Results Now Out -
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As the UK hurtled toward yet another summer solstice, brollies and wellies to hand it could only mean one thing...yep it was Mayhem time. Nicknamed the ‘Dirty Dozen' the 12th edition of this popular 24 hour event once more moved in to the Malverns to what has become the off-road equivalent to Glastonbury, complete in recent years with ankle deep mud.
2009 looked like it could be the dry year however the weather gods kept sending a sprinkling of rain every so often just to keep riders on their toes! A few days of down pours had previously rendered some sections boggy; this coupled with a quick shower Friday night plus regular outbursts every eight hours or so, meant the bike wash was kept busy throughout the weekend.
As ever the crowds were strong, even in Mayhem's twelfth edition
As the thousands of riders and supporters rocked up it was soon apparent that changes were a foot with the arena now right at the front of the Eastnor estate and changes to the 8.6 mile lap featuring much climbing to take them high above the impressive transitory tented community of hundreds of tired and muddy off roaders.
Next the course picked it's way through quick section of singletrack before zooming down to be quickly replaced by the dreaded Land rover climb, snaking it's way towards the monument, with quick bursts of every upwards singletrack taking the monotony of that long hard packed climb to the back of riders' minds. With all the height gained it was soon fun time as riders blasted down with grins fixed to their faces. Early on a decision had been made to reroute the one really tricky descent, giving riders the option of hard or ‘mincing'. Normally the hard option meant riders could enjoy the challenge of the technicality whilst gaining an edge on fellow ‘mincers'. However for what ever reason, this time it was the ‘mincers' who had the last laugh as their easy route gave them a distinct advantage! It wasn't long before the word got round and virtually every rider decided to mince....
Eastnor Castle is a great backdrop for the event Lines of bikes wait for the conclusion of the run
By 2pm the game was on as the tranquil greens of the quintessential countryside were replaced by a riot of clashing tones. Riders vied for position with the huge mass swarming quickly on foot on to find their bikes. Once again the RAF proved a leading force as they flew away from the field, quickly followed by Sam Gardner and Stu Bowers who were part of opposing Expert teams that would soon be locked in mortal combat for that handsome four grand top prize. Not far behind was what could only be described as an extra from Starsky & Hutch as Geoff Beetham cruised past with what appeared to be a hairy caterpillar stuck to his upper lip....
Then as the last runner/rider collected their bike and headed for the hills, the roar of the supporting crowds slowly dissipated to be replaced over the next 23 hours with the hum, click & whirr of wheels as they sped towards the transition for that welcome break. Unless of course they were doing it solo...
Multiple solo champion Jenn O'Connor raced in Matt Page finally overhauled Ant White in the men's
an all-women's team this year solo battle
The growth of this category continues apace as riders searching for the ultimate challenge take up the mantle for this most punishing of races. Over the years we've seen the good and the great battle their demons as well as their rivals for the honour of winning. Seasoned enduro rider Matt Page with many conquests under his belt was missing just one scalp, Mayhem. In his way once again was defending champion Anthony White.
It was to prove to be a nail-biting race as each rider pushed each other with little time to spare between the two, the lead constantly changing. Hour after hour they battled on, neither giving an inch until the closing stages of the race where Page managed to eek out a gap giving him the edge and with it an extra lap racking up an mind boggling 26. He finally took the win he'd craved for and in celebration as he crossed the line he fell to one knee and proposed to his girlfriend Nia! She said yes by the way, looks like that handsome winners cheque may come in handy in the coming months!
Meanwhile in the women's solo race 24hr newcomer Meggie Bichard added her name (which by the way is derived from the French for hardy!) to the distinguished list of women who have ridden this event, etching her name into the results with 18 fine laps with Jo Richardson pushing her all the way taking second.
The two contrasting views of Mayhem - you wouldn't know that Nick Craig's team were eventual winners...
The prospect of sharing a four grand prize pot was more than enough to tempt some of the UK's leading riders to have a crack. First up were Scott UK. Racking up an impressive CV of Mayhem wins over the year they wanted to add another to the list. The team consisting of perennial racer Nick Craig, with team mate Stu Bowers plus their big Hope rider, Paul Oldham and World Cup Cotic/Bontager rider Kate Potter their line up was formidable.
Lining up against them were the USE squad with more formidable opponents including reigning National cyclo-cross champion Jody Crawforth, plus Masters Champion and Xterra racer Sam Gardner, along with SIS hard man Dave Collins and triathlete Julie Dibbens. Though not to be discounted were the Orange Mojo line up of the two O'Boyles, Ross Porter and rising junior star Carla Haines also keen to be in the mix.
As the race unfolded it was a close fought affair with Scott eeking out a slim lead early on as USE rode hard to contain the damage. After the full 24hrs, loads of energy gels, coffee and of course pots of tea, Scott UK rode to their sixth victory, with 34 laps, one clear of nearest rivals USE, while Orange Mojo took third with 30 hard won laps. Paul Oldham proved his prowess as a hill climber by racking up the fastest ascent of the dreaded Kenda Climb, while team mate Craig recorded the fastest lap of the event, which is becoming quite a tradition for the Scott rider over the years!
Night laps are always a Mayhem classic
With the event enjoying some of its best weather in nearly six years the trails were full of riders eager to clock up the laps for their respective teams. Even a light shower around 9pm did little to damper their enthusiasm, though it did make some sections a little more interesting as roots became slippery and the grass seemed to be made of glass. As night fell a burst of fireworks lit the sky briefly but soon all the riders could look forward to was the glare of the event village as they danced on their pedals hopefully moving closer to the light and with it, rest.
As druids chanted in the summer solstice over in Wiltshire, hundreds of riders made their own homage to the return of summer as their tyres kept on turning swallowing up the miles, hoping to for the rebirth of the sun. Unfortunately, the sun seemed to have the day off on Sunday and riders pedalled through the dark, which was slowly replaced by a dull overcast sky; still it was dry if not a little chilly.
Changeover - note the lack of umbrellas and abundance of riders
Some of the closest racing had to be seen in the Sport men, where under three minutes separated the top two teams. Both the Fenboys and Southfork Racing racked up an impressive 30 laps, but a mistake in the twilight hours meant the Southfork team very nearly had the race handed them on a plate. However they hadn't reckoned with the likes of enduro hard man Paul Ashby, who along with the rest of his team dragged themselves back into contention. In the end it came right down to the wire with the Fenboys taking the honours with the narrowest of margins. It was pretty close in the teams of ten categories with again just a handful of minutes meaning the difference between winner and runner up. This time the sombrero wearing Ayee Gringo's took the win with their 27 laps from the Nottingham Uni Old Boys team.
The RAF C team flew with perfect precision to take the win in the mixed race with a highflying tally of 30 laps ensuring their pole position ahead of Cambridge. Their impeccable formation also saw them awarded with the Services category too, sinking the Navy along the way in second.
In the Open races, Altura Patterson fielded a strong line up including four-time Mayhem Solo winner Jenn O'Connor. They quickly took control of their race battling hard to fend off the ladies of Beyond/Scott UK to final finish the event with 27 laps taking the win with a one lap advantage from their rivals while the Salsa Factory ladies took third. The Salsa men's Open team could not better their ladies team and had to settle for third too, while the top spot went to the Bad CC Big Guns, while the Glencroft Rabble wedged themselves snugly into second.
The Gritty Kittys had a lot less grit to deal with than they possibly imagined as they took the win in the Sport Women's race, leaving the Pink Heifers and Keswick bikes to fight it out for second. Both teams racked up a leg tingling 22 laps but with less than three minutes separating them it was the Pink Heifers who ‘moooooved' into second! A big shout to the uni cyclists, who tackled what is a hard event on just one wheel, hats off to all you brave oners!
As the race neared its final conclusion there was the usual collection of riders at the highest vantage point waiting earnestly for that final whistle while others frantic for team or personal glory sped past hope to squeeze just one more lap out. Then at 2pm the surge was on as the floodgates opened and riders pedalled furiously for that final lap. It was over for another year and weary bodies stumbled away content that they had all conquered ‘the mountain' in their own little way.
Rider Comments:
Marcus Collings - The Unicycle Magazine
I'm enjoying parts of it; the downhills especially, the climbs are unfortunate. It seemed like a good idea at the time to ride Mayhem; the team needed someone to ride so I volunteered. I've been riding for about 2 years, and it's really fun, it such a challenge and so different from the 2 wheeled sport. This is my first time here and the first time I've ever ridden this far! I'd like to come back and do it again!
Kate Potter - Scott Expert mixed team.
This is my sixth Mayhem, during which I've ridden in every different category! It was a lot of fun out there this time, I only did 4 laps I would have liked to have done more as it was a really fun course and the weather held up, it was a top event. The boys were awesome, they did a really good job out there this weekend, I felt a bit bad as they rode all through the night while I was all snuggled up in my tent snoozing. It's amazing really as Paul's (Oldham) had sore ribs, Nick (Craig) hasn't been a hundred percent and they along with Stu just got on with it and I did what I could.
Nick Craig - Scott UK
Yeah we won again and we all had a great time. We've won this three times consecutively now. We're not counting though are we! It's all good. It didn't rain, much and yeah we all enjoyed it. The course was nice and we've done it without sleeping, that's what it's all about, 24 hours right through. We do try and win it when we're here, but it's not everything, we're happy to come second, we've done it before and we still have a good weekend. The trick is to come to this event really fresh. I had 3 days off before the race and will have a few days off now to recover before I head off to work. It could have all nearly gone a bit hairy as I punctured on the last lap, so it was good that we'd built up such a good gap otherwise it might have been a different story! Also I think I got the fastest lap of the race again, I think I recorded a 38min lap, so that means I've had the fastest lap at this event for probably the past six years or so, it's never one of my aims, I just happen to wring one out! Back again next year to do it all again...why not I'm only 40!
Si Paton - DescentWorld.com
Originally back in the days of Big Bob's Bash and Cannock Classic, I was there around '92 on me Klein, still on the flat pedals, though I did change tactics this weekend and put on me SPD's. I didn't quite realise that 24hrs meant 24hrs, all through the night n stuff it didn't quite work it out with the abacus that a lap each with 4 of us, that was 6 laps each of a nine-mile course! It was pretty tough! I did have a cracking time it was interesting to see some of the Unicyclists on the course, they scared the life out of me out there, but fair play to them, I think they're idiots, but saying that I was very impressed with them! For me the highlight out there was not overtaking people on the technical sections but overtaking them on the grassy corners. The great thing with XC is it's not like BMX you're lucky if you pass people in 4 or 5 secs or a 4X race were you're lucky to pass anyone at all here you can pick people off. You can go high, low, T-bone them, you can really make a move and pull their pants down and they absolutely hare it! I wouldn't mind getting back to my XC roots that's where all the top downhillers came from, Rob Warner and even Steve Peat raced XC back in the day.
Meggie Bichard - Solo woman winner
Yeah I'm pretty tired now, I think I may fall asleep at anytime. I've only done a couple of 12hrs before, this is my first 24hr. I felt great till about 12hrs in and then I started feeling sick. I wasn't sure where I was early on as there was some confusion with the results. At one point they said I was 4th and then 3rd, but I think I was pretty near the front despite what they said. I pushed on and tried to be consistent. I'm not sure if I'd ever want to do another one of these, not at the moment anyway, maybe in a week or two when I've forgotten the bad bits I might have another think about it! I feel a bit jammy choosing the driest Mayhem they've ever had at the Malvern's to do this, but I'm happy that my experience was a dry one; it was hard enough as it was without the added drama of mud.
Matt Page - Solo men's winner
I don't feel too bad at the moment considering I've just ridden for 24hrs. I've got a bad back but that's about it really, my legs are fine. Anthony (White) just didn't give me a break at all out there, we were on the go all the time. The whole race we were tooing and froing and the only over the last 2 or 3 laps I actually managed to get away. There was only ever 10 mins at the most between us during the race but over those last couple of laps I managed to push it harder and make that gap a bit bigger, it was very close. This has to be the hardest and longest day of my life but also the happiest! I'd planned to propose last year if I'd won the race, but unfortunately Anthony beat me again, so I had to wait another year before I could propose to Nia. We've been together 7 years now, luckily she said yes. Mayhem is the big one for me, the one everyone wants to win and I've waited a whole year for my chance again and now I'm over the moon, absolutely ecstatic!
