What a weekend the Liffey Descent on Saturday and the Epic Blast on Sunday. Unfortunately I didn't manage to get any photos from the Descent as I ended up chasing boats and pulling people out of the water all day.
The Blast was probably the funniest event I've ever done, its more about racing mates and having a laugh than winning. The recent weather made it impossible to have a perfect track but all the muck just added to it, as its not a cross-country or downhill race therefore it doesn't really matter if you have to get off and push some of it. You race head to head in groups of ten, then every one has a final, all the winners of the first race go against each other and all the seconds race each other and so on down to the tenths final. There is only two minutes between each group so its bedlam trying to over take and stay out of trouble.
After everyone has had their final there is the main event, The Blast, everyone starts together and does whatever it takes to get out in front.
It starts above tree line with a couple of hundred people sprinting for the entrance to the forest which only two bikes can fit through at a time! After that your into the forest and it takes your eyes a little while to adjust and its slippy as hell in there. Its a mixture of wet forest sections and open downhills with some climbs on the fire roads giving different bikes advantages on different sections.
charging down the side of the mountain.
A crowd pleaser coming up short on the gap
