Racing Inside A Snow Globe
Words Matt Dunstan Photos Jemma Wells
A predicted cold front wasn’t enough to stop a mad bunch of cyclocross riders donning various shades of skinsuit and turning up to contest the Otago Champs last Sunday. Near freezing temperatures were evident right from the practice laps, with snow flurries dusting the course; and yet, they rode on.
An all new course at Seddon Park included the velodrome, BMX track and two adjoining fields. The devious course designers were on form with plenty of off-camber grass corners, the usual barriers and even the stairs of the velodrome tunnel.
The spectacle of lycra-clad riders going from a lap of the velodrome, to hucking on the bmx track, was enough to draw a decent crowd and the atmosphere was a lot warmer than the weather.
Dave Hedley was the favourite going into the race, having won two of the three races so far this season. Not one to disappoint, he pulled away from the pack after a couple of laps and staying there to take out the Open and Overall titles. Dave romped in, completing 10 laps and finishing nearly six minutes ahead of second overall, Kashi Leuchs (winner of the Masters mens title). Hamish Fraser 3rd and Tom Kaminskzy 4th were the only others to keep up with the blistering pace and stay on the lead lap.
A relatively short course meant there was plenty of banter flying about and numerous chances for shoulders and tyres to rub. Even those further down the time sheet had their own races going. As the snow got thicker it got even harder to tell if people were smiling or grimacing.
In her first season on the ‘cross bike Rowena Geisreiter took out the Masters women and Overall women titles, combining her mountain bike skillset with her road fitness to edge out the competition. Ella Vuleta-Dick took out the Open women and Mila Rollo took out the Junior women title.
The ample amounts of precipitation, frozen and otherwise, meant bikes didn’t look quite as muddy as usual; but the people looked every bit as shattered. After an hour of hard racing, having conquered every surface, obstacle and in some cases each other, and surviving some of the worst/best cyclocross weather of the season, they were ready for the warmth of the clubrooms. The prizegiving was more about spinning yarns than it was about trophies, and everyone who braved a lap deserved their recovery beverage from sponsors Emersons Brewery.
