QSE Diary Stage 2: Welcome to berm country

Waking up on Day 2 I was filled with mixed feelings having gone harder than expected on stage one. After chatting with some fellow racers at breakfast it sounded like I wasn’t the only one feeling nervous about the amount of climbing and kilometres still to come. However mother nature was in our favour today and Saint Raymond didn’t receive the rain like we did in the city overnight, so the trails would be dry.

Unlike Valcartier, Vallée Bras-Du-Nord-Saint-Raymond is a mountain bike destination, and it’s a good one. We started with a neutral start touring through the town before our lead vehicle peeled off and the pace quickened. The field started to spread out thanks to a few gravel climbs before we dove into our first section of singletrack.

We climbed buff switchbacks for a while, finally topping out at our first aid station which was a welcome sight in the 30 degree heat. Once fully watered up I headed off and onto our first big decent. What ensued was exactly what I came here for. Fast and flowing downhill littered with rock sections and just steep enough to keep your speed high without getting too worried about the consequences. That is until we came to the timed downhill section which has been the highlight for me so far.

Pumping down rollers, airing drops and charging into giant sloping berms was the name of the game. When I say giant sloping berms I don’t mean a pile of dirt on the outside of a corner. I mean the ones you can jump sideways out of and land in the next. This place has things sorted out. I lost count of how many berms could hold you almost completely sideways before spitting you out into the next gnarly tech section.

All this fun did come with a price however. In the heat I managed to finish all of the water I had in my Dakine Hot laps waist pack, and depleted my gel and Cliff Block stocks to the point I was starting to feel cramps sneak into my legs. Thinking of the riding still to come, I eased off the pace (not that it was blazing to start with) and finished the stage without any major issues.

With day 2 checked off and a giant grin on my face I’m more excited than ever for whats to come. Tomorrow we ride Mount-Saint-Anne. The fabled area that has seen some of the most storied World Cup races in history.