Matt Page Blog:Dusk ’til Dawn

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Dusk ’til Dawn

For the previous 3 years Dusk ’til Dawn has been my final race of the season and each year I’ve had a good result: 2nd in a mixed team in 2006 and solo winner in 2007 and 2008. Yet again it was set to be my final race and I was hoping to end the season on a high. After racing the Maxx Exposure last weekend I had no idea how well I had recovered during the week. I did a few easy rides and a few harder but short session, but nothing that would give me an indication of recovery.

Arriving on site on Friday evening after a horribly slow journey across the country I did a practice lap of the course. It was typical Thetford, having no big climbs but it was bumpy and undulating with very fast tree-lined singletrack. Due to the dry weather recently it was incredibly dusty and several of the corners and bomb-holes were like riding through a sand pit. I knew it was going to be far from easy.

Returning the next day to a far busier arena we made all our final preparations and I tried to relax a bit before the start. Looking at the competition it was clear that this was going to be the toughest year yet for me with a few very fast Elite XC riders who have previously ridden longer events plus Steve Webb, who won the Torq 12hr just over a month ago. I knew that I wouldn’t be able to match the speed of the XC racers, but my plan was just to go as fast as I could and claw back time as the race went on.

Night racing is never easy simply because it goes against your bodies natural rhythm and even before the start I was feeling tired, but I’ve had this before and I was sure it would go as soon as I started racing. At 8pm the race started with a 2.2km controlled loop before starting the full 10 mile lap. On the controlled loop I pushed hard and stayed within the top 20 or so and had some of my main competition around me, Andrew Cockburn was just ahead and Steve Webb settled in just behind me. The pace was high, but I was fine with that at such an early stage. Andrew Cockburn was slowly pulling ahead and I’d see him at the end of longer straights but was happy to leave him go. I knew I couldn’t match the speed. Halfway around the lap I took a wrong turn on a corner that was poorly signposted, Steve Webb was just behind me and did the same. We only lost a minute or so, but it was very frustrating. Steve then moved ahead and I was able to watch him ride and follow his lines. Normally I hate following people, but this guy was one hell of a rider. His line choice was great and he really carried speed well through the fast corners, but I was able to stick on his wheel.

During the second lap I started to feel really bad and struggled to keep the pace as high as I wanted, I didn’t know what the problem was but it felt like I had no zip in the legs. I tried to keep in consistent and find a pace that I could sustain. Things started to improve during the 3rd lap as I settled down. Steve was still riding with me and we were changing positions from time to time. He was certainly on a mission and really pushing the pace hard. He was overtaking people really efficiently and I wasn’t always able to follow and had to work hard to get back in touch at times. Towards the end of the lap I took another wrong turn on a corner where the tape had been removed. After getting back on the course Steve pulled ahead and I wasn’t able to catch him for a few miles. Up until now I didn’t know what position I was in, but I wanted to know the gap so asked Nia as I came through to finish the lap. I was a little disappointed to find out I was 3rd as I didn’t know who was in 2nd and hadn’t seen them at all.

On the 4th lap I got ahead of Steve and pulled a small gap, from here on I was on my own and settled into a fast pace which I hoped I’d be able to sustain. I found the first third of the course the hardest as it was really loose and sapped strength. There was also one really long singletrack section which was fantastic if you had a clear run or were able to pass people quick enough, but it was incredibly frustrating if you were stuck behind other riders as there were times where overtaking was simply impossible unless the rider ahead stopped and pulled to the side. I was much more comfortable riding at my own pace and started to feel really good. At the end of lap 4 I found out that Andrew Cockburn in 1st was 10 minutes ahead. In my mind I was convinced that pulling over 2 minutes per lap was unsustainable, but I knew that I’d have to push the pace if I wanted to challenge later in the race. I had a good lap and although it wasn’t much quicker the overall effort was higher and by the end of the lap I had managed to hold the gap for the first time in the race, but I wasn’t able to keep it up and slowed and lost a few minutes on the next lap. I should have settled a pace that I could hold, but I wasn’t ready to give up the fight and just kept pushing myself as hard as possible. My lap times were consistent which I was happy with, but the gap was still creeping out. Up until now I hadn’t stopped to pit at all, just grabbing bottles and High 5 gels on the go and I wanted to keep riding but I knew I’d have to stop soon to change the light batteries.

Going into lap 7, almost 6 hours into the race we were pushing the lights burn times to the limits, but I pushed them a little too far. A few miles into the lap my main lights went out and my headlight only had enough juice to be on the lowest setting. It was just bright enough to see but I wasn’t able to push hard through the twisty singletrack. It was very frustrating because I was trying to get back to the pits as quickly as possible but making little mistakes which cost me more time. At the end of the lap I made a very efficient pitstop where I took on more food and had both batteries changed. All done in around a minute I was off again and back up to speed. In terms of energy I was feeling fine and I had been taking on drink and gels at regular intervals throughout the race but I felt my legs were starting to loose a bit of zip and I was starting to feel tired. I wasn’t pedalling smoothly and on a course where you are pedalling for almost the entire time it was causing real problems. Less than halfway into the lap it was as if someone had flicked a switch. My legs felt dead and I was pedalling in squares and I didn’t feel able to recover. My pace dropped quickly and I couldn’t hold the speed on the singletrack sections as I wasn’t going quick enough to let it all flow properly. By the end of the lap I felt that I needed to stop, still being in 3rd place but I didn’t feel I had the physical strength to continue to the end. Obviously I was disappointed and looking back on the results I wonder “what if…” but ultimately I was not fully recovered from the previous weekends racing and Dusk ’til Dawn came a week too soon for me.

Now I can put a line under the 2009 season and start looking forward to 2010. I know that I have plenty of hard work ahead of me to change my racing and performance. I am making a vow right now to come back as a stronger, faster and better rider.

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Photos by Doug MacGrain