What a weekend! The National Champs at Kirroughtree was an absolutely stunning way to finish the National XC season. And for the first time ever we had a British Short Track Champs as well.
All images: Man Down Media.
Short track was on the Friday night with stripy jumper, cash, bragging rights and UCI points on offer. And because this is often the XCO and XCC Champs weekend across the rest of the World as well, it meant there were no clashes with the UCI international calendar. Hence we had the best of the UK XC racers in one place on the domestic scene, apart from Tom Pidcock who was doing something on skinny wheels somewhere else.
In the women’s race it was Elena McGorum (Peebles CC) who got the holeshot and led the race round the start field to the climb. Elena has won the elite national points series overall this year but she really wasn’t expecting to be leading out a field including Evie Richards and Annie Last.
She said later she couldn’t quite believe it, got a bit giddy, and may have blown her doors trying to keep up once they all dug in. Who cares? She led the race out in style.
After the first lap it had settled into two groups of two leading the way. Annie Last (Scott Racing) and Evie Richards (Trek Factory Racing XC) were just ahead of Isla Short and Hattie Harden (Trek Factory Racing XC).
The gap between these two groups didn’t really change for most of the race and there was a sprint finish to decide the winner, with Annie outsprinting Evie. Hattie had just pulled ahead of Isla to finish the podium. Christina Wiejak (St Piran) came a very creditable fifth.
The men’s race was also very fast and had a lot more lead swapping. Rory McGuire (Leslie Bike Shop) led them off the field and into the first lap. A group of seven riders then got a gap and started swapping the lead around between them.
There was some tactical positioning within the group of Corran Carrick-Anderson (T-Mo Racing), Cam Orr (Team Inspired), Cam Mason (Trinity Road Racing) Joe Blackmore (Team Inspired), Harry Birchill (Scott Racing), Rory McGuire and Charlie Aldridge (Scott Racing), the current European XCC Champ for a few laps before Charlie and the two Cams got a break ahead of the other four.
Charlie got a further break coming into the camping field for the final time and took the win for his first National title and adding another special jersey to his collection. Cam Orr was second, Cam Mason third with Joe Blackmore and Corran Carrick-Anderson fourth and fifth.
My sympathies to the bloke who stacked it on the line. The chap in front of him had wheelied over the finish line so he thought this was a great way to end a race in style. He said he knew very soon that it was all going wrong. He went backwards, landed flat and winded himself big time. His saddle hit the floor at what must have been the entirely wrong angle and snapped off. Luckily it didn’t go into his leg which everyone was mightily relieved about. Hope you’ve recovered, fella.
That was an exciting start to the weekend.
Galloway Hillbillies had been busy building a course worthy of the championships and there was plenty of new, fresh-cut loamy goodness to ride. That was the Friday. I’d had a quick look at the course and there were plenty of challenges. Long climb up, awesome descent down with some good tricky tech sections.
However, rain then fell for most of Saturday and the course started to change quite a lot. Loamy goodness turned into slippy roots, mud and some interestingly tricky tech sections during practice. The commissaire team and the course builders were watching to see how the course was bedding in and weathering.
The rain was forecast to continue over night into Sunday but then it was due to dry up. Because of all that the Comms didn’t announce lap numbers until the Sunday morning when they’d had chance to reassess the course. That’s not an ideal situation but it’s the safer call in a situation like that.
Mostly though, people were loving the course, several proclaiming it the best of the season. Others did feel it was too challenging for them. As Colin (Not From) Bradford said, “It’s too much for me but it’s good there’s such a hard course for the Champs. I need to go away and do more riding like that.” And let’s just say that skinny, low profile XC tyres have their time and place. There was a lot of discussions about tyre choice and Schwalbe Tim was kept busy until well into the evening. Does him good.
The kids’ session for what are affectionately known as the ‘undies’ in Scotland (under 8, under 10, under 12 – see, makes sense) went on in the pouring rain. Skin’s waterproof and all those cliches usually spouted by parents safely under an umbrella.
The skills sessions included a spiral of doom, plus the Not a Race race round the short track course. Then medals and haribo and stickers and all the things that make racing not a race worthwhile.
Now before we get into the racing we need to make sure we all understand that Championship race categories are not the same as the series race categories. No, it doesn’t make sense but there it is.
And not all races are championship categories. Ok?
Right, this is how it works. Normally we have Juvenile, Youth and Junior for the under 18s and then Sport, Expert and Elite for over 18s depending how good you are.
Then we have Vets (40+), Grand Vets (50+) and Super Vets (60+).
However, for the Championships we have the Juvenile, Youth and Junior as usual but then U23s and Seniors for the 18-29s.
Then the random category of Masters is dusted off for 30-39 and we have Vet cats as sort of normal.
However, the Masters and Vet categories are then split into five year age groups so we end up with far too many podiums and a great deal of confusion.
The five year age groups are not championship categories so they don’t get a stripy jumper but they do get a medal.
Another however, is that you need at least three to make a category so in effect there are fewer prizes in the women’s race.
Glad that’s all clear.
On the Saturday afternoon we had the Open race as normal plus then the Male Expert and Sport racers who didn’t want to take part in the Champs races the day after. Prizes but not stripy jumper for them.
It became clear during the Saturday races the rain had made a big impact on lap times as everyone took longer than expected to get round the newly muddy course. Jared Linden (Livingston CC) took the win in the non-Championship Sport and Expert class comfortably ahead of Neil Scott (Deeside Thistle) and Sam Holder (Liverpool Century).
Sofia Christiansen (Galloway Hillbillies) comfortably won the Female Open class with Charlotte McDowell second and Katrina Jenkinson third. Sofia usually races Expert but she’s Swedish so despite having been here for 20 years couldn’t race in the Championships. A sort of non-local local now.
In the Male Open it was Josh Matthews with a commanding win, Sam Gurling second and Mike Harper (Alba Rosa) third.
There was then another practice session and more course inspection to bring Saturday to a close.
To the lady who made a tune request and kindly wrote it down for me I apologise. It was on the piece of paper for the Not A Race race and got too soggy to read by the end of the day.
Sunday dawned not exactly bright but dry at least. Comms had another poke at the course and announced their lap decisions. For the Youth and Juvenile race at 9am the grass corners on the start lap were incredibly greasy.
You know when 14 year old boys are mincing gingerly round a corner it’s not in ideal racing condition. But the advantage of sending a load of youngsters out first is that they dry the track off for the old men race that follows. Youngsters bounce much better than older men.
Joking aside, there were no major casualties over the weekend. Bruises, scrapes etc but nothing too nasty. The course actually dried quite well (mostly) through the day with the rain only appearing for the final race of the day.
Aelwen Davies (RR23) had a stonking race to take the jersey in Juvenile females. She and Zoe Roche (WXC) have had some great battles this season in the series, with Zoe taking the overall. This weekend it was Aelwen’s turn. She escaped in the singletrack on the second lap and never looked back, pulling out a good lead by the finish. Zoe was second with Mazie Harper not very far behind her.
In the Male Juveniles Leon Atkins (Welwyn Wheelers) defended his title from last year from start to finish. He also won the series so that’s been a great season for him. Gus Lawton (Pentland) came second in the battle behind Leon, with Arthur Limb (Matlock) picking up third.
Daisy Taylor (Royal Albert) did as she’s been doing all season in Youth Female and led from start to finish. Madeline Moorhouse-Smith (Shibden) had a strong ride to take second ahead of Tulsi Bakrania (WXC).
Sadly Evie Strachan (RR23) had tested positive for Covid on the Thursday so wasn’t able to join the battle. Team mate Becca Woodvine had the ride of her season to finish fifth just behind Lucy Allsop (Welwyn Wheelers).
Both of Grace Ward’s parents pointed out to the commentary team that it was her 15th birthday – thanks to the folks in the pits for giving her a good cheer as she came through. She said it was a bit embarrassing but gave her a lift on a tough course.
Bethany-Ann Jackson, usually somewhere in the mix, retired after the first lap when her rear brake failed. Something about not fancying technical descents with only one brake. She’s one of the Jackson Five (if you include the dog) and it meant dad Richard got rare bragging rights as he finished highest ranked of the family.
In the Male Youth category Max Standen (Southfork Racing) came top of a very strong field with Oscar Gaylor (Team RL360 Isle of Man) in second just ahead of Alex Hart (Mid Shropshire Wheelers). I’m sorry we didn’t shout your name all that much Oscar but your number board was filthy and I wasn’t entirely sure which Isle of Man rider you were. Han’s top tip – clean your number board in muddy races. Behind them Nathanial Henderson (Hetton Hawks), Ben Coppola (Four4th) and Innes McDonald (Edinburgh RC) fought for fourth, fifth and sixth. It’s been a really competitive category this season and great to watch. Hard to commentate on at times but great to watch.
In Male Masters Ross Thorley (Manx Viking Wheelers) beat Daniel Moore (Muckle CC) and Nathan Wilson (Wilsons Wheels) after a race with a constantly changing lead for the first few laps. Sometimes you don’t know why someone who was up there on one lap disappears the next time around. Mechanical, blown their doors etc but on a muddy course sometimes there are little tell tale signs. Not naming any names but some people did have very muddy shoulders and thighs.
Adrian Lansley absolutely dominated the Vet class to defend last year’s title beating Matt Lawton (Macclesfield Wheelers) and Philip Holywell (Peak Road Club) to the jersey. Series winner Marc Chamberlain with his bright orange gloves said it just wasn’t there for him on the day. Alan Gunner who has returned to racing this year after a rather long lay off was back after Covid and seemed to be making wild promises on Instagram that he was going to get some up to date equipment such as tubeless tyres and a dropper for next year. Watch this space.
Nick Craig (Scott Racing) led the Grand Vet class pretty much from the start successfully defending his jersey and adding yet another one to his collection. Ian Taylor (Shibden) had a strong race to finish second ahead of Doug Cameron in third.
In Super Vets Pete Harris (Pearce Cycles) defended his jersey ahead of Grant Johnson and Bruce Rollinson (All Terrain). ‘Arris is a bit of a demon on technical descents so the course played right to his strengths. He’d be caught and left on the ups but then stormed back to the front on the downs. Does a bit of enduro on the side apparently.
In the female Senior category we had some more great racing just as we’d had on Friday night in XCC. At first it appeared it was going to be a rerun of Friday as Annie Last and Evie Richards broke away from the rest of the field. However, Annie was clearly on fire this weekend and pulled away from Evie (one of the ones with a muddy shoulder so maybe there’s a clue), extending her lead slightly more every lap. Second Champs jersey for Annie.
Last year’s winner Isla Short finished third and, again in a seeming repeat of Friday, Hattie Harden would have been fourth but was racing U23. Back to them in a moment. Grace Inglis (Muckle Cycle Club) was fourth and Amy Henchoz rounded off a good season with a fifth. Commiserations to Christina Wiejak who had a crash resulting in a dead leg and a DNF. Racing is rubbish sometimes.
Back to the U23s. They started three minutes behind the Senior women. Does that give Hattie’s win (and fourth in senior) a bit more context? Thought so. Outstanding ride. Clearly the enduro she’s been racing meant the techy descent was very much her style of riding. Elena McGorum (Peebles) was second and Anna Flynn (Spectra Wiggle) third.
Ella Maclean-Howell (Tofauti Everyone Active) comfortably won the Female Junior race ahead of Emily Carrick Anderson (T-Mo Racing). So that’s Champs to Ella and series to Emily. Kacey Eyeington (Derwentside CC) took third ahead of Libby Bell (Garden Shed UK). Behind them Evie Steed (Sherwood Pines), Florence Lissaman (Newark Castle), and Daphne Jones (RR23) spent the race swapping places fighting for the lower positions.
Spare a thought though for Christina McGorum (Una Forza) who had a disastrous first lap with a mechanical which put her completely out of the running. And then there’s poor old Kylie Vaudin whose season it really has not been. She started the year recovering from Covid, sadly a common theme, was getting better when a horse stood on her foot. We’re talking 17 hands of horse here, not a small pony, so her foot wasn’t overly happy. She and her dad had set off from Guernsey on the long trek north when Ade realised he hadn’t actually entered the race for either of them. Many phone calls later that got sorted. Then Kylie tested positive for Covid again. There are words for seasons like that but even Singletrack won’t publish them.
In the female vets Ceris Styler took the win ahead of Helen Jackson (Kendal Cycle Club) after Helen’s early lead. Ruth Fraser-Moodie had a great ride to take third which seemed to surprise her quite a lot. Last year’s winner Max Filby was unfortunately defending the other jersey she won last year up at the DH in Glencoe. She won the DH again but was a bit gutted not to have chance to defend XC as well.
In the combined Grand and Super Vets class Virginia Roberts (Albion Cycling Co) took the win, clearly delighted, ahead of Lindsay Newman (Pedal Power Loughborough) and Carolyn Spiers (Kendal Cycle Club). At least combining the classes meant Carolyn could race the same number of laps as the younger women without any argument. She got a special beer as well to make up for the lack of stripy jumper.
Then we had the final race of the day just as the rain started again. At least the course had dried out quite a lot but it meant the grassy corners became very greasy again. I saw quite a few wobbles on the grassy corner after the pits.
In the Senior race we had a few tight laps before Cam Orr (Team Inspired) took advantage of Cam Mason’s mechanical to disappear out of sight of the rest of the field for the win. Thomas Mein (Hope Factory Racing) took second ahead of Isaac Mundy (Spectra Wiggle). He was chased in by the unfortunate Cam Mason (Trinity) with Ben Wadey and Jason Bouttell not far behind. Good to see Max Gibbons (Orbea) actually finish a race without incident. He’s also had an unfortunate season and managed to have to have his head glued back together after a surfing incident following the last round.
In the U23 there was plenty of jostling for places in the early laps. A polite insistence that they take turns at the front. The race gradually began to break up and Charlie Aldridge (Scott Racing) broke away to take his second Championship jersey of the weekend. His lead was coming down rapidly on the last lap though as he had a flat rear tyre and Joe Blackmore (Team Inspired) was chasing hard. Rory McGuire (Leslie Bike Shop) had a great ride to take third with Corran Carrick-Anderson (T-Mo) fourth and Joe Beckinsale (Wales Racing Academy) fifth.
In Male Juniors Max Greensill (Hope Factory) broke away to take a stunning win with Bjoern Koerdt (Shibden) in second and Nathan Smith (Hope Factory) in third. You can tell Bjoern has been racing more road recently. He wore white socks pulled up to just the right level. Not the right colour for a muddy course.
One more special mention goes to Will Lezard who raced XCC, the non-Champs sport class and U23 as well. He got a special spot prize.
So that was that. What a fantastic weekend. Constantly changing weather and therefore conditions. Congratulations to all the riders and thanks for putting on a weekend of great racing. It really was very special.
Thanks to Galloway Hillbillies and SXC for the course and race organisation. Well done especially for having coffee in both event fields and having the genius idea of a recovery ice cream seller. Girvan Gelateria. Can recommend them. Thanks to all marshals, commissaires, and all those helping in any way, especially through the pouring rain on the Saturday.
To our guest podium prize presenters Tracy Moseley, Nick Craig and Kathy Gilchrist (yes, she was still sorting biscuits into her own special hierarchy) go our thanks. Next time stay far away from Joolze and she’ll not bully you into little jobs.
Prizes were generously given by:
- SXC
- Schwalbe Tyres
- Vertebrate Publishing
- Torq Fitness
- Hope Technology
- Grity Sustainable bike kit
- Five Kingdoms Brewery
I’d also like to pass on my personal thanks to those who bought me coffee from Bumble Beans while I was stuck in the middle of a field with a mic. Thank you lovely lady in the pits and Mr Spectra Wiggle guy. I don’t know your names but you are beautiful people.
It’s been a great XC season. There’s a few local races left but that’s it at national level. Something something cross is something.
