New Zealand MTB Cup Round 3 Nelson.

I have just got back from four days in Nelson and a race win at the 3rd round of the New Zealand MTB cup. It was a really enjoyable little trip with some good riding, glorious weather and the result I was after on Sunday with a win at the UCI cat 2 race.

I arrived on Thursday and put in a few laps on the race track with Nelson local and sometimes MTB racer turned super fast roadie George Bennett. Coming straight from Rotorua, I found the track a bit of a handful early on. It always takes a bit of time to get used to the lack of berms on every corner which is what the majority of tracks are like at home. I crashed a couple of times on the first lap but soon got the hang of the tight twisty trail and its often rocky and extremely dry surface. I was a bit surprised with how little climbing there was in the course because although there was a fairly long road climb at the start it wasn’t steep so it was a bit different to the typical hilly Nelson circuit. It was obvious that it was going to be a very fast track if the weather stayed fine for Sunday.

That evening Stylie and I went for a trail ride on the ‘Peaking Ridge’ track. We went the shorter way to the track consisting of a long and often extremely steep climb up a gravel road and then a smaller 4wd track. After riding that I have had to reassess my ideas on what is actually a steep climb and I now know where to come for some punishing hill training. When we finally made it to the top the reward was an undulating extremely rooty and rocky single trail continuing along the top of the hill to our destination at peaking ridge. The descent down the Peaking ridge trail was awesome. I have never ridden such a rooty trail and particularly higher up there were some pretty rugged rock sections as well. I would have been better suited on a bike with a bit more travel and a more trail friendly geometry but the Blur XC handled the track well and really it was up to me to ensure that we made it down safely. The track opened up slightly as we got lower down and once I got used to things I was able to get a bit more speed up and really start to enjoy it.

The next few days were spent at the race track and by Sunday I knew it pretty well. Rain had been mentioned on the forecast but the weather man got it wrong and we were treated to another hot sunny day.

The Race:
No one really wanted to be in front up the first section of road so the pace was slowish from the start until the last pinch where George attacked to take the lead into the single track. I made sure I got his wheel and that was where I stayed for the first laps. We got a good gap on everyone else early on and it was clear that the battle for the win was going to be between us. I felt comfortable in the single track and I was pretty confident that as long as I didn’t let a big gap open on the road sections I held the advantage. After three laps of following I decided it was time to have a go and countered an acceleration from George, opening up a small gap and then taking the lead at the top of the climb. With the remaining three laps I extended my lead eventually taking the win with a two minute advantage over George in second place.

So it was a pretty successful trip. Thanks Stylie for the accommodation and for introducing me to some ‘real’ mountain bike riding. Hopefully I will be back some time soon.

N-Duro Summer Cup Round 2

It has been a very humid summer so far this year in Rotorua and today was one of the hottest days we’ve had. At least the race started at 10:30am and was over before the temperatures peaked but even so it was tough racing conditions.

Today was my first race with my new Shimano 315 Shoes. The custom fit treatment has allowed me to get a really comfortable fit and they feel really good and worked great. I took another win so it was a good day.

New Zealand MTB Cup Round 2 Napier.

The first really big race of the year and with the added incentive of being a UCI Cat 2 race the second round of the New Zealand National series was always going to be an interesting one. The track was fairly typical for Napier. Twisty and fairly tight single track sections and a very dry almost sandy trail surface. It was fast and a lot of it was flat but the main climb more than made up for the rest, rearing almost straight uphill and its steepness and length definitely took its toll as the race wore on.

After a quick start the field kept pretty much together until the climb. About halfway up I moved into second position and as I was unsure of how strong everyone else was, decided to stay there for a while as the track undulated along the top of the hill for about a km. Feeling good I slid up into the lead coming up out of one of the dips and then decided to take advantage of the opportunity pushing the pace down the descent. By the bottom I had a nice lead and from there I kept on the gas opening up a 16 second gap at the end of the first lap.

The track was quite bumpy with a lot of tree roots and I felt that my Santacruz Blur XC gave me a big advantage as the majority of the riders were on hard tails. Particularly on the flatter sections of the track I could maintain a lot more momentum and was able to stay pedalling where in some cases it was almost physically impossible for a hard tail rider to be doing the same. As the race went on I was able to extend my lead and by the end of the six laps I had a comfortable two minute advantage over second place. I am pretty satisfied with how things went and am happy to take the win as well as the valuable UCI points that come with it.

N-Duro Summer Cup #1

First race for 2011 and a win on the New Bike. The bike worked beautifully and I had a lot of fun racing in the forest which was in great condition, dry and very fast.

Next weekend is the 2nd round of the New Zealand Cup in Napier. Because it is a UCI Cat 2 race it will be important to get a good result with valuable world ranking points on offer. We will head down on Friday so we can have a few days getting to know the track before the race on Sunday afternoon. The course will be similar to the one I raced on in the Mid North Island series so it should be a pretty good one.

2011 Race Bike

Here it is, my machine for the New Year.
Santacruz Blur XC Matte Black Carbon frame
2011 Shimano XTR
Fox Fork
22.5lb/10.2kg

I have had the chance to put it through its paces in training and am very pleased with how it is going. In particular I have found the new XTR to be brilliant. It is a very classy group set. Light weight but you know you can rely on it to stand up to the abuse that comes with racing. Shifting is amazingly smooth, the triggers have a nice soft release and gear changes are very quiet. The brakes are also a highlight. The levers have a very nice feel to them and are good and powerful.

Another feature that I really like about the new bike is the remote control lockout on my Fox forks. Rather than stuffing around reaching down to manually turn a lever on the crown of the fork I now have a simple thumb button on the bars. Locking the suspension out is now much more accessible and can be activated to make anything from a long seated climb to a short burst out of the saddle more efficient. Because it is so easy to apply it becomes much like an extra gear change.

Weight wise the bike is about 1lb lighter than my previous one and it is noticeable the difference in climbing and also moving back up to speed out of corners etc. It definitely feels a lot zippier and more responsive to any acceleration.

I have been really enjoying riding the new bike. It is so nice to have new gear again it really helps freshen the mind and adds a bit more excitement back into the training. Thank you to Stylie at Santacruz New Zealand, As well as Sheppard Industries for helping me out with the Shimano components and Blue Shark Ltd for doing the same with the Fox fork. And to Rob and Mike at Bike Culture thanks again for your incredible support and the bike build.

My first race for 2011 is the 1st round of the Nduro Summer series on the 9th of January which will kick off a busy schedule where I will be racing most weekends building up to the National Championships in Dunedin on the 27 February and finishing at the Oceania Championships in Australia in mid March.

Mid North Island Cup Final, Napier.

I really enjoy getting across to Napier. It’s always good riding in the Esk forest. The trails are a bit steeper and tighter than at home and the race organisers always put together a great course. Conditions on the day were super dry and a lot of the corners had big dusty washouts so it got pretty loose at times. There was a fair bit of climbing in the 9km course and 4 laps in the Hawkes Bay sunshine made for a fairly tough day. I managed to finish off the series with another win and as this will be my final race for the year it was good to go out with a bang.
I have a bit of a rest week coming up and then it’s into the N Duro Summer Series and the Nationals starting early in the New Year. Can’t wait.

Rotorua Mid North Island Cup

Round 3 of the MNIC was held here at home in Rotorua. It was a good race and I enjoyed the chance to have a thrash around a few of my old favourite trails. The legs are going well at the moment and I managed to get another win under the belt. Using these local races is great prep for the upcoming National season and I am having a lot of fun getting out there and supporting the series.
The Rotorua round marked the end of an era as it was long time Rotorua MTB Club XC event organiser Mati Tomasevic’s last race in charge. Thanks Mati. I would also like to acknowledge Rotorua Hyundai for their great support of the race and the Rotorua MTB Club.