Bikes

BMX, Mountain Bikes, Dirt Jumping

Mar

2014

Australian Gravity Enduro Rnd. 1: Glenworth Valley

A new track and a new race circuit. Gil and I were there to cover it all under the guise of OuterImage.

The Australian Gravity Enduro Series kicked off the season with it’s inaugural race at Glenworth Valley one misty morning. The Gravity Enduro is a combination race of technical downhill and rolling single track enduro sections. Gil took the top half of the track, taking the bus up and walking down while I started at the bottom and headed up. Gil’s walk took him through scrubland along the rolling track where competitors had to pedal hard to keep their speed up. Whilst my walk took me through mosquito infested forests and up what was the downhill section. This technical section of track, tight, rocky and steep, got the better of many competitors throwing them from their bikes and although there was a few who had to pull out of the race the injuries were minimal. I have never seen so many mosquitoes as I saw there and despite splashing on the Aeroguard I still got destroyed. Note to self: Next time I have to shoot there pack a chameleon or some other mosquito eating creature in the bag.

Elite male was dominated by Victorian Dan MacMunn while the Elite Female fell to Sydneysider Genevieve McKew.

The series continues next in Victoria before heading out to South Australia, across to Western Australia, back his way to Stromlo in the ACT before finishing up later in the year at Cairns in the Queensland. Definitely something to watch out for when it comes your way.

If you are interested in riding this track at Glenworth Valley you will have to wait until the Rollercoaster event hits it later in the year as it will be closed between now and then.

Mar

2014

National Downhill Series Rnd 3 – Thredbo

A couple of weeks ago saw me make the trek down through NSW’s beautiful high country to cover the final round of the National Downhill Series at Thredbo. It was certainly a great event set in awesome scenery. The Elite Male series was taken out by Troy Brosnan and the Elite Female series by Michelle Crisp.

Below are a few shots from the weekend’s festivities.

Feb

2014

AMB 100, Mt. Stromlo

It’s been awhile but I’m back from my Christmas break. I have been working on personal projects over the preceding period (which, surprise surprise, does include MTB photography amongst other things).

But now the race season has kicked off and I’m back at it with Gilbert Romane and our team effort, OuterImage. First up was the AMB 100 put on by Australian Mountain Bike and Rocky Trail Entertainment. What a scorcher. Knowing that temperatures were supposed to climb over the course of the day Rocky Trail decided to bring the start forward an hour making the 100 milers start at 5.00am and the rest start at 8.00am. This provided some great opportunities for Gil and I to get some great shots in the beautiful early morning light and kept things a bit cooler for the riders.

We have shot at Stromlo before but Gil and I both wanted to find some new locations and keep things fresh. The track was 25kms long much longer than the 10km track used for the enduro so there was plenty of new spots for us to choose from. Gil scouted locations the day before and picked some fine spots for us.

As the day progressed the heat played a definite factor. At 1.00pm they closed the track. Most everyone who had set out to do their laps had finished and only a few stragglers struggled on in the heat. By the end of the race the temperature had soared to 39C and it was good to come off the mountain and find some shade.

Dec

2013

Matt Staggs: Downhill Mountain-biker

As a junior Matt has been leaving his mark in Rocky Trail Entertainments Redass downhill series. At the age of 14 he was shooting above his age by racing in the Under 17’s and consistently finished in the top 10. Now 15 he is setting his sights on bigger targets.

How long have you been racing for?
I started racing at the start of this year. Did about 4 club rounds and then competed in my first state round at Del Rio in June. So less than a year

Who are your sponsors?
VR Transportation/No Nice Racing, Deity Components. (Also although not a sponsor a big thanks goes to POC Australia for helping fitting Matt out in this shoot)

What’s bike do you ride?
I ride a giant glory. Almost bone stock, except for a new rear wheel which was wrecked in the rain.

What is it about riding that fires you up?
I love downhill riding because the adrenaline rush you get when you try something new or bigger than you have ever done before and get it really clean is amazing. That feeling is the best. Also the fun of riding and chilling out on the local track with mates if fun and relaxed.

Favourite tracks?
Lithgow – Loose dry dust is so fun. Awaba – Difficult in the rain but get the adrenaline pumping which is exciting. Warrimoo – My home track has to be, it’s where i started and is the reason I am where I am now, Thanks Marty (The builder)

If you could ride anywhere where would it be?
Most people would say Whistler Bike Park. I would ride anywhere that has a good technical track to test and grow your skills. If that place has good mates to hang out with while riding, that’s where my place would be.

Home trails?
Warrimoo, St. Ives. A lot of work has gone into the trail, keeping it maintained. The builder, Marty, deserves everything for the amount of time and effort he puts into keeping the track running and fighting the council to keep it from being bulldozed. Every single time I ride there he is there either fixing, making a new feature, or maintaining the track. I always offer to help but he never takes up my offer, or anyone’s for that matter. He deserves way, way more credit for the amazing trails he has created. Thanks Marty!

Tell us a bit about your competition results?
State Rounds – DelRio – 10th U17, Ourimbah 9th U17. Lithgow State Champs – 9th U17. Awaba – DNS.

What plans does the future have for you?
I really want my life to revolve around riding. Anything to do with riding I will be happy with. But my main goal is to actually be a riding at the elite level. I am working everyday to try and make myself fitter, stronger and faster. Aiming for that goal is going to be a long and hard journey but I am willing to take it if it will get me where I want.

Nov

2013

King’s School MTB Classic

King’s School at Parramatta was the venue for last weekend’s mountain bike race that I was covering with OuterImage. It was on a short course of around 4km’s and a short race of 2 hours but this just meant that the pace was stepped up and laps were knocked out at high speed. The short course also meant there was a constant stream of people coming by once the field had spread out a bit, everyone from the head down and go hards to the just out for a few laps and a giggle with my kid type of people.

The temperature warmed up through the day and started to push up into the 30’s adding to another test of endurance for the riders. Shooting down in the shade of the trees things were a bit cooler. Being busy like that and the short time meant that it was all over before I knew it.

We tried a few different things this race including a series of black and whites and Gil setting-up some strobes to get a set of portraits from before and after the race.

To finish off the day Cadel Evans and Jack Haig, two of Australia’s cycling superstars, were present to give out the trophies and also to cut the ribbon officially opening the track.

Sep

2013

Shimano MTB GP 5 – Stromlo

Last weekend was the final round of this year’s Shimano GP enduro series held on the wonderful trails of Mount Stromlo Forest Park near Canberra. Again I was there with OuterImage to capture the action. There was forecast for rain but once again the weather held and we had beautiful clear skies. That did mean the track was a bit dusty for the riders but it did give us the chance for some interesting shots.

Stromlo Forest Park is situated on the side of Mount Stromlo near Canberra. There is some beautiful trails there. Some years ago the area was destroyed by a fire which burnt most of the trees to the ground. A massive replanting program has since happened and slowly the area is regaining a lot of its trees. With the trees being quite small though views around the trails can be wonderful looking out across the surrounds and across Canberra.

Over 300 competitors competed this year at the Stromlo event and after shooting the whole series I recognised many familiar faces there too. Eliza Kwan and Troy Herfoss took out their 7hr solo categories while Kyle Ward and Wendy Stevenson took out their 4hr categories. Just in case you were wondering, as a rough idea the course is usually around 10km’s in length. Troy managed to complete 15 laps or around 150kms in 7 hrs.

So that’s it for this year as far as this series goes. We are quite often out shooting for fun at many local tracks around the Sydney region. If you see us out there be sure and stop for a quick hello. If you are competing in any races soon there is always a chance we will be around too, we tend to swing by a lot of them even if it’s just as spectators.

As this was the final in the series Gil and I would like to say a big thank you to all the competitors who raced this season and made our work as much fun as it is. A big congratulations to all the winners from the races and the series. And of course a huge thank you to Martin and Juliane from Rocky Trail Entertainment for all there hard work in putting on such a wonderful series.