Gorrick Spring Series - Round 2 Crowthorne Wood

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BY: Louise Robinson

Published: 3rd March, 2013

That was so much fun!

This is actually a really bad sign!

 If I had ridden as fast as I could have done it would have hurt..lots..and been no fun at all. Oh well, in the middle of particularly low ebb in cycling mojo it was just what I needed.

 

 

 Photographic proof, I really did enjoy myself

 

 It happens every February. After months of cold, dark, wet riding, it seems my motivation disappears to the same place the sun has been hiding. And it's not just me. The apathy on the start line was palpable. If the race starter had said it was cancelled, at least half of the ladies on the start line would have been quite happy with a cup of tea and a donut in consolation. But Gorrick do have a remarkable way of creating mountain bike courses that just make you want to ride your bike fast so when they said go, we all went!

 

I very nearly didn't even make the start line. Half way round my practice lap I came across a young boy lying face down on the ground. It turned out he had taken a nasty fall on a particularly loose gravely corner and hit the ground with his knee. Without a phone and no stationary marshals on the course I did not hold out much hope of being about to summon help quickly but luckily for both of us the organisers Landrover was passing on the fire road and rapidly came to our aid. I hope the knees OK Sam and that you will be back out racing soon.

 

 

Start of the ladies expert race, be scared boys we mean business

 

13 ladies started the expert female category which has got to be a record for recent times. With Hannah and Alice Barns, Jo Munden and Rachel Fenton on the line my motivation took another nose dive and I relegated myself to the second line of the grid (and I don't think I've even ever been at a ladies race which has a second line before). From the gun it went off hard, and I just plumped for steady. I tucked in behind Emily Iredale and Rachel Fenton and enjoyed the single track. Crowthorne Wood is almost as flat as Thetford Forest but for what it lacks in height gain it makes up for in twisty single track and rolling bomb holes. It also has quite a lot of pine trees which proved my downfall on lap one. After sitting patiently behind Emily and Rachel I could see Rachel looking for a way past Emily and decided to make a move as she did. However, a minor pinecone moment sent my front wheel skitting across the dirt and it was my turn to hit the ground with my knee. Thankfully it was quite a soft bit of dirt but by the time I was riding again Rachel was gone. It took me another two laps to catch her again but I did finally make it past. I pressed on and shortly before the last section of single track caught sight of Nicole Erasmus ahead of me. Boy the girl is quick on the fire road but I managed to real her in on the single track. One more hill climb probably would have done it but as it was I crossed the line on her wheel, with a great big smile on my face.

 

 

 Lewis King, showing us all how to ride "the puddle" and yes, he was in the same race as the guys behind (bear in mind the start line is only a few hundred meters out of the photo)

 

 For 2013, the Gorrick Spring Series has the expert races scheduled at 10am in the morning rather than 2pm in the afternoon. I don't know if this was the reason for the larger ladies turnout but it defiantly translated into a more enjoyable race for me. We were set off after the men's Expert, Super Master, Super Vets and Sport category and we quickly caught up the tail end of the Sport race. While this might have been a disadvantage for the girl's battling for first place, I found it just gave me something to aim at so when the other girls were out of sight I did not feel like I was riding a time trial.

 

 All in all a good morning out. Chilly but dry with an excellent (if a little short) fun, flat course. And don't be deceived into thinking that because there are no hills it's easy. No ups mean no downs, which means constant peddling. It is hard work. But fun! Now all I need is a bit of spring sunshine and my mojo will be firmly restored.

Louise Robinson - Mum, pharmacist and part time mountain biker

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