This is a race report on the 3-race weekend on Feb 10-12 at Stromlo by Harry Herne:
The 3rd round of the 2012 Australian All Mountain Cup took place at the iconic Mt Stromlo in Canberra. The weekend kicked off on Friday with a Super D race, which took in some awesome trails. But with the awesome trails came hail and a massive storm to settle the dust for the race. My run was not the best as I decided to stay upright and try not to make any mistakes.
Saturday came around quickly and I was kitted up with my new team kit, which boosted my esteem. The Cross Country race was going to be tough, and I was hoping for a top 10 finish. The first three laps were awesome, sitting in 11th chasing my team mate Cameron Prosser, but by the end of lap four I had slipped back into 14th and my legs were running out of gas quickly. Lap five was my last and I was in the hurt box. At the end of the race I had time to hang out with my new team mates and watch John Henderson and Richard Peil race their races.
The last day of racing was Sunday with the Point to Point. At the start I felt as though I had better legs than the day before, this helped my confidence. When the gun went off, there was a crash 100m into the race. I helped the fallen rider (Chris Aitken) get back to the bunch and we settled into the rhythm of the bunch. I entered the first single track in around 8th and moved up to 7th by the top of the mountain. I was feeling super strong but found that I was falling back in places fast on the decent. At the feed zone I was about 10th and had Cameron chasing me. Cam had reached the gap by the last single track leading up to Skyline, and we were chasing the other riders. I had a crash on a rocky corner and twisted my chain link which caused me to roll down the hill to the finish.
I would like to thank everyone on the Anytime Fitness Trek team for welcoming me into the team and all of the sponsors for hooking me up with awesome equipment.
Harry Herne
by Karuna Henderson
For me there were numerous highlights throughout the James Williamson Junior development camp. Firstly, I loved the challenge of keeping up with faster riders and the endurance gained after riding a lot within the camp. My riding skills definitely improved, especially my cornering technique and bunny hopping obstacles on the track. This was made possible by the awesome coaching that the coaches provided. Secondly, I enjoyed making new friends from the Southern Highlands region, catching up with my friends from CORC, and being in an atmosphere where everyone shares a passion for mountain biking. Thankyou for a great experience!
By Harry Herne
The inaugural James Williamson Junior Development MTB Camp took place in Canberra on the 25th November- 27th November. The camp was in honor of James who wanted to help young riders reach their best potential in mountain biking.
The camp was with Southern Highland riders and CORC riders aged from 15-18 and with different skill levels. There were around 22 riders at the camp with 4 coaches. On the Friday we arrived at the Bush Capital Lodge in Canberra and helped to get things organized and introduced ourselves to the other riders. We had dinner and then the coaches talked to us about what we would learn about on the camp. The coaches Dylan Cooper, Niki Fisher, Shaun Lewis and Jenni King made everyone feel welcome and answered any questions we had.
6 am on the Saturday morning we all rose from our beds to attend an amazing breakfast and then the camp was underway with a core and stretching session conducted by Jenni King who put us through some pain. After the stretching we all got kitted up and learnt how to set our position on the bike. This was an interesting exercise as many riders’ positions were wrong. Then the riding got underway. Shaun and Dylan took care of the boys and Niki and Jenni looked after the girls. We went around Lake Burley Griffin and practiced drops and riding up ledges.
We all then met back at the lodge and had a 5 star lunch before we headed out again to Bruce Ridge where we split into groups and took off for the rest of the day. We practiced switchback climbs, descending, cornering, climbing, jumping and how to choose the right line. When I was watching Dylan and Lewie I thought how Jimi would have loved to be able to have helped out.
When we got back to the hotel, we had another amazing dinner followed up by a talk by Jenni about nutrition and training. We also had a chance to learn about bike maintenance and how to change a tube. After that, everyone was tired and so we chilled out watching movies.
Sunday came around quick and we all wanted to know what we would be doing today. It started off much the same as Saturday with breakfast and then a quick core and stretch session. After that we kitted up into our new amazing ‘Willo’ jersey and rode to Majura Pines where we split up into the boys and girls group. The boys had a tough day ahead as we were told we had to climb nearly to the top of Mt Majura. The coaches told us the best way to climb. Most of us made the summit without stopping and had the awesome downhill to look forward to. The decent was a technical single-track with some tight corners, drops, rock gardens and roots. And we learnt the best way to attack the trail. We were able to attempt it a number of times and improved each run. We then rode some flowing trails to another section of track, splashing each other with the puddles. At the trailhead, we were told not to pedal and to stay OFF the brakes the whole time which was interesting. Once we got back to the road the race was on to the lodge to have lunch and to then go back out to Bruce Ridge for a final ride.
I would like to thank Meg, Leanne, John and Mark for providing us with an awesome weekend, and Dylan, Lewie, Niki and Jenni for the help they provided us with over the weekend. It’s a shame that James was not there but he was in our hearts the whole time. It was a pleasure to be part of his legacy and to be able to ride with his name on our jerseys.
Welcome to the second James Williamson Enduro Challenge, to be held on Sunday March 11th 2012.
Following the success of the inaugural event, the organisers were overwhelmed by riders’ positive comments and enthusiasm for this event. With this in mind, we are keeping the format of the race more or less the same as 2011, with a few minor changes to be introduced, to keep the trails flowing, and the riders pumped!
The James Williamson Enduro Challenge is a non-profit event, with all proceeds going to the James Williamson Fund. Proceeds will be used in a range of ways to develop young riders and promote the sport of mountain biking
Entries are now open for the James Williamson Enduro Challenge for 2012. To keep the friendly and James vibe to this race, entries are capped at 600. So register now, don’t wait. Registrations open through MTBA. Go to https://www.registernow.com.au/mtba/ERegister.aspx?E=815
The date for the First Annual James Williamson Junior Development Camp has been announced. It will be held on Friday 25th, Saturday 26th and Sunday 27th of November 2011. The Southern Highlands Cycling Club and the Canberra Off-Road Cyclists were invited to forward their nominations to the James Williamson Enduro Fund (JWEF) according to a set criteria. The final participants will be selected from these nominations and notified shortly.
This Junior Development Camp is an initiative of the JWEF, fully funded from the profits of the James Williamson Enduro Challenge 2011.
RSS Feed