GritFest 2018
GritFest is a new Gravel Race in Mid Wales, Organised by Matthew Page and the A-Cycling team. Its a 2 day event consisting of a 90km route with 2400m ascent on the Saturday and a 40km route with 1000m ascent on the Sunday.
Each day has three timed special stages for those feeling competitive (myself included)
We arrived on the Friday night to pitch our tents, although the late 10am start in the morning would mean that even those arriving on race day wouldn't have been too stressed. It turned out that we knew the people who pitched next to us. Jules and Helen, and their friend Kirsten proved to be great camping and riding buddies throughout the weekend.
I always wake up pretty early so had time to do the standard pre-race faffing, attaching race number, checking tyre pressure and loading up tools and snacks in between my first (porridge) and second (Bacon Roll) breakfasts, I need my fuel right!?
Just before 10 we all gathered at the start line, but as the first section is just a gentle roll out to the start of first timed stage I wasn't feeling my usual level of nerves and stress, we all had a nice chat, eyed up other peoples bikes and set off on the start of the ride... Why can't all races be like this!?
The roll in to the first timed stage was mainly along small country lanes before climbing up the side of a dam, the views were amazing and photos were taken before we set off on our first timed stage, a gravel climb around Llyn Brianne reservoir.... Over the next 90 km we were treated to some amazing views, copious amounts of homemade food at the feed stations and some great chat and camaraderie with other racers...Happy Days!
After we finished the days riding and had showered and changed there was more eating, some drinking and a local band to keep us amused, with the world cup being shown in the barn. Everything seemed well organised and during the day there has even been falconry and other entertainment provided for the families back at camp.
Day twos stage was a lot shorter to allow for prize giving and people travelling home, but at 40km the guys had still managed to squeeze in a few nice climbs and the final timed stage was on singletrack through a forest, which threw in a bit of variation from the gravel fire roads we had mostly been riding.
After the race was finished and all riders were back I was happy to get top spot on the podium in the Senior Womens category. I got a nice haul of goodies from Lezyne and Challenge and also an entry to next years race, so ill be back next June to defend my title! Hopefully see you there! :)
