South West Life

Sunday 28th February 2010, saw the running (or maybe that should be riding) of the 13th annual Karri Cup Mountain Bike Challenge 2010.  Held over the Labour Day Long Weekend, over 450 competitors, along with their support crews, headed to the Northcliffe Township in the South West of Western Australia, to set up camp.

There were two distances on offer.  100 km over 4 stages and 50 km over two stages, with the two races sharing the last two stages.  Northcliffe, a small community embedded in the Karri forests of the Southwest, was incredibly friendly, with the town putting on great provisions and hospitality for the competitors and supporters alike.  The locals clearly love the event and many competitors took advantage of the opportunity to camp on the town oval right on the start line.

The race attracts entrants from around the state and ran through forest trails, single tracks and farmland.  By the end of stage one, the riders were looking a bit grubby with dust and sweat, but by the end of the race a layer of sweaty mud covered every exposed piece of flesh.  There were some excellent vantage points, providing great opportunities to see the riders in action, if one chose to follow the roads and wait at places where the course crossed.  The countryside also provided some splendid walks through the forest for those who were not participating.

Waiting next to the tracks for the riders to come past was made interesting by the large numbers of March Flies which were intent on vamping your blood at any opportunity.  They were thick and unrelenting with even a few competitors feeling a bite or two on the backside.  Apparently, when there are not enough people to eat, they feed off the Marri Blossom, of which there was an abundance.  Hence, when squashed, they smell like honey.  When mentioning that they would probably be all right to eat, a local Ranger assured our salivating spectator that he had seen it done.

By all reports, the ride, whether racing or not, was tough and hot with lots of hills. Careful attention to fluid intake and nutrition was especially important for sustained hard work. The fire trucks parked by the oval after the finish gave welcome hose downs to the exhausted riders.

Our number one spectator, who contributed to most to this article, was disappointed to be left out due to a broken clavicle sustained in training, but acknowledged that even though everyone looked well and truly smashed by the time they had finished; they all seemed to have enjoyed themselves immensely.  The attitude of the competition was summed up nicely on the back of the event shirt, which reads "If you see me lying by the track, please pick me up, dust me off and put me back on my bike."

Special thanks to Roger Paine of Planet Graphics, for providing a first hand experience of what the spectators enjoyed.  A phone call to enquire about how his wife’s race went, was met with most of what you have read above.  Thanks for the insight Roger and good luck for 2011!  For more of Roger’s work, check out - http://rogerstuff.blogspot.com.

In the 100 km race, Jon Gregg took out the Solo Open Men’s Division, in a time of 4:24:12.  We’re not sure whether the course was supposed to be easier, but given the heat, a time 25 minutes faster than last year’s winner has to be an achievement.

Bronwyn Sax had the ladies honours in a time of 5:45:06.  Local Dunsborough sensation Rowan Brown made a steady improvement from last year’s 7th place, to finish 4th overall, as well as winning the Junior Division.   Jason Auld also had a strong finish in 6th place overall, and winning the Veteran Men’s Division.  Yolande Joubert also finished in 6th place in the Women’s Division and was the winner of the Veteran Women’s category as well.

Ian Fitzpatrick won the 50 km Solo Open Men’s Division in 2:41:01 and Hannah Lawton, winner of the Veteran Women’s Division, was the first lady across the line in 2:46:41.

The Karri Cup Mountain Bike Challenge is a proud supporter of the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) of Australia.  For more results, check out www.karricup.com.au.