[Closed] TwentyFour12 roll call.

richmars - Member
Must get fitter for next yr.

You say that every year.
I did think of you Saturday night, but didn't miss the 3pm laps.
Hope to make it next year.

Ahem.....yeah, I do, don't I?!

Turned out good for me laps wise - I did the first one & then when it came to double lapping at night, I was first up at about 10:30am. So, then got a decent amount of sleep at a decent-ish time of the night.
Bryan got the wee small hours laps, much to his annoyance 🙂

hamishthecat - Member
but I felt the overall event lacked a bit of atmosphere compared with past years

Funny you should say that, as that's exactly what me and a mate were saying afterwards. For some reason, for us, there wasn't the same energy/atmosphere as previous years.

Sharki, great description......Plasticine alley..... 😀

What we had there at 24/12, is what i believe to be a proper MTB endurance course.

My first 24 hr solo, had a great time, great course and a great atmosphere.

stumpy01 - member
Funny you should say that, as that's exactly what me and a mate were saying afterwards. For some reason, for us, there wasn't the same energy/atmosphere as previous years.

First time for me and most of the other LVIS boys. I was really impressed by the course (which didn't turn to chod at the first drop of dew, unlike that other 24 hour race), the laid-back atmosphere and the effort the organisers had put in, lots of nice touches like the bin for your gel wrappers. It was a tough race and a number of us had offs or mechanicals but everyone finished smiling. Good to see Sharki, MTG, not to mention Singular Sam going all patriotic when the TDF was on.

richmars - Member

stumpy01 - member
Funny you should say that, as that's exactly what me and a mate were saying afterwards. For some reason, for us, there wasn't the same energy/atmosphere as previous years.

I know I'll the life and sole etc, but I didn't think you'd miss me that much!

Even though that was almost unintelligible, I know what you meant. And yes, you were missed - we were definitely lacking an air of high-brow sophistication. Although, you not lapping at 'whippet' pace did mean we all got more rest.
-You missed free beer/cheese on the Fri night too!!
- You missed camping in what can only be described as a nettle/thistle bed (which explained why no one else had pitched their tents there...
- You missed my face when I realised that the plastic bits that join the gazebo together were sat in the garage still & we'd have to go & buy another one!!

Anyhoo - we'll have to do Thetford soon.

What Hamish said about the Atmosphere, I just didn't feel it this year, both on track and from the spectators.

The course was good but I thought despite the mud 2010 was much more rewarding for your efforts compared to this year...perhaps the plasticine took it's toll.

I would normally sign up for the 24solo within days of them going up for sale, for 2012 I think i'll probably wait and see if anyone is selling one on xracer next june :/

Re the atmosphere on the track - why no music?
First time I did MM and Bonty24-12, there was music on certain sections of the track that really gave a lift.

The only time I got it this time was when a rider passed me with Green Day emitting from his backpack.
Whoever that was THANKS! it got Huey Lewis and the News out of my head!!

Other than the wierd rave thing going on near the moor 🙂

I did miss the mid lap music, was a good lift of spirits last year,
Why didn't the band play Saturday night, or that guy with the fire?

Ah yes the RAVE.

Oh how i mocked them when at at 4am i climbed that hill again and all was silent over there and at 6.30, not a sound..

Just no staying power have they, not like us ravers lol

That wasn't a "rave"! There was a bloke in a hi-vis jacket SWEEPING UP when I went past in the morning!

Was he sweeping up the swarf coming off your gear shifter Dez? 😉

Who mutilated the teddy bear then? At 3am it was sat there on a log as happy as can be then next lap it was in numerous pieces..must admit it kept me going with a smile on my face!

Know what you mean about the atmosphere.

We kind of concluded that there weren't so many folk there 'just for a good ride & a laugh' as in previous years but a lot more people taking it very seriously. Perhaps with things being a bit tight financially those that weren't looking to really race stayed home?

We stopped early following injuries & mechanicals but would probably have carried on a bit longer if there'd been more of a buzz about the place.

Was everyone who fell off OK in the end? Bullheart and I passed a prone figure off the last bombhole before the arena at about 4:10pm who was being helped by several other people (inc St Johns), but he didn't look great. He was in a white top with red writing.

Leave it you slag! er, the video, not the injured bloke 🙂

@Sharki - http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/wtd-9-speed-shimano-shifter-1 😉

We were camped up near that drop in & a few came down from there on a quad bike with a paramedic alongside 'em on Saturday and one in an ambulance Sunday morning around 7.15am.

The guy I helped after a huge over-bars-hit-tree-roll-down-bank moment on the whoops after the last long climb was certainly okay as I saw him lapping again about 12 hours later.

Well, I enjoyed myself. I preferred the course as it was in '08, the first year they were at Newnham, but hey, I'll live.

The lack of on course hardcore techno was a shame.

Who was doing pics?

Snapperchick was snapping all weekend and will have free to upload pics linked from the bonty site.. IIRC.

Good to see ya Andy x

Very good to see you as well mate!

[img] [/img]

Quite liked the quietness to be honest. The guys playing heavy metal near the top of the final descent put me in a good mood though.

The marshalls playing metal were brilliant. Came through on one lap to the start of Sweat Leaf by Sabbath! (although there was a Dire Straits moment too)

Course was hard work - lot tougher than Exposure in the rain, and I though that was hard!

Rode with Team Bullheart in a fun 6 /24hr.

I enjoyed the course . Yes it hard and technical , and seemed less rewarding than 09 . But still a very good mix of ups and downs. some signage needed moving before the corners , as opposed to after / on top of them but as time moved on memory kicked in and all was OK.

Nice to meet Graham again and said 'hi' out in the woods.

Now I am slow , but i try to be fast and put alot of effort in . The moron who came out with " You do realise the leaders are 15 mins in front of you by now dont you " as i overtook some mincers in the mud was priceless. It is a race .
I try to be polite and never barge past , and always try to say 'When its clear and safe for both of us let me know which side and I will be gone ' I try to check guys have spares if they have a puncture / mechanical .
One lass had a problemo so i stopped , ran back. She had snapped her mech hanger and was tryin to undo the hex bolt with a Torx tool. Sorted that v.quickly 'You will get the time back , won't you' errrrrrr , not unless you have a Tardis or a DeLorean in your camalbak , or there is a small wormhole or rip in the space time continuem i can sneak through , no, not really.

Plus apologies to the lad on the orange Kona HT who followed me down cottage at 0400 ish . My bar light fell off ( great timing) and switched onto strobe. Must have been very offputting with that blasting away up the track.

Great crowd ,good racing, no sleep, not enough tunes out on track .I would put in a 1/4 mile long disco section on one of the longer climbs , lights and everything. good toilets ,hot showers .. good fun.

Well done to all Team BH riders , and bryn WOOF.

Singletrackmind...

That was me. "lad"?? i'm 37!!
Dont worry about it. i was having a horrible lap, the strobe actually made me smile (which at 4am on a bad lap was great).

woo hoo. overall.. i though the course was fantastic and i have ridden every part of that course at some stage in the last few years! Just right for difficulty and climbs!

@ STM, Bryn was in no state to Woof last night, the joy!
Great description of the course Sharki, it was almost like riding it again, although obvously I had to read it slower to get a better perspective from my point of view!
Cheers again to one and all, especially the Bullheart teams.

Great weekend, have to admit to not being overly impressed with the course at first, but once I got to know it I was loving it. Too many people, myself included, were comparing it to the last 3 years and not giving it a chance. Yes having that brutal climb on cold legs straight out the arena was a bit pants, but ending on cottage and bursting into the arena on a high was amazing! I was running a 2.35 supertacky high roller up front, hard work but it made the roots and slippery rocks on the moors a doddle! One guy even abused me as I took the tighter line across the roots on a corner whilst he struggled with his silly race bike tyres! The 29ers seemed to be true kings on the course, every one I saw (there were a lot) seemed to just float around the course! I'm hoping the course stays similar next year, if it's dry it'll be amazing! We came 3rd in the 24hr just for fun team event, which was amazing as we are just a bunch of Sunday riders, but I guess that's what JFF is all about!
Does anyone know when snapperchick will be posting up the pics, and if anyone else took pics??

Does anyone know when snapperchick will be posting up the pics

snapper Chick was asked by Martyn to take photos which will be free to down load from the Twentyfour12 site. Spoke to her about an hour from the end and she said she had over 1,800 pictures to sort so might take a night or two.

Keep an eye on here or xcracer.com and sure a link will be added as soon as she's uploaded. there'll also be a video i believe. Also saw Rob and Ciaran Barker taking pictures and video, there stuff is always good quailty.

Brilliant weekend! Well organised event and a great route.
Got some photos and route map here: http://www.mbswindon.co.uk/photos-bontrager-twentyfour12-2011/

I'm definitely up for sleepless in the saddle now.

cut from XCRacer.com

The full set of Twentyfour12 photos (2302 pictures in all) will be on their way to XCRacer by the end of today. That still leaves the considerable task of getting them all loaded onto the website. Rest assured Martyn has his best people on it!

Have fun,

Snapper Chick

I've just bought a full suss frame in preperation for next year :-/

and [i]then[/i] that will be my last 24 solo!

Great course, nice event, good to meet some new faces etc. Loved the course, but it was hardwork on the brain when soloing particularly in the wee small hours when it got proper slippy as well - I'm not sure I could cope with anything more sustainededly technical for 24 hours.

Unfortunately the right forearm I smacked up at 10 at Kirroughtree two weeks ago and was almost better fell to bits again, well, metaphorically and I had to stop for a few hours to rest it, then got back on and did a few more laps the next morning.

I'm not really bothered, but it seems daft that technically I'm behind people who didn't even finish the race. Surely a DNF is a DNF is a DNF?

My first 24/12 and my first attempt at a 24 solo, so I was pretty pleased/astonished to get on the podium.

Anyone know how long each lap was? I took my speedo off to stop myself from getting demoralised 😕

about 9.2miles

[i]Surely a DNF is a DNF is a DNF?[/i]

I think the results work well, it seems silly that in races like the muc-off event last year, you could ride all day yet decide to finish 15 minutes before the end due to mechanicals or injury etc, and despite all the effort exerted, you don't even get to see how you measured up to the competition.

The people who beat you just managed more laps before taking some time out, it just so happened that their time out was at the end of the race whereas yours was in the middle.

I'd be disappointed if they changed the results to a DNF for any person that didn't cross the finish after 12. Plus you'd get the group of riders waiting for the minute hand to tick over before riding over the line, so they don't have to do another lap!

xcwanabe - Member

about 9.2miles

😯 😯 Well, that is easily my longest bike ride ever then. I thought I was a bit tired!

Plus you'd get the group of riders waiting for the minute hand to tick over before riding over the line, so they don't have to do another lap!

I think that happens anyway! After only ever stopping for food, a couple of number 1's and a number 2, I threw in the towel at 11.45, I must admit i was tempted to have a tactical 16 minute rest just before the bridge back into the arena. 😆

Boring / predictable but i've been wondering about tyres since the 24/12....
I always felt I had the wrong tyres...I started with some Conti Speed kings which I thought may be great if muddy and help lighten me up, but found they were proving lethal in the woods and I missed the confidence of my normal Advantages and swapped back to 2.25 advantages, my confidence came back, but they felt draggy in the mud...

Did anyone feel that they had a good tyre set up for the conditions / track?

Anything will drag in that fudge. Sometimes riding down the margin/grass/undergrowth were it is bumpier but firmer means the bike rolls way better, which is why in tacky conditions race course 'singletrack' seems to end up 5 miles wide.

Something with some knobble was the ticket for cornering. Nowt will stick to greasy polished roots, as I found out myself after a mistimed hop about 2am ... twice in the space of about 100 yards.

No tyre would deal with the mud the other side of the river it was like glue. Think i saw afew torq team runnin rocket rons. But i could still hear them dragging when they went passed. My advantage front and back kept me happy loads of grip on the ups and rocks then quick enough everywhere else and not a single puncture !

I had Hutchinson Toros which worked well - I think a pair of 2.0 Medusas would have been ideal though: Mud tyres that roll fast (oxymoron if they didn't actually exist!)

Specialized storms front and back worked well on all but some of the lose rock on the moorland. I don't reckon there's been a tyre invented that could've dealt with "plasticine alley".

I did toy with the idea of swapping to something a little less draggy but glad I didn't in the end.

I had Kenda Nevgals running tubeless and they were mint 🙂

IME the course was either grippy enough for summer-ish tyres in places, or not grippy at all on anything (polished roots, 15cm loose rolling rocks at end of the moorland descent).

FWIW I had a fairly worn SB8 pumped up fairly hard on the back and a 25% worn NN at about 30-35psi on the front, didn't find it any more or less sketchy or draggy than last year on mud x's. Although I only rode after midnight, i hear it was a bit faster and easier in the sunny afternoon. As per sharki's ace description earlier, it seemed to me be more about the line choice and the considered application of brakes or pedalling in places. Which of course i was all over the shop with by the end!

racing ralphs (2.4) were awful on fridays practice lap but pretty good all weekend. bit slippery on the off camber rocks between the rocky 2nd climb and the farm though.

I ran two knobbily hoops of rubber pumped up hard.

Front was less knobby on the middle and i think a 2.3 where as the rear had closely spread big knobbles throughout and a 2.2.

I think the results work well, it seems silly that in races like the muc-off event last year, you could ride all day yet decide to finish 15 minutes before the end due to mechanicals or injury etc, and despite all the effort exerted, you don't even get to see how you measured up to the competition.

The people who beat you just managed more laps before taking some time out, it just so happened that their time out was at the end of the race whereas yours was in the middle.

I'd be disappointed if they changed the results to a DNF for any person that didn't cross the finish after 12. Plus you'd get the group of riders waiting for the minute hand to tick over before riding over the line, so they don't have to do another lap!

Well, that's how most 24-hour races do work. Like I said I'm not massively worried about it, it's just unusual.

Thanks to Sharki for returning Nikky's phone. She was camped with the MB Swindon crew and sharing our solo tent.
Hello to everyone who said hello to me while I was riding, both to other riders and to people trackside, it really does make a difference to have some encouragement while riding.

My race here on Garmin Connect in two goes as I swapped GPSs through the night.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/101926460
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/101926293
Only about 15 hours moving time in total. 🙁

I knew it was going to be hard, I'm just not a hill climber.
I did 8 laps by midnight, then lost all motivation. I had about a 3 hour break where I couldn't face going out to push up those hills again, did one more lap, then had another 3 hour break before going out for a final 4 laps in the morning light.

20th solo male out of 47 starters, so still top half. There were about 65 pre entered. I guess 18 people looked at the rain on Friday and gave up without even trying.

Loved the random soft toys dotted about the course, wonder who stole the gel from the squirrel!

I can at least claim to be the man that [i]left[/i] the gel with the Squirrel. For some reason I found it amusing at the time, but even funnier two laps later when someone had eaten the gel and left the wrapper with the squirrel to look after. 😆

Somebody gutted one rabbit/squirrel around the next woody section before the last descent down to the camp-site! Cheered me up somewhat as I was struggling

I used Maxxis high roller 2.35 single plys because they're the only tyres I've got and I love them.
I overinflated the front and had an off on the first bit of slippery rock. I was thinking "piece of piss this bit" and the next thing was the front wheel washing out and me hopping with the bike under me. I ended up still on my feet but with the bike through the tape and pointing down the hill.

Lower pressure (30-35 psi ish) on the front helped. After that it was a matter of careful use of brakes and rolling over a lot of the stuff. Really good fun IMO.

Thinking of tricky bits, those big roots going up past a tree on the second half were great. The bomb hole with the sharp left at the top of it at the top of that hill caught me out a few times too.

Brilliant route.

I wrote a quick blog on my "experience" 🙂

[img] [/img]

http://www.cyclistno1.co.uk/blog/bontrager-twentyfour-12.htm

Graham, Tell her i wasn't chasing a podium position so it wasn't any hastle in loosing 30 secs on the lap..

8)

Well, if we're doing blogs of experiences, short post about my pit bitching.

[url= http://www.dislocatedmtb.com/2011/07/lifes-pit-bitch.html ]http://www.dislocatedmtb.com/2011/07/lifes-pit-bitch.html[/url]

AAH foxyrider you rode with us... its a small world 🙂 Nice blog mucker!

Stu

Hey foxyrider
Just read your blog, some nice photos. Don't know how one of your riders came second in the female 12hr solo though, that was me 😉

It was a good course, probably the best I've ridden there yet as the singletrack sections being a bit slippy let me gain back time on the fitter guys who weren't quite as confident on the slippy stuff. The cottage return has to be the highlight of the lap, although the speeds I was hitting down there were getting silly towards the end and a mistake would have resulted in a major crash. I ran small block 8's tubless, were fine all day. They slid a bit on the rocks in the evening, but were predictable enough to still go hard on the downs.

We battled hard to take 3rd in the main 12hr pairs, but after around 10 hours had to conceed defeat to the Clee Cycles / KCNC boys. Two years running now we've taken the coverted 4th palace spot.

My team mates Dad took a load of photos on the first few laps, and they are all up on the MTBMonkey website here ([url= http://www.mtbmonkey.com ]www.mtbmonkey.com[/url]) for download.

Cheers Stu - nice to ride with you 🙂

@Sok - oops typo - 1st in 12hr solo and and 2nd in 24hr team - thanks for the correction 🙂

Rich sorry missed you at the end... good effort you put andy to shame haha 🙂

@Sok - oops typo - 1st in 12hr solo and and 2nd in 24hr team - thanks for the correction

not to mention a 1st in the vet 24 team (3rd overall) too 🙂

photos are up BTW:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/65912551@N03/6002834972/