Mátra Maraton '19 // Race report

Going to races and then write race reports. This time I'll try something different: I will not write big thoughts and all that. Instead you guys can see photos... photos that can give the feeling back what was my last weekend like! Enjoy! :) 

I finished 43 km race with 1200 m elevation just a bit over 2 hours and 30 minutes. This performance was enough to get the 25th place in the Masters 1 field. Am I happy with the result? Not so much... I was definitely aiming at the top 20 on Sunday.

I'd like to say thank you to Mátra Biker for signing me up for the race and to Eba Metallurgie Kft. for the support! Also a massive thanks to my girlfriend, my family and my friends for cheering me on during the race! You guys were awesome!!! And what else left to say? See you all in 2020! :)

  

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)

Mátra Maraton // Race report

Finally! I managed to put a good race together, the kind that makes me feel that everything has came together like it should have been! But lets go from the beginning. 

I was really looking forward this years Mátra Maraton as the event was fully & completely renewed. Including new location, new start/finish area, brand spanking race course and the whole jazz altogether! 

Well, I've pretty much dropped my jaw straight after we arrived to the race centre at Mátraszentistván. Stunning spot it is, absolutely mind blowing!!

"Lets do this!"

As I was in a great mood and also put in a good training week I was dying to get ready and line up at the start line. But before all that we all lined up for a nice team photo:

Great bunch of lads here at MátraBiker :) 

I was pretty lucky to get to the start area nice & early so I managed to start from the 3rd row. The field was led out to the course and after the slow start the game was on! I mean ON! I felt great on the bike and the legs were turning well also. So everything was on one card straight from the start and the strategy was to go flat out and not to look back. 

The course was something else! It was simply brilliant: bone dry trails with a tad bit of mud here and there, loads of roots and even more rocks. And some climbs...I mean some proper climbs! Steep ones that put the hurt on! :) 

In action

The race was going my way and at about 30 km mark I still felt proper speed in the system so I decided to gamble a bit and it worked. I managed to cross the finish line with the best result of this season! 

I finished 38 km race with 1000 m elevation just a tad bit over 2 hours. This was enough to get the 12th place out of the more than 80 Masters 1 riders. Am I happy with the result?! Sure I am!! 

  

Shortly after the finish with a massive smile on my head. The target for the season was to get into the top 15 in Masters 1. I was knocking on the door already but last Sunday I finally managed to open that door. This 12th place is good for me, it is pretty much as good as it could get this year. :) 

Yep, it's time to get cleaned up and get some rest 

And what can I say about this year's Mátra Maraton? It... was ... freakin'... PERFECT! Massive thanks to the organizers and everyone involved for putting such a great race and great day together for us. The location is stunning and the course was savage! It was easily one of the best XCM race that I've done in the last 18 years! Hats off! 

Bükk Maraton // Race Report

I'm just back home from this year's Bükk Maraton. Today was kind of a special day for me as the event is a part of my racing past since the beginning: I was there at the very first Bükk Maraton 17 years ago! So, needless to say that I was really looking forward today! 

The alarm went off at 4:20 am this morning... ouch... After a quick brekfast I was on the way to pick up the lads to travel to the venue together. 

The faithful Peugeot is jam packed :) 

After a nice drive on the quiet country roads we got to Felsőtárkány where the race venue was. We got there early to pick up the start pack but even at the early hour the place was buzzing: tents, music and all the good stuff you need at a MTB race. 

My start time was at 10:00 am sharp so after a short prep I was ready to roll. I luckily managed to meet up with my club mates for a quick shot before the race. 

Team Mátra Biker: great bunch of mountan bikers indeed  

About 30 minutes before the start we were already waiting at the field where the start / finish area was. At this point I already knew that we all going to have a brutal day on the bike. The weather is pretty savage lately with 30-34 degrees. Due to the heat we have heat alert for a few days now. So, there was I, melting away in the middle of this field in the stop splitting sun and I was thinking about the good aul' irish weather... with some cold wind and a light rain. Then I had to fall back to the freakin' reality as we shot off like a bunch of mad men. 

On the first long climb (photo credit: Zsolt Juhász)

The pace after the start was hurting me... it was hurting me bad especially 'cause I also had difficulty cooping with the heat. And after about 10 km into the race I started to feel good and picked up the rythm nicely. The climbs were alright and the descents were fast... until something happened...

... I've had a mechanical at about half of the race. Don't know why but the rear brake got stuck on me. I stopped to check but there was not much to do, it simply got stock. The pads were rubbing against the disc all the time slowing me down pretty badly. At first I had a massive amount of motivation burning in me, so I've tried to coop with the situation. But I soon had to realize that it wasn't gonna happen. From that point I just settled down and started my long and painful journey to the finish with my bloody rear brake on. I cycled 20 km like so...

Almost done... (phot credit: Tibor Molnár) 

But like everything in life this "fun filled" 20 km also came to an end when I crossed the finish line. Yep, it was over thank God! :) 

What a nice finisher medal! 

After an ok start my race turned out to be a suffer fest.... I finished the 38 km race with 800 m elevation gain with 1 hour and 51 minutes racing time. I picked up the 28th place out of the 79 Masters 1 field. Considering the situation I'm super happy with this result!! :)   

The overall experience of the day was good I have to say. Sure, my race was doomed from the half of it but still: the event was very well run, the organizers were nice & helpful, the start pack was nice with a cool T-shirt and a lovely finisher medal at the end. The course signs were clear and the feeding station was also good. Oh, and the pasta is also worth a word: it was a life saver after the race!

Massive thanks Nagy SE for putting this great day together for us! I also need to say a massive thanks for sorting the results out so fast! See you in 2019!!  

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! :)