The Taupo 500

26th-28th November 2004

Jason Kelly

Despite achieving the record relay time and being the first relay team home in 2003, over zealous officials had spoilt the event for me with unwarranted harassment of myself and my nephew. This, along with the most incompetent prize giving ever attended and the subsequent event decision to deliberately mis-record history in the results book by putting our relay team in second place behind a team never sighted on the road, made the event memorable for all the wrong reasons. With the bad memory of 2003 still fresh in my mind, the decision not to enter in 2004 was an easy one, especially once my brother, Patrick, had decided to complete the enduro and I volunteered to act as support for him.

With the December 130km Waihi “hilly” individual time trial with a reported 6km long plus hill, the January “Tour de Vineyards” and the infamous Takaka Hill being included at the end of the 130km third stage in that event and the Quality Autos Open with the third stage Te Mata Peak climb all looming, I felt a few good solid base kilometres were in order. So I set my own challenge - Friday - home to Taupo (165km), Saturday - one lap of Lake Taupo (160km) and Sunday - Taupo to home (165km) plus a few kilometres in between and so the Taupo 500km weekend was born.

The weather on the Friday was not particularly good - cold, showery and with a gusty south westerly. A pre-ride check found the back tyre of my GT training bike was flat so a change was required. Setting out in the required full winter gear, I made it about 10km into Flaxmere when the stem snapped and I ended up lying in the road next to a car and just in front of a bus. Luckily I was slowing down for the roundabout! A swollen wrist, bruises and scratches were the only physical damage. A quick phone call to Dad to give me a lift and the GT was taken to The Hub for some repairs.

Getting home, I rearranged the available bike wheels as Patrick was borrowing the set from my Litespeed for the Enduro. I soon set off again for Taupo on the Litespeed and made it successfully through the Flaxmere roundabout and out into the Taupo hills. On the first major climb, my foot came out of the pedal and I jammed it back in only for it to come out again. Spinning faster made it stay in! Reaching the top of a hill I stopped and looked to see one of the cleat screws had fallen out. There was only one way to go and that was to carry on ......

The wind was strong and gusty with a somewhat random direction. With only a few brief bursts of genuine tailwind, I carried on into Taupo. Other than crossing through a brief hail storm in the last 40km, the balance of the trip was uneventful. For the second attempt, I had spent 5hrs 47m on the bike and covered 167.8km from home to the motel. Stage 1 was complete.

Arising at 12.20am on Saturday morning, the sky was clear and the moon was bright. No rain and not much wind either at that time! The car thermometer read 8°C at the 1.30am start. Patrick headed off into the dark and I soon joined the convoy of support vehicles. The first riders were passed within 2km of the start line while the leaders twinkled like Christmas lights all up the road.

Night dreaming in the convoy, the cellphone suddenly rang and Patrick said he had broken a spoke. One of mine! Rushing up the convoy, I spotted him on the road side, which is no mean feat in the dark, and grabbed a replacement wheel for him. After managing to jamb his fingers in the car door, Patrick was away again and chasing the leading bunch. With him safely back in the bunch, I tried to move up the convoy to try and keep an eye on him but that was impossible - they all look the same from the back!

The outside temperature quickly dropped to 3°C and hit a recorded low of 0°C. I stopped for breakfast at 4.20am at a rest stop just as a super enduro rider came past with his support crew. They were encouraging him to continue as he had completed 250km and only had 250km to go!

The climb up Hatepe hill on the first lap was easy - the car just cruised up! I stopped near the top to see if Patrick needed any food or drink and stepped out into a frost. It was cold outside! Over the top of the hill, just three enduro riders were left out in front.

Closer to Taupo, I headed back to the motel to drop the car off and get on my bike to ride the 2nd lap with Patrick. He soon came along and I joined in the back of the remaining bunch of three riders. Passing through Taupo was a nightmare. The enduros' had to ride via Redoubt Street but, with the cars and cyclists taking no notice of traffic, this was simply crazy and dangerous. One of the enduro riders didn’t take this turn and another pulled out at the top of the control gates hill. This left just Patrick in front.

The roads were clear with little traffic as we started the second lap. With the Elite Race starting soon after we passed through Taupo, we hoped they didn’t catch us. The lead vehicle passed us just before they turned off so we never saw them. The wind began to pick up as we continued on our own. It was certainly a long way to the 80km mark!

With the wind in our faces, we hoped the solo riders would catch us to give us some respite. At about the 100km mark, they finally caught us. However, the bunch was large and unwieldy with chaotic riding - especially on the back. The number of drink bottles dropped and near crashes had to be seen to be believed. One rider rode straight into me and sent me sideways. Both Patrick and I thought I would be talking to the road again but somehow (from too many crashes perhaps?) I managed to stay upright. After a few punishing bunch surges, the pace settled down and we settled into the back with a tailwind on the homeward stretch.

We stayed with the bunch until Hatepe when they started to climb away. I cruised up to try and phone Patrick’s wife to tell her we weren’t far away. From the first lap I knew there was no cellphone coverage until the very top of the hill. Passing riders and then pulling off at the top to try and phone proved impossible - I couldn’t find the cellphone though it had been ringing just previously! Patrick soon went past so I pushed all the stuff back into my pockets and chased after him. We managed to get a small group together for the last few kilometres into Taupo.

With Patrick safely home and potentially in first place (we couldn’t see if any other enduro riders were part of the large front bunch), I headed off back into the wind to see where Mum and Dad were on their tandem. Looking at the time, the wind and listening to my legs, I soon abandoned that idea and drove out in the car! But, stage 2 was completed - 5hrs 33m for 165.5km on the road.

Heading home on Sunday morning was the final stage. I set off under cloudy skies with rain showers in front of me. Again the wind was variable with the odd tail push but mostly cross or head wind. The front wheel started making some funny noises and on closer investigation, it turned out the brakes were rubbing. I soon loosened those which made the next downhill a bit more exciting that I had envisaged!

I managed to miss all the showers and after climbing over the summit, was into the Hawkes Bay sun, almost warmth, headwind (what else?) and home. With about 10km to home, I stood up to pass a slow tractor to hear a painful “crack!” The bike stayed upright so I guessed it wasn’t the stem, handlebars (been there, done those), frame (done that twice on the GT) or the wheels (not a spoke!). Sitting down I found was uncomfortable so I rightfully concluded a seat rail had snapped (again.)

After a few more kilometres to enjoy the sunshine and warmth, despite the discomfort, I reached home having completed 173.4km in 6hrs 31m. The Taupo 500 was complete.

After the “near death” stem break and other damage (my front wheel also needed the bearings replaced and Patrick discovered his replacement wheel had cracks in the rim!), was it all worth while? Well, I didn’t have to attend yet another poorly executed and strung out Taupo prize giving and I did get some good base kilometres in with a few gentle hill climbs on the way................ And the race results? 3^rd senior and 3^rd overall in the Waihi time trial in 3hrs 44m 57s, 6^th up Takaka Hill and 6^th in GC in race 2 (Vet 1 & 2) in the Tour de Vineyards and 3^rd on GC and 1^st vet in the Quality Autos Open.

Cromwell-Queenstown Easter Cycling Tour 2004

Saturday 10th April - Monday 12th April 2004

Jason Kelly

This event is an annual one that has been run for many years. Due to the “Warbirds over Wanaka” event and the fallout from the Le Race court case, this years edition of the Tour was not confirmed until much later than usual. This undoubtedly saw reduced field sizes from previous years in each of the A, B and C grades. The first days stages were moved to Bluff and Invercargill to avoid clashes with the estimated 100,000 people who were expected at the Warbirds event. This year four Ramblers traveled to the deep south – myself, Gavin Povey (winner of last year’s C grade event), Brett Ritchie and George Masters. We all elected to race in B grade this year.

 At the Friday night pre-race briefing, the starting roster handed out for B grade was headed by Olympian Sarah Ulmer. Unfortunately, Sarah withdrew prior to the start due to ill health. A number of other riders also failed to start which saw less than twenty B graders start the event. We were given wads of paperwork to comply with all the local requirements for traffic safety and risk management plans.

Saturday 10^th April 2004

Prologue – 1.5km Individual Time Trial up Bluff Hill – 8.30am start

The morning dawned cold with literally freezing south west winds accompanied by occasional heavy and icy showers. Brett recalls not getting much sleep on the Friday night due to the hail on his hotel window. A previous days preview of the climb in the car indicated an initial downhill section followed by a short steep climb which was followed by a long steady climb to the 1.5km finish mark for B grade (the A grade went right to the top.) With just about all the cycling gear on I own, it was almost warm!

By the time the B grade started, the road had dried a little and we all managed to complete the event without getting wet. George was the first Rambler to start and pushed himself to the limit to win the stage in a time of 4m 45s. Gavin was second Rambler and finished eighth in a time of 5m 28s. I was third away and struggled over the steepest section to finish 7^th in 5m 26s while Brett struggled even more in the cold and couldn’t feel his feet, had his wheel spinning on the icy road at the start and was just about thrown over his handle bars before creeping to the top to finish well down the field.

Stage 1 – Teretonga Motor Circuit Race in Invercargill – one hour five minutes – 2pm start

The weather had not improved in the afternoon with icy showers continuing. The C grade raced first and once they had finished, the A grade started with us starting very shortly after them. Due to the freezing temperatures, both the A and B grade races were mercifully shortened to just over one hour each from the scheduled 1.5 hours and 1.25 hours respectively. While sitting on the start line, a hail shower passed through and we all shivered with many riders wondering aloud what the hell they were doing there. With George in yellow by 17s, he and Brett had arranged for Brett to attack from the start line. With the freezing temperatures, this was also an ideal method of getting warm! Strong and gusty crosswinds made racing conditions even more difficult, especially with a wet track and constant attacks. The southern weather had got to me and I was suffering terribly from a bad head throb and empty legs. Early in the event, a rider crashed literally right in front of me and, since I have had two bad crashes in the last twelve months, I didn’t intend joining him. Forced to ride cross country a la Lance Armstrong in last years Tour de France, I managed to stay upright but was well off the back of the bunch. With a hard chase, I managed to get back on but was legless for the rest of the day and struggled to hang in the back. Up the front, Brett was absolutely wrecking himself to try and protect George’s lead as a local rider had managed to slip away up the track. With no other riders interested or able to chase, the local rider took out the stage with an impressive margin of 58s to take the yellow jersey from George. George was less than impressed with the result but, as it turned out, the other local riders knew the hills would soon eliminate the advantage gained in this stage by the stage winner.

Sunday 11^th April 2004

Stage 2 – Winton to Athol – 80km – 9am start

The weather dawned very similar to the previous day. On the drive north to the start line at Winton, heavy rain fell. It was not at all promising! The organiser had decided that the A and B grades would start together in this stage to get the riders through to Dipton faster which was where the C grade were to start from. The Ramblers felt this might be to our advantage because if a couple of us could get away and stay with the A grade, it was potentially possible to get a tour winning lead.

With strong cross winds from the left still prevalent, the A grade attacked from the line. This resulted in the larger combined A/B grade field echeloning across the centre line. With the real risk of disqualification for not following the commissaires instructions, I soon moved to the left hand side of the road and was promptly dropped off the pace with some other B graders. Just as we started to work together to chase, we rounded a corner to find the race had been stopped due to riders being all over the road. After a tough talking to about keeping left, the A grade were restarted with the B grade starting shortly afterwards. Brett was still not feeling good from his previous day’s efforts which was compounded by a bout of illness and continuing cold weather. As a result, his legs failed to work and he was dropped by the bunch. On the first King of the Mountains climb, Gavin Povey launched a withering attack but was pulled in by local riders before the KOM line. He and another three riders established a brief small gap over a chasing few with the rest of the field left behind.

George and the local yellow jersey holder engaged in a series of one on one attacks in the cross winds. The remaining bunch managed to keep up without crossing the centre line too many times. As we headed north, the weather cleared, the sun came out and the temperature rose. Climbing the last major climb of the day, I was on the front pushing the pace only to hear George ask me to slow down. As he had the best chance of regaining yellow, I did so and by the time we had powered down the hill at over 70km/h, a front bunch of just six riders remained which included three Ramblers – myself, George and Gavin. From there, I did most of the work and we achieved a 2m 57s gap over the next riders and over eleven minutes over the previous yellow jersey holder. I lead out the sprint for Gavin and George but the Ramblers had to settle for me 4^th in the stage with George 5^th and Gavin 6^th. Due to some unwritten local rules, a local rider who punctured in the stage was awarded the same time as us despite getting a relatively fast wheel change and finishing well down the field in the stage. As a result of this stage, George held a 17s lead over 2^nd place with me 5^th, 40s behind George, with Gavin a further 4s back in 6^th place overall. Brett was now out of the running for GC.

Stage 3 – Cromwell Criterium – 30 minutes – 2pm start

Finally the sun shone consistently and all the extra layers of clothing that had been mandatory for the stages to date were gladfully shed. With George in yellow and Brett out of GC contention but a criterium expert, the scene was set for him to dominate this stage. The stage went largely to plan with Brett feeling very strong and his legs working in the warm weather. With some help from his fellow Ramblers who controlled the bunch, he established a clear lead and with six laps to go, appeared to have the stage in the bag. However, as we came around the back straight corner, we saw Brett standing in the gutter frantically trying to get his chain back on. He had got caught out by a big gust of wind and hit the gutter at close to 50km/h! Bugger, torn booties, lots of blood but no immediate pain as that came later. He completed the stage with the bunch and was patched up by the local first aiders. All Ramblers finished in the bunch so George retained the yellow jersey into the final day.

Monday 12^th April 2004

Stage 4 – Queenstown to Glenorchy – 44.5km – 8.30am start

The day dawned fine and clear and considerably warmer than Bluff though still cold enough for a polyprop. Brett tried to start but was still sore from the previous days crash and then realised he couldn’t change gears as his rear derailleur had taken a big hit so it was tour over for him. Gavin unfortunately awoke with a bad head cold. With George in yellow and Gavin ill, neither had any interest in pushing the pace. As such, I again spent much of the time on the front controlling the pace. George lead some wicked descents at over 80km/h but we were unable to establish a decisive lead. The result was a slow overall stage which, despite the slow overall pace into a head wind, still saw George and I in the front bunch of just six riders. George took out the stage in a high speed sprint and despite being hindered in the sprint, I finished 4^th to move up to 4^th on GC. Gavin was dropped up a climb mid-way through the stage to finish just over 4 minutes down in 10^th place for the stage but retained sixth place overall.

Stage 5 – Glenorchy to Queenstown finishing up Moke Lake Road – 41km – 12 mid-day start

The sun continued to shine and the temperature had risen enough to ride in summer racing gear. The morning’s stage had taken a severe toll on Gavin who was in very bad shape. However, on checking the results and seeing that he was still 6^th on GC and in the prize money, he was determined to finish and claim something financial from the experience. With a major hill climb before the notorious final Moke Lake Road, which some local riders say is worse than Bluff Hill, and tired legs in the peleton, another slow stage eventuated. One local rider rode away a couple of times but as I was unsure of his place on GC, I chased him down once the gap became uncomfortable. On checking the final results, this rider was in fact well out of contention for GC but I thought it was better to be safe than sorry! I helped Gavin across the top of one of the climbs before it became a free for all up Moke Lake Road. This climb has a number of switch backs on a steep gradient before settling into a gentler gradient and longer straights. Gavin launched an ambitious attack at the bottom of the hill but with the effects of his illness kicking in, faded to finish 10^th in the stage, over 1m down, but did enough to retain his 6^th place overall and a share of the prize money. Once he crossed the finish line, he had to be physically helped from the bike and into the car for the drive back to Queenstown. Gavin’s effort in this stage was undoubtedly the most gutsy ride of the tour and possibly of his life. George and I settled into a solid rhythm on the final climb, with me leading the way, and we took out 5^th and 6^th places in the stage respectively, six seconds behind the stage winner who had literally ridden himself into the ground to win the stage and the KOM points competition. It turned out that George and the stage winner had reached a financial arrangement on this stage finish. A pity they didn’t share this with us!

On completion of the stage, George, Brett riding Gavin’s bike, and I then cruised back to Queenstown. The Moke Lake Road downhill switchbacks almost claimed George as he raced down too fast. The prize giving was held that evening with George awarded the Tour leader’s yellow jersey and associated trophies and prizes. After three days and five stages of riding, final results were:

George Masters, 07hrs 03m 20s, 1st

Jason Kelly,        07hrs 04m 05s at 45s, 4th
Gavin Povey,      07hrs 09m 13s at 05m 53s, 6th
Brett Ritchie,      DNF

While Brett has vowed never to return again to the hell hole freezing place of the deep south, Gavin and I are interested in returning for more racing in very scenic, albeit cold conditions, against different riders. The tour is also a good excuse for an Easter break.

Brett contemplating the meaning of criteriums, while examining his wounds, after a high speed crash with a winning lead in the Cromwell Criterium

 

Gavin being restrained by Ken Lasenby at Glenorchy from taking a running start in the final stage

“B” is for Burglars

Stortford Open B grade Tour 2004

Saturday 24^th & Sunday 25^th January 2004

Jason Kelly

With the results of the 2003 A grade Stortford Open Tour still lurking, many riders opted for the “safe” option of the B grade for the 2004 tour. This resulted in a strong field of 39 starters which included Sarah Ulmer and two past B grade winners – Mark Coombe from 2001 and Bryce Martin from 2002. As the field contained nine Ramblers, an informal meeting of some of the riders had decided that we should try to work together to ensure a Rambler won the B grade for the first time since 2001. Dan Warren was also the designated sprinter.

The first stage, Apley Rd X 3, ended up being a fairly tame affair with most rider’s content to just sit in the bunch and cruise around. Patrick Kelly made the most of this on the second lap to open a small gap and claim the 5 King of the Mountain points on offer before being re-absorbed by the peleton. Jason Kelly and George Masters tried a similar tactic on the last lap, with George securing the 5 KOM points, but failing to achieve a decisive breakaway. In the sprint to the line, John Fitzpatrick edged out Sarah Ulmer who was followed by Dan Warren. All the Ramblers finished comfortably in the bunch in a time of 2hrs 09m.

The afternoon criterium was dominated by Dan Warren, Eliot Crowther, Sarah Ulmer, Bryce Martin and John Fitzpatrick who took all the sprint points on offer between them. George Masters and Gavin Povey watched proceedings from near the front of the bunch. With an average speed of over 41km/h, this was no Ramblers B grade race! While most of the Ramblers finished with the bunch, Grant Nicoll and Callum Millward lost some time.

The result of the first day was that 23 riders were all on the same time with Dan Warren holding a one point lead in the Sprint Ace category while three Ramblers, Patrick Kelly, George Masters and Adam Thomson, were first equal on 5 points in the KOM category. The lack of a team plan in the KOM category was obvious!

The 3^rd stage, the Te Mata Peak climb on Sunday morning, is designed to split the field. The team “plan” was to help Dan win the Sprint Ace while for the stage, I was to set the tempo for George to attack near the top. A few early attacks in the stage were quickly shut down and Patrick and I led Dan out for the sprint points. Part one of the plan was completed successfully with Dan taking the 5 points on offer. Once into Simla Avenue, Dan initially set the tempo before I took over. Phil Smith, last year’s winner of this stage, briefly took the lead before I again went to the front and pushed the pace. Approaching the KOM just before the gates, I eased up to let George take the 5 points but he had decided to conserve his energy so Earl Rowney pipped me for the 5 points while George took the 1 point for third. We continued to climb at a solid pace and with about 800 metres to go, as planned, George attacked. I sat up but Eliot Crowther, Ben Olesen and Luke Cornille went with him. Reaching the finish line, George positioned himself perfectly to edge out Eliot Crowther by 1 second and take a deserved stage win. I followed 20 seconds later, followed a further nine seconds back by Mark Coombe. On reaching the top and stopping my stopwatch, I had completed the Ramblers peak climb part of the stage in a personally stunning 16m 05s – easily a personal best. This meant George had completed the climb in 15m 45s and all of the top 10 B grade finishers had beaten 17 minutes! Phil Smith, who won this stage last year by 30 seconds from Scott Betteridge, finished 30 seconds behind George this year.

With George now in yellow, a further “team” meeting decided to help him retain this in the last stage around the Tuki. Dan was happy for any Rambler to go up the road as this would help him by them taking the Sprint Ace points on offer. Nothing eventful happened until over half way around the first lap when Bryce Martin rolled off the front. Recalling his ride away victory in the 2002 tour, I quickly jumped on his wheel and expected the balance of the field to do the same. After a few seconds, I saw Bryce look behind and then settle into time trial mode. Glancing behind, I could see we had a gap so I started to work with him. Rotating the lead between us, we widened the gap from the peleton. George had decided not to chase as he thought everyone else would have gone with him. Approaching the Sprint Ace line for the first time, I misjudged the rotation and had to settle for 2^nd but we had taken 1^st and 2^nd place which helped Dan.

Soon after this, my turns on the front were getting longer. Up the first little rise, Bryce struggled. Climbing up the "Undercliff" hill behind the peak, we were told we had a one minute lead on the bunch. By the time I reached the top of this hill, Bryce had fallen off my wheel and I was solo. I felt I had a fair chance of getting the 5 KOM points on the 2^nd lap so pushed on. Climbing up and over Coops Hill, I secured the 5 KOM points and was told I had a gap of about 45s. Now I thought I had a fair chance of picking up the 5 Sprint Ace points so settled into a good rhythm. The bunch meanwhile was only sporadically interested in chasing so my lead varied from 30s to over a minute (or so I’m told!) With the Sprint Ace points in the bag, it was back into the hills for the final lap. By the time I had taken the 5 KOM points up Coops on the 3^rd and final lap, my legs were fading and I could see the chasing bunch. It seems the bunch had finally decided that it was time to race!

With about 8km to go to the finish line and after a 50k individual time trial, 11 riders caught me. With less than a minute separating the first eight riders, changes in GC were still achievable if a small break could be established. Several riders tried this but the peleton was having none of this and the stage ended in a bunch sprint. John Fitzpatrick took out his 2^nd stage win of the tour from Eliot Crowther and George. However, with bunch time awarded, George had done enough to win the Tour by the slimmest of margins – one second – from Eliot Crowther with myself finishing 4^th and Mark Coombe 5^th and first Vet. Dan Warren won the Sprint Ace and I took second in the KOM, behind Earl Rowney, with George 3^rd. Overall, we had achieved what we planned and set some personal Te Mata Peak climb standards that will be difficult to match, let alone beat.