After a very long drive up to Yorkshire in the new GT Racing UK Van on the Saturday morning we arrived at Dalby Forest and all seemed well as we set up the team EZ-up, then the heavens opened with what can only be described as a monumental deluge! Hail and rain of the type that gets talked about by old people for years to come turned the pit area into a Glastonbury style mud bath. The GT Racing UK boys are a tough bunch tho and got suited and booted in their Endura kit, Helmets and Shoes ready for a few very wet practice laps. When they came back into the pit area it was clear that the race on Sunday was going to be a very muddy race. They were covered! A few last tweeks of the bike, a shower and we left to get Pizza and a well deserved sleep.

The following morning and we were greeted with the same grey sky as the day before but without the hail and rain. The Corse however was just as bad, we watched the girls racing while we warmed up in the EZ-up on our turbo-trainers. Then it was our turn!

The Elites started first. Jon had a blinding start and picked up a few places. Dave and Gareth had the other problem and lost a few places but quickly made them back as the race spread out. The Corse was a nightmare, slippery roots in the woods and an ice rink with the mud on the start/finish area. On the second lap Jon ‘s front mech clogged with mud and we weren’t able to fix the problem quickly enough. Jon made the tough decision to not to finish. That left Gareth and Dave battling on in the mud!

In the Junior Men’s race that started a little later, there was an epic battle with our own Ed McParland and Orange Monkey’s Alex Baker, who had such a good ride the previous week at the WorldCup at Houffalize.The two of them were neck and neck the whole race. In the end it can down to a Cavendish style sprint finish, Ed just getting ahead as they crossed the line. Ed now leads the series from Baker. A fantastic result for Ed on his local round of the series.

Gareth came home a solid 18^th and Dave 21^st  in a race that saw a lot of big names pull out due to the terrible conditions.

All in all a very good race for GT Racing UK. Bring on Hopton Woods and Round3

We will be arriving in style to the British Cycling National Cross Country Series Round 2 at Dalby Forest this weekend  in our new race van.

Saturday 7th April was the first round of the Nutcracker Mountain Bike series at  Gandale, Catterick. Here is Ed McParland’s race report.

The course appeared fairly simple at first with lots of fire road, a wooded section and a river bed, but proved a little bit tougher to race!

The start was fast, with all of the juniors sprinting of the line and up the looming fire road climb. I managed to position myself up at the front and led for the first kilometre or so to the initial single track section. After getting a soaking through the rocky river bed I emerged to find just one rider on my tail. I put the hammer down and pushed on. The next thing I knew I was on the ground! I’d slipped on a cattle grid that had caught many of the riders in the earlier race. I jumped up, resurrected my bike and wiped some of the claret off my leg before sprinting back to the front of the race.

For the next four laps there was some cat and mouse action in a road race like fashion. It was only in the last lap that I manage to get away from Adam Martin of Cestria Cycles / Forme Bikes, and secure a lead of around one minute. It was nice to get my first win of the season on the GT Zaskar 29er.

Well done Ed – A great result! Hope the leg gets better soon!

Team GT Racing UK on the start line at SXC Round 1 Kirroughtree today. 1st place for Gareth and 2nd for Dave. Awesome work!