The hub for marathon mountain biking
Day 1 of the 2017 Pioneer stage race in New Zealand began in the newly built Christchurch Adventure Park this morning with a 21km time trial. For some teams this was their first meeting for others it was time to hone those tactics they have been discussing for months of preparation. The weather was perfect […]
The Pioneer mountain bike stage race is just hours away – or it’s started if you’re reading this down the track. As a 7 day race along New Zealand’s Southern Alps, The Pioneer presents it’s own unique requirements, but also very similar ones to other mountain bike stage races around the world. We often get […]
This weekend I am pretty gee’d to be heading to the EPIC Pioneer mountain bike stage race in New Zealand. Apart from seeming to be a spectacular event this race marks a MTB racing milestone for myself. I have been tying numbers to the handlebars of my mountain bike since the year 2000, however this will be […]
A couple of weeks ago I covered what you need to take as essentials for The Pioneer – things you’ll have on hand each day on the bike, either as mandatory equipment, or items that will help get you to the end of the race if things go pear shaped. But The Pioneer is a […]
Regular travellers say that packing the right things is easy, and others think that packing is an art form. I have never gone down the path of debating whether to roll or fold my clothes, or to pack only clothes in complementary shades, or to only take linen shirts – but I have put some […]
The inaugural running of The Pioneer in 2016 was a fantastic, sunny week in New Zealand’s Southern Alps. Tracing and then traversing the mountain chain from Christchurch down to Queenstown, the early adopters this year were treated to a warm welcome to the newest marathon stage race in Oceania the Southern Hemisphere. The course was… […]
Today was the last day of the first Pioneer mountain bike stage race. Final stages are different beasts in every stage race I’ve done. In shorter stage races, there’s no need for a parade, or gifted wins. In some longer stage races, the race leaders might grace a stage win to other teams, if they […]
The Pioneer camp was busy this morning, the influx of 3 Day Traverse racers has increased the size of the camp, and for everyone who survived yesterday’s monster stage, today’s 67km with a ‘mere’ 2000m of climbing to Snow Farm seemed like it would be a walk in the park. And best of all, the […]
All photos by Tim Bardsley-Smith Every marathon stage race has a Queen stage – the longest stage of the race. Not always the hardest, but sometimes it is. Today, the Queen Stage at The Pioneer was 116km long and with about 3600m of climbing. It was a real battle falling on Day 5 of the […]
The Pioneer mountain bike stage race is built upon three pillars: Find Stunning, Find Character, Find Welcome. Through the first four days, I think I’ve ticked off each one already. I found my character yesterday, realising I much prefer to race than just ride. And I found welcome early on, given the friendly event vibe […]
