Ruthin MTB Marathon

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BY: Joe Barker

Published: 16th September, 2014

This weekend we traveled all the way up to Ruthin, North Wales for the final round of the MTB Marathon series. Thankfully the sun was shining and I was excited about riding my bike on the dusty dry trails. As we arrived I saw the Exposure Light tents and decided that I wanted to try the Exposure Light Big Night Out, mainly because I haven't ridden in the dark in a while and I wanted to get rid of some energy after sitting in the car for five hours.

I set up the bike with lights on and was all ready to go as the sun went down. I was comfortable, with the pace of the ride as we went up the first climb of the night, sitting well within the top ten riders. As we came over the first hill I started to pick off the odd rider and felt really strong. The descents were as promised, super dry and fun, linked up with fast sections of fire track. As I got into my rhythm I was riding with a guy from Clee Cycles, we were working hard and still picking off riders. As it came to the last climb and we were joined by Mark Sprat, my legs were starting to tire. A brutal short sharp muddy climb had us all off our bikes running but they were over the summit a bit quicker than me and by the time I mounted my bike they were gone!

The final descent was awesome, slightly damp and dewy which made it all the more fun. Sadly it had come to an end and I was on the rode back to Ruthin. From there I gave everything and returned 7th rider back. I was stoked, 40km in under 2 hours!

The next day I woke up with very sore legs from the night before but I was determined to complete the 50km route. Thankfully Tom and Charlie Craig were up for it and we set off. The weather was, once again, dry and sunny. The first climb was super steep but the commentator, half way up, made it double the fun by singing the Welsh National Anthem and being rather funny!! However steep it was worth it for the downhill which was included in last nights ride. It was a lot drier and faster. Next we climbed up to the feed station which was ideal as we were starving, so had a quick stop for food and to tighten up my bottle cage. Then we climbed up a bit more hitting the second downhill of the day. Charlie whizzed off on his Scott Spark which floated over everything. Rocky with loads of bumps my 27.5 Scale rolled over it nicely.

In my opinion the course got better and better as it went on, with more flowing trails and a section of single track prior to the second feed station. Once again we took our time and ate plenty of food to fuel us. The last part of the ride was linked up with more road and less climbing. With 15km to go we went up the final climb and descended off a fire road, boys being boys, we had fun doing lots of skids and jumps. The final bit of road took us back into Ruthin. The best MTB Marathon I've done this season. Thanks guys!!

Thank you to Southfork Racing for continued support.

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