Editors will take bike trails worldwide

An Instagram photo taken by Paris Gore showing himself with professional riders Mitch Ropelato, Christian Fairclough, Anneke Beerten and Hannah Barnes on the Southstar Shuttles jeep. Photo / Supplied

Rotorua's mountain biking scene may have received a tourism boost from Crankworx, but soon readers of 20 international magazines will get to see even more of what the city has to offer.

Rotorua was recently the venue for a new bike launch from United States-based firm Specialized Bicycles. The bike and other products are due to be launched next month.

Specialized flew the editors from across the world to stay beside Lake Rotoiti and experience the best Rotorua has to offer. The 10-day trip also included whitewater rafting, a cultural experience at Mitai Village and geothermal experience.

The trails will feature in photos starring the new product, due to be revealed next month.

"It was a fantastic privilege to be asked," said Cyclezone Rotorua owner Bryce Shapley.

"They got to see a massive chunk of the forest and shown a really good time. They were fizzing. Some of them had had a small taster before but to come here and do it properly ... We're definitely pushing to try to do more of this kind of stuff."

The editors and Specialized staff were taken to Rainbow Mountain, Western Okataina Walkway and throughout the Whakarewarewa Forest.

Among their riding experiences was using the Southstar Shuttles service, owned by local Jeff Carter.

"It's really cool to put Rotorua in that spotlight," he said.

"It's an honour for Specialized to select Rotorua. They're looking for international-level mountain biking and it helps cement Rotorua as an international mountain biking destination."

The visit coincided with the launch of Specialized's Destination Trail, a series of videos to be released on its Youtube channel.