Last weekend the 3rd round of the CRC MTB Marathon Series powered by Mercedes-Benz Vito Sport took riders to Marshbrook in Shropshire. A few miles south of Shrewsbury and with ample of hills around it, things were looking promising for the summer round of the series. Similar to the last round in Selkirk, the Marshbrook round was another road and MTB affaire with the VITUS Road Sportive starting things off on Saturday and the MTB Marathon following on Sunday morning. But the Marshbrook round did not just impress with fantastic riding, almost great weather and the MTB-Marathon Series typical setup but also with the extra addition of a super cosy pub with great food, lovely beer and some great live music…all just on the edge of the event venue.
The Saturday of the event weekend featured the 2nd round of the CycleOps Power road sportive which had two demanding courses on offer which not just showed off the most scenic corners of the area but also sent the riders up 20% inclines taking them to the very top of the famous Long Mynd.
An almost perfect day for a mountain bike ride!
Last year’s introduction to the series went down a storm with lots of riders rating the Marshbrook course as one of the best of the series. This year set out to impress the riders once more with the challenging and varied course around the Long Mynd.
Course designer John Lloyd created three demanding courses which had everything a marathon should have thrown into the mix – long climbs, fantastic single track, breathtaking views and some proper technical challenges. In particular the Minton Batch, the trails around Eastridge and the fantastic views from the top of the Long Mynd will stay in people’s minds for a long time.
Due the rather harsh weather conditions leading up to the event and the challenging terrain the recorded times were slightly slower than in 2011 with the 1st rider of the short course coming over the line after 1hour 43min in the saddle. From there onwards there was a constant flow down the finish shoot. After conquering the last few meters of trail the riders received their event T-shirt and a warm welcome of the crowd. The flow of riders would carry on till the last rider crossed the line to complete the long course in a time of 8hours and 34mins.
Next marathon – Abergavenny on the 4-5th August 2012
To find out more about the Abergavenny round please go to the event page.