The weather was fantastic in the Mendips earlier this month, which was just as well as I spent the hours between midnight and 3am on Sunday morning waving a torch at mountain bikers in various stages of fatigue at CLIC24 2008.

Running from midday Saturday to midday Sunday, CLIC24 is held over a fast, 10 mile course over the Mendip Hills. At least, it’s fast when it’s dry, which it was this year and wasn’t in 2007, when it rained heavily for more or less the entire 24 hours. That didn’t seem to have deterred entrants, with 420 of them starting the race, either in teams of four or, for the insane, solo.

In the team stakes, it became clear that it was a local derby, with Wells-based Bike City and Cheddar Cycle Store running neck and neck: early laps were running at 38 minutes or so. In the event, Bike City completed 35 laps, and Cheddar 33. Bike City timed their finish to perfection, sending their last rider out at 11:20, returning precisely as the clock stood at 12:00.

This guy and his passenger got in a bit earlier !

Similarly, two of the soloists stood out: David Powell and Aidan Harding. Seemingly not needing to eat much or sleep much, these two piled on the laps, eventually completing 22 and 21 respectively. Yup, 220 miles of mostly off-road biking in 24 hours. How they can do this is beyond me: I rode one lap on Sunday to check the course out, and it knackered me.

A great event, admirably organized by Neil Wilkins and his team as usual, from the party on the Friday night to the speeches on the Sunday, by way of the bar, the food, the on-site massage therapists and the all-night tea and coffee, all of which were excellent. CLIC24 raised £56,000 for CLIC Sargent last year, with high hopes for this year, and they’d like to make it more. So, if you fancy a nice, laid-back 24 hours of cycling pain for a really good cause, bear it in mind for next year ! Go to www.clic24.org.uk for the details.