Chocolate Log

Here's a couple of pics and a vid (3mb Quicktime) from our mission to Chicksands on Sunday.

It's such a cool place for some freeride fun, and considering the rain I couldn't believe how solid the trails were.

Pack it in

After a slow start, Riz and I didn't get there till after 1pm thanks to the M25 being a slag. A few of the Jedi Council had been there since 8.30am and were still riding their nuts off.

With no time to lose we had a few spins down the dual course before Jedi led us to the drop zone...

I nailed the big ladder drop after a quick look - these things are best not dwelt upon in my experience, and it looked good and smooth from all the big boys launching it on their Big Hits. So, off we go, steady speed, hit the ladder and whooooooaaahhhhH!!!!!! 10ft or so, super smooth. Big fucking smile. Riz hit it pretty soon after that, tidy as you like.

Jedi and Glen were going huge, and a few other riders were hitting it for the first time to the claps and cheers of quite a healthy audience of riders. That's what we like to see.

4 or 5 pops later and we'd all been suitably snapped by Jedi "David Bailey" Doyle, and were feeling ready to go much larger on that lovely dual course. Bring it on!

We had duel after duel on the dual. The final section is a long berm taken absolutely flat out leaning over at about 80deg, and it sweeps you round so you're halfway back up the course before it peters out - great piece of course design I reckon. Try as I might, I couldn't catch Stu, Glen or Rocket Rob on the dual, but I edged Riz out on most of our races - singlespeed spinning skillz and a touch more aggression did the trick. (Oh, and launching into his lane a couple of times might've helped, too...)

Take it like a man

Rather than take his 2X defeat like a man, Riz steps up with barely an appreciative look at a big mother gap double on the "challenging singletrack" and follows Jedi over it at full tilt, cleaning it first time.

That blew me away - I couldn't bloody believe it. It must be at least 10ft wide, possibly more. Way bigger than anything we've done before at any rate. His face was definitely a picture after that - a picture I didn't take unfortunately.

Not that peer pressure has anything to do with it, but I could hardly turn it down after he'd peached it like that, so I followed Stu Rider down and gave it my customary 'little extra speed' just to make sure... Now usually this means I clear the landing by 8 to 10ft, but this one landed smoother than riding off a kerb. Sweeeet.

Next up Stu, Glen, Jedi, Me and then Riz all launched it in a procession - laying down the style for the camera. Can't wait to see the clip, it'll probably look really small and weedy but for us it's one more demon banished.

Chicksands Jump Train Movie (3mb Quicktime).

Top day, can't wait to go back.