Matt and Dave go to the 2006 World MTB Champs

Whilst on the search for some rock climbing over in Rotoura Matt, Aaron and I stumbled upon a little Mountain Bike Racing...yes it was the 2006 World MTB champs in Rotoura and it was all good in the hood! We dropped in after a cranking ride in the Redwoods to check out the men's cross country race and took a few photos. Good times. We also watched some of the Downhill (INSANE!) on Saturday but did'nt take a camera up as it looked like it was going to bucket down with rain so no photos of that.

Here's the start/finish area as viewed from the Gondola (no hill climbing for us lazy sods!) Apparently 40,000 people there on both days. MADNESS!

Matt and I after our tough climb up to the top of the hill....ok it was a kinda hard walk from the Gondola to here....

And the mens race was underway! Here they go whizzing around the course flat out!
Here's Matt checking out the trail action. We started at the top of the course and worked our way down to the start/finish checking out the action along the way. Good times! Here's the mysterious rider from the far away country of "Blur-ic-stan" (a former USSR republic). Very, very fast! Apparently everyone is so fast due to a combination of hungry wolves and residual radiation left over from Soviet Nuclear weapons testing....

Here's some good stuff, nice and nasty log drops to keep the action level up.

OH NO! Team Japan eats SHIT! Ha ha Don't panic, he was ok and got back on his bike and kept on cranking to the cheers from the crowd! (Not that Matt and I can laugh after both having had a number of crashes in the last few weeks just like this one...)

It's a tight right angle turn into the log drops and some riders just didn't make it. Quite a bit of carnage on the day. People off the track etc and we watched one guy run past with a pretty buggered front wheel after a nasty crash.

Where did that guy come from??? Shocking illegal head intrusion into the 2006 Worlds Course.

All up a great weekend.

D

Duntrooooooooon!!!!!!

Right, I got some photos from the world class climbing destination of duntroon!
For those of you who havent been there, dont get to excited....unless..... you want to climb some short, steep as, burly as, sport routes. And if your only alternative is long beach (poo to that!).
The mid grade steep routes are actually rather stella. The one below, "Dr with finger up his Arse" (26), I havent sent yet but its kinda fun with a 2bolt slopey traverse into the crux which I'm flailing at. I dont think this is how its done. Its a shitty side pull!

Lisa is on one of the best routes at sin city, a 3star 20m 21 called 'Tease the dragon", Big holds and actually really steep and sustained.

Seems to be fresh bouldering potential across the valley from the main climbing, its vaguely mentioned in the old guide book.
We've sent about a dozen new problems, of which most are real shit hot. The area is called Rhino rocks. This may have been a repeat, but it rocks, with powerfull pocket pulling.

The new bouldering area "Rhino rocks" is on the boulders along the base of the chossy crag

No this isn't castle hill. .....Elephant rocks for some easy toproping.

I'll try to score some more bouldering photos when I can convince more people to actually come out to duntroon.....hmmm.....sounds like the airstrip development days.....

Ciao

Yeah I Wagged Work and Went Skiing with my Mate Young Tim

Yeah – I wagged work last Wednesday and went skiing with my mate Young Tim Woolford. The weather was good and work was told to get bent so we went hard nuts for the day. All good.

We ski’d all day with a 10 min wee break and it was all “oh yeah rock my world good”. We rode the whole mountain cranking it way out west on Black Magic with the Hamilton R&R ski boys James and Derek.

Tim took it up a notch doing some drops out west. All good! And he lived to tell the tale.

Here’s Till the next day off work!

Tim cranking it up



Holy shit! Who is that hairy ski legend? He looks hard as nails! Would not want to mess with him.....

James the dirty old Telemarker free healing it in style

....and then eating snow!

Tim lines it up and drops in....

and "oh yeah" rides it out in good style. BAD BOYS!

angel of pain..

Went to the hill yesterday, im so freken weak..just flashed a 6... it was an easy 6...
but anyway, i belayed derek on aop, and me and stu had a play on it.The monos are super cool man!deep and rounded!First of all i couldnt even get to the monos cause of this stupid hard shoulder lock /press thing.so had to wait for stu to throw down, then i jugged up to the pocs.being short makes it so much harder aye!the short man sequence is the new crux for derek. He didnt have the best day, getting a flapper on the top of his finger chalking the holds.(from holding one of the monos with the wrong hand), but he linked it from just after the crux.(the mantles insane!)
but anyway, i couldnt get any photos of derek cause of obvious reasons (belay) heres a couple of stu.


this is the 'short' crux move, right hands in a mono, i think stus going all the way to the next mono, derek has to grab that tiny crimp just left of his hand, smear his foot on this tiny nubbin then stab with his left again to the mono below the draw.

Stu's kinda skipped a move here to get to the draw, your ment to have your right hand in the two finger where his left is, then a huge cross to the series of monos around the next draw, your left hand travels like 6 feet or something insane!

Daniel Jenkins is filming a 'doco' or something of dereks attempts, so when he sends it'l be like you were really there!

How was the tomo??

See yous in two weeks.

james

Waitomo bouldering guides

I've just about finished a rehash of Mt clampit guide if anyone is keen. No topo photos 'cause i forgot to get some before i left the summery north. Nevermind.
Not sure on access. The farm was taken over by a local family and i suspect they may be a bit land possessive. Tread with care.
If some one diplomatic could approach them first and explain what we do, maybe show them a guide, and explain the low impact nature of our goings on, we might come out on top.
Let them know that the rabbit owners (i think its the Tranmars) had no problems with us going up there. Yes, theres lots of cute bunnys in the sheds and we have to agree to STAY AWAY from them.

I'm going to send Bevan a disc of the Airstrip guide and Mt Clampit guide. So if you want them see him.
Bevan! send me yer land mailing address.

Sweet
Oh yea, found an undeveloped bouldering area so its back to new problems. Shit rock but stella lines coming right at ya.
ciao
John