Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 51 total)
  • Torq/Gorrick 12:12 at Minley
  • gee
    Free Member

    Hi all,

    This weekend we were at Minley Manor for the Torq 12:12 endurance race. I was part of the Mountain Trax 4 man team. I loved this event last year as I did a pair with Matt Page – loads of riding and we won by miles. This year was to be a bit different…

    Our main competition was Isaac Pucci’s team – he’d managed to put together a strong team with a couple of younger riders. Ben rode the first lap and came round neck and neck with Isaac and handed over to me. I put 2mins into their rider, had a smooth lap and handed over to John Whittington who did the same. Scott rode the last lap in our rotation and was up against a flying Chris Minter who has really found some form recently. Chris managed to close and even (just!) pass Scott, meaning we were back to square one and tied again. This pattern continued for the entire race with us yo-yoing with Isaac’s team for the lead depending on who was out on a lap.

    After 22.5hrs of racing we were still together. I went out for my final lap (the results showed I only slowed by 45secs per lap when it got dark – thanks to Exposure lights!) with Martin Turton in tow. I started attacking on every fire road, launching the bike as fast as I could as I knew this was Martin’s weak point. He stayed with me until the first climb where I gave it everything and put a gap in so he couldn’t continue to draft me. It’s so much easier riding behind someone at night as you can see where the trail goes, so as soon as I dropped him I knew he’d slow down, so I kept attacking for the rest of the lap and we ended up with a 1.5min lead. There was an awful lot of shouting and fairly committed overtaking going on at this stage… Apologies if we upset anyone but what Elite and casual riders perceive to be a passing place can be a little different… John went out next and managed to hang onto the gap in front of a flying Chris Minter. Both riders ended their laps having left everything on the course!

    We started thinking tactics – we decided to put Ben out for the final lap instead of Scott, Isaac had similar thoughts and rode the final lap for his team. Ben went out last against Isaac with a 1min 45sec advantage. Scott and I went to watch the time gaps out on the lap as it looped over and under a bridge. At the half way point Isaac had closed to 1min but at the end Ben managed to hold this gap. It turned out Isaac does get tired after all!

    It was probably one of the closest enduro races I’ve ever done and certainly one of the most exciting. The course was fantastic, especially given the heavy rain for the two days prior to the event. Now if only they could make this a 24hr race…

    George
    Salsa Factory Racing

    shortcut
    Full Member

    Cracking effort Gee & co.

    And what a great event. All we need now is for it to go upto 24 hours – it is just such an ace course it was be a good thing to do.

    notmyrealname
    Free Member

    24 hours, are you insane?

    I’ve just got back after doing the 12h solo and I’m ruined. If it was a 24h I’d have to enter and that would just cause me a world of extra suffering 😀

    On a different note, I really enjoyed the event, it was a fantastic course and rode well for the full 12h despite the rain. One thing that was pretty poor though was the toilets. Six Portaloo’s for the main campsite which had hundreds camping there was a pretty poor show especially when they were struggling to work properly first thing Saturday morning nevermind once everyone arrived.

    village24
    Free Member

    Well done guys top stuff,and yes you did pass me in the minley maze one of the best calls to let me know you wanted to pass even though the track was narrow we made it happen us 12hr solos do move over even when sore…lol 🙂

    gee
    Free Member

    There were plenty of loos in the other campsites – it’s just that everyone camped in one of the campsites! The loos slightly further away were lovely.

    notmyrealname
    Free Member

    There were plenty of loos in the other campsites – it’s just that everyone camped in one of the campsites! The loos slightly further away were lovely.

    I looked about for loos but only spotted two more at the back of one of the campsites.
    Must look harder next time!

    njee20
    Free Member

    Poor George is clearly still addled, it was only 12 hours, unless they carried on all night for some reason 😉

    It was a bloody good race though, excellent to watch!

    Great event as always too, couldn’t believe how well the course held up considering the rain.

    daveagiles
    Free Member

    Cracking event. Was racing the 12 hour solo. Had to pull out after 8 hours though. Gutting as I was starting to work my way up the leader board.

    Hopefully next year!

    littlegirlbunny
    Free Member

    I was 12 hour solo and chugging along at ‘why am I so overbiked pace’ but only had one, maybe two, riders come past me without announcing themselves….which is amazing considering how frantic the teams were pelting round. Thanks to the 99.99% of you guys who were always polite and careful with the overtaking 😀

    legspin
    Free Member

    George, were you the guy cheering me one every time you saw me on my spearfish, if so explains a lot.

    Littlegirlbunny were you on black Orange5?

    frogstomp
    Full Member

    A great event.. well done to all involved. Thought we were going to be in for a gloop-fest but the course just kept improving!

    littlegirlbunny
    Free Member

    Yeah that was me. Three crashes, saddle sore like I have NEVER known, knackered wrists….never, ever, again (or at least not with Minion-Hi Roller on an Orange 5) 😉

    Legs feel pretty good though!

    njee20
    Free Member

    Aah yes, I saw you most laps I think! Hopefully in the courteous group!

    gee
    Free Member

    Legspin – yes that would be me. You only get personal cheering if you buy a Salsa – you don’t get that with Specialized or Scott.

    theotherjonv
    Full Member

    I think you and martin came past me within about 10 seconds of each other on close to 11ish, you were like a blur. Somewhere around back to front I think.

    PoV of a casual rider, it is as always generally a very courteous event, sadly there are a few nobheads who think they’re more than they are, despite the briefing. If you were any cop you’d pass easily, i’m virtually a stationary object at that point! Bellowing ‘Rider!!’ is sod all use, speak to us and let us know what you’re going to do or what you want us to do and when we do pull over to let you past a please or thank you also goes a long way. Learn from the elite ladies who waft past you leaving just the merest whiff of fairy dust and a smile.

    I got t-boned on one corner in minley maze where I went wide to leave the inside line and the overtaker over shot on some roots, otherwise no major issues though.

    Don’t make it a 24. I can just about manage 12, 24 would be beyond me! Ruined this morning, especially after a belly full of energy gel, my guts may never recover.

    legspin
    Free Member

    Cheers Gee any support is always welcome!

    daveagiles
    Free Member

    Generally most people were great overtaking. Did have one chap shout on-your-left, whilst I was on the left of the single track and then proceed to ride into the back of me.

    sobriety
    Free Member

    That was a really fun event. Only downside was having a ‘pro’ clip my bars and wipe me out within a mile of the start of my first ever racing (in the loosest sense of the word!) night lap, resulting ina broken mech and 7 miles of singlespeed, bah!

    carbonfiend
    Free Member

    Was great event bit of slog for me doing solo with no support. Highlight has to be the non Lycra wearing rider carrying some ‘extra timber’ trying to chase Matt hart through some singletrack – it didn’t last long & the girl from Canyon bikes 😯
    Downside had to give it two riders both barrels in the banksy section who coz I was clearly a solo rider as dark approached also thought I had the ability to mind 🙁

    rollindoughnut
    Free Member

    12hr Solo for me and did ok, but really struggled mentally in the second half, I guess this is what separates the winners from the losers. I had plenty of time to complete 15 laps and my legs were fine but I just couldn’t face the thought of another three laps so binned it around 10pm. Guess some pit support would have helped as I had no idea of my position at the time and had no-one to spur me on. I wonder if I’d looked after my eating better whether my spirits would have been improved? Learnt a hell of a lot though so maybe next year…

    Course was superb and really suitable for a long race, with no particularly arduous or awkward bits and a nice and smooth surface (in fact I rode with my forks locked out for around 90% of the time)

    Passing was the best I’ve experienced at any race. Thought Ben Thomas was very polite and think it was Issac who announced himself from many riders back continually shouting ‘team race leader approaching’ which gave plenty of warning to prepare for allowing an easy pass. Guess it comes from experience but is is so simple just to pull slightly off line or even just tilt the bike to one side as an expert rider passes rather than dive off into the undergrowth or stubbornly hold a line. People get affronted by the shouting but fail to realise how pumped up the guys on the fast laps are and how necessary it is to not lose even a couple of seconds.

    michaelmcc
    Free Member

    but I just couldn’t face the thought of another three laps

    The key for me is to just think of it like a really long bike ride, or bike race for that matter. If you come around the start/finish every time and think, oh no – I’ve got to do another lap, it makes it much harder IMO.

    notmyrealname
    Free Member

    Did you guys see the bloke with the stripy knee length socks riding it on the Halfords Trax bike 😯
    He looked like he was really struggling with it but he was still going for it about 9 or 10 hours in.

    Fair play to the guy for giving it a try.

    njee20
    Free Member

    Yes I saw him, and the guy with Kermit on his back, gave him a shout every time I saw him!

    theotherjonv
    Full Member

    I’m not an expert (this was my first solo!) but I found it helped to divide the race up into smaller chunks – not as small as a lap, but I did two 3 hour segments, where all I did was drop a bottle and pick a fresh one up; at the end of the 3 hours I allowed a break and grab some food twice over. Then the other 6 hours I did as two hour stints. That got me to my 10 lap basic target nicely, after that I was targeting 12 as a stretch and managed in just over the 12 hours, including some less than urgent pitting to ensure that I wouldn’t come in before midnight.

    In hindsight, some more organised pitting would probably have saved me 15 mins – club mates were great mixing up some warm porridge and stuff but compared to a proper pit team, I think I wasted time finding the car keys to get the lights out to put them on, etc., I lost another 5 mins or so with a rider who went OTB on the lump in the st straight after minley maze and was briefly ‘having a moment’, and could have gone harder on laps 10 and 11 so 13 was well within range if I’d wanted it to be. But 12’s good enough for a first go, and I’m happy if a bit sore today!

    offthebrakes
    Free Member

    Loved it as always, fantastically close racing even in solo.

    Really hope it doesn’t change to a 24 hour though, would lose that special magic for me. The 1am prizegiving in the packed, drunken marquee is a great way to round things off. At 1pm the next day most people will be packing up or already gone like they are at most 24hr races.

    tonyd
    Full Member

    Well done all. I saw a few lights on the way home from a BBQ and was desperate to stop and watch for a while, unfortunately I was over-ruled on account of the sleeping bairns in the back of the car.

    jimification
    Free Member

    We had a great weekend. Riders were all polite and good spirit out on the course. Only thing I didn’t like was the music in the arena – would have been perfect for a 13 year old girls pyjama party but us grown ups could do without the whiny euro-pop on repeat. In sharp contrast, the DJ under the bridge was awesome! – was hard not to stop for an extended listen when passing on the night laps. Overall a brilliant event and that course was an absolute blast to race on. Big thanks to all the organisers.

    jonny360
    Free Member

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/kevinsheldrake/sets/72157635247746544/

    Photos from the event from Kevin Sheldrake.

    Yardley_Hastings
    Free Member

    I did the event in 2010 when I was fit and had a lovely full-suss XC flying machine. I’m now older, signficantly less fit and have an additional child in tow, as such I compensated by riding a single speed singular swift (still questioning the logic).

    Solo’d round to 14 laps and loved nearly all of it (retching in the bushes at around 5pm wasn’t nice), great course which let you hurt yourself as much as you wanted to, bit battered today but that’s all part of the game.

    Best overtake was a ‘rapid’ chap coming behind with the shout “on your……whatever” which I didn’t find hugely helpful.

    Muke
    Free Member

    Well done to everyone involved.
    I took some first lap photos and was planning on coming back later in the day but unfortunately never got round to it.

    collostomy
    Free Member

    How do I go about getting a copy of one of your shots Muke?
    DSC08895

    Muke
    Free Member

    Should be …Click the 3 dots on the bottom rhs, click view all sizes, select the size you want and then click the download that size tab, let me know if it works.

    collostomy
    Free Member

    Cheers Muke, all sorted.

    DT78
    Free Member

    Yep great course and event, my race ended early with a hard stack at 10pm on off camber roots. If you are the nice young lady who was about to stop to see if I was okay, only to then stack it on the same off camber roots I really hope your shoulder is okay. Still feel pretty guilty….

    Also second apology to the rider I said passing on your right to, and went past on the left….I was a little bit tired at the time and got my left and right mixed up:)

    Much respect to anyone who competes solo. It is on my to do list….

    fizzicist
    Free Member

    Top event – really good course, got very bumpy in places.

    Didn’t get enough food & drink in after 10pm as I couldn’t face any more, resulting in a monumental sugar crash at 11:30.

    24 hours would have been brutal though – back, wrists, feet and hands are all bruised to hell.

    bionicwoman
    Free Member

    Really enjoyed it apologies to all of you who I slowed up I was the gal on the bamboo bike….was chuffed to have improved my previous efforts! Great course and cheers to all who passed me safely.My only one quibble was the toilet situation was rubbish for solo pits!

    gee
    Free Member

    I saw you on that bike – did you make it yourself? Looks quite unique.

    _Ben_
    Free Member

    Fantastic event, it was my first time. Glad it didn’t rain, else those roots would have been a bit tasty.

    If anyone saw me, I was the unfortunate chap pusing his bike for about one mile due to a double mechanical – thanks to the random passer by who could spare some kit! Shame I didn’t see you again.

    collostomy
    Free Member

    Along with “littlegirlbunny” I was also overbiked on my Orange Five, I passed you just prior to the finish of your penultimate lap…. Mucho respect on your 3rd place in the ladies solo.
    Second time at this event and would recommend it to anyone who hasn’t done it. No issues with the quick boys and girls passing they were all very respectful and this added to the enjoyment of the whole event.
    Will the lime green glow in the dark Five be back next year? Hell yeah!

    Gee-Jay
    Free Member

    Some more pics here http://imnotthealien.com/gorrick/?page_id=191

    We didn’t ride, only watched this year, my kids loved watching you all and now want to be a pro bike riders – the younger one didn’t stop yelling what I hope was encouragement to everyone who passed for about 3 hours

Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 51 total)

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