Rocky fun fun fun...

What an awesome event. I rode this event last year and had an absolute ball so continued the fun again hitting up the single lap option. I wasn't disappointed...

The decision to change the course route during the week proved immensely successful. The trails on offer were amazing I loved the track last year but I reckon this route took it up another notch or two. No really steep climbs but no real opportunity to step off the gas either. The technical climbs were unreal and the downhill sections were both a challenge and a buzz.

I had two objectives for this race the first being a top 30 finish (in my category) and the second getting under 1hr 30mins... One out of two isn't bad...

I started the race with a quick pace trying to avoid the congestion at the creek crossing. I'm by no means the quickest bloke on the trails but managed to get myself in a good position around mid pack. The first climb was slippery and long with many riders losing traction and ending up sprawled all over the track. This cost me some time negioating around them. I was running Specialized The Captain tyres front and rear and the rear was perfect. It just gripped and gripped and gripped. Good fortune landed me a stroke of good luck halfway up the climb as I broke free of the pack I was in and got a clear run up to the fire road. Once on the fire road I knew I had to put the peddle down to increase my gap and catch the others. I managed to catch a few riders and up my position before entering the next single track section.

The next 8kms became a survival battle to steady my excited heart rate and settle into my own rhythm. I managed to pass quite a few riders during this time but think a lot of them were doing the 44km option (respect). I chucked down a GU at the 10km mark and felt the differece in energy after 5 mins or so. I'd never used a gel during a race before and was initially skeptical but wow, what a difference it made. I was feeling good already but this just put the icing on the cake

A fair few of the elites were passing me by now as if I was walking the track. I managed to hold on to the back of one of them as we entered a single track section so I tried my hardest to hold onto him... After all, how hard could it be to keep pace? Not surprisingly, he became a distant mirage after a minute then disappeared altogether after 2 minutes... Damn it, he got away

Started to hit awesome downhill technical stuff and managed to pass more riders by taking some big, and probably silly, risks that paid off. From the riders around me I knew that they had the legs on me on the climbs but couldn't keep my pace on the flats or downs so I nailed it best my nerves would take. I just kept remembering the pre-race prep talk... "everything is rollable"... and it was... As my confidence grew I took more and more speed with me and managed to put enough distance between me and the chasing pack to climb the next section without getting caught although one guy got within 20 meters or so but then just disappeared... Phew!

The 20km sign was a welcomed sight and I rode as hard as I could for the last 2 kms. I'd been on my own a for awhile now and knew I had to keep pushing so that I didn't get caught. I managed to spot two riders ahead, caught them, went past and kept pushing. Looking at the results table they weren't in my category but probably saved my bacon by giving me someone to chase down. The hardest part of the track was the grass section heading into the finish line. I was tired, running out of steam but couldn't control the huge smile on my face

What an awesome race, what a great event... Thank you to the Choc Foot team for yet another awesome event. Even my wife said I was overly talkative when I got home... I just couldn't stop myself from telling her how awesome it was.... I reckon this was the most enjoyable time I've had on my bike... Ever!

I'm already looking forward to next years event on 26th May 2013!