This race report has been provided by Tate Dogan for MarathonMTB.com
Full credit goes to Chocolate Foot and the Appin community. To attract 150 keen mountain bikers ranging from the states’ elites to first-timers to a race first announced just over five weeks says a lot.
The Rock Wallaby forms part of the Appin Bicentennial Festival. The festival is a three-day event with loads of stuff to do including bake-offs, parades, photography and outdoor sculptures, oh, and a competition bike ride. If only they all sounded that leisurely! With the likes of Matt Fleming, Troy Glennan, Matt Potter, Jon Odams and Justin Morris in the line-up, this race was going to be anything but leisurely.
Having just rebuilt the Spark RC after the St Albans Sandfest two weeks prior, I had been keeping a keen eye on the weather. Nothing but blue skies for five days leading up to the race was going to mean a fast course and a whole lot of fun.
As the title suggests, the course was rocky and technical – though not as fast as initially thought because of how hard it was. There was a good mix of flowing singletrack, technical decents, rough climbs and open firetrails. My bike skills are not super, which was part of the reason I signed up. It was a nice change to have a course that tested the riders both technically and in fitness.
The race started with three lengths of Appin Oval, which served well to spread the field before entering the narrow singletrack. It wasn’t too long before I realised my tyres were up way too hard for the conditions. I pondered what to do for a few kilometers and then made the call to let them down, sacrificing a bunch of positions for more traction. Given how sketchy the course was in some parts, it turned out to be the right decision to opt for the extra grip.
I spent the remainder of the first lap trying to make contact with the back end of the lead group, which served no purpose other than to sap energy as I overcooked corners and struggled with the technical rock steps. Riding a course sight unseen is very draining and the slightest of brain fades had me running wide. One such brain fade resulted in a tree stump getting the better of me and threw me straight over the front. I dusted myself off and carried on rather timidly until the nerves settled.
The second lap was a lot more enjoyable. I knew what was ahead on the trail, and the field had thinned out. My lines improved and I was better prepared for the technical sections. With the help of a gel to keep the energy levels high, I put a big effort in on the major climb of the course and managed to make up a few spots. With 15km to go, I downed another gel and carried on emptying the tank. In recent times this has been my favourite part of a race. You can sense the finish line is not too far away, so you tackle every hill like it is the last, doing your best to ignore your screaming legs.
With 2km to I could see 5th place up ahead. I had made up five spots on the last lap already, but was keen for another. 1500m to go and the gap had come down to about 15 seconds. The rider up ahead now knew I was on the chase and judging by the frequency of how often he looked over his shoulder to check the gap, I could tell he was getting worried. 1000m to go and the gap was still falling. Coming up over the grassy hill in the last hundred meters I closed the gap to about five bike lengths, but had nothing left to finish the job. I rolled over three seconds behind to take out 6th place. A shake of the hands and congratulations all round showed we both appreciated the excitement of the final 2km. The race MC had perfect timing presenting me with the microphone for a post race interview whilst I was still gagging for air.
The race was a great success and with the added offerings of the Appin festival ensured there was something for the whole family to do whist the riders tore each other’s legs off. Great job Chocolate Foot for another fantastic event.
Read an account by Justin Morris at the MarathonMTB.com Team Website