Singletrack6, Rockies Canada 26th-31st July

Having arrived in Canada over a week ago and done nothing but ridden amazing single track like I've never seen I was both pretty tired and excited about the stage race ahead.  We'd already seen so many sights and spent a brilliant week in Jasper and now it was time to get serious and do some racing!!  I was very nervous, unsure if my knee would hold up to 6 days of racing and pretty scared about some of the trails that lay ahead.  Technical riding isn't my strength which was one reason why this race appealed so much, always one for getting out of the comfort zone and trying out new adventures!!

Saturday 26^th July

Stage One

West Bragg Creek

40km

1800m elevation

It was an early start to get to the race venue and sign in and the nerves were really kicking in by the 9am roll out to some ACDC in the background.  Up the gravel track to start I was riding ok, not used to racing, fast starts got me breathing hard but I was well positioned with one girl just ahead and feeling ok.  Once we hit the single track I was wishing I was further back as I was constantly pulling over and letting fast riders past.  I tried to keep up through the trees and going a little too fast bashed one and landed hard on my shoulder.  I worried I’d done serious damage and after checking myself and bike over and letting another few dozen past I got going again with a different attitude to look after self and bike a little more!  Climbing up I was feeling pretty strong but kept slipping or getting stumped by the endless roots and scooting along I was loosing more places, catching up then getting stuck.  The climbs were so steep I’m not sure I’ve the strength in my legs yet to fully appreciate the 11 speed.  From the top we rode the Ace of Spades times descent.  As the race was more spread out I only stopped a few times to let people through and by the bottom I was able to catch back up and really enjoyed getting into that hard race zone on a final very rideable climb.  I got all competitive at the top and was determined to have no one catch back up for the final 5km.  The descent was fast and flowy,  rooty as usual but even I felt like I was going fast and finished without having to pull over.  I ended up 4^th woman, only a few minutes off the podium so was a bit annoyed I was so polite in letting everyone through. Tomorrow’s route is said to be ‘bluff hugging’  whatever that is and is a ‘rocky and rooty trail with short punchy climbs’.  Umm should be interesting!!

  

Our home for the trip

Stage Two

Nipika

38km

1100m elevation

We set of today in groups of 10, one minute apart as we were straight onto the single track.  Though I started well I lost my nerve after nearly going over the bars on a sudden drop half way down a steep descent.  I stayed upright but it knocked my confidence and I battled after that to ride the technical parts.  I always say in a race I have so much energy that is just mental energy and once that gets used up I start to lose confidence and momentum.  I stopped at the midway feed for some coke and that seemed to lift me up a lot plus the trails were more flowy the second half and gradually I caught and passed a lot of riders.  I came in 4^th woman and joined the rest of the finishers in the nearby lake, the perfect recovery. 

Stage Three

Radium

47km

1300m elevation

Last night we found a lovely campsite by a river with lots of sprinklers and grass, a relief from the heat that is following us.  I had been looking forward to getting to Radium to go to the Hot Springs but once here ice cream and freezing river were much more welcome!!  I had a great race today despite breakfast cereal sitting heavy from sleeping late.  I set off in batch B 5 minutes after the top 3 girls so was able to ride my own pace.  My energy seemed to last the whole way today, I had no dips and the course was perfect, lots of fast flowing single track, a good gravel road mid way to make up time then lots of punchy steep climbs and descents near the end where I still felt full of beans, helped by the fact I caught up Jodie so knew I was in 3^rd.  She took some holding onto as she is such a fast descender but eventually I got through on a climb.  Both the other girls had lost some time due to some malicious local sending riders the wrong way, Matt got lost 4 times and ended up with a 2 hour time penalty and it affected the lead men too.  Once I was at the point I had hesitated too but by then the problem was been sorted.  In the end they gave me 1st place for the stage and won a bar of soap for my efforts!  

 

Feeling a little short!

Stage Four

Golden

“Welcome to Canada”

30km 1400m elevation

The only thing that suited me on today’s ride was the 5km sprint up the first gravel road and even that in hindsight led to my for coming problems!!  Turning off that well up the group we were straight into the day’s timed descent.   I pulled over at the top and let Michel (Cyclocross champion) pass straight away and a string of men before starting to ride the loose steep trail.  Trouble was no sooner did I start riding did I get the sliding of back wheels behind as more guys flew down behind me.  I’d pull over again, off the line, unclip and let more past so I never got into a steady rhythm and starting again on the steep parts was impossible till in the end I got pretty annoyed with myself really for not having the skills to go faster and be able to ride anything that suddenly sprung up.  Finally at the bottom after a lot of walking and some humor from a rider shouting ‘welcome to Canada’ I was so far down the field and with already 10km of the 30km day over there was no way I was going to pull anything back plus we were straight into a single track climb so there was no pass room anyway.  With no race motivation left I struggled to ride things I would have flown straight over if I was still in amongst the riders I’d been around and at the end of the stage felt less like a mountain biker than ever before.  It took me twice as long to get down that endura section than the leading ladies and my knee wasn’t too happy about the running either! 

The finish line was next to a gorgeous fast flowing freezing cold river and the best part of the day was sitting on the rocks soaking our legs while chatting to other riders.  That night we got the luxury of an unwanted hotel bed, which was a relief, as the campsite we’d found was on stony ground, had no showers, just a muddy lake and was midge hell.  The hotel wasn’t the best, live music just below, no aircon with 27 degrees outside even at night, lights that didn’t work but had a bed and sheets, which was complete luxury!! 

Stage Five

Golden

60km

1400m elevation

Both Matt and me were pretty glad for the extra 10km added onto the stage and looking forward to the smooth trails that lay ahead.   It didn’t disappoint and it was ours and a lot of rider’s favorite stage.  I was riding a lot faster on the smooth trails and keeping up with the front two girls focusing only on the wheel in front and trusting their line completely.  My saddle over one bump tilted back slightly then on another bump really went back so I was riding with the tip really high in the air making it one uncomfortable ride.  I didn’t have the right Allen key for it and it was a long while before anyone passed that was willing to stop and lend me one.  Though it ruined the enjoyment of 15 km or so I was soon back going once I’d adjusted it and feeling good and a lot more comfortable!!  I got back into 3^rd place and went as hard as I could.  My breathing sounded terrible, I guess that’s the 5 months off feeling, my mind is stronger than my lungs but I was riding along nicely and trying to put enough time in the bag for the endure section at the end.  That was also a nice descent and I came in along the road in 3^rd place and very happy with the whole day quickly forgetting even the dodgy saddle episode and for once relaxing on a real bed for the afternoon even if it was baking hot!    

 

One of the many views I didn't see!

Stage Six

Revelstoke

47km 

1700m elevation

There was some confusion about start times today as we went into Pacific Time.  It felt odd to just change the clocks back from just driving a few hours, it would be like driving from the East to the Lakes and loosing an hour.  All it meant really was an even hotter roll out at 10.30 that was really 11.30 to our bodies!  Up the road out of town we were soon in the shade zipping through forest.  The single track was really flowing and smooth and I held my position well until it became more rooty and hard going later on.  I slipped back to 4^th but despite making a real meal of a newly felled rooted area I held that position (also finishing 4^th on GC) and made it down the endura section in 9^th place out of the woman, my best so far even though by then I hadn’t eaten much at all, the ‘short day’ a lot longer than we anticipated and was wobbling around more than normal!! 

That evening we had a real feast in true Canadian style, its been a short race week with only 17 hours of racing but now its over that post race tiredness crept up no doubt at all from all the concentration and nervous energy, I’m guessing of those 17 hours, 15 of them were on singletrack.  What a great week, nice people, challenging but highly satisfying race days and perfect blue-sky days. 

 

Start line for the last stage

Thankyou to the organisers for a brilliant week of a whole mixture of fun/terrifying trails and thanks so much to Jamie White, Jammer for been our director sportive/skills coach/camp experience extraordinaire even though you did increase my stress levels disappearing into the forest for the day and found us Canadian’s biggest mozzy populated camp site.  I guess I equaled that one by finding the worlds noisiest campsite pitch next to the main train line!!  Thanks also to Rob Fawcett without whom this adventure wouldn’t have happened, to Matt Page for fellow Brit companionship and to my sponsors Asrin, Cyclefunatic of Durbanville  and 32Gi. 

'Master of many trades' Jammer 

First Week of the Canadian Adventure July 2014h

The title got me thinking, have I really only been here just over a week?  All the things I’ve seen all in one week?  And all the trails I’ve rode, definitely more than I’ve done the rest of the year.  And I’ve already ticked off the Marmot, the Elk, a brown bear and two black bears.

I joined Matt Page in Gatwick and we flew over to Calgary, got a bus to Canmore and checked into a nearby hostel.  Leaving Whitby at 4am we were in the supermarket looking for some snacks in the middle of the Rockies the same day and it was still light.  Despite sleeping top bunk in a crammed room I slept like a log and the next day we headed to the local café to find directions to the trails.  We rode round the 24-hour of Adrenalin course that was starting the following day.  The trails were super dry and was a great loop with nothing that technical but which would really test anyone riding it for 25 hours!  We half thought we might be racing in a team of 4 with Cory Wallace who was joining us after the race but he joined another team so our only option was a team of two and neither of us were keen to do a 12 hour ride!  Plus there was a lot more to see and the next few days we rode some fantastic trails with Jamie White who was our our Canadian manager/director sportive/driver/ornagiser and all in all a great guy with some good stories to tell and a very impressive mountain biker as he’s done heaps of trails riding in the past. 

Out riding we soon fell into order, Matt or Jamie bombing downhill, me picking my way down then putting in a big effort to catch back up.  My biggest achievement so far in a week was the day I was faster on the descents after a 6 hour outing in which he blew spectacular to the point I half thought we might have to carry him.  I had to joke after that it would go on my CV that I had to wait after a descent for a Canadian MTB er. 

 

Do people really ride off this!!

After the 25-hour race was over we moved from our very comfortable lodgings with a friend of Cory’s along the road to Jasper to his mother’s house.  The drive was spectacular past all the ski towns like Banff and Lake Louise and other places I have often dreamt of visiting.  Having Cory with his local knowledge was invaluable as we pulled over a couple of times to take in the views.  The first stop however was to see Crazy Larry.  A famous character here who is devoting his life to pleasing others.  His bike is labored up with most of his possessions as well as pickers for the litter he collects on the way and a huge bag of balloons for the kids he sees.  He has more energy than I’ve seen in anyone and most of the local races use him to keep the vibe going through the entire event.  Mad as a hatter but heart of gold would sum him in a nutshell and we had to literally drive away while he chatted on otherwise we’d have been on the highway forever!

Next stop was the biggest waterfall I’ve ever seen.  No tourist signs, it was just hidden round the back of a carpark.  We were close to the top and you could stand on the edge and feel the spray coming off it. 

Just round the corner from there we parked up and walked a short way to the edge of a glacier field.  Over the years it has retreated a lot but still looked very impressive and it seems so bizarre to see so much ice when walking around in shorts and t-shirt. 

To top off the drive across Matt and me spotted our first black bear sat happily by the roadside munching grass not really that bothered by all us tourists taking photos of him. 

We got to Vickie’s (Cory’s mam) house in Jasper and the waft of chili wraps came out and made our mouths water.  Since arriving I’d not really played ‘mam’ and so our dinners have mainly been cereal, bread, meats and cheese.  Four nights after leaving home to sit down a homemade hot dinner was heaven and we all ate until we were stuffed. 

The first day Jamie and me joined Vicky and a group of her friends to go hike round Mt Edith Cavell.  The walk was shortened a little as it started raining after our picnic but was still a spectacular hike looking up at a cracking glacier that was creaking and groaning every time the sun was on it and then emerging into these meadows with all sorts of different flowers in.

Vicky Wallace, amazing amount of energy and really made the week special

Picnic in the meadows

The next day Cory took us on an ‘easy’ ride.  We started on flat grasslands lined out on his wheel and it felt like we were back in Mongolia.  Once way out of town we hit the ridge back starting with some technical hiking trails which had me chasing full pelt allowing Jamie to have a rest up ahead.  Further along the trails turned smooth and I had that fantastic feeling of sitting in the slip riding fast and getting eyes and mouth full of dust.  I was in race mode and it felt so good!  That evening we joined another so called easy ride but my legs were pretty stuffed and I found myself a little in No Man’s land in front of a few men but not able to stick on the descents with the others.  On one of the climbs my gears played up and once at the top I was alone with a rider from Montreal.  Neither knew the way and at the next junction we took the wrong one and looped back on our own.  He knew the way so we weren’t lost and on the way back passed within 4 meters of a bear, after a quick glance we peddled hard before he heard us.  The black bears here can be dangerous as they are virtually blind so can get startled if you just ride by them and can charge you.  Most riders carries bear spray and this year there has been more problems as winter was so late and they have stayed in the lower lands for a lot later than usual. 

 

My usual view, the back of these guys!

The following days I eased up a little, did some very useful skills with Jamie and relaxed around the house a bit more.  On the last clear evening before we had rain we had a delicious BBQ up at one of the lakes after a refreshing dip shared with a very tame elk. 

This morning we left Jasper and headed back to Canmore.  The time in Jasper has been brilliant, Vicky; Cory's mam, is such a kind character and with her and Jamie there was never a quiet moment! They take health foods pretty serious too and I've tried all sorts of new things I'll be scouring the shelves for once I get home.  It was sad leaving Jasper and its people and I hope some day to return.  

Singletrack6 starts tomorrow, my legs don’t feel particularly fresh having done so much single track riding but its been way to hard to resist this last week! 

            

21st June 2014 UCI Malevil Cup Marathon MTB

The international MTB Marathon Malevil Cup in the Lusatian Mountains in the Czech Republic is turning into a yearly pilgamige for me and Rob.  A mini break and a tough challenge which we both look forward to and made extra special thanks to the hospitality we receive each time we arrive.  Two years ago the Malevil Cup incorporated the European Championships , a really hard 100km with a large strong field of elite riders.  Last year I contacted the organiser, Radek Patrak who contacted local sponsor and cycle kit supplier, Eleven and I raced with their Test Team chuffed to bits to get my hands on their much sought after pink compression socks and happy to win and get those socks on the podium!!  This year we were in touch again and organised the same deal.  Mid way through fixing a broken tibia I used the race as a focus, it had UCI status so maybe I could use it as a qualifier for the World Championships until I realized it was only a week before and all the will in the world I wasn’t going to be super fit having already been off the bike 5 months.  

My Specialized 29er Epic outside our home for the weekend

With the killer aqua jogging sessions in the hydro pool with Jason Hyde at Teesside Uni and his confident attitude that I could ride even before I could walk, I managed to get back on the bike by week 9 of the fracture.  That gave me 6 weeks of progressive cycling to slowly get fit for the Malevil Cup.  Rob also joined in some of the rides and also got himself fit for the 65km challenge.  I had a pretty good idea my level of fitness coming out to the race, hanging off the back on our local Sunday ride instead of around the front of the group chatting  was one sign I wasn’t 100% and unable to sneakily catch up on the uphills in Dalby forest on the Tuesday night ‘baggy shorts’ rides was another but my endurance was fine so I was quite confident of at least getting round.  

The venue is such a beautiful place it felt like a holiday

We both woke up nervous on race day, its a challenging day out whatever and the weather was looking pretty unsettled.  At 8.30 our 100km wave set off, the elite woman up near the front with the men to a huge cheer from the crowd.  I realised within seconds my lack of power as I got swamped by so many cyclists all charging towards the first single tracks across the fields and into the forest.  

All the main woman contenders were well out of sight so I switched mentality from ‘lets try and race and see where I come’ to ‘lets just see if I can get this leg round and enjoy the day’.  I still had that blood like taste from exertion for well over an hour but I was enjoying myself and hanging onto a pretty big group of Czech men.  There was also an Austrlian girl I’d been chatting to at the start in our group and Graham Pinkney, a friend from last year whom I yo yo’d with on the descents and climbs.  At one point someone shouted that I was in 4th (when actually it was 5th) so I rode hard on the chance that a podium might still be possible, in marathon races you can never give up trying as mechanicals, hitting the wall, crashing and going off course are all part and parcel of racing.  

My knee gave me no problems at all while I rode.  I struggled a lot with the super steep hills just trying to get the power down and walking is still a bit of a challenge with a bike on uneven ground but I was chuffed to bits to ride the technical loose rocks descents and not feel terrified about falling.  I think I knew what a mission it would be to try walk down so just told myself to man up and ride them!  I did start to flag 15 km from the finish and got dropped by the Australian and the steep rooted climbs near the end zapped any energy I had left.   I finally finished in 6th place in the elite woman’s field (won by Irena Berkova) in roughly the same time as it took last year in really muddy conditions.  This year had been super dry and the most perfect conditions any rider can ask for.  So perfect in fact that we rode another 6 hours the next two days enjoying the endless forests (and getting lost on the odd occasion too).   Its been a tough last few months, there have been lots of times when I have wondered if the desire to push myself would come back, if I would get the same feeling of excitement racing and enjoy the utter exhaustion at the end of a 5 hour race and if I’d have the confidence to race over rough terrain again.  Malevil Cup put my mind to rest, even with legs that won’t go as well as I want I still loved the race and hope the yearly pilgamige continues!  

Not everyone was interested in the race!

One climb after another!

Rob was flying in the 65km race and his first 2 splits put him high up in the field till his chain snapped and some local farmer managed to lose his link trying to help leaving him to run an hour to the next tech point.  So he really got his race worth with a ride and a run and had pretty sore calves to show for it!  The beer on tap from the Eleven stand and a U2 tribute band topped off a memorable day for us both. 

Oily hands but still able to hold a beer

A huge thank you to Team Eleven for the support picking us up from Prague and beer at the end, to Radek for his relentless energy and hospitality, he puts on one of the best one day races I have ever done… and even got U2 there.  Thankyou also to Asrin and Cyclefunatics of Durbanville for the Specilaized Epic Expert 29er, riding a duel for the first year has me converted for sure!!

Not My Usual Blog.....

 I’m not one to blog about anything other than my races…. But its been a long, long time since my last event and my next event feels a long time away so for anyone ‘following’ my blogs and wondering why I’ve gone so quiet its because I’m currently recovering from breaking my leg.

After such a full on racing season last year and a long time away from Rob, my husband, we both decided mid way through the hectic year that this was the year we’d do what we have always dreamed of doing and take a job in a ski resort working in a catered chalet.  We started in December and after the initial few weeks of stress we had a ball loving every aspect of it.  Yes it was hard work at times, early starts in the dark, late nights, very basic living and acting happy and lively even when we were both shattered but the highs we super high, the clear blue sky days and fresh powder, the snowy days where we ran for miles, reliving student style nights out and the friendship we made with our collegues, were priceless and an experience we’ll never forget.

I took my exercise head with me of course and skied nearly every day, ran on top of that and cross country skied too, so much so that my knees started taking a lot of grief, to the point where the nightly clean of our kitchen floor was a challenge in itself.  But me been me I didn’t rest.  Skiing for the season there is always a high risk of injury and as we got to know the resort more and more we did take more risks though out of all the guys we skied with I was one of the most cautious and had barely fallen for months.  I also thought I’d got away lightly with a fall into a ravine.  The light was flat and we cut across off piste to join the piste a little further down.  What I didn’t see was the ravine I skied straight into and was airborne for a very long screams worth. When I landed still upright on the gentle slope at the bottom I thought I was the luckiest person alive.  Next day though I fell for no apparent reason, twisted round to the side, lost both skies and thought I had a very bruised leg.  I tried to stand up, felt the knee try to go inwards, sat down in shock and fainted.   Obviously something was seriously wrong and true enough the X ray revealed a fracture on the tibia plateau. With a tearful farewell to my friends and La Plagne I was carted off in an ambulance down the mountain, operated on and a few days later flown home with Rob.  In the course of minutes I’d gone from an indestructible pretty descent, active skier worrying about a few Kgs I’d picked up in the progress to a hobbling invalid incapable to even getting a cup of tea to the sofa!! 

 

From that.....

 

To this!!

I started off my recovery well I think.  The surgeon I went to see told me I didn’t need physio and just to move my leg around for the next 7 weeks.  When I told him I was a ‘high level’ mountain biker and it was my job he asked how far up the mountains I had been and I knew from that moment he had no idea how important it was to me to get this break fixed quick and proper. So I came home determined and got Rob to lift my onto my road bike fixed on the trainer where I pedaled for 30 minutes with my good leg in a hope that the ‘cross over’ effect might help.  I then sent a plea on Facebook asking anyone for advice and soon my window ledge was full of vitamin supplements.  I also had a reply from Jason Hynd, a cycling friend who works at Teesside University Sports Injury Centre to come and use the hydro pool. 

And so it was that I entered the warm ‘bath’. Heated to 32 degrees I first thought how lovely it was, without knowing at that point how I would come to sweat in there and pray it was a little cooler next time!!  I hadn’t even tried to bend my leg yet here I was told to aqua jog against a flume of water.  But alas it worked, even if the first few times my broken leg flopped along it all helped with circulation. Jason’s idea was that pool workouts were never going to get me fit but would hopefully stop me getting so unfit that it would take forever to get back to racing.  So twice a week Rob and me drove over to Middlesborough to do our ‘bath’ workouts.  Rob was on the under water treadmill and benefiting a lot from running without the impact.  He was getting a workout without aggravating a long-standing calf injury and getting annoyingly fit and skinny and fast in the progress! It also provided a little entertainment to me as he looked like a Lapitca horse the first few times in there. 

I backed up my pool sessions at Boro with running in the pool in Whitby where I’ll go either up and down in the deep end or if I’m lucky and its not too busy, run round in squares.  Sometimes the music is loud enough to hear and bob along to, other times there are plenty of kids in to watch as I plod up and down.  My life has changed from riding around the moors and going wherever I want every morning stopping in a café for a chat and playing in Guisborough woods to up and down the pool daily but at least it is exercise and pretty hard exercise at that.  I am also swimming and its quite funny to see my shoulders get wider and my quads get smaller.  I have to see the funny side in that anyway!!

As well as aquajogging I am now able to pedal in the trainer with both feet.  It started off with my heel on the pedal as I was unable to bend my leg quite enough without discomfort but gradually it’s improving and I’ve just made the huge step forward in pedaling with my toes. 

Here are the last 8 weeks ‘training diary’:

Week One

Fateful Saturday the first March, never again will I forget to say ‘White Rabbits’ on the first of the month.  It was a pretty unlucky day for me, started with the best powder run of the season down our favorite run and ended in a hospital bed eating Smash and asking for some more painkillers, not for the pain but just to knock me out to stop me thinking too much.  Operation to insert pins and bone graft.  Lucky to be in one of the best hospitals around for these types of operations, guess they do a fair few here!  Told I can start doing things again after 100 days…100DAYS, ahhhh

By Wednesday I’m home and working out how to manage the simplist of tasks like getting upstairs.  My biggest ‘walk’ with one leg was from the car park to the café, I had to sit down twice and Rob had to drive round to pick me up on the way back. 

Thursday I went to circuits and had my own bench and mat.  Spent most of the 50 minutes sat doing sit-ups and bicep curls! 

Having been to the fracture clinic and given no physio I came home annoyed and so got Rob to lift me on the turbo trainer positioned outside and with the broken leg rested on a pillow I pedaled with my good leg for 20 minutes with lots of rests.  Cross over effect?  Not sure but at least it’s a few endorphins!! Had my first post op accident.. Rob carefully lifted me off the turbo, I hopped across to the chair using the table that then gave way.  Managed to twist mid fall and sat on the floor unhurt, leg none the wiser. 

 

One legged cycling, something for the neighbours to look at!

Week Two

My Birthday comes and goes and leaves me pretty depressed.  It was a lovely sunny day and I’ve spent so few birthdays at home we would have gone for a long café stop bike ride.  Longest walk on Friday was at the running session.  Their efforts were on the seafront so I hobbled all the way down and back up, took over an hour and felt very light headed by the end!  Also am up to 45 minutes of non-stop single leg workout, slow cadence and hard gear. 

My supplies arrive from advice via Facebook and Google time… Engevita Yeast Flakes, L-Lysine, Zinc, Glucosamine, Bone Power with Boron, Cod Liver Oil and even Neovite, a cow’s first milk (after the calf has sipped his share).

Week Three

I start my aqua jog sessions at Teesside with Jason Hyde.  My Savior!!  With cameras underwater its pretty clear that my left leg is merely dragging along but in the second session my right leg and poor arms are making up for it as the flumes are on and I fight for my life to keep near the front of the pool.  From the first session I notice improvements in the circulation round my leg.  My foot since the accident had looked like it belonged to a dead old woman, so swollen my toes looked shrunk and so cold Rob bless him took on the evening roll of rubbing them trying to get some blood down there.  As soon as I came out of the pool my leg and foot looked a lot less purple and for a short time almost normal. 

Once home I take out membership at the pool in Whitby and begin my many hours of ‘running’ up and down with my belt on in the deep end with some swimming in between.  My crutches are left near the steps and I work out I can get out backwards then swing up and back to get out!  Thankfully my Rolls Royce of crutches from France (to go on Ebay I was advised by the doctor!) have non-slip ‘hooves’ and I have no problems or embarrassing falls in my swimming costume!

Week Four

 I do 6 hours aqua jogging in Whitby and two sessions at Teesside.  These sessions are getting very intense and with both legs looking a lot more equal I imagine I’m ‘dancing’ out of the pedals, an imagery my good friend uses when feeling invincible on the bike.  The steps I focus on in each effort aren’t steps during those flat out sprints that last forever, they are a rider’s back wheel that I’m desperately trying to hang on to.  I come out the color of a prune and we usually make a detour to sup a good strong coffee on the way home

That weekend is the club’s big outing to Coniston 14 mile road race.  I make it my mission for the day to see the runners at the1 mile point and make it after around an hour only to find the bench I’ve been focused on for the last 200 meters is up a muddy bank and out of reach!!  I sit on the grass instead resting my very sore wrists.  Once the runners have passed I walk back down and out towards the runners coming back in.  What I find very funny is the number of people wanting to share their injuries and breaks along the way even to the extent of seeing someone’s knees scars while I sit and rest.  I am now more alike to the old woman walking with me with her two hip replacements than my fellow running pals.  That’s hard to take. 

The day after while everyone goes for a hike Rob joins me in my own hike up the side of a river to a waterfall. Its my first ‘off road’ hike and very enjoyable and challenging with one leg.  I wear my leg brace just in case my ‘hooves’ let me down and slip or get lost in the mud leaving me with a sinking narrow stump. 

 

Cat one off road climb completed!!

Walking on one leg requires a number of coffee stops!

Week Five

I aquajog everyday this week while the sun is annoyingly out.  Easter holidays have begun so I jog in between kids diving in and splashing around but its something to look at.  The week ends in a pool in the Lakes.  We drop some deliveries off, Rob races in Grizedale, I know I’m missing my fat tires a lot when I look in envy at the wet, cold riders pouring in the cafe but alas I find the hotel pool has a 3x5 meter square deep enough to jog in, phew!! 

My new Specialized Epic Expert 29er arrives thanks to Team Asrin, CycleFunatic Bike shop and my patient riding partner.  Its nice that others just see this break as a tempory thing and still willing to spend a lot of money on me.  I’m desperate to jump on it but for now it will sit on the living room! 

Week Six

I get on the turbo and turn the pedal very gingerly with my heel of the broken leg.  Movement is limited, there’s no chance I can bend it enough to put my toes on the pedal but it’s a start.  I take all the resistance off and pedal in the garden for 5 minutes soaking up much missed VitB!!  We also work in York in a marquee in our stall. It’s a nightmare, I feel able at home to do a lot of things but out of my comfort zone it was impossible and once we’d set up I spent most of the day hidden on my chair and freezing in the corner.  I left Rob to it for the rest of the week, swimming and aqua jogging instead at home.  

Week Seven

I get my mid sole on the pedal and start to turn it with some resistance with not a lot of irritation on the knee other than it getting very hot in the evening.  I have a big low point mid week and have a few mornings where I find it very hard to drag myself out of bed.  My friend sends me some messages with very wise words that drag me out of the hole I’m in, she’s been through a way worse illness last year and this year is racing and loving life again.  Improvement seems to have halted and I’m so tired of been stuck at home or reliant on lifts everywhere.  It doesn’t help that my Achilles tendon on my ‘good’ leg is jiggered.  It’s painful to walk on and has a lump on it, can’t imagine if that suddenly goes then I’ll be really stuffed!!

Week Eight

My few days of low are over.  I get some good news from my x-rays.  The bone has knitted together well and the bone graft looks ‘in place’.  I don’t get a lot of information from the fracture clinic but it’s all I need to hear.  I get sent up to physio too where I get some exercises to do. Looking at my quad it looks pretty pathetic as I sit and tense what muscles are left but with all the aqua jogging and swimming and the intense sessions at Teesside I still feel quite active.  I’ve also done a few days on the trot on the bike pedaling with my toes with resistance.  Its funny that after 30 minutes I feel pretty tired but it’s a great feeling just to use my leg in a way it is so used to been used.  I start to imagine how I can strap my crutches to the bike so I can go out!!  I find it very ironic that I can now ride my bike all before I can walk.  I quite like that… it almost makes me feel like a cyclist again!!

 

Latest X ray showing good signs of recovery!

Bridge Cape Pioneer Trek 20th - 26th October

Two weeks ago I had a new focus: a running fell race called the Langdale Horseshoe over in the Lake District.  I needed it as I’d come to terms with the prospect of not returning to South Africa and finishing off my season of stage races.  I was still motivated to train and in good form and with the weather turning decided to get out of my comfort zone and race in the fells for the first time.  A few days before the race started however I became the luckiest person around by landing a place in Team Asrin, a South African company looking for a rider to take the place of an injured team mate of mine in the Bridge Cape Pioneer Trek.  I was to ride with Nizaam Esa in the 7 day tour and we set about via WhatsApp to book last minute flights.  I still did the fell race all be it so cautiously I was overtaken by a woman on every descent and dropped from a pretty impressive 3^rd to an ok 6^th.  However I was unscathed and headed out to Cape Town that Wednesday. I stayed with a good friend in Stellenbosch and we crammed in as many new coffee shops and restaurants as possible before heading to the prologue in Oudtshoorn. 

Once we arrived we rode the 15km route that was far looser and trickier than I remember and even though it wasn’t that hot I had a massive headache from the heat and didn’t feel great at all.  However, plenty of water, a new Continental X King tire and a mechanic to tell me I had no back brake left and proceeding to fix it did wonders and riding round in the race was a different story. 

Stage One

15km Prologue

Ahead of us by 30 seconds were most of the other mixed teams with our teammates Asrin 1 just behind.  Nizaam started like a man possessed and I never even got a chance to sit in his slip as we raced along to the first single track.  I thought I’d catch up on the climb but my legs revolted, in fact everything did, it’s been a long time since I’d gone to such depths!!  I was given a slight relief every now and again as we caught teams in front of us and by the time we came to the descents I was actually enjoying myself.  It’s amazing how much of a boost it is to catch teams no matter who they are.  Nizaam also provided entertainment too riding into a bush on more than one occasion!  Near the end we caught up one of the favorite teams, I thought we could just sit with them but my partner had other ideas and soon I was breathing like a horse again and hanging on for grim life.  It was all worth it though when we heard we’d got 2^nd by a few seconds, with team mates Asrin 1 just behind.  It might be the last time both of us are on the podium together but for now we’ll savor it!

Tomorrow the real racing begins with 105km and 1768m of ascent.  The course has a real mixture of fast open roads to technical single tracks and with today starting hot and ending with a very unusually cold and wet evening I’m not sure what lies in store the next few days but with Nizaam’s sense of humor and go till we blow attitude its going to be fun! 

One things for sure, if I get to the end of this stage race I’ll have raced 50 days of stage races this year… its quite cool to think 2 months of the year has been taken up racing round the world and makes me feel very privileged indeed!

Three days have passed since our success in the prologue and we have somewhat plummeted down the GC to around 5^th now I think.  It rained the whole night before Stage One and though we set off fast near the front we soon hit the mud bath!  The whole road was barely ride able and when you pushed the bike the back wheel wouldn’t turn so you had to carry it and an extra 10kg of sticky mud!  We thought we were moving slowly but looked up to see even the leaders weren’t that far in front.  Finally we turned onto a sandier jeep track but as we sat in a line I slid out, crashed and two friends of mine landed on top.  We were all ok but my saddle broke.  Luckily I could still ride it after taping the front down a few times but the back was pointed pretty high so it wasn’t the most comfortable. I was struggling a lot, my legs filling with lactic as soon as I tried to ride hard and I was relived when Nizaam finally slowed, his hamstring giving him a lot of pain.  I also had such bad chain suck; it wouldn’t stay in the small ring without jamming so I rode a lot of the climbs in the big ring.  Looking back that was a bad error, putting the chain and mech through that much tension in such muddy conditions was asking for trouble and true enough soon the rear derailleur twisted up and bent into my back wheel.  Nizaam managed to straighten it up to a fashion and I rode on though pretty soon after the chain refused to go through the bottom jockey wheel so by passed it making it very loose.  I was still able to pedal all be it slowly without resistance but 5km to go it broke completely.  We split the chain and cable tied it up but with such a short distance left I said he should just pull me.  There was a fair bit of down hill luckily but I felt pretty bad for my partner!  We finished to hear that so many riders had had broken derailers that the camp was sold out, luckily my partner came with a whole new drive chain and 2 spare saddles and a mechanic who worked through the night fixing it so by morning I actually had an upgrade!  After the ordeal today I was extra happy to be in a nice clean and warm camper for the night. Out of all the stage races I’ve done I’ve never stayed in one and have to say it is so nice not to re pack every morning, to have a duvet to sleep under, water in the fridge and a toilet.  As well as a fantastic mechanic we’ve also two masseurs for the 9 riders in Team Asrin and even someone washing our kit!! 

There were still riders running around 30 minutes before the start the next morning begging any mechanic around to help fix their mess!  

Stage two was thankfully shortened to avoid another mud section and with the sun out, an 8.30 start and fast roads to ride, the mood in the group was much better.  We were flying staying with the front mixed team up until the 2^nd water point.  Nizaam had just pushed it too hard and with his hamstring also giving him grief we slowed a lot.  Backing right off I took the wind on the open roads while he set the pace on the climbs.  The race ended with the Swatberg climb, an 8km mountain that took us around an hour to ride.  Nizaam battled hard, stopping and starting and we finally made it before cruising down to Prince Albert to the luxury of our campers.  There we heard the good news that our team mates had won the stage and with it been the Swatberg Pass there was a bonus of 120 thousand rand so long as they also had a number of top 10s from here on in.

Stage three and we were back to our 7.30am start that meant waking in the dark and forcing some cereal down.  The start was on a straight open gravel road for around 15km with a stiff head wind.  It was pretty sketchy with people sliding in the sand and sudden braking and I saw at least three crashes.  Though the pace was easy it was better to finally turn off and start racing across the jeep tracks.  We were both riding well together.  In fact I was surprised how well we spot each other after only a couple of days riding together.  The pace was fast but not too uncomfortable.  After the first feed we started a rocky climb and a hairy descent.  I rode following Jennie, our Asrin teammates who were holding on to the leaders jersey.  She is technically more confident that me so I thought right if she rides it I will and was quite pleased to get to the bottom with a foot off.  Whenever I hit rocky descents I think of my poor elbows that are so battered now from crashing in the rocks that I often wear elbow pads and wished I brought them along.  We rode with the two lead mixed for a long time after that before a long drag that saw the now leaders ride off and us pull away from our team mates after their efforts over the last few days holding the jersey showed.  The finish put a smile on every ones faces, a smooth fun single track leading onto a 10km downhill on the road before riding through the finish in 2^nd place and moving up to 4^th on GC.

Stage Four was only 70km on paper but I knew from last year it was one of the toughest yet and was due to be a scorcher.  The stage traverses through a spectacular valley that is only open for cycling once a year.  While it’s really impressive that also means that the tracks are rough and rugged.  The first climb starts with a 10km or so drag where we held a good pace and sat behind Jane Nusili and Ester Suss who were 2^nd in the woman’s category.  Once at the top was the first crazy descent that was so steep Nizaam’s lightweight brakes over cooked and he had to stop a few times.  That gave me a chance to come down more cautiously!  Once at the bottom we gradually pulled away from the jersey holders in our category through countless river crossings and steep climbs.  I had one small fall and landed on a prickly bush, which was pretty uncomfortable!!  The day continued with long slow climbs and equally slow descents.  One climb was around 5km long and too steep and loose to ride and again the descents were sketchy so there was little rest at all.  To top it off we were in for a treat with 8km of single track at the end, trouble was it was back up a mountain and down so most people did have a loss of humor by then!  However as hard and tough the stage was we were elated to win the day and pull our gap back to 2 minutes behind 3^rd place on GC.  It was a good day all round as our team mates took back the leaders jersey and the boys bagged enough points with a 5^th to qualify for the 120 thousand rand prize money from the pass. 

Stage Five was forecast to rain in the afternoon but we woke up to rain in the night and the next morning didn’t look that bright.  True enough just as we pushed our bikes into the start chute it started pouring.  Everyone ran for cover and huddled in the breakfast tent but come 7.30 we were off in true mountain bike fashion.  The start loop looked pretty chaotic but it seemed to string out quickly and Nizaam and myself had a clear line through the deep-water crossings and slippery single track.  The climb then began and went on until we were well in the clouds, the rain got heavier and the lightening got closer.  The rocky descent down was also pretty sketchy but I followed Nizaam and got to the bottom safely.  He was riding very strong today and I was happy to follow his wheel down the open forest roads.  It was a little sticky but nothing like day one and while it was a lot slower riding than in the dry we did at least feel like we were covering ground nicely.  The next decent down was a lot harder in the mud but we both arrived at the tech zone unscathed.  Having had nothing to eat so far I grabbed a load of chocolate and put it up my shorts much to the amusement of the girls handing it out.  We tagged onto the Dutch Cube mixed team for a while on the road.  He is on the Rabo Bank feeder team and is strong enough to ride away from us while his partner holds on!  The road section made the kms fly by and even though it was still raining it was pretty warm.  Soon we turned into the single track, which on any normal day would have been really fun to ride.  It kind of was today to slipping and sliding round but there was no speed at all.  We were lucky, whereas on Monday half the camp broke their derailers today half the field’s pads wore out and there were a lot of stories afterwards of doing the descents using feet as brakes and skidding around hoping for an incline to slow down on.  Both of us had worn the pads but not to the extent they didn’t work and we rode in in 2^nd place and more importantly moving up to 3^rd on GC.  Our teammates made it through to but lost time to the Dutch and so lost the leaders jersey.  The camp was soon flooded and the tenters moved indoors.  We stayed happy and dry in our camper, had wellies from the race sponsor and had pizza as a pre dinner aperitif so all Team Asrin was a happy camp

Stage six, the final day and with more rain everyone was relived to hear the route would go direct to Oudtshoorn 70 odd km’s a way on gravel roads though we would Montagu Pass to conquer first.  We rolled out of George leaving a completely chewed up field behind.  Nizaam was on a mission and all I could do was hang onto his wheel. Montagu Pass is a grind at the best of times but with 6 days racing in the legs it feels super slow going and gets steeper near the top.  The scenery however is amazing and I have a big soft spot for the climb and George in general having spent a lot of time here with my teammate in the last few years.  We rode a tough but manageable pace along with her and her partner and caught another couple of teams near the top so at least had company for the long road ahead.  There were some strong riders in our group so the kilometers whizzed by as we got a bit of through and off going, to sit on the front all be it briefly at least meant you could see for a brief moment… the roads were covered in a slick mud so there was constant grit and dirt flying in your eyes and mouth.  It would have been nice to have stopped and enjoyed the last few water points but there was a sense of urgency in our group and we didn’t stop once.  Nizaam did ask if we could but I said no as it was a long road to ride alone!!  Near the end a big group caught us with another mixed team.  I wasn’t feeling that competitive until they sprinted past near the finish.  We hooked on and sprinted across the field and to the finish line where we crossed ahead of them so keeping another 2^nd place stage.  The Cube team were in their element today on the open roads and were out of sight from early on, they kept the overall win with teammates Jennie and Craig in 2^nd on GC.

Stage ‘eight’ as its become known probably took as much to recover from as the racing though as he has done all week our savior JP the mechanic looked after us all again and found the remaining few members of Team Asrin wandering around Oudtshoorn near dawn.. My 2.30 end to the night was pretty lame in comparison!   

It’s the third year I’ve done the Bridge Cape Trek Pioneer and without doubt has been most luxurious and the best laugh thanks to my partner Nizaam and the rest of Team Asrin.   It’s a great race, not too big and very well organized.  The food was better than ever this year too and though I’ve been in the saddle for 27 and a half hours this last week I’ve still managed to add a few kgs; water retention I hope but more likely excess pancakes, chocolate and Steri Stumpies!!