelwell

(Steve:) I was super happy with the rest of the event, everything was going well and I managed to keep smooth solid runs throughout three of the stages.  I finally found myself at the top of the final stage, soaking wet through with the rain, willing myself to stay on the bike and finish off what could have been prefect day... hahahahhaha, spoke too soon, It wasn't to be.  I was all over the place, drifting uncontrollably everywhere and stacked it twice, once into the only tree on the track and the other towards the bottom, slap bang on the floor!!  Shit happens eh!  It's funny really and I still laugh my arse off thinking about it.  I need to crash more, it keeps ya honest, only joking but I loved it!  

Photo copyright of Doc Ward

So that was our last UK Gravity Enduro of the season.  Helen Gaskell took the win for the Elite women with Sarah in 2nd.  For the season overall Steve finished up 9th and I was in 6th, not too shabby, we're both chuffed with that.

Next race is the infamous Tour De Ben!

Biking, Biking, Mushrooms....! 

Fetish Gravity Enduro Round 5, Dyfi, North Wales 8th - 9th September

Angie takes over the crib:

So this was the final round of the UK Gravity Enduro Series at Dyfi Forest in Wales.  The venue hadn't been used before so everyone was keen to get a look-in and see what it was all about.

Steve and I travelled down on the Thursday night, we got there about 1am so pulled up in a layby on one of the windy narrow roads for the night - I'm pretty impressed that we survived to be fair! ;)

Got up fairly early on Friday morning and got set up in the field, it was a lush start to the day with a beautiful blue sky and the sun was just starting to peek its rays through.  The bikes were soon sorted, had some brekky and hit the trails with the guys.  

It started out on a big old fire-road, little did we know at this point that 98% of the climbs would be on fire-roads.  Forty minutes later we were at the first descent, it was pretty short and absolutely flat out!  Think scree, shale, loose greasy rocks with a good old gradient and you'll get the drift, literally!  Another climb followed, this one was about fifty minutes up and out into the open with some gorgeous views of Cadaer Idris.

Taking in the views on Friday with the guys.  Photo by Sarah Newman

Shot down a totally sweet fast descent, probably my favourite section, however I got a puncture in this stage on my race run, damn it!  Back up another fire road for forty minutes which was followed by another cool descent ending on a super steep rocky spine.  It felt as though I was in a different country at this point, the tracks were crazy, very Alpine.  Another (yep, another one) fifty minute fire-road climb to the top of stage 4, and the top of this section was crackin', picture a steep drop into a stump filled city.  Off camber, rocky, high lines with lots of roots, absolutely amazing!  The middle of this section was not so good however, a steep climb and then a very pedally flat section where I got overtaken in my race run by a certain Miss Newman who seems to have legs with pistons in them!

As for the last fifty minute climb up to Stage 5, oooh I loved this one.  You would have loved it Lee, pure old school-style across fields with flat grassy turns and just making what you could out of the land that was there. This was also the qualifying track, awesome!

After we had rode the track on Friday we got some good rest, managed to go to bed at 8pm and get a good 13 hours sleep in :)  

Saturday was a scorcher, we practised track 1 and 5 and then made our way up for qualifying. I had a good run and got a 5th with some close times to the other girls.

Showing the lads how to do it.  Photo by Dave Ward

Another 12hour sleep followed that night and Sunday morning was an early start.  The girls set off at 9am.  My legs were feeling OK up until Stage 3 when there was that middle section sprint, it was a killer having already sprinted through Stage 2.  

Photo by Dave Ward

I ended up in 6th position overall.  Not where I would have liked to be but it's my first year at Enduro and the Elite category is bloody hard!  I'm working on my fitness more for next year and have already cut out the chocolate.  Ouch!

Sunday night was party night, a good few glasses of red were downed, got drunk and was asleep by 9pm, what a lightweight, it was my birthday weekend after all! :)

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