As you would expect of our forces this was a slick, professional event.
The Army cycle union in association with www.tunnelhilltrolls.co.uk organised this MTB race at Porridgepot hill in Deepcut, Surrey.
There were many entrants for the various categories, including four Redhill riders - Steve Gooders and Garry Hall took on the 6hr doubles, Alex Bottomley 4hr solo and myself the 6hr solo.
The staggered start times saw all categories finish together at 4.30pm, the aim was to complete as many of the challenging eight mile laps as possible in the alloted duration.
And top trails they were. The trolls had been doing alot of digging and constructed some awesome singletrack and finding some fearful downhill's.
Garry and Steve bagged 12 in the men's 6hr team event.
Alex, finishing in 5th, and only 30 seconds behind the 4th placed rider despite losing several minutes due to a puncture.
My own final placing was rather less impressive, and after deciding over an energy-bar break that 5 laps in 4 hours was sufficient in the dust and heat of the day, I retired.
All in all a great way to spend a sunday on the bike, getting dirty even when there was no mud!
For any riders interested in giving MTB racing a go, there is a similar format event organised at Stanmer park Brighton for Saturday 15 August, with rides including a 6 hour solo/team category, and a 1 lap "tea and cake" ride for anyone just wanting a quick blast around. See www.brightonbigdog.com for more details.
Photos reproduced with kind permission of www.photo-it.com