never done this before, going for the atmosphere and a laugh for something different. is it really as i often read, like riding round muddy fields. i'm not expecting 10@kirroughtree or dalby world cup but hope it has some good riding.
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mayhem, really like riding round muddy fields?
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Posted 11 months ago #
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If it's dry,it's great...But if it rains a lot it gets a tad muddy & people fall off everywhere....
Posted 11 months ago # -
fields and a tarmac climb
atmosphere? hope you are with a big group of mates, it's a bit big for atmosphere, still good though, not knocking it
Posted 11 months ago # -
yeh, big group:-)
Posted 11 months ago # -
It used to be. In 2003(?) it moved to Eastnor which is very much like typical cotswold riding. A mixture of singletrack and cart tracks. Bloody hilly and turns into the somme when it rains.
SiTS is still pretty much riding around fields.
Posted 11 months ago # -
Oh yeah,forgot,it's got a great atmosphere
Posted 11 months ago # -
People who trot out the old 'riding around a field' cliché have never done it.
Posted 11 months ago # -
sorry jase - ive done it
its riding round fields comparitively to scottish racing
you have been up here you know what i mean ! its a great atmosphere - if i was doing it again id do it in a team with some beer - thats the kinda terrain .... i did enjoy it - was one of my best results because it was so flat and im used to so much climbing.
did loose the feeling in both hands for a week - thought it was nerve damaged
Posted 11 months ago # -
In the wet it's a waste of time, in the dry it's great.
Posted 11 months ago # -
We get our best results in the rain. Every body else goes home!
Posted 11 months ago # -
How could being used to climbing make you good on a flat course?
Posted 11 months ago # -
+1 Terrahawk.
There are typically three sections per lap which cross what would be described as fields. Probably c1/1.5 miles per lap (of c9 miles).
I personally think there's plenty to keep most riders well occupied!Posted 11 months ago # -
because it was so flat and im used to so much climbing.
that's bollocks. (sorry)
Posted 11 months ago # -
People who trot out the old 'riding around a field' cliché have never done it.
I think the main reason people take the piss is because of the name - it does kind of imply a crazy Megavalanche type event or something
Although on this video at about 35s there is a guy who stacks it on a flat grassy section, that looks pretty gnarly.
Posted 11 months ago # -
think it was 2008 i did it ...
i recall one climb to the tower then up the back to the off camber mud fest , then up through the field to the descent through the field to the arena field ....
up kenda climb to the red bull tent - down to the field - gentle gradiant up there - steep little climb at the end , gentle climb through the woods and decend and cross the field to the finish area.
id take that any day as a much easier course climbing wise than relentless
maybe its changed an it relentlessly goes up kenda climb adnauseum for 24 hrs.
Posted 11 months ago # -
looks like whoever filmed that didn't leave the comfort of the campsite
Posted 11 months ago # -
Its not flat! I struggle with an 18 tooth sprocket on some of the climbs.
I think the course is great with a mix of open fields round the arena/campsite with plenty of spectating, singletrack in the woods and a few jeep tracks - up and down on each.
Its good and fast in the dry but even better in the wet with lots of slippery off-camber stuff which really tests skills judging by the number of people laying in the mud!
And there's less midgies than Scotland
Posted 11 months ago # -
i did love that off camber mud fest though. mainly because it was where i was riding passing folk in the night who had minutes earlier come past screaming " team rider " trying to get there bikes off them from down the bank still clipped in.
Posted 11 months ago # -
Bloody hell Terry, now you've let the cat out of the bag that MM is easy....!
Posted 11 months ago # -
didnt say easy
muddy grass is still bloody hard work which ever way you look at it Posted 11 months ago # -
midgies, can do without those:-)
Posted 11 months ago # -
......no its not really like riding round a muddy field. if you were fortunate enough to do the 1st lap (i did, while my mates laughed) it was actually running round a muddy field:-0 then it got better, i thought it was quite a good lap
Posted 11 months ago # -
I've done it and there were plenty of fields and fireroads involved. I went to re-live my yoof and fly out of the Bombhole, but instead of flying all the way down the hill in to it (to impending broken bones...) the run in was about 10ft and utterly gay. The atmosphere / mates etc was good but the racing / course totally sucked.
Posted 11 months ago # -
As Jase said, it's a long way off flat and there's a lot of people on here who slag it off with no first hand experience and based on a photos taken from the start/finish or campsite clearly haven't got a clue. It's a nightmare in the mud (2008 was probably the worst year ever - followed closely by the muddiest SITS ever) and fast in the dry. Very few fields too! (Sandwell was most fieldy, whilst Catton is deceptive).
I've done several solos there and 10 Under Ben (not Relentless) and I found singlespeeding easier at Fort William (as the climbs tended to be steady long climbs which suit me). Having said that Scottish courses are ace and more weather proof!
Posted 11 months ago # -
I think the course was a bit rubbish. Lots of graft for very little gain or fun. Great event though.
Posted 11 months ago # -
To be perfectly honest, having done it, I'd not choose to travel all that way and suffer the expense of doing it, although I did actually enjoy it in a strange sort of way.
Did it SS, 32:18 which meant proper grinding away on some of the climbs. Very satisfying to do all of them without stalling, bar the top of the Kenda climb, but that was just impossible on a SS tbh; just spun out on the mud.
Horrible in places, like Plasticine, as one feller I spoke to put it. Very apt description. Proper slog.
Might not be the toughest course to those who do these sort of events a lot, but it's tough enough for many of us. A challenge, something to be endured rather than enjoyed. I'm with Bully on this one. I'd rather do something like Swinley, which is quite 'flat', yet has some great swoopy singeletrack trails and is actually not too bad in the wet.
Lovely view from the top of the climbs, although I fear this aspect may possibly have been lost on some of the other riders who just looked at me funny when I mentioned this.
Posted 11 months ago # -
Kenda climb, but that was just impossible on a SS tbh; just spun out on the mud.
I beg to differ, except for the time I snapped my SRAM powerlink just near the top
But I just couldn't get up past the obelisk after passing the campsite mid-lap, although my team-mates didn't struggle with that 
I thought it was a great course. Harder than other events I've done. Legs still burning from the pain!!!
Posted 11 months ago # -
to me it seems just a money making exercise, charging people to ride round an 9 mile course,
i might be wrong but i read some where there was about 2500 people doing it at about 60 quid ago seems like a lot of money to me, i have to say like any event of this type that they do it for the money, as for the people that say you havent tried it, i havent and no intention
i have a great 10 mile loop right near my house i can ride for free
Posted 11 months ago # -
I clocked 1400ft of climbing in 10.4 miles, that's not exactly flat. It wasn't very rewarding though, what comparatively little descending there was wasn't very good I didn't think!
i have a great 10 mile loop right near my house i can ride for free
And where does that logic stop? Why bother road racing, there are roads everywhere? Why do the World Cup, there are some great trails around you can ride for free?
It's a profitable event, but that logic seems a little flawed!
Posted 11 months ago # -
A lot of the posts miss the point. It's not about riding the best trails in the country, it's about being at a large event, where you meet lots of interesting people. I could stay at home and listen to music or go to a gig. I could look at pictures of Rome online, or go to Rome. When there I'd be overcharged for food, jostled by crowds, but I'd have been in Rome. On the money making side, if you paid your entry, turned up and there was an empty field, then fair enough - but providing facilities costs money.
Posted 11 months ago # -
i've done 10 under the ben and 10@ kirroughtree and rate both courses higher than this one. as in more fun, more technical in parts but nicer flow too and less climbing (i think). however, all the negative comments i've read about mayhem course are not deserved, it has some good bits and its certainly tough enough.
Posted 11 months ago # -
i doubt it cost about £160,000 to put on, I would be very intrested in seeing the accounts and what the nett profit its,
I watched a program about the london marathon and they made a fortune even after they had paid every one, the program was made to high light just how much money was being made by events like this
I take nothing away from the people that rode and I hope every one had a good time, but this morning I wouldnt mind being a quid behind pat adams in the bank
to me it seems like clever marketing and a great money spinner, and there is nothing wrong with that, only wish i had thought of it 1st
Posted 11 months ago # -
It's a profitable event, but that logic seems a little flawed!
I can't even think it's especially profitable. Total income from the event will be no more than £200k (entry fees plus charging for trade pitches, and I'm estimating an amount that the headline sponsor will put in), and it could well be a good deal less.
Take from that the cost of the land rental, the marshals, medical teams, insurance, vehicles....there'll certainly be some profit, but you'd be surprised at how little there is left over. Basically, it provides a living for Pat Adams and a few others, and that's about it.
Posted 11 months ago # -
i've done 10 under the ben and 10@ kirroughtree and rate both courses higher than this one
Both of those events are tiny compared to Mayhem. Mayhem is the biggest, and there are concessions to that.
Personally I thought it was a bit less 'festival' like than in the past, it all seemed lower key, which is a shame. I remember the BBC Philharmonic playing in 2005, and the rave tent in the woods and other stuff, there didn't seem to be anything like that, it was just about the race.
Agree with iDave though, and to be honest if you are so tight as to object to paying for an event then you must lead an incredibly boring life. In fact, I recommend taking up crosswords, it's cheaper than cycling.
Posted 11 months ago # -
I didnd ask you to comment on my life, and I dont think I am tight I was only airing my point of view, if you rode it and had a great time thats what its all about,
if you think 67 quid to ride round and round and for 24 hours is good fun, might i suggest its you who has a boring life, and you buy your self a hamster wheel
Posted 11 months ago #
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