Day 2: Invermere to Nipika – Predicted ascent 1302m (actual 1495m), distance 60km, (paved roads 5.3km, gravel roads 27.4km, double/singletrack, 27.4km).

I awoke to day two with the announcement that Ash was pulling out of the race. He said that he couldn’t continue anymore, citing a possible return of the virus that had struck him post cairngorm trip, and a lack of sleep the night before. Ash gave me an option of stopping or continuing; needless to say my only option after coming all this way was to continue.

In the interests of safety, I was paired with another team (Team Holland 1), who finished 30 seconds in front of us on day one. Day two’s start was on paved roads, down through the town of Invermere, before climbing up to an open cast mine 17km away; from there it was a steep climb on rough, rocky double and singletrack trails. It was soon apparent that I was much faster and fitter that my new team mates, and after 24km I had pulled out over 20 minutes on them. After waiting for them outside control station (as I was unsure about time penalties) all three of us entered the control station. Here I asked a marshal if I could swap to a faster team. I was advised as long as I was with a group of mountain bikers and not on my own I was ok. This allowed me too essentially to ride by myself, now I was free to fly, I could compete!

28 to 33km was a descent down the mountain and was very primitive and mostly unrideable, so more hike-a-bike. Here my skills as a fell runner came to hand allowing me to make up several places. Eventually this trail led to a more rideable section through a moose meadow! (but not a moose insight), and then onto more glorious technical singletrack, before descending to our first river crossing. The river crossings are stunning to see, riders with their bikes on their backs, fording fast flowing, crystal clear, rivers, anything up to waist deep in cold water, which was a welcome relief as the weather was getting hot, with temperatures in the high twenties. Next it was on to a steep double track trail climb, before descending into a dusty singletrack with the most beautiful views across the Cross River, before entering the Nipika resort and the finish of day 2 via a short dusty fire road section. Day 2 Done! Time 5hrs 13mins, 57^th in 80+ category and now lying 67^th in 80+ category overall.

Day 3 Nipika to Nipika via Millers Pass – Predicted ascent 1522m (actual 1890m), distance 90.1km (paved roads 0km, gravel roads 51.5km, double/singletrack 38.6km)

Day 3 due to forest fires was a circular route on dusty tracks and trails around Nipika. It was so dusty that for the rest of the event to keep the dust out of my lungs (as due to the altitude I needed every square nanometre for gaseous exchange) that I use a Buff that I had in my camelback as a mask. Other riders, the TV crews and the commentator at the finish of each stage started to make a joke out of this idea, and I was soon given the nickname ‘’The Masked Rider’’.

Nipika was an 8am start the trails were fast and undulating with several river crossings. This was my first day that I was free to race from the word go, yet I had to tamper my enthusiasm with the knowledge that this as going to be a long, hot day on the trails. There was a steady 900m climb into millers pass on rideable gravel roads and double track, some of which had 20 to 30 metres washed out due to flooding from snow melts, so caution was needed when riding these sections that punctures weren’t picked up, or even a fall due to the rough, rocky boulder strewn sections, which several of my fellow TransRockies riders sustained, with two riders needing medical attention for twisted ankles, and one for a broken wrist sustained from a fall.

Next in Millers pass there was a sharp, steep climb on double track that tested the fittest of riders, until the sweetest of undulating single tracks that emulated the rabbit run in Hamsterley that went on for around 10km. This trail was worth all the pain sustained from the climb up. The singletrack section descended to control station two on a flood plain next to the Albert River. After my number was checked off, I continued to make time on other riders who stopped for drinks and snacks, which were provided by the organisers at each control station. The trail opened out and crossed the river several times, as it meandered it’s was through the rockies. The route then ascended for 800m vertical on a fire road, and to summit at 1700m above sea level, before descending on double track and fire roads. These fire roads were steep, quick and fun to descend; yet full of dangers. Anyone who has rider in the Rockies or in the Alps will know about waterbars. These waterbars are essentially ditches that transverse the road. They are about two to three feet deep, about six to eight feet wide, with steeply sloped sides upon entry and exit. They are difficult to spot when your blasting down the trail/fire road and very easy to get wrong (as several riders found out to their cost), if you got them wrong, things went wrong big style, as you were hitting these things at speeds from 45km per hour to 60km per hour. Get them right and there is a knack to them (pop the front wheel and drop into them, then use the sloped side to jump out of them, all needing little or no braking) and the result? Some rather big air for a hang of a long distance!!! These waterbars as I say claimed several riders, many of which needed a medivac via helicopter of the mountain. At one waterbar I was slowed down by a camera crew who warned me of a rider in front, who had crashed and was to be helicoptered out. When I saw this rider, medical attention was on hand, he had a canula in the back of his hand, his shoulder looked broken, and he had clearly face planted into the road, as the left half of his face had extreme road rash (it looked like half of his face was missing!) and his left eye was half out! Once clear of the scene you just put the danger to the back of your mind and carried on riding the stage.

The final part of the stage again descended into singletrack above the Cross river, before descending down to it, then a steep boggy hike-a-bike climb back up to more sweet single track into Nipika, and to the finish. Day 3 Done! Time 6hrs 0mins 8secs. Position 3 in unclassified, Overall 2^nd in Unclassified.

Unclassified was the class for all riders who were solo riders, or had teamed up with other riders, when their original riding partner had retired/dropped out.

Now that I was riding on my own, Ash had become my support crew. Ash became my bike mechanic, washing and preparing the bike for the next stage, and as the food on the TransRockies left a lot to be desired, Ash also became the chef, and an excellent chef he was too, preparing some top notch nosh.

Day 4 Nipika to Whiteswan – Predicted ascent 1342 (actual 1940m) distance 113km (paved roads 0km, gravel roads 62km, double/singletrack 51km)

Day 4 was the longest day so far, and if the weather forecast was right, the hottest (30c+). The cumulative effect of this race was now starting to have an effect upon me, I was tired and the thought of 113km in 30 degrees, did not enthral me; Ash to the rescue! After a swift discussion, I was put on my bike and despatched to the start line.  Day 4 left Nipika via the same route that started day 3, on dry, dusty gravel roads, then climbing steeply on double track, before descending down to several shallow-ish river crossings. It was then back onto gravel fire roads to gain altitude. It was on these gravel roads that several riders and me decided to relieve the monotony by playing games, which consisted of guessing which mountain (as there was several in front of us) we were going to climb next. Day 4 was an uninspiring day, the descents were fast downhill gravel roads, with the odd waterbar to stop you going to sleep, and the singletrack was uneventful and mainly on the climbs, so no mint singletrack descents. The weather however was hot and sunny, and the scenery was stunning with great views at the top of the climbs. 70km came round quite quickly and with 43km to go I found myself riding by myself. Following a sustained effort to catch riders in front of me, I soon found myself riding with a team of singlespeeders! (Yep, people do this event on singlespeeds. NUTTERS!!!!). Talking to these riders, they said that because these bikes were lighter, they could climb at the same speed as everyone else, and on the steeper sections descend as quick as other riders, however it was on the flat or slight downhill fire road sections where they lost out; and as we approached one of these sections at 79km I left them and rode on. At 90km I was longing for this stage to finish, biking along fire roads, with little prospect of any singletrack it not my idea of fun, and the finish at Whiteswan was a welcome relief. The afternoon was hot, with no escaping the sun; Ash had spied a cool fast flowing river near the bike wash, so upon meeting up with him, and washing the bike off, it was time to lie down in this river; Ahh the relief; and as it had been an extremely dry, dusty day, it was nice to wash all the thick dust off me. Day 4, Done! Time 6hrs 33mins 39secs, position 4^th in unclassified, Overall 3^rd in Unclassified.

Day 5 Whiteswan to Elkford – Predicted ascent 1528m (actual 1960m), Distance 93.28km (paved roads 1.6km, gravel roads 48.9km, double/singletrack 43.6km)

Day 5 and only a mere 93km! Day 5 left scenic Whiteswan, departing on the same fire roads that had brought us to the finish the day previous. After 3km we turned left onto another fire road that took us on a steady climb to control station 1, 14km in. The day was starting to get hot and sunny again and the roads were extremely dusty. I was grateful for the mask that I was wearing as it stopped the dust; several riders were now coughing and hacking up dust from their lungs (not pretty!). Also it was fortunate that the weather was dry (not typical TransRockies weather, it usually rains – a lot) rain would send all the dust into six inches of unrideable mud, and probably wear parts out on the bike quicker and make this a harder slog than it was already. 14 to 27km was all up hill (sorry mountain) on double/singletrack. The uphill sections in Canada are endless, you think you can’t go any higher, you round a corner and the trail just keeps on going up; then it starts to descend, only round the next corner it goes up again. 800m vertical climbing later and we summit the climb; the descent to control station 2 was all switchback double/singletrack with numerous waterbars to be aware of. Control station 2 to control station 3 (49 to 71km) was an ascent up the east river drainage valley, this was a scenic area and much of the riding was on double/singletrack with small sections of fire road connecting them. A short stop at control station 3 at 71km to fill my camelback with water was needed as a steep tough hike-a-bike now faced us all. This section was unbelievable it was so steep people were sliding back down when the ground gave way. We had all strapped our bikes to our backs so that our hands were free to grab at anything free to haul ourselves up. This was a climb of 550m in about 7km! and it hurt!!! The descent down the other side wasn’t much fun either. The descent consisted of a rock garden descent; the rocks were loose, sharp, and the descent was 4km long and steep. If you fell off it would be easy to break wrists and shoulders and you would cut yourself to ribbons on the sharp rocks; we had been warned of this section as in previous years it had been the site of many injuries; so, yep you guessed it, I decided to ride the whole section – and I cleaned it!!!!! passing many riders in the process, and not one puncture!.

The section after the rock garden was a fast, technical and sometime rough descent. This was MINT to ride; bravery was the order of the day; blind corners, rock drops and a section that resembled Glentress’s spook wood; this is what make mountain biking and all the hard climbing worth it all 10km of it!! However the fun was soon all over as we descended onto fire road at 87km, there was then a 6km blast on smooth fire roads and paved roads to the finish at Elkford; where Ash was waiting with the RV. Day 5 Done! Time 6hrs 18mins 36 secs, position 9^th in unclassified and 7^th overall in unclassified class.

The unclassified class was now getting bigger as the TransRockies was now starting to take its toll. I was now racing against Andreas Hestler (ex world mountain bike champ!)

Day 6 Elkford to Sparwood – Predicted ascent 2300m (actual 2425m), Distance 116km (paved roads 18km, gravel roads 66km, double/singletrack 32km)

The penultimate day and this was going to be a toughie. TransRockies had never put a tougher stage into the race, and this late in the race it was really going to sort the men from the boys. Many of us not were totally knackered, yet we still had this monster stage to complete; get through this stage and the finish was in sight. The 6^th day was overcast with an orange sun just peeping out from behind the clouds. The clouds looked very different, not rain clouds, these clouds were smoke clouds. A forest fire was filling the sky with smoke; at least this would give us some relief from the hot sun.

This moster staged started with a blast down the paved roads of Elkford; with all the roads closed off by the local police we had the right of way, and with the whole area turning out to see the race we were cheered on from the roadside by spectators, which may for an awesome sight. The ride down through Elkford was then followed by a road climb up the fording mine road; after 5km we entered the Josephine falls singletrack trail. This trail was an undulating trail which lead us past the spectacular sight of the waterfalls; however we had no time to stop and admire the views, pushing on down the trail to some north shore skinnies, and then to north shore walkways over some rough ground, past lost lake and onto some fire roads past sulphur creek. Then it was a 23km killer climb on dry dusty fire roads and double track. It was here that I caught up with another solo rider; we rode together each helping each other on the torturous climb, before descending down a 6km rocky descent to a paved road.  On this 11km section we each would take it in turn to draft each other, which made short work of this section, soon arriving at control point 3.

Leaving control point 3 was the beginning of hell. Tired, exhausted and now saddle sore, we had a 700m vertical climb in 11km to summit the mountain and the final big climb! This climb was like entering hell; parts of the trail were so steep it was a hike-a-bike; the sun had come out, and so had the heat. At the summit we were greeted by the medical crews who cheered everyone’s arrival on the final big climb of the 2007 TransRockies; now it was time for the mother of all descents down to Sparwood. This descent was on double track and singletrack immense fun, scary at times, with some huge jumps, and some serious speed, man was this fast (this was like dangerous decent in Hamsterley but for some 9km loosing 900m vertical). It was then onto paved roads, before entering more sweet rollercoaster singletrack for the last 10km. however the organisers had a small surprise in store; Sparwood was at the otherside of a busy highway, which we were not allowed to cross. This meant we had to go past Sparwood riding the trails for another 2km, before descending to a bridge over a river; we had to ford the river under the bridge surfacing at the other side of the highway, only to ride 2km back to Sparwood. Many riders including me were not impressed with this decision; we were tired, sore and grouchy; but hey this is the TransRockies, so expect the unexpected. The finish in Sparwood next to Titan, the world’s biggest truck was a welcome sight. Day 6 Done! Time 7hrs 25mins 29secs. Position 9^th in unclassified and 8^th overall in unclassified class.

Day 7 Sparwood to Fernie – Predicted ascent 655m (actual 820m), Distance 48km (paved roads 6km, gravel roads 30km, double/singletrack 12km)

The final day; and a short 48km blast to the finish. However, first I had to find a way of actually sitting on the bike! Six harsh days riding had taken its toll and I was rather saddle sore. The solution was to wear two pairs of padded cycling shorts, this made sitting on the bike now bearable.

Ash dropped me and the bike off at the start line, as we had been staying about 1km away from Sparwood at a camp ground, and I needed all the energy I had just to get to the finish line. On the start line TV crews were interviewing some of the riders who were left in the race. Most of the questions revolved around ‘what are you going to do when you cross the finish line. Answers varied, but mostly revolved around either downing a pint, finding a soft cushion to sit on or throwing the bike away!

As the start time of 10am came round (final day was a later start, as we were all knackered) and the motor bikes led us away from the start line, it wasn’t long before it was a free for all. The pace on the last day was brutally fast, where had everybody got the energy from? On the start line everyone could hardly stand up, now the pace was like a sprint pace. The first 28 km was on fast undulating fire roads, before descending onto paved roads. After a river crossing there was a sharp fire road climb along side a power line, before descending into some sweet singletrack. This fast, flowing single track led us round the back of the town of Fernie, then paved roads into the finish on the main street of the town. The whole town had stopped for the race, and riding solo the 1km through the town with all the spectators cheering was one of the most emotional and rewarding moments of the whole race. As I crossed the finish line, arms in the air, Ash and Helen were the first people to congratulate me; my only regret is that Ash was not riding with me. I stopped the stopwatch for stage 7 with a time of 2hrs 17mins 43secs, arriving home in 5^th place in the unclassified section. This gave me a finishing position of 7^th overall in the unclassified section, with a total ride time of 38hrs 44mins 31.51seconds.

The TransRockies mountain bike is an awesome race to participate in; you rub shoulders with some of the best bikers in the world. The scenery is breath taking, the singletrack is amongst some of the best I have ever ridden, and I have made friends with people who I will never forget. This race is truly amongst the toughest mountain bike races in the world, everyday just gets tougher and tougher; there’s 563.3km, 11840 metres of ascending, and on this event I burnt 24381 calories just racing each day. The TransRockies food left a lot to be desired, and if it wasn’t for Ash, I could well have starved.

Watching the TransRockies race on TV, I now have more appreciation for what the riders go through. As I say I wish that Ash could have completed the race with me; however I can now say that I am now a TransRockies finisher, I have the medal and finishers t shirt to prove it. Ash says he’s going back for 2008, and I hope he does, and that he’s successful. I said that I would never do this race again, I never want to experience that sort of pain again; however upon reflection I’m slowly talking myself round to the idea for 2008;

May be in the open category?

May be Team Hamsterley Trailblazers?

Anyone fancy an epic adventure?