NI Cup Round 1 - Opotiki
Last update we had made it to Rotorua en route to Opotiki, and now I’m back in Rotorua… We seemed to take a bit of a round about way to Opotiki but got there without any issues and headed out to the course on Friday afternoon. The format was a little different to what we race at this time of year as, depending on grades, it was made up of combinations of a 21km long loop and a 10km short loop. Elite men and women both had 1 long, 1 short to race. So on Friday we checked out the long course.
It went up, not tooooo steeply but for a km right off the start up a gravel forestry road before heading in to the bush and undulating for a little bit. Fortunately most of the course was under the shade of the trees because it was pretty warm out there. After a short fun downhill there was a singletrack section that went for a k or so and ended in an abrupt climb out to an open gravel road. After that we were back in the trees and fairly consistently dimbing for around 30 minutes. It was very gradual, but with no downhill in sight it was taxing for me as I like my recoveries! Eventually it went up and down for a bit, and then we hit the downhill - pretty old school styles as this wasn’t a purpose built course by any stretch of the imagination, but soon enough we hit the ‘3 sisters’ - 3 sections of super steepness that really tested the brakes (I sounded like an ambulance in the race and apologised to the marshals for the noise…).
The sisters dropped us out by a creek which was the first of many (very many - maybe 30) that we got to splash through for the next 5 kms or so. Fortunately they were all shallow and in good condition with no nasties to cause damage or punctures. This was largely flat and fast, hardly even needing to brake for the creeks. With a couple of kms to go we were back in the bush in an undulating very fast climb back to the start.
Long lap sorted. Nice and scenic as a reccy - killer at race pace but a whole lot of fun (after the main climbs were done…).
Back to the accommodation, thorough clean of the bikes which now looked like they’d been through Karapoti, and prep for Saturday’s ride.
On Saturday we checked out the short loop. It followed the long loop for about 3 kms then veered off on to an undulating climb which gained almost as much in altitude but because it was undulating suited me much better. The downhill was short and non-technical and dropped us out at around the 5th creek crossing (so there were lots more to go!). There was nothing hard about it, but nothing is easy at race pace.
Home again, more cleaning, a dip in the pool, nap, food - all the good stuff.
Race day! Being out in the wops created an interesting aspect as we were supposed to leave cars 4kms away from the race venue and catch a bus up, or drop stuff off, drive back and ride up (or bus). But with multiple bikes each, wind trainers for Af-wika (hehe) and bags of gear, chilli’s of food etc, we decided to do a wee sneaky and Gav and I managed to find parks for the cars about 200m down from the village - minta :o)
Because we thought there might be heaps of stuffing around we got there quite early so were able to watch the morning race start (10.30) where Ricky and Celia from our tribe were racing, and Nic from the Capitelles/Maxxis and a few other PNP members, so it was good to catch that.
Ricky managed 4th in Master 1, Trev had a sprint finish to take out older dudes, Tom Bradshaw pulled out second in the U17s, and Celia and Nic had a great battle in senior women with Nic taking the win. They both had crashes, but Celia’s injuries are much more impressive and she had to get help to get her bike up after scrambling back up herself from going down a bank - great that she pressed on and came home well. Should be a good series for those 2.
And so the day passed and by 1.30 we were all warming up. Gav was off first with the big boys. He had 2 goals for the day - a podium and to lap me [insert smack talk]. Connor was away next with U23 men - he’s got big goals for the season. I was called up next in elite women, and KC left with us as U23.
I got off to a great start and sat on Sam’s wheel for a while but after a few minutes she pulled away and I started getting passed - still need more work on the climbing, I don’t think that’ll ever end. There simply wasn’t enough technical stuff for me to make any ground back. But I did manage a really strong short loop which I’m pleased about. I seem to consistently stay strong after the half way mark (when I don’t have slow leaks in the tyre…).
I was pretty stoked to get my first elite podium :o) No mug as it was 5th and they go to 3rd, but it’s still a podium. I was shattered when I crossed the line but then got all buzzed off the race as usual, but I can promise you now it’s a very different story. I’m so shattered I won’t even drive. I can’t wait to see how well I’m going to sleep tonight. The legs felt great when I went for a nice ride around the lake earlier, but other than that they’ve been pretty sore all day. I don’t remember ever being this shattered. It’s kind of awesome, but I’m used to being a bit more energetic!
Gav nailed his goals getting 4th and catching me with about 20m to go before the line - man, that sucked, I thought I was really going to hold him off, but all in good fun eh? Connor caned is race winning with a huge margin so he’s on track. KC didn’t have a field but she was happy with her effort. Sam took out 2nd in elite women so she got a mug - nice!
All in all a pretty good day for the roadtrip fam. We stayed up a bit late really, and I was up with the birds as usual (might have something to do with my current state) then packed up and drove here. The only bummer was I discovered someone had taken a fancy to the Blur overnight and put a scratch and dent in my car roof trying to get it off - no such luck sucker, locked on nice and tight but if I ever find you, you better run - my 2 most prized possessions! And my front hub is blown, but Cam is on to that already and I should have a new wheel up here in a couple of days. Nothing like a bit of drama on a Monday morning!
So, I’m in need of food at the moment even though I haven’t stopped eating since my ride so I’m walking (!) to the supermarket to answer this weird garlic bread craving, and more. The others all hit the forest while I was on the road - it’s nice to ride somewhere without wind so gotta take advantage of it.
