Yeti Trans NZ Enduro Day 3 - Fighting Fatigue
Queenstown is well known for its famous bike park, but today the action saw riders take on the nearby mountain of Coronet Peak and its surrounding valleys instead. With infamous stages such as Rude Rock and Slip Saddle, it was a day everyone was looking forward to. But there was equally an air of nervousness among the riders, as this day included six stages, one thousand meters of climbing and three thousand meters of descending.
Riders started the day ahead of their shadows but by day end, They were chasing them.
The morning climb up was a good 45-50 minutes long and seemed to never end.
Once again the view was well worth Grammin'.
Riders didn't appreciate the early start followed by the 50 minute climb up to the peak of Coronet Ski Field.
Riders gathering at there peak before being allowed to drop back down into stage 1.
Matt Hunt, Currently 6th place overall getting into his rhythm on stage 1.
In the men’s field, it was an incredibly close race between Zac Williams (New Zealand) and Stu Dixon (Canada). Zac took impressive wins on the first two stages of Coronet Peak and Rude Rock/Skippers. However Stu came back strong to win the final four stages and the day's honors. In the end it was just three seconds that separated the two after over six hours in the saddle and thirty five minutes of racing.
"It's been fun and the trails have been awesome. Zac was riding really well today and I was feeling a little uneasy on the Rude Rock stage. I get scared on all the grassy hidden side stuff. I’m not used to that in Canada, so I freak out a bit. Slip Saddle was my favorite stage of the day. I'm definitely a fan of the steeper gnarly stuff." – Stu Dickson
Cat and Mouse between 2nd and 3rd place in the open females.
Zac William's ripping his was down Rude Rock.
The Rude Rock stage, which continued down Pack Track then onto Skippers Canyon was a favorite of the riders today and it was also the longest stage so far with a winning time of 12.25min. This was followed by the mammoth liaison section, which sent riding climbing out from the very bottom of skippers’ canyon to the top of Zoot track.
Day 3 of the race at Coronet Peak has without a doubt been the most scenic. Skippers Canyon has incredible vistas that just won't end.
Riders working there way up and out of Skippers Canyon.
In the Women’s category Raewyn Morrison continued to dominate and has extended her lead over Amy Pryse-Phillips in second place.
Raewyn said, “I’m using this race as preparation to build up to round one of the Enduro World Series in Rotorua. I’m also using the chance and to explore the South Island as I haven't done much of that. I would be quite keen to get top ten overall. That's my goal for the next few days.”
Lucky socks to encourage riders at the beginning of stage 6.
Slip Saddle was the most challenging track of the day. It worked its way down the side of Coronet Peak heading towards Arrowtown and caught a lot of rider off guard just due to how steep it was.
As riders started on Slip Saddle - Stage 6, it was clear to see some could handle the long 7 hour day and others were left seeing shapes and stars.
After finishing stage 6, riders had to ride out the creek track back down to Arrowtown.
The fourth day of racing tomorrow moves to the dry, thyme infested hills around Alexandra. It will be another long day with six more stages and a bit more pedaling.
Stage 3 Results
Men
1. Stu Dickson Canada 35:30
2. Zac Williams New Zealand 35:33
3. Mark Dunlop New Zealand 36:58
4. Deon Baker Australia 37:28
5. Jeremiah Newman USA 37:31
Women
1. Raewyn Morrison New Zealand 39:35
2. Amy Pryse-Phillips Canada 44:22
3. Rachael Gurney Great Briton 49:04
4. April Bedford New Zealand 53:22
5. Sheila Hart New Zealand 58:18
Overall Results
Men
1. Stu Dickson Canada 1:13:25
2. Zac Williams New Zealand 1:15:36
3. Deon Baker Australia 1:16:13
4. Mark Dunlop New Zealand 1:18:28
5. Tilmann Schwab Germany 1:18:54
Women
6. Raewyn Morrison New Zealand 1:24:38
7. Amy Pryse-Phillips Canada 1:37:45
8. Rachael Gurney Great Briton 1:44:49
9. April Bedford New Zealand 1:58:53
Sheila Hart New Zealand 2:12:14
Full results.
MENTIONS: @yeticycles, @callumm @woody-nz @camp1 @ronandugan
Member since Mar 5, 2015
1) Coronet XC, 2) Rude Rock/PTS/Packtrack 3) Zoot 4) DeerLane ? 5) Coronet DH? 6) Slip Saddle
I think its more the manufactures have now jumped on board and the more investment they can put into a bike that can descend like a mini DH and then be "ridable" uphill the better IMO.
According to the Enduro World Series 2014 Rule Book, a minimum of four special stages is required per event, a minimum of three different courses must be used, and the results will be calculated by adding all stage times together for each rider.[1]
Enduro differs from XC cross-country cycling racing (which historically has more emphasis on cardiovascular fitness and less emphasis on technical ability) and pure downhill cycling racing formats, which may contain little to no climbing or cross country skills.
Enduro's 'All Mountain' discipline therefore favours riders with a breadth of skill, on multi discipline cycles; lightweight XC bikes may lack sufficient suspension travel for fast downhill control, whilst full DH bikes may not allow a rider to climb the uphill sections.
In some countries, the term Enduro racing is used as a contraction of the word endurance; it is debatable if this use is misleading in this context.