[Closed] Battle On The Beach

I'll be there 🙂

Done. It's not an easy process to enter multiple teams.

Boom! I'm in

I'm in!

I'm in, hoping to improve a bit from last year.

in

anyone know a decent holiday park in the area? mrs and kids coming for the weekend, but theres no way in hell im camping with a 5,3 and 1yo 😆

Bluestone is about 45 mins away

I'm in!

In. I really like this event....

I'm in, only 10 min from my house as well ?

Entered.. hopefully some motivation to ride a bit harder the next few months

Loads of the singlespeed tribe in so it will be beer carnage the night before and comedy hyper spinny legs down the beach followed by more beer. You can tell the cx boys as theyre all tucked up in bed with a cocoa by 7:30 after the event. 😀

What do singlespeed cx boys do? ok I'm a cocoa drinker I confess 🙂

I thought you might have gone fat for this one Benji!

Don't worry benji we'll keep you from straying too far to the darkside

Flat course then?

@Stiggy, thought about fat, but have been loving spinning my little singlespeed along in the local cross leagues, so fancied a change. Been looking at singlespeeding the fatboy.

@Taz, thank you don't want to become too at one with the darkside, I'll eat some skittles with my cocoa 🙂

In again

Enjoyed it last time but felt it was too far for too short an event this year.

Entered. Now the bike dilemma. Thinking XC hard tail at the moment.

Well just under two weeks now, how's everyones preparations going?

Had a good tinker with the SS MTB today, thunder burts front and back, bigger discs, and the old discs onto spare cross wheels. Training could have been better, been suffering with a cough/chest infection for the past month, just when I think it's gone it comes back for another chunk.

Going well, nailed a double decker burger last night and pizza tonight. What do you mean that's not how to go fat?
On the cx bike this year after ss last year. Should be interesting.

Well just under two weeks now, how's everyones preparations going?

I've lost 3/4 of a stone! 😀

Because of food poisoning. 😥 (Now in its eighth day....)

Pizza training going well.. Managed 2 this week. Done quite a lot of road riding and absolutely nothing off road. What's the single track sections like on a CX bike?

Fine cloudnine. Nothing so techy that I can't manage on mine. The only concession I've made over the last two years is a 35mm knobby tyre on the front, semi-slick on the back.

Hmmm I've got some 40c wtb nano races.. Should I get something slicker on the back?

You'll die if you use those. 😆

Honestly, you'll be fine. I don't know whether I'll even fiddle with my tyres this year..

I have watched a few you tube clips and decided I need a much bigger chainring else I'm going to spin the fatty out I would suggest! Also need to sort a faster rolling rear tyre!

I'll be riding my 96 islabike 531 cx with 40c xplor tyres. Training? Ah. Oops. What to bbq the night before?

Got my entry (including camping) going spare, but think it's too late to transfer to somebody else?

I might know someone who's interested in that.

^ e-mail in my profile if you need it.

@IdleJon sorry to hear about the bad guts, truly an excellent way to crash diet though.
I've gone for 34mm file treads this year after 2.4 nobby nics last year. Granted the bike is different too...
I've got a week in Lanzarote training just beforehand, by training I mean all-inclusive.

From memory CX tyres will be a problem in some of the deeper sandy bits after the single track on the way back to the start area, plus the transition from land to beach and beach to land areas.

MTB tyres or Fat bike tyres are the answer if you don't want to get on and off in places.

Entered on SS Fat, but that seems rather silly as I've also got a cross-type thing with Thunder Burts. And gears. And a working freehub.

From memory CX tyres will be a problem in some of the deeper sandy bits after the single track on the way back to the start area,

Beg to differ, but I didn't find a problem there at all. You just blast through the softer bits.

11 days in. Will my weight drop below 80kg for the first time in 10+ years? Will I be riding?

I tend to do it on a SS Fat. The result depends on the wind direction on the beach, the fierce headwind (first year) was hard work but the comedy tail wind (last year) meant everyone whizzed past....Still I'm not going to win, so I'm happy to ride that.

Still I'm not going to win

Well yes, there's that. I'm beginning to let go of my podium hopes. I don't think I started tapering early enough.

3 X Manx fatties arriving Thursday night, and we want to do a little explore ride on Friday (not the course,of course)....can anyone give us an idea where's best for a,3-4 hour,little bimble?

Brechfa is perfect so long as you don't mind a little extra driving.

Oooh! That's a great shout.

I've been umming and ahhing about driving Friday night or Saturday. I think Friday night and a day trip to Brechfa is on the cards!

can anyone give us an idea where's best for a,3-4 hour,little bimble?

Come down to Swansea and ride Kilvey and/or Clyne. Waymarked tracks on both. You can connect them via the seafront cycle path and spend hours on either. If you're interested I can show you around. (I'm assuming I'll be healthy by then!)

Same invite for you as well nedrapier.

Or you could take an OS map and have a ride around the Gower?

Cheers Jon, that's very good of you. and shedbrewed - good idea too.

Although I've just checked the surf forecast for Llangennith and it's not looking too shabby at the moment.

Think that's option 1 at the moment - surf, than a frantic spin around the dunes to warm up!

Edit: Balls. Overexcited. I was looking at this weekend, not next. Fingers crossed for next...

Thank you Jon, we'd love to have a pootle around with you, and whoever else is coming down early. How do you want to play it: where when etc on Friday morning?

Oh cool!

I'll need to drop the kids in school, available from about 9.30 I'd guess.

Do you know Swansea at all? It maybe worth meeting somewhere like the Liberty Stadium - close enough to the riding, easy to find and close to the motorway.

Shedbrewed - fancy a trip down from Ponty?

We'll have had a long!! journey on Thursday,so there'll be no early starts for us. I'll confirm eta when I speak to the boys,but they'll want breakfast etc, then we'll need to reload bikes. My number is 07624 450246 if you want to text me your mob no. Is there anywhere safe to park?

Cheers for the ask, IdleJon. Not sure what time I'm back from holibobs so can't confirm anything yet.

pipiom, let me know what time start you want. (Sorry, I meant I'm available from 9.30 - wasn't expecting you to be here at that time! Will need to pick them up at three, though, unless I can organise babysitters.) Will text my number later.

Safety? The regional police hq is in the stadium. 😉 There's also some side-street parking nearby, supermarkets, that sort of thing if you're unhappy leaving the cars there.

I'd say 11am would be ace Jon. We'll just be in one car/Jeep so we'll wing it when we get there. I'll satnav to the stadium then call you? We'll defo speak some more over the next few days. Thanks again.

So the consensus might be Ralph over Ron on the back (MTB) if thats what I have?

Ralph for sure Kryton, I raced all the winter xc series at Pembrey last year with Ralphs. You'd probably get away with a thunder burt there throughout winter I reckon, its so sandy its never really muddy, even when wet it just damps down nicely, mabe a little bit of sludge.

I know theres been a lot of tree felling so it might be a bit muddier in places, and I understand that some of last years singletrack is no more so course will probs be a bit differnet.

Theres now also a kids balance bike race planned for ages 2-7

Thanks Ferrals. See you there.

Ferrell, in the first BOTB there was mud and comedy lakes which came up to the axles.......

Ah I've never done BoB, sadly not doing it this time as got other things on. I've ridden Pembrey a lot though, including BoB course and I've not seem much mud? not for more than 50 yards of squidgy sloppy stuff. I love it over there, the single track is so much fun 😀

Thunder Burts all the way. Also if you run 1x and the beach is either calm or downwind, you'll need a bigger chainring! Last year we were doing 35mph down the beach and my little legs were going like crazy in 34-11. Have 36-10 this year.

Clement LAS's on the cross bike, and Burt's on the MTB. Will have some more knobbly options with me just in case.

Also if you run 1x and the beach is either calm or downwind, you'll need a bigger chainring!

Last year was unusual though. The prevailing wind normally comes straight up that beach into your face. 😉

9 times out of 10 it is a headwind or cross wind.

IdleJon hope you've finished turning your insides out? I'm not landing til 4pm Friday so no go for me. Have fun and see you Sunday.

IdleJon hope you've finished turning your insides out?

Only just. Turned out to be Campylobacter food poisoning. Still feeling a bit wrecked today but hope to be on a bike tomorrow, for the first time in a fortnight.

Have fun on holiday, see you in sunny Pembrey. (It will be sunny, obviously, after two years of good weather....)

Forecast is sunny and dry at the mo. and...

Light air, 1 m/s from north-northwest

😀

Fingers crossed it stays that way!

Good to hear your improving IdleJon,hope you're good for Friday....nothing too strenuous/scary mind,I'm old and fragile

Ha, it's only a couple of miles to the seafront with assorted bars, cafes and cakes... 🙂

The working week is done, so early start looking drive and see you all there.

Likewise, weather looks great! Look to register late tomorrow and have a lie in Sunday 🙂

Can't bloody wait to finish work at midnight, driving down tomorrow afternoon. See you all on Sunday. Will be on large krampus 😉

If anyone is registering today can they ask if you can enter kids in the balance bike race on the day.. thanks

Is it right you can't register today unless you are camping?

Kryton.. Can you possibly ask about the balance bike race and whether entries can be made on the day

Well, that was emotional.
Nice to see some old faces, and thanks David for the timing chip reminder on the startline. Oops.
My lack of any real training, and spending last week all-inclusive in Lanzarote gorging myself caught me out and I had horrendous leg cramps from halfway through the second lap.
Slipping gears didn't help but mainly my poor placing was entirely due to having eaten way too much steak, cake and beer.
But I bloody loved flying down the beach on the first lap.

Had an absolute flyer of a start down the beach on the first lap and slowly lost about 40 places from there. Was aiming to get round in 2hrs but my lack of off road riding this year let it down. Finished in about 2hrs 13mins... Great fun though.

Yeh it was great with some bloody fast riders in the mix this year.
There is no way I'll be near my 4 1st place from last year.
The end of the 2nd lap was tough for me then I was flying again on the last lap taking back the places I lost and some more to boot.
Just over 2 hours for me.
Looking forward to seeing the results tomorrow. Hoping for a top 100 but most probably I'll be disappointed.

Was a fabulous event, certainly the must-do UK XC race this season. 800 riders can't be wrong! Fabulous venue for everyone from families to elite riders.

We lost track of the top 5 after lap 1 but our little group had a good ride round, I ended up somewhere about 9th in 1hr36. Massive thanks to everyone who kept out of the way on the final lap as that was getting pretty hairy in places. Some very good backmarker etiquette out there today 🙂

No idea of my results yet.

But my god, what an awesome event. I've never seen beach which is so wide you can't see the sea.

I was a bit down in the mouth at the start as I rode all the way to the end of the beach (8km) only to have a shell slash my tyre so badly the sealant wouldn't work. I ended up jogging for 45 minutes back to the start (not the most ideal warm up), to visit Mr Schwalbe with my wallet expecting to be royally shafted. He then announced here was there for display only, an couldn't sell me a tyre. AAARGH. But as my bottom lip started to quiver he took pity and GAVE me a top of the line Racing Ralph, Tube, sealant AND mounted to for me! [b]Thank you Schwalbe![/b]

Because of the delay then I ended up at the back, but once we were off boy did I feel good. I cant describe what an awesome view seeing hundreds of riders strung along 8km of beach looks like. Moving from peleton to peloton riding and being sucked along at 30kph - on an MTB - along the sand, what a feeling! The single track was awesome and fast also but causing some issues for the CXer's the MTB were able to pull back some space. On we went, and I seemed to spend all three laps catching and passing people I felt very strong today, what a shame I could have started at the front. In fact I would have happily ridden a 4th lap, so perhaps I didn't go hard enough on the 3 allocated.

All in all I put 3 consistent laps in at 43mins for 15k each, and have driven 250 miles home with a massive smile on my face. Definitely going back next year!

Haha that was my Airshot that got that tyre seated for you 🙂

You need to go and buy one of those now.

I also managed to break both my promises of a) don't sit on the front and chase down every single break on lap 1 and b) pay attention near the beach exit on lap 1 and don't get dropped.

Oh well. Still did better than last year!

One of the most special moments of the weekend was sprinting clear of everyone, turning round and looking at the spectacle of 800 riders from pros to complete novices doing a sport I love! Proper chill down the spine moment. Then I got back on with smashing it down the beach.

I ran out of legs again, 2/3rds of the way round the 2nd lap. Starting in the last 20 probably didn't help as I think I overtook about 250 riders at least along the beach. Didn't do me much good though as it went a bit wobbly at 1hr40...
My 20 year old islabike CX seemed to do alright except I couldn't get into the big ring. Excuses, excuses...
Was good fun but hard.

Haha that was my Airshot that got that tyre seated for you

You need to go and buy one of those now.

Yet again, I thank you for that! I have a Bonty Flash charger but left it home not expecting to use it. 😐