Vid+Photos: MTBNZ DH Nationals #1 – Queenstown

Words Jon Bokrantz

Photos Florent Carreyron

Date Jan 17, 2012

On the weekend of 8-9th January we saw the official start of the 2012 MTBNZ DH National Series, the main focus for the racers in the country that’s on everyone’s lips at the moment.

MTBNZ DH Queenstown downhill new zealand mountain bike nationals
Racing in Queenstown is all about big roosts and big mountains.

The race did not just bring some of New Zealands fastest racers to Queenstown but also the creationof a new track that stands out from the existing ones in this area. On a piece of private farm land, a few dedicated builders worked hard to come up with a track that would make this race something different. Instead of the regular Queenstown features that are berms, jumps and steepness, this track was all about speed, off camber corners, grass and endless amounts of dust.

MTBNZ DH Queenstown downhill new zealand mountain bike nationals
The heart of this track: loose off camber corners.

Challenging in a different way as the line choices were crucial and even the slightest tap on the brakes could send you into the spiky bushes. With a freshly built track like this you really had to be on your game and prepared for constant changes throughout the weekend.

MTBNZ DH Queenstown downhill new zealand mountain bike nationals
George Brannigan on his way to the win in Elite Men.

Everyone seemed to have their doubts about the course, but after two days of drifts, roosts and flat out speed the verdict was obvious; it was simply mean as. The initially smooth and seemingly easy track turned into a much bigger challenge as it quickly got filled up with big holes and the lines were changing each run. Not necessarily hard to ride at normal pace, but very hard to ride fast.

MTBNZ DH Queenstown downhill new zealand mountain bike nationals
The Super D expert Jerome Clementz managed to squeeze in at 4th.

The race was fast and tight with plenty of sketchy moments and visits to the other side of the tapes. We saw some interesting names fighting for the top spots, but finally George Brannigan managed to take the win in the stacked Elite Men field.

MTBNZ DH Queenstown downhill new zealand mountain bike nationals
A lot of people ended up on their faces, especially in this corner close to the finish.