We’ll leave you in the capable hands of Team Manager Russ Carty for this one;

Hi All,

Well we have made the long trek up to Fort William in Scotland and this is
the first time I have been upto Scotland and it’s sunny!

The race site was great and we had prime position in the race arena next to
the start finish area and all the riders were really looking forward to this
race as this is our first downhill race of the year.

Saturday – Practice

Today went very well, the course was very rocky and we were lucky to only
have a couple of punctures and no crashes, plus this is the only race that I
can think of where all the riders were happy with the course.

Sunday – Race

Again another sunny day, we arrived at the course about 8:30 as the first
uplifts in the gondolas started at 8:40.Pete and Darren went up for a couple
of practice runs as it had rained over night and wanted to see how the
course had changed. Scott, Ross and Tracy all decided to wait until elite
practice later in the morning.

Darren came down and had a bad crash, he had gone over the bars but
fortunately he and the bike were ok. Ross came down about an hour later had
had done the same thing but luckily he was OK as well.

So into the race, Darren was our first man down, he look good on the bottom
section of the course but when he crossed the line he placed 6th, he was
very disappointed as he felt that he had a great run.

After Darren was Pete and luck wasn’t with him either. Pete felt great at
the top of the course and was really enjoying himself… abit to much, he
felt he was going a bit to fast and then bang, he was over the bars and lying
on the floor.

He jumped straight back on the bike but noticed that he had broken his rear
mech, he cruised to the finish to finish 39th out of 98 riders.

After Pete was Tracy, as she won the series last year she was the last women
to come down the course.

All the other women looked pretty quick especially Fionn and Adele. Tracy
crossed the line and look ok but upon close inspection she had hit a big
rock which had bent her chain device and she couldn’t pedal properly, but it
was still a good race and she finished 2nd to Fionn.

After the women it was the last race of the day, the Elite men.

Ross came down and it wasn’t going his way either, he had hit the only tree
on the course and it had stopped him dead, he wasn’t hurt but it had lost
him alot of time, Ross crossed the line and placed 42nd.

Scott was our last rider and he had a great run, he said that he felt good,
not out of control but smooth, he placed 18th overall.

So that’s it for the weekend, time to pack up and hit the road for the long
drive back, big up to Paul our new mechanic who didn’t stop working from the
Thursday we arrived and he is still working now!

Next week we are at the first National Points Cross Country from Thetford
Forest, speak to you then.

For more information and pictures check out TeamKonaFordFocus.com.