All the info is in the poster, but the Tour De Peak is next weekend. There’s a shuttle day on the Saturday if you want to get in some Super D practice… Theres info on the Makara Peak website here or on their Facebook here. You can download the scorecard and Makara Peak Rally rules as a PDF here.

Ranger Steve getting in some practise on Aratihi

Early season testing started for the Santa Cruz Syndicate with mechanics, engineers and riders arriving in the town of Imperia, Italy, for three days of extensive testing aboard the latest Santa Cruz full carbon V-10’s. The bikes were decked out with the Syndicate’s newest sponsor products from Fox and Shimano. The Syndicate’s choice to join forces with Shimano and Fox proved to be a great decision as the test session was incredibly successful.

“Testing was amazing, the most productive test session I have ever been to. Besides good riding and eating killer Italian food, our Syndicate family expanded with Fox and Shimano. I feel this was a great start to the year and I’m looking forward to more positive things to come in 2012,” said Greg Minnaar.

The testing took place on the long downhill racetrack in San Romolo with shuttle assistance from Roberto Vernassa from Argentina Bike. The five-man Fox crew was ready to gather information from suspension testing using their state of the art data acquisition equipment. Spirits were high as everyone got started off on the dark chilly mornings while the mechanics built a bonfire at the bottom of the track to stave off a bit of chill. Riders were warm and tingly inside with big grins after the first run.

“We were getting everyone up to speed on the new full carbon frame, Fox suspension, and Shimano components. With the frame being much lighter than the previous version we had to dial the suspension in because of less un-sprung weight. I’ve also been riding the new XTR brakes for some time now and can’t get over how impressive they are, particularly with modulation. Feedback from all the racers was what I was expecting, a new milestone in performance,” says Rob Roskopp.

Greg Minnaar exclaims, “I was blown away on the first ride down the rugged San Romolo track. The first thought was, this is a winning combo! Fitzy and his crew worked flat out to get us up to speed. Their passion, enthusiasm and suspension knowledge is going to be very positive to the Syndicate. It’s been awhile since I was last on Shimano, 2003…and that was a good year for me. I hope this is the good luck I’ll be needing to win another World Championship.”

Santa Cruz engineer Joe Graney says, “We look forward to a close relationship with the suspension experts at Fox. They arrived in Italy with a team of engineers and technicians – blowing everyone away with how they were able to accurately translate each rider’s input into measured improvements in speed and control. Shimano continues to push the envelope with technologies like Ice Tech brake rotors and the Shadow Plus derailleur, as well as the variety of options that can be configured for different conditions fitting perfectly with Santa Cruz Bicycles’ core values of customer choice, usable performance, durability and long term support.”

Our newest addition to the Syndicate, mechanic Jason Marsh says, “I’m super happy that we are using Fox Racing Shox and Shimano for the 2012 season. The new Fox 40 forks suit the carbon V-10 frame perfectly and the RC4 rear shock really compliments the VPP suspension design. The riders were all impressed on how good the bikes felt, even after the first run. I have worked with the Saint group-set for the last three seasons and I really like how they work. Saint cranks are super strong, brakes are simple to set up and the rear derailleur and shifter are super smooth and a nice set up. Finish and attention to detail can’t be matched. The support offered by the Fox team over the last few days has been superb and their race support is second to none. 2012 will be a great season.”

Steve Peat was surprisingly pleased, “We have had three awesome days testing and training in Italy. It was great to catch up with all my crew after a few down months throughout the winter and I was happy to get out on the Santa Cruz V-10 and trash it in the test situation. Fox is a company that I have watched over the years. They obviously have great product because the fast guys are using it and winning races now and again on it. And Shimano needs no introduction. It’s a no brainer that they have great products and I am looking forward to working with them at the races! We came up with some great set ups and I am now looking forward to the season. Now it’s our turn to give it a thrash on our V-10’s, 2012 should be fun!”

“The test session was a big learning curve for me. Having ridden Boxxer’s since I was about 14, I’m very used to the look and feel of the fork so it was a huge change. I really enjoyed the process of getting my new bike set up and it was interesting getting to know the characteristics of all the new products. The suspension seems almost limitless with it its adjustability and I think our bikes have entered a whole new realm of adaptability. Despite getting my ass kicked in the final race I had a really fun and productive three days,” said Josh Bryceland.

Tradition is that on the last day of testing we always have a race to see who is quickest. Once again, for the second time in a row, Peaty took the win. But unlike the first time when Greg wore the dress to dinner, it was Josh’s turn to wear a skirt. Since there were no women’s clothes handy, Josh had to improvise and craft a fashionable number out of a pair of pants. “His outfit was complete with his ‘special’ tiger underwear, “ chimes in Roskopp.

Joe Lawwill, Shimano’s MTB marketing manager says, “Shimano is very proud and excited to be working with Santa Cruz Bicycles and the iconic Syndicate race team. We are looking forward to a successful and exciting 2012 season.”

Fox’s Mark Fitzsimmons says, “We are very excited to work with a team at this level. The professionalism of the team has shown in their years of great results and we look forward to bringing our suspension expertise to the program. We here at FOX thrive on the pure honesty racing brings to our development process and look forward to learning from Steve, Greg and Josh to continue to improve our products and aid them in their mission for podiums. Our goal is to provide our athletes with a suspension performance advantage and look forward to continuing this into the 2012 season.”

Syndicate head mechanic Dougie “Fresh” Hatfield says, “The Fox and Shimano Saint equipped bikes ran silky smooth during our test camp in San Romolo. The riders really liked the responsiveness and quality of the product. We are ready to go racing!!”

So Day 3 at the Mondraker setup camp saw actual riding on their World Cup spec’d rigs. Jono did work. According to Patrick, Brook did one run in four hours. They are there to get these bikes dialled and that kind of dedication to tweaking setup is what will hopefully see Brook on a few more podiums.

How dope is that cardy?

So Patrick Fallon just banged through a whopper gallery from today’s session at the Marcocchi/Mondraker setup in Queenstown, looks like Spoke senior photographer Sven Martin got on the tools as well today, either that or Brook isn’t mechanically minded at all. Oh in the photos from yesterday the bike wasn’t rocking the Roco shock out the back, but a friendly courier dropped them off today, and a good part of today was dedicated to setting those bad boys up… Anyway here’s some photos of Brook chilling, Sven wrenching, Cesar looking sharp and Jono “Rainman” Church just being the man.

Sven shows Brook how to install cassette

There’s more pics in the full gallery over here

So a couple of days ago we dropped a press release letting you know that MS EVil was gone and MS Mondraker had risen in its place, with Brook MacDonald staying on the team. Anyhow Mondraker designer Cesar Rojo and Marzocchi decided that Queenstown was the perfect place to get the new bikes dialled and do some testing and suspension setup. Instead of sending someone from Marzocchi in Italy or the US they decided that Wide Open’s Rainman of suspension Jono Church was the man for the job. So now he’s got three days of testing ahead of him and plenty of tweaking. Spoke contributing photographer Patrick Fallon has been on hand to capture it all and he should be bringing us a few more sneaky photos over the next couple of days. Oh and there’s a full press released below.

Okay so Jono is the Marzocchi tech but by the looks of Patrick's photos they may have roped him into a bit more than that.

...still bleeding...

...while you're at it can you adjust my lever reach...

...oh and maybe you can even put my back wheel in as well... Thanks Jono

Marzocchi is proud to announce our support of the MS Mondraker team for the 2012 season. The team’s DH athletes have been able to climb to the top of the world ranking list and are no strangers to the podiums of UCI World Cups and UCI World Championships. Team MS Mondraker will be riding our DH flagship, the 888 RC3 EVO TITANIUM and Roco RC World Cup rear suspension.

This has been an incredible journey, and the partnership has helped our racers achieve an impressive set of goals and dreams—2 UCI World Cup Downhill overall titles, 10 UCI World Cups wins by Greg Minnaar, 3 World Cup wins and a historic World Championship title by Steve Peat, and a Junior World Championship title by Josh Bryceland. These results were made possible using SRAM, Rockshox, Truvativ and Avid products, along with the world-class technical support of the SRAM team.

Working closely with John Dawson and Jon Cancellier on prototype Black Box projects and receiving their on-site support was a pleasure, and our heartfelt thanks go out to them for their years of dedication to the Syndicate. Thank you also to Dave Zimberoff for making the partnership possible.

Steve Peat says, “Leaving SRAM is a tough one for me. I have been with RockShox for 16 years so you could say the brand is engraved in me. But like most things in life nothing lasts forever and it has been a great time over the last 16 years. I want to thank each and every person at RockShox and SRAM who have helped me achieve my goals in my career. I have made lots of friends and had some fun times. Thanks guys!”

Greg Minnaar says, “Since joining the Syndicate in 2008 your support has been incredible. Thanks to all the crew that work hard behind the scenes making sure our Black Box equipment was keeping us ahead of the rest.”

Josh Bryceland says, “I’ve ridden SRAM since I started mountain biking and I’ve come far using their products. Times change and so do sponsors, thanks for 4 years on the Syndicate without a mechanical in a race run.”

Rob Roskopp says, “Our partnership with SRAM over the years saw many milestones achieved, Steve Peat’s 2009 World Championship in Canberra, Greg Minnaar’s win at Maribor in 2010 aboard the first carbon bike to take a World Cup win, and countless podiums over the last 8 years. I would like to thank the whole crew at SRAM for the great memories and support.”

The Coppermine Epic Entries are closing very soon, in fact in ten days. Enter now and don’t miss out on what looks to be a stunning course this year. I rode it a couple of times over the Christmas break and it’s running amazing. Hell, I might even enter. Enter online here.

If you were on the fence about buying a copy of The South, well they’ve just gone and made it a bit more enticing by dropping the full clip of Cam Cole’s Vic Park section. Watch. Enjoy. Buy.

Super D and Cross Country Wrap

The RaboDirect NZ Mountain Bike Championships have now run for the first two days of three, with Super D racing completed last night and Cross Country today, at Codgers MTB Park in the Brook Valley, Nelson. Competitors have been wrapped in hot, windy weather, and bone dry trails have been the norm so far, delivering fast and brutal racing.

Last night’s Super D was the first time this event has been held at a national level and was a great success, with a broad range of entrants including World Cup top ten athletes, former World Championship medalists, local trail chargers and international dark horses all part of this inaugural event. Best described as a mongrel mix of the best components of downhill and cross-country race courses, the Super D is a downhill endurance event, designed to bring cross-country and downhill racers onto an even footing. Justin Leov (Dunedin) had the pace right through the evening, and demolished the field with a blistering run of 7 minutes 15 seconds. No one got close, with the gap back to second place Kieran Bennett (Nelson) 13 seconds. Leov was complementary of this style of racing: “This suits my strengths, and I think is more enjoyable for me than downhill racing. I look forward to seeing more of these types of events offered”. Women’s winner Harriet Harper (Nelson) also put daylight between herself and the rest of the women’s field. Harper is racing with solid form despite having training and racing time minimised with work commitments, but blitzed to a time that placed her 21st overall in the 48 strong men’s and women’s entry list.

Cross Country racing took place today and some fantastic racing in the morning age group categories warmed an enthusiastic crowd up for the main event at 2pm – the Elites and U19 Juniors. The contest between Wellington riders Gavin McCarthy and Tony Keith in the Masters 30-39 going right down to the wire. Only a slight slip on the last descent by McCarthy preventing what was sure to be an all out sprint for the line, both riders inseparable for their four laps. Keith eventually took the title by 18 seconds. Other racers that shone and took home championship titles were Garth Weinberg (Rotorua, Masters 40-49), Eden Cruise (Wellington, U15 Men), and Ben Oliver (Christchurch) and Shannon Hope (Dunedin) in the U17 Mens and Womens.

The Elite races provided great excitement and anticipation for the very vocal crowd watching on a race course designed in part to allow fantastic viewing options. Dirk Peters rode like a man possesed today in the six lap Elite Mens race, and led from start to finish to win by over two minutes. Any slight threat of a challenge and Peters had the perfect answer – more pace and aggression which carried him to his first National Championship title as an Elite athlete. Peters couldn’t have been happier, and clearly enjoyed his win against the deepest field of competition seen at a National Championship for many years. In the Womens race, the contest was always going to be between Beijing Olympian Rosara Joseph (Wellington) and in form NZ MTB Cup leader Karen Hanlen (Whakatane). Hanlen sat on Joseph’s wheel for the first two laps, before applying the throttle during lap three to hammer home an unbeatable lead. Hanlen stretched her legs for the remainder of the race to win by a stunning three minutes, and the smiling ex multi-sporter reinforced her form with her first National Championship title. Both Hanlen and Joseph are gunning for the 2012 London Olympics spot, and Hanlen’s early season challenge to what has been Joseph’s domain in recent years is providing a fascinating prelude to the upcoming Olympics selection process.

Anton Cooper (Woodend) is fast becoming a drawcard at these events, and his race craft and domination of his Junior rivals something of a talking point. Starting two minutes behind the Elites, Cooper first paced away from his U19 competition, and steadily clawed back the outright leader on course (Peters), before passing him on the fouth lap. Cooper won comfortably from surprise package Sam Gaze (Cambridge) today claiming back to back National Championship wins in the Juniors. Like Cooper, Mary Gray (Dunedin) also won her second Junior National Championship title today, in a led from the front win.

The National Mountain bike Championship programme concludes tomorrow with the Downhill and Cross Country Eliminator races in Nelson.

Full Results Super D

Full Results Cross Country

NZ Mountainbike Championships Cross Country Eliminator and Downhill Wrap
Waghorn Survives the Eliminator; Leov Doubles Title Haul

The RaboDirect NZ Mountainbike Championships finished today with the Cross Country Eliminator and Downhill events contested on the slopes of Fringed Hill in the Brook Valley, Nelson. The hot, windy weather continued and the sunshine heralded new National Champions in two very tough cycling disciplines – one new and one well established.

The Cross Country Eliminator (XCE) drew 16 competitors for its first showing on the national circuit. A mix of Junior U17, U19 and Elite athletes took the challenge during a midday break in the downhill schedule. Raced on a short 500m long course around and through the event village, the knock-out style competiton, where four man heats delivered first and second placed riders through to the next round (while 3rd and 4th were eliminated) had a huge crowd lining the course and urging riders through their heats. The crucial part of each lap proved to be the short gravel track climb, and in the early heats the only clear favourite seemed to be Anton Cooper (Woodend) with his explosive power off the start line. The final four riders were Cooper, Mathew Waghorn (Palmerston North), Craig Oliver (Christchurch) and Harley Going (Whangarei). Off the line it was an elbow to elbox wrestle between Waghorn and Cooper going into the short climb, with Waghorn able to leverage just enough advantage to turn through the top of the course in the front. Despite a massive sprint from Cooper, Waghorn won the inaugural XCE national championship title by half a wheel. Oliver kept his nerve from a charging Harley Going to win the bronze medal.

The Downhill event drew a huge crowd, with a win on the Fringed Hill course considered one of the ultimate prizes in NZ downhill racing. Right through the lead-up age group categories, the form riders from the early part of the NZ MTB Cup seemed to hold advantages over their chasing rivals. Two Nelson riders who hadn’t yet made NZ Cup appearances upset the form book by winning their categories – Hayden McKay in the 30-39 Master Men, and Tania Carson in the Open Women. McKay’s win giving him back to back championship titles in this very competitive category. Another Nelson rider, Leo Sandler in his first year in the Junior U19′s won the gold, and in a stunning time that placed him within the top ten Elite times.

But it was the Elite contest that captivated the Fringed Hill crowd. Multi-time National Champion Harriet Harper (Nelson) held the fastest seeding time in this category by a mile, but had to settle for second place today after a truly inspired race by Sarah Atkin. Any doubt that the young Lower Hutt downhill exponent could foot it with Harper (the fastest female rider in NZ over recent years) was put to rest with her National Championship title today. The Mens Elite race was incredibly close. Matt Walker (Kawerau) attacked from an early start position to lead for some time before Bryn Dickerson (Wellington) unseated him from the top of the leaderboard. NZ based amateur Dickerson put the bike down on the last corner as well, loosing valuable seconds which he would rue while nervously watching the last starters come to the line one by one. George Brannigan (Havelock North) snuck past Dickerson, but Justin Leov confirmed his liking and success history with Nelson race courses to win by just over a second. The Downhill National Championship win made it two titles for Leov for the weekend, joining his Super D gold from Friday night. Leov and Atkin will now proudly wear their race jerseys this year on the world stage with right sleeves constructed as a NZ flag, the internationally recognised downhill National Champions identification.

The Downhill medallists presentation wrapped up a busy weekend for NZ’s top mountainbikers in Nelson. Quality fields in all categories were an absolute highlight, and all title winners were justly deserved. The NZ MTB Cup resumes for Downhill riders in Rotorua Feb 11/12th, and for Cross Country riders in Wellington Feb 19th.

Full Results Cross Country Eliminator

Full Results Downhill

Issued for MTBNZ Events

Red Bull have just dropped this mini doco on Brook MacDonald’s win at Mt Hutt in the weekend. He doesn’t even swear!!!

It’s not the newest of news (but it all kind of backed up over the Christmas break) but it’s worth mentioning that the folks at Scott have been busy of late, what with the signing of Brendon Fairclough to the Scott 11 DH team and the setting up of a US based XC team headed by Geoff Kabush. Well they didn’t want to rest on their laurels and have recently purchased Syncros components from Ritchey. Obviously that will mean a distributor change here in New Zealand in the near future and going off the below press releases, a much broader spectrum of products (even road).

Scott’s Press Release

Ritcheys Press Release

“We love the Syncros brand and we’re happy to see it go to an industry powerhouse like Scott, who can give it the energy it deserves,” Coffey said

The first round of the 2012 MTBNZ DH Nationals has arrived in Queenstown. The brand new Remarks Grass Track invites the riders to a fast, loose and ridiculously dusty visit and racing mode is officially on in New Zealand. Jon Television brings you the whole experience, from the initial thoughts of designing the track to the final showdown on the finish line and a much-needed swim after a weekend of intense sun.

GT Bicycles is proud to announce its partnership with Atherton Racing. Beginning in 2012, the mountain bike race team of Dan, Gee, and Rachel Atherton, will join non-family GT rider Marc Beaumont and form the new team GT Factory Racing.

“Atherton Racing is one of the most progressive teams in the history of mountain biking, and is known for taking the sport to the next level,” said Mark Peterman, Global General Manager GT Bicycles. “We’re excited about the partnership because it both continues GT’s legacy as the brand that helps progressive riders push their limits, and because of the opportunities it presents to develop new products.”

Over the past five years, Atherton Racing has seen over 50 professional victories and multiple World titles. For the first time, the Atherton team will also include a non-family member with GT rider Marc Beaumont. As a consistent World Cup downhill rider with podiums in some of the world’s greatest Enduro races, Beaumont will compliment Gee on the UCI DH circuit, and Dan on the Euduro circuit, as his focus has shifted towards Enduro-style events. The team will be riding the GT Fury, Sanction, and Force Carbon and Alloy.

In addition to racing, the team will provide important product testing feedback and work hand-in-hand with GT on future product advancements and the next evolution of GT mountain bikes.

“The new relationship that’s formed between Atherton Racing and GT has opened up so many opportunities for everyone involved, I’m stoked to be going into the next few years of racing being bolstered by a company with such a passion for the sport, and with a company that’s drive for the top step of the podium, matches that of my own,” said Gee Atherton.

For more information on the GT Bicycles (@GTBicycles) and Atherton Racing (@AthertonRacing) partnership, please visit gtbikes.com and athertonracing.co.uk and follow them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GTBicycles.

The 2012 NZ MTB Cup presented by Nature Valley got off to a scorching start today in the blistering heat of Queenstown. The new Remarkables downhill venue overlooking Queenstown Airport, Frankton and Lake Wakatipu delivered dry, dusty, and very hot racing conditions for the multi-national field of 151 starters today.

Competition was fierce across all categories, with the new downhill race course cutting up during the two days of practice and competition to become worthy of this level of contest. Huge braking bumps and multiple choice lines including long off-camber sections provided plenty of challenge for all on the hill.

In the Elite races today, the women’s field was always playing catch-up to Wellington’s Sarah Atkin, who had the measure of her competitors in both seeding and race. Atkin won by a massive 15 second margin over recent UK immigrant Harriet Latchem, with Nelson’s Veronique Sandler in third. Both Atkin and Sandler have progressed through to the Elite field this year after stellar 2011 seasons in the U19 ranks, and having represented New Zealand last year at the World Championships.

The men’s Elite race had a number of international racers taking on a very strong New Zealand field. George Brannigan (Havelock North) was last starter today, having seeded fastest in the morning’s shakedown. The Devinci Global professional waited for his race start with the knowledge that he’d have to put down the same speed on the Remarks course to claim the win, having seen his competiton one by one post times that could easily take the podium top step; any mistake would be punished on the clock. Christchurch’s Joseph Nation had set the time to beat early in the race order, with a brace of solid competition only just behind him. Brannigan held his nerve however, and went slightly faster than his seeding run to take the win by a comfortable 2.5 seconds. Of note today in the Elite men’s results list was French visitor Jerome Clementz who is a Downhill Super Enduro maestro, winning every major European Enduro event last year. Clementz switched to the downhill bike for this weekend and showed that he is also multi-talented, with a fourth place finish. (Editor’s Note:It’s actually a freeride bike; the Cannondale Claymore has only 180mm of travel and was designed by Aaron Chase not for DH, but for bike park riding.)

The Junior races were also exciting to watch, with riders moving between categories with the new year. Second year U19 racer Reece Potter (Golden Bay) won the tough U19 class, but by the slimmest of margins over Leo Sandler (Nelson) who had his first start as an U19 rider. In the U17s, Josh McCombie (Dunedin) cleaned the field out with a solid display of consistency.

The biggest fields racing today were in the Senior Men and Masters 30-39 categories – both highly competitive at the top end and right on through the middle order. Fastest seeds in both categories followed through to take the win, with Nelson’s Jake Boylett and Derek Winwood claiming top step of the podium. Fastest seed in the Masters 40+ Darryn Henderson also took the win. The Open Women’s category had good numbers racing today, with a good contingent of local Queenstown riders taking to the Remarks hill. But none could match Auckland’s Adrienne Hooper, who with today’s win completes a rapid transition from a national level cross-country racing career to the vastly different downhill discipline. Other category winners were Sophie Tyas (Auckland) in the Junior Women, and Oliver Jarman (Christchurch) in the U15 men.

The NZ MTB Cup continues this coming weekend in Dunedin, with the second round of the Downhill series on Friday/Saturday the 13th and 14th, and the first round of the Cross-Country Series on Sunday the 15th. Both races are taking place at Logan High School at the base of Signal Hill.

Brief results:
Elite Men
1 George Brannigan (Havelock North) 2:26.25; 2 Joseph Nation (Christchurch) 2:28.82; 3 Matthew Scoles (Alexandra) 2:28.93
Elite Women
1 Sarah Atkin (Wellington) 2:51.08; 2 Harriet Latchem (Queenstown) 3:04.61; 3 Veronique Sandler (Nelson) 3:13.63
U19 Men
1 Reece Potter (Golden Bay) 2:32.29; 2 Leo Sandler (Nelson) 2:32.99; 3 Loius Hamilton (Rotorua) 2:34.21
U17 Men
1 Josh McCombie (Dunedin) 2:38.54; 2 Carl Goodwin (Kaiapoi) 2:52.07; 3 James Minty (Christchurch) 2:52.67
Senior Men
1 Jake Boylett (Nelson) 2:32.89; 2 Scott McGregor (Te Puke) 2:33.06; 3 Carl Edmonson (Whakatane) 2:36.01
Masters 30-39 Men
1 Derek Winwood (Nelson) 2:34.32; 2 Kelly McGarry (Nelson/Queenstown) 2:39.12; 3 Jamie Nicoll (Nelson) 2:40.04
Masters 40+ Men
1 Darryn Henderson (Christchurch) 2:46.26; 2 Mike Williamson (Wellington) 2:56.38; 3 Vaughan Love (wellington) 3:01.87
Open Women
1 Adrienne Hooper (Waitakere City) 3:07.94; 2 Naomi Wilson (Queenstown) 3:08.80; 3 Alanna Columb (Queenstown) 3:10.78
Junior Women
1 Sophie Tyas (Auckland) 3:00.12; 2 Phoebe Coers (Wanaka) 3:35.03
U15 Men
1 Oliver Jarman (Christchurch) 3:00.28; 2 Carlos Wilson (Dunedin) 3:04.20; 3 Mathew Gilan (Queenstown) 3:13.46

Issued by MTBNZ Events
Chris Mildon