The DUAL 2010
Saturday, March 27th 2010 at 8:00 AM Rangitoto island, NZ- Distances:
- Mountain
- Weather:
- Local Weather
- Description:
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The DUAL event concept has been developed in conjunction with total sport and the Motutapu Restoration Trust (MRT). The key objectives of MRT are quite simple, they have a vision to replant large sections of Motutapu in native trees over the next 20 - 30 years, presently th... read more
- Website:
- http://thedual.co.nz/event_inf.html
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Race Reports
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A race of two halves
The Dual was a wonderful challenge and a good three and half hours on the bike. It starts from Home bay with a good climb out of the bay along district roads. The route follows the road across the island to Rangitoto island where the terrain changes as you cross over to the island. A long sloping hill leads you to the top of Rangitoto with a gentle climb to the top of the hill. Down the other side and back to Motutapu. The first 25 km is fast and fairly easy on the legs and lungs. The route then took us back to Home bay and out by the same climb heading to the northern side of the island. This where the fun started weaving in and out of valleys across grass plains. The going is far tougher and on some of the hills it is faster to push than try and cycle. The grass had been cut and the route prepared but it was still very hard on the legs. After about 15 km of roaming from hill to hill you return to the road and take on the last lap down the southern stretch of the island. The route takes you back to sea level and then proceeds up another jeep track / grass road. The final hill was hard going with a slight headwind which thankfully turned to a tail. At the top of the final hill you then descend down back to home bay and a welcome beer and a swim.
by Christopher C.
The race was well organized and enjoyable. The first 25kms were easy going and fairly quick. However the grass roads made for some tough cycling. I felt the grass went on for a little to long with to many dips into valleys and up the other side. Having said this, this was mountain biking at its most basic where the challenge is overcoming the steep uphills. All in all I should have been fitter and would have enjoyed it more.
