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The Coromandel once again illustrated that it can be as savage as it is scenic when m ore than 200 riders took to the hills for the annual White Star Intrigue mountain bike race.
Established in 2003, this scenic tour of the Coromandel high country is becoming a favourite with mountain bikers looking to put some adventure back in their riding. Starting and finishing in Coromandel township the 53km course is as tough as it is scenic. The White Star farm station offers spectacular ride normally closed to the public, but with almost 1200 vertical metres of climbing this is not a challenge to be taken lightly.
Former Commonwealth Games road cyclist, Roz Reekie-May, has tasted how tough this race can be. Last year the Morrinsville rider lost a 5min lead when the brutal course killed her bike before it killed her. This year she was better prepared and overcame a stiff challenge from darkhorse masters entrant Marquita Gelderman from Helensville.
The older Gelderman stayed close in the opening 24k from Coromandel to Whitestar Station near Kennedy Bay. Midway through the race she was still only 90secs in arrears as both women rode within the top 20 men. But Reekie-May’s international experience saw her pull away convincingly on the long haul around Colville and Waitete Bay and back to Coromandel. She eventually crossed the finish 16th overall in 3hrs 34min 48secs. Gelderman trailed seven minutes in arrears but took consolation in winning the masters category by more than 30min.
Up front, the men’s race saw three previous winners of this race, but hen push came to shove former national rep Mark Leishman totally outclassed the field. The Palmerston North pro led from start to finish, opening up a two-minute lead on Auckland masters competitor and 2003 winner Michael May in the fast riding to Whitestar Station. But on the high country section to Colville and across the Coromandel Peninsula’s central divide to Waitete Bay and back to Coromandel township, Leishman added 12min to his lead to eventually win by a almost 15min in 2hrs 39min 46secs.
While the pro’s battled out honours in the 53k Epic, recreational riders tried their hand at the 44k Challenge and 20k Apprentice. Thames rider Darren Donnelley won the Challenge for the second year in a row, this time by a huge 27min in 2hrs 20min 11secs. But the most impressive performance came from German visitor Silvia Muller, who 2hrs 54smin 16secs to place third overall and first woman.
The 20k Apprentice saw closer racing, with Thames rider Jason Kerr winning by 3min but less than one minute separating second to fifth as Thames teenager Gavin Wolfe held out Tauranga masters rider Wilfred Wong-Tai, Palmerston North teenager Campbell Tannock and 50 year old Bryce Wheeler from Pokeno.
The Intrigue was the first offering of 2007 from local Coromandel event organisers, Adventure Racing Coromandel. Their next events include the popular Kathmandu Moehau multisport race on March 3 and the ARC 24hr adventure race on April 14-15. All ARC events benefit the Spirit of Coromandel Trust set up to introduce Coromandel youth to the outdoors. For further details contact: Keith Stephenson 07-866-8613 / 021-671-172. Andy Reid 07-866-8678 / 0274-921-348. Email: assay@xtra.co.nz. Website: www.arcevents.co.nz.