Cycling: Hawke's Bay mixed open team conquer Tour of NZ South Island leg

The Brew Crew 1 and 2 team members Andy Horne (left), Nigel Hulena, Scott Heasley, Chris Jarvis, Robbie Hislop, Jo Baker, Warren Simpson and Glen Yule. PHOTO/SUPPLIED

Clocking around 700km in seven days in the saddle of a bicycle may not be everyone's idea of fun but a Hawke's Bay team have not only accomplished the feat but also have shown they mean business.

The Brew Crew 2 team of Jo Baker, Glen Yule, Scott Heasley and Robbie Hislop conquered the South Island course as the first open mixed team last weekend.

"Glen had done it before so he put a team together and we were lucky enough to be part of that team," says Baker. Her husband, Neil Baker, became a support rider in smaller stages after breaking his shoulder in a cycling accident in the lead up to the Tour of New Zealand, which runs every two years.

"For us it was a good way to just see the South Island," says the 43-year-old secretary at Waipukurau Primary School, of a tour that staged a simultaneous ride from Kaitaia to the Beehive.

The awesome Bay foursome, who are avid Ramblers Cycling Club members and were among a field of 200 (individuals/teams) capped riders from both legs, started at Five Rivers, about 80km south of Queenstown, on April 1. They covered anywhere from 2.5 to 4.5 hours a day to finish in Wellington, where the endurance ride concluded with criterium around the Beehive.

The riders took in some breathtaking views from Wanaka, Tekapo, Springs Junction to Picton. Rain punctuated their journey in three days but it wasn't too disruptive - although they did encounter sleet one day.

"Our fingertips and toes were freezing but our support crew had hot pies and things like that ready for us, which was great," she says.

Andy Horne, Nigel Hulena, Chris Jarvis and Warren Simpson comprised the Brew Crew 1 team, who were the fourth team across the line in the corporate men's category. Three members are colleagues.

Riding two to four hours a day, five days a week (about 400km/week) to prepare for the endurance event was in itself a motivation.

All riders were on a charitable crusade and the Brew Crew teams were championing the cause of Bikes in Schools.

"You could go on the website to donate to many charities and there are some pretty amazing ones there with a lot of money raised," she says, suspecting it had exceeded the $300,000 threshold.

Brew Crew 2 won all of the eight stages and, to top it off, Baker finished third in an invitational criterium for top five female riders only from each island.

"It was a tight, gnarly course but on a perfect day for Wellington with no wind and not a cloud in the sky so it was just a lot of fun," she says, revealing the top riders, including at least one female rider, were counted at the end of each stage for the team points.

"The boys looked out for the female riders - not saying that they were weaker or that they look at as me as the girl in the group."

Baker says it wasn't their intention to be so dominant but they took it as a bonus when it dawned on them after a couple of stages that they were leading.

"We went along with just the expectation of finishing each stage, enjoying the sights and meeting people."

While she's used to hanging out on the highway with blokes, a jovial Baker says male riders tend to push her outside her comfort zone.

"They are not overly nice but they do [push me along]," she says with a laugh, relishing riding alongside other female riders in the field of similar ability.

Baker salutes Yule's wife, Judith, and Grant Jarvis as diligent support crew members because they couldn't have done it without their input.

The South Island route had an instant appeal because the Brew Crew teams, indebted to sponsors Bay Espresso and Rooster's Brewhouse, were pretty familiar with the North Island scenery.

Baker is partial to doing the South Island route again in 2019, comfortable in the knowledge that she will be aware of what's likely to crop up to heighten that experience.