The Montane Kielder 100 is quickly becoming THE Mountain Bike Marathon to compete in for UK based racers. With the amount of entrants growing rapidly from the first year in 2009, 2011 should be a cracker of an event. Looking over the start list, you may gain an appreciation of who could be racing well this weekend, on Saturday 3rd September.
Open Mens:
This is a hotly contested category. Past winners Neal Crampton and Andrew Cockburn have come from this category, and that is not surprising. They were active from the moment the gun went and the race started. Unfortunately, Crampton has said he won’t be competing in 2011, but did devote August to three super hard Marathons in Switzerland. So fair enough. Cockburn was also in Switzerland – but was that merely part of the build up? He has plenty of Columbia – Bike Food team mates at the race to help out. He should be feeling confident.
Josh Ibbett will be absent, but his TORQ team mate Ben Thomas has been tipped as a top favourite. Other fast XC guys who could take the win would be some the AW Cycles crew, such as Stephen James and Tim Dunford, who were riding very quickly along side the TORQ team at last weekends 12hour event.
Andy Fellows (AY-UP Lights) is on a racing sojourn from Australia, and is a formidable talent in such an event. Although he hasn’t contested the event previously, this should not be a hinderance. The trails are straight forward, it’s just the distance that adds up. As a 24hr strongman, Fellows will have this base covered.
There will be countless others to watch as well, but there is a good chance that the winner will come from one of the names above.
Veteran Mens:
Perhaps the biggest category at most Marathons is Vet mens. And rightly so, many cyclists get strong, and stay strong. This could well be a 100 mile drag race between Ant White, Mark Spratt and Rich Rothwell. These three will be contesting more than just their category, but the overall as well.
Open Womens:
No result can ever be predetermined, but Mel Alexander should be somewhat confident in retaining her title as a Kielder 100 champion. But 100 miles is a long race, and anything can happen. With Sally Bigham ruminating that perhaps she should be in Kielder, will there be a last-minute change?
Veteran Womens:
2010 winner Sally Daw will be in attendance. With similar entrant numbers between Vet and Open womens, the chance of good cross category tactics can’t be ruled out.
There are hundreds of other entrants, and it remains to be seen what the finishing rate will be like. Completing a 100 mile Mountain Bike Marathon is a huge achievement , and many people have entered with the intent to do so. The Montane Kielder 100 has the feedzones, volunteers and support to help you achieve that goal. But it comes down to the rider. yes, you need to pace yourself. But you also need to race. This is one of the few opportunities in the UK to have a one lap Marathon that can be raced the whole time. Take the opportunity, and give it everything!
More information can be found on the Event Website