Gardner recces XT course

The country’s top off-road triathlete Sam Gardner and GB second-ranked mountain biker Billy Jo Whenman, who rides under the Whyte UK colours, have taken to the Gibraltar Barracks in Surrey to the track out for the upcoming XT Festival in September.

And their verdict? “It’s tough enough to give any serious rider the burn.”

Festival organiser Toby Jenkins is thrilled that the two pros have given the 6km track their blessing. He even rode with them and is now paying the price!

He said: “I knew that agreeing to ride the FGS XTFestival bike route with Billy and Sam was going to be tough but I seriously under estimated by how much.

“Only moments after starting I knew that keeping up was going to be wildly impossible as I saw the pros ride up an incline that most mortals would imagine was very steep indeed. From this point on I assumed the ‘cameraman role’ and hid in the trees!” said Toby.

The route? It’s off road, though woodland trails and forest tracks with sharp inclines and enough overtaking tracks to make this race perfect for all types. Sam and Billy agreed that the hills are going to burn, especially after 3hrs, but with spectators able to cheer from most parts of the course and recovery drinks supplied by For Goodness Shakes, everyone will have a great day of racing.

Race dates are 25-26 September 2010

Full details here www.xtfestival.co.uk

Matt Baird Editor of Cycling Plus magazine

About

Matt is a regular contributor to 220 Triathlon, having joined the magazine in 2008. He’s raced everything from super-sprint to Ironman, duathlons and off-road triathlons, and can regularly be seen on the roads and trails around Bristol. Matt is the author of Triathlon! from Aurum Press and is now the editor of Cycling Plus magazine.