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We walked the course on Friday night and it became obvious that it wasn't the most technically challenging course - in fast I'm pretty sure sections of the red route at Glentress are more technical. On riding the course during Saturday's practice it became obvious that although the course wasn't technical it was fast, very fast and with that the what seemed easy sections became much more difficult. The course was basically about who could brake the least as there was really only one line. As it was so dry and dusty the main line started to get battered so alternative, smoother lines appeared which meant as much track time was key to keep on top of the slight changes.

My race run was pretty good. I was way off line on the first couple of corners which really pissed me off but I also think they made me really try to make up time I thought I'd lost. Another minor a bit further down but overall I was reasonably happy with my time (22nd expert). I knew i should have gone faster and the daft mistakes cost me but I suppose all bar the winner could say he could have gone faster!

The course was basically the old traditional course at Ae with a couple of tweaks here and there. I think the SDA played the safety card when making the course decision as it was forecast to rain - and that it did! Started raining at about 9pm Friday and didn't really stop until the end of practice on Sunday (not really the best weekend to take the wife and dog to for the first time!!)

I really felt like I riding well during practice. At the NPS earlier in the season I felt really focused and last weekend I felt the same. Some riders gave up after a couple of practice runs due to the weather but I was loving it. I usually don't like riding in the wet and mud (more or a dry and dusty rider!) but i was really enjoying it - 6 runs and could have done more if they hadn't closed practice early due to lack of interest. I knew the rain was going to stop and with that the mud would thicken so up early on Sunday morning and on with a set of Swampthings for practice.

First race run went well - decent time placed me 7th expert with not too much of a gap right up to 2nd place. The skies were still clear and the course was increasingly getting slippery so I took Cookson's advice and put on a pair of full spikes for the second run. This was the first time I'd raced on full spikes without even trying them on the course but I think they were the ones! A bit unstable cornering on the hard pack but loads of confidence on the rest of the course - ended up going 4 seconds quicker on a slower course.

Last weekend was my first time racing the infamous course at Rheola. After an 11 hour drive (3 hours wasted due to rubberneckers on the M6!) Brian and I arrived at the race venue. The course down there is brilliant with only really 2 or 3 slow corners on the whole track. It's mainly rock based so even in the torrential rain we've been having the course was fast and grippy.

Practice went well, there wasn't really too much to think about on the course really just working out how fast it's possible to hit the corners without buggering up the next one. On my seeding run I just concentrated on hitting all my lines and not really making any mistakes. I crossed the line in about 3:55 which placed me mid pack seniors.

Sunday was wet!!!!!! Rained all morning but again the course was really fast and loads of grip. It rained all the way through practice and only stopped once the racing had started. I went up for my run, fresh kit, clean bike, new goggles really looking forward to it. My main goal in the race run was not to crash. As it had stopped raining the course was becoming increasingly muddy and slippery and I knew loads of riders would crash. Had a good top section with only a couple a corners that I knew I'd hit faster in practice, mucked up Star Wars but managed to stay on the bike. Into the next set of corners and I lost it round a wide, rooty corner - slid for miles in the gloopy mud, got up hands cover in mud, no grip on the bars - nightmare

The first of 3 weekends in a row racing was up at Pitfichie, Aberdeenshire last weekend. Pitfichie isn't the steepest course but the course does use the available gradient of the hill as much as possible although it's still pretty obviously where the "pedal-like-fichie" nickname comes from!

The SDA made the decision to use the old course rather that the new course as after weeks of rain the course we used in 06 was waterlogged. The old course was last used in 05 and although there wasn't any significant changes to the course for last weekend's race it seemed to be riding much better. The top section was still a pedal-fest trying the avoid the deepest of the boggy puddles but the sections in the trees were great.

Practice went well for me on Saturday. I felt pretty strong in the flat sections and decided to just pedal hard through sections rather than try and keep to a smoother line. Sunday's practice also went well - The overnight rain only really affected the top section and left the trees very similar to the day before. On my 2nd practice run I hit a tree pretty hard with my left shoulder and came to halt which hurt but apart from that they went well.

My first race run went without any major incidents. My intentions were to attack my first run incase the weather changed for the worse but I don't think I put enough into it. Initially my first run time was 3:04 which placed me well down the Expert field which I really wasn't happy with but it turned out there was a bit of a issue with the timing and I had in fact done a 2:58 which placed me in 6th only 6 seconds off the lead.

I took confidence from my first run time as I knew I could go faster but so could everyone else as the course had dried out so much. During the run I didn't stop pedaling at the top and carried loads of speed into the step down as the course enters the woods but overcooked the right hand corner after the jump. Through the tapes, into a tree and off the bike!! I pushed the bike back up to the course and continued but noticed my bars had twisted about 20 degrees to the right. The bike didn't handle too badly and i don't think it really affected my run too much apart from one of the fast left handers near the bottom where I overturned and the front tyre washed out. I crossed the line in 3:06 only 8 seconds slower than my first run so I knew I could have significantly improved on my first run time had I not crashed.

For the majority of us the one and only race up at Fort William this season was last weekend. Another great race put on by the SDA had it's expect rain showers but another top weekend.

The course was the full champs track that added about an extra 45 - 60 seconds onto rider's times down the previous course.

Practice went well - My Ae injury has almost clear although I'm still stuggling to put full weight on my right heel - a couple more weeks and it'll be fine I reckon.

I took my first run way too easy and rolled in with a 5:54. I knew I had loads to do in the second run and just tried my best. I went 14 seconds quicker which placed me 14th with a 5:40 which I'm reasonably happy with although I knew I could do better.

July is a pretty hectic month with the Pitfechie SDA, National Champs and NPS Rugog all back to back. I've got a couple of weeks now to "heal the heel" and get out for a few training days. This Sunday I'm meeting up with Brido for a bit of training at the secret course in the boarders. Rumour has it it's sodden so it could be spikes in June which'll be a new experience!

Did 5 runs at Fort William last Saturday and the leg didn’t feel too bad. My foot cramped pretty bad for the first couple of runs and my thigh was uber stiff till Tuesday but the runs felt pretty good.

Roll on the weekend’s SDA up there – can’t wait, Did a couple of full runs up there and they didn’t seem as tiring as I thought they would be. The new bottom jumps at the 4X look sweet and as long as the top section doesn’t get full of holes it’ll be really good fun

I’m sorry to report but another disappointing personal result for me this weekend!

Practice on Saturday morning went really well. I was feeling more focused that I had done in any race this season so far. I had all my initial lines sorted within the first couple of runs, was really enjoying the course and felt like I was practicing at a much higher tempo than usual. It didn’t last long though!

On my 4th run I lost it on one of the loose corners on the top section and was sent flying off the track. My right thigh landed first onto a big stump and I came to very sudden halt. I was in a lot of pain and thought I could roll down but after 5 or 10 minutes the pain got much worse in my thigh and my right heel was really hurting as well. There was only 45 minutes of practice left so rather hold up events I sat with one of the marshals (Mr Williams) waiting for practice to finish – still planning on rolling down after the last rider. That time came and the pain got worse, I was freezing cold and didn’t feel too good.Basically long story short – Medics came up, suspected I’d broken/fractured my femur and my heel, gave me Morphine, put a split on and with the help from others put me on a stretcher and into a waiting ambulance to take me to Dumfries hospital. Thanks to all the marshals, spectators and medics that helped me on Saturday!

I’m a lucky boy! No breaks but I am now the proud owner of a very swollen leg and a fat person’s ankle. I’ve a large haematoma (posh word for a big fcuk off bruise) on my thigh and (after more X-Rays on Monday morning) a badly sprained ankle. The bruise isn’t out yet on the leg but I reckon it’ll be something that’ll scare even my dog when it comes up!

So……….another bad race weekend and one that I felt was going to be a good one for me. Chris and Joe got a couple of great results so well done to them.

I’m off to put my leg up, take some more co-dydramol and work on getting this leg fixed in time, hopefully, for the weekend before Fort William

Dunkeld always delivers a tricky course and this year was no exception! The course followed the usual Dunkeld path but with a few altered sections through the rocks and roots that we come to expect up there. The team were supplied a head cam by Oregon Scientific, which I tested for the first time on Sunday morning. It's a really good unit that mean that you can film runs without the hassle of a backpack and messy running over your shoulder etc. the camera was slightly off but we'll get that sorted in time for this weekend's race at Ae. Check out the footage Below

Anyway back to the weekend at Dunkeld. I had a pretty bad day on Saturday and feel like I spent more time off the bike that on it. 3 crashes on my first practice run didn't do much for the confidence levels but things got a bit better as the course bedded in and dried out a touch. Took a major trip over the bars on my last run which hurt a bit so knew a bit of work was needed before the races.

Sunday morning was much better. Bar the minor off (as you can see on the video clip) I managed to full runs. I didn't hit them too fast just wanted to hit all my lines in preparation for the race runs. By Sunday morning practice I should have had all my lines under my belt already and just be working on hitting them faster but after the disastrous Saturday practice I'd had I knew I just had to get them sorted.

Course was good. Super technical, rocky, rooty and steep top section and flat out bottom section with all the Matador jumps included. I took me a while to get used to the top section of the course on Saturday morning and had trouble hitting sections on the same line, at the same speed on each run.

I had a terrible seeding run on Saturday which saw me crash ending up pinned under the bike then I punctured further down the course. Luckily it was just seeding and doesn't really count for anything but I was hoping to use my seeding run to see what kind of pace I was going.

I thought about the course alot on Saturday night and wanted to make the most of Sunday morning's practice. Managed to put in 3 good practice runs which I was glad of. I used the first run to stop above certain sections that i was struggling with on Saturday to take a look at them then did a couple of fast runs luckily avoiding traffic on the course. Felt much more confident after Sunday's practice and was looking forward to the race run.

I don't really know what happened?! Completely messed up the top section above the top fire road and was lucky to actually stay on the bike at one point. I noticeably wasn't carrying as much speed as i had been in practice through sections. Crossed the middle fire road onto the relatively easy final sections of the course where i wanted to make up a bit of time. The last Senior rider who had set off 30 seconds before me had crashed at the landing of the 3rd jump after the middle road. There were no flags but I noticed a few spectators on the course attending to him while I was in the air. They all shouted to warn me that a rider was down but to be honest it was too late (the Hope Moto V2s are great but don't work too well while in the air!!) I managed to swerve on landing to avoid what would have been a pretty nasty incident and carried on my run. Crossed the line in 3:35 which to be honest was much better than i thought it would be. I still had plenty left in the tank so knew i hadn't put enough into that run. The 3 riders behind me were red flagged and offered a re-run. I was also offered a re-run and although i would have liked another chance to post a better time I honestly didn't think I was slowed down by the fallen rider.

The first race of the season is always a strange one. New faces in categories, regular faces on new bikes and in new kit and riders displaying the effects of their winter training. I never really know where I stand for the first race but this season i went into it with a head full of confidence. The new bikes feel great, kit looks fantastic and the whole team are on a high so I did have high expectations for the weekend.

The course was great, a mix of last season's NPS top section and a lower section taken straight from the WWW06 RD2 course that Neil Wilson and I designed last year. I knew the course really well after only a couple of runs which was lucky as I had to leave practice on Saturday at 14:00 to go to a wedding (I managed to sneak in just before the speeches!)

I managed 4 runs on Saturday and couple of Sunday morning but would have always wanted more. Not so much to learn the lines but really just to see how fast it was possible to hit my chosen lines and also to keep track on how the course was changing.

First race run was an interesting one. After watching a few riders struggle with the first couple of corners before my run I did exactly the same by coming to a stop against a tree. Can't work it out really as it was section I hadn't had any trouble with all weekend. I think it must just have been a race head getting a bit excited just off the start line that was the cause. the rest of the run was a bit loose. Missed a few lines but managed to keep up my momentum although I nearly took out one of the race photographers (sorry Ian!!). Crossed the line with a 3:41 but knew i could go faster.

Second run was much more controlled although going through my run in my head since I took it too easy and didn't risk enough. I went a couple of seconds quicker but had hoped to go about 10 quicker. 15 in Expert is all I managed but as usual just a few seconds quicker would have seen a dramatic improvement in position.

We have the first NPS this weekend again at Inners. It'll be interesting to see how the NPS races have changed with Si and Steve taking over but above all I'll be looking for a better result than last weekend. It's a big field with over 40 Experts and I'm aiming to be inside the top 20 of these.

Thoughts about the team - 2007 will be my third year riding with cyclejersey.com and with Al at MFX Air Art joining forces with Brian Gibb I'm really looking forward to the season ahead . Chris H joins us again for his third year also and we are joined by Brian Middleton and Joe Barnes. I really think the team will work well together and with the new sponsors on board I think we'll see some great results from the boys.

Thoughts about the bikes - I'm really happy to be riding the Orange 224. I raced on a 222 for a couple of seasons during my senior years and got on really well with it so am looking forward to see how 3 years of development has improved the bike. The tour of the Orange factory in February was amazing - I have a new found appreciation for the way Orange operate and manufacture bikes. The team's confidence levels are going to go through the roof when we put on our new team jerseys, pull on our custom painted helmets and swing a leg over the custom painted 224s - can't wait!

Hopes for the season - My personal hopes for the season are to consistantly place top 10 in the SDA and top 20 in the NPS rounds. On a team note i really hope Joe has a good season in elite, it's a big step for him and I'm sure we'll see some great results from him. My biggest hope is that we see a team rider (Chris H) on the GB champs squad in September as that would just top off what is sure to be a great season.