Two Days, Two Venues, Two Races, One Bike

Ed McDonald is a mountain biker from Canberra who is known for the long miles he racks up in training, as well as being fast racing over long distances, particularly 100 mile and 24 Hour events. He has recently become a Trek Ambassador and rode a Superfly Elite test bike to 2nd in Solo at the Scott 24Hour, and his Superfly SS to 2nd at the Sydney 24Hour. Last week he got his own Superfly Elite, and proceeded to tackle two races on the weekend! First up was the Rocky Trail Entertainment MTB Cruise 100 Mile at Stromlo Forest Park on Saturday, and then a CORC 3 Hour at Kowen on Sunday. Below you can read how he went in his own words. If you would like to read more about his cycling adventures, you can check out his own blog here. (Sorry there's no photos for this one!)

Most mountain bike race reports begin with a heinously early wake up call.  This one is no exception.  Despite being only 20 minutes from the race start, this race start was scheduled at 5am – meaning a 3-30am wake-up call and a severely addled brain. 

The race was put on by Rocky Trail Entertainment at Stromlo, with 33, 66, 100 and 160km (nominal) distances.  The 160km was scheduled to start early to provide the extra dimension of night racing – dodging errant kangaroos, guessing the surface composition through the tacky dew, and peering over your shoulder at a string of bright lights winding their way around the exposed waste lands and rocky outcrops of Stromlo.

I entered the 100 mile race along with a few of Canberra’s more established endurance riders – most notably, Andrew Hall of Team Radical Lights, and singlespeed legend Brett Bellchambers.  For the past few years, the 100 mile category has become something of a form guide and test run for the Solo 24 Hour National Championships.  I had bailed on the singlespeed category to try out the gears on my new Trek Superfly Elite, but it was still an excellent singlespeed course, with lots of climbing, and probably the highest singletrack proportion of any “marathon” distance race in Australia.  Tricky rockgardens dominated the course – with the treacherous Slick Rock descent combined with the Deep Creek rockgardens and the appropriately titled “Heart Breaker” climb.   The loop featured over 500vm ascent each lap, and took around 1:25 to navigate.

With a loop this long, one of the most important aspects was hydration. Possibly my favourite aspect of my medium-sized Superfly is the ability to fit two bottles in – thus avoiding the inconvenience of carrying and refilling hydration bladders and allowing slick transitions.  There are a lot of things to like about 29er hardtails as endurance race bikes – the Superfly was very comfortable over the distance, with no back pain, and the blistering climbing response of a genuinely high-performance carbon frame.  Combined with a comfy Evoke RL saddle and the superb Race XXX Lite foam grips, I couldn’t have asked for anything better in the bike for a 7 hour singletrack stint.

Appropriately, I tried to put the bike’s climbing pedigree to good use right from the start, and was able to run just a single light with my K-Lite lighting the way into the pre-dawn gloom.  With over 20 minutes of continued climbing near the start of the lap, it wasn’t long until Andrew was the only rider holding the wheel.  We edged cautiously down the descent, and nearly cleaned up about 4 separate kangaroos. 

On the Deep Creek rockgardens, the 29er hardtail showed its prowess.  It’s nice to be able to stomp out of the saddle through the steep pitches, and G2 means you can easily loft your front wheel through tricky uphill rock step-ups. I opened some small gaps here to Andrew, but he shut me down in other areas, and we concentrated on opening a big advantage over Brett. 

Late in the first lap, Andrew got a puncture which allowed me to get about a minute off the front – he fixed it quickly! I quickly swapped bottles and helmets in the pits, and tried to establish a strong rhythm.  With the rising sun and the kangaroos mostly off the track now, I was able to push a higher tempo and began to open a steady gap. Adrenaline was pumping and I was loving the rocky gardens, nasty climbs and swooping berms.

Endurance racing is about controlling your adrenaline though, and making sure you plan ahead.  I focussed obsessively on appropriate nutrition and – most importantly – hydration – to ensure that I could maintain the pace.

The last few hours of the race became very hot – Stromlo is exposed and the white surface radiates the intensity of a burning summer sun straight back at you.  The trails were littered with cramping bodies and exhausted riders pushing their own limits in the challenging conditions on the tough course.  Between the comfortable bike setup and a solid hydration strategy, I was happy to remain consistent, and my final lap was my second fastest.  I crossed the line after 7 hours and 13 minutes, stoked to defend my title and hold off a consistently fast Andrew, who put in another characteristically strong performance for second. 

The following day saw a 3 hour race at Kowen held by Canberra Off-Road Cyclists.  Where a few of us use the Stromlo 100 miler as a test run for 24 Hour Nationals, everyone in Canberra uses this 3 hour as a test run for the Mont or Capital Punishment, and there were over 280 riders in attendance!  On the Rivet in Phillip sponsored this event and everyone enjoyed a great day’s racing in perfect conditions.

This course was the opposite of the Stromlo course in many ways – fast and flowing, with a steady climb through pine forests and native bush followed by the swooping, rollicking flow of the “Rolling Thunder” descent.  Riding 11 laps of this was fantastic fun, and it was no surprise to see 29ers in abundance on this fast and flowing course. 

I wasn’t sure how well I’d back up from the heat and distance of the previous day, but after the chaos of a self-seeded start, found myself in a reasonable position heading into the singletrack.  The previous day’s 100km winner – Dylan Cooper – soon moved to the front and belted out a very solid pace and was flying down the descents at a remarkable pace.  I hung on the wheel for a few laps before feeling the elastic stretch and eventually got popped off.  I managed to keep the gap down for a few laps before the inevitable “flatness” from the previous day’s racing caught up with me, and while I chugged some caffeine in an attempt to fire up some adrenaline, it was clear that I was going backwards.  In the meantime, the trails were far too much fun not to enjoy, and I started chatting to a few riders to roll out the distance and round off a fun weekend.

It was a great start to racing on the new Superfly – the same bike which, in the hands of super XC riders Dan McConnell and Bec Henderson – took two national titles on the same weekend.  I can’t wait for Mountains to Beach, and then the big goal, 24 Hour Nationals. 

Stromlo National Round - Bec Henderson Report

Round three of the All Mountain Cup was held on my home course, Mount Stromlo! This race was only my second mountain bike race of the season and after a second place in Mount Buller a couple of weekends ago I was hungry to go one better.

I had a very relaxed run into the weekend – getting plenty of practice in on the course over the last couple of weeks I didn’t need to stress about getting last minute laps in. On Friday morning Dan and I took out a couple of Junior riders who are supported by the James Williamson Enduro Fund to practice the course before the team launch in the afternoon followed by the beginning of racing at 4pm.

TV interviews at the Team launch. Pic: Russ Baker

The weather was predicted to be pouring rain on Friday and Saturday and so far the sun was out and burning! At about 3:30 we looked over the top of Mount Stromlo and saw the dark clouds coming. After a 15 minute storm with hail, water was everywhere and I was lucky enough to be hiding under the pavilion waiting for the shuttle rather than being at the top of the hill with the Elite Men.

Prior to the start every rider was required to do a registered practice run after the number of crashes in Mount Buller. My practice run didn’t go as well as I hoped – I felt like I couldn’t get any grip and I was a bit off the pace. This was before the storm though. I started my run fast and only a few minutes in I felt like I was already making up time, and confident that if I kept it smooth I would be safe for the win. Riders left off in 30 second intervals with the highest ranked rider going off last. I was ranked 6th after missing the first round of the series and left 30 seconds after PetaMullens. The track was super sticky and fun to ride and as I got towards the end of the Skyline track I caught up to Peta. Without too much trouble and much cooperation I was able to get around Peta and continue my run. Next was the berms track – the track was quite rutted out but knowing the course quite well I was able to negotiate my way to the smoother lines. Once we were off the berms track there was some fast open descending to go where I caught the rider who started 30 seconds in front of Peta. I rode hard to the finish, but ensuring that I kept it safe and smooth and finished in the time of 11 minutes and 6 seconds. There were only 5 more riders due to come in behind me and I remained in the hot seat. Jenni King, the series leader, was last down the hill and came through with a time of 11 minutes 17 seconds. So it was a good start to the weekend for me taking the win!

On the way to the win in the Super-D. Pic: Russ Baker

Saturday morning came around super quickly and we were on the start line ready to go at 9:30. Six laps ahead of us in the XCO - the main event of the weekend. I had a great start and lead the race into the start loop and kept the pace on hoping to put cracks in the field. It was Jenny Fay who went around me on the fast fire road and kept the pace hot. I looked behind me and we had a gap to the rest of the girls and going into the single track I went around Jenny and took to the front.

I was feeling really comfortable but wanted to start fast to put the pressure on the other girls, particularly Jenni King who has ridden off the front in all of the other races and been unchallenged. I rode hard and smooth and by the time we exited the first single track I was out in front by a couple of hundred meters. I felt good, really good, and coming into the start finish I was leading by just over 30 seconds.

On lap two I kept the pace up but this is when the first sign of things going wrong started to happen. I was riding down the longer descent and could hear my front tyre spurting and losing pressure - I kept it smooth and hoped that It would last until the tech zone. The tyre was staying up and I considered continuing on lap 3 without changing wheels but I thought it would be too risky and I didn’t want to end up halfway through lap 3 and having to put a tube in. I stopped and grabbed a front wheel and had a super quick change. Despite nursing the front tyre in the later half of lap two I still managed to increase my lead and was now 48 seconds ahead of the next rider.

It was a couple of hundred meters late that I realised my rear tyre had gone flat also. While the front tyre had lost a bit of pressure it was the rear causing problems. How did I not realise this? I jumped off my bike ready to change but the rear was also holding some pressure so I got the CO2 onto it and after stuffing around getting the wheel back in, and dropping a chain I was on my way again. After the second stop I had been passed by Jenni King and Katherine O’Shea and was now in third.

It was a couple of minutes until I passed Katherine and was now back in second and still in the hunt for the win. I kept my eyes looking forward and could see Jen in front of me. I was chasing hard but the rear tyre was going down again and I was going to have to stop in the tech zone again. We had another reasonably quick rear wheel change while I slipped in a quick TORQ gel and a drink and was once again back on course. I did my best to stay focused in a difficult and frustrating situation. With two laps to go I was not only tiring physically but mentally and emotionally. I was no longer in the hunt for the win and on lap 5 along the long fire road drag back towards the finished I was passed by Katherine O’Shea again and Jenny Fay.

Leading Katherine O'Shea through a technical section. Pic: Russ Baker

The last lap was one of the most frustrating of the event – I didn’t see my pit crew of Pete, Dan, Dad, Joel waving me down to change the front wheel for the last lap and with half a lap or so to go the front wheel was again losing air. I nursed it on the descents and came through to finish the race shattered and with another flat tyre.

Unfortunately I cannot blame the tyres, only my tyre choice and the sealant that I put in them – which was not my regular sealant either. Rather than using the more reliable tubeless version I decided to race on the lightweight tyres which would normally be fine, only Stromlo is a very rocky and harsh course. Yes I should have known better but I have also learnt a very valuable lesson.

After a bad start to the day things did improve with Dan taking the win in the Elite Men’s race and Luke Fetch, who was staying at our place, won the Under 23 Men in a sprint finish.

While it was very hard for me to stay happy - thanks to the positiveness, smiles and our team environment - I was able to put the cross country race behind me and focus on getting a good result in the Point to Point on Sunday.

Sunday morning came around extremely quick – we spent Saturday evening cleaning up bikes, putting tubeless tyres on and eating special pizza recovery food. With another early start we were all up at around 6:00 eating breakfast for a 9:00 start in the point to point. Dan, Dad, Fetchy and I all rode out to Stromlo for a warm up, it takes about 40 minutes and then the boys checked out the start loop.

When the gun went off I had another good start – again I lead into the first corner but this time riders came around me sooner and I decided to sit in the group. I knew the start loop was a little longer than in the cross country and it was going to be important to be conservative in the early minutes of the race. Jenny Fay hit the front of the bunch again with Katherine O’Shea and Jenni King and I sitting right on her wheel. Jenny Fay looked over her shoulder but no one was willing to come around to the front of the group so Jenny attacked. Katherine was now left to do the work chasing and Jenni King and I sat in behind her patiently.

The fire road turned left and headed up a steep slippery fire road and we caught Jenny Fay with no problems. The pace was quick and I tried my best to be relaxed. Jenni King went to the front and I knew I had to keep in contact with her so I dug deep and pushed over the top of the hill. The course then turned another left and headed down a fast fire road descent before entering the first single track. I knew that if I wanted a chance to win the race today I needed to be first into the single track.

Jenni King was riding a little quick for my liking in the early part of the race and with the home tracks being so familiar I was hoping I would be able to lose her through the single tracks and get away. It wasn’t to be, while I lead the entire trunk trail single track climb Jenni wouldn’t drop the wheel. I knew I was probably going a little slower than she would have liked but I wasn’t prepared to go any faster so stayed at the front.

By the time we got to the top of the hill we had made a sold gap on the rest of the field. 3rd place was out of sight and we started the descent to the back side of Mount Stromlo. Next thing we see an orange blur in front of us. Katherine O’Shea had managed to make a mistake out on course with a wrong turn taking about a 2 minute short cut. We caught her quickly and I was a little tense as I had just opened up a small margin to Jenni King. With this margin being one of my only chances to get away from Jenni I was desperate to get around Katherine as quickly and smoothly as possible. Unfortunately this did not happen as I could not convince Katherine that she had taken a wrong turn, and while mistakes happen I really didn’t care – I just wanted to get around and continue racing.

Coming into slick rock I was able to pull a somewhat dodgie but good enough manoeuvre (almost taking out Russ Baker who was taking photos) to get around Katherine and still held my tiny margin on Jenni.

Overtaking maneuver on the downhill section. Pic: Russ Baker

I entered the single track which begun the windy rocky trails around the back of Stromlo. As the course U turned I could see Jenni had now managed to get in front of Katherine and she was chasing me down. The next 15 minutes were on fast, technical trails. Constantly changing direction with obstacles and rocks always there to catch you out when you lost focus. I thought that I would be able to increase my gap to Jenni through these trails only she wound me in and by the time we got to the fire road leading into the feed zone Jen decided it was her turn to ride on the front and put the pressure on.

Straight out of the feed zone was a steep and long hill. I was not expecting this in the race and continued to follow Jen’s wheel. She increased the pace and I had no choice but to counter attack – I wasn’t in a rhythm going at her pace so I only had to push a little harder to make her hurt just as much. The climb went on longer than I had hoped and I was so glad that she couldn’t see my face. I was in the world of hurt and had no idea if she was still in touch with me or if I had opened up a gap. I couldn’t look back – it would totally give away the fact that I was hurting. If she had of passed me on this climb I would have been in big trouble.

I kept the pressure on through the single track as we started to head towards the finish. I knew there was one climb to go before we hit the skyline trail into the finish. The tracks wound around and I pushed harder and harder – not wanting Jenni to get a sniff of the front again. I was starting to put a couple of seconds into her but she wouldn’t completely lose touch. Every time I came around a corner I could hear her breaking into the one I had just exited.

I finally got on to the last rocky and technical climb before the finish and I put in everything I had. Again I had gained just a few more seconds and I kept the pace high on the descent into the finish. I dared not look behind, concentrating on riding smooth and mistake free I made it to the finish and was so happy to finally get a win on the board. 33 seconds later Jenni came through to take second.

It was a great race to be in and I couldn’t believe I had won it on the climb. It was awesome to cross the line to see that Dan had won the Mens race as well. A few minutes later Rich our Anytime Fitness team owner came through to take 5th in the Masters Men with a race time just one second quicker than mine. Dad also won the Super Masters so smiles in the Anytime Fitness Trek tent were not hard to come by.

On the top step of the podium for the Point-2-Point. Pic: Russ Baker

While it is hard to forget the negative situation I found myself in during the Cross country race on Saturday it is good to know that my form is good coming into the National Championships where I hope to defend my Under 23 title before heading to New Zealand and South Africa in early March for the Oceania Championships and then round 1 of the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup where Olympic selection begins…

I would like to take this opportunity to thank those who have continued to support me through the good and bad times! While mountain bike racing is an individual sport it cannot be done at the Elite level without the support of my major sponsors Anytime Fitness, Trek, Shimano, CCS Facilities Maintenance, and also the support of my family and close friends (you know who you are!) – so Thankyou!