IF you are of “a certain age” you just read that title in the style of Fat Albert.
Which is kind of how I felt on the Sunday of the weekend’s double header at Haigh Hall.
Saturday wasn’t too bad, the standard rubbish start followed by working my way back through the field while genuinely having fun in the super loose, loamy earth. Getting sideways drifts through all the corners on the descents and generally having fun. 4th place, a good workout and some great skills work. Ace.
More pics from Dave Haygarth here
Sunday’s course followed much the same route, with a few extras and a loooooooong flight of steps to run (hobble) up. Weirdly I did better running (hobbling) up those steps than I did anywhere else on the course. OK I expected to feel yesterday’s effort on my legs a bit (and I did…) but I just rode really badly. Missing lines, not letting the bike move around when I should have and not wrestling it under control when it needed it. A good few crashes and stalls in deep mud meant I was miles off the pace. Even if I’d been able to match the fast lads on power I just couldn’t get the technique-requiring bits ridden properly. 8th in the end. Whatev’s.
Pic by Alan Gibworth
Here endeth the whining though. Because, really, the whole weekend was ACE. Racing nice (and fast) people is always good. On a tricky course like that all you can possibly do is get better and improve. Doing little jumps off the bridge (yay for bridges!) while the kids cheered on was immense fun. Properly fast (well, it felt like it) descents through the trees offered a chance to really lets the bikes fly and rewarded bravery. Nasty climbs that were doable if you were strong enough gave you something to focus on trying to clean each lap. Basically, I’d do it all again in a flash 
More pics from Dave Haygarth here
