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So… when it dries out a bit… maybe May time, I thought it might be fun to run a Essex Herts MTB Enduro mates race round Epping Forest. I haven’t figured out how it will works but here are some thoughts. Feedback is very much welcome & this post is just to gauge interest. / work out if it is a stupid idea. The main idea is keep it as SIMPLE as possible to maximise the FUN.

• I’ll work out a course.. maybe 6-8 stages which will be downhillish
• There won’t be marked of course so I can either give a tour of all the stages before it starts… which will in itself be a 2 hr ride.. or you can hit them blind with a briefing at the top! A lot of you will know the runs. They will be short and times will be tight.
• Timing… will be handled by you. Strap a stopwatch to you or your bike. You start and stop the time which is then collected. Easy. Cost is a £2.50 stopwatch off ebay http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Digital-Handh ... 2c6dc7810f & maybe some ductape to slap it on your stem. Avoids the complications of having someone else measuring it.
• The time keeper will head off first on all stages and the race starts 1 min after he has left. The stage ends when you stop the watch next to him at the bottom. They will note down ur time.
• Prizes… winner gets a bacon buttie @ highbeech
• Date TBC – a weekend in May
• Entry fee – your stopwatch which you have to buy

It's got comedy written all over it.

Thoughts?

I'm on it like a car bonnet!

Easy way to time it would be set the routes on Strava. Mark the start and finish with some ribbons round the tree's. Jobs a gooden!

Brown sauce on my bap please Jon.

Oh its on like Donkey Kong!

Sounds insteading

I definitely smell pork product of some kind.

Sounds good, could make it more interesting by the entry fee being a bacon butty in addition to the stopwatch which is added to the "bacon pot"

The "bacon pot" is used to purchase butties after the "racing" has finished. The fastest rider gets to start on the pile of butties, and when they can eat no more, the pile is passed to the person in second place, then third and down the order.

The winner of the event the winner is the person that consumes the final butty and has earned ALL the bragging rights (while the winner of the "racing" may be fast, they clearly don't have the stomach that it takes to be a true champion)

Plus the people that aren't quite so quick still have a chance of winning the competition

This sounds like good fun! Never ridden Epping before though so might want a pre-race tour

Suggestion No2,
Everyone has their start number, so everyone starts in the same order all day, each rider will be in charge of leaving a minute gap between them and the rider in front.
Jon Can go first to make sure the coast is clear then radio's up to Rider No2 via walkie talkie (which i have btw) to say Go!

Not rode Epping b fun way to have a go !

Would we be risking trouble if we marked the trees with some spray paiinted arrows, bearing in mind that these routes are likely to be off the walker's track and hopefully away from the horses as well???

Or ... two colours of ribbons, pass the yellow on the left and the red on the right - that should help with directions if there are any forks in the route.

I probably won't be fast enough to win anything so it's not likely to be a problem ... but I'm a veggie so Bacon is a no-no

on a more positive note, everyone else might fall off or get lost, so can I have an egg-buttie instead?

I've just had another thought - It'd be really helpful for all of us if anyone has a favourite trail, mark it up with ribbons anyway so we can all enjoy it! (unless you want to keep it secret of course)

May sounds good.

This needs to be filmed!!

Assuming i can run towards the front i can be on Go-Pro duties and take my camera to get some stills, But with Resident Festa and his camera skills, maybe we could bribe him into being No1 down?

Marking a trail on public land is a problem mum had back in the day with horse events. You can how ever 'suggest' a route

Baking flour is a better way to mark out on floor, then ribbons that going take time.

I agree. Strava is made for an event like this, when everyone has finished just sit back and let the phone/Strava's servers do the hard work and it should automatically give you the winner and the top ten (assuming no-one has cheated and used shortcuts )

Andy

Yep and just add up the times at the end of the day.

Not if you dont have strava!