Midlands XC Round 2.

Finally the weather looked to have improved and with the sun making the odd appearance I decided to head to the Midlands XC race at Birchall. I had heard great reports of the course from last year and knowing what a good job the Midlands crew do at putting on a race I was really looking forward it. It didn't disappoint. Heading out for a practice lap with fellow Elite rider Jessie Roberts we were almost blown off our bikes the wind was incredibly strong on the start straight which was also a slight climb on grass. It felt like I was barely moving but putting in a lot of effort! It was going to be energy sapping in the race. This lead to a short steep climb then into some fab single track another energy sapping grass climb then the reward; a really good fun descent with sections that made you grin from ear to ear. It made up for the pain earlier in the lap! 

Photo Courtesy of Neil Hendry

Women's xc racing in the UK seems to be growing with the fields getting bigger and the standard seems to be getting higher. It's great to come to smaller events like this and get top class riders it makes for a proper race.  Among those lining up this weekend were Tracey Moseley, Jessie Roberts and Becky Preece I knew I was going to have to work hard to stay in contention for a good finish. The start of the race was a bit like something in slow motion, the wind was so strong we were all trying to tuck in and get shelter from others riders, we hit the first steep climb and I was hanging on to Tracey's wheel, she edged out a little gap in the single track, I just concentrated on trying to maintain the gap to her but this is the former World Downhill Champion so you can imagine she's fairly handy on the descents! She zoomed away and I was left trying to keep the gap on my own. The course was great and flowed brilliantly but the windy climb was absolutely brutal. Racing at the same time as some of the male categories meant I managed to get a little shelter on one lap but the final two times I was on my own feeling like I was going nowhere and very windswept. I managed to hold on to a podium position finishing in third place. I feeling like I'm getting in to race mode again and I'm looking forward to the trip down to Cornwall for the next British XC Mountain Bike Series. A big thank you to the Midlands XC organisers and marshals for another great event. If you haven't done a Midlands event they are well worth the trip, wicked courses, slick organisation and cool trophies! 

As always a huge thank you to my sponsors without whom I wouldn't be able to have so much fun playing on my bike; Xcracer.com, Velocite UK, Schwalbe UK, Mavic, Firecrest Mtb, Sponser UK, Ana Nichoola, Whack job Jim, Mt Zoom, Exposure Lights, Scimitar Sports and Working Bodies.  

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