Nick Craig popped in yesterday for a quick visit.
Nothing unusual there, he’s one of Scott’s technical reps, so an occasional cup of tea and a chat is par for the course.
Unlike most reps however Nick is also a national mountain biking champion. He’s been at the forefront of some of the most gruelling races this country has to offer for over a decade.
What’s more, he took part in the Trek Marathon Championship yesterday in Margam, placing second.
And now he’s sitting in front of me relaxed and smiling, talking about how he loves the culture behind the marathon events. You get elite riders and novices riding the same course at the same time. Bit of a difference in the speed though. About three hours in fact.
Speaking as a cyclist who walks with a limp for a week after a thirty
mile ride, how the hell does
someone who’s just competed (and come
second) in a 100km event look so chilled out? Where's the pain?
“It’s the Scott Spark.” Nick says. The ridiculously low weight full sus bike offers a serious comfort advantage. The winner of the event, Ian Wilkinson was on a hardtail.
“Yeah, I feel great. Wilko will be feeling it today though.” A slight smile spreads across his face…
“It was just us two at the end, but he attacked me on the last fire road and I was gone.”
After 4 25km laps, each containing 2700 feet of climbing, it’s hard to blame him.
The Scott Spark he rides is just a stunning bike, the team issue frame has been decked out with a full spectrum of Hope components – and when it gets rolled into the shop a small crowd gathers around it to gawp at it.
Something you can’t tell from the photo, it weighs hardly anything. I stand next to it lifting it up and down for a minute with a
look of total confusion on my face.
After a quick photo and chat Nick is on the move again. Nipping up to Cardiff followed by Manchester, then taking the family to a velodrome this evening…
You get the impression he never really stops.
