Hannah Barnes may have been under the weather for this year's Tour de Ben Nevis, but some DH skills meant that a slower overall time didn't affect the overall reult. Chalk up another victory and another trophy for the already struggling Barnes mantlepiece.Here's Hannah's full report:
Tour de Ben Nevis 2011
Last Saturday it was the 2nd year running of the Tour de Ben Nevis, another epic race run by No Fuss Events.
The event is a 72km circumnavigation of Ben Nevis, with 5 timed 'special stages' making up a points system to decide the overall winner.
The day before I was feeling pretty ropey so I loaded up on Lemsip Max and moped about whilst Joe did the pro tune on my bike. Jesus (Peter Scullion), Roger and Ricky all from Edinburgh, arrived in time for a massive pasta turbo load and then some of Rogers home made brownies. The boys' race preparation consisted of sitting in their pyjamas and sipping red wine (not Jesus, he's well pro).
There was big debate in our house as to which bike would be the weapon of choice. Joe reckoned a light and racey hardtail, but I decided to stick with my 5 for some comfort, and speedy fun descents.I wasn't feeling too hot in the morning so I had a lemsip with my porridge and energy juice. The start of the race was great! All 330 riders got piped down Fort William high street before being led off by the trials bike. It was quite an impressive scene! The first road climb was pretty long and torturous, especially with not much of a warm up. I felt pretty ill and slow on the ride out to Kinlochleven and had a couple of small but unpleasant power spews.
The timed second stage was a sweet, gnarly descent, with loose corners and big drainage ditches. I tried a dodgy overtaking manoeuvre and washed out, smashing my arm and hip. The riders were still quite condensed at this point so it was hard to get a clear run.The ride to the bothy and river crossing was sweet as there was a strong tail wind. I got some banter with Fos (founder of Off Beat Bikes), and downhill racer Ali Parkin. I gradually got into a good rhythm and felt fine after the initial wobbly stage.
It stayed nice and dry all day, and the sun even came out at times. The river was nice and low despite the high rain fall, unlike last years bike carry above head mission! The timed hill push up from the river was well worth it for the sweet ride down the other side. It was flat out fun singletrack, heather, rocks and mud!The fire road descent into Leanachan Forest was really fast and fun, the corners were so fast it was scary!
The fith and final stage started on local classic, 'The Blue Crane', then joined onto another amazing XC trail which cut through the trees. From here it was a short and fast ride to the finish. It was cool how the race started and ended in the town square, it was a really great atmosphere.
I crossed the line 2nd female, however I finished 1st based on the points gained in the timed 'special stages'. Ruari Watt (on the same bike) won the men's race. Orange Mountain Bikes sponsored the event again, so we each won a frame!
The day finished with pumptrack action and a big bonfire at Jamesey boy's, with lots of pizza, toasted marshmallows and beer. Another memorable weekend of great racing, friends and good times!Photos appear courtesy of Andy McCandlish and Michael Bonney.
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