Original Source

Seb Ramsey's blog

SHRUGGING off winter and keeping motivated to ride is as much of a skill as actually piloting a bike. Your local trails are wet, slow and, no matter how many lumens you’re packing, night riding’s just not the same. But if you’re wanting to keep the momentum going through the shorter, colder days to be in the best shape possible for an event like Mountain Mayhem, it’s vital to be out there. And whether you’re riding, running, cross-country skiing or even simply walking, it’s all going to count. And variety is the key. In previous winters I’ve entered fell races and off-road duathlons to keep things ticking over but this year a knee injury has confined me to the bike. So with this in mind I entered the first round of the Alpine Bikes downhill winter series. Winter’s a great time to work on your skills and there’s no better place to shake away the winter malaise than flat out at the downhill Mecca that is Innerleithen. Winter races are far more grass roots than the regional and national series races of the spring and summer. There are plenty of first-timers and single-crown forks, camelbacks and hardtails stand shoulder to shoulder with carbon frames, neck braces and team jerseys. Aimed at attracting new racers, the tracks are also generally less technical, a bit faster and more flowing. The big freeze gave way to massive rains in the Borders at the end of January, meaning that although the track wouldn’t be an ice rink, it would be drenched. The thaw had left the ground soaked which, combined with four days of solid rains, caused the River Tweed to burst its banks and fill the car park and much of the wide, flat-bottomed valley. No matter, we were climbing some 1,000ft up the south side of the valley and the coach and truck drivers who run the uplift service were just happy not to be skating around on ice. For most downhill races you practice Saturday and then, after a couple of runs on Sunday, pit yourself against the clock. With a fast, pedally track like this one, it’s key not to overdo it on Saturday and then be too goosed to pull out a fast one come race time. The track was a mish-mash of well-worn trails which snake their way down the north-west facing slopes of Plora Rig. Starting with a fast but rooty plunge into a steep quarry, you pulled hard to clear a road jump and landed in a long, fast douglas fir tunnel with a series of jumps. You had to clear the gaps to keep your speed. If you weren’t nudging max HR on that 25-second stretch then you’d missed the point. Out of the trees momentarily and into a long section of berms – the luge – before being spat out across a fire road and into a jump-strewn run-in to a sketchy flat-cornered finish. A great way to sharpen all sorts of riding skills but, most of all, a massively fun way to spend a cold, wet weekend.