You Yangs Yowie!!(oohh that hurt)

Ever since Mel got back into mountain biking and came riding with the SMC she has been going on about how good the tracks are at the You Yangs. A couple of months ago it all got too much for me and I agreed to enter the You Yangs Yowie with her. This event is hosted by the Geelong Mountain Bike Club and is held in the You Yangs National Park between Melbourne and Geelong.

First of all let me say this race was by the far the most enjoyable ride I have ever had on a mountain bike. The track was split into thirds, first some dirt roads, next some hilly and rocky sections finished off by a sensational section through a forest.The first part along a dirt road on the edge of the park was pretty flat at first and the group was going at a fast pace straight off. Then the road headed upwards with a pretty steep climb which was followed by a high speed descent on a nice smooth bit of road.

Then the single track started and first impressions were that the surface was a bit sandy and slippery but it soon improved. It was in this section on my first lap that I came across a rider fixing a flat. I asked if he was ok and the guy said no he wasnt. It turned out he had borrowed a set of Mavic wheels of a mate and they were set up tubeless. He had managed to roll the tyre off the rim and used up his air cannisters to no avail trying to reinflate the tyre. Running tubeless he hadnt bothered to carry a pump so that's where I came in. 

After I got going again the track opened up a bit and I could see a nasty little climb in front of me taking me into what is called the Boulder Track. As it turns out this piece of track is well named. You are basically riding on giant boulders, as well as off them and through them. It's amazing how it all links together and there has been an amazing amount of work done to repair these tracks after the floods last year. There are also wooden berms and rock faces to ride as well as some impressive rock gardens which makes this whole section pretty intense.

Having never ridden the You Yangs before I had no idea where the track was going so I was pretty cautious on some sections where as it turned out I didnt need to be. But maybe going a bit slower saved me from any major incidents.

Luckily I made it safely through the rocks and found my way onto the best flowing single track I have ever ridden. The track looked flat but as you were riding it there was a feeling of being on a slight downhill gradient which made you want to go faster. The even better thing was that the corners flowed into each other and the surface encouraged you to lean over a little bit further to hold your pace without braking. It was the perfect way to end the lap.

Unfortunatley Mel found out the dangers of the Yowie when she came to grief on one of the rock gardens. I found out she had crashed when I saw her sitting in the finish area after my first lap. Lucky for her another Bendigo rider who was a nurse helped Mel with some first aid and got her to the St John's Ambulance for some further care. The guys dressed her arm and gave her a lift back to the finish area. Mel told me she had cut her arm but as the picture shows it looks like someone has used a melon baller to scoop out her elbow!


Those You Yangs rocks are evil!

After checking the Mel was OK I headed out on my second lap. Although I managed to stay upright all the way around I did endure some pain of my own due to some intense cramps. I drank as much as I could to try and ease them and keep the thought of the flowing track that lay ahead of me in mind as I battled to get through the hilly boulder section.

I managed to make it through and complete the 66km which is my longest race and second only to the Castlemaine to Bendigo ride I did a few years back as far as total distance ridden goes. It was a weird combination, the best track I have ever ridden and the worst cramps I have ever had.

After the race I caught up with Mel who said her arm was really sore so calling on my vast medical experience I prescribed  2 Nurofen and a can of Jack Daniels. That did the trick and took the edge off the pain until we got to Bendigo. After 6 hours at casualty Mel's arm was nicely patched by a good looking doctor who rode bikes. What more could you ask for? Well no infection would be one thing.

Unfortunately the healing process is taking a bit longer than Mel would like. She also ended up with a very impressive bruise on her leg. Get well soon Mel and let's make sure we take the whole SMC to the You Yangs next time.