September 16th 2007.
Xterra is held in the picturesque Afan Forest area (which is in the official top 10 mountain bike areas to ride before you die!) of the Vale of Neath. It comprises a 1500m swim 30k off road bike and a 10k off road run. There is also a shorter course for the more sane!
Matt Spillman and I plus entourage travelled down on Friday so we could ride the bike section on Saturday. The course photos didn’t look too bad (who said the camera never lies!) but we thought it prudent to pre-ride the course. (Course photos & full results on www.tri247.com).
My mountain bike experience was limited to twice riding round Thetford Forest, not exactly great preparation, but then I do like a challenge! The pre-ride was a real eye-opener. The average gradient going up was 7% with a 35% max and the same coming down with a max 30%. The course uses fire roads and various off road technical sections. Names like “the impossible climb”, “the !@*!chute” and “heartburn” are not quite sufficient to describe the geography of the course!
My first ever technical descent resulted in a graceful over the handlebars dismount into the brambles, the only damage being to my pride! A slight navigation error also saw us detour on a path that suddenly became full of undergrowth, but apart from that we returned intact!
When more experienced Matt said he thought the descents were a bit scary I was quite happy to agree with him!
I don’t mind confessing to being very apprehensive on race day morning, almost wishing I had contracted flu during the night! But once up and about I just wanted to get stuck in.
It was a 2.5 mile bike ride from the campsite, T2 and finish area to T1 and the swim start. The swim was to my reckoning, about 1200m but in beautiful clear, clean water. Once out of the water it was a painful hobble over stones to the racking and out on the bike!
The first climb starts after about 300m, first on fire road then narrower rocky tracks. It seems to go on (and probably does) for miles, getting ever steeper as the track hairpins up the mountain affording spectacular views of the valley below. Then comes the first technical, heavily rutted descent, followed by more climbing on fire road up to the impossible climb. This does what it says on the tin, this 400m stretch is steep and strewn with loose rocks, no option but to carry or push the bike (even for pros!). This is followed shortly by another very narrow heavily rutted descent. More undulating fire road then more descents, including a section called “heartburn” part of which was a ledge about 18” wide with a steep drop off (very picturesque though). More adrenaline fuelled descending brings you back to civilisation again and T2.
The run starts innocently enough on the flat for a mile then there is a river crossing followed by a rope assisted scramble up a steep bank and then upwards ever upwards! Basically you run back up the mountain, no, walk up the mountain and then tear down it as fast your screaming legs will allow! This is a serious workout and my total time of 3hrs 48 min I think reflects this! (Well that’s my excuse!).
If you want a good challenge in a friendly atmosphere, a picturesque setting and a tired but satisfied feeling, this is the race for you.
The only complaint was that the shower arrangement was a little too communal, although the organisers said that would be sorted next year! By the way, I didn’t put that complaint in!
I would strongly recommend honing your mountain bike skills beforehand (unlike me) to improve your bike time. The fastest pro bike leg was 1 hr 11min (Sam Gardner) compared to my appalling 2 hrs 8 mins! The event was won by Nicolas Laburn (France) in a scorching 2:15:28 with Julie Dibens winning the womens race in 2:38:19.