Stage 1 - loop around the lake
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I have just got back from Pakistan where Jez and I did the " Tour of the Karakorum International Mountain Bike Race". The race was held over 3 days (well 4 if you include the 3 hour mountain top ride the day before!!) in the Karakorum mountains located in the Naran region of Pakistan. 37 Professional male and female riders were invited from 13 different countries around the world and as it was paid for by my race sponsors, this was a race not to miss.
Many of you who know me will know that I am not a mountain biker so why on earth would I do a MTB race?! Well I was invited to race in this tour through a contact in Belgium, I immediately wanted to take part in this crazy challenge as it was different and very challenging so why not. I also managed to get my no.1 fan ( my husband) Jez cox an invite to so we could compete against each other for once and of course share this once in a lifetime trip to Pakistan!
The race was to arranged by the Kaghan memorial trust in Pakistan to try and raise awareness for the victims of the earthquake last year in Balakot and surrounding regions of Northern Pakistan which had been destroyed by the earthquake and many lives where taken. It was very obvious to see the effects that the earthquake had left on the area but at the same time it was very encouraging to see the communities rebuilding their homes and lives. A lot of people are still living in tents and there are many landslides that are happening daily as an after effect of the earthquake. A charity has been set up for the victims of the earthquake and to raise funds for the children of Balakot to build new schools and for their education. You can also find some pictures of the MTB race which will be added soon to the www.kmt.org.pak website.
Back to the race......Most of the competitors had been asked to ride a pre-race up to a beautiful lake in the Babusar pass the day before stage 1 to see the beautiful surrounding and of course to keep the sponsors happy ( a small number of canny/wise riders got the jeep up!). It had an elevation of around 3000 meters high and was extremely steep in places. I don't think I have ever done a ride where I had to get off my bike so much to push it up the tough trails which where on many occasions too steep to ride up! It took on average around 2.5 hours to get to the top of the climb but once you reached the top the views where fantastic! I was very pleased to reach the top but found it tough going with my full suspension bike and I knew it was going to be a tough race from then on. The altitude was a limiting factor for many of us competitors as we were climbing so high up it was difficult to get in enough oxygen so you had to slow your pace down to steady your breathing. I have never raced at high altitude before and I was hoping I would adapt quicker!
Rocky riding!
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Stage 1 - 60km - Naran lake Saffa Maluk - 60k - 4th place
Today's stage was very close to the hotel we were staying in. The long climb up to lake Danna Meadows started straight away so it was important to keep relaxed and get into a rhythm for the next 1-1.5 hours of climbing before we reached the top of the climb which was up to 3000 meters high and then onto a technical circuit to finish. The climbing was all on dirt track roads with a lot of rocks and streams to get over. After the climb we had to endure a very tough circuit. I was feeling quite weak today which was probably due to the bad stomach many of us had from day 1 and probably due to the fact we where eating curry for breakfast lunch and dinner! Lets just say the toilet was my best friend for the duration of my stay in Pakistan! Despite feeling weak I was determined to try and secure a top 3 placing in the women's field overall. The two laps of the circuit were mad with glaciers, streams and boulders to cross. I found it tough going on the 1st lap but I managed to relax and my 2nd lap was a lot better. I fell about 4 times but managed not to hurt myself too badly thankfully. The real mountain bikers just sailed through the circuit it was amazing to see how they just glide over the rocks and how they managed to stay upright on the glacier I don't know! In today's stage I was placed 4th overall with Elizabeth McCluskey from Ireland taking 1st place for the Women and Tim Vincent in 1st place for the men's field.
The Kaghan Valley
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Stage 2 - The Babusar challenge - 85k - 3rd place
Today's stage was set to be the hardest stage of the race. We were told in the race briefing to expect not to finish the race unless you were in the top 15 to reach the top of the climb within an hour of the first rider. The race was set at about 3700 meters high and we had to climb up to 5050 meters for about 40km then race around a circuit which had boulders and rivers to cross.
Thankfully I was feeling a lot better today, so I made the most of it as I knew I had to get some time back after losing time in yesterday's stage. I wanted to stay close to Elizabeth McCluskey from Ireland who is a very classy MTB rider and she was leading the women's GC. The race started flat for a few kilometers then gradually started to climb and climb and climb and climb...................
Wow! What a race it was going to be, after about 1 hour of climbing the altitude became very noticeable as my breathing was getting harder to control and my head was spinning around and around. On several occasions I had to stop and get my breathing under control as I felt like I was going to faint!! I managed to find a happy balance from then on to the top of the climb. If you were lucky enough to conquer the climb you were then rewarded with the Babusar Pass circuit; very technical in places and really exposed. I had originally worked my way up to 2nd place women's behind Elizabeth but I slipped back into 3rd place on the climb after having to stop so much! I could see no other girls behind me but I still wanted to keep the pace up so I cracked on and went for it on the tricky descent down the pass onto the circuit. I managed to get into a good rhythm once onto the circuit but running across a few streams made it difficult to sustain any rhythm! I must have crashed about 3 times today but my legs were too cold to feel the affects thankfully. Once we finished the circuit we had the descent to look forward to which was really fun and fast. The finish was not very fast as you had alot of rocks to get across in a stream before the finish. A long day in the saddle today and boy was I pleased to finish the stage.
So, today I finished in 3rd place with Elizabeth McCluskey (Ire) and Britta Martin from Germany in joint 1st place. James Ouchterlony from Scotland took the win for the men's stage today in fine style. Well done James!
Stunning views
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Stage 3 - Naran to Balakot - 75k - 4th place
I had a bad night like many people who where suffering with bowel problems, so today was going to be about survival and staying in 3rd place. Today's stage was mainly on road with some dirt tracks and tricky descents. The race started very fast and on the first drag I got cramp in my left leg which would not go for about ten minutes. I tried to work with 1 leg but I lost contact with the main group so I backed off until my leg got better, then I knew I had to put the hammer down to stay in contention for 3rd place. I managed to work up to a few people who had been dropped from the bunch but I dropped them as they where feeling worse than me. Thankfully I then saw Jez who'd dropped back to help me save my 3rd place on GC and he worked with me all the way down to the finish in Balakot (thanks Jez!). I felt awful today. Very weak and tired which was probably not surprising due to amount of liquids I had been losing. We rode like mad to the finish, which thankfully, was mostly down hill until the last section that kicked up again. I finished with Jez, not too far behind the main bunch that had also split into groups by the end.
I was happy to hear that I had kept my 3rd place on GC overall as Birgit Schnapp from Germany won the women's stage today and Remko Kramer from Holland won the Men's stage today. Thankfully with Jez's help and my determination I had not lost much time.
Final results - Women
- Elizabeth McCluskey (Ireland)
- Britta Martin (Germany)
- Leda Cox (Great Britain)
Final results - Men
- James Ouchterlony (Scotland)
- Tim Vincent (New Zealand)
I was really happy to finish the tour and in 3rd place against some good mountain bikers. I think if I decide to do the tour next year I will definitely not ride a full suspension bike as it was just too much extra weight to ride and push up the climbs. Although it did come in very handy for the technical sections I think a hard tail would do just nicely next time!
I have never done a race so physically hard with so many elements to face and I have to say I really enjoyed the change from my road bike. That said, I cant wait for the tour of Toscana where I will be riding for Team " System Data" in a 5 day tour which I am really looking forward to!
I would like to say a massive' Thank You' to all the people who helped to put on this fantastic race. The people in Pakistan bent over backwards to help us in any way possible to make our stay a memorable one. I really hope that the Kaghan Memorial trust has much success in raising money to help rebuild schools for the children and help the people of Balakot rebuild their lives back to normality. If you would like to donate money to the trust please go onto www.kmt.org.pak website.
That's all for now and thanks for reading! Leda
