Our man on the ground hit up Thredbo for the Flow Rollercoaster NSW State Enduro Championships, which was being held on the same weekend as the Red Ass NSW State downhill Series (check out our report for that hereA�). Check out what he had to say about a fun event;
This past weekend the Flow Rollercoaster NSW championships was held in Thredbo. With the recently built flow trail at Thredbo playing host to the race, it was sure to be an exciting weekend. Rocky Trail Entertainment are the event organisers in NSW for the rapidly growing enduro/all mountain format and have already run two Flow Rollercoaster races this year at Ourimbah and Del Rio. However this race was a standalone event, as it had a championship status there were no series points. Arriving late Friday afternoon it was off to the registration area, there I met Juliane and Martin who run Rocky Trail.
The next morning it was an early start as practice and racing was all in one day. Whilst waiting for the lift to start I was given a rundown of the track from a rider who had been practicing the previous day and it only add to the excitement when he told me the speeds he had been reaching. Heading up on the lift it was a cold day but there was no rain. After doing numerous practice runs and having an awesome time, it was off for lunch before race runs. In this time the weather changed for the worst and heading up of the lift for the races saw rain and even hail. Arriving at the top riders were reluctant to head down to the start, as it was the only cover from the weather. Arriving at the start gate saw sleet and rain which would affect the track drastically.
With the format riders were able to head down as they pleased, with top riders such as Dan MacMunn and Ryan De La Rue being some of the first to head down. Their runs would be in extremely muddy conditions, along with most of the field. Heading down the track it was extremely slippery compared to practice. After the first runs were completed it was Dan MacMunn who had the fastest time. There were numerous riders opting out of a second run due to the weather. Heading up for aA�second run it would be a gamble as to whether the track would be worse or not. Getting to the bottom after theA�second runA�it was evident that the track was in a lot better condition, drying out a great deal, after having some many riders over it.
At presentations it was clear that the riders that headed up for a second run were rewarded, local Tomas Crimmins took the win from Victoriana��s Dan MacMunn and Ryan De La Rue in 2nd and 3rd. Whilst in the women’s it was Sarah Booth taking the win from Tegan Molloy in 2nd and Vanessa Thompson in 3rd. With the event being run alongside the first round of the Red Ass NSW State downhill numerous downhill riders choose to do both events, in total there were 141 competitors. After presentations riders and spectators headed to the pump track for a fun contest. It was evident that this had been a successful event which Rocky Trail had put on and I would strongly recommend it to riders.
Words and Images: Lucas Pitt