While not wanting to appear disrespectful to high profile organisers like Pat Adams or Martyn Salt, for many riders dusk till dawn is the endurance event of the year. It™s laid-back, the riders are exceptionally friendly and the course is always perfect. Who cares if it™s flat when the singletrack is this good? This year was the biggest ever, with 800 riders and a long lap of 11.9 miles. And it™s at night, which just adds to the fun.
After 2 years of riding in a pair I decided to go it alone “ pairs is fun, but I™d always hated sitting around trying to keep warm, when all I wanted to do was ride. This year I was joined by 2 teammates from Beyond Mountain Bikes/Specialized/West Drayton MBC, also riding solo. Terry had ridden this years Clic 24 event in May, in atrocious weather, while Matt like me was a newbie to this distance. I™d ridden some œlongish rides in addition to my regular XC training, but wasn™t quite sure how to approach this event. Luckily I had been given plenty of advice from fellow team-mate / enduro veteran George Budd and Paul Howard from Gorrick mbc / mountain Trax. Their advice was simple “ keep eating, drink plenty and don™t sit down!
Taking everything a bit too relaxed, the 3 of us ambled out of the solo pits, making the complete schoolboy error of turning up 5 minutes before the start. Quite why I left it this late remains a mystery to me, because it took so long to get moving I was afraid we™d get lapped on the smaller starting loop. For the first half of the lap we crawled along, Terry and I making ourselves very unpopular by charging through the singletrack and forcing our way past groups who were discussing whether or not the bomb holes could be ridden in the dark. To those people I truly apologise and I promise I won™t do it again next year¦¦¦¦¦¦¦
As usual Frank and the boys had laid out a superb course, using some of the best singletrack Thetford has to offer. Long, swoopy, twisty sections and tight singletrack, with a few stretches of fire road and a couple of large bomb holes to keep you alert. After two thirds of a lap, the course ran briefly back into the starting arena, although long enough for plenty of heckling from the transition area and spectators.
Pretty soon the lap was over and we were out again, now able to maintain a quicker pace as the initial congestion was over. Passing slower riders became easier as groups started to thin out and people very kindly moved aside to let you through.
Lap 3 found me on my own, as Terry decided to slow down to a more comfortable pace. Unfortunately not long after I left him he got caught up in an accident, when a rider crashed in front of him. A twisted knee left him pedalling on one leg and back in the pits he reluctantly pulled out. Matt also was having problems, suffering from the notorious œThetford back. He decided to rest for a few hours, gamely returning for a last lap at 5am.
My first proper stop came after 4 laps. The temperature had plummeted and I was badly I need of extra layers. Our team helper re-filled my camelback and bottle and I was off again, feeling warmer and lighter? I realized why I felt lighter as I crossed the start line, because I™d left my camelback on the table! Not being able to turn back I continued thinking œwell, at least I have a bottle¦¦¦¦ then realising my spare tube and pump were also on the table. Fortunately I was dragged back into reality by a cheerful shout of œkeep going Phil, you™re doing really well! Looking back I saw Steve Watkins in the transition area waiting for his pairs team-mate Dave Mascall. Something competitive switched on in my brain and I hammered out my fastest lap, seeing neither Steve nor Dave until the end of the event.
The rest of the night is something of a blur, interrupted by a diet of Torq bars, bananas, and high 5 gels and drinks. Plus a marmite sandwich. I do remember being lapped twice by Jenn Hopkins “ in the same place, riding into the same tree on 2 consecutive laps and discussing world cup rugby with a Scotsman.
Seeing the sunrise on an enduro is something else, particularly as you start to become aware of the terrain you™ve been riding through. The finish is also really special, and I found myself œhigh fiving the crowd as I walked through the finish line.
I finished very satisfied, having completed 10 laps in just over 12 hours, finishing 25th in a field of 127 “ and I only sat down for 5 minutes! Mathew Page won the men™s solos with an impressive 13 laps, beating Mountain Mayhem solo victor Anthony White by 28 minutes. In the women™s event Sally Bigham overhauled last years champion Jenn Hopkins by 25 minutes, who both completed 12 laps.
the master 