22nd January : Iceman off road Duathlon 10km run 18km ride 5km run
114 over all 24th In category finish time 2hrs 32 mins.
5th February :Tuffman off road Duathlon 8km run 13 km ride 4km run
77th over all. 13th In category finish time 2hrs 25mins
13th March : Wiggle rough ride south downs epic 36 miles
4 hrs 5mins silver position
20th March : Hastings half marathon 1129th place 1hr 50 mins
4th June : Hellrider Xc run ride run relay 5km run 8km loops
competing as a 3 man team with Dan & Malcolm
Mountain mayhem 24hr Xc Enduro
competing as a 4 man team with Dan, Stuart & Malcolm .
Total of 21 laps
2nd to 5th July ::BHF London to Paris off road challenge .
Bushy Park to Versaille 300km in 3days .
6th -7th August Sleepless in the saddle 24hr Enduro
competing as a 4 man team with Stuart, Malcolm & Dan
24th Place with 30 laps .
20th August : Brighton Big Dog 6 hour Enduro
competing as a 3 man team with Kit & Stuart
4th Place with 8 laps completed .
11th September :Circuit of Kent 130 km road sportive
finished in 4hrs 52 mins in 64th place with a silver placing
17th September : BHF Insomnia 12 hr Enduro Bedgebury forest
competing as a pair with Tony .
Finished in 2nd place
19th November :Iceman off road Duathlon 10km run 18km ride 5km run
154th overall 26th in category finished in 2:43:59
December : Brass monkey 4 hr XC Enduro Tunnell hill Surrey
42nd place with 4 laps in 4 hrs .
2011 has been a fantastic and varied year for me with plenty of new adventures and challenges .
The year started with my first attempts at the Assics winter duathlons, a mixture of cross country running and mountain bike racing. Definitely an event which favours the strong runner which is not a catagory in which I place myself. A tough series of events but great fun all the same, with some great courses often in locations not normally open to the public.
The first true mountain bike event of the year was the Southern Rough ride at Storrington. An epic sportive type event based on the South Downs, on possibly the dampest foggiest day of the year. Tough, hilly and very very muddy brilliant !!!!! This is home turf for me, long days out off road and I love it! 
March came round fast and I had planned to train for the Hastings Half marathon, but never really committed to it. I still managed a personal best around the hilly 13.5 mile course.
Early June we entered, a tough team based Duathlon relay . For me this was one of the toughest events of the year, but the support provided by my team mates really kept me going despite the sore legs and cramp .
Next up was Mountain Mayhem this is always one of the highlights of the year. Racing as a team of four gives you a chance to enjoy the event as a whole and the team support and atmosphere is intoxicating .This year the course was a tough one, run almost in reverse from last year and they had worked all the big hills in as climbs. The first half of the event I suffered on each lap, sore legs, cramp and constantly struggling to breath really made it tough, but around about 15hrs in it all started to come good and I felt like I was finally making some contribution .The closing hours of this event were some of our finest as a team. Working hard to get the extra pre 2pm lap in and supporting those still out racing till the end.
July saw Kit and myself embark on the BHF London to Paris off road challenge. 300 km in 3 days mainly off road . This event was definitely my highlight of the year. We may have pushed the pace a bit, we may have even inadvertently turned it into a bit of a race, but we had so much fun; the riding was only a small part of the adventure. 3 days of ride time in a row is a luxury. Add in a bit of camping, some fine scenery, a few great trails and a bunch of like minded cyclists for company along with a spot of fundraising, and you have a fantastic adventure on your hands.
August was a busy one with two big events and a little holiday time. Sleepless in the Saddle has been a regular event favourite and this years was a good one. It got a little tougher during the night when Dan went tree hugging, but the remaining 3 of us kept it together and once again I found that I my performance was improving in the later stages of the event . Not only is it a great course to race on and a brilliant event format, it’s also very family friendly so we get to race and spend time with the family. It’s a win win and the washing up gets done !
August also saw us at the Brighton big dog event at Stanmer park. Racing as a three man team the race required a mix of Xc sprint and Enduro staying power .I think it’s fare to say that Kit, Stuart and myself will remember this one for a while. The course involved a 3 mile lung busting climb, followed by twisty flowing woodland trails up and around Stanmer Park . It was, without a doubt, a proper race and we raced it hard. Each rider finished the lap spent, handing over and trying to recover before their next transition. Sadly we missed the podium by one place despite our best efforts.
Its road sportive time in September and most of the team plus a few freinds are entered at the Circuit of Kent 130 km event . This was a first for me as my road riding to date has been limited to a few Sunday shop rides on Wildside’s demo bikes .Starting a long way down the pack we set off as a team working through the field of riders. I settled into my ride with Scott for company and benefited from his experience in all things road. Despite the hilly route and the distance, we managed to maintain a good pace whilst still having a sociable time.
Another high point of September was the BHF insomnia event at Bedgebury forest. This year I had a new partner for the pairs category in the form of Tony Woodruffe, a fellow veteran of the London to Paris event. We had a tough night on home soil but were delighted to pick up the trophy for second place .
October was a quiet month on the riding front. I had planned to head up to Thetford for another stab at Dusk till Dawn, but a hard years racing was starting to take its toll and a bit of recovery time was in order.
November, and it’s time to get into Duathlon mode again ! Really should have kept up with a bit of running over the summer as the Iceman event came as a shock to the body. With hill after hill to run up even the super fit tri guys were calling it tough.
December, and I followed Jason’s lead and entered one of the Gorrick Brass Monkey events. 4 hours of out and out Xc racing ! This one caught me out big time .Its a bit like the Southern Xc events only twice as long. I loved the course which was almost all single track and fairly technical. I just am not fit enough to race like that. Still it’s good to have something to bench mark yourself against and it’s a great series of events.
The year ended in fine style with a New years eve road ride with Stefan, Neil & Stuart out around Ashdown Forest . 40 odd miles of big hills and fast paced group riding. These boys are fit and fast and very experienced in all things road based .I really enjoyed the group training and can see this sort of ride becoming a regular event as the potential benefits for the long endurance type events are huge .
2012 is looking like being another good year with a few new faces on the team and a lot of event options to keep us riding and racing.
My focus for the year is to improve my endurance and speed, which means alot of early season miles both on the road and trail. The key events are Mountain Mayhem as a team entry and Sleepless in the Saddle as a solo, with the potential for an even tougher challenge later in the year all interspersed with a mix of Xc, running and even the odd road Sportive.
On a final note many thanks to Andy and all the staff at Wildside for there support over the last year, Kit,Stuart,Malcom,Dan,Luis,Stefan & Tony for racing with me and my lovely wife Jo for letting me ride and for her help and support at the races this year .
See you on the trails soon
Mike
