Highlander countdown....

What a weekend we had in Vegas!  24 hour of mountain bike riding in the forest at the Ay-Up Lighting Systems 24 and 12 Hours of Rotorua.  It was awesome, with some close racing, new solo national champions and some great tunes from Grubby Beats to help us all stay awake, not to mention the huge amount of coffee we drank!

The 2009 Bike Vegas Highlander Mountainbike Marathon is on this Sunday. Entries are still open until 5pm Saturday so if you still want to race enter online and reserve your place.  Late entries will also be taken on Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning but there will be a $10 late fee. Come out to the Blue Lake to enjoy a great one lap course through the forest followed by a refreshing dip in the lake!

Bike Vegas presents the Highlander MTB Marathon...

There are only a few days to go until the 2009 Bikevegas Highlander Mountainbike Marathon incorporating the New Zealand mountain bike marathon championships. This year's event will be held this Sunday, April 5 starting and finishing at the Blue Lake Reserve!  The marathon course has been finalised and you can view the map for the long course on the website.  The maps for the shorter courses will be up later this afternoon - sorry for the delay on this one but we can assure you they will be fun courses. Rego will be at the Blue Lake Reserve between 15.00 hrs - 19.00 hrs on Saturday or from 07.00 hrs on Sunday!

Although the Highlander is the marathon champs for 2009, nothing will change from the great event this race has been in the past.  The event will still be run on the NDuro philosophy of a big one lap race in the forest taking in great single track.  What better way to put into practice all of the riding you have been doing over summer, or at least supposed to have done!  The marathon champs is a separate event held on the 75km course - the other three events, including the Highlander MTB marathon, are open to anyone who wants to get out and experience what the Whakarewarewa Forest has to offer. 

Online entries are open until 5pm, Saturday April 4.  See you there and enter the event by clicking here.

Results are now up on the website.  Thanks to all who competed and had a crack at it.  Congratulations to the solo winners and new national champs, Tony Hogg and Erin Greene, both from Dunedin and they rode away from the field in dominating fashion.

And thanks for all our sponsors at the event:

AY UP Lighting Systems for supplying lights to get you through the night!

Dave and the team at Bike Vegas

Gaz from N-Zo Clothing

Heidie from Forte Body for supplying massages over the weekend

Morgs from Zippy Central Cafe

Burgerfuel Rotorua

New Zealand Mountain Bike magazine for keeping you up to date with MTB in New Zealand

Red Stag Timber for use of the land where Race HQ was based.

Please support the sponsors that support your sport!

2009 Pig & Whistle NZ Singlespeed Championships in association with Speights

Anzac Weekend, April 24-26

A pub and a brewery as the main sponsors! Yes, singlespeeding has a lot to do with having a laugh.

But at the sharp end it is actually very serious with some top XC racers taking up the challenge. Last year's  champions, Garth Weinberg and Annika Smail are back. And so is 2nd place-getter, Mark "Cabin" Leishman (who's beige "tribute to the Black Caps" skinsuit left many in the big crowd of spectators crying for their mothers in 2008).

Also in the mix, new South Island Singlespeed Champions, Brendan Sharratt and Brenda Clapp, Auckland's Turquoise Warrior and Rotorua local and current UK Women's Singlespeed Champ, Anja McDonald.

Four places at the Worlds in Durango in Colorado are up for grabs (Men's and Women's Champs - no tattoos, no titles, though - plus two random spotties) and there's a major prize for best costume and/or pimped bike, thanks to Bike Vegas.

So come to race...or come to ride and have a few beers and some fun...or get a Party Animal ticket and just enjoy the festivities: movie night on Friday, the post race party on Saturday night and the Big Kiwi Breakfast on Sunday.

Any profit will go to the Rotorua Singlespeed Society ("taking the p*ss since November 2007")...

Online entry: www.nzsinglespeeds.com

Breaking news: NZ Champs named as official Rest of World Singlesped Champs 2009 - see the website for details...

Nature Valley N-Trail Off Road Run Series

The 2009 Nature Valley N-Trail Off Road Run Series is coming up over the next few months. This new series will take runners across the Bay of Plenty to some great new locations as well as stopping off twice in the world renowned Whakarewarewa Forest. Online entries are now open! Find out more information here.

Nature Valley have also come on board as our naming sponsor for the series. Established in 1975 in the US, they have devoted themselves to making the best tasting crunchy snack bars around. Nature Valley Crunchy snack bars are the perfect balance of great taste, and a healthy snacking option. Every bar is made with the natural goodness of whole grain oats and is free from artificial flavours and colours. Nature Valley Crunchy bars can be found in all leading New Zealand supermarkets!

See you again this weekend,

Dean, Marcus, Charlotte & NDuro Team