16th out of 47 pairs male!!
Starting at midday, finishing at midnight. 8 miles course. It was dry for the first 2 laps. Then the rain came for the following 3 laps and made it slippery and muddy but still rideable. After that course improved and you could find some lines avoiding the proper muddy parts.
I did the pre race lap (1hour) and thought Ralphs would be fine but just in case I kept the mountain king 2.2 front and Ralph 2.1 rear, which later on proved success. The course seemed easy for the first half and a bit more hilly and technical the second half. At that time I thought it wouldn't suit me but with the help of the rain and with the right choice of tyres and pressure was much better for me.
We had planned to do 2 laps each. My friend started at the back of the group. Add around 2 minutes loop to spread riders so I think his 1st lap was his fastest one.
After first lap we were 41st . Everyone is fast at the start but just a few at the end
After my first 2 laps in the rain my friend wasn't at the start (for just a few seconds) and someone encouraged me to go on and so did I. I couldn't keep the fast pace on my previous 2 laps (46' and 47') and my 3rd lap was much slower(53') and quite muddy and wet...
Cleaned and lubed the drivetrain, had a good recovery and ready for my second 2 laps stint (8th and 9th) and lights ready also for 9th lap. Found course much better; I could find some narrow paths were mud had dried, more compact. Good!! And it was when I really really fully enjoyed the course. Going fast, good grip on front wheel, controlled slide on my rear, hardly had to use front brake, bike astonishing responsive on twisty singletrack, managed to do all climbs + the jewel of the course, sponge bob, with a final big bomb hole with big roots on top. Yahoooo!!
Then my friend did 2 quick laps for night time (10th and 11th) who took me by surprise and got late (2 or 3 minutes?) to start. We also lost some time changing lights (one set for both) but nothing affected to overall standings. I think lap 12th was around 52 or 53 min. First half of lap 13th I felt a bit tired but the second part, especially the last 2 miles I was a misile!! We were 27th before the last 2 laps and got 11th positions better, mainly due to riders finishing before 12. Maximum speed 47km/h.In bold my laps
01.- 00:59:03 (dry)
02.- 00:57:57 (dry)
03.- 00:46:39 (dry/rain/wet)
04.- 00:47:32 (rain,wet, boggy)
05.- 00:53:00 (rain,wet, boggy, muddy patches)
06.- 01:10:40 (boggy, muddy patches)
07.- 01:17:10 (boggy, muddy patches)
The course got better and better
08.- 00:50:12 (muddy patches)
.......Night time...............................
09.- 00:52:51 (night time, muddy patches)
10.- 01:12:26 (night time, muddy patches)
11.- 01:06:28 (night time, muddy patches)
12.- 00:58:37 (night time, boggy patches)
13.- 00:57:15 (night time, boggy patches)
TOTAL: 12h 49min 57 sec.
Now it's time for last round of Mud, Sweat and Gears at Langdon Hill, but that's a different battle.