trail running

yep trail running - not riding - this time round. i decided to finally check out Tuhoto Ariki by foot (probably the most amazing trail in the forest because of the stunning vegetation and also because it's slightly more technical riding). i rode Tuhoto Ariki on friday and had so much fun, i am not sure why i don't do it more often. i had been wanting to run through the trail for a while now but never got round to it. i thought it might take quite a while to get there but it took only just over an hour to get to the start of the trail (all uphill though, but fully worth the hard work). the other option would have been to take the shuttle bus up ;)
running through Tuhoto Ariki was awesome and obviously quite different to riding it. i can recommend anyone to check it out by bike or foot with or without the aid of the shuttle bus (it's a walking and biking trail).

other than that, the trails are getting rather dusty here but still great fun to ride.

dh racing!

photo by Nick Lambert

wow what a week!!!!
i went to test ride Mike Styli's bullit and check out how scary the downhill course is on tuesday with my friend Jo. Jo proofed herself as the mean downhill coach, she showed me all the do-able lines and i managed to get down the dh course pretty safe and with a huge grin on my face :) man it's soooo much fun and not as hard as i first thought (as long as you go a slow pace). it's pretty scary when you look back up the trail and see how steep the trail is you have just ridden down but even more rewarding too.
Jo and i ended up doing a whole day of shuttles (10 runs) and we almost went back for more that evening, we were so amped that we didn't realise how tired we were from the intense riding. Alice and Jo convinced me that it would be great fun to enter the dh race on saturday (just for fun and to hang out together). i had no bike but Budge said it was sweet for me to ride his black beauty (a mean bullit too!). thanks HEAPS Budge :)
Jo and i went back to the dh on wednesday morning but were riding pretty badly which surprised us but the boys at the shop made us aware that 10 shuttle runs in one day (if you are not used to it) is a lot and it's pretty normal to feel rather tired the next day.
i went back on thursday night (first time with my own helmet and armer - no more borrowing other peoples protective gear, yay! thanks Bike Culture!) and had a few more good runs and got used to Budge's bike.
every night i was dreaming of lines and riding the dh bike - man it's pretty intense and i felt pretty smoked from the few shuttle runs and the riding in my dreams.

race day was great! other then that Jo injured herself and wasn't able to race, this really sucked!
it's very nerve wrecking when you line up for your run and then even more so when you are sitting on the start ramp. the plan was to stay upright and hopefully stick to the lines i had in mind and most importantly to HAVE FUN :)
i didn't crash and despite riding a bit ragged i am stocked with my first dh race and i am planning to do some more.
i got 5th in open women, behind Alice.

Rob did awesome, he got 2nd! behind Mike Metz (congrats!!)

thanks heaps to everyone involved in making the race happen, it was an awesome event!

n-duro summer series #1

i had another race yesterday, it was good to only have a week in between races as the body is still used to the intensity of racing. the trails had been starting to get very dusty by the end of the week so it was perfect to get a bit of rain overnight before the race. as always there was a good crowed at the event and plenty of familiar faces to have a chat to and laugh with before race start. i had an ok race and got 1st woman and 7th overall, but lots of riders had raced the day before, either the moa or the national series north island round 2. the course wasn't as great as expected but i am hoping for more fun next time on 1 feb.

dh race - watching only

Yesterday I went to watch the first round of the national downhill series in Rotorua to support the boys (Rob and Mike), admire some great riding skills and socialize. It was stunning weather after the rain the day and night before which made it perfect for spectating and racing (other then being a little hot under all the protective gear). The boys did really well despite a few crashes in the seeding run due to the wet (slightly boggy) track and wanting to go a little too fast (race nerves?). Mike ended up winning the masters class (he looked well smooth), Rob got a 5th which is wicked for his first proper dh race! Gabby Molloy made an amazing 2nd place in pro elite, she looked wicked zooming down her dh track. It was a great racing weekend, looking forward to the next Rotorua round in 2 weeks!

National Series Round 1 XC Rotorua

the course for this national round was quite different to the typical national round race course format as we only did 3 longer laps instead of 5 or 6 shorter ones. i much prefer doing less laps as i find it quite boring doing the same course over and over again. also the course had great single track, some good climbs and offered some great spots to watch the action so all in all a really good race course.
i had a really bad start but that was ok as there was no great urgency to be first of the line as we headed up a long forest road before hitting the single track, so there was plenty of time to pass people and get a good position. i managed to get to the front a little way before the single track and therefore got to enjoy the nice trail without much traffic. the course was pretty tough as we didn't get any rest until we got up to hot-x (we only did half of the track though) but from there on it pretty much was all down hill back to the start of the lap: hot-x, dragon's tail and mad. it was wicked fun! there were heaps of awesome spectators cheering and yelling and as it seemed having a good time. - thanks heaps for all the support i got from you guys!! it makes racing so much more fun :)

and the weather pretty much held out too, we only got rained on at the end of the race. i was pretty stocked about that especially for the spectators who would have otherwise had a miserable time standing there in the rain.

my next race is on sunday 11jan, the first of the n-duro summer series.
happy trails - hope that summer weather is going to arrive sometime soon ;)