A Podium-Packed Weekend at the UK National DH Series Opener

Words: Alex De Rocco 

Photos by: ianleanphoto

The UK National DH Series kicked off at Rhyd-Y-Felin, a venue renowned for its challenging track, vibrant pits, and electric atmosphere. The typical British summer weather kept everyone on edge, with dry conditions for Saturday's practice, heavy rain for seeding, and a sunny Sunday that allowed the track to dry out just in time for an exciting race. Rheola, a beloved track, presented its usual set of challenges. This track is notorious for its difficulty and frequent red flags that disrupt the race. This year was no exception, with heavy rain adding to the chaos.

As Olly Morris, our team manager, reflected, "Being on the hill with the team is where I am happiest, but this week being back between the tape with them made it even better. Doing runs, all helping each other just made my weekend. I crashed in my run but pleased I pushed hard and still took the win in the Vets 40-45 category. Gutted for Oscar to pick up an injury but stoked with how hard Lou and Joe went in their runs."

Despite the setbacks, the event saw a fantastic turnout with 350 riders, including top-tier World Cup talent like the reigning world champion and two former world champs. The competition was fierce, and our team achieved remarkable results with three podium finishes.

Joe Breeden shared his thoughts on the weekend: "My personal goal coming into the weekend was to leave with the British jersey. I’m proud of my commitment to that goal and how I rode, but I wasn’t quite fast enough this weekend. To come away with a podium is still an achievement I am proud of, especially against such a competitive nation. I will make some adjustments and very much look forward to trying again next year." Joe secured an impressive 3rd place in the Elite Men category.

Lou Ferguson reflected on her performance, saying, "Had so much fun at National champs. P1 in seeding, won the top split in finals but pushed too much and crashed in the second. Proud to have given it my all to the finish line. It was a great track and I can leave feeling like I have a good pace. Happy with the team effort of 3 podiums." Lou placed 3rd in the Elite Women category despite her crash.

The weekend was tough for Oscar Griffiths, who faced an unexpected setback. "Really tough weekend mentally. Came into the race confident to achieve the title, but had a freak crash in practice meaning I couldn’t race. Very, very hard pill to swallow, but thankfully I got lucky(ish) and will be back very soon!" he said.

Oscar entered the race with strong confidence, aiming for the national champ title. He was riding confidently but faced tricky conditions during practice. "Saturday practice started pretty grippy, but over the next two runs, it got super slick, especially in the open," shared team manager Olly Morris. "I was following him into the open, and he slid just before hitting a stump we were using to take off. As he hit it, he went straight over the bars, landing on his head. He picked up some injuries, but it could have been a lot worse."

Lou has been focusing on her race run commitment, and the national champs provided a great opportunity to practice that. She was doing well in her run but also slid in the open section, slightly further up from where Oscar crashed. "She got ejected from the bike and had to run back up to get it, finishing only two seconds off the win," Olly recounted. "Although we are gutted she didn’t win, we were stoked on her progress in terms of top speed."

Olly himself faced a challenge in the tight woods, which he recounted: "Riding tight sections isn’t my strength, and I was riding them too slow in seeding. So, I decided to really commit to them so I didn’t lose too much speed. It was working well, but I slid out on a tight right-hander with a deep rut. Got going again and pushed really hard to the bottom."

 Despite aiming for a clean sweep of wins, the team still secured three podiums, which is an amazing achievement for our first year as a team. Joe rode an incredible race, demonstrating outstanding tactics and technical skills. He is proud of how he rode, even though nobody could have beaten Matt Walker that day. "His run was near perfect, and his risk-taking was very high," Olly noted.