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Torq in Your Sleep Report

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BY: Tim Dunford

Published: 3rd September, 2012


12 hours is a long time.  Think about what you're doing now. Now think back 12 hours… This was what was going through my mind as I lined up for the Torq In Your Sleep 12 hour race, my first 12 hour solo event. Would I be able to last the distance, would I crack mentally? Would it rain? Would I get a sore bottom?!  

Part of my motivation for entering the event was the newly established endurance series which is based on a rider's best 4 results from a possible 6 of the UKs top endurance events. Having missed the first two but scored well in the Gorrick 100 and Brighton Big Dog, if I wanted a chance at the title I'd need to enter this one.


Lining up I was nervous. I'd not felt great in the days before the event and I was definitely still feeling the effects of the previous weekends Grand Raid Cristalp. But as we headed off I felt pretty good, probably too good as with the exception of Ben Thomas who was fast disappearing out of sight I was keeping up with the leading teams of 4. I was keen to get a good start though and get a bit of a lead while the course was clear but half way round the first lap disaster struck - psssst! My rear tyre was flat.  To be honest I couldn't really believe it, how could I puncture on the first lap of a 12 hour race?! The sealant was oozing out of a nice big cut in the sidewall and no amount of shaking the goop was going to seal that hole. I got a tube in and was on my way again but a few minutes later that was flat too. This almost prompted a serious sense of humour failure and dummy throwing. No more gas, no more tubes meant it was time to ride the rim 4 miles back to the pits! As I slewed all over the track, my rear tyre wiping out round every bend I looked on the bright side that at least I'd left the nice shiny wheels at home!

Following a quick stop in the pits I was off again. My strategy of getting a quick start to try and get an early lead was blown out of the water. But in a strange way being behind worked out well for me psychologically. It gave me a target and a sense of urgency. I was no longer considering 12 long hours in front of me, but an hour had already gone and I was a long way behind. I had to get moving! This got the adrenaline going and I blasted round my second lap. Probably not how any coach would recommend tackling a 12 hour race and thankfully on lap three I caught Rich Rothwell as he too had fallen victim to a flat. I knew he was going to right up there at the end and catching him settled me down and I backed off a bit.

For the next couple of hours I focussed on trying to be as smooth as possible through the singletrack and not overdo it on the pedally bits. I was loving the track, I'm a big fan of riding just after a bit of rain. Not deep mud, but I really love it when it's a bit slippy, just enough to make it a bit more interesting.  I'd got to learn the track pretty well by now and was having a great time, particularly through the singletrack in Minley Maze and Banksey, those sections were awesome!  I tried to get as much solid food down as possible in the first half of the race as I knew my stomach would only take it for so long. I'd prepared a couple of treats too to give myself something to look forward to. On lap 4 out came the jam roll then when I'd done 6 hours a nutella sandwich. Every 4th lap I treated my chain to a little oil and my undercarriage to some fresh chammy cream - little treats which helped to break the race into manageable chunks!! 

The next stepping stone was the arrival of darkness and the need to attach lights.  Fumbling around to put them on I was convinced I was losing stacks of time. I was getting conflicting advice about how much my lead was so I continued to keep a good pace. Racing in the darkness was playing on my mind, I felt like I was going too slow in the singletrack and every time I saw a light behind me I was convinced I was being caught.  By around 10 though I was a lap up on second in the senior race but I didn't know how far behind Rich Rothwell was. Every now and again I saw him on a different part of the track and tried to figure out how much of a gap I had. Maths and tired head didn't seem to work that well though! I figured now I had a good lead though and started to work out how many laps were left…just over 2 hours I'm lapping in around 40 minutes, er so 3 lots of 40 is 120..right er I'd better slow down if I didn't want to do 4 more, which I didn't! In the end I managed 17 laps of the 8 mile loop, so around 136 miles which seemed a lot to me but my work colleagues weren't impressed. Apparently they do that every day in the race around France in half the time!

A big thank you goes out to all those that helped put on and support this fantastic event. As always the organisation was superb though John didn't need to remind me that I've been racing Gorricks now for 18 years! 

Perversely I really enjoyed the event and am already thinking about the 12 hour champs next year. You won't find me doing a 24 though That would be silly…

Photos: Joolze Dymond





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