19/06/2015 - Racing Hardtails

The UK Hardtail Downhill National Champs took place on 7th June at Queen Elizabeth Country Park (QECP) in Hampshire. The race formed part of the Bird Hardtail Super Series, seven races in total piggy backing on five Gravity Project DH series, plus two QECP Enduro events.

The track was laid out and taped by the Gravity Project crew, and as is the norm with their tracks, it was fast and technical, with plenty of roots, off-camber loamy corners, step-downs, gap jumps and a huge table to finish.

With 22 riders entered into the Hardtail category the competition was going to be tough.

After a few practice runs and watching some of the other hardtail riders I knew the best I could hope for was a top 10 finish, although I was sitting in 2nd place overall in the series labeling the event the UK Champs bought out some big guns!

First place went to Darren Evans, who smoked the entire field not only winning the hardtail category but also getting fastest time of the day overall.

So what’s next for 2016? Scott says they plan to spread the series around some new venues and maybe add another Enduro, and take the UK Hardtail Champs to a bigger more technical venue in 2016, and possibly in a different part of the UK.