TATHRA ENDURO RACE REPORT

When Craig asked if I was keen to race the Tathra Enduro on March 26/27^th, my plans for writing the race report were a little different to how it’s turned out. I had been looking forward to racing the Tathra Enduro since I had heard about it;  was a new race on the calendar, it was only 2.5 hours drive from our hometown, and the Youtube race preview clips the club posted on Facebook got us keen as mustard. However, I am currently sitting on a camping mat, in the back of our ute, typing this, as 71 males and 4 females have headed out on the King Nelba 100km. An injury has put me sulkily on the bench (literally as we are at the local football oval), and therefore I will give you a race report from a spectator’s point of view mixed with my partner, Al’s point of view who is lucky enough to be out there tearing up the trails. My only wish is for him and his bike to come back in one piece, as this has not been the case with one or the other breaking in his last couple of races.

Tathra is a small coastal town about 5 hours south of Sydney and 2.5 hours south east of Canberra and lucky for us only 2.5 hours from East Gippsland. This race came to fruition when the environmental group Clean Energy for Eternity collaborated with the Wilderness Coast and Snowy Mountains MTB Club to bring about one goal. The goal: to run an event that would not only showcase some wicked single track in Tathra but to also raise money to go towards making Tathra the first town to run solely on solar power. 

As we drove into the township of Tathra we embarked down a ridiculously steep hill and the worried look on Al’s face said it all. The cliff face we stared up on from the township confirmed the rumours we had heard about the race being hilly. Saturday we headed to the Tathra Country Club for registration and to watch the 10km time trail and the 2km kids race. This was very entertaining and no doubt there were some future Australian mountain bike champions in the making. The next event was a 10km prologue that showcased some of the best single track Tathra had to offer, with Jason English beating 40 other competitors in a cranking time of 29:31. The race hub was in full swing, with the Trek Demo guys displaying some awesome bikes, with the tunes pumping and the Lions Club frying up a bbq to raise funds towards the Clean Energy Community Project.  

Sunday morning soon rolled around and our caravan park was a convenient 5 minute ride from the Race Hub. We arrived to find the MC and the music blaring had everyone fired up for race start and then came race briefing, which perhaps went a little too long for nervous competitors keen to go, provided a hilarious and informative insight  into how the trails came about to be in Tathra. A helicopter doing doughies in the air had us all entertained as people wondered whether a kamikaze parachuting mountain biker was going to dive out. No such luck but an added entertainment factor to make this a unique event.

The King Nelba 100km course saw competitors head straight into single track so a Le Mans start was decided upon, seeing 71 riders lining up in the middle of the oval and running to their bikes was quite a spectacle. Same went for the 50km Goat Knob Race which had over 120 competitors, with the highlight being two guys wrestling in the middle of the field to stop the other from getting to their bike first, but most likely resulted in both heading into the single track last! I think the Le Mans worked well, however if this event continues to grow and numbers increase, organisers may need to look at making the run longer or having some fire road before going into single-track. A 16km single track circuit at the beginning of the race gave spectators the opportunity to see riders came through the Race Hub about after 16k, and then again at the 90km mark.

                                

The Tathra Enduro was a fantastic event, especially for an event that is in its first year and one that was run by a handful of volunteers. It had the feel of a local club event and I believe this gave it an awesome vibe, I can see this race getting bigger and bigger in the future, and I hope it can still maintain that relaxed feeling. Riders described the course as “bloody hard” and Jason English said he believed it should be considered for the National Marathon Championship Race next year.  There were some organisation aspects that are to be expected with a first time event, and I’m sure these will be ironed out for next year. Feedback from riders included the competitor show bags being a little light on with goodies and minimal nutrition at aid stations for an event with a $100 entry fee, a clock at the finishing shoot, on occasion some organisers seemed unsure of where riders should be or what to do.

What made this event truly special was having so many locals involved and the local support, it seemed every single business in the town was behind the event. The Royal Lifesaving Club, the local supermarket, the Lions Club, Emergency Services, the local fish and chip shop, newsagent and Tathra Beach and Bike Shop to name a few. Also, the local indigenous group needs to be thanked for allowing these awesome trails to have been built, the MTB club, Stacey George and all the volunteers who set up the drink stations, chopped the watermelons, and encouraged riders to the very end.

 Al would also like to thank the two 10 year old girls who were perched on a hill set up with a table and water jug at the 35km mark offering to fill riders drink bottles. When Al asked if they had any “Torq powder” he was met with the reply “umm...we don’t know what that is, we just carried the table, ice and water up by ourselves from our house.” It was this community spirit that made it such a special event and it he whole community has got behind this event and I urge mountain bikers to get behind it next year, it is well worth the trip. Well done to Jason English who won in a cranking time of 4 hours and 46 minutes, and Amanda Sanderson was the first female to cross the line.

Well done and a big thank-you must go to the Wilderness Coast and Snowy Mountains MTB Club, Clean Energy for Eternity, local businesses Tathra Beach and Bike Store, all sponsors, volunteers, locals and all involved on providing such a fantastic event that helps support the environment and clean energy campaign. I’ll be hitting the Tathra trials throughout the year as it is an awesome holiday destination and can’t wait to write next year’s race report AFTER the race in my lycra!

                              

Being Injured…… SUCKS

Last year was a very topsy turvey year in terms of my training and racing, trained flat out for the Red Centre Enduro after having 2 months of not very good training due to a knee injury and then 2 months off after it due to an arthroscope, moved to three different towns, got a good 6 week training block under my belt then competed in the Worlds 24hour solo in October. A lot of people I know had about 2 months off after that race, they had blown themselves apart both physically and mentally. I on the other hand, was rearing to go due to my time off before the race. Loved every minute of the race and had about 2 weeks recovery before racing again. But it seems it all eventually catches up with you. School holidays started shortly after and we thus began a 6 week block of living like elite athletes. All we had to do was worry about riding, eating and sleeping and we absolutely loved it! Racking up 400-500k’s a week on the bike and feeling fit.

About 5-6 weeks ago on Saturday long road ride, consisting of 150k’s of hills, I developed a pain in my left glute muscle that was there form start to finish. It got worse as the ride went on and by the last 50k I was struggling to lift my left leg up on the pedal stroke, and needed help lifting it over the top tube to get off. I rested the next day, stretched and iced and hoped for the best. The next weekend I raced in the Otway Odyssey and once again it hurt from start to finish, up out of the saddle descending over any bump and climbing were agonising for the entire 7 hours. Perhaps a strength in some circumstances and a weakness in others, I am very stubborn and have never not finished a race and stopping was never an option. A bit of a recovery week and the hip flexor region seemed to be getting a little better, but not 100%.

Got a few massages and this helped but each time I rode it then ached for the next 2 days, all day long even when I wasn’t riding. I still continued training and refused to let it stop me from doing the training I needed to do. Capital Punishment 100k, Tathra 100k, Bright 6hour Enduro and the National 24hour solo were races all booked and paid for. A trip to the physio last night provided a diagnosis of psoas tendinitis (pain around hip flexor region). A rest off the bike completely and ice massage is the only way to get over it. It could be 2 weeks, 4 weeks or 2 months. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, I should have had more time off after the Worlds, I should have had a rest 6 weeks ago when it first started hurting instead of continuing to train even when it was sore. Hopefully a lesson learnt for the future.

So, after a few hours of self pity and anger, I am trying my best to focus on what I CAN do, rather than what I CAN’T do. It is hard though, as I have been training hard and super pumped about those upcoming races. I know I’m going to be a pain in the ass to be around as mental health is so intrinsically linked to physical health. I am wondering what an earth I’m going to do to fill the time instead of riding. Perhaps I’ll get all those things done which I never have time to do. E.g the thankyou cards from our engagement party 2 months ago which are still sitting on the table! I daresay dinners over the next month or so will be a bit more exciting than the usual stir-fry as I’ll have more time to explore some new recipes. I need to see this as an opportunity to work on the things I usually ignore due to time restrictions and let my body recover fully. It's really not that big of a deal to be injured in the scheme of things, I mean Ive got 2 legs, 2 arms and a heartbeat, and if abit of tendonitis is all thats bothering me then Ive got nothing to complain about. Getting injured is just part of it, it's part and parcel when you spend 12-20hours a week exercising and I've gotta take it in my stride. I'll be focusing on upper body strength so going to the gym,  boxing,  kayaking, surfing and lots of stretching!

The Mudfest that was Otway Odyssey

Since joining the mountain biking fraternity a little over two years ago, there has been one race that has been the most talked about, on the top of many riders bucket list, and dare I say the most feared on the race calendar.  A race that I once heard a lady say she had found “harder than giving birth.” It was no wonder the week leading up to Otway Odyssey I was waking up in a cold sweat in the middle of the night!

“...I once heard a lady say she had found “harder than giving birth”

In the 6am complete darkness I attempted to warm up my legs and elevate the heart rate when just 5 minutes before race start greater priorities hit, I thought I had lost my credit card, $20, and our only set of car keys, as well as realising I had about 5psi in my front tyre! Needless to say this sent the heart rate through the roof.  Lesson two: even when you think you are prepared, you are not. The Elite women set off 30 minutes before the main race start in a bid to stamp out pacing by males. This proved to be very advantageous as we experienced no bottle necks and the track would have been in better condition for us.

“The winds at the top of the climb were ridiculous, and I even heard that one guy got blown off the edge!”

The climb up Wild Dog Road proved long and arduous, with the peloton spread out from top to bottom. The winds at the top of the climb were ridiculous, and I even heard that one guy got blown off the edge! Finally after what felt like an eternity of bitumen, largely due to the wet weather course redirection, we hit a 4wd track.

Initially uncertain about how to approach the massive puddles that the track lied beneath, I soon discovered that bottom back, closing my eyes, clenching my teeth and hanging on as I flew through them was the best option. This worked 90% of the time. The other 10% saw me fly head first into knee deep puddles. Oh well, at least the landings were relatively soft! Being hesitant through the puddles only spelt a certain plunge.

Soon enough came the first real muddy mudfest of mud. What felt like about a 500m descend of pure clay brought many riders, myself included literally stuck in mud. A quarter of the way down and both wheels had locked up with an exuberant amount of mud and what felt like half of Forrest stuck in my front forks, rear triangle, chainstay and every other component of my bike. I fell over no less than 10 times just trying to walk my bike down the hill. Looking back up was hysterical with rider upon rider scrambling, sliding, nose diving, ploughing and doing anything they could to themselves and their bikes down.

After scooping about 10kg of mud from my bike I continued on and made the decision to stop at the next creek crossing and spend a good 5 or so minutes cleaning my bike, wiping and re-lubing the chain before embarking up another unrideable claggy mess of a hill. This decision proved wise as I passed at least 6 riders over the duration of the race cursing their bikes for not having a working granny gear. The mud definitely added another dimension to the race, with riders either loving or loathing it. Some riders went passed squealing and whooping in sheer excitement and joy, whilst other were cursing and having tantrums, it seemed to really make or break the riders.

At the 40km mark I stopped to fill up my Camelbak with a supplied CarboShotz tablet and some water and saw a guy eating the tablets on their own. Yikes! Suggesting he might want to chase that up with some water, we proceeded on our way and he spent the next 10km doing the most impressive and disgusting burps I had ever heard in my life! The next 40 or so km’s were predominantly single track and I found myself experiencing some low times here, too stuffed to enjoy the sweet flowing corners, log rolls and drop offs I must admit I was feeling very defeated and sorry for myself.

This all changed however when I go to fang through epic berms at Mariner’s Run. Put a smile on the dial and I managed to find some much needed motivation to get my butt back into gear and finish the race strongly. Coming back into Forrest Football Ground at the 89km mark gave me a new found confidence and desire to finish off strongly. My coach JP had outlined the game plan of taking the first 50km easy, eating lots, drinking lots and taking time to clean my bike in order to finish the last 25km strong.

At the 90km mark I breathed a sigh of relief, only 10km to go. However, upon reaching ‘Britney’s Breakdown’ I soon had flash backs to the Ingerrekke Red Centre Enduro whereby I’m certain the Rapid Ascent team had deliberatly made the final 10km of the race the most physically and mentally challenging. Got through Britney’s Breakdown, up Sledgehammer and then down some extremely boggy and slippery single track to finally reach the finish line. I was absolutely wrecked but already super keen and excited for next year’s race, I was stoked with the 7 hours of muddy awesomeness that was the 2011 Otway Odyssey.

 To finish off I would just like to share with you the race report of my partner Al, who for those of you who’ve read my other entries will know he hasn’t had much luck in the way of his last few races, which have included broken ribs, concussion, 2 broken derailleur and food poisoning.

We were sure the Otway Odyssey was going to finally be his race, how wrong we were. At the top of Wild Dog an almighty gust of wind blew him across the road and into another rider, sheering his rear derailleur in half and rendering it useless. Instead of giving up, he decided to turn his dually into a single speed (about a 32/16 tooth) and continued to ride on for 50km’s, breaking his chain along the way. Still convinced he was going to finish the race, he quickly fixed it with a powerlink and continued on. However, dually’s aren’t meant to be a single speed and at around the 60km mark his bottom bracket packed itself in as the bearings had been crushed by his interesting little setup. This resulted in his cranks falling off, and with steely determination he walked the 9km back to the Forrest Football ground, bike in hand, cranks in the other.

Lesson learnt: don’t ever give up unless you don’t have a crank set on your bike.

Friday rolled around a little too quickly and at 3pm we set off on our 8 ½ hour car trip from East Gippsland to Apollo Bay. Lesson one: Get time off work when race start is 6.45am the next day and you’re not going to get to bed until 11.30pm that night. Waking up during those brief hours I did manage to sleep, all that could be heard was gale force howling winds and rain. Which I must admit did bring a smirk to my face as I knew this added challenge of the elements would make it a tougher race both mentally and physically, defeating a few people before the race had started.

Chick and Bib Knicks

Whilst out riding the East Gippsland Rail Trail on the weekend and for the third time needing to stop for a ‘nature break’ after having held on for as long as humanly possible, I was cursing myself for wearing Bib Knicks. I have found myself in this situation plenty of times in the past year so have decided to post a blog about this issue in the hope that other female riders will come forth with ideas/suggestions/stories about wearing bib knicks! I also hope it may bring to light in the minds of males the dilemma we females face when wearing bib knicks. For the past 3 years I have had Al in my ear about wearing bib knicks, “how can you not wear bib knicks? You’re missing out on so much comfort by not wearing bib knicks, you’re crazy for not wearing bib knicks, once you go bib knicks you’ll never go back” were the constant lines I was hearing every time I kitted up to go out for a ride. Finally, at the beginning of the year I cracked and put a pair of bib knicks. Well, as much as it pains me to say it, you were right Al. Bib knicks rock my world. Yes they are loads comfier, yes I never want to go back, yes I was crazy for resisting bib knicks for so long. However, being a mtb endurance racer, how do you propose I wear knicks on long rides and most importantly during 24hour races? Throughout the year when kitting up to go on long road rides I have often thought “hmm..wearing bib knicks is loads comfier, but what if I need a nature break?” and nearly every time I choose the comfy option only to regret it 3 hours into the ride, when I am sitting behind a tree (especially tough in the Ballarat winter months when I have to unplug my ipod, take off my helmet, take off my long sleeve jersey, then short sleeve jersey) absolutely freezing both top and bottom. It is quite the ordeal and on more than one occasion I have been busted and yes it has been very awkward indeed. So with the Worlds24 coming up, I am unsure as whether to wear bib knicks as obviously I want to be as comfy as possible, but will probably lose a hour or so of nature break time having to go through the nature break bib knick ordeal. Any suggestions greatly appreciated!!! Now that I have converted to bib knicks Al is trying to get me onto this chamois butt cream but perhaps that’s a whole other article I will have to write about.....

Check it out: Nowa Nowa

“Nowa Nowa....Never heard of it!” up until last week that was the response I also gave to tell you about this hidden little gem of a town which has a MTB purpose built park. Built by Mountain Bike Track Services and officially opened in April this year, this park has awesome berms, log rolls and sweeping fast corners.

Let me start by explaining how it is I came to find myself hookin’ down the sweet rollin’ berms of Nowa Nowa. I was recently offered a full time P.E teaching job in a small town called Orbost. Now having never heard of this place I felt it was important to do some research on whether there would be decent mountain biking tracks nearby and quiet roads for those long road rides, as those 2 factors were going to determine whether I packed up and moved.

I contacted the Gippsland MTB club who were awesome in providing plenty of info, and have races (including enduros) every month. They also advised of an abundance of tracks in nearby places such as Blores Hill, Mt Taylor, Colqhoun Forest and Nowa Nowa. I was sold, packed the car, drove 6 hours south east, found a rental and began working. (Orbost is about 40 minutes drive continuing East from Lakes Entrance, East Gippsland.)

There is also the 100km East Gippsland Rail Trail which runs from Orbost to Bairnsdale, so I decided to ride it from Orbost to Nowa Nowa. For some reason I didn’t really think about how long it would take me and had a 4hr ride to do so thought this would be the perfect way to do it. Jumped on the rail trail and the scenery was amazing;, think green lush paddocks, cows in abundance, blue skies and the suns a shining.

I cruised past some green grassy knolls that would have been perfect for hosting the “World Champion Rollie Pollie Competition.” The rail trail was undulating and the landscape changed from farmland to dense bush and with some terrific rail bridges still intact it kept the ride interesting. At one point I came across a wombat, and the only wombats I had ever had previous dealings with were always unfortunately ‘sleeping’ on the side of the road, so unsure what this creature was going to do, I approached with caution, trying to think if anyone had ever warned me that these things might charge? We stared each other down for a good 10 seconds before thankfully it scooted off in the other direction, putting Usain Bolt to shame.

I reached Nowa Nowa about 2 hours later, the park was well signposted from the highway and rail trail, and I found a car park and sign with a map (think a smaller version of Forrest), with a sign outlining the tracks and their degree of difficulty. The park consists of 1 uphill track, which took me about 25 minutes to get up, and then 6 tracks which come down off it. I chose number 3 to begin with and this awesome fun. Some cool berms and log rolls, perfect for practising cornering and braking techniques.

Up again and down number 5, once again it was great fun and offered some great switchbacks and berms to keep me on my toes. Next up track 2 was on the agenda, and boy did it deliver. The best track from the ones I rode, and I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face the whole way down, even yelling out a “WAHHHOOO!!” hoping no one was walking nearby or they might think I was a little strange. So excited by it, I went back up and rode it again. Some terrific berms, log rolls and sweeping corners made it very exciting indeed.

Nowa Nowa isn’t full of technical or tricky tracks, but it is great fun and it’s great to have something like this here. It is perfect for those (like me) who need to get out and practise cornering, braking and being an efficient and smooth rider. Nowa Nowa has a general store and a cafe which has terrific food and drink, although this was closed on Sunday afternoon and signified my downfall on the way home. Thinking I was only going to be out 4 hours, and thinking I could buy more food/drink at the store, I came unstuck when I was actually out for 6 hours and both stores were closed. The 2 hour trek home on the rail trail was a bit of a struggle as I rationed out the last of my food and drink to try to get myself home without meeting the dreaded Mr Bonk as well as having no ipod!!

Definitely recommend visiting Nowa Nowa as you could easily spend 4-5 hours at the park, and apparently there are loads more trails out there which are yet to be mapped. Also recommend riding the East Gippsland Rail Trail as there is a shuttle bus which can collect you at the other end.

Next on the agenda for Nowa Nowa is the “ Nowa Nowa 2010: A Bike Odyssey!” This festival is all about celebrating cycling and will be held on Oct 29 – 1 Nov by The Bike Wilderness Group. The town will be buzzing with all things mountain biking and events include a 4 hour enduro, maintenance workshops and skills sessions, night rides, mtb orienteering races, campfires and live music. It is set to be the biggest event ever to hit the town no doubt. For more info and event schedule check out the website: www.wildernessbikeride.com.au

For further info on mountain biking in east Gippsland check out:www.bikenowanowa.com
www.eastgippslandrailtrail.com
www.wildernessbikeride.com.au
www.mountainbiketrackservices.com

Safe Riding,
Courtney

Does love to ride her bike

Name: Courtney Shinn

Occupation: Physical Education and Health Teacher (Orbost Secondary College)

Weapon of Choice: Giant Anthem X2 (2008) frame upgraded to XT components and a Carbon Hardtail for training and 100km races. 

About Me: I am 25 years old and started mtb’ing in March 2009 after I sustained a knee injury from triathlon and decided to give mtb a crack until my knee got better. The knee got better but have fallen in love with this awesome sport and I’m hooked!!

Racing 09/10:  In April 2009 my partner in crime, Alistair (also known as ‘Gribble’) decided to enter us both into the Woodend Dirt works 100km (as it was only $10 more than doing the 50km and not saying he is a tightass or anything but....) so after a month or so of training we rocked up to do this 100km mtb, and I was in the box for a good 70 or so k’s. Was the best/worst 8 ½ hours of my life, and as they say the rest is history!

I continued to race the rest of the year solo in the Bendigo 100km, Castlemaine 6 hour, Bendigo 6hr, Surf coast 6hr and finished off with the Kona 24hour. Had some surprising results, winning the Surf coast 6hr and coming 2nd at Kona. After all this racing after a short introduction to mtb, I needed 2 months off after this with returning knee injury.

January 2010 we made the move up to Alice Springs to teach, we also trained up for the Ingkerreke Commercial MTB Stage Race and had an awesome experience, largely due to the awesome program John Pyper (JP) had us on. The event attracted world class athletes such as “Queen of Pain” Rebecca Rusche, Jodie Willett, Gracie Elvin and in the men’s Adrian Jackson, Jason English and Andy Fellows it was great to watch and learn from the pro’s. Coming in at 8th position overall for Open Females I was stoked and absolutely stuffed after 18 hours 21mins for the week. Awesome event, one every mountain biker should do once in their life! 

Gribble’s racing experience over the past 9 months has been annoying to say the least, at Kona 24 the effects of a bad pork bun consumed the night before kicked in at the 7 hour mark and his race was all but over when he fell asleep on the port-a-loo during the night, next up the Red Centre Enduro saw him have a tremendous stack 30k’s into Day One, which landed him in emergency with broken ribs, and most recently at the Castlemaine 6 hour where only one lap in he managed 2 flats and a smashed rear derailleur. Fingers crossed for his next race...!

Racing 10/11: After the Red Centre Enduro, I was forced to take 2 months off due to the knee injury returning, and decided surgery was the best option. Always a frustrating time, I decided to head to Japan to teach English until the end of the year. I took my bike with high hopes of being able to start training and racing again, in one of the most forested countries on the planet. Things didn’t really work out, couldn’t ride anywhere, NO-ONE spoke English and it was not the place for me. So after one week I jumped on a plane and headed back to Aussieland, where I knew the trails were radical and I would have more than just myself to talk to! 

Competed in the World 24 solo last October and learnt a great deal, opting to ride the race rather than race the race as I had only 6 weeks of training under my belt, I saw firsthand the importance of eating/drinking and pacing in a 24hour race. 

I have decided to start up this blog to share our adventures, or should I say MISadventures as many of them turn out to be, as many rides we venture on turn out to have a fantastic failure or comedy scene come out of it. Hope you enjoy the read. Cheers