2010 Mt Beauty VDHS RD#3
The current VIC Downhill Series could possibly be the best racing season that we have seen for years....and we are only 3 rounds in! Mt Beauty did not disappoint living up to all the expectations of the event organisers and riders. I had never been to Mt Beauty before and after speaking to some people about the track, I believed that it would be quite tight and simple. This might have proved correct for the first couple of hours of Saturdays practice but after the lines and holes formed on the dry and dusty soil the track showed its true potential.
The reality of this race was quite complex. Weather conditions in the mid 30s for both days and over 300 registered riders would not be an easy task for Team Mount Beauty and Flat Tyre Flyers to get it right. For some riders they had spent the past couple of months having a break from riding and spending some time enjoying the Christmas break or being busy with work. On other hand some riders had spent time in other forms of the sport and racing at national level keeping prepared for this race. Loads of local, interstate and even some international riders were competing for their various categories. The local crowd arrived in force to watch the event with one of the most exciting finishes of any track in the series.
After spending some time speaking with riders on the course and in the shuttle lines I was not surprised to hear that everyone was enjoying the riding. The shuttles where slightly slower then at previous rounds but this was due to keeping the transport safe and free from any problems. Regardless, where else can riders catch a coach with Earthed 5 on the DVD player! Buy the end of Saturday’s practice a few sneaky lines had formed and the course was quite beaten up. This made the course so much more fun and technical. There was lots of drifting and a huge crater like bomb hole that some of the more fearless racers were able to hop over and also the finish with a huck to drifty corner to please the crowd.
What would the KONA VIC DH Series be without a party on the Saturday night? Mt Beauty did not disappoint with a live band called ‘TOSS’ at the local pub and many a rider soothing any injuries with a cold lager. Alex Swan was able to party hard due to a nasty hand injury sustained while taking his number plate off with a pair of scissors at Mt Baw Baw the week previous. Needless to say all Yarra Valley Cycles riders will adhere to a new policy to only use Velcro strapping instead of zip ties for race plates! However Sunday came around quite quickly and it was time to head back to the track to get the business end of the weekend completed.
Sunday had hot, but perfect weather for racing. There was plenty of shade on the course and the spectators took advantage of this. After the 1 minuet silence for the Black Saturday disaster it was time to get up the hill and take home the money. A big thanks goes to Stewart Winton and his timing crew. The new Tag Heuer system that FTF have purchased has made our series so much better. I think the efficiency of the timing was one of the highlights of the event. With 12 different categories racing the crowd was certain to get plenty of thrills. It was great to see 15 old farts racing in the KONA Master’s category with Glen Carlson winning buy over 5 seconds. The younger old farts in the Evo Cycles Veterans followed with Torquay Cycling Factory’s sexiest rider Jarrod Zdrzalka sneaking the win by 0.04 seconds. Kim McLeod set the pace for the 39 strong Yarra Valley Cycles Experts with a fantastic win by 3 seconds and well deserved prize of Mavic EX721 rims sponsored by Ty at KONA/Groupe Sportif. The iRide 17’s was taken out by Dean Lucas ahead of class favourite James Carter and 3rd placed new to the scene - Mac West-Moore. The KONA Elite Woman’s class had 11 racers which was not something we are used to but still glad to see. The pressure was on for Yarra Valley Cycles sponsored Leonie “Rabbit” Picton and she did not disappoint taking home the cash, trophy and prizes with a 10 second win.
The TeKin Suspension 19’s is always an exciting and hotly contested class with many determined riders putting it on the line. There has been a big battle in this class between the top two riders representing two competing sponsors but at the end of the day Berettas Bike Hub/TeKin Suspension/Fox Racing Shox/Swift Strength and Conditioning rider, Aden Wyber was too strong with a 7.6 second win and a time of 3:10 that would have seen him easily take 5th place in Elite Men. Surely this young man is getting ready for Worlds and hopefully with his consistency and skills he will do Victoria proud. This left the 36 strong KONA Elite Men field to come down the hill and to the excitement of the crowd the racing was fierce. Local favourite Liam Panozzo qualified first with a 3:08 with KONA rider Josh Button and Joel Panozzo following closely behind. Everyone’s favourite American, ODI rider Brad Oien, was looking strong qualifying in 5th but a crash in his race run would see him finish well out of the points. Laurie Dinham was looking smooth as always and bringing his Swiss suspension centre team with him, he was able to finish in a very respectable 5th place. Specialized rider Rhys Atkinson (who just may be the favourite to take out the series overall) played possum in qualifying but came back strong in the final to get 4th overall. The local Panozzo brothers rode strong and tried to get the fastest time. Joel finished with a 3:08.5 which would see him in 3rd and Liam was able to squeeze a 3:07.3 out of the course and take the hot seat with one rider remaining. This left KONA rider Josh Button to take on the clock as the last rider on the course. With the conditions being much the same as qualifying he was able to smash his qualifying time and finish 1st overall with a 3:05.0 and taking home some well earned cash and the number 1 trophy for the event.
That was the racing over and done with. With most of the riders having a long journey home the pits were cleared out and the focus for many have now turned to the KONA Victorian Downhill Championships that are coming up at the end of the month at Mt Baw Baw. A massive thanks has to go to all the boys and girls at Team Mount Beauty and the Flat Tyre Flyers for making the event the success it was. Also to all the volunteers and transport drivers that gave up their weekend so we can enjoy the funniest and most exciting sport on the planet.
See you at the Champs!
Nathan ‘NATO’ Murphy
Originally Posted by Curlz12
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