Mountain biking: Wilcox and Bloor dominant in winter series

DOMINANT: Manawatu's Josie Wilcox cruised to victory in the second round of the Cyclezone Winter MTB Series in Rotorua. PHOTO/PHOTOS4SALE

Six hundred competitors turned out to race in the second round of the Cyclezone Winter MTB series in Rotorua yesterday .

Josie Wilcox (Manawatu) and Cosmo Bloor (Cambridge) stamped their authority on the series as each made strong statements to their respective rivals, winning the day to
make it two from two for the series.

In a year where seemingly every major mountain biking event in Rotorua had been impacted by rain, the weather gods finally shone on the Winter Series. Quite literally, as the 600 competitors were greeted by a crisp but clear morning as the fabled trails once again played host to some fantastic racing.

"It's great to see the next generation of riders breaking through with great performances across all the race distances," race director Tim Farmer said.

"We really try and cater to everyone, and to see the new faces coming through really does give us great satisfaction."

In the feature long course event, men's winner Bloor was delighted with his victory.

The surprise he had felt with his race one breakthrough was replaced with a quiet confidence that saw him play his cards perfectly.

"It was really tough out there. The pace was really on, and while we didn't really let up, it did become a bit tactical between the three of us. I was lucky to time my move well and make it stick," Bloor said.

After nearly two hours of tough racing, trailing Bloor by a mere three seconds at the finish was Brad Jones, and just nine seconds further back the event's surprise package in Kyle Smith.

A name and face unfamiliar to most on the start line, the Taupo athlete surprised even himself with his performance.

"Today was a big surprise and a big confidence boost for me.

"I did do a couple of races a couple of years ago, but nothing serious. Coming in I knew I had a good engine, and I did used to do a little motocross and BMX, so I loved the technical descents. But yeah, I'm super happy to make the podium," Smith said.

While the men played out a tough and tactical battle, the performance of Wilcox was in complete contrast. She rode away in a dominant performance to not only win by 10 minutes, but beat home 90 per cent of the men's field.

Since emerging as a fresh face just two months ago at the Craters Classic Wilcox continues to go from strength to strength, and the day's challenging hills played right into her hands.

"Yeah I love the hills to be honest. I don't get a huge amount of practice on technical single-track. But I'm improving for sure, the more I get to ride that kind of stuff," Wilcox said.

While Wilcox rode a solitary race out front, the battle for second was intense as Samantha Kingsford beat Fiona MacDermid by a mere three seconds.

With just five weeks until the series finale in September, competitors will be training hard to try and turn the tables.