Wednesday 25 April 2007

K Capital Cup Round 4, Castlewellan, Co. Down - 22th April 2007

WOW, what a race. The course was as good as it gets, tonnes of single track, steep climbs, fast, dusty, the way it is supposed to be.
I entered the final round of the K Capital Cup series with the leaders jersey, and I only need to finish ahead of Damian Mulcroon to take the overall lead. This course was bound to suit me, and I went off hard from the start to enter the singletrack in first place.
I held on to the lead for the rest of the race, and Damien did get close in the early laps, but dropped back at the half way point, only to retire due to tyre problems.
I, however, was in my element! The bike was incredible, all 100% right. This allowed me to really push on the descents, increasing my lead out to 4 minutes to second place by the end of the race.
A great day, a great result, and the overall too. Very happy with that.
Next is the NPS, I am going to skip the first round, but I’ll make the rest. I hope to make the jump to the elite class (again), a lot harder, but it will bring on my form rapidly!
A word of thanks to all the organizers of the K Capital Cup, Robin, Dave, Geoff, Andy, Robbie, etc…..a great series that you should be very proud of.


Mega dust

Nice overall trophy

Thursday 12 April 2007

Man V Bike - 3 rock, Dublin - 11 April 2007

This is the second year the Man V Bike challenge was held, and another good turnout guaranteed some excellent racing. The race format sets riders and hill runners off together on a very technical course, starting at the foot of the mountain, finishing at the top, with a couple of descents thrown in.
The start was only a short cycle from my home, a good warm up! I singed on, chatted to a few biking buddies, and prepared for the start.
I got a great start, 3rd place starting the 1st climb. Soon I was passed by the first runner, he flew by on the steep, rough descent. I traded places with the top 3 runners throughout the race, until the last descent to the finish, when I passed them all to take 3rd overall.
Niall Davis and Peter Buggle filled the top 2 spots. Well done to all, and the event raised some good monies for charity.

Not far from the finish, I pass the leading runner


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Tuesday 10 April 2007

New Race bike – Vertex 70

The remaining parts from our sponsors arrived this week, so the bike is now 100% complete.
The new Mavic SLR wheels are a stunning piece of jewelry, and very light too! The new WTB UST tyres are mounted to these, good supporting side knobs and a fast centre ridge that should also supply good grip for climbing/braking.
The new WTB saddle is v comfortable and light, my first departure from a flite in 10 years!!!!
The Race Face seatpost, bars and stem are also very good. The seatpost is by far the best I have ever used, very easy to adjust., and the stem has corrected the position issue I had, the extra 10mm makes all the difference.
I am looking forward to racing it in the final round of the Kcapitalcup at the end of april. Meanwhile, I will test the bike out of the fast drying Dublin and Wickow trails……

The new machine.......

Wednesday 4 April 2007

K Capital Cup Round 3, Carlingford, Co. Louth – 1st Aprli 2007

Not such a good race this time around. The VERY technical course should have suited me very well, but being less fit and a good bit heavier resulted in me getting bashed around, rather than being light and fast on the bike!
I got a great start, getting the holeshot into the first singletrack. Unfortunately for Damien Mulcrone, he snapped his chain at the end of lap one, putting him out of contention. Towards the end of lap two, I had about 50 seconds on second place, until a gust of wind blew a load of tape into both wheels….I had to stop and pull it all out! Second place Peter O caught sight of me here, and he slowly reeled me in to eventually pass me on the penultimate lap. I could not respond, my kidneys aching from the pounding!
Not a total disaster as I still have the leaders jersey. The last round at the end of April will be a classic, the Casltewellen course is excellent, and it really suits me.
My Team mate, Paddy Daly, took 11th in the Elite race, he suffered a bit, but got the result.
Niall Davis again took the Elite race from Robin Seymour, with young Conor McConvey again taking third.

You can see the tape in my front and rear wheels

Nice View

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