Posted: Sun 23rd Mar 9:43am Post subject: Results: 2008 Coppermine Epic
A stunning Nelson day greeted nearly 100 races in the inaugural Santacruz Coppermine Epic Mountain Bike Race. The field included some of NZ’s top racers from Christchurch, Wellington, Hokitika and internationals from as far away as the USA and Switzerland. Home advantage was on display early with George Bennett setting a blistering pace off the start line and along the Dun Mountain Walkway.
The pace was reduced to a slow crawl as riders reached the Classic Fringed Hill climb, summiting in under an hour at almost 900 meters above sea level. Bennett held his lead into the technical Black Diamond Ridge single track. Game was now on for a race pack in hot pursuit of Bennett which included Christchurch rider Dayle McLauchlan who had been waiting all year for a track like this to demonstrate his impressive technical skills. Dayle quietly weaved his way through the tight tree and root lined ridge track to capture the unsuspecting Bennett who was starting to suffer having worked too hard on the valley floor. McLauchlan lifted the pace again through the Mineral Belt followed by local riders Dean Fulton , Robin Reid and Andy Thompson all loving the natural challenging terrain of this section. Sandy Vincent was leading the charge in the Women’s Epic class closely followed by Tiffany Farnsworth.
With the front Enduro course riders now mixed amongst the Epic pack it became even harder to keep track of who your next competitor was. Wellington Rider Richard Ainsworth and Jane Martin lead the Enduro fields through to Coppermine Saddle.
What waited ahead of racers was a new challenge in mountain bike descents -“Boulder Valley”. A rugged rock and boulder infested gut track that would change the face of the front runners and add a whole new complexity to the race. Local adventure race director Nathan Faavae had been biding his time until he hit his favorite old stomping ground.
Bounding down Boulder Valley with such grace and ease while the leaders struggled to come to terms with the rock laid track. At Solander Creek, Dayle McLauchlan had held onto his lead with Faavae now entrenched in Second place, closely followed by a shaken Dean Fulton, Robin Reid and Andy Thompson. Equally impressive through this section was local Single speed rider Stuart Thorp who defies logic with no suspension to assist his descent.
From here it was a fast blast out to the Maitai Dam on the rolling Matai Caves track. Once onto the Maitai Valley road McLauchlan was never seen again crossing the finish line in an incredible winning time of 2hours 23minites for the Epic Course. Faavae proved that this course suits an experience true mountain biker to take 2nd place in a time of 2.26, with Dean Fulton holding on to third, a further minute behind.
Sandy Vincent held out a strong Nelson contingent in the Epic Women’s race to win in a time of 3.05, with Tiffany Farnsworth 2nd in 3.11, and Brenda Clapp 3rd in 3.13.
The leading position had also changed in Boulder Valley for the Enduro class with Steve Alloway crossing the line 1st in a time of 2hours 30minutes, followed by Grant Stirling in 2nd place and Richard Ainsworth 3rd overall. Jane Martin Held on to be the 1st Enduro Women home in 3hours 14minutes, with Julie Slade 2nd.
what a day out this was ... a must do race... cheers to all, will be there next year.... you guys know how to put on a great race .. with a new santa cruz as a spot prize.. I was still smiling all the way home..
The Boulder Valley descent was unbelieveable, and it has surely rasied the bar for XC events
Full credit to James, Ian and the crew for some next level organisation. They must have put in serious amounts of work to get the track in shape and keep it safe with first aid stations well out in tiger country!
That was the best xc race ever!!! well just better than the vulcaniser...maybe...
Organisation and support was top notch, It was pretty crazy seing dudes in vests everywhere in the middle of nowhere. Not to mention the Santa Cruz give away, "Bike" spot prizes are usually prime targets for trade me, but not the heckler..well done mike
I have never done a race on such a track before. If you enjoy the challenge of riding tracks like Craigyburn and Warfdale then you would probably love this race..
Im going to ride this loop again as soon as I get back to Nelson...
Oh yeah and they weren't taking the ssip when they gave boulder valley it's name, my legs have the bruises to prove it.
If the council do the upgrade to boulder valley right to the top then James will have to do some thinking as the race won't be quite so epic...
Oh yeah George, hows your knee?
Any one got any picts?
YETI ASRslc is the best bike for this race.....2.1 Lesran tt's...
Thanks for all the great feedback. Makes it all worth while. Ian and I are likewise very happy with year one. The whole event went as to plan. Hard not to with a course like that. Nothing like having Search and Rescue on board for peace of mind, those guys do a fantastic job. Rest assured the Epic will always remain an Epic, if boulder valleys gets too fast !! (that will be one insane down hill) we have a nice wee surprise that will keep the loop the same effort and times as 08. See U in 09.
Cheers
James
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum You cannot attach files in this forum You can download files in this forum
All logos and trademarks in this site are property of their respective owner. The comments are property of their posters, all the rest ℗ 2000-2008 by Tama Easton.
Extra design ℗ by Scotty Lane and Nathan Whitley. Photos and written work on this site are property of their owners, do not use them for commercial purposes.
Developed for Microsoft Internet Explorer 7.0 and Mozilla Firefox 3.0
