A great new venue greeted riders for round 6 of the SRAM Singletrack Mind Series at the village of Rydal near Lithgow. With the Central Tablelands mountain bike club having to seek a new area for riding due to logging, they moved to the southern side of the Great Western Highway and have developed a great trail system based from the Rydal Showgrounds. Quite apart from the great facilities and 9km of swooping, serpentine trails, the local pub is just a minute away!
The penultimate round of the Series saw solid entries from teams and riders who are gunning for Series overall honours. The Male Pairs category has been very well subscribed all Series and this round would be no exception with 25 teams. Series leaders Stevens Bikes couldn’t attend, giving a great opportunity for their rivals to catch up. The MarathonMTB.com pairing of Tate Dogan and Rob Booker slotted straight into third place and seemingly didn’t budge from there all day while the battle for the lead was a far more torrid battle. Matt Potter of Bike Culture/Gu put in back to back fast laps to push his team to the front but the KOM Funky Buddhas worked hard over the first five hours and finally broke through to the lead, but unfortunately for them it was short-lived, fading only slightly to finish 2:48 behind Matt Potter and Luke Dale.
Tate Dogan tackling one of the numerous tight corners on the serpentine Rydal course. Photo: Dave Bateman Photography
The Mixed Pairs saw last year’s Series champions Micnic get off to an unfortunate start with Michael Hogan dropping a chain then suffering a flat tyre. While they managed to get from fifth place to second, they couldn’t overcome the consistently fast combination of Alice King and Ben Cirulis.
Other Pairs results included previous winners Ashfield Cycles’ Monique Clark and Belinda Diprose overcoming the Series leaders Crack ‘n’ Race in the Female Pairs, while the Masters Pairs saw one of the great grudge matches of the Series play out again with Series leaders Dan Palmer and Gavin Williams scoring the bragging rights.
While the racing was tight in the Male Threes, the positions didn’t change all day. Mitch Codner signalled Stevens Bikes team’s intentions early in the Male Threes being first through Transition on lap one by a significant margin and his team never relinquished the lead. Wallies of Pain didn’t get off to an optimal start, but by lap 2 they slotted into the middle step of the podium and the third placed team, Ashfield Cycles, kept third position for the entire eight hours.
Steven Hutchison amongst the great native bush backdrop of the new. Rydal trails Photo Dave Bateman Photography
Perhaps the most impressive rides of the weekend were in the solo categories, with some riders still recovering from their solo performances at the Scott 24hr only two weeks prior. Liz Smith seemed in no way fatigued as she and the other top three competitors swapped places until well into the day with her keeping her lead from the four-hour mark over Erin Zimmer and Tanya Moss. In the Solo Male category, it was to be a reversal of their 24 hour result for Andrew Hall and Ed McDonald as Hall proved himself to be superior over the shorter distance. In the Male Masters, Series leader Phil Welch was another 24 hour podium getter who was keen to test the legs, and the podium result would have reflected the Series standings with Welch winning over Trent Moore, however Garry James had other ideas and led from start to finish.
There was broad agreement from riders that the new venue at Rydal is a great mix of challenging trails and excellent facilities, it’s sure to become a “must do” event next year.
The final round and the awarding of overall honours in the SRAM Singletrack Mind Series is coming up soon on 27 November at the fantastic Awaba Mountain Bike Park near Newcastle. With over 350 entries already received, competitors are advised to enter soon and with the event coinciding with Newcastle Craft Beer Week, finding a tasty beverage to celebrate over 46 hours of great racing shouldn’t be too hard! As well as all the regular Series categories the event will feature a Corporate Cup – businesses big or small are invited to enter for a day of fun, socialising and great trails!
For more information visit the SRAM Singletrack Mind Series website.
Warm and dusty conditions made it a challenging day for soloists like Enduro Pulse’s Michael Crummy. Photo Dave Bateman Photography
Andrew Hall having a ball on his way to his third win of the Series. Photo Dave Bateman Photography