Hellfire Cup 2015, Day Three and Four - What Goes Up, Must Come Down

Almost there now...
Time for the last blog for Hellfire Cup 2015. To recap this is a four day, eight stage XC race held in the southern part of Tasmania, Australia. Incorporating not only the local hills of Kellevie near race HQ, day three would take the riders out to the beautiful beaches of Marion Bay and back.


If I was to write a blog yesterday, it would have been ‘tired, asdfsdfa’ followed by some dribble on the keyboard. Day three is a notoriously hard day for stage racing and this was no exception. Packing a total of three stages into it didn’t really help either, even if one of them was an optional dash for cash.


Rolling out for stage 4 the field was granted some respite with a ‘cruise’ section out to a private property on Marion Bay for a 15.5km Time Trial. We were to race around a large dam on fire roads in our pairs for a flat out effort. To give it a bit of context, this property is only open to the public twice a year, once for this race and then for a big music festival held here called the Falls Festival that runs over new years. No doubt most of the racers wished they were there to drink beer and watch Bloc Party but it is a bike race after all.


Off we went. Let out the gate in 30sec intervals from slowest to fastest riders went to tame some hilly dirt roads. Given I was feeling pretty pleased with just surviving the 50km the day before, my trusty partner in crime Terri was happy to roll out and play motorbike. We had settled into a rhythm that ran as follows; if Terri couldn’t hear me breathing raggedly then she went faster. Simple really.


After rolling up to the top of the hill about 11kms in it was a descent all the way to the finish. Catching a wheel on the crest of the climb we hustled our way down and over the line. I still owe a guy called Darryl a beer. Don’t worry Daz, I’m good for it.

Back up at the pointy end this was a stage where teams could make up positions. Basically you’re going to be good at the flat stuff on the MTB or you’re not, so it was about making gains or limiting damage. Referring the beer I owe above, apparently in the race briefing drafting other teams was forbidden so it was up to each team to work as hard as they could. Luckily we weren’t in contention for a podium.

Results Stage 4

Elite GC Female
1. WillieLocke - Rebecca Locke & Naomi Williams 34:01.5
2. Canyon / Rocky Mountain - Jenni King & Karen Hill 34:28.3
3. Squeak and Stack - Eliza Kwan & Brooke Rowlands 36:00.0

Elite GC Male
1. Tasmans Fault - Chris Hamilton & Tasman Nankervis 27:02.8
2. Tuwardski - Kyle Ward & Mark Tupalski 27:07.5
3. #DoLess - Anthony Shippard & Guy Frail 27:56.3

Elite GC Mixed
1. Jeffy & Pesta - Jarrod Moroni & Peta Mullens 30:36.8
2. Swiss-Kiwi - Renata Bucher & Olly Shaw 30:39.2
3. TORQ Mixed - Tristan Ward & Holly Harris 31:40.0

Stage five was a bit of a ‘cop that guys’. The Sidewinder stage was a two lap sprint where pairs would do one lap each, and those racing solo would complete both.

9km isn’t far; it’s generally like riding to work or maybe the shops. After a 30 minute time trial 10km it seemed like a long way. Comprising of some nice tech single track and fast sweeping turns it was a nice change from the fire roads ridden earlier in the day.


The faster riders were sent off to do lap one as it included a start loop. Our team made the decision to let Terri off the leash and get a CX style effort in. She totally killed it and I did my best to do the same. It was a slower more gravity styled ‘killing it’ but another stage ticked off.


Once again the lead for the main categories changed up keeping the overall standings tight for the final days racing.

Later that evening was Stage six, an optional night stage with $1000 bucks up for grabs for the fastest female and male laps around a 9km circuit. Peta Mullens kept up her recent form for collecting novelty size cheques and Tasman Nakervis got one of his own.


Day Four - only two stages to go...
Feeling oh so fresh it was an extra early start to day four. Just to make us feel really alive, and also have a barrel of fun was a 3km hill climb stage. The hill to be climbed was aptly called the ‘Widow Maker’. To even the score there was an awesome descent on the other side complete with steep, flat, loose turns (hello!) and a rock garden to give the first aid guys something to do. Again the field was sent off in pairs but this time fastest to slowest.


Some key game plans were as follows; to get a great start off the line, up the first turn and stay looking fast until out of eyeshot. Then blow up into a thousand tiny pieces and grovel the rest of the way up. One good aspect of being a mountain biker is we tend to have memories like goldfish. Put a sweet descent after a really hard climb and we will look at you blankly and go ‘what climb?’.


This is essentially how the morning ran, as more riders got down the hill the crowd by the rock garden grew. The elite riders sailed through the climb and descent like it was no bodies business with the rest of the mere mortals settling for survival.


Coming through for the last few turns the atmosphere was great, and even after you had finished but still in the general area the mix of ‘yeaaaaaaah’ and ‘oooooooo’ gave an indication of each rider's technical ability.


The final stage for the race was a rowdy 3km sprint around the village. Going off in waves of ten riders were to take in a different mix of trails they had ridden previously. Elbows out and lungs heaving again it was a sprint for survival, and for those still in the money, avoid any nasty mechanicals that may prove expensive on a few levels.

Coming through one of the last few corners, there were some awkward obstacles to ride followed by a sharp turn. I’m guessing that to boost crowd numbers Dunc and his crew decided to make this easily accessible so the hooting as you came through was awesome. Even though some generous person had placed $5 under a rock for one lucky face-planter to collect it thankfully went unclaimed.


As clichéd as it sounds, once the dust had settled (it's pretty dry in Tasmania at the moment) a big bbq, beers and music were put on for all the riders and their families to relax and wait for presentations.

It's probably a good time to reiterate that this is a race for all, not just elite. So it was great to see those young and old, racing in pairs or solo going up to collect their medals.

As for the novelty sized cheques? Well after quietly battling away all week Renata and Olly had secured 2nd place just in front of Mullens and Moroni with the Torq young guns Holly and Tristan holding on for the win in the Mixed Pairs. Jenni King and Karen Hill were winners in the Elite Female pairs with Rebecca Locke and Naomi Williams coming in for second and Eliza Kwan and Brooke Rowlands third. Here in-lies a valuable lesson about booking an early flight after racing. If you’re not there, and a hilarious singlespeed duo are, you will have to be content with a slightly less better looking podium photo.

Finally after riding so strong all week the Torq boys Chris Hamilton and Tasman Nakervis stayed on the top step with Ward and Tupalski and local boys Scotty Bowden and Tom Goddard in third.

Overall Results – 2015 Hellfire Cup.




Elite GC Female Pairs
1. Canyon / Rocky Mountain - Jenni King & Karen Hill 7:23:17.7
2. WillieLocke - Naomi Williams & Rebecca Locke 7:31:42.4
3. Squeak and Stack - Brooke Rowlands & Eliza Kwan 7:57:49.4

Elite GC Male Pairs
1. Tasmans Fault - Tasman Nankervis & Chris Hamilton 6:09:20.4
2. Tuwardski - Mark Tupalski & Kyle Ward 6:20:42.0
3. 4SHAW DYAD - Scott Bowden & Tom Goddard 6:31:21.1

Elite GC Mixed Pairs
1. TORQ Mixed - Tristan Ward & Holly Harris 6:51:14.5
2. Swiss-Kiwi - Olly Shaw & Renata Bucher 6:53:59.8
3. Jeffy & Pesta - Jarrod Moroni & Peta Mullens 6:55:47.3

For me, I was just happy to finish and be back having a go at stage racing again. Having Terri as a buddy for the four days reminded me just how cool exploring new trails is.


The people that have created this race are just so passionate about the experience racers take away from it. Their commitment to the race is incredible. Less than three months ago Duncan’s partner Sarah was in a terrible accident after being hit by a car whilst on her bike. Her injuries were severe but instead of saying ‘it’s all too hard’ the race went on and Sarah was her bubbly, bright self even whilst being confined to a wheelchair for her recovery.

The pair’s format is such an asset to this race and with the diverse range of stages, in a truly spectacular part of the world, is really what sets this race apart from others.


For full results and more info visit Hellfirecup.com.

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MENTIONS: @JacSchapel

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