Massive May of Adventure ends with a bang

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A massive May has ended with the completion of the third event on the BlackHeart Events May calendar - the Coffs Harbour Sprint Adventure race.

More than 50 teams from as far afield as Newcastle, Sydney, Tamworth and Brisbane joined an eager group of locals for Coffs first ever sprint distance adventure race.

Starting on Coffs Harbour's iconic jetty, competitors got their first real taste of adventure as the first checkpoint was to be found in the water, attached to three very excited volunteers who decided to give the competitors a thorough drenching (and shoe soaking).  Shoe's dripping, competitors then ran up to the Beacon Hill lookout before arriving at TA1 via the Coffs Creek boardwalk.

At TA1, teams split up with the first half of the field paddling up Coffs Creek to the Coffs Harbour Showgrounds, while the other half orienteered their way to the showground via the Coffs Creek Walk on the North side of the creek.  TA2 saw teams swap disciplines for the return to Park Beach Reserve, and TA3.

Onto the bikes, competitors were faced with a challenging ride through the northern extremities of the city, with visits to Park Beach, Diggers and Macauleys headlands, and the National Marine Science centre, before returning to the centre of the city and a mystery orienteer through the Botanic Gardens.

Only receiving the map at the entrance to the Botanic Gardens, teams were required to identify certain plant species once they arrived at each checkpoint, and write down a question relating to the plants that they found. Did you know that the Ctenanthe Oppenheimiana 'tricolour' is known as the Never Never Plant?  The Coffs competitors sure do....... now!  Some teams rose to this challenge while some were left looking like stunned deer caught in the high-beam.

Out of the botanic gardens and into the home stretch, teams tackled the kids fortress in the adventure playground before braving the  slippery dip - many teams being given outside assistance at this point by every child in the playground who were quick to point out where the "clicker thing" was to new arrivals.  Another (smallish) hill on the bike, and then onto the final CP, which was located a short ride down Coffs famous 4WD (and MTB) friendly Boambee beach.

Into the finish and a joint win for red-hot teams 'Two flat whites' (Glenn George and Craig Bulloch), and '2 More flat whites', (Lynwen Birch and Neil Charles) in the male and mixed categories, signalling their intentions and sounding a warning to teams travelling to the region for this years Geoquest.  Team Blondie (Lyndal Green and Emma Sutton) had a great race to take out the female category.  A strong showing by Double Trouble (Simon Burgess and 13 year old Zoe Burgess) took second in mixed, with second male team going to Bundy Bears (Peter Grant and Trevor McDougall), with second in the females going to Wild Things (Shona Walker and Karen Clarke).  Third mixed was Perfect Pizza Rogue Squadron (Isabel and Terry Garrett), third male  team "Where's the Baby?" (Brad Poidevin and Murray Vine), and third female going to Lost and Confused (Lee Burgess and Carolyn Carrigan).

Results are now up on the website, and photos should be up soon.  If you have a race report that you would like to submit (and go into the hunt for a $50 race voucher), please email it to us.

Thanks for showing us a great time Coffs.  We can't wait to get back up there in November to do it all again.

 

 

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Andy Blair claims Round 3 of the XCM Series
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A heavily loaded Elite field once again lined up with Series leaders Shaun Lewis and Jenny Fay surrounded by riders like Adrian Jackson, Andrew Blair, Jason English, Matt Fleming, Andy Fellows, Ben Mather and Trenton Day to name but a few. The previous 2 weeks of back to back racing unfortunately knocked 2011 Series champion Dylan Cooper off his best form rendering him unfit to start due to a cold.

It was a fast start as usual with Matt Fleming looking eager to attack as he put his foot down from the word go. However it was Ben Mather who lead Trenton Day and Adrian Jackson over the KOM climb. With 3rd over KOM Jackson earned a vital point and took lead in the KOM competition over Shaun Lewis. Andrew Blair, Andy Fellows, Jason English and Anthony Shippard were not far behind. Series leader Shaun Lewis was still in the mix but was in visible difficulty, also nursing a cold. It was not meant to be for Lewis who sat up soon after the KOM and returned to the start line to see who would take the leader's jersey off of his back, going into the 4th leg of the Series.

In the final few kilometres it was Blair and promising youngster Trenton Day fighting it out, but Blair proved too strong crossing the finish and breaking the course record by over 9 minutes. This also places Blair in the overall Series lead going into the 4th leg of the Series - the Stevens Bikes Husky100. Day came in second, also breaking the course record and establishing himself as one to watch should he be able to juggle his road calendar to do more XCM Series events. Third place was taken by defending Convict100 champion Ben Mather, who we will undoubtedly see more of as he regains his form before the end of the Series. Adrian Jackson and Anthony Shippard rounded off the top 5.

The ladies race was once again dominated by Jenny Fay who seems to be in a class of her own this year. Fay was first over the top of the QOM ahead of Becky Mates and Janet Martin and went on to finish a very impressive 20th overall, almost 20 minutes ahead of Mates. Mates will wear the Queen of the Mountain jersey at the Husky in 6 weeks time.
Property One assist Husky 100 riders with accommodation guarantees
Thursday, 03 May
Property One offer luxurious and affordable holiday lettings in the Jervis Bay/Nowra area, perfect for families or groups of mates travelling down to compete at the 2012 Stevens Bikes Husky 100.

Property One is happy to support the riders at this years Husky 100 with the following offers:
  • Late check-out: Check-out as late as 2pm, perfect for most riders to finish the event, shower and check-out, and be back at the event centre for presentations.
  • Free Date Transfer: If for any reason the Husky is postponed, you can transfer the date of your accommodation booking, without losing a cent of your booking fee.
  • Cancellation: If, for a genuine reason, you are unable to attend the rescheduled date for the event, you may cancel your accommodation booking and receive a full refund.
Now you can book your accommodation for the Husky 100 with confidence and peace of mind. Get in contact with Antonia at Property One and organise your accommodation soon, and tell them iAdventure sent you!

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