South Island Secondary Schools Mountain Bike Championships

It will be a picturesque setting for the South Island’s up and coming mountain bikers when they square off at the NZCT South Island Secondary Schools Mountain Bike Champs this Thursday and Friday (September 27th & 28th) in Alexandra.

Entries are at their highest since the event began with over 220 riders representing schools from all over the South Island.

Past winners include recent riders at the World MTB Championships Holly Kernohan-Smith and James Williamson.

Names to watch out for this year include Dunstan High Schools Alex McGregor and Burnside High School’s David Scandrett who are also both recently back from the World MTB Championships held earlier this month in Fort William, Scotland.

Other riders of interest will be Rachel Richards (Roncalli College), Georgia Wight (Dunstan High School), Rupert Chapman (Christs College) and Jed Rooney (Waitaki Boys High School). These riders are all title holders from the 2006 Championships.

The first event of the Championships is the Cross Country event, The course combines singletrack, gravel road and mainly rocky terrain close to Alexandra. Climbs and descents are moderately technical providing a challenge for entrants.

Following the Cross Country, the Hill climb is approximately 200m in vertical height over a distance of approximately 2.5 km. The course follows the historic Old Coach Road, winding up amongst briar, craggy outcrops and thyme fields.

Friday is the Downhill event. The downhill will feature Central Otago’s famed rocky terrain and involves a drop of 200m approx over a 1.7 km undulating descent.

Racing will begin on both days at 9.00am with the Hillclimb at 1.00pm on Thursday.