2014 Rotorua Bike Festival Begins Today

The 2nd Rotorua Bike Festival has begun. The festival covers all cycling disciplines with road, BMX and mountain bike races taking place from Friday, February 14 to Sunday. February 23. The opening weekend of the festival is headlined by the New Zealand National Mountain Bike Championships. The cross country will feature Canterbury’s Anton Cooper, who won the junior men's cross-country title at the 2012 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in Austria. Anton will defend his New Zealand title in the cross county on Saturday February 15.

On Sunday, Brook "Bulldog" McDonald will defend his national downhill title on the dramatic and demanding Taniwha trail. The popular rider from Hawke’s Bay was the winner of the junior men's world title at the UCI Mountain Bike Worlds in Canberra in 2009.


Another popular Kiwi rider, Cameron Cole from Christchurch, returns to competition in the downhill after a big crash last year. Cole won the junior men’s downhill title in front of a raucous home crowd when Rotorua hosted the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in 2006.


Other events at the festival include the inaugural OGO Dual Slalom, Enduro and the Yeah Boi Sick Race - a celebration of one of New Zealand’s top mountain bikers, James ‘Dodzy’ Dodds who died tragically in 2012. Yeah Boi Sick is a short course sprint up the tar seal of Nursery Hill, the northern entry to the Whakarewarewa mountain bike network and then back down the steep, technical Exit Trail. While it’s a test of fitness and skill, it’s mainly about having fun. And there’s a serious spin: to raise as much money as possible for the James Dodds Memorial Fund. The income will be used to maintain a mountain bike skills park the Rotorua Mountain Bike Club is building in his memory.

The number of events over ten days is proving popular. “A lot of riders are coming into town for the opening weekend, then staying on,” says Dave Donaldson from the Bike Festival Trust. “For the serious riders there will be the chance to let their hair down at more light-hearted events like Redwoods Coast, Speedway and the Yeah Boi Sick race before getting their race faces back on for the OGO Dual Slalom, Sprint Warrior and Giant 2W Gravity Enduro at the end of the week.”

“The idea is to have something for everyone, no matter their age, gender or skill level,” said Graeme Simpson from the Bike Festival team. “We want to get people on their bikes and enjoy some riding in the summer sun.”

For more information visit www.rotoruabikefestival.com or facebook.com/RotoruaBikeFestival