Claudia Craig shares her experience of dipping her pedal into the mud of Cross-Country (XC) Mountain Bike (MTB) Racing
This was the first year I had raced XC MTB and what a brilliant introduction the Friday Night Summer Series (www.fnssmtb.co.uk) proved to be.
I raced weekly races hosted around the West Midlands with my dad, Alex Craig, on Friday evenings spread through the summer. Unfortunately, we couldn’t make every round, but every time we did give it a go, we felt completely welcome and enjoyed some brilliant racing.
Each race lasted about an hour. They never failed to present the perfect mix of technical sections, through woods and even a quarry, as well as power sections over beautiful countryside. The courses tended to be fast and flowing, although some did present a very bumpy ride in places.
My favourite race was held at Pitsford Quarry. Despite the rainy weather it was a fantastic course that even dipped into the working quarry with a tough technical climb out the other side. It also had several fast and exhilarating sections of single track weaving their way through the woods, making for a real blast of a ride.
Other courses offered plenty of fun features, included rolling tabletops and steep descents, however never too hard to spoil the fun.
After such a great series it was sad to see it come to an end. Unfortunately, we couldn’t make the final race and awards night. Which was a real shame as, crazily, after just one year of XC I had managed to win a cash prize in my category!
I can’t wait to go back and ride FNSS next year. I'd highly recommend it to anyone, of any age and ability, keen to give XC MTB racing a try.
Photos courtesy of Sophia Craig and Claudia Craig
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