More than 1000 people watched the Slopestyle event in 2020. Photo / Andrew Warner
Rotorua is abuzz with excitement as Crankworx Rotorua gets under way.
The final stop on the Crankworx World Tour will officially begin tomorrow, with top local and international mountain bikers riding between November 5 and 13.
Top Kiwi athletes getting ready to go head-to-head include local Rotorua competitors Jenna Hastings and Dan Butterworth.
Butterworth shared his hopes and thoughts ahead of his events with the Rotorua Daily Post.
The John Paul College student, 18, secured fourth in SilverStar Pump Track at Crankworx in Canada and fourth in Pump Track at Crankworx Cairns.
This time, Butterworth was aiming for a podium finish.
He was competing in four events in total.
"It's a pretty busy week."
Butterworth said he was excited for the event to begin and said it was cool to be competing as a pro on home soil.
"I'm a little nervous to be in front of a home crowd but also so excited. It will be fun having everyone there watching."
When he was not competing he would be resting and watching other events.
Hastings was also excited to be back in Rotorua and was keen to show other competitors the city.
She said she was not putting too much pressure on herself, with Crankworx Rotorua ending a busy year of competing, and was keen to have some fun.
Hastings took the year off school, also from John Paul College, spending a lot of time overseas. This included winning the junior women's downhill world title in France earlier in the year.
She picked the downhill and pump track events as where she would perform the strongest but thought the chances of a spot on the podium would depend on how the other competitors were feeling on the day.
Hastings finished third in Pump Track at pro level in Cairns last month.
Crankworx Rotorua is made up of two components, the Taniwha Downhill from November 4 to 6, and the ticketed event which will run from November 8 to 13.
The Taniwha will be held in the Whakarewarewa Forest, and was free for spectators, as it was a non-ticketed event.
A Crankworx spokeswoman said they were looking forward to seeing locals and visitors join the spectator experience.
Shuttle vans will complete an ongoing loop to assist spectators to enjoy the action from Waipa Carpark.
The ticketed event at Skyline included a free pass for locals on November 9 and 10.
Festival passes can be purchased for the full six days and ticket sales remain open leading into the live event.
Rotorua MP Todd McClay said he would be down at the opening on Saturday and said there was already a buzz around town.
He encouraged people to get out of the house to go along and watch the events and support the international riders competing.
"It's extremely exciting it's back in Rotorua and the public and visitors can attend."
He said the event had a big impact on the local economy.
Rotorua mayor Tania Tapsell said she was "super excited" to see the event get under way.
It was fantastic to welcome the event back particularly given its "significant" economic and social benefit.
She said she would be heading along to watch as much as possible.
Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment major events manager Kylie Hawker-Green previously said Government investment through the Major Events Fund was approved for events that generated significant economic, social and cultural benefits for New Zealand.
She said the cumulative economic impact of the 2015-2021 events was independently assessed at $25.9 million.
The 2015-2021 events attracted around 1500-1600 international athletes per year, who stayed an average of 10.4 nights.
This did not include benefits generated by domestic attendance nor the ongoing contribution made by visitors who visited the region outside of the event window as a result of the awareness created through the events for Rotorua as a mountain bike destination.
The Rotorua event received a total of $2,796,758 from 2015 to 2021 from the investment. Most recently, it was approved to receive another $5.1m from 2022 to 2027.
RotoruaNZ marketing manager Haydn Marriner said it was expecting that the city will be at full capacity as it has been during previous events.
"The follow-on effects for our accommodation, hospitality and retail businesses are phenomenal as out-of-town visitors come to Rotorua to experience Crankworx," Marriner said.
"We know from previous years that places like Eat Streat are at full capacity during Crankworx events and we expect a repeat of this for this year's event."
Accommodation bookings were sitting at about 80 to 90 per cent for next weekend.