Enduro World Series Round 2 - Scottish Borders - Tweedlove

As a single mother I have to make the most of the time I have to myself, so the week before round 2 of the Enduro World Series I ventured up into Innerleithen to find the trails I had heard rumours of.   After exiting what the locals call "Pro Spacker", the steepest trail I have ever ridden in my whole life, I said aloud, "this is what Scotland produces when it hosts an Enduro World Series", and a beam of pride shot across my face.

There was no doubt in my mind that the chosen Scottish trails would provide a challenging and respectably full on ride of fun.  Some participants were describing it as "the most technical enduro to date" and coupled with the unpredictable weather of the Tweed Valley the potential for the trails to become unrecognisable in a matter of hours was high on the cards.  Rain could quickly change everything as the previous weekends UK Gravity Enduro had shown - with slop riding making even the pro's look a bit messy. However this would suit the local riders, who have adapted to love the wet.

It was an exciting and tense build up to the EWS. With a myriad of trails to choose from the race was to be held over two days, day 1 covering the Inners side of the hill and day 2 moving to Glentress.  The trails had been a closely guarded secret and other than discovering some hints on Strava, I was limited to what I could practice due to a lack of child care and a dodgy knee.  I was awaiting delivery of a Pivot Mach 6 from Upgrade Bikes and I was more than happy to abstain and wait for the carbon fibre beaut to arrive. It had an awesome spec with 650B, XO 1, DT Swiss wheel set and with 155mm Kashima covered Fox's to boot. From the pictures online it looked like it just wanted to go fast. Uphill and downhill. This bike would turn my cumbersome Patriot into the pumpkin that preceded Cinderella's carriage.

On day one of practice I dragged the pumpkin around the Glentress trails in sunny weather, however toward the afternoon the rain appeared and the mud potential was unveiled. Observing some of the world’s top riders tackling the newly lubricated dirt with conviction I started to think that I might have bitten off more than I could chew.   It was fantastic to see so many riders out and with so many different accents and nationalities. Perhaps that French and Spanish I once used without regard for neatness and fluency could be recovered from some grey matter...my riding might not look good, but I could badly help a lost Spaniard.

That evening I drove through to Glasgow and picked up the demo Pivot Mach 6 from Mark at Billy Bilsland Bikes. Upgrade Bikes had kindly let me use the bike for the EWS and Mark had done an awesome job of ensuring it would be here on time.

I fell in love with the Pivot almost instantly when I could easily pedal out of any sticky and tricky stalling situation with the similar effort of Eussain Bolt on a sponsored walk.  The TW link made the pedal strokes so efficient that even steep and technical terrain were no challenge. Pinkbike described the Mach 6 as “One bike to rule them all” and I could feel the desire for the 'Precious Pivot' burning up inside of me.

Day 1 

I was racing in the E2 category with one less stage than the Elites, and no time limit between stages.  With the weather so hot, I really felt for the E1’s who had to blast their way through timed transition.  Completing the first stage with a number of my now to be expected theatrical falls I pulled myself together and became one with the Pivot, smashing some great times on stages 2 to 4, loving every minute of the atmosphere and crowd who cheering me on, despite not knowing who this midget on a carbon fiber steed was.  The steep, technical and intimidating golf course side Inners was a truly epic start to the two days of racing.

In my whirlwind introduction and romance with the Pivot, one thing that I never accounted for was the implications of the new the wheel size, I never considered how this would affect the amount of air I would need in my tyres. Who would of thought that bigger wheels require less tyre pressure? The outcome of this was some hairy off camber wash outs on Stage 1 but a few Psi removed and I was gripping like a mountain goat. The other thing that I found hard to adjust to with the 650b's was lifting up the front end with the longer wheelbase but I was more than confident this bike could roll over most obstacles.

The super feather weight frame and build of the Mach 6 was the saving grace for my weekend of enduro. I knew I had to cover 88km and 3000 metres of ascent over 2 days and that this was the slimmed down weapon I needed to save my energy and it didn't disappoint. I was still full of beans after stage 4.

After the steep rocky switchbacks of jawbone and the flat out off cambers of 3G the cycle back along the Tweed Valley was beautiful. The sunlight twinkling off the river Tweed, horses in hazy fields whisking their tails to get the flies off their backs and trees thick with blossom. I felt lucky to belong to such a wonderful place and event.

My favourite question to ask the foreign riders fleeting past was “Do you like riding in Scotland” and most seemed pretty happy but relieved that the weather had brought some sunshine and dried up the trails.  This was definitely the reaction of Damiana, a Swiss girl who I met whilst waiting for stage 4. She has been riding in the SRAM European series, and seemed really happy with how the Scottish trails were riding with a bit of dehydration to the soil. 

Returning to the event village I was sitting in 2^nd in E2 ladies with Damiana in the lead. Stage 1’s pantomime antics had left me with a lot of time to make, but I felt confident that the Pivot and I could give it a good shot.

Some of my friends in E1 were also doing really well too. Local girl Sophie Buckingham and fellow Wheelers lass, Fiona Beattie were smashing through stages and had some fantastic times.  The top 3 of the E1 ladies was pretty tight and I was happy to see Tracey Mosely in the top spot. It was interesting to find out that she tries to avoid gels and energy drinks and eats as much normal food as possible. 

Returning home and to mother hood I finished off some awesome racing by preparing a home cooked meal for me and Ski, checking out my new farmer tan, rocking out in PJ's with Ski, brushing some teeth, story time and bike washing. After this second installment of the day I was more than ready for bed.

Day 2

Arising bright and early after a comatose sleep, I was up and feeling a lot calmer having the steep and slippy of Inners out the way. Another glorious day, but not nearly as hot, I made tyre adjustments for fast rolling, knowing that todays stages at Glentress were going to be a lot more pedally and fitness orientated.

At the event village I popped in to see Nicola from the Female Riders tent and picked up a very smart and stylish long sleeved shirt as it was most definitely cooler and the option of arm cover was a good choice. I set off with Jorji from Singletrack magazine.  It was her first enduro race, so I took her under my wing to convince her of the relaxed and fun outlook - honestly I don't take it serious.

Waiting in the start queue I met up with Mairi Bell (also on her Pivot) and Helen Findlay from Innerleithin Mountain biking.  The chat with these lassies was great and I was chuffed to spend the day adventuring with them. One thing that I found with this race was how supportive everyone was, all tucking in, aiding and advising one another when they could.  Team E2 Enduro was full of friendships and love.

I knew that today would suit my riding not because it was less technical but because the stages were long and had a lot of pedalling sections and I know I can pedal. Confident that I could get back some time I was feeling a lot more relaxed. 

Today could be a big game changer to the final results and I had to make the effort.

Cycling between the stages, I chatted with Helen about the success of Innerleithen mountain biking, and the development of girls in the sport.  We acknowledged how the borders had embraced the resources of the trail centres; there are actually waiting lists for some clubs. Once again I reflected on the importance of club participation and development especially for families and children, but also this can be heavily dependent on the infrastructure and resources available. like a good sandwich depends on the filler and the quality of bread.

I had given it my all in the Glentress stages and bar a single fairly major fall felt happy with my performance.  Positive mental attitude, a relaxed mind and a fair amount of practice combined for some of the cleanest runs I've had this season so far.

Toward the end of the day we were all starting to feel the efforts of our long week of EWS racing and preparing.  We were like wandering zombies on bikes trying to stay positive but with barely the energy to share a smile together.

Returning to the event village, my daughter was reunited with me and calls for Irn Bru, face painting, baseball caps and chips were thrown at me instantly – no rest eh.  I was so happy to see I had made a little time on Damiana and won 2 stages, but with very close seconds involved.  It was also great to see that some of my times were up in the mid twenties for the E1’s and it was so obvious that when I had fallen how badly it affected my time. A single crash can make all the difference.

I won a nice set of Enve bars for claiming stage 2 as my victory and came second in my category, and my second podium finish of the season.

The crowds were great for the award ceremony and I was a bit surprised how much children love being covered in champagne.

It was great to get on the Podium at the EWS and see some friends old and new make it too, along with Drew Carters in the junior, Joe Barnes for E1's and some really nice guy I met won the E2’s seniors.

In reflection, the EWS although harder physically was like any other race – I do it for fun and to challenge myself.  To make goals and increase my fitness and to meet new people and enjoy an experience. 

The added bonus with this event was seeing how the world class professionals do things and to find out if they are that much faster they are than you. As it turns out only by a minute or two....

For myself I’ve decided to focus on preparing myself mentally for races and to chill out. 

And of course start saving up for a Pivot Mach 6. It was heart breaking to let it go at the end of the weekend, now I know how Gollum felt when he lost his precious.   

Thanks to Andy, Monty and Cy for a great weekend!  Lets do it next year.