Excellent racing , fantastic venue, amazing results..
Orla 1st Senior 2 Ladies
Caroline 3rd Senior 3 ladies
Marlena 1st Under 16 Girls
Micky 3rd Senior 2
Terry McDonagh 1st Senior 3
Max would have won senior 1 if he hadn't broke his chain ( again) yeah..right Max you mad yoke !
1st exceptional rider John Pennefeather from the Monsters of Mountainbiking in Senior 2 !!
Poor old Rob Deegan broke his rear Derailleur !!
Great organisation from Banbridge but poxy brown envelopes again !
From what I saw of the trail it was the best one I've seen in years !!
Well done to Mr P Buggle on his win ! Simon Curry had a stellar race for 2nd in Senior 2 !!
Blog and Photos to come !
Hats off to Bomber Boydell and his lightning attack on S1..
And well done to all the EPIC riders who went up..I'm so fricking browned off I didn't race this one just for the trail !!
aaarrrrgh..
Never said anything like it! Anyway... it was a great race but oh boy I did cost me, I'll write more when the fever goes away.
why tell the truth when a lie is sexier..thats the first rule of Journalism , Max !! your exact words were blehblehblehskiblahskichainbleebleeskibleeskiblahs kibugger !! after your lot only gave us 1 point in the Eurovision, you expect me to be nice !! with your green tea and your funny beard !!
I'm just home and that was the hardest 70 I ever worked for
I had a yo yo of a race with some lad who was all over me on the muddy bits and then I'd take him out of it on the climbs. I had a half bald rocket Ron on the rear and was off the bike more times I nearly gave up, then he punctured and I felt for him for about 2 seconds and then spotted two other lads coming fast so it was a race to the end.
Great course but way too muddy I thought
Well done to all the epicers for a great day.
After feeling sorry for myself all week and doing feck all training I wasn't hoping for a great result. The only hope I had was that the weather would be bad and slow down the race so I could gain some places on the tricky stuff.
But once at the start line, I started buzzing again and was ready to give it socks.
I started from the back but quickly moved up to the top 10ish on the first lap, then bang! and the chain snaps..oh I was raging! But needed points so fixed the chain (quickly this time) and back on the train just in front of S3s.
One S2 rider at a time (or a few on the fireroads) I started making my way back to my group. On lap 2 I passed Oz and Coyner so I thought I had most of S2 field behind me... but quickly noticed I didn't. So I kept on pushing and caught Fergal (I promised not to tell he was walking the tricky stuff). On lap 3 caught Scrivo and one of the McCabes who got stuck on my wheel for a while. Into lap 4 and I pulled all the stops, got Micky and pushed on to get a few S1s.
Once I caught Kev Stanley I knew I was going to hunt a few more bodies.. team Daz, Sean and Mark McG. Almost had Richie Felle (who was also chasing after a puncture).
I think I'm defo a better cop than a thief, need to have somebody to chase to go really well. Really enjoyed that.
Racing with a man flu wasn't a great idea (in bed now with fever) but I'm glad I did. The venue was fantastic and organisation spot on.
Well done to all the podiumers! Thanks to Aine & co for bottles!
And to our devil Coach and his apprentices for encouragement and the usual abuse :)
Well I'm totally chuffed with my win. the Sprint start in the field nearly ended up in a pile up. 3rd place heading into the singletrack I was not happy with. I had three big falls on the first lap. One that ended me upside down in a river. I dropped to last place of the 5 girls. I clawed back 2 places and assumed that was as good as I'd get. Then I met Rose walking back with her bike. She was out with a puncture. On the 2nd lap Richie told me Gill was only 30 secs ahead so I put in an extra bit to catch her. I soon caught sight and closed the gap right up. It was not easy to pass and on the fireroad when I made my move she put manners on me and went to the front again. I really didn't know if I had the strength to get ahead. Eventually she made a tiny mistake and I got past. I could have done with a rear view mirror as I had to keep checking if I had enough lead going into the last long fireroad climb.
I was so happy to cross the line first. Gill is strong and very experienced and if Rose hadn't punctured I doubt I'd have caught her.
The course was really fun. I wasn't sure on the practice lap but once I got the hang of sliding sideways and not using the front brake, it was great fun. Richie you might have preferred to have ridden but your encouragement (Caroline, Alfie, Karl and Marlena too) was well appreciated. Thanks to young Ross for doing bottles and washing my bike after!
Well done to Banbridge for a very well put together day.
Well done to all the other Epic winners and riders. The rain didn't dampen the spirits.
Agree that it was a good event and nice track, dryer it would be fantastic! well done Max you were flying past me [altho everybody was flying past me] I reckon Alfie would of loved that track, cheers Epic
Yeah Alfie (and Damo) would've eaten up that trail. I'm nearly there sometimes in terms of slickenss but I'm not consistent enough, I only got a hang of the skiddiness half way through the race..
Yeah Alfie (and Damo) would've eaten up that trail. I'm nearly there sometimes in terms of slickenss but I'm not consistent enough, I only got a hang of the skiddiness half way through the race..
Haha, lies may be sexier, but my report is. . . I sucked today ! Just couldn't get the hang of the sliddery stuff. Thanks to Richie , Alfie, Caroline for the hilarious encouragement ( do it ! do it ! ) Great course though, well done to Banbridge on great venue and organisation, some great results for the club, really felt bad for Rob Deegan, he was well in the lead when his rear mech got a knock, he was soldiering on regardless
ah me bollix..I'll never get the hang of this Photostuff !! i got a few good photos but i'm not getting them to focus properly !!
but this one is nice..even though it is feckin Richie Bleedin Skeletor from KTMMickJordanDazdontneednoslimfast and not one of my own children !!
although heres me old mate John Zebediah Prettyfellow
and the Dardiz
and this roide
Excellent racing , fantastic venue, amazing results..
Orla 1st Senior 2 Ladies
Caroline 3rd Senior 3 ladies
Marlena 1st Under 16 Girls
Micky 3rd Senior 2
Terry McDonagh 1st Senior 3
Max would have won senior 1 if he hadn't broke his chain ( again) yeah..right Max you mad yoke !
1st exceptional rider John Pennefeather from the Monsters of Mountainbiking in Senior 2 !!
Poor old Rob Deegan broke his rear Derailleur !!
Great organisation from Banbridge but poxy brown envelopes again !
From what I saw of the trail it was the best one I've seen in years !!
Well done to Mr P Buggle on his win ! Simon Curry had a stellar race for 2nd in Senior 2 !!
Blog and Photos to come !
Hats off to Bomber Boydell and his lightning attack on S1..
And well done to all the EPIC riders who went up..I'm so fricking browned off I didn't race this one just for the trail !!
aaarrrrgh..
Never said anything like it! Anyway... it was a great race but oh boy I did cost me, I'll write more when the fever goes away.
why tell the truth when a lie is sexier..thats the first rule of Journalism , Max !! your exact words were blehblehblehskiblahskichainbleebleeskibleeskiblahs kibugger !! after your lot only gave us 1 point in the Eurovision, you expect me to be nice !! with your green tea and your funny beard !!
I'm just home and that was the hardest 70 I ever worked for
I had a yo yo of a race with some lad who was all over me on the muddy bits and then I'd take him out of it on the climbs. I had a half bald rocket Ron on the rear and was off the bike more times I nearly gave up, then he punctured and I felt for him for about 2 seconds and then spotted two other lads coming fast so it was a race to the end.
Great course but way too muddy I thought
Well done to all the epicers for a great day.
After feeling sorry for myself all week and doing feck all training I wasn't hoping for a great result. The only hope I had was that the weather would be bad and slow down the race so I could gain some places on the tricky stuff.
But once at the start line, I started buzzing again and was ready to give it socks.
I started from the back but quickly moved up to the top 10ish on the first lap, then bang! and the chain snaps..oh I was raging! But needed points so fixed the chain (quickly this time) and back on the train just in front of S3s.
One S2 rider at a time (or a few on the fireroads) I started making my way back to my group. On lap 2 I passed Oz and Coyner so I thought I had most of S2 field behind me... but quickly noticed I didn't. So I kept on pushing and caught Fergal (I promised not to tell he was walking the tricky stuff). On lap 3 caught Scrivo and one of the McCabes who got stuck on my wheel for a while. Into lap 4 and I pulled all the stops, got Micky and pushed on to get a few S1s.
Once I caught Kev Stanley I knew I was going to hunt a few more bodies.. team Daz, Sean and Mark McG. Almost had Richie Felle (who was also chasing after a puncture).
I think I'm defo a better cop than a thief, need to have somebody to chase to go really well. Really enjoyed that.
Racing with a man flu wasn't a great idea (in bed now with fever) but I'm glad I did. The venue was fantastic and organisation spot on.
Well done to all the podiumers! Thanks to Aine & co for bottles!
And to our devil Coach and his apprentices for encouragement and the usual abuse :)
Well I'm totally chuffed with my win. the Sprint start in the field nearly ended up in a pile up. 3rd place heading into the singletrack I was not happy with. I had three big falls on the first lap. One that ended me upside down in a river. I dropped to last place of the 5 girls. I clawed back 2 places and assumed that was as good as I'd get. Then I met Rose walking back with her bike. She was out with a puncture. On the 2nd lap Richie told me Gill was only 30 secs ahead so I put in an extra bit to catch her. I soon caught sight and closed the gap right up. It was not easy to pass and on the fireroad when I made my move she put manners on me and went to the front again. I really didn't know if I had the strength to get ahead. Eventually she made a tiny mistake and I got past. I could have done with a rear view mirror as I had to keep checking if I had enough lead going into the last long fireroad climb.
I was so happy to cross the line first. Gill is strong and very experienced and if Rose hadn't punctured I doubt I'd have caught her.
The course was really fun. I wasn't sure on the practice lap but once I got the hang of sliding sideways and not using the front brake, it was great fun. Richie you might have preferred to have ridden but your encouragement (Caroline, Alfie, Karl and Marlena too) was well appreciated. Thanks to young Ross for doing bottles and washing my bike after!
Well done to Banbridge for a very well put together day.
Well done to all the other Epic winners and riders. The rain didn't dampen the spirits.
Agree that it was a good event and nice track, dryer it would be fantastic! well done Max you were flying past me [altho everybody was flying past me] I reckon Alfie would of loved that track, cheers Epic
Yeah Alfie (and Damo) would've eaten up that trail. I'm nearly there sometimes in terms of slickenss but I'm not consistent enough, I only got a hang of the skiddiness half way through the race..
Yeah Alfie (and Damo) would've eaten up that trail. I'm nearly there sometimes in terms of slickenss but I'm not consistent enough, I only got a hang of the skiddiness half way through the race..
Haha, lies may be sexier, but my report is. . . I sucked today ! Just couldn't get the hang of the sliddery stuff. Thanks to Richie , Alfie, Caroline for the hilarious encouragement ( do it ! do it ! ) Great course though, well done to Banbridge on great venue and organisation, some great results for the club, really felt bad for Rob Deegan, he was well in the lead when his rear mech got a knock, he was soldiering on regardless
ah me bollix..I'll never get the hang of this Photostuff !! i got a few good photos but i'm not getting them to focus properly !!
but this one is nice..even though it is feckin Richie Bleedin Skeletor from KTMMickJordanDazdontneednoslimfast and not one of my own children !!
although heres me old mate John Zebediah Prettyfellow
and the Dardiz
and this roide
Excellent racing , fantastic venue, amazing results..
Orla 1st Senior 2 Ladies
Caroline 3rd Senior 3 ladies
Marlena 1st Under 16 Girls
Micky 3rd Senior 2
Terry McDonagh 1st Senior 3
Max would have won senior 1 if he hadn't broke his chain ( again) yeah..right Max you mad yoke !
1st exceptional rider John Pennefeather from the Monsters of Mountainbiking in Senior 2 !!
Poor old Rob Deegan broke his rear Derailleur !!
Great organisation from Banbridge but poxy brown envelopes again !
From what I saw of the trail it was the best one I've seen in years !!
Well done to Mr P Buggle on his win ! Simon Curry had a stellar race for 2nd in Senior 2 !!
Blog and Photos to come !
Hats off to Bomber Boydell and his lightning attack on S1..
And well done to all the EPIC riders who went up..I'm so fricking browned off I didn't race this one just for the trail !!
aaarrrrgh..
Never said anything like it! Anyway... it was a great race but oh boy I did cost me, I'll write more when the fever goes away.
why tell the truth when a lie is sexier..thats the first rule of Journalism , Max !! your exact words were blehblehblehskiblahskichainbleebleeskibleeskiblahs kibugger !! after your lot only gave us 1 point in the Eurovision, you expect me to be nice !! with your green tea and your funny beard !!
I'm just home and that was the hardest 70 I ever worked for
I had a yo yo of a race with some lad who was all over me on the muddy bits and then I'd take him out of it on the climbs. I had a half bald rocket Ron on the rear and was off the bike more times I nearly gave up, then he punctured and I felt for him for about 2 seconds and then spotted two other lads coming fast so it was a race to the end.
Great course but way too muddy I thought
Well done to all the epicers for a great day.
After feeling sorry for myself all week and doing feck all training I wasn't hoping for a great result. The only hope I had was that the weather would be bad and slow down the race so I could gain some places on the tricky stuff.
But once at the start line, I started buzzing again and was ready to give it socks.
I started from the back but quickly moved up to the top 10ish on the first lap, then bang! and the chain snaps..oh I was raging! But needed points so fixed the chain (quickly this time) and back on the train just in front of S3s.
One S2 rider at a time (or a few on the fireroads) I started making my way back to my group. On lap 2 I passed Oz and Coyner so I thought I had most of S2 field behind me... but quickly noticed I didn't. So I kept on pushing and caught Fergal (I promised not to tell he was walking the tricky stuff). On lap 3 caught Scrivo and one of the McCabes who got stuck on my wheel for a while. Into lap 4 and I pulled all the stops, got Micky and pushed on to get a few S1s.
Once I caught Kev Stanley I knew I was going to hunt a few more bodies.. team Daz, Sean and Mark McG. Almost had Richie Felle (who was also chasing after a puncture).
I think I'm defo a better cop than a thief, need to have somebody to chase to go really well. Really enjoyed that.
Racing with a man flu wasn't a great idea (in bed now with fever) but I'm glad I did. The venue was fantastic and organisation spot on.
Well done to all the podiumers! Thanks to Aine & co for bottles!
And to our devil Coach and his apprentices for encouragement and the usual abuse :)
Well I'm totally chuffed with my win. the Sprint start in the field nearly ended up in a pile up. 3rd place heading into the singletrack I was not happy with. I had three big falls on the first lap. One that ended me upside down in a river. I dropped to last place of the 5 girls. I clawed back 2 places and assumed that was as good as I'd get. Then I met Rose walking back with her bike. She was out with a puncture. On the 2nd lap Richie told me Gill was only 30 secs ahead so I put in an extra bit to catch her. I soon caught sight and closed the gap right up. It was not easy to pass and on the fireroad when I made my move she put manners on me and went to the front again. I really didn't know if I had the strength to get ahead. Eventually she made a tiny mistake and I got past. I could have done with a rear view mirror as I had to keep checking if I had enough lead going into the last long fireroad climb.
I was so happy to cross the line first. Gill is strong and very experienced and if Rose hadn't punctured I doubt I'd have caught her.
The course was really fun. I wasn't sure on the practice lap but once I got the hang of sliding sideways and not using the front brake, it was great fun. Richie you might have preferred to have ridden but your encouragement (Caroline, Alfie, Karl and Marlena too) was well appreciated. Thanks to young Ross for doing bottles and washing my bike after!
Well done to Banbridge for a very well put together day.
Well done to all the other Epic winners and riders. The rain didn't dampen the spirits.
Agree that it was a good event and nice track, dryer it would be fantastic! well done Max you were flying past me [altho everybody was flying past me] I reckon Alfie would of loved that track, cheers Epic
Yeah Alfie (and Damo) would've eaten up that trail. I'm nearly there sometimes in terms of slickenss but I'm not consistent enough, I only got a hang of the skiddiness half way through the race..
Yeah Alfie (and Damo) would've eaten up that trail. I'm nearly there sometimes in terms of slickenss but I'm not consistent enough, I only got a hang of the skiddiness half way through the race..
Haha, lies may be sexier, but my report is. . . I sucked today ! Just couldn't get the hang of the sliddery stuff. Thanks to Richie , Alfie, Caroline for the hilarious encouragement ( do it ! do it ! ) Great course though, well done to Banbridge on great venue and organisation, some great results for the club, really felt bad for Rob Deegan, he was well in the lead when his rear mech got a knock, he was soldiering on regardless
ah me bollix..I'll never get the hang of this Photostuff !! i got a few good photos but i'm not getting them to focus properly !!
but this one is nice..even though it is feckin Richie Bleedin Skeletor from KTMMickJordanDazdontneednoslimfast and not one of my own children !!
although heres me old mate John Zebediah Prettyfellow
and the Dardiz
and this roide
Excellent racing , fantastic venue, amazing results..
Orla 1st Senior 2 Ladies
Caroline 3rd Senior 3 ladies
Marlena 1st Under 16 Girls
Micky 3rd Senior 2
Terry McDonagh 1st Senior 3
Max would have won senior 1 if he hadn't broke his chain ( again) yeah..right Max you mad yoke !
1st exceptional rider John Pennefeather from the Monsters of Mountainbiking in Senior 2 !!
Poor old Rob Deegan broke his rear Derailleur !!
Great organisation from Banbridge but poxy brown envelopes again !
From what I saw of the trail it was the best one I've seen in years !!
Well done to Mr P Buggle on his win ! Simon Curry had a stellar race for 2nd in Senior 2 !!
Blog and Photos to come !
Hats off to Bomber Boydell and his lightning attack on S1..
And well done to all the EPIC riders who went up..I'm so fricking browned off I didn't race this one just for the trail !!
aaarrrrgh..
Never said anything like it! Anyway... it was a great race but oh boy I did cost me, I'll write more when the fever goes away.
why tell the truth when a lie is sexier..thats the first rule of Journalism , Max !! your exact words were blehblehblehskiblahskichainbleebleeskibleeskiblahs kibugger !! after your lot only gave us 1 point in the Eurovision, you expect me to be nice !! with your green tea and your funny beard !!
I'm just home and that was the hardest 70 I ever worked for
I had a yo yo of a race with some lad who was all over me on the muddy bits and then I'd take him out of it on the climbs. I had a half bald rocket Ron on the rear and was off the bike more times I nearly gave up, then he punctured and I felt for him for about 2 seconds and then spotted two other lads coming fast so it was a race to the end.
Great course but way too muddy I thought
Well done to all the epicers for a great day.
After feeling sorry for myself all week and doing feck all training I wasn't hoping for a great result. The only hope I had was that the weather would be bad and slow down the race so I could gain some places on the tricky stuff.
But once at the start line, I started buzzing again and was ready to give it socks.
I started from the back but quickly moved up to the top 10ish on the first lap, then bang! and the chain snaps..oh I was raging! But needed points so fixed the chain (quickly this time) and back on the train just in front of S3s.
One S2 rider at a time (or a few on the fireroads) I started making my way back to my group. On lap 2 I passed Oz and Coyner so I thought I had most of S2 field behind me... but quickly noticed I didn't. So I kept on pushing and caught Fergal (I promised not to tell he was walking the tricky stuff). On lap 3 caught Scrivo and one of the McCabes who got stuck on my wheel for a while. Into lap 4 and I pulled all the stops, got Micky and pushed on to get a few S1s.
Once I caught Kev Stanley I knew I was going to hunt a few more bodies.. team Daz, Sean and Mark McG. Almost had Richie Felle (who was also chasing after a puncture).
I think I'm defo a better cop than a thief, need to have somebody to chase to go really well. Really enjoyed that.
Racing with a man flu wasn't a great idea (in bed now with fever) but I'm glad I did. The venue was fantastic and organisation spot on.
Well done to all the podiumers! Thanks to Aine & co for bottles!
And to our devil Coach and his apprentices for encouragement and the usual abuse :)
Well I'm totally chuffed with my win. the Sprint start in the field nearly ended up in a pile up. 3rd place heading into the singletrack I was not happy with. I had three big falls on the first lap. One that ended me upside down in a river. I dropped to last place of the 5 girls. I clawed back 2 places and assumed that was as good as I'd get. Then I met Rose walking back with her bike. She was out with a puncture. On the 2nd lap Richie told me Gill was only 30 secs ahead so I put in an extra bit to catch her. I soon caught sight and closed the gap right up. It was not easy to pass and on the fireroad when I made my move she put manners on me and went to the front again. I really didn't know if I had the strength to get ahead. Eventually she made a tiny mistake and I got past. I could have done with a rear view mirror as I had to keep checking if I had enough lead going into the last long fireroad climb.
I was so happy to cross the line first. Gill is strong and very experienced and if Rose hadn't punctured I doubt I'd have caught her.
The course was really fun. I wasn't sure on the practice lap but once I got the hang of sliding sideways and not using the front brake, it was great fun. Richie you might have preferred to have ridden but your encouragement (Caroline, Alfie, Karl and Marlena too) was well appreciated. Thanks to young Ross for doing bottles and washing my bike after!
Well done to Banbridge for a very well put together day.
Well done to all the other Epic winners and riders. The rain didn't dampen the spirits.
Agree that it was a good event and nice track, dryer it would be fantastic! well done Max you were flying past me [altho everybody was flying past me] I reckon Alfie would of loved that track, cheers Epic
Yeah Alfie (and Damo) would've eaten up that trail. I'm nearly there sometimes in terms of slickenss but I'm not consistent enough, I only got a hang of the skiddiness half way through the race..
Yeah Alfie (and Damo) would've eaten up that trail. I'm nearly there sometimes in terms of slickenss but I'm not consistent enough, I only got a hang of the skiddiness half way through the race..
Haha, lies may be sexier, but my report is. . . I sucked today ! Just couldn't get the hang of the sliddery stuff. Thanks to Richie , Alfie, Caroline for the hilarious encouragement ( do it ! do it ! ) Great course though, well done to Banbridge on great venue and organisation, some great results for the club, really felt bad for Rob Deegan, he was well in the lead when his rear mech got a knock, he was soldiering on regardless
ah me bollix..I'll never get the hang of this Photostuff !! i got a few good photos but i'm not getting them to focus properly !!
but this one is nice..even though it is feckin Richie Bleedin Skeletor from KTMMickJordanDazdontneednoslimfast and not one of my own children !!
although heres me old mate John Zebediah Prettyfellow
and the Dardiz
and this roide
Excellent racing , fantastic venue, amazing results..
Orla 1st Senior 2 Ladies
Caroline 3rd Senior 3 ladies
Marlena 1st Under 16 Girls
Micky 3rd Senior 2
Terry McDonagh 1st Senior 3
Max would have won senior 1 if he hadn't broke his chain ( again) yeah..right Max you mad yoke !
1st exceptional rider John Pennefeather from the Monsters of Mountainbiking in Senior 2 !!
Poor old Rob Deegan broke his rear Derailleur !!
Great organisation from Banbridge but poxy brown envelopes again !
From what I saw of the trail it was the best one I've seen in years !!
Well done to Mr P Buggle on his win ! Simon Curry had a stellar race for 2nd in Senior 2 !!
Blog and Photos to come !
Hats off to Bomber Boydell and his lightning attack on S1..
And well done to all the EPIC riders who went up..I'm so fricking browned off I didn't race this one just for the trail !!
aaarrrrgh..
Never said anything like it! Anyway... it was a great race but oh boy I did cost me, I'll write more when the fever goes away.
why tell the truth when a lie is sexier..thats the first rule of Journalism , Max !! your exact words were blehblehblehskiblahskichainbleebleeskibleeskiblahs kibugger !! after your lot only gave us 1 point in the Eurovision, you expect me to be nice !! with your green tea and your funny beard !!
I'm just home and that was the hardest 70 I ever worked for
I had a yo yo of a race with some lad who was all over me on the muddy bits and then I'd take him out of it on the climbs. I had a half bald rocket Ron on the rear and was off the bike more times I nearly gave up, then he punctured and I felt for him for about 2 seconds and then spotted two other lads coming fast so it was a race to the end.
Great course but way too muddy I thought
Well done to all the epicers for a great day.
After feeling sorry for myself all week and doing feck all training I wasn't hoping for a great result. The only hope I had was that the weather would be bad and slow down the race so I could gain some places on the tricky stuff.
But once at the start line, I started buzzing again and was ready to give it socks.
I started from the back but quickly moved up to the top 10ish on the first lap, then bang! and the chain snaps..oh I was raging! But needed points so fixed the chain (quickly this time) and back on the train just in front of S3s.
One S2 rider at a time (or a few on the fireroads) I started making my way back to my group. On lap 2 I passed Oz and Coyner so I thought I had most of S2 field behind me... but quickly noticed I didn't. So I kept on pushing and caught Fergal (I promised not to tell he was walking the tricky stuff). On lap 3 caught Scrivo and one of the McCabes who got stuck on my wheel for a while. Into lap 4 and I pulled all the stops, got Micky and pushed on to get a few S1s.
Once I caught Kev Stanley I knew I was going to hunt a few more bodies.. team Daz, Sean and Mark McG. Almost had Richie Felle (who was also chasing after a puncture).
I think I'm defo a better cop than a thief, need to have somebody to chase to go really well. Really enjoyed that.
Racing with a man flu wasn't a great idea (in bed now with fever) but I'm glad I did. The venue was fantastic and organisation spot on.
Well done to all the podiumers! Thanks to Aine & co for bottles!
And to our devil Coach and his apprentices for encouragement and the usual abuse :)
Well I'm totally chuffed with my win. the Sprint start in the field nearly ended up in a pile up. 3rd place heading into the singletrack I was not happy with. I had three big falls on the first lap. One that ended me upside down in a river. I dropped to last place of the 5 girls. I clawed back 2 places and assumed that was as good as I'd get. Then I met Rose walking back with her bike. She was out with a puncture. On the 2nd lap Richie told me Gill was only 30 secs ahead so I put in an extra bit to catch her. I soon caught sight and closed the gap right up. It was not easy to pass and on the fireroad when I made my move she put manners on me and went to the front again. I really didn't know if I had the strength to get ahead. Eventually she made a tiny mistake and I got past. I could have done with a rear view mirror as I had to keep checking if I had enough lead going into the last long fireroad climb.
I was so happy to cross the line first. Gill is strong and very experienced and if Rose hadn't punctured I doubt I'd have caught her.
The course was really fun. I wasn't sure on the practice lap but once I got the hang of sliding sideways and not using the front brake, it was great fun. Richie you might have preferred to have ridden but your encouragement (Caroline, Alfie, Karl and Marlena too) was well appreciated. Thanks to young Ross for doing bottles and washing my bike after!
Well done to Banbridge for a very well put together day.
Well done to all the other Epic winners and riders. The rain didn't dampen the spirits.
Agree that it was a good event and nice track, dryer it would be fantastic! well done Max you were flying past me [altho everybody was flying past me] I reckon Alfie would of loved that track, cheers Epic
Yeah Alfie (and Damo) would've eaten up that trail. I'm nearly there sometimes in terms of slickenss but I'm not consistent enough, I only got a hang of the skiddiness half way through the race..
Yeah Alfie (and Damo) would've eaten up that trail. I'm nearly there sometimes in terms of slickenss but I'm not consistent enough, I only got a hang of the skiddiness half way through the race..
Haha, lies may be sexier, but my report is. . . I sucked today ! Just couldn't get the hang of the sliddery stuff. Thanks to Richie , Alfie, Caroline for the hilarious encouragement ( do it ! do it ! ) Great course though, well done to Banbridge on great venue and organisation, some great results for the club, really felt bad for Rob Deegan, he was well in the lead when his rear mech got a knock, he was soldiering on regardless
ah me bollix..I'll never get the hang of this Photostuff !! i got a few good photos but i'm not getting them to focus properly !!
but this one is nice..even though it is feckin Richie Bleedin Skeletor from KTMMickJordanDazdontneednoslimfast and not one of my own children !!
although heres me old mate John Zebediah Prettyfellow
and the Dardiz
and this roide
] I reckon Alfie would of loved that track, cheers Epic 
