Nibberittet ‘from fjord to mountain’ 21 km hill climb, Geiranger 16.06.2012

Most of the races in my local region pass through stunning scenery but this has to be one of the best. The race takes place in the heart of the Geirangerfjord that is part of Norway’s Western Fjord area. The area is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and has been voted the best preserved world heritage site and the best destination in the world in terms of cultural, environmental and aesthetic integrity by National Geographic Traveler.

The race is only 21 kms long but climbs from 0-1500 metres and includes 35 180-degree bends. Most of the race is on tarmac but there is a short gravel section after 5-6 kms at Knuten, and a long ‘lung-bursting’ dirt track for the last 5 kms. The first 13-14 kms has an average incline of 9%, the road then flattens out for 2-3 kms before hitting the 5 km dirt track from Djupvasshytte to the Dalsnibba summit with an average incline of over 10% (see: Elevation curve and Nibberittet compared to iconic Tour De France climbs).

The route

The last 5 kms

The elite race set off a few minutes before the rest of us but there were some serious climbers in the main field too so the pace was high from the start. A group of 18 riders went clear in the first few kms. I was surprised to be one of them!

Main field splitting-up in the first few kms

 

(photo: Arild Gjørvad)

3 guys went off the front of my group but I managed to stay with the rest of the group for 12 kms. After yet another surge from the front of that group, I fell out of the back. I was gutted to let them go at that point as I knew that the road flattened off after another 1 or 2 kms and with strong headwinds, it was a real disadvantage to be alone but after riding in the red for so long, I just couldn’t give any more. I was caught by Eirik André Helsem (an elite TVK rider that I pressume we had passed earlier). He sat on my wheel until the road flattened out and then took a few turns on the front but I think he was suffering more than me at this point because I managed to lose him as soon as we started the last climb, so I continued alone for the last 5 kms. It was tough to push myself without anyone in-front or behind me but I was very happy with my effort on the last climb.

Me and Eirik André Helsem turning onto the final 5 km climb

(photo: Angleique Helset)

We set off in temperatures of about 14 degrees centigrade. It was very windy most of the way up but fortunately, 10-metre high walls of snow protected us from the wind on much of the last 5 kms to the top.

Walls of snow

 

At the summit, it was snowing and about 0 degrees. Time to get wrapped-up and cycle back down to Geiranger for a warm shower. Shame the showers were cold!!!!!

Enjoying the weather at the summit

Getting wrapped-up for the ride back down to Geiranger

Views from the summit (the race starts at the fjord in the distance)

Views back down the final climb

Winner of the men's elite race (Kjetil Andreas Ertsås, TVK)

(photo: Arild Gjørvad)

Winner of the women's elite race (Hanne Trønnes, Ottadalen SK) & Borghild Løvset (Orkla CK)

(photo: Arild Gjørvad)

Race results

http://rittranking.merida.no/race/2196/list?page=0

I finished the race in 1:20:53. Strong headwinds meant that the course was slower than last year but I still managed to go 6 minutes faster. I finished in 28th place overall out of 353 riders, and was 9th in my age group. The race was won by Kjetil Andreas Ertsås (elite rider with TVK) in 1:06:53 with Hallvar Barlaup (Fannefjord SK) in 2nd place with a time of 1:10:45. The first two ladies had a close battle with Hanne Trønnes (Ottadalen SK) taking 1st place in 1:19:17 and Borghild Løvset (Orkla CK) just 1 second back in 1:19:18.

Atlanterhavsrittet (The Atlantic Road Race) 98 km, Molde 10.06.2012

This race starts by going down a short but very steep hill from Eide Stadium onto RV64 to Vevang. The race then goes over what is possibly Norway’s most breathtaking road; The Atlantic Road (see: http://www.visitmolde.com/en/Product/?TLp=32362&The-Atlantic-Road). The race continues to Kårvåg, goes around the island Averøya, and then back the same way through Kårvåg, over the Atlantic Road to Eide. And yes, back up that short but very steep hill to Eide Stadium.

Course map

This race is as good as it gets for me because it is relatively flat. The problem is that hill at the end! I’m not great at hills and tend to do better on the flat terrain so I knew that if I was going to do well, I needed to get into a break.

Magnus Espeland (Nesset CK Elite) was racing today. He is a fantastic talent on the bike. He also runs a ski/cycle shop in Molde (Reser AS) and is one of the nicest guys you’ll meet on the race circuit. Magnus is also a clever and aggressive rider. He was tucked in behind the race car from the start and as soon as we were given the signal to race, he was busy trying to get a break going. The main bunch was lacking a few of the usual local elite riders but despite this, it was a very strong field consisting of 69 riders so it proved very difficult to get a break. Magnus went again and again and again, and knowing that he was likely to succeed in getting a break eventually, I tried to go with him every time until we reached the Atlantic Road. Håkon Klærud Johannessen (Molde CK) and a few other riders had the same strategy but the main bunch just wouldn’t let us go.

I am not usually so aggressive in races and was starting to feel the effects of trying to get into a break. I was knackered by the time we reached Kårvåg and decided to drop back for a while to conserve energy and recover. Typically, a break of 2 riders got away while I was napping. I was so far back in the bunch sucking on energy gels that I didn’t even see them go but I could see them in the distance. Both guys in the break were very strong riders; Karl Erik Kravik (Ålesund og Omegn CK) and I think that the other was Johannes Reitan (Trek Racing Team). Magnus Espeland must have known this and it wasn’t long before he was off. He powered away from the bunch with ease and closed the gap to the break of 2 within seconds. I can’t help thinking that he was just testing the elastic with his attempts to break earlier in the race because as soon as race winning contenders had got away, Magnus was away too. One of the guys (which I am guessing was Johannes) was dropped from the lead break meaning that it was race on between Karl Erik and Magnus for 1st and 2nd place respectively, and Magnus eventually powered away from Karl Erik to take 1st place in a time of 2:34:44.

Magnus Espeland (Nesset CK Elite)

Karl Erik Kravik (Ålesund og Omegn CK)

The main bunch was not organised enough to close the gap on Karl Erik and Magnus. About 15 of us did start to work together but every time we got into a good rhythm, it seemed to break down. I knew I wouldn’t do so well on the final hill so I thought ‘what the hell’ and reverted back to trying to get into every break, especially when strong riders that I knew like Håkon Klærud Johannessen (Molde CK) and Marius Tomren (Molde CK) were also in the mix. I did get into a break of about 6 riders with 10 kms to go, and we had managed to create a promising gap but we were a little slow at working together and were soon brought back. I made a last solo effort to get away with about 2 kms to go but failed yet again. It was going to be a bunch sprint for 3rd place up that nasty hill!!!!!!

It’s never a good idea to go into a long sprint finish at the front of the bunch but the approach to the finish starts with a steep downhill section, a fairly tight turn, and then the steep hill up to the finish line. I didn’t want to get stuck behind lots of riders going into that tight turn and knowing that I have good speed downhill; I got on the front and went for it. Håkon Klærud Johannessen (Molde CK) was to my left and the 2 of us flew into that last turn with far too much speed and ended up going very wide. I also changed down through the gears a bit too quickly and had a flurry of riders fly past me. I eventually got my sprint going and caught a few riders but got sandwiched between 2 guys ahead of me. I eventually got clear and passed one of them as we crossed the line.

Boris in the sprint finish (2nd on the left)

I came joint 11th (with 4 other riders) in the bunch sprint, meaning that I was joint 13th overall and 4th in my age group. Of course, I wish I’d got into a break and finished higher up the field, especially as the course suits me well (except for that last hill!) but I was very happy with 13th place overall. Most importantly, I really enjoyed the race. It was great fun to be up there, riding aggressively, and trying to get into a break. Maybe next year..............

Winner Magnus Espeland (Nesset CK Elite)

Boris happy with 13th place and a banana

Race results

http://rittranking.merida.no/race/2176/list

Fannetrampen 98 km Road Race, Molde 03.06.2012

Nobody told me it was a 95 km individual time trial!!!

I’ve wanted to try this race since I started racing again a few years ago. It is organised by my local club; Molde CK and literally starts/finishes from my home. This is the first year that I have had the opportunity to take part and I was really up for it!

The race goes from Akerhallen in Årø (about 5 kms east of the City of Molde). It starts with a climb of about 200 metres elevation up to Skaret. It then descends to Malmekleiva before flattening out to Eide, Høgset and Batnfjordsøra. There is then another climb with about 250 metres elevation up Fursetfjellet, down to Hjelset, and flat along Fannefjord to Årø, finishing at Akehallen.

Course map & elevation profile

The race has been growing in popularity in recent years. There were 95 entrants last year but the start line was almost deserted with just 36 entrants this year. This could have been due to a rather crowded race calendar as there had been an mtb race the day before and ranking races in Eidsvoll the week before but I can’t help thinking that it was actually due to the weather. There was a mighty cold northwest breeze (force 4, gusting up to force 6), maximum temperature of 7 degrees (although it felt MUCH colder!), and heavy rain. You normally need to get to the start line up to 10 minutes before the gun in order to get a good start position for races but with 1 minute to go, cyclists were still hiding under whatever shelter they could find!

The start

I turned up wearing far too little. Thin tights and a short sleeve top with arm warmers, summer socks with thin overshoes, and short-finger gloves. My wife made me wear a hat though so that was lucky! Most of the other riders were covered up in full winter gear including ski gloves and fleece-lined rain jackets! I guess my inability to dress properly comes from being a warm blooded Englishman that was raised in an environment where shorts were a compulsory part of the school uniform and the saying “be bold, go cold” applies whatever the weather. I have become more sensible since moving to Norway and no longer ride around in shorts during winter (like I did the first year I moved here!) but I still struggle to dress appropriately now and again and Sunday was not a good time to get it wrong. I stopped drinking and consuming energy gels halfway into the race because I couldn’t bend my fingers!!!

After the gun, we followed the race car up part of the first climb. A number of local ‘big boys’ were in attendance including Bjørn Tore Hoem (pro-rider with Plussbank BMC), Hallvar Barlaup (Fannefjord SK), 4 riders from Nesset CK Elite, and Frode Kolstad (Molde CK). I stayed with the first group of 8 riders up most of the climb but let them go as we neared the summit. I did consider giving everything and going even deeper into the red to 'try' and stay with them but I was worried that with 95 kms to go, I would end up in a group that is too strong for me to keep up with, and would blow my socks off later in the race. I took a look back to see which of the regulars that I normally ride with were nearby and realised that I was completely alone. Only 3 kms into a 98 km road race with nobody behind me and a group of 8 very strong riders ahead of me was not good news. I panicked and gave everything I had to chase down the lead group. They had slowed at the top of the climb so the gap closed significantly but as we began to descend, the gap remained the same. It then grew rapidly as we reached flatter terrain and I realised that I was well and truly stranded.

I thought that riding alone for 95 kms would soon take its toll on me and that I would eventually get caught and dropped by chasing groups so I took it easy for a while to conserve energy and wait for the main group to come along. What I didn’t realise it that many of the guys I normally ride with had not started the race and that the small field of riders had split into pieces on the first climb. After about 15 kms, I could see 2 cyclists trying to chase me down so I waited for them and we began to work together. I tried to get them to crank up the pace. As I did, one of them dropped off, and then the next one dropped off. I had been taking it easy for a while so I was eager to raise the pace. I felt great and although we had a strong headwind at the time, I knew that the wind would be behind us for most of the race so I decided to continue alone.

Apart from taking a wrong turn about 1 km before the drink station and having to go back on myself, I had a great ride. Yes, it was cold and wet but the strong tailwind for most of the race meant that the pace was high and my legs felt great. I powered up the race’s second climb and down the other side. I did a lot of looking back during the race and towards the bottom of the descent, I thought I could see 2 riders chasing me down but I couldn’t be sure as visibility was poor. It really motivated me to give it everything for the last 20 kms on the flat terrain that runs alongside Fannefjord towards Molde and I was surprised to catch and subsequently fly past one of the riders that had been in the lead group. 2 of the Nesset CK Elite riders from the lead group had also dropped out of the race early on – no doubt feeling the effects of the mtb race that they did the day before. I finished in 6th place overall (2nd in my age group) in a time of 2:48:47. My average speed was 35.6 km/h. A great result for me, especially considering that I had raced alone for 95 kms.

Boris 'passing' the drink station (no need for a drink after consuming so much rain!!!)

Predictably, the race was won by Bjørn Tore Hoem (Plussbank BMC) in a time of 2:33:42, followed by Hallvar Barlaup (Fannefjord SK) and Magnus Espeland (Nesset CK Elite).

A cold but thoroughly enjoyable experience!

Race results

http://rittranking.merida.no/race/2140/list

Tomrefjord 37km XC MTB Race, Tomrefjord 13.05.2012

Ouch, ouch ouch!

Today was my 1st XC MTB race of the season and it gave new meaning to getting a sore bum from cycling!

Tomrefjord IL Sykkel cancelled their road race last week due to snow and ice (yes, in May!). I went for a training ride on my road bike instead and have to say that they made an excellent decision. I was 50kms from home when I got hit by gale force head winds and a driving snow storm - scary stuff on the road with heavy snow, poor visibility and on thin road tyres!

Fortunately, the trail was clear of snow and ice for Tomrefjord's XC MTB race today. 9 degrees centigrade, a moderate breeze, and lots of snow-melt meant that it was going to be a cold, wet & muddy ride but I was thoroughly looking forward to getting back on the MTB for the 1st time this season. The course is only 37kms with about 700m elevation. It sounds easy but the course is undulating and exhausting. I tend to struggle in tough terrain so it's not a great race for me but the course is great - awesome fun and a really well-organised race.

The course

Fun in the water-crossing!

Eldar Kurseth (Sykkylven) & Magnus Espeland (Nesset CK Elite)

I managed to stay in the top 15 or so early into the race, which was fine given that I tend to struggle on the first half of the course (and considering that I had forgotten to unlock the suspension on my front forks for the first 15kms - no wonder it felt bumpy!!!). However, I realised after just a few kms that something wasn't quite right with my seat. It was obviously coming lose but I tried to ignore it and keep cycling. Eventually, it got so bad that I stopped to tighten it and then chased my way back to the group I was with. This happened five times during the first 25-30kms. At this point, the seat decided that it had had enough and ran off into the forest. The bugger had snapped off!

OK, 10kms or so of racing with no seat. I had considered stopping to let the seat post down as I kept catching my shorts (and arse!) on some sharp edges hanging out where the seat had snapped off but I didn't want to lose more time and kept going. It was a painful experience - relentlessly catching my arse on the post and the sharp edges hanging out of it, and standing for 10kms. I didn't realise until I got home that my shorts were shredded around my arse - not a good day to race without pants on!!!!

I couldn't reach for my water bottle while standing over bumpy terrain or check the mileage on my bike computer to see how far I had left to go so I simply went for it. I gave it everything I had and was surprised to find that I was actually passing a number of riders in front of me. I passed 6 riders during the last 10kms. 2 riders managed to get on my wheel as I passed them with about 5kms to go and sat on my wheel all the way to the finish line. Fortunately, I stayed in front of them as we crossed the finish line.

Those 10kms without a seat were possibly the toughest time I have ever had on a bike. Not so much through exhaustion but because of the suffering that my legs went through. I was very happy to finish the race in 1.54:41. I was 12th overall and 4th in my age group. I was slightly quicker than last year and with tougher conditions (and no seat!) this time round. Some race stats: average speed 19.1km/h, max speed 50.8km/h, average HR 170bpm, max HR 180bpm.

A video of the 'saddle-less' cyclist and his pathetic effort to get over a small hump with a tree root can be seen here (I'm rider number 2). Of course, it looks easier that it was......!?!: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=414794985211014#!/photo.php?v=414794985211014. And this is how the winner did it on his 29er: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=414794985211014#!/photo.php?v=414723168551529.

Happy to have finished the race!

The overall winner was Johannes Reiten (Trollheimen CK) in an impressive time of 1.35:53. More than 5mins faster than the rider in 2nd place.

Overall winner: Johannes Reiten (Trollheimen CK)

On a different note, 29ers have arrived in Norway! A few people were riding 29ers last year but it was quite rare. This year, everyone seems to have one, except me! I felt like I was on a BMX compared to the other riders, especially after my seat had buggered off. I used to BMX when I was younger, and riding on 26" wheels without a seat brought back memories of my Piranah from about 1980. I used to have the seat so low that I would never actually sit on it....... By the way, the Piranah was way superior to the Mongoose and Diamond Back!!!

The Mighty Piranah

  

The 26" v 29" debate is an interesting one, and until I have tried a 29er I am not able to add too much to the debate. However, the speed that riders (that I have competed against for a few years now) were going on the 29ers as they blasted past me on any flat or downward facing technical sections was ferocious. I am never too good on the technical sections but used to hold my own when descending at speed. There is a clear speed differential with the 29ers on technical descents - they are fast! Fortunately, the race had a number of steep, muddy sections where we needed to keep getting off the bike and do some uphill running. Having an 8kg hardtail with 26" wheels definately helped here as I clawed back the time that I lost on the technical flat and downhill sections and that was with stopping to get my allen keys out to tighten my seat each time we had to get off the bike and run. This again, was a noticeable difference from when everyone was riding 26" wheels. I also found my 26" set-up to be much faster on the few sections of tarmac that we hit but then I used to find that was the case when everyone was on 26" wheels as my Felt the Six has awesome speed on the road. I guess the 26" v 29" debate will continue to roll-on. Hopefully, I'll get to try a 29er soon.

Race results

http://rittranking.merida.no/race/2020/list

The Autumn Mile 48km Road Race, Frei 01.05.2012

Tuesday 1st May was a public holiday in Norway. The sun was shining and the thermometer reached a blistering 10 degrees centigrade..... Perfect day for racing the push-bike then!!!


IL Norodd Sykkel did a great job at arranging their annual road race called Vårmila ('The Autumn Mile' in English). Readers of my blog from 23rd April may remember me writing that "For some bizarre reason, Norwegian’s refer to ‘10kms’ as being ‘1 mile'". Well, now it becomes even more bizarre because The Autumn Mile, in other words The Autumn 10km, was actually 48km.........


Anyway, The Autumn Mile starts and finishes at the Primary School in Frei, near Kristiansund. The course covers 2 laps of 24kms. Each lap starts with a hill, has a few hills en-route and finishes with a hill. I'm not a big fan of hills so I didn't have high expectations going into the race although I was buoyed by the fact that 9 weeks of suffering from knee pain seems to be coming to an end.

Course map

Course profile

111 riders started the race with the two main local teams signaling their intent on the start line; Nesset CK Elite (in white) and IL Norodd Sykkel (in Yellow and black).

Start line

Predictably, Nesset CK Elite dominated the race from start to finish - their riders are simply on another level! They immediately launched a number of attacks and I don't think we'd even reached 10kms before they ended up with a break of 5 riders - the head of the race looked more like a Team TT than a road race! One of the Nesset guys must have dropped out as 4 of them crossed the line together with Martin Notøy Nevstad claiming 1st spot in a time of 1:11:59.

Nesset CK Elite - break of 5 riders (winner Martin Notøy Nevstad, number 81)

Winner: Martin Notøy Nevstad (Nesset CK Elite)

The rest of us battled it out behind the Nesset break. A group of about 10 riders went clear on one of the hills about 15kms into the race (including 2 Nesset CK Elite riders that decided not to get into the leading break, promising young rider Marius Tomren from Molde CK, and a number of strong IL Norodd Sykkel riders). I was only about 50 metres off the group at the top of the hill and unlike last week's race when I dropped back to a group behind me, I was determined to get up to the group ahead of me. A number of IL Norodd Sykkel riders sat up in front of me and did their best to slow things down so that their guys could get away in the group ahead but sensing that the group ahead was not working together, I put in a huge effort to chase them down. I was joined by two or three other riders (one from Ulstein og Omegn SK, one from IL Norodd Sykkel - to the dislike of his team mates that sent some colourful language his way, and I think the third was from Ålesund og Omegn CK) and between us we managed to bridge the gap. I thought that I was in a small group of riders at the time so I was gutted to realise that we'd actually taken the whole peloton with us. My HR was pounding away at 190 BPM and my legs were completely finished. I knew that there was another 30kms or so to go, and with lots of hills, so I thought that my race was over and that I would not be able to hold on to any surges from the main field.

I took a breather and fortunately my legs (and lungs) recovered in time for the big hill at the end of lap 1 / start of lap 2. At the top of that hill, I had hung on to a group of 26 riders that were behind the lead group of 4 Nesset CK Elite riders.

The chasing group (with me in there somewhere)

The group stayed together for the whole of the 2nd lap. The race finished with a steep 1km hill and David Dagestad Myklebust (Nesset CK Elite) led my group across the finish line in a time of 1:15:24 meaning that Nesset CK Elite secured the top 5 places. Marius Tomren (Molde CK) followed closely, and was the first non-Nesset CK Elite rider. I was 14th in the group meaning that I was 18th overall out of 111 riders. I finished in a time of 1:15:44. My average speed was 38.5 km/h with an average HR of 164 BPM (max HR 190 BPM). I was very happy with my performance.

I had to get home to collect my son from a friend's house so I didn't hang around for the prize ceremony. I was gutted to realise when the results were published that evening that I'd actually come 2nd in my class (Masters 30-39) and had missed the opportunity to actually get onto the podium. I was a junior champion at 10mile time-trials but stopped racing when I was about 16 years old. After a 20 year break, I started racing push-bikes again last year (with a few sportives the year before). Handsling Racing added me to their team roster this year. Handsling Racing is a UK-based team that competes in British Elite, Masters and Veterans events on the road, track and in xc mountain biking. The team is supported by some great sponsors including Handsling Media Ltd, Action Cameras, Trigon Bicycles, RST Cycle Clothing, Schwalbe Tyres and the Ace Centre. One of my brother's (Vince 'Vegas' Halpern) rides for the team and I joined largely because of him. It would be fair to say that I am not the most illustrious member of the team but joining them has provided me with added motivation this year (which is probably why my knees have been suffering for the last 9 weeks from a winter of overtraining), so it is nice to get a podium place for the team on foreign soil. This is how it would have looked if I was there:

M30-39 Podium

Race Results

http://rittranking.merida.no/race/1945/list

Ulstein Nordea 70km Road Race, Ulstein 22.04.2012

Well, that is the first race of the season under my belt and my first race on Norwegian soil as a member of Handsling Racing (London-based team sponsored by Handsling Media Ltd, Action Cameras, Trigon Bicycles, RST Cycle Clothing, Schwalbe Tyres and the Ace Centre). It was my first time on the team's Trigon RQC-29 bike and I have to say, it goes like a rocket. I just wish I could do the bike more justice!

The race was a 70km road race called the Ulstein Nordea Race. The race starts and finishes from the town of Ulstein; a Municipality in the County of Møre and Romsdal on the West Coast of Norway. Ulstein is in the same county as Molde (where I live) but is still a 3-hour drive, and 2 ferry trips away - this gives you an idea of the challenging topography in this part of Norway which is characterised by high mountains and long fjords. Today, Ulstein is well-known for its maritime cluster that includes the HQ of the Ulstein Group, Rolls-Royce Marine, and Kleven Verft. 

Anyway, onto the race!

The race was 70kms and you have to be careful in Norway. For some bizarre reason, Norwegian’s refer to ‘10kms’ as being ‘1 mile’. Fortunately, I was already aware of this when the locals explained their ‘7 mile’ race to me.

Temperatures dropped as low a 3 degrees centigrade while driving to the race but fortunately, the temperature rose as the day progressed giving us a toasty 5 to 7 degrees for the race with a moderate, force 4 breeze, overcast with sunny intervals.  

We departed Ulsteinvik Lower Secondary School, above the city centre with a police escort out of the town.  The race then launched into action after about 1km. A number of surges came largely from the elite riders from Nesset CK but the field remained together until the first test of the day about 15kms into the race at Leikong. The 9% hill only lasts for just over 1km but that was enough to split the field into pieces. I was amongst the first few riders going into the hill and stayed with them for the first few hundred metres but I was way out of my depth and paid for it big-time later on up the hill. With my HR pounding away at 190 bpm, it was only a matter of time before I hit the wall. I dropped back to a 2^nd group of riders and thought I had done enough to stay with them but after a slight flat section the hill kicks up again and I dropped like a sack of spuds. I only lost the back wheel of the last rider in that group by a few metres but with the effort I had put in to stay with them, those few metres were too much to claw back. As the road flattened, I dropped back and tucked into a group of riders to have a breather and find my legs again. We rode quickly down to Gurskebotnen with speeds of upto 73km p/hr. The road then turned towards Gjerdsvika and it wasn’t long before we had formed a group of 15-20 riders. Most of the group worked well to keep the pace up but unfortunately, there were a number of riders content with getting a free-ride and there was no way that we were going to catch the front runners. We pretty much stayed together as a group to Moltustranda, Tjørvåg, Myrvåg, through the tunnel (an experience in the dark with sunglasses on, and at high speed!).

We returned to Ulstein for the monster hill up Skulebakken (‘The School Hill’) to the finish line. It is only half a kilometre or so but with a 13% incline up the last 100 metres. Apart from the first hill after 15kms, I had found the pace easy going so I had good legs for the final hill and managed a respectable 3^rd in the group of 15-20 riders. I placed 25^th out of 136 riders overall and was 9^th out of 34 in my class (Masters 30-39). I finished the 70km course in a time of 1:56 with an average speed of 36km p/h and an average HR of 169 bpm. My top speed was 73km p/h and max HR was 190 bpm.

I was hoping to do better as I put in a huge amount of work during the winter in what were often awful conditions (constant darkness, snow and ice, and freezing temperatures) but I developed a knee injury in the first week of March and have been suffering with it since. In fact, my other knee went just a week before this race so neither knee works particularly well now! I’m also 3 kilos heavier than during the winter (I was hoping to be 3 kilos lighter than during the winter!!!). My knees only allow me to train gently a few times each week so after hammering it 6 days a week all winter, it has been really frustrating and increadibly dissapointing. I was very happy with my result given the problems that I’ve had for the last 8 weeks or so and the knees were perfectly fine for the duration of the race.

The race was won in a time of 1:48 by Ola Inge Drøpping; a pro-rider from the Latvian team Alpha Baltic - Unitymarathons.com who led in a group of about 8 riders. He was riding for his Norwegian team Nesset CK Elite that entered 3 riders and achieved an impressive 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd on the podium. 18 year old Marius Tomren from my local team Molde CK came 4^th. Great result, well done Marius! No doubt he wanted to get on the podium, and he was mighty close with just 2 seconds separating the top 4, but not easy given that he was up against 3 very strong Nesset CK Elite riders.

Congratulations go to the race organisers Ulstein og Omegn Sykkelklubb and their sponsors. The race was very well-organised. Well done. I look forward to having another go in 2013!

Start line (I’m about six rows down)

Up Leikong, 9% incline

My group somewhere en-route

Lead group on a short hill about 10kms from the end

1st chasing group

2nd chasing group (with me having a final go at turning the screw!)

Lead group with winner Ola Inge Drøpping (number 34) nearing the end of the race

At the foot of the sprint finish

Further up the final hill

Nearing the top of the sprint finish, 13% incline

The course


Race results
http://rittranking.merida.no/race/1913/list