Ben Henderson of the Anytime Fitness-Trek MTB team checks in after the first National 'All-Mountain Cup' Round of the season in Perth:
The week began normal enough. Relaxation and recovery from the Highland Fling, two sessions of Pilates and a blood test which read… “parasitic infection”??? That was a new one! It seemed Malaysia was having a lasting effect. Add that to the current course of antibiotics for a chest infection and I was raring to go.
The first day of practice revealed a tricky riding surface. The locals call it ‘pea gravel’ and it was darn slippery. Asides the gravel there was plenty of flowing trails, rocky descents and short, steep climbs. A really challenging race track. ‘Anytime Fitness’ team mate Cam and local friend and guide Adrian showed me how it was done. I literally couldn’t keep up with them. Not a good feeling two days out.
The MTBA National Series has adopted a different format where several races count towards a cumulative overall time for the round. In this case the first race was the usual Olympic Cross Country, followed by the new Eliminator and Super D the next day.
Under a crystal clear, blue sky with temperatures around 30, the race got underway. After a clean start it was straight into a super steep fire road climb. It was of course covered in a nice layer of gravel and tyres skidded and elbows bumped as everyone tried to grab a good position as the single track at the summit loomed.
I crested what I’d later refer to as the ‘oven’ in around 7th position. Far from where I wanted to be but it was already clear that today was not going to be wholly satisfying. I accepted this and got on with the job of getting the best out of a body, which at least seemed capable of producing some power compared to previous days.
As the race wore on and the heat really set in, I continued to work hard. I was determined to get the best result possible and finish knowing I’d given my best. The course was really demanding and required non-stop focus. That I could do, and by lap 5 of 6 I’d moved into 4th position. With weary legs I finished what I’d set out to do and was rewarded with a solid 4th and a few important UCI points for this years World Cups.
Up ahead Andy Blair had taken out his first National Round win ahead of Sid Taberlay. Andy was on top of the world and I was very happy for him, a well deserved winner.
Sunday morning commenced with the Eliminator. First up was a time trial of the course to post a time for the overall and determine grids for the heats. I half held back and half gave what I could, and was fully smashed accordingly. I was a good 15 seconds behind on the two minute course. This had me lining up against the fastest guys straight off. I rode well and spent what energy I had when I needed to, making it through to the semi final.
The course consisted of an almost BMX style descent followed by a solid climb back to the finish. It was at the lowest part of the course where I managed to snap my chain. Still in 2nd position I instinctively started to run. I looked back and no-one was coming. Sid Taberlay and another rider had crashed. I ran more. I could see Sid coming now. With 400m to go it was tortoise and hair, cat and mouse, mouse not good at running. It was down to the final pinch and Sid was coming fast as I scrambled my way up. Had it been another 30 meters longer I would have been watching the final from the side line. I made it.
The final comprised Andy Blair, Pete Hatton, myself and Josh Carlson who had been untouchable all morning. He got into the start of the single track decent first, I second. I just mirrored Josh’s speed through the jumps and berms. It was ridiculously fast! By the bottom Josh pulled out a small lead and there was no way I could pull him back on the climb but the hair raising run down the track had left me with a comfortable margin behind, and I took second place.
Next up was the Super D, an individually timed downhill run usually with a few ups to get the lungs working. I found myself riding much faster and closer to the limit than I needed to. This track was essentially a four minute downhill and the Superfly felt super stable through the various rock gardens, loose corners and jumps. I was loving every second. I came down with a time good enough for another second place and to hold my 4th position overall, capping off what turned out to be a rewarding weekend.
For now it’s just time to get healthy and build the fitness back up again over Christmas. Hopefully come the first few months of the new year I’ll be prepared to tackle the big events with confidence.
Thanks to the ‘Anytime Fitness Mountain Bike Team’ and it’s supporters, Trek Bikes, Bontrager, TORQ, Shimano, Fox. Also my personal supporters in Stromlo Forest Park, Pete from Capital Bicycle Hire, my super coach Mark Fenner from FTP Training and the staff at Pilates Canberra in Erindale, all of whom put together major pieces of the performance puzzle.
Follow Ben on Twitter: @henderson_ben
