About

Marginal Masters Off-Road: Faster than average. Slower than dreams.

Why "Marginal Masters Off-Road"?
Firstly, it's about fun. But... a lot of aspects, from training to bike builds and fueling, as an age group off-road racer, is about chasing small, cumulative gains. As a masters racer, I’m not pretending to be elite — but I’m also not training to pfaff around at the back. I’m trying to be as fast and efficient as I can, with the gear I can afford, and the time I can find... and there will be spreadsheets.

What will you find here?

This is a blog where I document my training, bike builds, DIY nutrition experiments, and anything else related to racing mountain bikes, gravel, and generally pushing the limits of what a mid-40s body can still do on two wheels.

This is not generic advice or hot takes. There is no financial motivation. It’s a journal of specifics: the exact gear I use, the way I set up my bike, what worked and didn’t work in training blocks, fueling strategies that didn’t make me sick (or did), and lessons from races where everything either came together or completely fell apart.

I'm a masters-level rider chasing marginal gains — because when you're no longer 25, marginal is what you've got. I ride, train, and race in Western Australia, mostly on a Cannondale Scalpel SE2.

This is mostly for me, to keep track of what I’ve tried and learned. But if you’ve found this and are on a similar path — juggling work, life, and still trying to race competitively — you might find something useful.