May has come around very quickly this year and the events are starting to kick off.

Gorrick 100 is an event we failed to attend last year but it was always on the wishlist, a lot of riders had said the course was exceptional so this year we decided to make the trip.

At 3.30am on Sunday morning we were on our way with our pal Dean Tempest Mitchell on driving duties with a 18-20 hour day ahead of us I didn’t think driving myself and Donna down there was a great idea! The trip down was fine and we made it to Deepcut by 7.30am.

The most surprising thing we noticed on arrival was how dry the trails were and that the temperature was almost 12c. The structure of the event means the 8-lap race started at 8.30am and the other races which ranged from 6 to 1 laps started at intervals throughout the day. So when the race began the regulars went off like it was a short xc race but this was with the intention of getting the gaps in before the other races started.

The top five riders were quickly out of sight and I was left in a small group of riders taping out a more bearable pace, the first few laps I did feel a little out of my comfort zone and cracks were showing! But I managed to pull it back together as we began to catch the 6-lap riders although this caused a few overtaking crashes within our group and became a bit stressful as I was determined to stay with Chris Noble who I know has strong calibre in this type of event.

The course was exceptionally technical for an endurance race and resembled a Nutcracker xc course at Gandale and the constant twists and turns made for a strava feed that looked like a bowl of spaghetti!

I eventually lost contact with Chris and began to question my endurance but my heart rate range was fine, it was just the constant throbbing in my quads that made me think I was pushing the limit.

A few silly crashes later and the last few laps were the most enjoyable as the volume of riders on the course had decreased and my flow over the technical sections had dramatically improved.

The last lap included  another crash on the last single track section before the finish line allowing the 11th rider to pass me so I dug deep for a sprint to clinch 10th …

Donna had a fantastic race achieving 3rd against some strong high calibre competition including Joe Munden (who seems to win every Gorrick event!) and Amanda Brooks who has some exceptional results to her name including a 3rd place at the Cape Epic !

 

On reflection I was happy with my result as the course was far more technical than any marathon. 10^th place on a 63mile xc course in a open male category against National and International champions doesn’t sound that bad!

The race was predominately fuelled by Nutrixxion products to maintain our fluid levels and maintain our mental focus.