Salamina. A little island only a short ferry’s hop from Greece’s capital Athens. It’s not at the top of the list when people choose Greek Islands for their holidays, but it was our destination for the sole reason of mountain biking. The Hellas Salamina spring series provide an early opportunity for racers to hone their […]
Search Results for: stage race
Bike 4 Islands sells out!
The world of marathon mountain biking and stage racing is ever expanding, and the beauty of the sport is the opportunity for travel and exploration – alongside some competitive racing. Stage races are perhaps the best chance for this, with multiple days allowing a more complete look at the area the race is in, and […]
On patience
I turned 35 last week. This unwanted birthday coincided with a periodontal abscess, a round of tortuous self-interrogation about my lack of (ahem) job or even employment prospects, and inevitably pressing questions about when I was going to start a family. From my mother. Mostly for me, my birthday brought home a pretty unfortunate biological […]
The beauty of pairs racing
It takes Two to Tango… Pairs Racing Marathon racing is in decline in Australia. Make no bones about it. No matter how many cries of ‘there are just more races out there, so numbers are diluted’ I hear, the simple facts are that fewer people are attending marathon races – regardless of reason and when […]
Transalp rides the roof in Bormio
Related Event: Craft BIKE Transalp
It only takes one summer in the European Alps to realise what a fantasy it is to traverse the alps by bike. It is a need that drives thousands of ambitious cyclists onto the trails to cross Europe’s highest mountains. The BIKE Transalp leads mountain bikers through the Alps from July 17th to 23rd; racing for seven days and […]
Pioneers descend to Queenstown
Related Event: The Pioneer
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 […]
Singletrack to Snow Farm at The Pioneer
Related Event: The Pioneer
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 […]
Pioneer Day 5: Toe to toe with the Queen
Related Event: The Pioneer
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 […]
Pioneer Day 4: Find Stunning
Related Event: The Pioneer
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 […]
McConnell and Cooper extend at The Pioneer
Related Event: The Pioneer
While The Pioneer started on Sunday with a Prologue around the Port Hills trails, today could be considered the true start of the marathon stage race. Regardless, the winner’s in Open Men’s stayed the same, as Anton Cooper and Dan McConnell rode an aggressive race and put more time into their rivals on stage one. […]