This morning we raced an individual mountain bike time trial over 22 kilometres, through sandy, washed-out four-wheel-drive track and singletrack. The course was a little less curvy and a little flatter than I’d hoped, but I managed to put myself through enough pain to win by a few seconds, which made me very, very happy. […]
Riding Australia’s Red Heart – ICME Stages 2 & 3
Just because it’s the desert doesn’t mean its flat, and Alice Springs has one tough climb on its western edge: Anzac Hill. It’s not very long – only a few hundred metres of sealed road, but the gradient boots up to about 26%, and averages about 12%. Stage 2 of ICME, yesterday evening, had us […]
Riding Australia’s Red Heart – ICME Stage 1
Bearing in mind that a lot of MarathonMTB.com readers are from all around the world, and that many Australians don’t know where Alice Springs is anyway, I thought I’d start this series of blogs about Alice Spring’s biggest MTB event with this fascinating geography primer. Skip ahead a few paragraphs if you just want the […]
Alice Springs Essentials – Tips for racing in Australia’s Red Centre
Related Event: Easter in the AliceLasseters Easter in the Alice
I’ve been to Alice Springs, in Australia’s red desert heart, to race five times now, I love it so much it’s never hard to justify going back Stage racing out in the Alice Springs desert brings some special challenges with it, so as I’m writing reviews of the trails and getting ready to deliver race reports, […]
Preview: Belgian Mountain Bike Challenge – BeMC
The month of May is traditionally a turning point for road cycling in Europe. Summer is just around the corner and the spring classics are all done and dusted, riders have packed away their winter gloves and Belgian booties and are looking forwards to a summer of stage racing and Grand Tours. It’s not just […]
Great racing and good times at Forrest Festival
What started out as a small event aiming to bring a bunch of riders together and show them have a good time, is now becoming a highly regarded race for all levels of rider that’s further establishing Forrest as one of Australia’s top mountain bike destinations. Race organisers Norm and Jess Douglas are now in […]
What it takes to be a successful mountain bike stage racer
You might think that being a successful mountain bike stage racer is all about training and fitness. But while these things can help, if you’ve ever participated in these events before, you’ll know that the real race starts when you cross the finish line each day. Depending on where the event is being held, how […]
Centurion-Vaude and Topeak-Ergon secure leads at Transalp
Markus Kaufmann (GER) and Jochen Kaess (GER) of Centurion Vaude have underlined their claim on this year’s Craft BIKE Transalp powered by Sigma title by claiming their second consecutive stage win in 4:07:48.2 hours today. The overall leaders secured their 2013’s third on the sixth stage from San Martino di Castrozza to Crespano del Grappa […]
Kaufmann and Kaess increase lead at Transalp
By clinching their second stage at the 16th Craft BIKE Transalp powered by Sigma Markus Kaufmann (GER) and Jochen Kaess (GER) were able to extend their lead in the overall ranking. Centurion-Vaude 1 killed the previous record on the 73.28 km and 3,137 metres stage from Alleghe to San Martino di Castrozza in 3:26:16.2 hours […]
Transalp: Push yourself and you push your team
The first day of Transalp, Mike pushed me. The second day, we pushed each other. Today, I pushed myself. Day three had some of the most intense climbing of the race. It was only a short stage, 58km, but brutal, starting with a 25km climb from 500m to 2400m, and chased by technical descending and […]