Szilvásvárad Maraton 2019 // Race report

Yep, I've started the 2019 racing season last Sunday! My first race was the Specialized Szilvásvárad Maraton. Savage race, brilliant course and a beautiful spot on Earth! I was looking forward to the race weekend as it's always exciting and also 'cause it was an overnight type job: we travelled to the venue on the day before to have a great time at Szilvásvárad and also to avoid the travelling on the race day. 

The was the machine rolls :)

We got everything packed up nice & good and after a lovely brekfast we were on our way to the venue. After the 120 km long drive we have arrived. Picked up the starter pack, had a short walk to check the best spots for spectating and after a nice lunch we decided to leg it to the accomodation and have a blast for the rest of the afternoon. :)

This year's pack: racing number with chip & cable ties, energy gel, maps and a good looking T-shirt all packed up in a stylish bag. What's not to like?!

We spent the night at the Szalajka Liget Wellness Hotel and enjoyed their relaxing atmosphere. Lovely and much recommended hotel in stunning environment. 

Hotel Szalajka Liget

Check out this...

... Finnish sauna...

... with a bucket of ice cold water right outside! I wasn't brave enough though to pull that rope :) 

But after all the fun on Saturday the game was ON on Sunday. Got up early enough, got a filling brekkie and hit the Start / Finish area to get ready on time. 

Ready to start my warm up

I think I wasn't the only one in the field who had "some" concern about the conditions of the course from all the heavy rain during the last few weeks. I know the place well enough to know that if it's muddy it could be a freakin' hell out on the bike...not to mention the rain if we get any...

Luckily we had a beautiful and warm day for the race. This and the chat with the Mátra Biker team mates at the start certainly got me in a good mood. :) 

3...2...1...GO!!! 

The slow start seemed to be not so slow after all...we got up to speed pretty quickly and after we hit the long tarmac climb I started to do my own thing and settle into my own zone. Warmed up quickly and I started to feel really good when we hit the first steep off-road climb. Many riders got off thier bikes due to the gradient and the mud on the course. At that point I felt like "Ok. This could work, sure no worries!"... Until I hit the wall a bit. Thankfully I could pull myself together and got up to speed again.

In action one the fast rolling descent. Loved it! (photo credit: Nutrixxion)

Oh man! All these super fast descents were so much fun to ride especially after the sloughter there in last year's storm. Pushing on the limit and flying toward the finish gave me such a boost. The only thing gave me even more boost was to see my beautyful Love just before the last technical trail shouting my name and cheering me on! You are awesome babe, thanks a million! :) 

I have arrived to the finish line on my own, so I rolled accross the line with a laid back & chilled mood. Yep, it's over...what a race it was!

   

I think I got an ok(ish) race... I finished the 39 km race with 847 m elevation gain under 2 hours. This performace got me the 22nd place in the super-mega-über fast Masters 1 field. I was aiming to place in the top 20... but unfortunatelly I slipped a bit on that one...

The XC weapon was brilliant today

So, another Szilvásvárad Maraton is done & dusted. What can I say? It was an event that was put together really well by a team that knows how to pull off a MTB race for us XC maraton heads. Everything was prompt, smooth, all the staff were helpful. The course was savage as always and the weather was a freakin' gift... I think we can all agree with that! 

Congratulations to all my team mates from Mátra Bike for all the great results! Well done, great going folks!

What's the plan? See you guys in 2020!

  

... stay tuned more photos still to come (hopefully)

Medvés Kör // The First One

I like when I have things ticked off the bucket list. Here is another one! We have been planning to ride the well known and popular Medvés Kör for about a year and finally we managed to get it done yesterday. The route is more popular in endurance runners and hikers circles but there are many mountain bikers also who has done it. It is a 63 km long route with 1413 m total elevation along the way. Savage climbs, stunning views and generaly a lovely spot on Earth. What else do we need, hah?! :) 

All packed up for the day

Two of my good mates and training buddies Gyuszi and Józsi teamed up with me for the spin. We know each other well and we are on the same fittness and skill level also, so the team work was not a question. 

5 am in the morning at my place

Yep, we are good to hit the road

We could enjoy some savage views on the way

We hit the route 21 at about 6 am and after a not too long drive we have arrived to Somoskóújfalu where the start / finish area is. The route starts from the Vargánya Vendégház. After we got there we have checked in with the owner & organizer and wasted no time, we got ourselves ready for the ride.  

Where the fun begins

Lets do this! :) 

As the whole route is based on QR code scan-in system we have scanned in at the start point and we hit the first climb. The feeling of the Medvés Kör has hit us straight away: the great trails, the nice mountains and the general feeling of pushing your bike to the checkpoint, scan in and keep going until you get to the next one. Brilliant! 

Bit of a rest until our good friend Józsi scanned our QR codes in

A good bit of the route is in Slovakia. After the first (shorter loop) was done we got to the boarder and crossed it. The real fun begins on the other side I'd say. 

Welcome :) 

With one leg in Hungary and in Slovakia with the other

The first loop is good also but the second one is much more challenging. The climbs are harder, there's lot more work to put in. By the time we got to this point we managed to get the hang of finding the QR checkpoints and things got a bit smoother indeed. Climb after climb, descent after descent, turn after turn. We got closer and closer to the finish. After the last bit of effort we hit the very last descent that leads straight back to the finish. Scanned in annnndddd we have finished! 

The data of the ride

At the finish with the stunning looking medals

Yep, the Medvés Kör is done & dusted. We have finished with 5 hours and 30 minutes total time (including QR scanning, looking around and a bit of a wrong turn also) and with 4 hours and 10 minutes clear riding time. The plan was to get it done under 4 hours, so I guess I'm happy as we are just a tad bit over the target. :) 

The final verdict:

The Medvés Kör is definitely a must have route for any mountain biker who likes the challenge! The QR scan in system is a great idea and a good way to complete the route although it could be a bit tricky to find the chekpoints and not to get lost. We have used the .gxp file that can be donwloaded from their official website. It was a massive help for sure!! 

The location is beautiful and the trails are awesome too. The organizer is very nice and helpful also. There is also a great accomodation available for those who would prefer to stay over night. 

... for all info necessary visit the official site here: 

http://medveskor.hu/

So, what I'm sure about is that we will be back soon to do it again and since we know the route and what to expect already the goal is to do a proper good time on the Medvés Kör! bring it on! :)