2010 British National Championship | Ae Forest

This weekend saw the British National Championships take place in Ae Forest. Wet and mist ridden the action was muddy, slippery and challenging for riders, spectators and photographers.

Read on for all that happened
It doesn’t seem long ago that Ae Forest held its first National level race, back when the National Points Series was still referred to as ‘the Rav 4’s’, referring to the Toyota sponsorship which went along with the Channel 4 TV coverage for a few years. That was 1998. On the face of it not much has changed in those intervening years but as it’s been a case of evolution rather than revolution it’s not entirely surprising. What did surprise a lot of riders was that Borderline Events, fronted by Mike Marsden, chose to set the venue for the 2010 National Championships, many feeling it to be past it's sell by date. But with a mid life face lift a few years ago and more work at the hands of David Tallontire early this year it felt fresh and new for the event whilst still keeping that like it or loathe it feel synonymous with Ae Forest.


Despite the credentials that the National Champs hold as the most prestigious domestic race of the year and a title which certain riders covet above all else there was a significant hole in entries at the sharp end of the Senior categories with the likes of Rachel Atherton and Brendan Fairclough missing in action. With Champery holding round 4 of the World Cup in less than a week and the central European weather still holding above 30°C many riders elected not to head back to Scotland for one race in what was forecast to be a pretty wet weekend and instead stay out in the sun. But there’s more to racing than the top few, there are another 300 racers who still make the effort to attend race after race regardless of weather, whether to collect points towards their end of season placing in the rankings or just to prove themselves better than their mates.


Turning up Friday showed the pits to be pretty full, with more riders arriving late into the night as is always the case with races in the North. Clear skies boded well on Friday night but unfortunately this didn’t continue through to daylight and as alarm clocks rang their tune across the car park the snooze button was hit by many when they saw the rain coming down heavily. Nevertheless, for those who were up sharp there was plenty of uplift available and it was rare that riders were waiting more than fifteen minutes to get a run. This meant that even with a late start and a long lunch you could still get an easy six or seven runs in, enough given the course and the weather which did begin to improve as the day wore on. So whilst cut spikes were the name of the game early on most riders soon switched to dry tyres to cope better with the man-made sections as they dried out.


And was the course? From the start you were treated to a fast open sprint across the moorland and heather which started off as a river and quickly dropped you into the woods with rocks and roots to keep you on your toes. A bombhole marked the start of the more man-made stuff with a quick flat section taking you into some fresh woods which were tight and had some vicious roots to cause you trouble should your lines not be perfect. Carrying speed here was essential for with a muddy exit back into the open it was awkward and very easy to lose time. Speed increased into more of the man-made with many describing it as a mini BMX course. Some triple hucks were on for the few and the road soon appeared in view.


Grab a tear-off on the road and drop across the rock garden, hit a revised step up and the Coffin Jump and from the stump garden on the corner that marked the start of the lower woods things became very difficult indeed. Off camber, covered with awkward roots and stumps and with a layer of thick greasy mud this was anything but a walk in the park and it was here that the baying crowds appeared on Sunday afternoon in greatest numbers. The step down wasn’t long after this should you have made it through the woods unscathed and then you were left to hit the last few corners before dropping across the finish line via the 50ft revised elevator. If you broke the 2:40 barrier then you were one of the few, a 2:50 still being more than respectable given the tough competition.


Sunday dawned much as Saturday had: wet. And the thought of riding a bike was met with the same lack of enthusiasm that had dogged many on Saturday morning. But with only a few hours of practice available the need to get to grips with conditions took over and waterproofs were soon being donned. First run it was there was no need for spikes such was the volume of water running down the track it had been cleared to hard grit underneath, but with a drying track comes treacle-like mud and the spikes were soon being put back on for racing so as to at least stand some chance of making it through the worst sections.


Racing started atop the windswept and rain battered hillside with most riders doing their best to hide from the dour conditions in the nearby thick forest. But as names were called, riders had to face the inevitable. So who failed to make the grade and who overcame the difficult conditions to take home the title of British Downhill Champion? Categories are slightly different to a normal UK race with all Elites and Experts being in the one Championship category whilst those normally racing in Senior have the option to race in Champs or Non-Champs. Juveniles kicked things off as ever and it was Ancillotti’s Will Weston who took third with a 2:55 whilst Perth City Cycles’ Sam Herd put in a run seven tenths faster with a 2:54 for second place. However, taking the win and well deserved title was Cwmdown/PS Cycles rider Callum Havard with a time of 2:44, over ten seconds up on Herd.


The Youth category had a decidedly northern feel to the podium as George Gannicott took third for I-Cycles with a time of 2:36. Greg Gilfillan took second for Riding High UK with a 2:33 whilst Fraser McGlone took the title for All Terrain Cycles with a 2:30, a time which placed him 22nd overall at the end of the days racing.


The Junior podium then continued with the Scottish theme, with the three riders all hailing from north of the border and all in their first year of racing World Cups. Sam Flockhart took third for Lapierre with a 2:31 whilst All Terrain’s Mark Scott took second having broken the beam with a time of 2:24. But fastest time in the category went to recently crowned Scottish Champion and MS-Evil Racing rider Lewis Buchanan with a 2:24.


In the Veteran Champs one of the favourites went down in seeding which meant Pete Roberts took third with a 2:55 whilst Neil Wilson was second for Glentress Riders with a 2:48. Taking the win was Bikeactive.com rider Rich Simpson who can now add National Champion to his collection of trophies.


In the 35-39 Masters category Antony Gaskin took third with a 2:49 whilst in second was Chris Whitfield with a 2:41 for All Terrain Cycles. The title went to Steve Peat Syndicate rider Tristan Tunstall who upped the game in his final run to put in a time of 2:40.


The 30-34 Masters podium was separated by less than three seconds. Stourport Specialist Cycles rider Dave List is never normally far from the action but unfortunately a crash in the woods put him out of the running for the title. A 2:44 was still good enough to secure him third spot. Russ Harland was in second, also on a 2:44, whilst the title was won by Devinci/Freeborn’s Craig Taylor with a 2:42.


The Senior Non-Champs is aimed at those who would normally ride in Senior but also sees several riders who hold foreign licences take part. Scott Laughland was just one such rider, his Irish nationality seeing him take third with a 2:36 for team Robin Ruth. Second was Simon Cheung with a 2:34 with the win being taken by Leisure Lakes’ Joel Chidley on a 2:32.


With Tracy Moseley having chosen to stay in Europe and Rachel Atherton resting another week before Champery there was guaranteed to be a National Champion crowned for the first time in their career. And it was close, with just over four seconds covering the top three in the Women’s Champs. Helen Gaskell took third spot with a 3:01 for Fox Racing/Intense whilst Rose Bikes’ Katy Curd was second with a 2:58. But snatching the win and taking the title home with a 2:57 in just her third year of racing was Jess Stone for Trek/Gravity Girls who looked absolutely delighted with her new jersey and gold medal.


And lastly there was the Senior Champs. With difficult conditions and the pressure on for a good result many riders crashed out. Adam Brayton went down massively at the rock garden after the road in seeding which halted racing briefly whilst he was checked out. Just seconds before he’d gone through the section above the road like a freight train. Having also crashed in seeding it looked as though Steve Peat’s season still wasn’t firing on all cylinders so the pressure was going to be on for the finals, Gee Atherton having won with a 2:19. Getting down the hill early on as a result of that crash meant a virtual guarantee of watching from the hot seat until the last few riders came down, and from there his run of a 2:15 looking fairly insurmountable. Josh Bryceland came close with a 2:19 for the Santa Cruz Syndicate which left it all down to Gee as the last man on the hill. And he did go faster, just not by the margin he needed to take the win. The faces said it all. Steve Peat: 2010 National Champion, Gee Atherton second.


Despite big names missing the racing carried on regardless and it made little difference to most riders, the biggest bug bears being covered with plenty of uplift and practice and a challenging track that was fun to ride. What did make a difference was the weather. It was noticeable how the atmosphere improved with the weather on Saturday and by evening there was a definite buzz as people prepared for Sunday. It’s a shame that the weather wasn’t better but that’s unfortunately not something that can be controlled and riders can’t be blamed for wanting to hide away under awnings and Ez-ups in a vague attempt to stay dry. Several riders commented on it being good for the racing that it was so wet as it increased the challenge of the track. The results would certainly seem to agree with this as many riders appeared out of their expected positions, this adding to the excitement for the spectators braving the elements on the hill.


So Mike did a good job of putting on the race alongside his team, the event running smoothly, the course a challenge worthy of the National Championship title and no drama’s with the uplift either. An amazing weekend in a wet field it wasn’t but as far as races go it was a good’un.



Thanks to Phunkt.com for providing the photos in this report.

Full official results can be found at www.rootsandrain.co.uk.