A great (but hard!) race course, cool Saturday temperatures, a lovely sunset, clear night and ending with a scorcher… All ideal ingredients for making the 13th Mountain Mayhem, sponsored by Original Source, a corker.
Here's the 'before' picture at the OSMM Sunshine made a welcome return to the event for 2010
Despite some damp on Friday night, which everyone seemed to take in their stride, the weather stayed clear and dry for the event. Alex McNicol’s course was hailed as being ‘hard but fair’ and great fun to ride, while still testing singletrack skills and climbing legs. Pat Adams’ event, once again held at Eastnor Castle near Ledbury, looked fantastic and the re-jigged arena and camping kept the place looking busy and cheerful throughout the weekend.
Banners everywhere made the event very colourful and, thanks to the title sponsors, smell sweetly too
There were some epic battles being held over the weekend in the various categories, but there was still a great atmosphere out on the course with some polite overtaking, and a lot of encouragement going on between competitors. Hats off to the solo riders as ever, with Anthony White knocking out 24 laps in 24 hours, with most of his laps under an hour when the fastest pro-lap time was around 41 minutes.
Trade stands and technical support crews worked through the night to keep bikes running. Cakes and beer was often the currency of gratitude...Looking across the campsite, it's easy to see why Mayhem is likened to the Glastonbury of mountain biking.Did we mention that there were benefits to being a Singletrack Premier user?
We were there and had a showing of the Follow Me DVD as well as meeting readers and subscribers at our booth and out on the race course. It was good to put some names to faces, or to forum names…
Long, lean and mostly full of flags, banners and EZ Ups...
There were also a number of new products being showcased in the event village and a few new prototypes being used out on the course too, especially at night…
ESI grips. Favourite of loads of XC pros. Now available in the UK!More lights made by a bloke in a shed. Only this guy happens to do the electrics for Formula1 cars for a day job. Very light and super bright. Chipps used this light on a night lap and came back very impressed. 1000 helmet Lumens for £200? Not bad. www.liteoption.comWho said that merino jerseys had to be dull? Just one of the patterns from Embers MerinoSporty jackets from Embers using sport-wool type fabric.Chris from Embers shows off the first fluoro merino commuting top we've ever seen.Exposure Lights had protos of their new six LED headlamp out with racers, though we also spied this super neat and bright rear commuter light. There's a matching front one in the works too.Alpkit has revamped their entire range of sleeping mats, making them lighter, thicker, less shiny and more. Alpkit was also showing off it's new prototype venture into the tent world. This is a six man tent with three vestibules and, if your mates have one, you can zip them together. If you have six, then you can make a whole Moonbase Alpha basecamp!Aiming at the fast but light world of tents are these roomy two man tent protos from Alpkit too. More news as we get it...
With 23 years as Editor of Singletrack World Magazine, Chipps is the longest-running mountain bike magazine editor in the world. He started in the bike trade in 1990 and became a full time mountain bike journalist at the start of 1994. Over the last 30 years as a bike writer and photographer, he has seen mountain bike culture flourish, strengthen and diversify and bike technology go from rigid steel frames to fully suspended carbon fibre (and sometimes back to rigid steel as well.)
Easily the best Mayhem yet and I’ve done 9. Best course, best arena, best atmosphere and definitely best sunset. That was just stunning on Saturday night.
Yep, just got back from Mayhem today, did not even crank the pressure washer up all race, the sunset on Sunday night was even better, Plus the roast beef and yorkshires at the pub down the road Sunday night was heaven.
Couple of issues, the timing would be nice if it was printed off every 2 hrs for ALL the teams/riders, and NO loo,s in the changeover or near by was not a good idea.
I slept in the orange and green six man tent in a alpkit 400 sleepingbag on one of their wedge mats and I slept well, very comfy. Not so much sleep on race night mind.
Easily the best Mayhem yet and I’ve done 9. Best course, best arena, best atmosphere and definitely best sunset. That was just stunning on Saturday night.
GB
Those tents look like knock off TNF or Mountain Hardware….
Yep, just got back from Mayhem today, did not even crank the pressure washer up all race, the sunset on Sunday night was even better, Plus the roast beef and yorkshires at the pub down the road Sunday night was heaven.
Couple of issues, the timing would be nice if it was printed off every 2 hrs for ALL the teams/riders, and NO loo,s in the changeover or near by was not a good idea.
Roll on OSMM#14
Nibby, Salsa Team Principle
First one I’ve missed for 5 years and the first dry one for 4!
I guess it’ll chuck it down next year.
I suppose I’ve got a good excuse in that my daughter was born on Saturday though…
First Mayhem ever for me.
Second time racing my MTB at Eastnor, though – last time it was the Malvern Classic and it was 1993… 😉
Loved it.
Injury meant I missed it this year. Pics and comments suggest I missed something special. I’ll be back next year.
Congratlations veedubba!!! Worth missing Mayhem for!
I slept in the orange and green six man tent in a alpkit 400 sleepingbag on one of their wedge mats and I slept well, very comfy. Not so much sleep on race night mind.