Air Maiden 2010 raises the bar in women's freeriding

Air Maiden managed to up the anti yet again for 2010, with 40 women of all ages and abilities walking away from Glentress with mad grins on their faces at the end of the weekend (June 26/27).

The skill level seen was markedly higher than in previous years, with more than half its entrants taking on the big jump, specially built for the occasion and featuring the now classic Air Maiden wooden ramp onto a luxurious woodchip landing.

A brave few even took on an additional feature this year – the satellite jump – conceived by organiser Lynne Aitchison and brought to life by local trail builder Richard Latimer. Its evil, off-camber design meant it was a worthy adversary and punished all but the best riders. It also provided an awesome spectacle for everyone else.

Lesley Wood, one of the event’s organisers, reported that entry speed was crucial to mastering the satellite feature. “Get it wrong and hit it too fast and it spat you out into an involuntary back flip - I should know!” she said. “Even Tracy Brunger (coach) had a potential face plant moment on it and left the skid marks to prove it. The trick was to go just fast enough to clear the gap and hit the down slope with your front wheel and be ready to pop out the top. This was easier said than done for most folk, but it was good to see a few girls giving it a go.”

Moving the event to the end of June proved to be an act of genius. There was perfect sunshine all weekend, which meant après riding lasted well into Saturday evening. A sizable number chose to stay on site overnight and experience the wonder that is Peeblesshire camping – namely beer and break dancing (thanks Teeny!). There were also some memorable moves from Mags Turner, reliving her podium dancing days, and Lynne Aitchison pogoing to some of her favourite punk tunes. All in all, the crew prepared for their big day of riding the same way they always do.

The Air Maiden event is Lynne’s brainchild, who dreamed of getting more women off the cross country trails and into the freeride park – and she has done just that.

Two of this year’s podium (well, picnic table) winners, Rhona Stewart and Sophie Matthews, were just starting to get their wheels off the ground at the first Air Maiden. As you can see from Jayne Emsley’s great action shots (www.mountainbikephotography.com) that has all changed now.

There was a definite ‘Lesley Wood’ flavour to their one-handers and, though Lesley wasn’t far beyond them in fourth place, she was like a proud mum at the presentations. The fact that they came dressed as Supergirl and a Telly Tubby - despite the heat - made them a real crowd pleaser too.

The discovery of 14 year-old overall winner Erin Maguire, who incredibly has only been riding a year or so, was a highlight of the weekend. She is already showing the kind of style that proves she is one to watch for the future and well deserving of her win.

Another discovery was Freya, whose tiny frame disguises bags of determination. Her mum had planned to go off for a ride but was persuaded to enter Air Maiden with her this year, and ended up having a ball.

Most memorable performer on the main jump was Kicker Kat (sorry Katrina!) who was unmissable thanks to her neon orange bike, loud whoops and flying pigtails. She landed the jump perfectly only to crash while coming to a stop – but there was a grin firmly planted on her face for the rest of the day, so she obviously didn’t feel it. Rumour has it that the same cannot be said for the next day.

Jackie Casey looked surprised to win Most Improved Rider, but it was a well earned accolade. She knocked the wind out herself on her first attempt at the skinnies, but after taking a few moments to refocus she went on to successfully tackle the third and knarliest of them all. And all this after having to beg some painkillers for a migraine at the start of the competition.

The youngsters were the stars of the weekend’s skills competition, but the improvement seen in all riders who took part was inspirational. This was largely down to some fantastic coaching from Emma Guy and Tracy Brunger once again. Thanks to them, there will be 40 women out practicing their “attack, scrunch, push” at Glentress for the next 12 months.

Also dolling out her wisdom was Mags Turner, who took up her usual station at the skinnies to give the girls loads of encouragement such as shouting the now very familiar "look ahead, don't look at me!" One of the quotes of the day was “Mags is great. I want one to take home!” Rhona Tamosiunas was only slightly distracted by Mags treating her like a T shirt model as she rode past... “Air Maiden T shirts are available for just £10”. Perhaps we could sell Mags dolls next year that spout words of wisdom when you pull the string at the back.

Former winner Polly Harrison returned for her third year, though this time she was handing out tips on awesomeness, technique and style as well as cheering everyone on – I doubt she has any voice left this week.

Other highlights were Lynne’s cute collie Tanya, who got plenty of hugs and ball time, and Tara’s two greyhounds, surprisingly stealthy sandwich thieves considering they are the size of small ponies.

And so the weekend came to a close with an emotional speech from Lynne, who has decided to hand the reins over next year. The girls are going to miss her and we all thank her for everything she has done for Scottish freeriding.

See you next year!

Pictured below is Erin Maguire, 2010 winner