Any Polaris riders here?

[Globalti]

I did my first Polaris Mountain Marathon (as they were called in those days) in Spring 1992. I'd love to do the summer event with my recently-found road bike fitness, just so see what a difference it made but unfortunately I shall be overseas at the time.

I wish I'd started road riding in 1992 because I'm sure I would have done a lot better in the eight or so events that I have undertaken.

Here's the website: http://www.polarischallenge.com/

 

[battered]

I did a few in the late 90s, they were good fun. From memory - Kielder 97 (with a stinking cold, retired Sun am), Howgills 97/8, Mid Wales 98ish, Exmoor 98ish. Great events. I used to enjoy the fact that they were in seasons of changeable weather so you were never sure of good conditions, in fact the contrary! Then my Polaris partners moved away and I did other stuff instead. Good days.

 

[Globalti]

Wasn't Kielder 97 the one where everybody went for the high value checkpoints up on Cheviot in the snow then lost all their points getting back late? My brother and I had a huge barney in front of all the other competitors until he saw the sense of what I was saying and we turned back, went for some low-value checkpoints and didn't lose any penalties.... and came 13th!

 

[battered]

Sounds about right, a lot of people struggled with the hard points. We did OK on Day 1, it was my first so we weren't too ambitious and in any case I wasn't well. Day 2 was a washout, I was a wreck so we bagged the 10 pointer back to the start/finish and went home. My mate rang me after a couple of weeks, cursing me. "I caught your bloody cold! I started the wednesday after Polaris, had to go home from work, next 4 days were a writeoff, if you were as sick as that then God knows how you rode a bike!" Oops.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

yep, long time ago....