ACE Races 1-Day Team Adventure Series - Cannock Chase
Riding the Learning Curve
Andy Wild / 27.07.2005
“Sustain a run for an hour and be able to ride a mountain bike� and the Ace Race series was for you! Looking back, perhaps we miss understood the statement, or we didn’t take it in the context of an adventure race, but never the less we decided that the last of the Ace Race 1 day series was to be our first attempt at an adventure race, as it sounded like the sort of event that would be great to ease us into it. A 2-man team was settled on, the date was set and we gave ourselves 8 weeks to get in shape. mmmm
After spending Friday night at the local travel lodge the event was finally here. To fuel ourselves for the race we dived into the Little Chef and I loaded myself with beans on toast and coffee, a traditional breakfast for a days climbing but perhaps not for an adventure race?
I wasn’t sure what to expect to be honest, but as we turned the corner into the Forest Centre we were met by a sizable gathering of vehicles and mountain bikes! Not being a full time mountain biker and the proud owner of a £300 bike, I was relived to see bikes ranging from £3000 plus down to what looked like, in some cases, £100. “Looks like there’s a good range of competitors here. We’ll fit in just fine.� I thought.
After registering at the Ace Base we returned to the car with race vests and a goodie bag (Mark was most impressed with his “Buff� sticker and Sigg bottle, more the “Buff� sticker though.) We got the bikes together, piled everything we thought we’d need in the transition area into a box, and dragged them over to the compound. We spent the rest of the time sat in the boot of the car drinking fluids and wondering how the day would unfold.See All Event Posts
