RAF Victorious at 2014 IS 24HR

Simon Harrison - Photograph courtesy of Alex Laws

So the dust has settled (there was a lot of it) and the RAF team and supporters have returned to camps various to recover.  26/27 July saw a fantastic weekends racing at the 2014 Interservice 24hr mountain bike champs held at Bontrager 24:12, Newnham Park Plymouth. Great results for the RAF teams not just in the Interservice category but overall with all 3 teams making their podiums.  2 soloists also managed an impressive number of laps each with Paul Rochford narrowly missing the top 10.  

Richie Nation - Photograph courtesy of Alex Laws

The team event is run Le Mans style with one rider on course at a time, the short 35-40 minute lap meant quick turn arounds and short rest periods.  Both the RAF mens and mixed team made strong starts with Martin Pearson and Mike Page staying out of trouble on the opening lap before handing over to their teammates.  4 hours in and both teams were on the podium in their respective open categories while the RAF were building a strong lead in the Interservice Competition.  The teams battled through 30 degree heat in the opening 6 hours with the support crew kept busy feeding and watering the riders while the mechanics kept bikes functioning perfectly.  The mens team suffered a set back 11 hours in when Jon Gates suffered a bad crash reducing the team to 3 riders for 6 hours while he visited the local A & E.  Time was lost to rivals but Jon came back strong and the fight back began with all riders giving all they had left to reduce the defecit.  Sadly time ran out and the team came 3rd in Open Men, a mere 2 minutes behind 2nd.  The RAF mixed team were also beaten by the clock their narrow margin to the Army meant their mixed category rivals had enough time to complete an extra lap, the final result not fully representing the closeness of the competition.  

Martin Pearson - Photograph courtesy of Alex Laws

Overall a strong performance from an RAF team comprising a mix of experienced racers, new faces and novice riders.  We all look forward to defending the title next year!

Results:

Interservice Competition
1st - RAF Cycling
2nd - Army Cycling
3rd - RNRMCA

2014 Interservice 24hr Champions at the end of Martins final lap - Photograph courtesy Fiona Innes

2014 Interservice 24hr Championships Podium - Photograph courtesy Fiona Innes

 Open Mixed Category

1st - Army cycling - 34 laps
2nd - RAF cycling mixed team (Mike Page, Chris Barstow,  Richie Nation, Louise Robins and Paige

Coope) - 33 laps

RAF mixed team take 2nd - Photograph courtesy of Fiona Innes

Open men Category
3rd - RAF cycling mens team - IS winning team (Simon Harrison, Jon Gates, Martin Pearson, Barrie-John Doherty) - 41 laps

RAF men take 3rd in Open Men - Photograph courtesy Fiona Innes

Mixed Pairs Category
3rd - RAF cycling mixed pair (Lucy Newcombe, Phil Cooke) - 21 laps

RAF mixed pairs take 3rd - Photograph courtesy Fiona Innes

Solo
12th - Paul Rochford 23 laps
46th - Kieron Jarratt 13 laps

Soloist Paul Rochford - Photograph courtesy of Alex Laws

Soloist Kieron Jarratt - Photograph courtesy of Alex Laws

Fun Category

4th Combined Services Novice Team - 30 laps

All of this wouldn't have been possible without the help of our amazing support crew - big thanks to Fluff, Andy Graham, Fie Innes, Vicky Doherty and Christin Merczynski. Also big thanks to dad Dean bringing our newest team member Paige Coopes bike down to the event.

2014 Interservice 24 Hour Mountain Bike Championships - Bontrager 24:12

2014 Interservice 24 Hour Mountain Bike Championships - Bontrager 24:12 26-27 July

This weekend sees the RAF Mountain Bike Team competing at the Bontrager 24:12 24hr Mountain Bike event incorporating the 2014 Inter-Services Mountain Bike Championships.  The event at Newnham Park in Plymouth is run on a Le Mans style multi-lap format with teams and soloists aiming to complete as many laps as possible in the 24 hours.  The course comprises tough climbs, tight single track and a river crossing and will be a stern test for all the competitors.  In addition to challenging the best of the Army and Navy the RAF teams will be looking to place well against the large number of amateur and professional teams entered in the event.

At the time of writing the RAF is entering:
Team 1 - Mens team of 4
Team 2 - Mixed team of 5
Team 3 - Mixed pair
1 solo rider

Updates will be posted throughout the weekend with placings and goings on.

Double CSR DH points at Bala

Pro-Team style pits

The Bala round of the Pearce Cycles DH Series always offers something a bit different. This year Bala played host to 2 races, the first on the high speed “Nationals” track and the most recent on a track offering a mix of old and new. Adding a bit of spice to the event for all Services riders was the fact that it was a CSR Double Points round.

Still not convinced about Neil becoming the new RAF DH poster-boy!

The promise of an awesome track, efficient uplift and double points lured riders in from far and wide. RAF Scotland was there in force with the guys making the epic drive from Lossiemouth and Leuchars. The Army went one step further and had 2 riders making the ferry trip from Northern Ireland. So a record attendance of 21 Army and RAF riders. Where were the Navy? They need to sort their entry admin out for next year!

Base Camp

It was clear on arrival that the Services meant business. The RAF and Army gazebos and flags dominated the finish area.

Get off the brakes!

Friday evening’s track walk revealed something of a rarity in the UK. A full-on high speed bone dry dusty DH track. Line choice was fairly limited on the top and bottom sections but the brand new middle sections had lines and cut shorts a-plenty. “Gap that” was certainly heard on more than one occasion!

A rare species in the UK: a dusty DH bike

After a good night’s sleep (interrupted only by some particularly aggressive sheep), we woke up to the disappointing news that Andy Lochhead’s front brake had expired at some point during the long drive from Lossiemouth. Kris Benson stayed behind to help him fix it whilst the rest of us jumped in the uplift and started smashing out practice runs. Fast, loose, dusty and rough pretty much sums it up.

Jamie Corsby was rapid in practice!

Just before lunch, the boys from Lossie were ready to join us after a complete brake change... Or they would have been had Kris Benson not attempted a simple wheelie in a flat field on the way to the uplift. Off the back he went and down on the ground he remained. A badly bruised coccyx laid him out in his tent for much of the weekend (or was it just embarrassment!?) and he was unable to race.

The RAF's finest!

A few red flags interrupted practice but the weather stayed fine and everyone was happy to take the time to relax in the sun and discuss line choice. Saturday night’s track walk revealed yet more fresh lines to be had but the overall feeling was surreal. A perfectly blue cloudless sky, dust hanging in the air and heat still in the sun at 9pm. This was Mid-Wales, what was going on? A BBQ, a bonfire and some banter followed before the relentless midges drove everyone to their beds.

Welsh nightlife

Sunday dawned sunny again with just a few clouds bringing the possibility of a shower (which always makes the bottom field… interesting). Some racers do as many practice runs as possible on Sunday morning, others do a few, some do one and some do none. Andy Lochhead did as many as possible.

Prior to the event Andy Hart thought the track looked "a bit lame". A last place finish
in Seniors tells a different story! Appearances can be deceptive.

And so to the racing. It was fast and you had to go fast to do well. 62 kph through the speed trap was possible, high 50s was more common. Unseeded in his first Pearce race, Andy Lochhead went early and set the bar high. A time of 3.21 put him in the hot-seat for quite a while.

Was Ian Churchill feeling the pressure?

This subject has been discussed to death but I think it was hammered home to our “visiting” riders: just how high the standard of racer in the Pearce series is. Times started to tumble and our riders started slipping down the leader boards. There was pressure on our star rider Ian Churchill to perform here. A couple of minor mistakes cost him fractions but a 3.25 was only good enough for 47^thin Seniors. Not something he’s used to!

A rising star? Neil McFarlane

Jamie Corsby had undoubtedly been fast in practice demonstrating his trademark style and laying down some very creative lines. However, race nerves got the better of him and his time was more than a few seconds slower than what he is easily capable of. Up-coming RAF rider Neil McFarlane has the speed and skills to do well but again, struggled to put together a clean race run.

Andy Lochhead was on it!
Kris Benson was behind the lens due to a failed wheelie attempt!

Andy Lochhead was quite simply unstoppable and in a different class on this occasion. A second run time of 3.18 placed him 16^th in Masters which is no small achievement in your first ever Pearce race!

Lewis "1 Run" Wighton

So whilst the overall results might have been a little disappointing, the CSR results were an RAF whitewash. RAF riders in the top 5 positions demonstrating that our race preparations and tactics are starting to work. (See full results at www.facebook.com/rafdownhillteam) Ian Churchill now leads the CSR DH Series overall with Andy Lochhead very close behind in second.

In summary, one of the best race weekends ever from all aspects. Great track, great organisation, great results, great weather, great company and some great banter. Anyone for wheelie school?

RAF DH Team at the World Cup

Massive Fort William crowd makes this event special.

Last orders are called in a well known real ale pub on Sunday night in Fort William when in walks Greg Minnaar (current World Champ), Steve Peat (former World Champ), Rob Warner (DH Legend), Josh Bryceland (DH bad-boy), Stu Thomson (mtb film-maker) and the obligatory entourage of media types. This could get messy...

RAF DH Team in the thick of it.

Around 4 weeks prior to the event, I received a telephone call from the Armed Forces Careers Office in Glasgow. "Would it be possible for the RAF DH Team to put on a bit of a display at the UCI Downhill World Cup at Fort William?" That's the sort of offer you don't hear every day. A chance to put our team on the World stage. "Yeah, I'm sure we could sort something out."
Sports-fans!
Fox, Troy Lee Designs, RAF Cycling. Not bad company!

Cue an insanely intensive period of planning and preparation: rushing branded teamwear into production, tracking down banners and flags, producing flyers and stickers, editing our riding movies into a suitable format, compiling a slide show, selecting images for enlargement and designing an eye-catching display.

25000 spectators make the journey.
Those hips don't lie.
At approximately 1503 Hrs on Friday, elements of the team travelling from Oxfordshire, Yorkshire, Glasgow and Moray convened with almost military precision in a car park in Fort William centre. The AFCO Mobile Recruitment Vehicle (MRV) was loaded up and we were on our way to a reserved plot right in the centre of the exhibitors village at the biggest downhill mountain bike event in the world.

The multi-media equipped MRV.
The aim of our presence was to increase footfall through the MRV for the RAF Careers team. However, from a personal point of view, the aim was to raise awareness of the RAF DH Team and the Combined Services Racing Downhill Series we compete in. That aim was certainly achieved and we received lots of positive feedback. The only slightly concerning aspect was the number of serving RAF personnel who came for a chat and claimed not to know that the RAF had a DH Team!!! An issue we will certainly be addressing.

You couldn't miss us!
So, the weekend zipped by in a blur of sunshine, anti-midge lotion, cow bells, air horns, energy drinks, cheers, whistles, spectacular scenery and the small matter of the world's best mountain bike racers fighting for victory on an iconic track. 

The noise and atmosphere was incredible!
The British women suffered cruelly from punctures with Manon Carpenter, Tahnee Seagrave and Rachel Atherton falling victim whilst up at the early splits. In the men's race, Inverness local, Greg Williamson held on to the hot seat for what seemed like an eternity. Eventually he was dislodged (finishing 9th) as the times started to tumble. British rider Danny Hart once again narrowly missed out on a home win finishing third. Australian legend and crowd favourite Sam Hill was in the hot seat with only one rider to go. His fellow countryman Troy Brosnan smashed his race run to finish 1.6 secs ahead of Hill and secure his first ever World Cup victory. 

The Scottish weather was good to us.
Elder-Statesmen of the sport: Peaty & Pops
Even more quickly than it was set up, the entire World Cup circus was dismantled and was headed towards Leogang in Austria for the next round. Although not before a select few had stopped off to sample the local brew...



I think we left our mark...

RAF DH Team BDS Debut

The RAF DH Team made its debut at the British Downhill Series, Rd1 Antur Stiniog, on the weekend of 29 Mar 2014. And what a debut! The team have now proved beyond any doubt that we are capable of competing at the very highest level.

Following on from the DH Team’s success during the 2013, we were lucky enough to be invited to race the BDS series by event organiser Si Paton. Sgt Nick “Pops” Larkin immediately took the initiative and secured a pitch in the “Pro Team” pit area. Driving down the winding tarmac road towards Antur Stiniog, the distinctive blue RAF Cycling gazebo proudly stood out like a beacon at the very front of the pits area.

The support crew played an essential role throughout the weekend. Setting up workstands and seating, organising timings and catering, supplying essential drinks and warm clothing, washing and maintaining bikes and kit, chatting to spectators and networking with bike industry players.

The racers were free to focus on line choice and putting down faster and faster practice runs. The track at Antur was extremely demanding. Steep, technical, loose and rocky with several vertical drops. Saturday practice was made extra difficult by a gusty crosswind that whipped bikes off the track as soon as the wheels were in the air. Needless to say, all team riders had various “offs” on the constantly changing and often slippy Welsh slate. A few words from ex-World Champion, Danny Hart, whilst on the uplift encouraged our riders to make some subtle changes to bike set-up.

Saturday night saw the team gather with most of the other racers for the premiere of downhill legend Steve Peat’s biographic film “Won’t Back Down”. After an introduction from the man himself, we were treated to a comprehensive and often emotional history of British and World Cup downhill. After a good night’s sleep, the RAF DH Team were ready to race.

The weather on Sunday was perfect. The track was constantly drying out and getting faster. 2 practice runs were completed in the morning before taking stints on the turbo trainer ahead of qualification.

Qualification went well with all RAF DH Team riders posting solid runs. However, it was clear that there was more speed to be unlocked from this track. By race time, the track was dry and running extremely quickly. Fortune favoured the brave on the unpredictable surface but our Number 1 rider, Ian Churchill, suffered an “over the bars” on his race run. Incredibly, he still finished 12^th  in the Senior category in his first ever BDS race. If he hadn’t crashed… who knows?

Si Ward was not far behind, finishing in 18^th place in Senior. Andy Lochhead finished 20^th in Masters and Baz Fenton 24^th. What was clear is that everyone felt that they could have gone faster. This is hugely encouraging as it demonstrates that there is plenty of room for improvement.

Another pleasing aspect of the weekend was the inter-services rivalry. This event comprised Rd2 of the CSR DH Series and it was a real pleasure to ride with and compete against the guys from the Army and Navy. Obviously, the fact that we beat them all made it even sweeter!

There was some very constructive discussion amongst the 3 Services teams about the CSR points system. Currently riders are awarded points for their overall position compared to every other racer and points for their position amongst other Services riders. It was generally agreed that perhaps a move to adopting the British Cycling points system (or a slightly modified version) would be worth considering this season or in the future. As a result, it is our intention to run both points systems this year and compare the results at the end of the season before making a final decision.

So all in all, a very productive race weekend. It is hugely satisfying to see all the hard work that goes on behind the scenes come to fruition at one of the biggest events on the UK DH calendar. Having proved that the RAF DH Team can compete at this level, it is most certainly our intention to build on this success and go on to start claiming podiums.