Paul Charteris: Meticulous planning oiled Crankworx's wheels

The success of Crankworx was due to meticulous planning.

Thousands crowded the grassy embankment at Crankworx watching riders dropping in from the stratosphere and landing tricks that simply defy belief.

The real magic of Crankworx is what happens behind the scenes in the weeks and months leading up to the event, and importantly, what this means for Rotorua - for which the payoff will be huge.

The event itself is the culmination of months of meticulous planning, tens of thousands of emails, phonecalls and late night Skype sessions to far-flung corners of the globe.

For every person seen working hard at Crankworx, such as the announcers, ticket gate staff and Croucher beer dispensers, there are 10 others behind the scenes. Often well behind the scenes.

Many of them are local businesses that have been contracted to provide services and products such as event logistics, health and safety, signage, media liaison, traffic management and economic assessment. The payoff to these businesses extends well beyond dollars in the bank. It's the skills and expertise they have gained, plus the infrastructure that has been built is transferable to other events in the Rotorua area.

Much of the groundwork for this event was laid as far back as 2006 with the hosting of the mountain bike world championships.

Among the behind the scenes heroes were the media team. The media centre at Crankworx was the base for around 170 accredited media, hidden inside a large Destination Rotorua marquee where dozens of reporters, with as many different accents, crowded in elbow-to-elbow around a large central table or reclined on beanbags. Facebook, Instagram and Twitter were at the ready as they piped out images and stories to fans across the globe.

From the pohiri welcome at Te Puia, the Enduro race in the Whaka Forest and through to the final run on the Slopestyle course, this was more than just about the riders. This was about riders connecting with the local vibe - the people, the culture, the landscapes - having a real Kiwi experience.

Many of the riders had tens of thousands of Facebook fans, their sponsors, whose fans often number in the hundreds of thousands or millions. Swedish super-star, Martin Soderstrom, just let his world-wide fans know how much he's looking forward to returning to Rotorua. American bike manufacturer, Specialized, with 600,000 fans, just changed their Facebook profile picture to one that contains the "Famously Rotorua" brand.

Red Bull, with 42 million Facebook fans, is encouraging everyone to check out coverage of the Rotorua Slopestyle Event on its own Facebook page. Athletes and their brand sponsors are the new media - and our local team who helped them every step of the way has done our city proud.

Well done to the local organising team. Event director Tak Mutu, event manager Ari Tibble and media and marketing director Jenha White will, no doubt, catch up some much needed sleep in the coming weeks.

In the meantime, I am sure that all other event organisers, visitor attractions, accommodation providers and contractors owe them a huge thank you.

-Rotorua's Paul Charteris is the founder of the Tarawera Ultramarathon and Tarawera Trail Marathon and 50k events.