It’s a hard job finding the perfect sponsor. However, the organizers of next April’s first-ever New Zealand Singlespeed Mountain Bike Championship are pretty confident they have found two. Iconic local pub, the Pig & Whistle, will sponsor the event to be held in Rotorua’s majestic Whakarewarewa Forest on Saturday April 26, 2008. And they’ll be well supported by another Kiwi icon, Speights, brewers of fine New Zealand beers since 1876.
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“One geared mountain biking is tough” says Gregg Brown, owner of the Pig & Whistle, the official watering hole for the weekend and a passionate mountain biker, himself. “But singlespeeders like to have fun and party after a hard day on the trails – so it’s a perfect fit for both the pub and Speights. ”
Singlespeed riders are also well known for being a bit eccentric. “Cross-country mountain-biking is often associated with men in tights,” adds Gary Sullivan from Rotorua-based company Nzo dirtwear, which will supply event clothing for the championships. “With singlespeed racing that may extend to a heavily tattoo’d man in a tutu or a grass skirt - so it’s a brave call by Gregg and the Speights guys to get in behind the champs. ”
While the idea is to have fun there will also be a very serious side to the event. “Singlespeeding is growing every year both here and overseas,” says Graeme Simpson, another one of the organizing team. “The World Championships in Sweden in 2006 and Scotland in 2007 attracted over 300 riders and a lot of them came from top pro and national teams. ”
The 2008 World Singlespeed Championships will be held in Napa, California in August. “We’re determined to help our champion get to the Worlds,” adds Simpson, “and maybe have a crack at getting the event here in 2009 or 2010.”
New Zealand Mountain Biker magazine has come on board as print partner and will run features about singlespeeding in the lead-up to the event.
The Rotorua Singlespeed Society was recently formed by local enthusiasts and will be host club for the champs. Riders from all round New Zealand are already planning to be in town for a long weekend festival of biking.
“Friday is a public holiday, Anzac Day, when New Zealand and Australia commemorate those who sacrificed their lives in war-time,” says Simpson. "We're planning to attend the dawn parade as a group and then have other events in the afternoon. Saturday will be race day with a big celebration at the Pig & Whistle that night."
Many riders are tuning into the elegant simplicity of one-cog. But it isn’t so much a new thing as a revival. Mountain biking originated in the Bay Area of San Francisco in the 1970’s when old single-speed delivery bikes were reinvented as fat-tyre, off-road bikes on the forest trails in Mill Valley and on the legendary Mount Tam.
“That’s the spiritual home of mountain biking,” says Rotorua event organizer, Dean Watson. “We live in Rotorua so we’re biased, but we feel our place is the spiritual home of mountain biking in New Zealand.”
The Whakarewarewa Forest just south of the city has over 70 kilometres of trails from beginners right up to trails to really test the best. And all just minutes from the centre of a city that is a top tourist destination with accommodation, bars, cafes and restaurants to match.
In 2006 the city hosted the UCI Mountain Bike & Trials Championships. It was the first time the event was held in the Southern Hemisphere for ten years and attracted around a thousand competitors and officials and a large contingent of New Zealand and international media.
“The world champs really put the spotlight on Rotorua,” says Gregg Brown, “not just as a premiere mountain bike destination but as a unique environment with thermal, lakes, culture and a truly magnificent forest right on our doorstep.” |
