New Zealand

Today we both took part in the Giant 2w Enduro in Whakarewarewa Forest in Rotorua. This was my first ever mountain bike race and Ben's second race in New Zealand. I opted for the much easier 4-stage shuttled race (which included some shuttled assistance to the top of some of the hills), whilst Ben raced the 6-stage non-shuttled category (pedal-powered up the 1700m of climb!)

After 48 hours of non-stop rain and strong winds we were starting to get a bit worried about race day. However, the Enduro gods heard our prayers and the rain eased off by the morning of race day, although the winds had caused some serious destruction in the forest. Luckily the race organisers had been hard at work overnight clearing the course of fallen trees and debris.

Having spent a good few weeks riding in Rotorua since Crankworx we have made some awesome riding buddies who were also taking part in the race. Ben and Will were both doing the 6-stage race so set off first for a big day out on the bike. I was racing with Abby, who we met on the Trans NZ, her sister, Ella, and friend, Bianca.

The race format allowed us to complete the set stages in any order and choose our own transition routes so long as we made it back before the 4 hour and 6 hour cut offs. Luckily we were riding with locals to help us navigate the forest.

Our group of girls chose to start with 'Eagle v. Shark', the ultimate flow trail with minimum pedalling and jumps galore. However, we had been warned that this trail was known to claim the most victims on previous races. Luckily, none of us fell victim to the Eagle and made it to the bottom in one piece! After battling some pre-race nerves at the top I was happy to have stayed on my bike till the finish line, although I certainly could have attacked the trail a little harder.

Next on to the stage we had all been dreading, the pedal-fest of 'Hot X Buns' into 'Be Rude Not To', 'Hot X' did have some cool rooty sections but a nasty pinch climb in the middle and a sprint down 'Be Rude Not To' had us all out of breath and cursing the cross-country nature of the stage! I learnt I really need to keep my head up after losing a good few seconds by coming completely off the trail and into the trees.

'Gonna Gotta' into 'Paddy's Trail' was next, with a fair old amount of climbing snuck in amongst some wetter ruts and corners. This was my best stage, coming out 3rd in my category at the end of the day!

Finally, the stage I had been most nervous about as I was racing most of it blind, 'Corridor' into 'Soakhole', 'Turkish Delight' and 'Old Exit'. Strong winds made the 'Corridor' jump section a lot wilder than usual, and then it was into the trees and roots, the race organisers added a few more pinch climbs and flat sprints before we entered the rooty drops of 'Old Exit'. Despite the climbing this was a super fun stage, with high 5s and hugs all round when we all reached the bottom!

All that was left for us girls was to cycle back to the finish line to claim our victory beer and sausage rolls and soak in the hot tub waiting for the boys to finish their race!

Ben and Will had two extra stages to contend with, stage E, a slick. rooty and wild 'K2' and Stage F, 'Team Line' into 'Tukonohi'. 'Team Line' consisted of a seriously steep, muddy rut, then on to the beautifully tacky flow of 'Tukonohi'.

Ben and Will had a harder day with nearly 50k, 1700m of climbing, a couple of big crashes and a snapped pedal between them but still came back smiling.

For me, I was really chuffed to survive, and enjoy, my first race. I even managed a very respectable 6th place in my category, with a cheeky wee 3rd place on one stage. A super fun day on the bike with a wicked bunch of girls. Congrats to Abby who got another podium finish with 3rd place. Maybe this will be the start of my race career... :)

Now time for some pizza and a rest!

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