Transrockies 2008 Video

Transrockies 2008 from David Gill on Vimeo.

Team-WORC and Team-WORC masters trip to Canada all the way from Ireland to compete in the TR 2008.

TW finished 13th in the open mens and TWM finished 5th overall in the 80+.

What a race...everyone should go and do it..

Saturday 20 June 2009 - 08:33:01 by dave
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Club League Round 4

Race will start shortly after 7 at the lower car park in Djouce, we will ride a pre lap at about 6.40

Basically, going to leave the car park climb to XTC, turn left onto flat fr, down bulldog, right at the bottom onto green ledge, drop down/join main fr climb and climb to and turn left into Bench Cut, do the 2nd part, then climb back up the main fr again[figure of 8] to car park for one lap.

i'll see how long this takes, maybe 2 laps will be enough, be 4 times up the forest road which would be enough for sure.

Everyone welcome.....

Monday 18 May 2009 - 17:14:35 by dave
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Eireman-X Off Road Triathlon 2009

Race was the usual triathlon affair with a bit of a tweak, all off road and with the emphasis on overall fitness rather than the brute speed that tri normally has at these distances. Shorter races are not normally my thing, but as it was early in the season i decided to give it a bash. This race was a prep for Xterra France, simple as, however i will be back if they do another one.

Swim: 20:20 (44th) 750m....supposedly...more like 1km
Of late my swim training has been sporadic at best. First 100m were tough affair as normal, few punches (nose is sore today) but took me about 400m to settle. in At that point i'd lost the lead group and had no one to draft on. Settled in and tried to hold back for the bike. Mid pack out of the water, and got a few places in T1 as i'd worked on my transition, had it laid out and knew what was going on. 1:20 for T1 and out on the bike.

Bike: 47:43 (13th) 10km
This is my strong point...until i burped my rear tire. Do'h. Gas or not gas...just about had enough to ride and it was shlompy so left it, half way through the lap realised i needed to gas it as it was still leaking. Gas in, back on the pedals. Course was a mixture of techyish roots, sand,and un-ridable obstacles. Most of it was fine but the sand started to eat my drive train and i was getting serious chain suck for most of the second lap, so bad i could not ride the bike for certain sections. I reckon i lost 4mins between this and the burp....and the fact i got sent the wrong way at one point...not going to bitch about it as most of the top 20 got sent the wrong way. Kept it steady and just rode hard. Didn't hold back as i knew i could make some time here that i'd lost in the water. Came off the bike in about 26th position and hit T2. 52seconds later out running.

Run: 23:58 (23rd) 5km
Out of T2 with a quick think of 'body forward, light on the feet, fast short strides' and bang straight out hard and fast. Felt good, real good, strong and ready to push. Spotted two guys 200m ahead of me and started to chase. Picked them both off about 500m later and hammered past them....uphill. Half way into the course still no sign of the leaders...how far ahead are they went through my head...no...how far ahead am i needed to replace that. 3.5km in and i see a runner coming towards me 'Holy crap...i'm close to the front'. Look behind, 2 guys giving chase, upped the pace. Counting the runners coming towards me, Art in 3rd place...ok he looks tired....Michael in 7th....10th place runner coming in from my left WTF??...hang on....catch a guy...blast past him...next runner...hey you're only 2 places up on me....there's the turn. Hit the turn. Running back marshal shouts '1km to go!' Counted that i was in 18th place. With someone on my heals and its all uphill from here.

Over the river, up to the cross...750m to go of which 500m is a long steady climb, footsteps behind me...have maybe 10m on this guy...one ahead...go for it. Stepped up and 'body forward, light on the feet, fast short strides' mantra in my head, drown out the pains in my feet and shoulders 'body forward, light on the feet, fast short strides'. Quick look over the shoulder.. no-one... getting flat step up again...flat out over the bridge into the finishing area. Finish..still no sign of chaser...5seconds....10seconds there he is...over the line.

Aftermath: 1:43:33 (17th place, 7th in AG)
With a burped tire, mis-direction on the bike, and the worst chain suck i have ever experienced i think maybe 4 mins could come off this time for just plain unluckiness. But racing is racing and these things happen. If i'd not had this, i would have made my top 10 aim and i'd have been 3rd in my age group.

Overall a great race and totally recommend it to anyone thinking of giving triathlon a go but not interested in the road aspect of the bike or run.
[Submitted by Greg]

Monday 11 May 2009 - 11:42:30 by dave
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MADMTB presents MAX-XC 2009

MADMTB are pleased to announce an MTB XC-travaganza on 3 Rock Co. Dublin, 10th May 2009.
This event is being held to part-celebrate the 20th Anniversary of MADMTB: 20 Years Offroad 1989 to 2009.

The event is basically a loop of the best trails on 3Rock and can be ridden anyway you like.
Spot prizes will be awarded on a random basis and there will also be awards for the first finishing teams home - the trick being that you won’t know who is on your team until after you sign on.
Your race plate will include your number and your team number, it will be up to you to hunt-out your teammates and quickly swap power-gels, calibrate heart-rate monitors, drill holes in your saddles and formulate your winning plans…..

This event has been made possible via close co-operation with local landowners and Coillte, and we hope everything goes smoothly in order that we will be able to host further races in the area in future. With this regard, please take all your litter home with you and be respectful of other users of the forest on the day.

The event will be fully marshalled so make sure to cooperate with them as they’ll be doing their best to ensure that you get the best out of your day.

New trails have been specifically constructed by the MADMTB Singletrack Engineering Division for the event which offer a large variety of terrain which has something for everyone from fast sweeping fireroad with great views out over Dublin Bay and to the Sugarloaf, short rocky paths, fast easy singletrack, twisty switchback challenging technical singletrack, bombholes, dips, lips, swoops, whoops and not forgetting and a nice climb or two thrown in for the craic.
Info on distance and approx. time for completion will be added soon.

Schedule:
The course WILL NOT be marked on the Saturday, sign-on will be on Sunday morning from 8:00am to 10:30am.
The event will kick-off at 11am, it will take you approx 15 mins to cycle up the start line from the parking field so ensure to arrive in plenty of time!
Parking will be in a private field on the Glencullen side of 3Rock.
The field is on your right as you drive towards Glencullen from Ballyedmonduff/Stepaside direction.

MADMTB: 20 Years Offroad: 1989 to 2009




[Submitted by Fergal]

Wednesday 06 May 2009 - 12:11:53 by dave
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Results from Round 1 - Shogue Hill Climb

The first event of the Team-WORC club league took the riders up to the traditional start point under the M50 flyover at the start of Kilmashogue lane. This years course has changed from previous years due to Coillte diverting the fireroad. The course is some 70 meters shorter and rolling much faster than previous years as the new fireroad has bedded in. The course itself is a 3.42KM climb that rises some 282 meters. The first section is fast but steep tarmac but it quickly turns onto the dusty fireroads of Kilmashogue and from there climbs to just past the new entrance to the Wicklow way.

From the start the pace was fast, MAD's Ryan Sherlock set the pace from the start with our own Evan Ryan sticking close to his tail. David Gill was in the mix too but eased off the pace on the tarmac to try and conserver some kick for the fireroad. Ian Sutton joined the mix with a small gap back to the main bunch behind. This gap wasn't going to stay there long with Robin Seymour, Bob by name and bob by nature, bouncing along on his Giant Trance (I think he has a point to prove riding that in every event this year) bridging the gap to the race leaders and towing a stream of riders with him. Included in that stream was U16 Robert Scanlon showing the old guys how its done. On to the fireroad and the pace didn't let off... Up front Sherlock and Seymour were still together just past the second barrier with Evan Ryan and Robert Scanlon some 18 seconds back with David Gill 8 seconds in arrears and the trio of Andy Newman, Joe McCall and Ian Sutton another eight seconds back.

As the race progressed Sherlock held on to the lead, a lead which he would hold till the finish. On the new course we now have a new course record with a fantastic time of 11:47. Seymour easily held on to 2nd while an ailing Evan Ryan finished in 3rd. Next up was Joe McCall. Having worked with his trio for the early part of the race he bridge the gap to Gill and then to Scanlon and finished in a fine 4th place. On the new section of the course Gill put in a determined effort to get past his young rival some 20 years his junior to take 5th place with the super promising young talent of Robert Scanlon taking a fine 6th spot in this his first Shouge Hill Climb.

So the legend that is the Shogue Hill Climb, an event which has been running since the early 90's, now has a new record holder in Ryan Sherlock. The old record for the old course remains unbeaten though. Posting a winning time of 12:12 back in 1997, Craig Brady remains the undefeated champ of the original course, a record he has held for some eleven years. Some have come close in the past, Both Niall Davis and Robin Seymour came within one second of matching the previous time. For those that think they have the might to challenge the new record, we will be running this again at the end of our club league, Keep an eye on the events section for more information. Thanks to all the riders who took part tonight. If I don't have you in the results (blame Pa Coyne for turning off the camera) send me on your time and I'll add you in.

Videos are now available in the Movies section of the site...


1 Ryan 11:47
2 Robin 12:37
3 Evan 13:34
4 Joe 14:15
5 Dave 14:34
6 Robert 14:42
7 Ian 14:58
8 Paddy 15:10
9 Andy 15:12
10 Stu 15:20
11 Paddy M 15:37
12 Gordon 15:40
13 Vinnie 16:24
14 Mark 16:39
15 Ray 17:37
16 Rachel 17:55
16 John 17:55
18 Paul H 19:24
19 Owen 19:45
DNF Paul B
Current League totals

Tuesday 28 April 2009 - 17:11:27 by dave
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NPS 2, Ballinastoe, Co. Wicklow. Sunday 19 Mar 09

Last years event used the bottom loop of the Coillte build trails. Lots of complaints from the purists saying the man/machine hardcore (dude) trails would be terrible for racing on. Most of the doubters were silenced by the end of what turned out to be one of the most enjoyable and close racing tracks of the 08 NPS calendar. Job well done Sorrento

The anticipation for ’09 was high especially following on from a very successful introduction for most new riders to the sport on the Djouce Trail Challenge hungry for more. A curveball was thrown earlier this week when rumours started that the Coillte trails were out of bounds for the organisers. Many hearts dropped at this news. Added to the insult was that it wasn’t Coillte stopping the use of the trails but the organisers themselves who knew best and decided it would be easier to run this NPS (National Points Series) on a non-standard course.

For those who never rode in Ballinastoe before it the beginnertastic trail centre it is today let’s just say it was never the driest place in the world with lots of semi-swamp areas that nobody really would ride unless they really had to because race organisers had done sufficient work to make it rideable to link sections. For race organisers it was a nightmare having to spend weeks attempting to drain the boggy sections, digging out muddy bits and pruning back branches and gorse (e.g., the POG courses).

The course handed up to the riders for the extortionate price of 20euro (non-sport/underage) took the worst of everything found in Ballinastoe and taped it off, skipped the tiresome tasks of pruning, draining and digging and called it NPS Round 2. From some accounts the organisers even spurned offers of help even from the Offroad Commission to help with the actual organisation of timing opting to go for their tried and failed manual timing system that has failed so dismally in the past. Rider beware, if you get your position rejoice.

However in true Irish stoicism the men and women of all ages did what the Irish do best and had a laugh at the ridiculousness of it all and lined up on the start line for the craic…sure wasn’t the sun out in any ways.

Racing for my 3rd year in Masters I noticed some fresh new faces. All of riders of note of course the unknown element always a thing to be wary of. None more so than MAD’s own Experts Champion Oisin and IMBRC’s Luke and EPIC’s Alfie. We went off behind the Experts who were behind the Ladies and Juniors who were following the Elites all at 2 minute intervals.

The start was on a draggy climb that got harder as you went along the gradient rising until the first real climb, a slippery grassy climb used in many of the old school races of bygone times. The best grip up this was ferociously guarded by gorse that in the same bygone times would have been cut back…but bucking the trend in the current climate there would be no cut-backs made here! Arms became pin cushions in the fight for grip. I stuck with the early leaders, the new boy to Master and winner of Round 1 Dr. Oisin of MAD/UCD and IMBRC’s Robbie.

Cresting the climb and onto 200m of fireroad climbing still, close to the leaders still, until relief at the first decent of the day. A section that seemed to have been built by running a motocross bike down it a few times till the reeds (as in the stuff that grows by lakes) lay down making it possible to cycle your way down one of the multiple lines to a sharp right hander starting the rest of the climbing section of the course. The piece de resistance of the day. 200m of a stream/quagmire, unrideable by lesser mortals not blessed with the name Seymour, Davis or Sherlock (perhaps one or two others attempted to make a name for themselves here) but the vast majority deciding it was quicker to swim…sorry run than ride. Holding third place with 1st and second within comfortable reach the front group were all together as you could get on a track like this. With the next man behind me the Triathlete Adam Kelly of Wicklow Tri, perfect conditions for the multi sporter.

Another 200m fireroad climb brought us to the second piece of the day. 3 inches of mud most of the way down on a humpy bumpy trail of what words fail to describe. Needless to say there aren’t many times I’ve found running downhill faster than riding but this was definitely one of those times. Unfortunately I had to drop my chain into my spokes before realising this fact and forced to stop I saw my 3rd place dwindle rapidly to last. 5 minutes of tugging my chain (not in a happy way) I finally freed it and took up the chase.

The though of quiting while I was behind only entered my mind and then was cast away just as quick as I rode the rest of the 100m section…about 5minutes. However thankfully the rest of the trail was dryer (any chance the correlation between open skies, no trees and less mud was ever spotted by the organisers…who am I kidding).

Anyway I had work to do. Riding as fast as I dared, knowing its faster to ride slower and not stop than it is to ride out of control fast while constantly crashing…slow down to speed up…I gradually caught up to and slowly passed my fellow masters. Then heat and torture after the only bit of the hardcore trail “official” provided by the trail known only as “PAIN” was terrible. Aadded to slippery conditions found wheels and bikes and bodies all over the place and many opting again to run. Fortunately I was able to ride most of the time with only a few dabs on each of my 4 attempts in the race. I tried not to think about places, but passing by riders I recognised I tried to work out my position relative to where I thought they would be. More often catching people at the top and passing on the fireroad. The final singletrack used to be a favourite of mine but overuse, rain and some form of motorised vehicle had rendered it to muck in every sense of the word.

The only enjoyment coming from the roars of laughter of the EPIC hoard hanging around the old bomb hole hungry for jumping riders misfortune and harassing the cautious riders avoiding the jump! It was 5 seconds of almost World Cup like conditions (at least one where the Irish are cheering from).

The rest of the race ran the same each lap until the final lap and the final sprint, three riders ahead I didn’t know what race they were in but wanted to be first of them across the line. Only metres from the finish having passed 2 of them the 3rd from IMBRC must have heard one of us and picked up his speed just in time to counter my sneaky attack holding me off by less than a second…no need for a photo finish…but well done to Robbie. Also managed to find out he finished 4th so I was happy to have gotten that far up from last proving the lie of Lukes calls that I was nowhere near the leaders “8 minutes down, give up”!

Can’t say I enjoyed the course but in the end it was about the race and we all suffered the same conditions so if it was an equation the course should be cancelled out and the people you raced the only true values to recognise. Roll on round 3, Carlingford on the 3rd May 09.

[Submitted by Stu]

Monday 20 April 2009 - 09:44:10 by dave
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National Points Series Round 1,

Sherwood Pines, near nottingham...robin hood country

7km lap, lots of twisty singletrack, nothing really tech but a few ratty bits were we were clearing new trails..

about 20 min a lap so they gave us 7 laps!!
first race over 2hr 15.
Got the whole shot, led to the first fire road and sat up, then led monty out into the first ST section. Hung on about 4th, took the lead later in the lap to neutralise the race on the hardest section, soft pedalled and blocked.
to stop me going out the back basically when it went nuts upthe hardest part of the course.

Fell asleep on the fireroad at start of lap 2 and got swamped by the 17 man group into the st. about 14th. Then Dan Booth made a mess in the St and the gap was gone, 10 away in a group.

Spent the next 4 laps chasing to get back on, which I did only for the race to detonate again on lap 6.

Out the back legs gone!!
9th Place for me then

Caught Monty on the last lap, also legs gone, more gone than mine too [but him from too much jumping off the front] but let him have 8th as he needs the series points more than i do. For what its worth.

Won by Jody Crawfor in a 3 way sprint with Flecther[19] and oli Beck.

Adrain was in lead group but got taliled off in last 1km and finished 5th.

Good racing though.

should have raced before I got into this I think.
[Submitted by Bobby]

Monday 06 April 2009 - 09:26:58 by dave
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Des Hanlon Memorial – S3 1 Lap race – 29 Mar 09

Really hard. Tied to resist going off the front...but I wasn't very successful and was wrecked when they all steamed past on the draggy climb straight after. That’s the second race I've...third race I've done that in! Dummy! I got dropped by the whole group before the top, then hadn't the energy to bridge up. Fortunately a UCD rider had a mechanical and I passed him while he was stopped. A mix of the rest and the fact he was a complete horse meant he came storming back up behind me (I jumped on his wheel) and he got the two of us back to the main group. That was 22-24k into the race.

I managed to talk some sense to myself and I didn't go to the front again for at least another 13k. At that point we turned off th main road left and was totally surprised to see a nice punchy climb that would have suited me perfectly so I launched myself at it along with an attempted break. It would have been great except that when we turned the corner the rest of the hill showed itself. OMG! I had hit the start way too fast and was going to suffer. Still I changed gear and began to plug away and eventually the stream of riders passing me as I puffed up stopped and I managed to get into a group of 5. The lead group off up the hill I worked with my growing group of maybe 10 riders (sometimes at the front) and gradually after about 6k we got back onto the leaders again. Unfortunately about 2 k later we hit the next hill and having just bridged up were in no condition to chase as an attack went off. Once we leveled out a little the chase started but about 9 had got clean away.

Our group worked well. About 5 of us did the work at the front (at no time did I take the very front preferring to conserve my energy now) on the fast decent and flats over bridges etc till the final 5k came on the main Kilkenny-Carlow road. Tucked in behind one rider who seemed happy to drill at the front for about 3k, another rider moved up ahead of us upping the pace. Two riders ahead of me we stuck to each others wheel, I lost myself until I saw a big "200" sign painted on the road. "I wonder is that 200m mark to the finish” I thought. I could feel a load of riders breathing behind my back..."YEP!" Dropped the gears, big n' small, and just went for it, not even sure I could last the remaining 150m. But I did and won our sprint for 10th or maybe 15th or something. Deadly! Next time I'll be in the break and race a little bit more sensibly.

[Submitted by Stu]

Monday 30 March 2009 - 07:39:00 by dave
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K Capital Challenge Series

Monday 16 March 2009 - 12:09:36 by dave
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DTC

[Submitted by dave]

Saturday 14 March 2009 - 11:50:31 by dave
Posted in Misc | Comments: 1 |