[Closed] Vallelujah

Heavy rain forecast...

Yep - it gets worse every day I look at the forecast. Still time for it to change though.

Still time for it to change though.

lolz 😉

SS tyre not likely to be a good option this weekend! Will shred Spooky Woods though

My friend has entered it and has asked me down on Sat to join him for practise. Will I be allowed on the trails or I be stopped from using them.

Yeah you wont be allowed to ride them unless you're on a brightly coloured Santa Cruz I'm afraid

It says in the rider notes that only people with a number board will be allowed in the downhill sections. How well that is enforced I have no idea.

yeah bright Santa Cruz, goggles and bright kit, say "stoked" or "sick" a lot and you'll probably be fine without a number board

It's pretty impractical to enforce but the intent is pretty clear, I don't think the important question is will you be stopped or not tbh.

I have used the Minion SS successfully at the NDH Enduro at Kielder and BPW and it has been very impressive but thinking on steeper, slippery terrain I may switch out.

yeah bright Santa Cruz, goggles and bright kit, say "stoked" or "sick" a lot

How did you know what I looked like? 😉

How did you know what I looked like?

You're going to Glentress, that's what everyone looks like 😉

Northwind let us know where you are marshalling so we can shout at you! I'll be on an Mojo.

I'll be starting stage 5 apparently. And starting the day helping Hels polish roots or water the mud or something.

Polished roots no longer concern me with these big fat wheels I'm running 😆

Can't say the same about the mud since there has been none since I got it.

Thinking positive......it can't possibly be as muddy as last year!

Best of luck Julz!

Northwind
I'll be starting stage 5 apparently. And starting the day helping Hels polish roots or water the mud or something.

Good, at least at the start there's slightly less chance of you seeing me:

1. Fall off
2. Come to a complete stop in bewilderment
3. Hug a tree
4. Cry like a baby, asking for my Mummy

See you there 😀

Is there a race license required for this? There is no mention of it in the Riders Notes.

No

The only race licence I can think of would be a BC licence, and they walked away from enduro

You must have read page 8 of the riders notes particularly attentively:

"The race is open to all riders, and no licence is required."

Thanks Bob.

ehrob I missed that, hopefully you will enjoy yourself at the weekend and lighten up a bit.

So now I know what the stages are and IT BURNS!

Well Spooky was always a given wasn't it? And that's very burny to race, especially when followed by some blue

p p p poker face p p poker face

So, EWS 2015 stage 6 (I think) sees the light of day at last....?

So maps are out , looks like Zorro , fort downhill to peebles two over the other side then back for falla brae to finish ? looks good , plenty of climbing !

Where are maps? I haven't had email and couldn't see on website

Is there a race this weekend???

Spare ticket for the race, drop me an email richwak@yahoo.co.uk . Heading up to Glentress in an hour so can meet you to give you ticket from around 5pm this evening.

No map here yet but I heard the trails last week and spooky isn't in. From what I heard

S1 = Zorro and only the first steep natural bit after it
S2 = Zoom and Janets Brae
S3 = Cademuir trail
S4 = other cademuir trail
S5 = Falla Brae red/black with some new bits

Got the route maps email, I have no idea which ones which though

But disappointed to see that it's dibbers and did I read you can shuttle on saturday 🙁

You can shuttle but it's not a massive help. The transition from GT to cademuir is flat and quite short

Still not got the email....

I haven't got the email either but maps are here:

[url= http://tweedlove.com/onthehillside/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/EnduraWhyteVal16_125ai.pdf ]Map1[/url]

[url= http://tweedlove.com/onthehillside/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/EnduraWhyteVal16_34.pdf ]Map2[/url]

:-)Thanks, Ferrit

The fireroad section from the end of zoom to the start of janets brae was an absolute quagmire a few weeks ago because of all the forestry equipment that had been up and down it. Anyone known if it's been reinstated?

I didn't get the e-mail about maps either - did it contain any other useful information?

Hope everyone's ready for a great weekend of trail riding and racing. We're getting everything prepped, taped and fettled so we just need the weather to play fair and we're all good!

However... the weather may bring us cold weather, strong winds and rain - maybe even snow. Ah, fickle March. Please pack your kit and backpack accordingly. We will do our best to avoid queues at stage starts, but remember you may have to wait for a while or even deal with a mechanical in an exposed place.

You will be given a (virtually indestructible & waterproof) map at registration, so you don't need to print these ones.

Other reminders:
No course practice until Saturday, tracks closed on Friday.
Remember to bring your entry confirmation
Safety is no.1 - we'll need to confirm your emergency contact number, so please have it with you.
If you need to register for a friend, you must have a copy of their entry confirmation with you too.
Registration opens 08.30 on Saturday morning.
The car park on Sunday costs £3 - it would be great if you could have change for this. Normal FCS car parking charges on Saturday.
Check the riders notes for anything else, or drop us a line at info@tweedlove.com, we'll do our best to give you a quick answer.
More Stage Info:

Stage One: Walking On Water
Starts at The Mast, then down Mustard Snake, and Zorro. In essence a shortened version of the EWS 2014 stage.
Stage Two: Passover Fast
The classic descent to Peebles: Zoom Or Bust, a brutal short climb, The Fort descent and a techy finish near the Hydro.
Stage Three: Judas Was Here
Cademuir Classic featuring the quarry (watch out for sharp rocks!) and the lovely, but tricky, Vinyl Justice.
Stage Four: The Resurrection
We thought the Cademuir DH track was dead, after a storm turned the forest into matchsticks. But it's not, and has been through the IC unit to get ready for this event. Welcome back old friend.
Stage Five: Eggzit Stage Right?
Back to Glentress and an arena finish for the final stage. A tough physical challenge to finish on - GT7 bomb hole, Falla wall, Falla Brae, slalom field and your mates waiting to encourage you home. Maybe.

The Course is around 32km with 1100m of ascent and descent.

See you on Saturday!
The TweedLove Team

[i]The fireroad section from the end of zoom to the start of janets brae was an absolute quagmire a few weeks ago because of all the forestry equipment that had been up and down it. Anyone known if it's been reinstated? [/i]

It's about 10 yards long 🙄 and yes now fully rideable.

I bet everyone riding wished that the event was actually today (we had a stunning dry day ride in the 'valley' today), and not on the second of two forecast very wet days...

OK, who named Vinyl Justice?

[img] [/img]

Just hoping Falla and Zoom Or Bust are taped right tbh- we spent a lot of time fixing cornercut damage in both over the last year or so and Falla especially just won't handle it. I know it's too much to expect racers to stay on the trail...

If it's as wet as forecast im not sure I'll be able to stay on any sort of trail.

Still get to test out my new waterproof
( but yeah today's weather would've been much better)

b r

I bet everyone riding wished that the event was actually today (we had a stunning dry day ride in the 'valley' today), and not on the second of two forecast very wet days...

Ha! Just got up here after a lovely, completely dry, drive up from Manchester - hoping against hope, perhaps they've got the forecast wrong?

Anyway - what will be, will be - I'm still very much looking forward to riding these famed trails

This thread was making me very jealous to not be racing, until I saw the weather forecast.

Bet there might be some rapid tyre changes going on tonight / tomorrow night.... 😆

I was riding at innerleithen today and struggling with the lack of grip caused by all the dry crumbly dirt 😆 What a difference a day makes...

It's about 10 yards long

Uphill
After horsing yourself down zoom or bust
🙄 🙄 🙄

Ah, it's only ZORB this time, it's not like it's the full stage. Let alone the randomly extended EWS version where you start on a nearby hill then sort of commute to the proper start of the stage 😆

Bollocks. Wish I was doing this now.

Doesn't really look much new from what I can tell.

This thread was making me very jealous to not be racing, until I saw the weather forecast.

What do you mean? Looks like good Scottish enduro weather to me?

Yup, sign on tent trashed by wind
Has it been like this since last may?
It seems like exactly the same weather when I left this place at EWS with race teams rushing to collapse their tents before the storm hit

Its been blowing strong and raining intermittentley all night long. Cant see the beautiful view we had yesterday. Forcast for tomorrow looks better

Well that changed things ! Back and fed and showered after practice , did all of the glentress stuff and thought the weather ain't to bad and the trails seem fine , then was over cadmuir about 1 ish and the wind and sideways rain made things interesting . The only dodgy bit was the top of 4 was pretty muddy so that might be fun tomorrow but the rest of it was still riding fine . Enjoyed it though just hope my gloves dry out for tomorrow

Sign on has been moved up to the Peel Gateway- the big ugly box up the hill above the cafe- just in case anyone's still to get there. Weather never really materialised here, how's it been down there?

Just a typical scotish day , bit of everything ! Wasn't to cold until I got really wet after about 1 ish but it seems to of died of a bit , my phone says sun and thunder storms for tomorrow which I don't think there is a specific tyre for 🙂

moonsaballoon, do you want to borrow some spare gloves? i live in Peebles

Hi there ivnickkate thanks for the very kind offer but mine are currently on the radiator in our hotel room so I should be all good . Very nice of you to offer though

Brilliant day. Trails are cracking. Nothing mental, just lots of flow and smiles all round

Not a problem, moonsaballoon, enjoy yourself tomorrow. I've got a fun-filled family easter sunday 😕

Thought the trails today were great and have held up well considering how wet it's been. Stage 4 at cademuir is so much fun. 2nd bit of stage 3 wee but tricky for me in places.

Stage 5 is gonna be brilliant fun at the end as it's super slippy through that field in the flat corners.

Good luck everyone.

Never ridden cadmuir b4 so was great to ride some new stuff up here,

Missing golfie tho, gutted I can't do the international, have got an entry but twins are due around that time....

Stages 2&3 were riding well in the rain this afternoon 🙂

Could be a bit different tomorrow, but then I've got the sanctuary of being in a tent, so will have to rely on tales from the hill for the conditions.

Really enjoyed that!
My first enduro.
Mud was surprisingly reliable and grippy all around. Not tooooo many tricky roots.
Took it reasonably easy with no offs or big errors. Couple of dabs on stage 3.
Cademuir was easier in the morning yesterday.

Will probably return!
Time: 28:35

Kudos to the marshals at the start of stage 4, that wasn't a pleasant place to spend the day.

Yep, all the marshals brought a smile with them though! Much appreciated.
Hope they managed to swap. I heard a rumour of hot water bottles being shipped out!
It was surprisingly sunny and calm when we got to that one.

''Twas not sunny and calm when I got there!! Favourite bit of the day was a really wee kid screaming 'PIN IT" at me as I stumbled over some routes on the last stage. Ace day and a huge thanks to the marshals for enduring the enduro!

Weather make bunny cry!

[img] [/img]

Good day out for me, have to say I wasn't terribly sorry not to be racing! Nice to meet a bunch of stwists though mostly only for 20 seconds.

Awesome day, thoroughly enjoyed it. 4 took a good shagging since practice and saw me slide down the hill on my back screwing up the tactical glove change five minutes earlier. The push up to 4 was brutal. The bottom section was so fast and loose three of us bunched up and we were all laughing and shouting trying to stay in control. Felt like 5 was a waste of time in comparison to the previous 4, and seemed like it was there to act as a grand finish only. The free hat is a cracker!

Great day. Managed to watch the last bit of stage 5 from the comfort of the camper. Thanks to everyone who helped out and made it happen. Even the bunny was blue with the cold. Still raining. Some photos up already on Roots and Rain.

Loved it loved it loved it ! Was pretty cold by the time I got to 5 but had loved every minute up to then and enjoyed 5 once I got going . Big thanks to northwind and all the other marshals , I hope whoever was at the top of 4 gets a big curry and drinks bought for them all night .

Yeah top day out, trails held up quite well considering the weather, had a fair few sketchy moments.

Rainbow on top of stage 4 cheered me up loads after the endless push up
Great job by the Marshalls, nice to meet you bunny boy !
Stage 1 was shocking for me though, decided to wear goggles, which steamed up after the first few turns, so when I got to the woods I took a wrong'un on the first bit of mud and got catapulted of the bike. Then sprinted to the finish and totally forgot to dib out, so had to sprint back up the hill, definitely time to get some proper timing sensors !

Brilliant day out. The weather and mud just added to it for me.

Everyone was very friendly, good banter. Good to meet Northwind, despite me coming across as a bit creepy and saying you wont know me I am a lurker on the forums.

And it has confirmed one thing, I still cannot ride a mountain bike fast

Was so envious this morning, came out our room in the hydro for breakfast, to see two different bikes being wheeled out of rooms, all ready to race!. Fair do's though, the hotel seems to have really adopted the biking in the valley, and not looked down their noses at bikes in rooms. Bravo.

Most fun I've had on the bike in ages. Was pretty miserable pedalling from Janet's Brae to Cademuir but once we were back in the trees it was fine. Weather was mental though but just added to the fun. Trails were just the right mix of tech, steep and flow. Simply awesome.

Superb day,superb trails ,stayed on my bike all day which is a bonus, Im not made for traversing 😐 and had no more to give but happy with my riding, dropped a chain about 30ft from the start of stage 3. couldnt understand why I was spinning and nowt was happening, I was even pressing the shifter before I realised I had dropped the chain 😀 Northwind I think we had a couple of words, Im the guy that was ready to take away with my hood over my full facer 😯 , hypothermia was setting in by that point 😆

Results are now on RnR - https://www.rootsandrain.com/race3699/2016-mar-27-vallelujah-glentress/

Northwind, was that you in the rabbit suit at the start of Stage 5? I asked for chocolate - but I suspect quite a few asked the same. And we did get chocolate at the finish so I was happy.

Great day out. I wasn't fast - but loved every minute (well not the minute on stage 4 in which I stopped to let someone past, caught my shorts on the saddle, walloped my knackers and then went over the bars but every other minute).

Massive thanks to all the marshalls and organisers! Without you, these things just wouldn't happen!

Good day for Abigale. A few crashes on stage 4 managed to finish fourth overall in the womens and first in under 18 but was the only junior

euain - Member

Northwind, was that you in the rabbit suit at the start of Stage 5? I asked for chocolate

Hmm. How rude was I, would you say? 😆 I was going for comic rudeness but it can be hard to tell from generic me being a **** rudeness soooooo

Well I rode practice on Saturday and must have overdone it and felt too Ill to race.
I ended up marshalling stage four just below the top at the first fireroad so must have seen a few of you go past.
Really gutted I couldn't race 😥 .

Stage 4 from today.

Contains laughter, whoops of joy, swearing, blasphemy and comedy crashes

Looks mental fun. I really should try to get involved in one. 🙂