Could somebody ...

... be doing with bending their elbows a little bit?
Still, lovely to see the brilliance that is Aston Hill in the sun. And to see a crafty piece of boardwalk cutting off that little ass of a final corner on the route that always, always, always (except for a few times) catches my elbow. Oh, how ironic.

Things I have learnt from riding in Whistler

1) The Canadian word 'intermediate' roughly translates into England English as: 'WOAH! Holy f**k! Are you insane?!'
2) Being able to clear jumps on Crank It Up, does not automatically mean you can clear jumps on A Line, unless landing on your face counts as an official landing.
3) Elbow pads look rubbish but tucking and rolling without them stings a bit.
4) Whiskey Jack accommodation at Whistler Creek is pretty freakin amazing value for money. Book through Hotels.com and get an entire house for $80 a night.
5) The Evil Revolt is one of the only times when day-glo looks awesome. Pretty awesome.
6) It is not necessary to try and show off in front of Thomas Vanderham. He is better than you.
7) The Lift Coffee Company does the best sausage rolls on the entire planet. I know this to be fact as I have relatives in Scunthorpe and they live for sausage rolls up there. 4369 Main Street, Whistler.
8) Kona Stinky's are absolute pish. Norco A Line's are actually pretty damn good.
9) Spreading my knees could finally be the key to getting on in life. On the bike people! Jeez.
10) Large black crash pads around cable car poles are not actually black bears, despite their resemblance when going mach 10. Either way, it's best to continue with the turn as initiated rather than lose concentration for a split second. I refer you back to number 3.

I actually think Whistler is the best place on earth. Maybe. Bit expensive.

p.s. that's not me in the photo. Yet.

Dirtgirls rides again

Sara from Flowmtb has sent this over which should get any girls who like getting dirty into the mood for a week of shredding (love that word) in Morzine.

Flowmtb’s Dirtgirls is going into its fifth year of girl only biking trips in the Alps, with a Dirtgirls riders week running on the 14-21 August.

The week is aimed at regular bikers who want a holiday riding great trails with other women, and getting some coaching along the way. Jo, a fully qualified French guide and instructor who coached the 2009 Dirtgirls (and the French youth DH team) will be running the skills sessions. Mountain girl Ulrika will be guiding again this week. Not only is she fast on a bike but she can tell you the name of every flower, tree and animal you pass.

Flowmtb owner Sara will be riding each day too, and original Dirtgirl coach and DH racer Emily Horridge should be along on some rides too. Expect a mixture of short coaching sessions on trails, and long days out on the amazing Alpine singletrack.

Accommodation is in Chalet Snion, a beautiful newly renovated Chalet with a large sun terrace for relaxing on and a sauna to ease your aching muscles. Dirtgirls return from riding to a freshly baked cake or cookies. Evenings are spent relaxing with a glass of wine and a hearty three course meal or hitting the local bars. In male dominated Morzine, Dirtgirls always make an impression! (Now you're talking - Pedalfeet)

Minx, will be supporting the dirtgirls weeks for the fifth year in a row. This year Minx will not only be providing end of week prizes but is offering all 2010 dirtgirls a discount on pre-trip purchases so they can get ready to hit the trails in style!

COSTS: 775 euros (650 pounds). Lift pass and transfers from Geneva airport are included as well as food, accommodation and guiding.

DATES: 14-21 August

Find out more at www.flowmtb.com or by calling Sara on 020 8123 5654 or +33(0)688101757.

Interview: Petra 'kick-ass very politely' Wiltshire

‘How old?!’ That was the response of La Humpage when he ate Petra Wiltshire’s dust in Morzine last year. It’s a tough break for a kick ass mountain biker to get razzed by a 39-year-old chick. But he did. And once you get over the shock of a woman who was then pushing 40 hooning it down a mountain better than most youngsters you have to hand it to her – she’s an amazing rider. And more importantly in an industry which always focuses on the up and coming talent, she’s an inspiration.

‘I still love racing and any form of competition,’ grins Petra. ‘I do think twice about crazy lines and jumps now as it seems to take longer to get up when I crash. I normally forget my age when I get on the start line though and under goggles, body armour and helmets we all appear the same age. I don’t think I’m too old though and hope to carry on riding for at least the foreseeable future. If the mind and body are willing then why not?’

She goes on: ‘I am still riding bikes because I simply love it and the freedom it brings. Any sort of physical activity keeps me sane.I need to being doing something all the time and cannot imagine a day when I cannot. I will be racing zimmers or wheelchairs in the care home somewhere one day!’

It’s not hard to believe, especially when you take into account the huge medal haul behind her. Petra started racing downhill in her late twenties, when most elite racers (bar Steve Peat) are thinking of retirement. She still has her pro elite license. Hanging in her wardrobe are three World Championship jerseys, two European Championship jerseys and too many National Championship titles to count. She is also one of the few British MTBers to hold a World, European and National titles in one season. What do you mean you’ve hardly heard of her? Petra is diplomatic: ‘The media is inevitably going to aim at the younger market. Who wants to see a grey haired wrinkly racing down a mountain? I don’t mind getting minimal personal coverage, but would love to get more coverage for all my sponsors who have supported me over the years.’

Those sponsors today are Scott, Mule Bar, Sram, Buff and Maxxis. ‘I have been very, very lucky,’ she says modestly. Or just very, very good because frankly that’s an impressive collection of brands for someone who did her last World Cup three years ago. The focus these days is enduro DH – Maxi and Mega avalanche for a start as well as the Euro enduro series. Petra also does coaching – she’s worked with Jess Stone in the past and in the winter months coaches ski from her base in the Swiss resort of Champery with Freeride Company.

Petra doesn’t get caught up in the bollocks of mountain biking. She’s friendly, down the line, and pretty darn cool. When I asked her what the most important she ever learnt on a bike, the answer came back deadpan: ‘Learn which one is the front brake.’ The she followed it up with: ‘No actually it was something my dad said – at the end of the day, it’s only a pushbike. It’s easy to lose sight of this fact. Whether it cost £10,000 or £5o it essentially does the same thing. Sometimes people get blinded by technology and lose sight of the fact that a bike gets you outside and gets you happy.’

Yeah, yeah. The one reason why you should love Petra? Or at least be inspired? This quote: ‘I am an in it or bin it kind of animal. And I don’t climb with finesse, I’m all arms.’

There is hope for me yet.

Best of British

There are some things Yorkshire does well: the Black Sheep Brewery, Climbing Works rock climbing centre in Sheffield and the Town Street Tavern in Horsforth (just don’t buy the Jungle Juice.) And then there are things Yorkshire does very well – one of those being cross country mountain biking which is lucky because on 24 April the UCI Cross Country World Cup / kicks off in Dalby Forest near Pickering next weekend. It’s the first time in a decade England has hosted a leg of the World Cup (there are nine in total) and sees the best mountain bikers from across the globe compete on the 6.5km course. It sits in an area just under one square mile making it pretty spectator friendly. But if you fancy a slightly larger challenge than balancing your Clif Bar and Lucozade on your knees as you watch, you still have time to sign up for the Dalby Dare which is taking place during the weekend. It’s a public mass participation race which sees riders cycle a timed lap of the World Cup course under race conditions before plunging off onto some of Dalby’s other excellent trails. Think you’re hard enough?

Crossing the border into Scotland, Fort William will once again be the setting for the UK instalment of the Downhill World Cup event on 5 and 6 June. This race is legend with some of mountain biking’s greatest moments being played out on the course (par example - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CiXh2bJ3SXk). It’s also a great opportunity to get to grips with the trails of the Nevis range which open on 10May so aspiring gravity gods can test their skills on the ‘Off Beat Downhill’ run before the pros descend on the area. And it doesn’t have to be all about extreme mountain biking. Last year the Nevis red run opened, a 5.5km route accessed by gondola, becoming an immediate hit with its intermediate-friendly planning. Two words: midge nets.

Over in Ireland, 22 August sees the inaugural Sky Ride Etape Hibernia kick off in County Clare, starting and finishing in the town of Ennis. The road challenge is 84 miles long and open to anyone aged 18 to 80 (which probably seems quite restrictive if you’ve ever ridden in the Alps and been overtaken by a 94-year-old on the Col de la Croix Fer.) Particpants have around six hours to complete the course which traces the beautiful west coast for a large part – let’s hope the sea winds are kind. For a taste of the off-road riding in Ireland, check out Break the Cycle

a good-looking mountain bike film, shot for the most part in the Mourne Mountain area around Rostrevor but spots in the north – including Belfast and the north Antrim coast also get a look in. It throws a spotlight on a country often overlooked when it comes to documenting fantastic riding. If you feel like investigating further, download a copy of January's MBR which has a feature on the Emerald Isle or talk to First Tracks Guiding who run mountain bike courses in County Down and County Armagh. If you want to ride on location then you can book accommodation with Rostrevor Holidays.

And finally into Wales where the Tour of Pembrokeshire is back for its third year. Sportives such as this have become extremely popular in the last few years with great routes springing up around the country. The ToP offers three distance choices – depending on your fitness you can sign up for a 63, 84 or 117-mile route. Each one starts and finishes in Saundersfoot and takes in an ample portion of the Pembrokeshire coast. Cycling traffic free roads in the area is possible without a gruelling 117-mile race though. Sustrans’ Brunel Trail runs from Neyland Marina (opposite Pembroke Dock) up to Johnston and is a gentle four-mile trip following the Cleddau estuay. You may not earn a huge post-ride pasta feast but you will be able to soak up the atmosphere of the ToP without busting a lung in the process.

Tracy Moseley gets all fit.

I mean like, she rocks right? Properly rocks.
My fitness regime involes watching people do their fitness regimes.

Cocktails and mud

Right so let's get the important news out the way first: last night I watched the whole of Cocktail! The whole thing! Not just the first two thirds, but I saw it to the end. Oh yes. Can't believe the Aussie dude killed himself, as if a life of reckless abandon shouldn't be endorsed. Der. But other than that, wonderful. All Eighties and terrible hair (I had mine cut in Chicago. Big mistake. I now look like Brian May.) Met this dude Ken who runs the bar at the fantastic Beachland Ballroom in Cleveland and he said there exists a roster of films which you just have to see through to the end: Shawshank (obvs), Grease, Big etc etc and now Cocktail. Unfortunately after a lot of consideration I have decided that BMX Bandits does not belong on this list. But I had to watch it through three times before I came to this conclusion, very early this morning.

I decided to spend over four hours in front of the TV in order to round off a particularly sedentary weekend which saw me sit in the van all the way up to north Wales for the Caersws uplift weekend organised by Mike at Borderline events, and back again. Although first we went to Moelfre which is even further north than Caersws because Tom, while very good at taking pictures, is very shite at using Google maps. (side note – as I write this I am eating spinach which tastes like bacon. It may be off.) Here's what the road to Moelfre looks like:

Yes. It's raining. By the time we got to Caersws the mud was axle deep. It looked like this: So deep I was forced to mull over the point at which my trainers would stop being waterproof. Nike Airforce One high tops: pretty goddam waterproof I'm happy to report. Hooked up with Jess Stone who was making like Sam Hill, throwing the bike sideways and letting off the brakes. She is stoked to be riding the World Cup and it's really inspiring to see. Her ambition, skill and competitiveness herald good tidings (touchwood.) In Tom's words: 'Blimey, she likes going fast.' In my words: “get the hell away from me you're covered in s**t. Ooooh can I do your nails?' I did:



I can safely report mud is not my forte despite Jess's claims that it was really sticky. Yeah right. I stuck in the van. Then to the pub for beer and mash. We left her in a room with 24 men and no showers and hoofed it back to London via Gloucester. Props must go to Steve and his dad Norm for being rad, providing a gazebo and hack sawing my seatpost.

Dear lord am I excited about the coming season!

p.s. Oh and in reference to this blog, the ever-sparkly and brilliant Debbie at Minx sent me this link. If ever there was a good reason for elastic waistbands on baggies …

Women of Dirt

Quality.




Here's the link: http://bonesovermetal.com/womenofdirt/

Interview with Jess Stone

You know when you go and see a band in a scuzzy pub and you watch them thinking 'wow, these guys are really good,' then a year later they are massive? Jess Stone is like that in DH riding at the moment. Could she be the new face of women's DH next year? Read on ...

Woohoo! You won! It's a really exciting time for you at the moment. What does it feel like being at the beginning of something which could be really big?
It's really amazing you know! It's certainly an incredible feeling. I'm aware that I have a lot of work to do though. It's not easy and I lack experience, so I'm just taking it race by race and aim to continually push my limits every time.

Do you work towards specific goals or are you just riding and seeing where you end up? Do you feel any pressure at the moment?
Of course there's pressure, but only from myself to perform as I'm so competitive within myself. I have a few goals and I'm constantly setting myself little targets just so that I know and can measure how much I am improving. I always take each race as it comes so whatever happens, happens! The targets can range from getting within a certain time behind the leader at a World Cup (get within 22 seconds of Tracy Moseley) or being able to sprint that extra 10 seconds - something like that.

What does next year look like for you at the moment? What are your plans?
My plans are to do a full season of World Cups and get some top 10's so that I can compete at the World Championship. Compete at the British National Champs Series and hopefully win that. That's as far as I have got. It's still early days as the season has only just finished and decisions are still being made about the 2010 season.

On the podium in Rheola last month, winning the Nationals.

Nice Loeka pinstripe DH shorts ... If you could design/adapt any piece of DH race clothing, what would it be and why? I have a thing about DH jerseys - still haven't found a nice one.
To be honest, and without being biased - if I was to design a piece of DH clothing, I'd have designed the pinstripe shorts! Got beaten to it - damn! It's great I get to wear ladies stuff that fits well and that looks cool. The jerseys are difficult though, it's always about personal preference. You might think this weird but I'd love to have a jersey that has the picture of the head of a tiger in negative either on the sleeves or on the back and front. The colour scheme would be, black, white, pink and gold!

Where's your favourite DH track? Do you ever turn up there and think 'ah stuff it, I can't be bothered to ride today.'? What makes you not want to ride?
My favourite downhill track is Hopton. That place is like home to me! My usual ride over the winter is a place called Bringewood in Ludlow close to where I live. It's 20mins on the train then an hour's walk to the track. Then you have to push up all day. One time, it rained so hard you couldn't see, but I made myself go. I made the train journey and the push on my own, I was so cold and soaking wet through. Then I saw that the track was super, super muddy ... I was over it! So I walked back to the train. Nothing normally ever makes me not want to ride, I love it too much, hence why I still ride even if it's raining.

And conversely what gets you psyched for riding?
Imagining myself riding usually. But if it's a beautiful day, all I want to do is ride my bicycle!

Where is one place you haven't ridden but would love to/plan to?
I haven't ridden at Whistler bike park yet. Everyone raves at how awesome it is there. I can't afford to go there just yet, probably be a few years down the road 'till I can make the trip.

Is there any part of your riding you feel you need to work on at the moment?
Hmm … well everything to be honest. I'm very critica. Particularly though - I feel my jumping is not the best, my pumping technique needs some work and learning to carry my speed better.

Have you been star-struck recently?
Oh yes... But I couldn't possibly tell you who he is as if they read this I will get very embarrassed!

Do you ever look down a DH run and think 'are you insane?! no way!'? What freaks you out most in DH?
I've never thought that but I definately wonder sometimes how I'm going to make it. The biggest thing for me is jumping and drops - getting my head over trying to launch myself into mid air - it doesn't feel natural at all. But I'll give everything a go.

Can you tell us about your rig? Any quirky set-ups we could copy and use to get good?!
I ride on the most unique bike on the World Cup circuit at the moment. It basically has two air shocks instead of your average one coil shock. It's the '2Stage Elite9'. It's fantastic to ride and so good through corners and over small bumps - it's also really great and easy to jump. I hate to be boring and very unhelpful, but I have no special set ups! I just ride what is set up for the normal factory setting and that works perfect!

What skill/ technique/ event pushed your riding forward the most?
Definately, definately, the first two rounds of the Maxxis Cup Series. It was only the second time I had ever been abroad and this was my first international elite race - they had the biggest jumps and drops that I had ever done until then. They really pushed my mental ability, I had to do them to get a result. The tracks were unlike anything I had ever ridden. I came second in both races, not too far off Tracy Moseley. I believe they pushed me forward in my riding as when I did my first World Cup qualifying (which was only a couple of weeks after the Maxxis) I qualified 10th! I then came 17th in the finals.

Who's the coolest chick on the DH scene do you think? How would you describe the women's scene?
I don't know, I wouldn't say there's one cool chick. I will name a few names who I think are cool - Tracy Moseley, Helen 'Weapon' Gaskell, Fionn Griffiths and Katy Curd. They are all pretty damn cool!

Are you at Uni at the moment or are you riding full-time?
I wish I was riding full time but I've just started University at Worcester studying Sports and Exercise Science so I'm flat out. I've joined the cycling and boxing teams at Uni too - I'm keeping busy.

Jess racing at the World Cup in Bromont, Canada earlier this year.

I always ask this question: can you tell me a story? It can be any length, and about any subject, it just has to be a true story in your life.
Oh dear I'm rubbish at stories! I have a few pretty cool ones but I'll tell you this major one in my life:

I played football for as long as I can remember. When I was five or six, I used to watch the big kids play and all I wanted to do is to become a footballer. I moved up to Shropshire from Surrey when I was about eight. I started to play a bit of football and got pretty good, beating the boys and scoring goals. When I got to Church Stretton secondary school, things kicked off. I was asked to play for the school football team and I was put in goal (because I was so enthusiastic and no one else could be bothered). So from then on, I was to become a goalkeeper. I had no idea about goalkeeping, so I had a few tips then went for it.

I did my first national with the team that year. Looking back, I was a terrible goalkeeper! However, we got to play on Aston Villa's premiership ground, Watford's and Chelsea's Stamford Bridge pro ground where we won 6-1. That was such an amazing experience!! I was totally hyped and determined to be a better goalie! I worked really hard, went for trials and ended up playing for Shrewsbury's centre of excellence team. I got a little bit of coaching there. I also started to play for the county (Shropshire) and we were doing pretty well. I managed to get some specific training off Andy Mulliner who was a top goalkeeper coach.

When I was 16 (2007) I started to play for Crewe Alexandra Ladies team, who were a league below the premiership. It was hard, the standard was so high. At this time, I decided to have a go at downhill biking as well. My P.E teacher had inspired me to have a go so I went for it, now saving for my first DH bike.

That year, our school football team went for another national title. I was ready for it this time. We kicked butt in all the matches with a only couple of close games. Every game was so emotionally draining for me as I wanted our team to win so much. We did awesome and got to the finals which were at Manchester City's premiership ground! I was so nervous I felt sick. However, I had the best game of my life and only one goal got past me. We scored six! That feeling was amazing when we won. Like nothing I had ever felt. We were on TV, had interviews and everything!

Shortly after that, I received a letter saying that I had been selected to be on standby for England's Under 19's and Under23's training camp and I was so happy! However, things were getting rocky with Crewe, I did not like the players they were bringing into the team, so I wasn't motivated to play for them anymore. I wasn't enjoying the football and I couldn't transfer to another team as transport was a huge issue for me. I had also managed to save up for my DH bike and I was really getting into it. The biking was so different.

Two months after this, I did my first race and did well and decided Downhill was the way forward. It was the hardest decision I had ever made. A massive risk I know and I got a lot of stick off people - they couldn't understand why I was leaving football. I guess they thought I was giving up and lost ambition. I believed in what I could do, so nothing else mattered.

That first year in 2008, I won the Junior National Championship, the Junior English Championship and won two Series. (I had been both a National Champion at Football and Mountain biking before the age of 18!!) Then I moved into Elite this year (2009) and won myself my first International Series: The Maxxis Cup, I had 3rd place at the National Champs and Won the last National Round at Rheola ...

So I guess I'm not doing too bad for a young novice!! ;)

Who said there were no hills in Finland?

Finnish national champs go off. Tom broke his hand in two places competing in it. Apparently it was the wet roots that threw him off. Yeah right.
Still. I am unspeakably proud of his new Rock Shox plaster cast ...

Sappee "sm" from Riku Lansio on Vimeo.

MegaAvalanche 2009 - men's sprint DH

So the race is really getting going for top women's DH MegaAvalanche legend status as I type this. Tracy Moseley isn't competing this year so who will it be? No results in for that yet - and the lads get going tomorrow (12 July) at 9am. But just to keep you in the mood, here are some shots by Tom, who is out in Alpe d'Huez shooting and riding, of the men's Sprint DH Super Cup which took place on Wednesday (so yeah, not exactly hot off the press but quality is worth the wait ... )

Fabien Barel on his way to a storming second place: photo Tom Humpage

Results:
1) KOVARIK Chris; Chain Reaction/Intense, Austrailia 4:01.72
2) BAREL Fabien; Subaru MTB Pro team/ Mondraker, France 4:03.91
3) RANKIN Nathan; 2 Stage bikes, New Zealand 4:06.28
4) SPAGNOLO Damien; Subaru MTB Pro team/ Mondraker, France 4:06.91
5) SCOLES Matthew; Open Wide/ Animal, New Zealand 4:07.27




Trek rider Matthieu Carnino going flat out: photo Tom Humpage