Sean Lee

Balingup National MTBA Gravity Enduro: Race Day coverage!

What a huge weekend of bicycle racing! Seven stages, over a vertical kilometer of climbing, and a guest appearance from EWS #2; Mr Sam Hill.

Everyone was loving the Linga Longa Bike Park. Arguably some of the best trails in Australia, straight from the mouth of Sam himself. Huge jumps, hundreds of sculpted berms, super steep natural terrain, and epic 5+ minute trails that will test anyone. After a freezing (literally) morning, the sun came out and produced a perfect winter’s day in the Balingup hills.

Racing the trails blind with no practice, Sam Hill decimated the rest of the field by over a minute. Blake Pearce and Mark Frendo rounded out the Elite Men’s podium. Special mention to Luke Ball, who came second overall but didn’t have the coin for the National race registration and missed out on a result… someone sponsor this guy!

Sam Hill. You’d never suspect that he was riding the trails with zero practice, sending it into blind rock gardens at race speed
Shane Wode
Luke Ball

Julia Boer was the Elite Women’s winner, with Junior Sarah Tucknott taking out the fastest time of the day by over two minutes.

Sarah Tucknott on her way to destroying the women’s field by over two minutes
Sam Buchanan was one of the many juniors loving the big jumps
Only in his third year of racing, Blake Pearce is one to watch. After a crash earlier in the day, he fought hard and clawed his way back to second place.
Murray Dickson, foot out flat out in the off-camber woods
Mark Frendo on his way to third place

The Junior Men’s race is always a tight one with so many fast kids coming up the ranks. Jesse Morgan fought his way to the top of the podium, beating Roly Kyme and Harrison Dobrowolski who finished second and third respectively.

Healing vibes to all the riders who went down this weekend. The big jumps and steep terrain claimed more than a few collarbones and wrists.
Boxer’s Blast is a hard-packed runway of dirt
Boxer’s Blast is a hard-packed runway of dirt
A long day in the saddle for the Elite riders. Over 1200m of climbing over seven stages.

Full results can be found here. And download a PDF here.

And so that wraps up a brilliant weekend of racing. The guys at WAGE did a stellar job organising the event, bringing live music, movie screenings, and delicious catering from a local business. Everything ran so smoothly that presentations began ahead of time!

The next round of the 2017 MTBA Gravity Enduro National Series heads back across the country to Rockhampton, QLD, on the 8th & Sunday 9th July. For more information about the race check out: https://www.mtba.asn.au/calendar/genatseries2017_r4/

Photos and Story by Sean Lee