Cycling at an altitude of about 2000m above sea level, Team Spur’s Alan Hatherly finished eighth in the men’s under-23 race at the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup in Vallnord, Andorra, on Sunday.
Under trying circumstances it was a good result for Hatherly, who arrived in Vallnord early in the week to do a course reconnaissance where he discovered significant changes from previous seasons.
Cycling at an altitude of about 2000m above sea level, Team Spur’s Alan Hatherly finished eighth in the men’s under-23 race at the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup in Vallnord. Photo: Michal Cerveny
A climbing loop almost straight after the start was added, while a last-minute extra seventh lap was included for the under-23 race.
“Coming straight off the start into a 90-degree turn at full gas was a bit of a puzzle for us as we sprinted for position,” Hatherly said.
However Hatherly got off to a decent start, coming off the first climb in sixth place, before the altitude began to take its toll.
“You have to be so careful at altitude not to overreach and go into the red,” he said.
“As soon as you’ve gone into the red the lack of oxygen makes it so hard for your body to recover.
“It’s hard to judge other riders at altitude; you never know how the other guys are going to handle it.”
Hatherly rode at a consistent pace, shifting between fifth and eighth place throughout the contest.
“In an unfamiliar and harsh environment, which was very hard to predict, the top-10 result is a fantastic achievement for Hatherly,” his team said in a statement.
He will now return home and focus on defending his elite cross-country title at the SA XCO National Championships in Bloemfontein on Saturday.
