The Black Mountains 3 Day gets the thumbs up from Cyclist No.1

Check out Fi's blog from Day 1, Scott's from Day 2, and Gary's from Day 3.

The Cyclist No.1 editorial team were invited by Bearded Man to take part in the inaugural Black Mountains 3 Day mountain bike event at the end of June. The event took a unique format; a Friday evening time trail round the Glanusk Estate in the Brecon Beacons, followed by an enduro on Saturday and another on Sunday. We drove over the bridge to Wales on Friday afternoon watching the wispy clouds curling above the Sugarloaf. I knew we were in for a top weekend of proper mountain biking in one of my favourite parts of the UK to ride. We were all eager to get to the Talybont campsite. As Gary put it, "That atmosphere won't soak itself up!"

The tented village at Gilestone Farm was already bustling with energy as riders registered, kit-fettled or unpacked into their pre-erected tent. After a quick brew, we headed down the marked trail to the start of the time trial; a 2-lap loop in the Glanusk Estate. The fire road climb was a killer but the swoopy, natural singletrack which carved its way through the trees back down to the start was well worth the struggle and the second lap was even more fun now that we knew the lines. After the race, a lot of adrenaline-high mountain bikers shared an excitable meal of delicious lasagne and listened intently to Dave, the (now clean shaven) Bearded Man as he gave us the heads up on the weekend's enduros.

The emphasis in this event was on fun rather than racing, despite the Sportident-timed results (and rather a lot of branded lycra sported by the front riders). As such, there were no category prizes, but heaps of spot prizes handed out to those with the biggest smiles, the most spectacular crashes or the most punctures. (My favourite spot prize winners were Team 200kg, who won the prize for 'getting their money's worth' after rolling over the line later than anyone else, still smiling and pleased as punch they had made it).

Black Mountains 3 Day

Despite the lack of theoretical competitiveness, out on the course people were still pushing hard; racing each other, themselves or just trying to beat the hills. Saturday's ride started in the Myndd forest and was 60km, so rather short for an enduro. However, this short distance gave people the chance to push themselves without too much worry about 'popping' and there were a lot of sweat-dripping faces gurning up the climbs. Every climb was rewarded, however, and the route took in some of the finest natural singletrack in Wales. There were rock garden descents, twisty bracken-runs and sheep tracks carving off-camber around steep hillsides. With the sun high above in a blue sky, it was cycling nirvana.

Despite the lack of competitiveness, out on the course people were still pushing hard; racing each other, themselves or just trying to beat the hills...

We were warned that the first half of the day would pass quickly, but the constant undulations meant that by the time the feed station came round at 34km, after a saddle-in-your-stomach descent down to Llanbedr, we were craving a good feed and a brief rest. We were not disappointed, and were greeted at the feed station by an incredible array of fruit, savouries, sweets, biscuits and the best carrot cake I've ever tasted (thanks to Sugarloaf Catering). I drank down a whole bottle of delicious cool water, refilled it, crammed my pockets full of jelly babies and set off up the road climb, with two chaps I'd been leapfrogging in hot pursuit.

We were greeted at the feed station by the best carrot cake I had ever tasted...

The next road climb soon turned into a grassy track and the col could be seen high above on Mynydd Llysiau, with a few tiny ant-sized cyclists and hikers silhouetted against the horizon. I found a rhythm, and keeping myself going by picking at the jelly babies I'd stashed, I winched my way to the top pushing as hard as I dared (or my screaming back would let me). Just before the switchback which turned the trail steeply up the final few metres to the tumulus, Josh Ibbett from Torq Fitness screamed past me, the effort he was making showing in the dipping of his shoulders on each pedal stroke. He had taken a wrong turn earlier on and was in hot pursuit of team mate Ben Thomas and our own Technical Editor, Scott, who were at the tete de la course.

Black Mountains 3 Day

From the top of the grassy slog, there was another superb bracken-run descent down towards Pengenfford, which had us chopping in and out of the rutted singletrack and narrowly avoiding the boulders and sheep which were strewn erratically across the path. Walkers looked on incredulously as with huge grins we pedalled furiously and swooped and danced our way downwards.

There was another superb descent, which had us narrowly avoiding the boulders and sheep strewn erratically across the path...

We knew that once we had reached the top of the dreaded hike-a-bike that we had 10km of descending to go before tea and medals, and that was the only thing keeping some people going as they staggered up the steep drag up Mynydd Llangors with bikes balanced precariously on their shoulders. Looking down from the top, a strange convoy of wheels and helmets was edging is way up through the head-high bracken. A quick gasp and there were no holds barred as we plummeted downhill following the grassy trail, then hitting the road for the final few kilometres to the finish. Everyone managed a sprint across the field to the finish and the showers and cool cans of soft drink were welcome restoration after a few very hot hours out in the hills.

Apart from the usual casualties, (including one rookie whose alarm had failed to go off and also Gary's 10 speed shifter), the stories bandied around over dinner were of fantastic descents, sweaty climbs, race camaraderie and excitement about what was to come the next day. Bearded Man's warnings of the dangers of The Gap were laughed off as scaremongering as riders continued sipping their (free) Otley ale and busying themselves preparing for the next day's ride.

Black Mountains 3 Day

Sore muscles? Check. New squeaks on the bike? Check. But bottles filled, suncream applied and pockets stuffed with tasty treats, we found ourselves heading up the stony firetrack which headed out from the Talybont campsite along the edge of the beautiful Talybont reservoir. The climb was tough and I was already pushing very hard as the bumpy ground made it difficult to find a rhythm even on my full suspension Kona Hei Hei. Eventually our wheels were pointing downhill for the first rocky descent. There was still a bit of standing water around and this would mark the routine of the day; long fireroad climb then rocky, wet and rutted descent. And repeat.

Sunday's loop was a little more artificial than the A to B of Saturday and we doubled back and headed down the direction we'd come before climbing back up steeply and crossing over the reservoir for a long, big-ring climb which seemed to go on forever. Eventually we topped out, battled our way through 50 metres of boggy grass before starting a 4 mile singletrack descent down to the feed station at 31km. This was worth every pedal stroke of the climb and after stretching out my back I got into my groove, literally and metaphorically, and really worked the descent, pumping all the stream crossings and building up as much speed as I dared in the tyre-wide sheep tracks. After sloshing our way through the final few hundred metres of muddy forest trail, we popped out on the fire road again, grabbed some (this time apple) cake and sweets and finished the climb up to the gate and out onto the open moor.

Black Mountains 3 Day

This was the Brecon Beacons I knew and loved; big skies, scars of rutted track, sheep and ponies lazily chewing grass round and about us. We aggressively tackled the first short climb onto the tops and I was enjoying catching and passing riders after an earlier puncture. A rollercoaster descent of weather-rutted track (which saw Gary have his final of five punctures of the day and eventually retire in despair, bug-bitten and largely having fallen off the back of the field with all tubes irrepairable [must go tubeless next time - Ed.]) had us join a brief but superfast fire road descent through the forest before we could, for the first time, see Pen y Fan and Fan y Big on the horizon. That meant The Gap was approaching.

We could see Pen y Fan on the horizon. That meant The Gap was approaching...

Things that you dread are often not as bad as you think, and this was no different. The climb up to The Gap was tough and rocky, but the dry conditions had left the ground hard packed and there was always a smooth(ish) line to follow up one or the other side (which was always where the walkers were, naturally). The climb was sweaty and flies were getting stuck to my sweat-sticky cheeks, but I paced myself and winched my way to the top, enjoying the view and the cheers from the walkers sitting on the trailside eating their sandwiches and sipping from flasks. Now, the moment I had been waiting for. I zipped my jersey up, stood up for a quick stretch and then plunged downwards, jumping down the stepped rocks, each time grateful (and slightly surprised) I was still vertical. The Gap has been tamed a little, but still offers a whole heap of fun and is well worth the grunt to get up there. And it just keeps on going and going; flattening out but still with streams to cross and plenty of rock debris to enjoy manoeuvring around.

Black Mountains 3 Day

When we eventually cruised to the gate at the bottom of the descent (after I'd warned the marshal about a casualty further up who had faceplanted), we just had a treacherous but hilarious strip of rocky singletrack, lined with flesh-eating brambles, before we hit the road for 10km of lanes to the finish. Crossing that line I felt battered and elated to have been able to push hard on some truly challenging trails in the glorious Welsh sunshine.

Prize giving was a relaxed affair, with some marshals and many of the 100-strong competitors receiving 'presents' in the form of the Good Mountainbiking Guide, Novik Gloves, Torq nutrition packs, Brecon Beacons National Park guides and Black Mountains 3 Day cowbells. Everyone also got a Morvelo-designed finishers tee and Singular Cycles randomly gave the tallest chap in the room a large frame just ‘because’! As we tucked into hunks of lemon drizzle cake and sipped mugs of tea bought at the wonderful Luff Bus (which used to the Drop Off Cafe at Afan's Glyncorrwyg), we giggled conspiratorially at the fun we’d had that weekend. Three days felt like a proper break, and as the event was designed so there was plenty of chill-time to chat to the other competitors, we had made a lot of new friends. The Black Mountains 3 Day gets the thumbs up from Cyclist No.1 and we'll definitely be Back in Black in 2012.

Black Mountains 3 Day