[Closed] Glentress Seven 2017

I binned my entry just wasn't feeling any enthusiasm for it.

It was good fun last year but so little riding it was going to be miserable from start to finish for me

I'm there. Not fit just now but hoping to enjoy it.

Orange steel HT (Shand) with SC32s and 27.5 bodged in unless I CBA to fit my racing wheels.

Not me this year, after 2 years of glorious weather i had a gut feeling rain was on the cards, and rain would turn that course from epic to misery for me.

Soloing it again... TBH 2 years ago I went into it as fit as I get, and last year I had a grand time on the fatbike so I'm not sure what this year's going to be- I still have a vague target of 8 laps (*) if the weather holds but that might not work out, not as fit as I should be.

(* this isn't a massively impressive number, not for a proper racer anyway, it just happens to be the most I've ever had in a trio or pair so I'd like to solo it too. Got 7 in 2015 and 6 on the fatbike so it's doable...)

I have just finished packing for my drive up in the morning. Solo effort on Saturday. Northwind has set a good target, 8 laps sounds good to me...or maybe 7. It's sunny, yep 7.

How many laps do the fastest folk do?

I'd guessed 12?

Solo for me me too. No idea how it'll go as I had a chunk of time off the bike over the winter. If it goes badly then more excuse to stop and eat the excellent cake.

cynic-al - Member

How many laps do the fastest folk do?

I'd guessed 12?

Raddogair won with 11 last year (but looks like he had time for a 12th? I think maybe he knew he'd won it on 11)

I will be there , 2 years ago was 5 laps last year was 6 so hoping for 7 this year . riding the plus hardtail as opposed to my full suss this year so will see what effect that has .

I'm going too, not yet packed enough stuff to fill up whippersnappers car so I'm not ready. Going solo and aiming for as many laps as I can, 7 or more sounds good but I have no idea as I have not ridden it. If I can have a price of cake every lap that will help

Yeah, I'll be there. Look out for a yellow/black Trafic camper, come and say hi if you see me. Solo for me too, and I think 7 laps might just be doable....

Soloing as usual for me, 4th time in a row

5th in Cat last year with 9 laps, just over 7 hours
Will try me best for a podium this year but I think I might need 10 laps for that which is going some...
Weather looks good again thankfully, think it'll be a nightmare in the wet.
A thunder storm last lap ish won't bother me
Riding for KTM impsport

Pro tips for the first timers-
1, it's at glentress but it doesn't use that much of the trailcentre so don't be too surprised about that.
2, if you're on the first lap, try and get to the top reasonably quickly- the hardest part of the entire lap is the very first descent so when the main body of riders turns up, unfamiliar with it, not yet switched on and pecking after the climb, it can be pretty messy Worth burning a few jelly babies to beat the rush-hour traffic, once you're past that bottleneck the fun starts.

(this is an [i]excellent[/i] dick move from the organisers- I'm assuming they've not changed it for this year since it's fine GT7 tradition)

Ahh yes, the love tunnel, dark, damp and ribbed, always a challenge to keep things under control 😆

Guess my advice would be to run front tyre and fork a couple of psi less than normal. Nothing rocky, but plenty of small roots that can beat you up by lap5.

@moonsabaloon, the plus hardtail will be a really good choice assuming you've got fairly light fast tyres on it.

I'm soloing again. Not as well prepared as previous years due to a combination of things. Got the stamina, but no speed, so making it up to the start of love tunnel before the bottleneck is in full swing feels improbable. Will maybe just have my breakfast at the cake stop there while I'm waiting 🙂

So boost it up the climb on the first lap, cheers. I'm guessing the descent is technical but do-able in usual xc style?

Parking, IIRC you park in the "lower carpark" - the usual one on the RHS?

Al, the field beyond the carpark is usually given over to parking for the event, with a non-negotiable charge (£3, I think). There will be marshalls directing - you can't go wrong!

First descent is steep and a bit rooty with a few line choices and a LH turn at the bottom. It's not really hard, but once someone stops in the intial rush, its difficult for them to get going again or for others to get past them, people start to back up on the fire road and then everyone's waiting. Once everyone is a bit more strung out after first lap, then it's not an issue

So boost it up the climb on the first lap, cheers. I'm guessing the descent is technical but do-able in usual xc style?

Entirely doable, but the way some mince down it you would think otherwise!
And another +1000 to hammering yourself up the climb on the first lap, you'll lose masses of time if you get stuck in the traffic on the first descent.

I'm guessing the descent is technical but do-able in usual xc style?

Parking, IIRC you park in the "lower carpark" - the usual one on the RHS?

Parking's in the big field off to the left, you'll be waved in though.

Most of it is fun-but-mellow, not hard to ride but a bit harder to ride quick and without burning yourself up. TBH that first bit (it's just a short steepish thing but it has roots running across it and a 180 degree corner at the bottom) would cause less bother if it weren't right off the fire road, at the top of the big climb.

And then later on where it runs down parallel to falla brae there's a bombhole thing we built just to **** with people, again just off the fire road, and that's where the photographers hang out to get pictures of you landing on your face. It freaks some people out, especially now as it's getting pretty beaten up, but it's really a "ride straight down it" and it has a chicken line anyway. So it's mostly about trying to carry warp speed out of that section into the flat bit after

It freaks some people out, especially now as it's getting pretty beaten up, but it's really a "ride straight down it" and it has a chicken line anyway. So it's mostly about trying to carry warp speed out of that section into the flat bit after

The bombhole doesn't even freak me out, the deep loose stuff on the approach to it is harder imo.
Chicken line is actually ~1-2s faster than the main line which is a bit wrong, but I take the main line cos its fun anyway.

I'm soloing agin this year as well. Managed 6 laps last year so hoping to maybe manage 7 this time. I'll be on my green TransAM if anyone feels like shouting abuse / encouragement!!

We tested that out a fair bit, basically the main line is faster if you ride it fast, you can carry speed right off the road through the entire thing and out into the next section to boot

But I think for a lot of people you're right, it's a more complex route and most people seem to lose speed somewhere. And obviously you're only as fast as the person in front and it's all single file so it's easy to get delayed.

I was swithering but I'm definitely going now. Doing it in a pair. I'm hoping a smaller chainring and some fast rubber will make up for my utter lack of training and fitness.

For any first timers its a really nice course. Its not overly technical but fun. I don't think it wastes a single foot of descent on fireroad either. The Love Tunnel is a little bit buttock clenching first time as it is quite steep and the corner at the bottom is pretty tight but once you've tackled it once its pretty easy. Top tip: don't wear dark sunglasses you won't be able to see!

Am going to be marshalling at it again this year, please wave and say hello, would be good to put some faces to the names on here (think i am marshal 9a) Hope you all enjoy it

Thanks all. Looking forward to it 🙂

Woop, my air shaft arrived, I now can have working forks. This is convenient

Weather forecast is looking interesting.

Sure is 😯

Best of luck with that everyone!

I'm sure we'll be perfectly safe from the lightning under all these trees

The Tweed Valley Bike Patrol and Tweed Valley Mountain Rescue will be out hopefully having a quiet day, please say hi 🙂

Holy crap. Race prep should definitely include getting a new air shaft to replace your broken one on the morning before the race, then discovering that because your fork is some oddball specialized OE option the new part doesn't fit, so you have to batter your broken one and your new one together with a big hammer then throw it all back together and get it working at 11.06pm. Brakes are dragging like a mofo, don't care, sort that tomorrow. Woo racing!

Ha, Northwind - sounds like my usual prep! Too depressing to detail.... 🙁

Good luck everybody. By Scottish standards it's pure dead scorchio out there so stay safe. And if you see a man in a Ridelines top huffing and puffing a bit, give him a push, he's not getting any younger but he's a good lad.

Northwind - Member
Woop, my air shaft arrived, I now can have working forks. This is convenient

POSTED 19 HOURS AGO # REPORT-POST

Piss poor preperation means...erm...something.

As I found out around 9am this morning when woke up and realised the race is today and not tomorrow
😳

Well, that went poorly- never a good sign if you're posting before the race ends... Basically forgot how to endurance- took off far too fast, feeling strong and quick, rode 3 laps then died at the start of the 4th. Ground my way round cramping and feeling like I was going to throw up, in the hope i'd get past it but didn't get any better so rather than toiling round 1 or maybe 2 more I just canned it. Wasn't the heat, just me being a diddy.

Hope everyone else had, or is having, a more succesful day! To be fair I had a great time for that first 2 and a half hours or so so I shouldn't grumble- more quality riding done today than in the first year when I was in a trio

PS, ffs Al.

@Northwind, thats just how it goes for a 7hr, too short to hold back. 3 laps feeling great and 4 of purgatory hanging in there!

How did the cobbled together XC bike go? Preferred it to the fat bike?

MC has facebook-shamed me 😆 Abuse of power!

I've soloed it 4 times before so I should know how to do it by now 😆 Last year I pushed a bit too hard on the 2nd or 3rd lap but managed to pull it back with a slow lap- every year I end it dead but this time I just went too far, no chance. At most I could have limped through but not got near my goals. Bit peeved...

Bike went great tbh, I've come to really like it and the last minute fork bodge actually worked. A little harsh and unsophisticated but that does make it feel fast and pretty fun. Might have got a bit wearing as the race went on. I think maybe my scandal was a little better, but then, I was much fitter that year so it got an easier job.

I loved doing it on the fatbike too though, very different of course- slower up, hilarious down (and way easier to overtake- line choice is a whole different thing with a 4.8 tyre, you can go places most people don't want to).

Next year is the heroic return to form! I may actually train

Hey Northwind, I too competed (dawdled) on a fat bike! TBH laps 4&5 (or is that 5&6?) were some of the slowest speeds i've ever ridden on a mtb. If you finished early, count yourself lucky. I experienced the extremely dangerous phenomenon of riding a pair of Jumbo Jim's on suddenly wet roots and the track turning into a river for the last 15 minutes of my last lap. The fattie does not like those conditions at all.

I got so much respect given for riding a fat bike though. I think this is great as it masks the fact i'm not certain how much quicker, if at all, I would be on something more "racy."

Great day out. will be back next year!

The heat certainly didn't help me. Took the first two laps to feel remotely good and then just slogged on for the next 5. I could maybe have squeezed in another but given the weather I am extremely glad I decided to stop for cake instead.

last year I did the same as northwind. This year thanks to lack of previous years fitness and carrying extra weight I took it steady, paced myself and managed one more lap than last year. got in just before the storm which was a relief.

Great course. Managed the target of 7 laps although the last was a big road descent, rather damp it was. Quite nice after the stifling heat. A grand day out.

Weather forecast looks on the warm side, with the possibility of a thunderstorm on the last lap

I knew I was going to find it tougher than last year, as less fit, but the heat was where this really showed up. Got 7 solo laps in last year, only managed 6 this year. Every time I was in the sun, I wilted, then felt so much better in the cooler areas, except on lap 5 when I seriously considered chucking it in. Reconciled myself at that point to just go for 6, and then just relaxed and enjoyed riding and chatting. Made it back before the close out for final lap, but knew I'd never make it so called it a day.
Next year I will be fitter!