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BDS Rd.2 Fort William

Fort William BDS Rd.2 – Race Report – Joe Connell
The Weekend started with emails and Facebook notifications warning of bad weather for the weekend at the Fort Bill BDS. Me and my mate Gaz drove up on Friday afternoon and the weather was looking pretty nice! I got in a pretty good track walk- the track looked great, fast and rough as per usual, so I couldn’t wait to get onto the track on Saturday morning.
Saturday practice started off well, the weather was surprisingly nice and it was definitely hard to believe that Sunday was forecasted to be terrible! Saturdays practice was my first time taking the Zerode G-1 on a proper rough track, I’ve always had a rough ride on Fort Bill in the past but this time I just felt comfortable and relaxed, combined with the bike feeling sick, practice was just a whole load of fun.  The rearward axel path really came into its own on the super rough parts of the track and just seemed to smooth everything out.   On the top loose turns, the Intense ‘Edge’ Tire was hooking up sick which gave me great confidence to get my lean on!

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Everyone’s suspicions of the race run taking place on the Saturday afternoon instead of on Sunday were confirmed by the race organisers at lunch time on Saturday. Due to the race run being on Saturday rather than on Sunday, it was important to be efficient in practice and to not do too many runs to conserve some energy for the afternoons race run.

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After a late lunch and some Clif Bar electrolyte drink, I headed up for my race run. At this point the weather was starting to come in, the wind was picking up and it was starting to rain so I knew there would be plenty of grip on track for my race run. Despite the track being wet, I had my RRP mud guard on so I decided not to run any tear-offs for my run. Straight out of the start gate, a few corners in and I nearly lost it all, I was so close clipping a massive rock on the inside of a turn! After that close-call, I started to get into the run; I was just having fun and letting the bike do its thing underneath me. As I came into the lower section of the track where it’s important to carry good speed I felt that being able to change gear without pedalling helped me out a lot for setting up for up and coming sections. I came over the line with a 5.07, which put me in 1st in the junior category and 18th in elite. Overall I had a great days riding on the Zerode at Fort William! Thanks to Prestige cycles for their support during the week and to all my sponsors, Si and all the BDS crew, and Gaz and my Dad for their race support! JC

Filed under  //   Joe Connell  
Posted by email 

The Hunt - View from the pack

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To be honest I wasn't planning on racing this one. Tokyo Fixed is one our latest stockists and one where, during lengthy chats about bikes, riding and racing, it was very apparent we had the same point of view. Which is why Morvélo stepped in to sponsor The Hunt {A Fixed gear Crit}. For both Morvélo and Tokyo Fixed, racing and events should be about fun, speed, enthusiasm and throwing something different into the mix. So a fixed gear crit seemed like a great choice to us and one that hasn't happened over in the UK before, but has in some lively races in different parts of the world. I'm a sucker for novelty and change so I signed up along with fellow KMP rider and friend Phil Moore.

Now, the three words Fixed Gear Crit would normally conjure images of a crash fest. A mixed ability of riders thrashing around a circuit with no brakes would probably be many peoples idea of hell and one to avoid. But it would be their loss. Sure, there will be crashes, and there were, but no more so than the road racing I've taken part in. It's a fact of life. If you race road or track bikes chances are you'll be in a crash. So the key is to not think 'If' but to make appropriate plans. You see it and hear it all the time whether it's a 3rd Cat race at Hillingdon or in the Giro, stay near the front. Do that and you'll have a great race and stay safe. Unless you have Roberto Ferrarisprinting in front of you.

So that's what I did. Making the choice that I'd rather lose energy than lose skin. Which is why it looks like I'm giving everyone a race long leadout in this video. Just look for the flash of white in amoungst the sea of black. Oh and some bad ass deep Reynolds Pista wheels! Hear the rumble.

There were two heats and then a final. I was in Heat one. The pace was good, the racing close and The Hunt undoubtedly had the best atmosphere of any road or track race I've taken part in. Large amounts of cheering and heckling (Phil bought his megaphone :-) and a good passionate crowd.

It reminded me a lot of the Singlespeed World Champs (MTB) races and events I've been too. A smallish group of enthusiastic riders, a wide range of abilities, a desire for some fast and fun racing and some great looking and sweetly specced out bikes mixed with some beaters that look like they could tell some good stories. No attitudes and an international flavour with riders from the USA, Holland, Greece and Italy making it over. 

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So Heat 1 and keeping my nose in the wind I played it safe. Which is more than can be said for a few riders. Hearing the mash of metal and tarmac a crash came down mid-pack and sent one rider down and several swerved off into the car park - but into a fence.Thanks must be given to them for narrowly missing my parked car too although I'm not sure you'd notice another dent in it.

The heat was lively with attacks going off every other lap. I tried a few times but the quality of the riders at the business end was high and I was always brought back. I gave it one last big dig on the last pinch but went too soon and was passed to take 2nd in my heat. Happy with that though!
Phil saddled up for Heat 2 and spent most of the race sitting pretty near the front. As misfortune would have it though, the one time he slipped back a bit the bunch got squeezed a Phil took it upon himself to tear some extra ventilation holes in his knee warmers - and knees:

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Game over.

Patched up he returned finely to heckling duties as I lined up for the final. Once again the plan was to stick near the front. Everyone was a bit more cagey in this one, with one big attack going by the eventual winner but he was bought back a few laps later just as we heard that tell tale noise of clashing pedals once more. I looked over to see that it had happened fairly close to the front. Chas from MASH SF signaled to GO GO GO! So the 8 of us just buried it to make sure the split stayed. Now we were in a smaller group and working well to stay away with everyone doing their turn. Last lap and the guy who beat me in the first heat went for a flyer. I'd seen how strong he was so thought this was THE move.

Trouble was, it wasn't. I caught him just before the last rise but had pulled with me two super fast Italians who promptly dispatched me in the last 200 metres. The others were closing fast and I still had a slim gap. With nose on the handlebars pedalling full tilt around the final bend I crossed the line 3rd! Hell yeah! 

All in all one of the most entertaining races and events I've been to and plans are already a foot to hold another. You can be sure that I'll be there again and Morvélo will be supporting.

Check out the full gallery over at Imagehunters
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Filed under  //   The DS  
Posted by Morvélo 

Boating on a cross bike

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I couldn't face not going out although checking through the window at the lashing rain, it was going to be an easy option to cry off. It was one of the days though that I just couldn't be dissuaded. Kitting up in everything waterproof I owned I had a momentary pause as I opened the shed and pulled out the road bike. It was properly hammering down. Like standing in a power shower. Back went the road bike and out came the cross bike. For some reason I thought it would come in handy.

Which was correct. As well as the buckets of rain it was also howling winds so the roads were littered with leaves, branches, bit of fences, smashed cars, stray cats, litter, rocks and very few people. This picture is pretty much typical of what the whole ride was like. The waterproofs did a valiant job but crumbled under the relentless strain after about 50 minutes. So in order to keep off the chill all climbs were done as fast as I could. My route never took my far from home but I couldn't resist throwing in some more hills just to keep the cold off. Downhills the shiver induced speed wobble was, shall we say, entertaining.

Got home full of the smugness that comes from heading out when you know everyone else is indoors. Next thing I know the suns come out and the rest of the day was clear blue sky. Bastards.

Filed under  //   The DS  
Posted by Morvélo 

I would have won . . .

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If there hadn't been 7 other faster riders than me.

If I hadn't spent 2 weeks sat at a desk rather than sat in the saddle.

If I had manned up and braved the rain more.

If I actually trained properly.

If I would stop being so stubborn and embrace rollers, turbo trainers, heart rate monitors, proper diet.

If my legs didn't feel like unset jelly.

If they put more 90 degree corners in the circuit.

If I'd stop being so polite and fight for position more.

If only I'd ridden harder and smarter.

This is just some of the ever growing list of excuses I can come up with after a road race, barring an event as rare as the second coming of the Messiah - me winning one. It's an skill that every bike racer has and develops no matter what the ability. So despite these thoughts running through my head after last Fridays Hove Park Crit, I doubt I'll do anything differently come next time. I'll go out and ride my bike, find some climbs to test the legs and some descents to test the skills. Do a bit of road, bit of MTB, bit of track, bit of 'cross. Mix it up a touch. A race will come round. I'll turn up and have a damn good crack at doing something fun, hard, testing and, no matter what, rewarding. Where I finish who knows.

Next up is The Hunt {A Fixed Gear Crit} this Sunday at Hillingdon. Can't wait...

Filed under  //   The DS  
Posted by Morvélo 

Cold & Wet Start

Looks like I have spoken too soon.

Weather was very generous up until now. Cold, and wet. Last weekend we have started proper racing, with a win over Ipswich at home. I was quite happy with an 16+2, one race didn’t go to plan, got beaten by a young man, and that made him very proud indeed. At least someone was happy. Monday I went to the Christine Ellis Memorial at Wednesfield.

Not a bad field, on an extremely wet afternoon, with two fours, 18 points would be a good result, but I wasn’t very happy at the end. Made stupid mistakes, and could not get past anybody. Gating was up and down. Good at the start but then not so quick. Performances like this are messing my head up. I don’t know if I’m going in the right direction. I didn’t feel fast at all, but I know I’m training hard. I don’t feel tired or jaded, there are days I feel fast, and days I feel very slow.

I have noticed I’m always up against it in a weather like this. I just have to put it behind me and dig in. The ICSF decision didn’t go my way. I’m still banned for the Euro Club. It’s frustrating as I haven’t done anything wrong in my eyes. You will have a rider which was found guilty of assaulting another rider, broke his ban twice, he will be competing (no offence), and I’m sidelined. This would be my last Euro Club, I don’t have the energy to pursue these things anymore, long weekend away, another holiday at work.

It’s taking its toll. Exciting times on sunday. I’m going for a Polish Extraleague match in Czestochowa to ride for TSZ Torun. I hope we can start with a win. Theres is some more appearances to come, so watch this space. I will be wearing my Morvelo again around the world. I should have a new helmet and gloves soon thanks to POC, and still waiting for the 5.10 trainer supply to come. It just takes forever.

Oh yeah. Forgot to mention my protege, Lauren Davies. We have been working very hard through the winter and early stages of the season. I have been talking to her and showing her a couple of things. I don’t know how much of this is actually sinking in, but certainly Lauren is in flying form. She destroyed her opposition on Monday at Wednesfield, beating a very strong field of girls with a faultless 20 point max to take the Ladies Dash Trophy.

Well done. Next Elite League meeting is at… Wednesfield again. It will be my fourth visit, so hoping for a good result. It will be an extremely difficult task. The aces are amongst the favorites to take the title, so we will have to have something special in the bag to beat them.

Filed under  //   Lukasz Nowacki  
Posted by Morvélo 

Rocket Air Switzerland

Well had a fun weekend and a freezing one. Been out to the 2nd stop of the FMB World Tour Rocket Air in Thun, Switzerland. Definitely one of the hardest if not the hardest comp i have been to.

Arrived on thursday checked out the course which looked sweet, its been the same course for the last three years and every year they tweak it a bit to make it better. This year the down ramps were not so steep which made for a much better comp. Unfortunately the weather was wet and cold but luckily it was all undercover so the rain never affected us just the freezing temperature.

Spent Friday practising and watched the prequalis which looked hard. The level of riding is like the finals a few years ago. It's crazy how fast the sport and tricks have progressed. Saturday came and we had qualification and finals to do. The qualification went ok managed to do a clean run and just made finals in 14th place. Finals only started at 8:30 in the evening so i was getting pretty tired from riding all day but thankfully i managed to hold it together and put a good run together.

Ended up with 12th so was happy with that considering how good everyone was riding. Stoked on being ranked 10th on the FMB World Tour so I pray I can stay there throughout the year. Now going to train my ass off for the next comp and hopefully do well. Here is a few highlight videos:

Filed under  //   Ray Samson  
Posted by Morvélo 

SDA Rd.1 Innerleithen

On Friday I walked the track for the first Scottish Series race of the year. The organisers did a really good job with taping out the track, they decided to use the gold run, a flat out track with some pretty sick sections, there was were some cool turns, and some good breaking bumps which always make it a bit more fun for riding!

I woke up on Saturday morning to the rain on my window, it had been raining quite a lot in the night so I got out the RRP and headed up for practice. The track was quite muddy and slick but it was still running really fast which was good. I did a couple of runs in the morning and then some in the afternoon after the track had roughed up a bit.

The track was quite long with a lot of turns to remember but luckily I’ve ridden at Innerleithen quite a bit, so memorising the track wasn’t an issue! On Saturday night it rained even more but throughout the day on Sunday the rain held off so the track started to dry out but the mud got thicker and the track got a little slower.

In my first race run I had a pretty smooth run apart from smashing my knee off of my stem right before the pedally section at the bottom!After the first runs I was sitting in 2ND with a time of 3.03. My second race run was pretty smooth with just one mistake in the middle section, and I ended up getting the exact same time so I finished in 2nd Place which was a good solid start to the 2012 Scottish series!

JC

Filed under  //   Joe Connell  
Posted by email 

BDS Rd.1 Combe Sydenham

BDS Rd.1- Combe Sydenham

On Thursday morning we left from my house to drive down to the first race of the year in the southwest of England. We finally arrived there in the evening, the weather was beautiful but there were no other racers to be seen! We parked up for the night, Dad made us some dinner and then we headed to bed after a long days travelling.

On Friday the other riders and teams started to show up and the pits started to take shape. I was lucky enough to do a bit of filming and interviewing for ITV West Country with Al Bond and Ronan Taylor which was a good laugh and a good experience.

Then right after we finished filming the interviews the rain started and I headed back to the camper for some cover! In the evening when the race stopped for a bit I headed up the hill to walk the track. The track looked like a lot of fun to ride despite there not being too many technical sections and I was looking forward to getting on my Zerode and getting my lines dialled in on Saturday.

Saturdays practice was pretty sweet, there were quite a few slick sections of the track so I threw my Intense Spike tires on and it was all good. The new jumps in the middle section added a bit more fun to practice, it was cool to have some more jumps on track than normal!

On Sunday the track began to dry up and I went back to dry tires for the race to get a bit more speed on the flatter sections of the track. My fresh new POC kit also arrived so I was stoked to bust out the new kit! Qualifying came around and I had pretty smooth run and came in 2nd which was pretty good as I knew where I could make up some time for finals in the afternoon.

In my finals the bike was working great but I made a couple of mistakes that cost me as ended up in 4th just 1.5 seconds off of winning! It was a good trip down to the first race of the year and my first race with my new bike and team! JC Here is the section of the ITV Westcountry which I featured in! - http://www.itv.com/news/westcountry/update/2012-04-13/mountain-bike-racers-head-to-exmoor/

Filed under  //   Joe Connell  
Posted by email 

Still learning

Easter weekend. The familiar family gathering and a worrying lack of potential for some bike riding, although I had got an entry into a Surrey League race on the Saturday. This was on a recommendation of a friend who, knowing my love of steep sharp punchy climbs, suggested Milland Hill. I blindly took the advice and signed up. This time I did no streetview reconnaissance preferring the element of surprise.

Before that though I had to get myself from Brighton to Basingstoke to meet up with the family. Luckily blessed with sunny weather I opted to ride. 

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It's very rare that I do a ride that doesn't finish where it started. So the 70 miles or so was a welcome change with the pedals seemingly turning by themselves and happily tapping out a decent rhythm. As is becoming more and more customary I did a little bit of off-piste, spotting a great farm track that just had to be explored.

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It didn't exactly lead nicely back on to my route but I love the drift of road tyres on dry and loose dirt. Thankfully no punctures! There were a few sharp pinches on the route that I seemed to just skip up in the big ring (shhh, don't tell anyone it's a compact) so I was looking forward to seeing how the race the next day would pan out.

Saturday and the lovely clear blue skies were replaced by a damp and overcast morning. The legs were a little stiff from the previous days "commute" but nothing like a 60 mile race to loosen them up, right? My plan for today was not to race like a monkey, like last time. So from the off I made sure I was always sitting in about the top 10 or 15, keeping an eye on things and not to miss the break. What was that? The break has already gone? Shit. Two people had made a move right at the start and were nowhere to be seen!

The course was a cracker and lived up to expectations. Some long fast fast fast downhills, turn left into 'The Climb' which was a beauty. Starting off at about 6% it trundles up and gets progressively narrower, forcing you to keep near the front if you didn't want to be caught behind riders mashing the gears under full load. Which is what they, and I, did when we rounded the corner and saw the road ramp up to 25%! Awesome! It was still greasy so the peloton was wheelspinning it's way up. I opened up the taps keeping it in the Big Ring and mashing the pedals. It wasn't pretty but it did mean that I was first over the hill (excluding the two man break) on 4 of the 6 laps.

Legs were feeling good and I tried numerous times to get away, or at least split the bunch. First time was to set and good pace into the climb and then accelerate up. No effect. Next time was to sit in then sprint on the steep part. Good effect. In fact I got a good gap and looked behind and saw the whole peloton strung out behind. That was cool. In my mind I was giving it the Cancellera.

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In reality I wasn't. See the picture above. Just behind me is the winner of the race and the second place guy. See the effort on my face versus the lack of effort on theirs? That says all you need to know and that's when I was feeling fresher. Come the last couple of laps I tried to get away on the downhill but no success. The penultimate climb my legs were paying the price of Big Ringing and I was slipping down the field. Now it was my turn to be strung out as the pace was forced at the front. After the climb the road joined a dual carriageway that just kept on slowly climbing. Deceivingly brutal, especially at full tilt. We caught the break just before the last ascent. I was gutted for them and unfortunately for me my legs were fading too. So the sprint for glory at the finish line atop of the climb, was more a switch into the small ring and grovel over the top. No more "Cancellera" for me. One last ditch sprint past a couple of guys and I crossed the line 13th.

So still getting better but I learned that I shouldn't get carried away whenever I see I steep climb and that I should save some energy for the finish. But where's the fun in that.

Filed under  //   The DS  
Posted by Morvélo 

Innings Beginnings ‏

The turn of the month, on the weekend of the Tour of Flanders, marked the passing of one month in my racing season and, as always, it has been a mixture of positives and negative feelings, emotions, condition and varying success. 

I arrived in Belgium, delayed after English prescribed physio, in a bit of a slump after having spent 10 days off the bike with a minor knee injury, at the end of February. Despite being out of sorts mentally and physically, I was notified the night before Brussel-Zepperen, that I would be riding the brutal early season amateur race. It was hard, but harder than I expected, and I felt worse than I was expecting too.


Some lab testing confirmed that something was up, as despite showing test results of being better trained than last year, I was only able to put out 20 watts less in the test... Confused? I was too, and a bit worried as I did feel terrible. I was booked in for a blood t est, but put on iron supplements in the mean time, and as luck would have it, that was apparently the root of the problem! Once semi-accidentally addressed, I felt better every day and have progressed in one month to what is now the best shape I think I’ve probably been in. 

For two years I have gone to races expecting a punishing, fruitless 3 hours, getting in breakaways from time to time by following the right wheels, but with no great expectation and generally thinking, “I hope this isn’t too hard”.  In the last two weeks that mentality seems to have been left behind, though. I still know that it’s going to hurt, and will more often than not come away with nothing, but I have a confidence in my capabilities that hasn’t been there before, at least not while I’ve been in Belgium.


It seems two years of hanging on has dented my tactical nous at the business end of things though, as I’ve missed the winning break in the last 2 races and walked away dissatisfied and frustrated; as clear an example as any that bike races are more often than not won by the clever, not the strong. Those that win at the highest level have so much of each that it leaves mere mortals like me in disbelief. The other undo ubted key ingredient of success is confidence, something which at the moment I am on the cusp of getting a spoonful of. I know I’m capable of winning now, at least. Never before has the term “easier said than done” felt more applicable! 

Due to the slow start, I’ve only notched up 5 race days so far. A little less than expected for this point in the season, but with an aim to be competitive for the whole season (as opposed to the usual crack point of August), keeping a lid on things is probably advisable for now. Once the Kermis season is in full swing I’ll start to race two or even three times a week, which will more than likely be from late May onwards, in the overcast, anti-climatic throngs of the Belgian summer.&n bsp;

The next two weeks bring with them two big outings for the team, and hopefully me, at Zellik-Galmaarden, and GP Roeselare, the former being a TopCompetition race and UCI 1.2 which tops the Muur twice and the Bosberg thrice,  the latter a Cup of Belgium event which takes in two summits of the Kemmelberg. The next couple of races after these are both TopCompetition races, and held in the Ardennes, so perhaps not best suited. Once in the gutter, dragging myself over the cobbles of Kemmel, I will I’m sure be doubting the suitability of that terrain too! I need to get in the team first though, something which as you ascend the cycling ladder naturally becomes increasingly hard to do. With a fully fit squad, and some already taking wins, competi tion for spots can be quite intense. 


Off the bike you can’t really help but be entertained in Belgium at this time of year with the amount of bike races on to go and watch. We’ve had a great few days out “race chasing” E3 Prijs, KBK and of course Vlaanderen’s Mooiste, The Tour of Flanders. With Flanders, when I say “chasing”, of course what I really mean is perching on the Kwaremont and turning my head between road, portable TV, and free Panos pastries, but it’s probably just as fun. The course change isn’t all bad, and I even had the blasphemous cheek to state that while filming a typically bizarre Belgian TV show on the subject when out on a team training ride.


April and May could be quite decisive then, as I seem to be at the deciding point of another peak or trough. One good result could send me off on a successful spell of  raci ng, a few more episodes of failing to grab chances could have me down in the doldrums. One thing’s for sure, if that does happen I should probably stop reading books about cycling around the world in case I do something silly! 

Filed under  //   Josh Cunningham  
Posted from Galmaarden, Belgium