Just got home and unpacked after another superb ST Weekender. Despite the inclement weather over the weekend it was still a cracking do. Good racing, great atmosphere, good support and some proper fun events. I’m certain that that will be the only time I sit on the start line of an XC race next to Nick Craig.

Thanks go out to everyone who organised, marshalled, mediced, raced and supported the event. Cheers all.

Anyone got any photos?

just got home myself, after a great weekender. although today i might as well have been on my hands and knees instead of rideing! thanks to all those involed. see you all next year.

Just got home myself after a wee 140 mile drive, unloading the car can wait til tomorrow I think.
Really enjoyable weekend for definite, and although I got absolutely soaking wet putting my tent up on Saturday morning, on the whole the weather didn’t dampen spirits at all. It made for a tricky practice run on the DH course, but thankfully by race time it had dried out somewhat.

Speaking of the DH course, really enjoyed it. Highlight of the weekend for me, it’s not often you get to ride a half decent DH run in the UK that’s over 2 minutes long (short of going to proper uplift centres), and I felt it had the right mix of technical challenge and open fast bits. And though I was far from quick, I was grinning the whole way down!

XC course was good too, if a lot more climbing than I was expecting! Thankfully I didn’t puncture, though I saw countless people that did. And the trials on Saturday, good mix of obstacles there, and well done to the guys that actually cleared the hillclimb, it’s steeper than it looks!

Big shout to all the people I met (especially Kev and Bryan for giving my kit a lift back down the hill after), after a mate bailed on me on Friday evening I ended up coming on my own… Everybody was exceptionally friendly, way more so than I’ve ever experienced at any other event I’ve been to.

Just one small note though, for next year definitely define the rules on number of laps before the XC race begins, and make sure everyone knows. Didn’t matter to me, I was a long way off, but I know one person that might have just snook in 3rd in class had he not been told not to bother doing a 3rd lap. He’d have still been a good distance behind Nick Craig mind… 😉

My pictures here, rain and no coat stopped filming.

https://picasaweb.google.com/paulbikey/SINGLETRACKCLASSICWEEKENDERAtLeeQuarryBacup#

Also started a new thread just about pictures.

Just got out of the shower after finishing the site tidy up, little bit more to do tomorrow.

Great weekend from my point of view big thanks to everyone who braved the rain and came along about half two Friday afternoon when I was stood in the quarry in the pissing rain I was convinced no one would be mad enough to come and camp up there in those conditions. You proved me wrong!

Great bunch of people turned up, really good laid back approach to everything.

Hug thanks to the volunteers who marshaled, Mountain Rescue for covering the event and sorting out those that got hurt.

I have some ideas for a realy good xc course for next year!

Results are up

http://www.mikrotime.com/mtb/st2011/st2011.html#xc

@ Mboy, it was our pleasure mate, it was great to meet you and all the other lovely folk we met over the weekend.
The was it 2 laps or was it 3 debacle was a bit of a disappointment and then Chipps’ comment about it not mattering because it only affected the lower placings was pretty patronising to those of us not fighting for a podium IMO.

Kev.

Yep, fantastic weekend – probably the best stweekender so far – seemed to recapture more of the fun and relaxed nature of the first one without getting rid of the better courses, bigger sponsor and bigger numbers. Great effort.

I do agree a bit about the XC – I was proper fuming as I started my 3rd lap (after a nice 5 min confusing chat at the finish), but was actually buzzing when I came back in so was almost all forgotten. I only lost a handful of places, so it didn’t worry me on the “race” front.

Oh yeah, and it apparently didn’t really rain in Sheffield. At least the warm dry weather here has allowed all the wet muddy kit to get washed and dried easy enough.

The was it 2 laps or was it 3 debacle was a bit of a disappointment and then Chipps’ comment about it not mattering because it only affected the lower placings was pretty patronising to those of us not fighting for a podium IMO

…but I’m sure he did it in a calming, non confrontational way though, didn’t he? 😉

Had an ace weekend. Thanks to the Singletrack folks for putting it on, the guys from Madison for looking after us (beer, diet Coke and tent assembly!)and the Lancashire Council Rangers for shuttling our stuff up and down and making us laugh and generally being friendly.

We’ll be back next year for definite.

Only downer was my puncture on my DH run and the bl**dy rain!!

Kerv, seriously, that was greatly appreciated. Can’t see any contact details for you, but my email address is in my profile, any time you’re over Worcs/Glos area (or indeed if you’re going riding in Wales or something), give me an email… Be good to catch up. And fair play to the pair of you for going like bats out of hell on the XC in order to make up your 11 minute time penalty!

On the subject of Well dones, big well done to Joyriders Pete who I see managed to secure 10th, nice one mate, good to meet you and Alice too. And also, ridiculous well done to Chris Metcalfe who almost totally destroyed his bike in the DH on Saturday. I’d got chatting to him at the top of the DH run, he was set to come down a couple of minutes after me, I finished my run, then a few minutes later he comes through, bike in pieces, chain twisted through 180 degrees, 5 spokes missing from the rear wheel etc. He’d had to carry it half way down apparently, still managed 3:13 for his DH run. This meant he then had a 7 minute penalty overall for the XC (same as me) so I lined up alongside him on the Sunday. Off we went, and bang, he was gone! Just seen he finished 6th overall! Seems he lapped as fast as Nick Craig… If he’d managed a respectable time on the DH without breaking his bike, he might have won it overall perhaps! Big hats off to you mate…

Very much enjoyed the whole weekend, but remember kids – a case of Miller, a Stella and a Pedigree til 0400 on the day of the XC race is NOT cosidered good training.

Will be back next time, hopefully fitter!

Great weekend, results, well don’t ask 😆 DH lower section was ridden like a joke (by me 😳 )
and the xc was great fun with a few little races with people on the flat and downhill sections, the black section from the highest point was so much fun.
Somebody ‘borrowed’ my chair out of my marquee saturday night which I found looking like they’d made a very drink attempt to set it on fire by the bonfire 😆 but failed so it may last me a to the end of the season.
See you all at next years event.

What an Epic weekender.. loved it.. bettered my DH time by almost 20 seconds this year.. lost the will to live and do 3 laps in the XC, so went home after 2 !

A massive thanks going out to everyone who helped out my mate dave, and looked after his dog all weekend, after he had a meeting with the rock in the DH Race… only 6 weeks off the bike m8.. get better soon.

whens entry for next years open ?

Same to you mboy if you’re over in the MK area, be more than happy to give you a guided tour of Brickhill woods . I’ll drop you an email in the next few days when I get my laptop back, email from my phone is way beyond me.

@ Kerv…. I may go out for 3 hours and then just do 2 :0)

Have to admit, that after 2 laps (though that was it after Nick Craig went past me on lap two) I did stop and had to go a lie down in the van 😳

Also got a telling off from him for not wearing a helmet on the pump track 😆

Loco – was that just after you crashed on the pump track while not wearing a helmet? 😉

Haha yes, sculked off to the van and put my helmet on suitably chastised 😳

http://thisisheffield.co.uk/2011/singletrack-weekender/

Put together a race report from last weekend with all the photos and video.