Madison Saracen 2013 - BDS One: Combe Sydenham

The World Cup season may be but a glimmer on the horizon, but in the UK the race season is now underway. This weekend saw the first round of the Saracen British Downhill Series at Combe Sydenham.

Whilst the rest of the country was gearing up for the eventual appearance of the sun and something akin to spring, those heading down to the South West of England were braced for something a little different. Wellies, spikes and waterproofs were the must-have items for a weekend away at what many now consider to be the finest national downhill series around.







The Madison Saracen team have had a busy off-season preparing for the return of the British Downhill Series; 2012 saw the team notch up both the Women’s and Junior titles, so expectation for 2013 is rife, particularly with the addition of UK pinner Same Dale to the 2013 team roster.

Arriving at the venue on Friday for track walk, the team took in a few minor course changes from the previous year, but with the weather promising to deliver a deluge it was always going to be a very different track come race day. Dry tyres were the order of the day, but the weekend would see a change to cut-down spikes and then over to full spikes come race time.


Saturdays practice bought with it some serious challenges as the rain and mud combined with ruts and ever-changing course conditions, making it difficult to truly be confident in line choice given the forecast for a relatively dry race day with the promise of sun and jump in temperature.


Seeding went to plan, with Manon Carpenter and Phil Atwill both seeding second and setting out their intention to not give up their respective titles without a fight. The promised rain came and with it the track conditions took a turn for the worse. Thankfully a long winter in the UK meant that the majority of riders took the change of condition in their stride. Although the day promised an improvement in the weather, the track was inevitably going to be cut up after a few riders had taken their turn.


First up was Phil Atwill, now in his second year in the Junior category and coming in as the reigning champion. Phil was determined to pin his colours to the mast but today was not going to be that day : a flat in his race run put him out of contention of a top-ten finish, but you can rest assured that Phil will be even more determined come round two.


Manon Carpenter has risen to prominence on both the domestic and international circuits in recent times and the British Downhill Series has been the scene of battle after battle with the dominant force that is Rachel Atherton. During her race run, Manon was the only rider in the Women’s field to tackle the road gap that claimed many a victim throughout the weekend. Unfortunately this was not enough to unseat Rachel from the top spot. A solid start to the season from Manon who was happy to take the first of many podiums in this season.


When your domestic series reads like a who’s who of modern World Cup contenders, it's sometimes easy to feel slightly unnerved by the pressure of racing with the world's best. Sam Dale and Harry Molloy both took the day in their stride, with Sam taking a solid 10th place, with Harry only just behind in 13th.

All in all it was a solid weekend for the team who will be looking to capitalize on a great set of results come round two. As the team packed up and headed home it was telling just how much the weather had played a part in changing this relatively simple track into something which caught out a number of top riders with hub-deep mud and mud-filled ruts. The team trucks didn’t even escape the effects worst of the mud and rain and a helping hand was required to get the team back on the road.