Shimano MTB GP launches at James Estate Winery

Rocky Trail Entertainment assembled more than 250 racers for the first SHIMANO Mountain Bike Grand Prix race in 2015. Round one of the six-race series took place at the James Estate Winery in the Upper Hunter Valley. A new general classification (GC) ranking crowned seven-hour winner Andrew Finlayson from Sydney ahead of Andrew Lloyd from Newcastle and Jason Pearce in the men’s. Newcastle’s Su Pretto took out the female solo win ahead of Melinda Allen from Sutherland and Eva Ritter. In the four-hour competition, Tom Patton and Lana Moy are the GC winners.

Tom Patton is loggin more MTB race hours to complement his road schedule. As a previous Australian DH champ, it’s not his first rodeo.

Apart from lap counts and times, the third Shimano Mountain Bike Grand Prix at James Estate achieved a new record: almost 10% of the starter field were first-time racers from all over New South Wales and the ACT. “We are very excited with this result”, said Martin Wisata, Race Director at Rocky Trail Entertainment who have hosted more than 120 mountain bike races since 2008. “This cross-country racing series has grown and evolved over the years and together with our major sponsor Shimano we really want it to be a playground for mountain bikers to catch the racing bug”, he added.

Some of the new initiatives included free rider photos for all participants and also the random draw of prizes before the event. “We want all racers to get a taste of the fantastic products our sponsors provide us with in the series – it all goes into a pot – we call it the ‘Rocky Trail Bazaar’ – and riders draw random tickets and can pick what they like from the collection”, Wisata explained. A new over-arching general classification (GC) has been introduced and the winners of the various categories still get rewarded with some special treats and prize certificates. A broader range of age categories allow riders to get a more detailed view of their race results.

First seven-hour event, first win for Finlayson

In the GP7 hour event, Andrew Finlayson from the JetBlack Racing Team won with 16 laps in 7:14:37 on the 8.5km circuit. His more than 50 team mates celebrated his first win in the endurance category. “It was neck on neck with Andrew Lloyd on the last lap. I’ve trained so hard for this, I’m committed to the rest of the series”, said Finlayson. Andrew Lloyd from the Quantum Racing team hesitated shortly right before the seven hour mark and then bravely faced his opponent, crossing the line less than one and a half minutes in GC second, taking out the 24-29 Solo Male age group. Team mate Jason Pearce took out GC third.

Strong female field and a downhiller-roadie returns to cross-country racing

Tom Patton’s name rang a bell with many from his days on the downhill racing circuit. He had turned to road riding and training and has now found his calling, combining technical riding and endurance skills in cross-country racing. With ten laps completed in 4:10:39 he took out the overall line honours in the GP4 hour event, the Solo Men’s GC and Solo 24-29 Male titles.

More than 12% of riders formed a strong women’s field – Lana Moy completed 8 laps in 4:09:53 ahead of Wendy Stevenson (50-59 Solo winner) and Charlie McCabe (30-39 Solo winner). In the GP7 hour competition, Su Pretto showed her outstanding form with 12 laps, claiming the GC title as well as the 50-59 Solo win ahead of Melinda Allen (12 laps, 35 min gap) and Eva Ritter (11 laps).

Five races to go – focus on Sydney, Newcastle and Canberra

The next series event will take place at Awaba MTB Park near Newcastle and Rocky Trail is teaming up with the hosting club, the Hunter MTB Alliance. Online registrations are open now:

 http://www.rockytrailentertainment.com/events/MTBGP-registration.html

Upcoming events in the series:

Rd 2 – 18 April, Awaba MTB Park, Cooranbong (Newcastle, NSW)

Rd 3 – 20 June, Ourimbah MTB Park, Yarramalong (Wyong, NSW)

Rd 4 – 8 August, The Australian Botanic Garden, Mt Annan (Campbelltown, NSW)

Rd 5 – 12 September, Stromlo Forest Park, Canberra (ACT)

Rd 6 – 3 October, Wylde Mountain Bike Park, Cecil Park (Liverpool, NSW)