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GOOD JOB WELL DONE BY MTB TEAM (FINAL STAGE)

The GB mountain bike team ended the Circuit des Mines with their heads held high after a series of strong performances with limited resources � Phil Dixon missed the event due to illness and Phil Spenser was controversially excluded after the first stage. They were generally within the leading groups at the end of every stage and in the hillier parts of the race they showed that they could mix it with the best road riders.

The final day of the race saw two road stages, totalling well over 200km. Oli Beckingsale chose to retire during the first stage, confident that his week�s aims in terms of training had been achieved and anxious not to over-train. Zak Toogood and Nick Craig saw the race out to the very end. Although we have no results at the moment, having spoken to Nick Craig, it seems he has moved up a couple of places on GC after a very solid day, including a top 25 on the final stage. Indeed, at one point Nick was with a group of 15 who looked to have got away on the finishing circuit, but they were pulled back close to the finish.

Nick also had the compliment of being asked by another team to help them pull back a break earlier in the day, testament to the respect he and the rest of the team have earned this week. Zak Toogood can also look back on the week with satisfaction. Nick Craig has spoken of Zak�s steep learning curve and we have mentioned his lack of Road experience several times this week, but it�s an excuse Zak himself has never needed to use. It should be interesting to see how he goes once the World Cup season begins.

And of course it�s to the world cups that the riders will now be looking. Before the first of them, St Wendel, later this month, there�s a reconnaissance trip to Fort William next week and then the Lincoln GP road race next weekend. We�ll bring you news of both.

Stage 6; Zak finds his road legs in German Hills

On a wet and miserable day in France where the rain lashed down on the riders, the Circuit de Mines crossed the border into Germany with Zak Toogood showing that despite relatively little expereince on the road, that with the help of a very experinced Nick Craig (GB technical MTB coach) alongside him, he can still cut it at this level when he was the GB team's top finisher. The two of them were the teams leading riders on a difficult stage which only the hills of Germany and a rising wind, were able to put a stop to the controlling tactics of the leading teams.

Prior to the stage, the team manager Simon Burney was expecting Zak to struggle as he was probably the most tired of all the three riders in the team after the previous stage but with his recovery being good, and despite not feeling great for the first 120km, it all changed when the race hit the hills towards the end. Zak was able to start to find his legs which meant he was able to go with the leading group over the toughest part of the course. The manager afterwards acknowledging that Zak had done a "good ride".

The plan prior to the stage starting was for Oli Beckinsale and Zak Toogood to go with an early break to try and get an easier ride where they could ride "tempo" instead of the stop start effect back in the bunch. The teams on top of the overall classification though had different ideas as they put the stopper on all the early breaks and so after numerous attempts in the first 20km, the GB riders realised nothing was going to be let go and they resigned themselves to sitting in the bunch until the race hit the hills when the event entered Germany.

As the race left French territory, and onto wide roads lined by big crowds, the whole face of the stage changed as the 4km climb (10%) on the 10km finishing circuit helped break the race up. It wasn't just the pace on the long steep slopes going upwards that had the riders struggling but also the long, technical descent which didn't help those chasing to get back on. Bit by bit, the race broke up but two of the Great Britain team, Zak Toogood and Nick Craig, did manage to stay the pace until the final time up the climb where they lost a few seconds which they, with two others, were unable to close over the final 12km as the 30 strong group ahead which were in turn chasing down a break and were lined out.

Speaking to me that evening, the team manager as well as acknowledging Zak's fine ride, also complimented Nick Craig who was able to advise Zak from within the group, of the places to be for shelter and when and went not to 'ride'. Simon went onto say that Zak was also learning fast after having not done a decent road race until this year. That all changed in 2003 where he has been thrown into the deep end and has already accumlated 20 days of stage racing. It was though something he has had to learn fast at this level because not to, may have made life very difficult indeed.

And despite his fine ride, Zak was reported to be quite dissapointed at not having managed to regain the group at the end although overall is happy with the way his race has gone overall. Tomorrow is the last day of the race and is an especially tough one as well for the mountain bike team with two stages adding up to a distance of more than 200km. The morning stage is 87km (54 miles) and then in the afternoon, the riders have a stage of 112km (75 miles) in the afternoon. Simon feels its too much really and that they'll be playing it by ear because he doesn't want them coming out of the race totally nailedin an event where they have already been working harder than they expected to.

STAGE RESULT
1. Unknown            3.39.15

Other
35. Zak Toogood       Great Britain  3.39.58
38. Nick Craig        Great Britain  st
49. Yanto Barko       CC Etupes      3.40.52
50. Oli Beckingsale   Great Britain  st
58. Jamie Alberts                    4.45.08

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