8hrs@Jacks in the Wakatipu
There is a new mountain bike race about to happen near Queenstown, New Zealand – Labour Weekend, 24th October.
8hrs@Jacks is a new multi-lap relay mountain bike event with a focus on team camaraderie, held in one of the nature’s most spectacular locations. This event has been inspired by a demand from elite and recreational mountain bikers for a fresh event in the Wakatipu and the Labour Day weekend has been chosen to celebrate the return of mountain biking to the Wakatipu basin.
Race Director Geoff Hunt of SouthernTraverse says: “This concept will see individuals and teams of two, three or four members competing on a seven to eight kilometre course through Jack’s Point over a period of 8 hours. The track is a brand new one created specifically for the event and traverses areas through rocky outcrops and even a small gum forest on the northern edge of the development before returning to the internal 8hrs@Jacks base camp trails.”
“Technically the course will be designed for the recreational biker and it will all be rideable on a brand new specially designed loop.Some sections will wind between trees and matagouri scrubs on a single lane trail while other uphill areas will allow passing opportunities for faster riders.”
As many of you in New Zealand undoubtably know, but others coming from further afield might not – Wakatipu, is in the South Island of New Zealand.
It is renowned for its scenic beauty, with its huge inland lake (the longest but third largest in NZ) surrounded by the Remarkables mountains on its southeastern edge. It is a popular venue for adventure tourism, with skifields, paragliding, bungy jumping and tramping tracks within easy reach. A vintage steamboat, the TSS Earnslaw regularly plies its waters. Handily, several vineyards are nearby! And now they’ve added Jack’s mountain bike trail to the list of things you can do here – something for everyone.
This event was born out of the idea of having a fun relay type mountain bike event set in the environments of Jacks Point. It is a scenic and challenging track that circles through the tent village before heading for the rocky valleys and terrain on the northern side of the Point.
Teams will compete in Junior, Open (men’s, women’s or mixed) and Veteran (men’s, open and mixed) sections. One rider per team rides a lap then tags a team mate. Elite riders are expected to complete the lap in about 35 minutes and the recreational competitors 45 minutes.
Details of the race, registration, etc can be found on the new web site created for the event: www.southerntraverse.com/jacks8hrs
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