WHEELBASE RIDERS TACKLE THE ULTRA ENDURANCE MTB RACE

A six man team headed up to Relentless 24 at the weekend to tackle the ultra endurance 24hr MTB race.  4 riders and probably the stars of the show, Jay and John Doig, who were absolutely outstanding!!  Setting up, cleaning and maintaining the bikes, feeding, timing… the list goes on!! We had it planned well and had the motorhomes, tent, genny, pressure washers, plenty food and drink etc.

Gary Macdonald (Nevis Cycles), Wayne Barr (Velocity 44), Jordan Doig (Wheelbase/Altura/MGD and myself (Davie Lines, Wheelbase/Altura/MGD) were the racers.  All of us apart from Jordan are racing cyclocross at the moment so the plan was to use this as a training/overload session, doing 1 lap each but at race pace.  We also wanted to try and get a buffer in case of any mechanical issues and with only doing 1 lap at around 37 minutes this meant we never had to take a bottle or food with us! Every gram counts eh?!

Gary started us off, full gas (pretty much the only way he knows how to race) and by the time he’d done the first lap in just over 32 minutes we had around a 2 minute lead.  I took over from Gary, then Wayne and finally Jordan.  This was to be the running order for the remainder of the race.

When we started it was wet and windy and clothing choice was difficult as we wanted to keep the warm stuff for night time.  The next rider would be on the rollers for a quick warm up before taking to the course so as not to hit that first climb with legs full of lactic and cold lungs. The noise of MTB tyres on the rollers was the sign that it was soon to be your turn.

Spirits were high, the music was on in the tent and Jay and John were in full on mechanic/swanny mode, fixing bikes, building fires and keeping us fed. You couldn’t wait to get back on the course for your turn.

Once the darkness fell and we put the lights on the lap times went up by a minute or so but we we still averaging 37-38 minutes.  Feeding was starting to become a lot harder as tiredness began to kick in.  We had a lot of different foods to pick from as you never know what you’re going to be in the mood for at 4 am and after so many laps on a bike.

The event started to take its toll around 5 am.  The tireless Jay was unwakeable, the noise of the MTB tyres on the rollers gave you boak as you knew you were on soon, the rest periods seemed to get shorter and shorter and your appetite was non existent.

Looking at the time left, lap times and where we were in relation to the other teams, somehow we managed to work out that we would each complete 9 laps almost perfectly.  3 more each left!

As the sun started to come up, the mood lifted a bit and our lap times got a bit quicker again.  There wasn’t as much of a rush to stoke the fire and there was a great relief knowing we had enough clothes left.

Our final laps and we were all still lapping as we started and covered 36 laps (9 laps each) and almost 400km with 35,000ft of climbing.  We took the overall win and the win in our category, finishing a lap ahead at the end of the 24 hours with no mechanicals!

Hats off to all those that competed,  it’s certainly a different type of race!

Big thanks to Jay and John for the outstanding work and to the guys for being amazing athletes! And of course to all our sponsors throughout the year!

Davie Lines

PRICE DROP: the stunning Cervelo C3 Ultegra Disc is now down to just £2,149 for all remaining stock – that’s an unbelieveable saving of 46%.

Cervelo C3 Ultegra Endurance bike
Was £3,999
Now only £2,149
SAVE 46%!

The Cervelo C3 was launched on the vineyard roads of the Nappa Valley in California but it is just a suited to British country roads. The C3 delivers a sublimely smooth ride with enough kick when you press-on.

LAST FEW REMAINING: Cervelo R3 Disc Ultegra – save a whopping 44% down to just £2,350 from £4,199.

ALL-NEW FOR 2018 – CANNONDALE KIDS’ BIKES!

Everyone remembers their first bike. That first ride and that feeling of freedom.

For 2018 Cannondale have introduced their range of first bikes designed for 2-11 year olds – from early-entry balance bikes through to trail shredding hardtails. Lightweight aluminium frames, specifically designed components and easy gearing all add up to kid-friendly machines perfect for building confidence and having fun.

Cannondale Cujo 24 – £419.99

With the amazing grip and comfortable ride of its big tyres and its surprisingly light weight, this rig makes trail riding easy and fun.
Key Features:
• Lightweight SmartForm C2 Alloy Frame and Fork
• Kid’s Plus-Size Wheels and Tyres (24×2.6″)
• Powerful Disc Brakes
• Shimano 8-speed Revo Twist Shifter

Cannondale Trail 20 – £349.99

For those ready to step up to the freedom and increased range that gears provide, this sporty machine is up for anything from sidewalk cruising to trail blazing.
Key Features:
• Lightweight SmartForm C2 Alloy Frame
• 40mm Travel Suspension Fork
• Shimano 7-speed Revo Twist Shifter
• Multi-surface tyres (20×1.95″)

Cannondale Trail Single-Speed 16 – £269.99

With one-speed simplicity, this lightweight ripper is perfect for building skills and having fun –especially once those training wheels are gone.
Key Features:
• Lightweight SmartForm C2 Alloy Frame
• Tool-less Training Wheels and Chainguard
• Smooth Rolling Multi-Surface tyres (16×1.75″)
• Lightweight Alloy Bar and Stem

View the full range of 2018 Cannondale Kids’ bikes online.

SAVE 50% ON SPECIALIZED WOMENS FULL SUSPENSION MOUNTAIN BIKES

3 Bikes – 3 Great Deals

ONLY WHILE STOCKS LAST!

Key Features of the bikes on offer:

Specialized Rhyme FSR Comp 6 Fattie

WAS £2500 – NOW £1250

Free Shipping on bikes ordered online!

Introducing the refined Turbo Levo and the brand new Levo Kenevo.

The 2018 Specialized Turbo Levo FSR Carbon comes with all the hallmarks of a top end trail bike – roomy top tube, short chainstays for agile handling and a low bottom bracket for sticking to the trail, all of which adds up to a bike that’s fun to ride. A FACT 11m carbon chassis, with an alloy rear end saves 450 g over the alloy Levo and a new Turbo 1.3 motor delivers 15% more power than the previous iteration.

The Turbo Levo is currently available in two colourways with a third to follow in the near future.

The Specialized Turbo Kenevo is built for steeper, rougher and gnarlier rides – for anyone wanting to do lap after lap of their favourite trails. And with 180mm front and rear travel, this bike is ready to send down anything.

An integrated battery and a new Turbo 1.3 motor combined with the Rx Trail Tune make short work of ascending even the steepest of trails. Pairing with Specialized’s Mission Control App allows full control of the Turbo technology and an integrated Trail Display provides all of the ride metrics you could ever need, there’s even a power meter that shows exactly how hard you’re working against the power output of the motor. The integrated Trail Remote provides easily accessible toggling between the four modes.

The build spec of the Turbo Kinevo is strong with an Öhlins TTX22M coil shock, a RockShox Lyrik fork with 180mm of travel, SRAM’s GX one-by groupset, and hand-built Roval alloy wheels.

Our full range of 2018 Specialized eBikes will be available to order online soon and will also be available in-store at Darlington.

LOOK FRESH THIS AUTUMN: WHEELBASE and Spokesman collaborate to bring you The Lakeland Climbers Kit.

These are our 3-Season pieces – the Climbers Gilet and Long Sleeve jersey.

Wheelbase Spokesman Gilet £85 – https://www.wheelbase.co.uk/wheelbase-spokesman-gilet-grey-…

Wheelbase Spokesman Long Sleeve Jersey £80
Grey/Yellow – https://www.wheelbase.co.uk/wheelbase-spokesman-long-sleeve…
Blue Orange – https://www.wheelbase.co.uk/wheelbase-spokesman-long-sleeve…

Using the Lake District’s toughest road climbs as inspiration the kit is designed with the profiles of Wrynose Pass, the appropriately named ‘The Struggle’ and of course the 30% monster Hardknott Pass.

Available in store now at WHEELBASE Lake District and online: http://www.wheelbase.co.uk/catalogsearch/result/?q=spoke

Shot on location on ‘The Struggle’, Ambleside by http://cadenceimages.com/

Shockingly Fast. Seriously Fun.

The 2018 Specialized Diverge is now more capable than ever – one bike that will have you tearing along tarmac roads before turning onto a road less-travelled and shredding through dirt and gravel. The all-new Diverge redefines the possibilities for a drop-bar bike.

With clearance for up to either 700 x 42mm or 650b x 47mm tyres, Future Shock suspension and Specialized’s new Open Road Geometry, the Diverge is the road version of a modern trail bike. Just like the new Tarmac, the Diverge is available in mens’s and women’s shared platforms – tailoring the riding experience to the rider.

 Future Shock w/ Progressive Spring

Specially tuned with a stiffer spring rate for rough roads, this Future Shock gives you the feeling of floating over harsh terrain and of being glued to the tarmac on windy descents.

 All-New Geometry

Open Road Geometry crushes both dirt and road with confidence, featuring a lower BB, slacker head tube, and shorter chainstays.

 Ready for Anything

With clearance for up to 700x42mm or 650bx47mm tires, Plug + Play fender mounts, rack mounts, and SWAT™ / dropper post compatibility, the only thing limiting your ride is your imagination.

The Diverge is a versatile machine built for fun. Whether you’re heading out with a bunch of friends for a ride around the lanes or off into the woods on a bikepacking solo mission, the Diverge is a do-it-all, versatile, adventure-ready bike that’s capable of whatever you can throw at it – just check out this video of Peter Sagan taking it for a spin.

The 160mm front / 155mm rear 29er enduro weapon has been redesigned for 2018 with a longer reach and JS Tuned suspension.

Packed with features, as you’d expect from Intense, highlights include:

–  SL carbon frame with carbon link and TI hardware: frame only, Factory, Elite and Pro models.
–  Internally sleeved cables
–  Super low stand over
–  Designed for Boost
–  JS Tuned suspension with metric shock
–  Integrated chainstay protectors
–  5 models with 2 finish options per model

Foundation build pictured with;
FORK – Rock Shox Yari RC 29, Solo Air, 160mm
SHOCK – Rock Shox Deluxe RT3
FRAME – CARBINE 29″ ENDURO MONOCOQUE CARBON
RRP – £3800