Scottish Enduro Series Rnd2

Team MTB Ride Guide Rider Keir reports from Scottish Enduro Series Rnd2 at innerleithen

Last weekend I headed over to one of my all-time favourite riding spots, Innerleithen, for the Scottish Enduro Series ~ round 2. I had never really had the chance to get out on my Nukeproof Mega at Innerleithen as I had always been there on downhill business, so this was a bit of a treat!

On the Saturday morning I headed out for practice with 2 of Scotland’s finest riders; Drew Carters and Gary Forest who were both local to the area. It was great for me to get out with them because they set a really fast standard of riding which was good for me to try keep up. Each stage had its own set of variables from the flat out jumps and berms of stage one right through to the wet roots and ankle deep ruts of stage 5. I found some of the stages a bit of a challenge to get used to, as it was so different form my normal riding at Fort William but, on race day, I managed to get my head in a good place and it all clicked.

Dirty business this enduro lark.

On the Sunday Morning I woke up feeling a wee bit sick and unwell; I tried to just ignore it but it was not budging - even after a gentle breakfast. So when we arrived at the venue I decided it would be a good idea if I had some water and went for an hour of sleep in the van before heading out. I woke up feeling a little better and got ready for some riding. When I set off I seemed to be all-good. The first climb was by far the longest taking me a good 1 and a half hours to summit at a steady pace. There was not too much hanging around at the top as the elements were not in a rider’s favour with wind blowing in and heavy showers to go with it, however it did not ruin it for me at all! The stages were riding first class. I had pretty much a solid descent ride on all of the stages expect stage three where I had a nasty hang up - which I reckon cost me a lot of valuable time perhaps maybe even a spot on the podium- although I didn’t let it dampen my spirits.

I feel that everyone at Innerleithen MTB put a lot of work into the stages to make a top-notch event and it was, overall, a great weekend. I took 4th in my class and I was happy with that and I’m now looking forward to improving over the next few rounds. My bike was running like a dream; the 650B wheels on the Nukeproof Mega TR is the ideal enduro combo and I look forward to having a blast on it when my legs have recovered form this weekend!

Thanks to Malcolm at Marked Mediahouse for the images.