Race Report - Forest of Dean Mini DH 2013/14: Round 2

The second round of the Forest of Dean Mini Downhill series was graced by a special guest, our reporter James Smurthwaite was there to catch all the action.

If I were to describe this event in one word, then I could not pick a better one than sloppy. The Met Office issued a wet weather warning earlier in the week and their prediction was annoyingly accurate, it was bucketing down. This did nothing to dampen the spirits of the competitors however, the race was fully booked a week in advance and even a healthy crowd turned out to watch surprise entrant Danny Hart.

The race was run on Sheepskull, one of the flatter tracks at the Forest of Dean, making creative line choices essential to keep speed.

The most troublesome section was just before the second fire road crossing. A maze of sideways routes, as slick as ice in the rain, forced riders off the quicker high line costing them lots of time.

The final straight also caught many riders out, holes started to open up, some of them as big as the riders in the Ripper category! The straight finished with the now infamous Sheepskull Puddle, an especially deep, water-filled in hole that seemed to tempt riders off their lines causing some very sketchy (and wet) finishes.

When it came to seeding runs, after a thorough soaking all through practice, the track was saturated all the way down, and the growing crowd got to see plenty of crashes as well as some ninja overtaking on the final third of the course. Danny Hart posted a blistering 1:20.96, six seconds clear of even the other pro-am riders.

The sun came out between the two runs, meaning the track slowed down slightly for second runs as the mud became more gloopy.

With over thirty riders in the women’s field, the race was always going to be hotly contested, in the end it was Katy Curd who took the win with a 1:36.59. We spoke to her after her run and she had this to say:

Are you happy with how the race went today?

Yeah, it was really hammering it down this morning but it’s cleared up a bit now, the second run was a bit more gloopy but you could see a lot better so the visibility was good.

It was good to see so many women out today, do you think the future of women in downhill is looking bright?

Yeah I think so, especially in the last couple of races and the last few years, it’s gone from like four riders to, well, thirty, so yeah it’s amazing, everyone’s trying to push it so much, especially Chris Roberts the race organiser and I’ve been working with him, offering free coaching and stuff, so it’s boosting, and hopefully it’ll carry on for the future.

How about your plans for next year?

Actually I’m going back to the Downhill side of things, putting four cross aside for a bit, I’ve never given Downhill a proper go and it’s what how I started.

The men’s field was also hotly contested, with Ieuan Williams and Glen Coe both putting down strong times, but once again it was Danny Hart who snatched it away from them, his second run was 2 seconds slower than his first, but still quick enough to take the win. Special mention should go to junior rider, Charlie Hatton, whose 1:26.58 would have put him third in pro-am.

The next round will be on the 23rd of February and you can find out how to enter here