Morvélo Test Team http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com See the other Test Team Riders posterous.com Fri, 09 Mar 2012 02:07:21 -0800 So you think it's easy? http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/so-you-think-its-easy http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/so-you-think-its-easy

Something I learned at the weekend: downhill is NOT an easy discipline! Nope, if it was easy I would have woken up on Monday morning feeling fresh and ready to face the world. Instead I've spent most of this week feeling like this:

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It's not been a good week...!

Monday morning especially, I could feel my whole body groaning as I woke up begging me to stay in bed and rest my rattled bones. The weekend had been far from easy...

The last round of the Alpine Bikes Winter Series at Inners was a Downhill race and, since my return from hard training in Spain, I couldn't wait for some riding fun on my Pivot! I was not disappointed as Steve Deas of Icycles put together a, too be expected, fricken awesome track!! It was completely mental but it was awesome!! The top section was REALLY steep, rough and loose with random drops; I found this section really hard to ride on the wee Pivot but it still managed to get me down, just! Then it was into a fast pedaly middle section down some muddy rooty bits and to the finish. I knew this track was going to test the Pivot to the max and also my ability to stay on the track holding on to the bike for dear life!

Unfortunately, things did not start well... I wouldn't recommend turning up to a practise/race/ride etc. WITH NO SHOES. We've all been there and had that feeling where all your insides sink in disappointment only to rise straight back up again boiling with frustration at your stupidity. However, it was time to suck it up and vow NEVER to make that mistake again. So, I waited for my Dad who later arrived for a coaching session with my shoes - thanks Dad! And, at 2pm, I was on the bike opting for pedalling up the hill checking out the track as I rode past. I made it to the top and was greeted by a red flag (this means course is closed as someone has had a really bad crash) so I just did the top steep section a couple of times. Red flag down and two runs later that was practise over.... To say I was feeling unprepared was quite an understatement. What was worse is that I knew fine well that this was not a course you could get away with 'winging it' - especially if you wanted to do well and as ever, I did.

The next day Bex and I arrived in the car park to this..

Mother Nature was on form and had sent us some snow which was coating the tops of the hills. 

However, I REMEMBERED my shoes this time so Sunday was already looking better. I managed a good first run before the snow started to melt... This melting changed the whole feel of the course - a particular change that, on the second run, saw me more on the floor than on the bike due to the mud party that was happening the whole way down the hill... I was not feeling ready for racing at all!

Heading up for race run no. 1 I was fretting because I hadn't had enough time swap my tyres to some that would grip. Surprisingly though once off on my run I managed to somehow get down the first section clean!! Maybe I could get away with winging it... This was a stupid thought. Crossing the line at the bottom with a broken visor I was not a happy chappy as I'd just spent more time on the ground than on my bike during that run. The thing is, it wasn't even fun! It was a disaster, which was sad because I love flying down hills ON my bike but, in that run, I was just flying off my bike. 

Race run no. 2, heading up the hill this time with mega grippy tyres thanks to Dad and a fixed visor thanks to Nick at the Alpine Bikes stand! Reaching the top I was ready to give this run all I had to see if I could at least make it onto the podium. About 20seconds into the run I full on head butted a tree. It hurt a lot. But, I had a job to do so I jumped on my bike which turned out not so successful as I slid down the hill flying off my bike and into the midst of tape. Quickly jumping up I grabbed my bike and ran to the fire road. Not exactly the way I was hoping this run to go... Fortunately though, something clicked and the rest of the run my tyres gripped and I started to ride properly and felt like myself again!! YAY. All it took was a jolly good smack over the head and things started to come together. By the bottom I was happy, that was actually fun!! My time took me into third behind Bex in second (getting revenge after our last race together, one all now!!) and Angela Coats in 1st!

Here is a link to a sweet picture by Ian Linton of me in the lovely KMP downhill jersey on roots and rain, check it out This was before my broken visor!!

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Just want to say a massive thanks to Innerleithen MTB racing and Alpine bikes for putting on another great series and to all the marshals who braved the weather and stood in the FREEZING cold all weekend! I salute you! Thanks to everyone who looked after me and helped me be a bit more of a 'down hiller' and less of and XC'er! And to my Dad for all his help at the weekend! 

Now I look ahead to the first XC race of the season where I'll be visiting Robin Hood at Sherwood Forest on the 25th of March! Training time!!

Thanks for reading, remember your shoes!!

Win tin tin

ALSO, my facebook page has a NEW LOOK!!
Check it out here at: facebook.com/KatyWinton
If you like then give it a 'like' and be the first to know all the latest shenanigans! 
Thank you!! :)

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http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1848557/Twitter-MV.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aLC0QIIYoP7 Morvélo Morvélo
Wed, 01 Feb 2012 07:46:02 -0800 Innerleithen Enduro: Just gotta wing it... http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/innerleithen-enduro-just-gotta-wing-it http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/innerleithen-enduro-just-gotta-wing-it

...believe me, after sprinting (well, trying to) through a ridiculously sloggy boggy mudfest, getting overly friendly with a tree and JUST managing to hold on to the handle bars to make it to the bottom of this CRAZY descent being able to wing it comes in very handy! 

The Innerleithen 'XC' enduro. What. A. Weekend!! Though, I must say, I think they need to change the name to 'Xtreme' Enduro rather than XC... It was MENTAL! This 'XC' enduro consisted of 3 stages of timed sections of descents, each of which were separated by climbs back to the top to start the following stage (these were not timed thus being the beauty of enduro racing - chilled climbing).

After Saturday practice I was buzzing! Newly aquanted with an XS Pivot Mach 5.7 the vedict was: AMAZING!! If you've not seen it already check out the wee video I put together of it's first ride:

I've ridden similar crazy descents on my hardtail and had fun but, your on the limit the whole way down and it feels like at any given moment you may die! The extra travel and perfect tiny size of the Pivot eliminated this feeling and I was left hurtling down the hill knowing that the only reason I wasn't going faster was because of me and not the limitations of the bike. I was no longer on the verge of death... this, was going to make for a VERY exciting weekend!!

Sunday came and we headed up the hill. After a great nights sleep I was feeling ready to hit the descents full pelt. My dibber dibbed and I was off on stage one. This trail was natural, steep in places and slippy. It was, by far, my favourite of them all! On my hardtail I would have been on the edge of survival, loving it but on edge! Instead I was experiencing the solid ride of the pivot as we flew down the hill! By the bottom I was hungry for stage two, this was SO much fun!!

Stage two required mental preparation. Mainly for the bog. That energy sapping, strength killing, bike sinking bog. Oh my, it was hard!! I made a couple of mistakes before I hit the middle section and by then I was pooped! This high intensity, seat down sprinting business was really hard work! Then Iain Paton, who was on an XC hardtrail nipped past me making things look so easy! Where was my hardtail?? Once on to the steep section I was NOT longing for my hardtail and was LOVING the pivot as it took me flying down the hill over taking Iain again then into a tree... brilliant! Scrambling back up to grab my bike I found a suitable place to mount my bike without rolling down the hill again. However my back break was pointing to the ground which meant no slowing down for the rest of the stage. Jeez oh, winging it to the max! I was buzzing by the end of that stage to: 1. still be alive and 2. be having such a ridiculous amount of fun!!

Before stage three we foze our butts off waiting for poor Stuart who's chain had got completely stuck in his chain gard... We then had to face the HUGE climb back up to the top. The Pivot excelled in stage 3: it took ever dip, bump, jump and corner in it's stride and I was absolutely loving it!! Even though by this point my arms, legs, and whole body were pretty tired I managed to hold on!Seeing stars at the top of the sneaky climb in the middle of this stage I carfully descended until my brain and body reengaged and pushed on until my dibber was dibbed for the finally time. 

By the bottom I was dead but so happy! Usually after a race I am happy if I win and not so happy if I don't. But, at this point I had no idea how I'd done and, to be fair, wasn't too fussed! I had had such an insane amount of fun that over ruled everything :D 
It was an amazing weekend of riding!!! Chilling on the climbs then smashing it as fast as you could down the hills! That's just a dream format of racing, I loved it!

Here is the bit of paper I got given at the bottom with my times:

That time saw me win the women's race! That was the icing on the cake to a fantastic weekend! Big shout to everyone who raced here is a link to a great wee round up on Descent World click here.
A nice wee picture of me on the Pivot! 

Katy

Also massive thanks to Innerleithen mtb racing, alpine bikes and all the marshals for a great event!!

Now, back to training! Keep riding people,

Win tin tin

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http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1848557/Twitter-MV.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aLC0QIIYoP7 Morvélo Morvélo
Tue, 17 Jan 2012 06:44:25 -0800 This week was no ordinary week… http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/this-week-was-no-ordinary-week http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/this-week-was-no-ordinary-week

It also involved A LOT of hours on the road and the mountain bike! However, I was joined by some quite astonishingly good weather for January in Scotland!

Take a look, this was Monday's ride... there is even a shooting start in the left hand corner:

HA, made you look! That's a plane, silly :P 

The next two rides weren't that exciting, but this was:

Yum, apple crumble made by me! Watch out Mary Berry (for you folks that don't know it's the woman off Great British bake off) ;)

It was then time to burn that all off and head out again on the road. It was a beautiful day and I just couldn't help myself the views on this ride were AAA-mazing:

On my way to st. Mary's loch…

Said loch:

It was then up the hill to Talla (a well know VERY steep hill in the area) here is the view from the top:

Luckily I had my sensible head on and didn't go tearing down the steep side because, well, look:

Could have been the end of me! Once at the bottom the sun was shining and the water was SO still it was like glass! I couldn't resist another photo:

Look!! There is a hill in the water! :O

Next was a mountain bike ride up Glentress. Now, after all this ridiculous wind (AKA hurricane bawbag) we've been having it was a shock when I quickly snapped these photo's that 1. There was no wind AT ALL and 2. It was actually silent. No sound at all, no birds no people, no traffic, no nothing! I was slightly eerie:

This was on the black climb, time to keep climbing...

(so many people take photo's of this view but it is so lovely!)

And finally today, manage to survive another long road ride! 

Homeward bound...

... to the Valley in which I live:

Ah so nice but SO COLD today!

So that was it! It has been a hard week of training but I couldn't ask to do it in a better place - road rides with beautiful scenery and an awesome selection of mountain bike trails with equal beauty right on my door step… So lucky! :)
Keep riding people!

Win tin tin

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http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1848557/Twitter-MV.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aLC0QIIYoP7 Morvélo Morvélo
Wed, 07 Dec 2011 00:57:52 -0800 Scottish Cyclocross Champs – Power enough to rip through metal http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/scottish-cyclocross-champs-power-enough-to-ri http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/scottish-cyclocross-champs-power-enough-to-ri Yes, these legs of mine managed to do this…

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(…end a cross race VERY quickly. Good job guys.)

That was pretty much my race. After last weeks horrendous race performance I was finally feeling fully recovered and ready to race and redeem myself in the world of cyclocross. After a pre lap with the lovely Morven Brown I was actually excited about racing! The course was pretty techy and really muddy which suited me down to the ground! While waiting to start I was chatting to Anne Murray saying 'at least this course is fun so if something happens you'll still be able to enjoy it' – famous last words right there Winton. Anne also said to me 'I don't want to see you this week! You get yourself right up there!' She saw me once in the race… when she passed me as I picked up my bike to run to the pits…

The first part of the race was positive as I got a great start and sat in behind Eileen Roe, it was then a sneaky over take in the bomb hole and I was leading. YAS, the next half a lap was the more technical half of the course so I was going to try and use my skills to my advantage and try and get a gap. 

I was out of the first muddy section onto the path ready to sprint up the hill. I was on a mission, I wanted to race SNAP. I knew as soon as I heard it, I jumped off my bike and looked down… I died a little bit inside. My rear mech had snapped clean off…

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The back wheel wasn't going round when I started to run with it so I had to carry the bike. Eventually, I put the thing down and ripped the mech off the chain… it was in two bits.

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After a long run, a bit of scooting (thanks to the wheel now going round) I made it to  the pits. I jumped on my mtb bike and proceeded to chase down the field motoring on my rage. However, I cannot tell you how much I wanted to just throw my bike on the ground and give up!!! I tried my hardest to catch up as much as I could but I knew the Scottish Champ title would no longer be mine. That was hard to take but, I used it to motivate me to do everything I could to even get close to it. For the rest of the race I struggled on, feeling the effects of being on a heavy mountain bike as it sank deep into the ground and nearly had me falling back down the hills when I carried it.

I finished, in what place I'm not sure as results aren't up as of yet, I was just relieved it was over and thinking 'I never want to do cyclocross ever again' but I will! This weekend I am heading to the Isle of Mull for 'Cross at the Castle' and the Santa World Champs! It's going to be a weekend of great fun and bike racing! Can't wait :) Hopefully I'll have more luck there :D

The weekend wasn't all bad though! Team mate Hannah Payton won the Midlands Champs! Well done Hannah!! And a shout to Rabulous who is in a cast for another 6 weeks, chin up buddy.

Well done Eileen on Scottish Champ and all the other ladies that raced :)

Over and out,

Win tin tin

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http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1848557/Twitter-MV.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aLC0QIIYoP7 Morvélo Morvélo
Tue, 29 Nov 2011 04:53:49 -0800 Don’t make me hate you Cyclocross!! http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/dont-make-me-hate-you-cyclocross http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/dont-make-me-hate-you-cyclocross
Because your certainly doing it the right way! The race on Sunday, for me, was horrendous! An embarrassment beyond belief!!

Three weeks of hard training and this was the last day. I felt like a truck had run me over… then reversed over me again. The bottom line is I was in no state to race. But, this was a 'training race' so the result wasn't important – the focus was getting a quality race effort, it was about the effort. I have realised there is something fundamentally wrong with a 'training race' in my mind – I race to win, getting training out of it is just part of racing. Usually, in a race, I am fighting for position, not fighting to survive…

The day before I was already pretty tired but, I pushed further into the red when because I had a training day with the junior boys. These training days are great because the boys push me a lot but, on Saturday, I couldn't even keep up with them to get the benefit – this was warning sign number 1. That night I set my alarm and went to bed, got a text, thought it was the alarm so jumped up because I thought I was late – Warning sign number 2, clearly I was losing my mind. Then, I turned up to the race with no shoes… Yeah, I probably should have just stopped while I was ahead!! But no, I've got this annoying persistence which is like a sat nav when you turn the wrong way 'make a U turn… make a U turn…' except it is 'Get on with it…Get on with it… Get on with it… Just MTFU and get on with it!!'

So there I was on the start line: '45ish minutes of pain then you get to go to the hub for CAKE' food has a ridiculous hold on me. BAM, we were off! I got a good start and was right up there in second then into third… from that point on I have no idea what happened. I just went backwards. My legs, my body, my mind – it was all mush. Towards the end I could barely push up the banks I had no strength in my arms or back anymore, let alone my legs. I knew if I was feeling normal, because this was not a normal, then I would probably have enjoyed the course! It was pretty fast, and I like going fast. 

So, 2 or 3 laps to go and I was over it, I wanted to go home. I wanted the pain to stop. I wanted to lie on the ground, curl up in a ball and hibernate for a while, a long while. To keep going was a battle of my will. I so so so wanted to stop; my performance was just an embarrassment… I was giving all but getting nothing back, it would be easier to just stop but, every time I thought that I got smacked with 'find a way to keep going, you MUST finish… do you want CAKE??' ARGH. I hate this persistence quality and my love affair with cake… it's going to get me in trouble one day. I was in quite a state, my body shouting NO, but my mind forcing me to push through. It was horrendous because it wasn't even working!! I had fought for third but slipped to fourth… then when fifth passed me I nearly passed out! 

I managed to hold 5th, just. I can say that, if I ever feel like that again, I will NOT be racing. The mental strain is just too much never mind the body exhaustion! But, I got my Cake. That was the main thing:

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The pain and suffering may not seem worth it now, but hopefully when I'm standing on the podium in the summer it will be for sure!

Thank you to Anna McGorum for letting me borrow her shoes!! Anna is half my age but has the same size feet! Thanks to my Dad for taking me and buying me cake and to Lucy Grant and Anne Murray for cheering me up after :) Well done to all the ladies, great to see such a big field!

Next week is the Scottish Cyclocross Champs!! That will be a race to RACE ;)

Win tin ton

p.s. sorry for the lack of photo's!

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http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1848557/Twitter-MV.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aLC0QIIYoP7 Morvélo Morvélo
Wed, 23 Nov 2011 01:47:00 -0800 The Edge - End of Season http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/the-edge-end-of-season http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/the-edge-end-of-season


More Mountain Biking Videos

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http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1848557/Twitter-MV.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aLC0QIIYoP7 Morvélo Morvélo
Wed, 23 Nov 2011 01:45:24 -0800 Great atmosphere + great people + great riding = http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/great-atmosphere-great-people-great-riding http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/great-atmosphere-great-people-great-riding
Innerleithen Day/night Enduro! THE best weekend of racing I have ever had!!! Oh my days! I'm still buzzing…

So, Saturday 20th of November was the day/night enduro held at innerleithen. This is a new format of racing I've not experienced before but, probably the best and most fun! It consisted of 2 stages/tracks that you did once during the day then repeated again when it was dark. Each stage had an opening and closing time for you to get up to the top of the hill and start the stage. You were then timed down the descents (the stage) and the accumulative descending time was basically your result.  

This meant you could casually climb to the top of the hill chatting to your friends, then when you started the stage it was down to business – riding as fast as you could down to the bottom of the descent! It was just a chilled atmosphere with awesome riding with awesome people!

Photo

(Waiting to start…)

I managed to make it down stage one… kind of… having my forks locked out (doh!) made things interesting! Itwas quite frustrating as I crashed and was pretty all over the place. But the muddy snaky nature of this track was pretty extreme so to get down it alive was an achievement! Though, that was in the light! Who knew what it was going to be like in the dark…

Photo-1

(…starting…)

We then headed up the hill (slowly! We didn't have to race up the hill, yay!!) discussing our runs, this consisted of "I crashed here" or "I nearly crashed here" and "That was just MENTAL" which it was. Though, we were all buzzing and couldn't wait to get up to stage two. Now, this track was brilliant!! It wasn't as natural and slippy as the previous one instead, it consisted more of a messy top section then on to the downhill tracks! SO FAST!! On the way down it reminded me of the down hill race (minus the full sus, instead a hard tail) but still just going as fast as you possibly could down a hill – a new found love of mine. I had to sneakily over take a dude on the way down then unfortunately couldn't get passed a guy at the bottom but it was no biggy – this race was about having fun, it wasn't life or death! Once I'd dibbed my dibber I could feel the excitement in the air!! Everyone loved that track, the speed, the flow, the fun! It had it all.

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(…and I'm off!!)

It was then time to change kit, had a cup of tea and a sandwich before papa Winton and I headed up the hill, in the dark!! Stage 1 was a bit of a nightmare for me again, falling off making silly mistakes… It was just pretty crazy! Dad had had an 'over the bars, landing on his head with an imprinted light in the mud' moment… He was okay though! We all pedalled to the top again ready for the final stage of the day. I knew I had to get this right to make up for the time I'd lost both times on stage 1. It was the final push! I had a cople of dodgy moments in the top section, nearly going over the bars and punching trees but managed to settle into to the final section. The last part I managed to hit all the good lines and make it to the bottom BUZZING!!!! In fact everyone at the bottom was, the atmosphere was brilliant – relaxed and happy with everyone all just loving riding their bikes and riding them fast.

We headed down to the tent to sync out dibbers and get our bit of paper with the times on:

A_shot

I hadn't really been thinking about timings or trying to win, I was having too much fun just riding to worry about racing! But I was pleased with my time considering I was on a hard tail, and even more pleased when I realised I'd beaten my Dad who was on a full sue!! Okay so he couldn't tie his shoe laces in the morning due to being so crippled from a hard core session but that was poor preparation Papa Winton ;) I had so much fun and a great laugh – best £30 I've spent on a race!!

Well done to Emma, still not lost it over the years and Lesely, not bad for only just getting back on your bike after being off since April!! And Well done to everyone else who raced, hope you had as much fun as I did!

I would recommend enduros to anyone, so get in about it people!!

Wint tin ton

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http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1848557/Twitter-MV.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aLC0QIIYoP7 Morvélo Morvélo
Fri, 18 Nov 2011 06:33:09 -0800 Scottish Cyclocross – Here and now http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/scottish-cyclocross-here-and-now http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/scottish-cyclocross-here-and-now Oh cyclocross…  your dirtier than mountain biking! And more crazy! This race was mud mud mud check this picture out: in the words of Morven Brown I'm "Hurdling like a gazelle" here.

The day of the race I wasn't sure what to expect.. after just recovering from my 18th, traveling up and down the country and racing on a bike that I hadn't ridden before with the breaks the wrong way round – it was going to be a real test! The course started in a moist field that was rapidly turning into a big bog as more and more tyres sunk into it. There was a longish climb and decent and nice bit that threw you over the bars (yeah… I found that out the hard way…) so that was now a quick run!

The women were started with the junior boys, luckily it was a wide start as I wasn't gridded due to not having raced any of these before. Once we were off I nipped round as many people as I could. Out the field and I moved up to second in the womens. I then moved to first and lead second round for a few laps. It took me back to a conversation Oli and I were having earlier in the week about racing – every thought was for here, it was for now, in this race: how was I going to beat her? Is she going to attack here? Where am I stronger? Can I take advantage of that? etc. nothing else mattered, I had never realised the escape in racing before!

As the race went on I was getting tired and when the move was made by Genevieve I had no response. I started heading down the hill over taking a lady before a left turn… next thing I knew I was rolling around the floor!! I jumped up and everything was squint!! I stopped quickly to sort what I could and slipped into third! It was then another lap, the hurdles were now walls for my little legs as the ground around them sunk ever deeper. Another women was now upon me and we were in the very last part of the lap… I fought with her but, unaware this was the last lap, didn't fight as hard as I should… and there I was crossing the line in a close 4th.

Not going to lie I was pretty disappointed! I like to do well and those were just silly mistakes that cost me a podium! But there is a lot to take from it, new things to try and plenty of learning! Its a great incentive for training too! Another Scottish race in two weeks, then the Scottish Champs the following week, and a weekend of racing on the Isle of Mull! Plenty to look forward to :) 

Well done to everyone who raced! It was great to have such a big field of women racing! And thanks to JB for letting me borrow his gloves, Iain Grant for getting me there and being a great support as ever and Lucy Grant for just being Lucy Grant :)

Keep riding!

Win tin ton

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http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1848557/Twitter-MV.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aLC0QIIYoP7 Morvélo Morvélo
Fri, 14 Oct 2011 14:44:00 -0700 Relentless... A dirty weekend! http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/relentless-a-dirty-weekend http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/relentless-a-dirty-weekend

This race was the absolute filth! 3 weeks previous I agreed to taking part inthe Relentless 24hr race - it seemed like a good idea... but after my first two laps and coming in like this:

 
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It didn't feel like a good idea anymore, AT ALL!!! Two laps down six to go... yay.

I was in a mixed team of four called: 'I-cycles young dream team and an old spanner' which consisted of: Keith Forsyth (3trd in 24 hour world championships - and all round legend), Ben Forsyth (a fast young one, Keith's son with plenty of experience of these long races), Scott Lindsay (A fast junior boy hungry for the challenge of racing for 24hours - nutter) and me. But, most importantly, we had the help of David Lindsay (Scott's dad) who was our team support... and this was our set up:

 
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So, after none of the boys being man enough to start us off it was up to me. It was a short run to start then straight into two laps - we'd decided to do double laps due to the wet weather. To say running isn't my strong point is an understatement. Not to worry, there was a lovely long fire road climb where I took plenty of places. By the end of lap one I was not happy... the last part was a MASSIVE fire road descent. Later, when I had no lights, brakes or brain due to exhaustion I would have a more positive look on this lack of single track!

After me it was over to Scott:

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He put in a really fast two laps (I had only just finished getting changed and warm when he came round on his first 38min lap) and it was on to Ben (the dirty one):

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It was another excellent two laps by Ben and we were well up there! The baton was then handed to Keith:

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For the past couple of hours I had eaten constantly... big mistake. It was about 18.00 when I headed out for my 3rd and 4th lap. First lap I felt great second lap I was sick, then again and again and again. It was dark when I came in throwing up in the transition area. I felt rough. Peeling my kit off and it was starting to get hard now... Why was I doing this?? It was just crazy! David forced me to eat - thankfully because I then felt better! 00.15 and I was out again. By this time our bodies were confused and tired and clearly Scott had gone a bit mental:

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I was pleased to finish those two eventful laps (lights dying, no breaks or brain) with 6 laps in the bag for the team I was sleeping soundly by 02.30. Scott headed out for two laps then it was Keith - the hero - who was then going to head out for a solid 5 lap stint before Ben - who was already sleeping - would head out first thing in the morning. This was brilliant because it meant we all got a bit of a sleep!  and I was asleep...

...to wake up to the pitter patter of rain on my tent. Brilliant. I was running out of kit, my shoes were wetter and colder and I was pretty tired!! Ben came in from his final two great laps at 08.05 and it was my turn, "last two, then you don't have to go out ever again!!!" I persuaded myself up the long climb listening to my bike grind with the grit underneath me... coming down the descents with only a front break to say I was relieved when I came into the transition area for the final time is an understatement!! Here is us at the end of the race when Scott had finished our final laps:

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What a race! I finished on 8 laps for the team with us all together completing 29 laps! We won the mixed quads by about 3 laps and were 4th over all in the quads!! Here we are on the podium:

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Well, now I've done it I never want to do it again! I say that, though I'll probably be back again next year... MASSIVE thanks to David for his brilliant help - making us food, cleaning our bikes, keeping us in check and taking all the great photo's above! Thank you to Keith, Ben and Scott for getting us to the top step and for great banter all weekend!

Win tin ton

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http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2288142/Colour_Montage.jpg http://posterous.com/users/he6mqUF3ZTnzY Katy Winton Katy Winton Katy Winton
Mon, 03 Oct 2011 04:00:44 -0700 Final BMBS Round, Plymouth- 9hr drive, 1 mint course, 3 laps, two legs, one bike... http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/final-bmbs-round-plymouth-9hr-drive-1-mint-co http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/final-bmbs-round-plymouth-9hr-drive-1-mint-co

...would it all come together? It's been a long season with every race throwing a different challenge at me. What was going to happen in this race? Could I still come out on top?

I knew I had to win if I wanted to win the British Series title. After riding the super slippy and actually technical course I realised it could be possible. There were three main climbs each followed by off camber rooty descents which suited me as I could recover in between the climbs. It was going to be so much fun to race!! I pre-rode with Lucy Grant (Scottish Youth racer) and as we went round she was shocked by the way I was riding... I had started to hop over everything, ride at crazy speeds and generally show no signs of fear - "em... Katy your riding like... like a downhiller!!! It's scary!" This was okay in pre-riding because your not so tired but in a race this could prove dangerous if I forgot the limitations of an XC bike... which I did....

On race day I had devised a plan. Previously, in races, I'd follow Beth and stick on her wheel, well, try anyway. So, I decided that I'd lead from the start and take early control of the race. It was a fire road start into a single track climb then another bit of fire road for a steeper climb into the more technical of the 3 descents. I knew that even if I didn't gap her on the climb I'd at least get a slight advantage after the decent. From then it was just about racing, going super hard on the climbs, nailing the descents and keeping it consistent - hopefully avoiding sickness, a back spasm, crashing at the start, mechanicals and any other possible bad luck!


(British Cycling photo. Taking control of the race)

To say my plan worked was an understatement! It worked so well that I already had a 40second lead by the bottom of the first decent. Up the second climbed I pushed on, 40seconds was a closeable gap over the 3laps. Fighting through the juvenile boys, I managed to safely complete lap one with a 50sec gap. Second lap I got slightly excited, and down the first little bit of single track I went way too fast into a little dip, flew out of it unable to squish my speed properly and straight through the tape... much to a juvenile boy's despair as he angrily SCREAMED "rider!!" at me.  Never the less I continued at a good pace for the second lap only being slightly sick due to the honey in my bottle - I didn't drink anything the rest of the lap until I got water!

3rd lap and there was no way Beth was going to catch me now. I just had to concentrate on getting a clean lap keeping a good pace, I needed to finish. Flying down the last decent enjoying every minute of it knowing it wasn't long until the finish. Through the river my dad gave me a time update "3 minutes" YAS!!!!!!!! I knew that even if something went wrong now I could run to the finish and still win. Fortunately though there was no need to run, I weaved through the switch backs to the finish. Hands in the air I soaked up the victory. It's been a long fight all season and to finally have a smooth race and to win by such a margin... well, there isn't a better way to end the season!


(Claire Oakley's photo Beth, me and Claire)

It wasn't just a good day for me, but for all the Scots!! With series wins from, Lucy Grant, Ian Payton in the Youth categories,  Callum Magowan in the juvenile male and Grant Ferguson and I taking the Junior titles the Scots dominated a mear 500miles from home! There was also really impressive performances from Ben Forsyth, Isla Short, Eve Hanlan Cole and Calum Grant (aka, JB - who over two laps got the same time as his sister Lucy!!). Well done to everyone who raced!

Thank you to everyone who has helped me this year and never stopped believing in me!! Special thanks to Dom and Paddy at upgrade for sorting out my bike, Reynold wheels and all the bits, Oli at Morvelo for the coolest kit on the MTB scene, the Hope bike wash man who comes to all the races and always keeps my bike lovely and clean, My dad for his fantastic support and everything he does for me and the rest of the Scottish lot for getting us to races and having great banter! Thanks to Beth for a great year of racing, best of luck for next year missy in that lovely champs top! :)


Next: my BC Academy application has been sent... I'll find out in October if I've been selected! Watch this space!

Win tin tin

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http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1848557/Twitter-MV.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aLC0QIIYoP7 Morvélo Morvélo
Tue, 20 Sep 2011 02:29:49 -0700 First ever downhill race!!! Best. Fun. EVER! http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/first-ever-downhill-race-best-fun-ever http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/first-ever-downhill-race-best-fun-ever After the worlds it was time for a bit of fun and, this weekend, was definitely fun, it was amazing! So, downhill is quite different from racing XC where it is an hour and a half of pain and the descending part is about staying alive and trying to recover with the heavy cloud hanging over your head reminding you that you'll be going up again soon – making it a survival exercises rather than and enjoyable experience. This meant that the only 'cloud' over my head coming down the hill was that I'd have to get a bus back up to the top of the hill that smelt of dirt and farts… and that was just the girls……

It was back in May that I decided to do the Innerliethen SDA in a bet with Paul Newnham a Scottish MTB coach to see who was fastest… He didn't get an entry so it was an easy win for me! Anyway, I was buzzing! I walked the track with Bex Reilly, my partner in crime in the Edge Video's, and it was looking good! The course was a good mix of muddy, rooty, steep, pedally and twisty sections with some jumps stuck in at the top which I LOVED!  Check this picture!

After Saturday practice I couldn't wait to race! I'd done a couple of runs with the girls which was a great laugh – everyone was lovely! By the end of the day I felt ready to race!

Race day morning I was still asleep after a late night at my Granny's 80th Birthday party and on my first, and only, practice run I was crashing all over the place! This meant the pressure was on to get a clear run for the race… It was no time at all and I was at the top of the hill getting a quick tutorial in how to do the start – instead of just being told 'go' you could go anytime with in 5sec – then I was off! I had a slight slip at the top but made it safely through the dodgy 's' bend with loads of roots, then it was onto the jumps! I cleared them all no problems then it was time to pedal like mad! This wasn't easy on a squishy bike!! It was then down some swoopy turns, then over the fireroad and into the trees. I made it though the twisty bit fine, everything was going so well. There was something about riding down a hill as fast as you could – everything was just went quiet and at peace… It was just you and the bike and you didn't have to think about the next climb or how you were going to catch the next rider. You just had to ride fast and it was the best feeling I've ever had in a race!!

When I got to the bottom with a clear run and it was announced I was in first place with a 4:09 I was shocked! However, Bex's time wasn't up yet so it could all change… After grabbing a drink and a bite to eat I found out I was still winning, but, only by 5secs… Bex could make that up on the second race run! It was all hanging in the balance!

Little did we know when we got to the top of the hill that we'd be standing around at the top for over an hour due to a bad crash a Youth boy had! This meant that everyone was getting cold and by the time things started moving again we were all a bit over having to race! This run was hard, I was tired and my arms were giving up on me… But bex could still close that gap so I gave it my all! By the bottom I was done for! My arms were in pieces! I did a 4:13 but was still in the lead… Bex's time wasn't up AGAIN! So it was a waiting game to see if I'd actually won or not! It was great to finally getting out of my wet muddy kit so I no longer felt like I was wearing a nappy! The announcement came through that Bex hadn't beaten my time and I had won my first ever downhill race!! I couldn't believe it :)

Sdapodium

However, this weekend wouldn't have been possible with out alot of help! So, a big thank you to Emma, Rosie and Bex who let me borrow some of their kit for the weekend, my dad for letting me borrow his bike (I don't think I am going to give it back!), Andy Gowan at MMA for sorting me out with helmet, I would be going no where with out that! And to all the girls and everyone else who made this weekend a great laugh! Well done to all that raced! Also, another shout to Bex for still being my friend after the weekend, just beginners luck ;)

Keep riding people!

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http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1848557/Twitter-MV.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aLC0QIIYoP7 Morvélo Morvélo