With every rider on the team making the podium in their respective category it has been a huge weekend for the Swell-Redshift team and for me it was a dream come true to win my first National Round as well the inaugural MTBA All mountain Cup.
The racing started with the XCO event which was also a UCI C2. The start straight was quite narrow and the first climb came very quickly so it wasn't too hard to defend a good position from the front row. Sid Taberlay set the pace early and the result was the formation of a lead group of four containing him, Josh Carlson, Peter Hatton and I. After one lap Josh stopped for a wheel change was forced to chase. Then on lap 3 Hatto simultaneously flatted both tyres and was out of the race, leaving Sid and I to duke it out (and hold off Josh who was still chasing). Sid didn't seem to want to ride on the front so I set the pace for the rest of the race. I was a bit nervous that he was doing it easy and just waiting to attack me, but after making the mistake of letting Cooper back into the race in similar circumstances a week earlier I was not going to make that mistake again with Josh....a guaranteed 2nd is better than 3rd! Every bit of fire road felt like it had a headwind and I was increasingly nervous that Sid was stitching me up. It is hard to back yourself when you are racing someone like Sid who has the experience of racing 11 world championships and an Olympic games. I just tried to ride the fire roads steady to minimise his advantage and ride the downhills smooth but was careful to not make mistakes. At the bottom of the course at the end of the 4th lap I heard him drop his chain so I increased the pace to make him chase. He eventually caught me before the top of the hill and I felt better knowing that he had just had to work harder than me, but I was still convinced that he was stronger and unsure as to how I would ever shake him. Coming onto the main climb for the last lap I was too scared to attack early as I was a bit tired and felt the first small twinges of cramp so I just waited and anticipated the move from Sid, it never came. As we neared the top of the climb for the last time we were still together and I had nothing to lose from trying an attack so I gave it everything in the final 50m before the summit. To my surprise I got a gap! I took some risks on the descent and pushed as hard as possible on the pedals up the few little climbs that remained. By the time I got to the A-klein rock garden I could no longer see him behind so I rode the remained of the descent conservatively and saved the last of my energy for the last climb to the finish line. In the last kilometre I think I looked over my shoulder about 50 times, every time Sid was nowhere to be seen. I couldn't believe it, I had finally won my first national XC round. Sid came in soon after me, followed by Carlso who had chased alone for 5 laps, Hendo was 4th and then my team mate Nick Both in 5th! Well done mate. To top it all off, Cam was 4th in u/23 and Rosie was 4th in elite women making it a terrific day for the Swell-Redshift team.
Despite being a big race in its own right, the XCO was the first of the 3 stages that make up the new All Mountain Cup race format, so Sunday saw us all once again back at the Goat Fram for Eliminator and a Super D stages to determine an overall general classification for the weekend of racing. With a lead from the previous day, it was important that I did not make any mistakes so I raced fairly conservatively and didn't take too many risks. The eliminator was heaps of fun on a track full of jumps and berms and I made it through to the final, but after a bad start I shut it down and came in 4th behind Hatto in 3rd, Hendo in 2nd and Josh who was just taking the piss in 1st. In the afternoon it was on to the super D, a gnarly 4 minute (mostly) downhill time trial. I was a bit scared of the big double half way down because I had a near death OTB experience there in practice so I started conservatively hoping that I would relax and ride into it. Once I had brake checked and rolled slowly though the double I relaxed and started to have fun again. The closer I got to the finish, the more likely I could still win the overall stage race if I flatted so I got quicker and quicker. In the end I posted the 5th fastest time, which I was really happy with but it was Josh Carlson who once again displayed his dominance of anything that involves skills who took the stage. Cam and Rosie were both 2nd in u/23 and and Elite women respectively, neither far from winning the stage and another couple of great results for the team.
I'm still coming to terms with my win. I know it isn't the Tour de France, but I have been trying to win one of these since I was a sub-junior in 1995...that's a long time ago. I'm very happy that it all came together for me on one day and I didn't do anything to stuff it up! I have to say a massive thanks to Anton and Col from Swell Design Group who believed in me and have been such great supporters of our team. Also to Felt, Sram, Maxxis, 2XU and FRM for my bike and kit that never miss a beat. And of course team manager Paul, coach Clarkey, Mark for feeding me and Perth support crew of the Kennedys and Bennets!
I normally finish my race reports with what is coming up next but it's hard to think ahead right now, I'll probably be thinking about last weekend for a few more days. Happy riding.
Photos by Jose Gracia and Russ Baker.
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