Coffs Marathon

[spudatm]

What did people think of the Coffs marathon yesterday?
Does anyone know who won the 100k?

[RED_RACER]

Craig Gordon won, I wasn't that suprised, he is a monstor! The battle for the minor positions was also a fairly close race. I think Craig finished after 4:40 and the top mortals finished closer to 5hrs. The track was muddier than I would have hoped but the z-mins (ritchey) worked great! The coffs club did a great job!

[sruge]

For this mere sub-mortal, the combo of energy sapping mud, the extra climbing (to the highest point), the higher temperature than last year and the extra 7 kms was just a bit too much. Thought last year's course was great, but got my feeding wrong and cramped up. Not sure about the reasons for the move to September, but a.f.a.i.k, Coffs is drier through winter. The extra mud resulting from the overnight thunderstorm and the extra warmth were probably the difference between finishing tired, but satisfied and finishing shattered and slightly disappointed. Still, you have some awesome terrain and some truly sweet sections of track, so props to your club for the trails and the event.

[krizbike]

What did people think of the Coffs marathon yesterday?
Does anyone know who won the 100k?

I did the 50k and enjoyed it. ahem. sorry - I mean the 60k. More on that later.

Good points:
Loved the single track
Loved some of the built obstacles (even managed to ride the bridge/log over the creek without falling in).
Didn't mind the climbs, as it was paid back with some awesome fast downhill firetrails (hit 63km/h on one).
Lotsa friendly riders all willing to have a chat or a bitch along the way.
Good nutrition advice from my gf who is studying sports nutrition and that helped A LOT as I didn't gonk at any time.
Mud was a bit annoying, but really not that bad compared to the Ottways!

Bad Points:
The checkpoints were really low on water. For me that wasn't too bad since I was carrying enough to last the "soft" marathon. But if I was doing the full 100km I would have needed a refill somewhere, and other riders I spoke to said that some of the checkpoints were out of water. Would be good to hire one of those huge trailers of water for about the 50k mark.
No water at the finish either. I ended up helping one of the volunteers walk over to the neighbour's house to fill up a drum of water.
The change in distance! Nothing like getting to the 40k mark and then being told that I still had 20k to go. I wouldn't have minded if I had known before the race as I would've paced riding and eating for that length. That should have been announced back at rego when we were told the start had moved.

So - it was a great race, but with a couple of organisational improvements, it would have been even better.

hmmm, now when do the results get put up? :-)

Chris

[spudatm]

Im happy that I did the race, but i won't be going back. Ive done all the {half}marathon races in NSW in the past 12 months and this was a disapointment. Now the weather is out of the organisors hands. I didn't mind the mud too much just made a hard race tougher. But what i am dissapointed with is the extra 9ks, the lack of water and the fact that most of the marshals had no idea of how long there was to go.
I can handle a 60 k but please tell me before hand so I can cater for it. This is a hard sport that you need to properly prepare for. Tacking 9 ks on to the course is a bit rough without any notice.
The lack of water was a joke. Anyone who was at the Angry doctor dirt works or the fling can tell you how well stocked the drink stations are. It looked like they had gone to aldi that morning and bought 15 litre water tubs and that was about it. Having marshals who know where they are is probably a good idea, when i clued onto the fact that it was no longer 50ks i asked the marshals how far i was from the finnish many would simply say your almost there, where as one just told me to stop whinging. Having said all that the course is good with some great sections in it but there certainly needs to be some logistical improvements.

[Sumgy]

Im happy that I did the race, but i won't be going back. Ive done all the {half}marathon races in NSW in the past 12 months and this was a disapointment. Now the weather is out of the organisors hands. I didn't mind the mud too much just made a hard race tougher. But what i am dissapointed with is the extra 9ks, the lack of water and the fact that most of the marshals had no idea of how long there was to go.
I can handle a 60 k but please tell me before hand so I can cater for it. This is a hard sport that you need to properly prepare for. Tacking 9 ks on to the course is a bit rough without any notice.
The lack of water was a joke. Anyone who was at the Angry doctor dirt works or the fling can tell you how well stocked the drink stations are. It looked like they had gone to aldi that morning and bought 15 litre water tubs and that was about it. Having marshals who know where they are is probably a good idea, when i clued onto the fact that it was no longer 50ks i asked the marshals how far i was from the finnish many would simply say your almost there, where as one just told me to stop whinging. Having said all that the course is good with some great sections in it but there certainly needs to be some logistical improvements.

Was this a TWP event??
Sounds like them.

[spudatm]

Yeah it is

[RED_RACER]

I've recommended that the club look for another promotion company as it is a great track and the club puts in heaps of effort. I try and get to their events.

I put my drink bottle in a container to get taken out to the 1st drink station as I had no handler. It apparently got there about 5 mins after we went through...not ideal on a stinkin hot day! I'm just glad I took the camel back, I feel sorry for those people who were told they could only have half a cup of water, how frustrating for you. Before you decide not to come back again, check to see who is organising it next year.

[Sumgy]

Yeah it is

Exactly the same sorts of things have happened at some of their QLD events.
Poorly and amateurishly run.

[spudatm]

I've recommended that the club look for another promotion company as it is a great track and the club puts in heaps of effort. I try and get to their events.

I put my drink bottle in a container to get taken out to the 1st drink station as I had no handler. It apparently got there about 5 mins after we went through...not ideal on a stinkin hot day! I'm just glad I took the camel back, I feel sorry for those people who were told they could only have half a cup of water, how frustrating for you. Before you decide not to come back again, check to see who is organising it next year.

in my mind the race didn't reflect the efforts of the club. i think they do a great job. Ive been up that way on holdidays and ridden the trail network especially Cows with Guns and its a great place to ride. The event definately reflects poorly on the event organisors. Some aspects are good, I like my tshirt and water bottle but i would have traded them at any moment for WATER and a clue to where i was. as your average punter I just want value for money. Would other sport's "like events" have the same issue? Would there be no water at one of the drink stops Sydney half marathon or Foster triathalon?

[sruge]

Anyone got any ideas about when they might be up. TWP's website is silent on this issue.

[Cruz]

Another big problem with TWP and their website people. Happens all the time these days, most won't support them any more.

[krizbike]

Exactly the same sorts of things have happened at some of their QLD events.
Poorly and amateurishly run.

That's a shame because I live in NNSW and there aren't that many events around here, with TWP putting on most of them.
It's not like they are cheap events either.
I just hope everyone can send them some feedback - with good and bad points so they can get their s$%t together for the next event (6 hour race).

Thankfully we have the Freedom Ride coming up in a few weeks. Last year it was really well organised with a fantastic free feed after the ride, free drinks, and other great stuff. (No - I am not one of the organisers, I just give credit where it's due).

cya,
Chris

[SteppenW]

Just got onto a computer (actually didn't miss the break).

Good points:
Singletrack on initial 20k was good and flowing.

Always nice to finish on a piece of fast downhill singletrack.

Scenery and climate was great. It was good to be riding without leg/arm warmers.

The track held up pretty well considering the bucketing of rain from the previous evening (quite an impressive storm from where we were in Coffs Harbour).

The volunteers and marshalls on course were friendly and considerate.

Bad points (for possible improvements):

Event centre parking arrangements (bunting and barriers) were late going up. The event was well underway before this was a consideration.

The call-up and seeding took too long. The race was delayed. In other races I've done, starters are registered at the first checkpoint - it saves time.

In the end, it was a mass start for all non-elites. It didn't matter if you were looking to finish in under 7 hours, you were at the back of the pack if you were over 40. Self-seeding seems to work at every other event - TWP should try it. It was absolute carnage during the first section as people faster riders tried to make up places before the singletrack.

The lack of water at checkpoints was very poor planning. There was water when I passed through, but not that much of it. I really feed for the atheletes simply 'taking the challenge'. I understand that spectators were asked to deliver supplies to checkpoints at late notice. Shame.

The course marking on the first 25 was iffy. I was bombing down a fireroad, mud in eye, and missed a tiny arrow (no X on the wrong way trail; no bunting). In the end, rider 401 coming the other way put me right (thanks). Invest in some bunting please.

Trails were ... OK. I suppose you have to make do with what you have. However, some of these trails were obviously moto tracks (straight up, straight down, straight up, straight down ...). No flow, and a big gutter cut up the centre. Trail makers could try following the contours. I was actually looking forward to fire trail sections.

PA system was weak. Commentary (according to my other half) was patchy. No music.

Presentation were over before most of the field returned. There was plenty of daylight left. Some of the leet riders hung around (Jason English, for example) but there weren't that many 'pressing the flesh' after their race was run.

Are results up yet? I didn't think so.

[jaaber]

I did the 50km as well.
Does anyone know what the best time for it was?

[krizbike]

I did the 50km as well.
Does anyone know what the best time for it was?

Heh, not yet. When they were handing out the prizes, there was some confusion over times, so they were mainly incorrect. I'm guessing for the 50 (ahem 60), it would have been around 2.5-2.8hrs?
Hopefully the results will come up sometime soon.

Chris

[Cruz]

Are you guys copying off of a Qld website with your TWP observations? The exact same thing has been happening for years at their events up here

Anthony runs a great event compared to TWP.

[spudatm]

Are you guys copying off of a Qld website with your TWP observations? The exact same thing has been happening for years at their events up here

Anthony runs a great event compared to TWP.
Sorry who's Anthony

[krizbike]

Sorry who's Anthony

Anthony runs Summer of Cycling events
http://www.summerofcycling.com/
I did Freedom Ride last year which was great, and Lunatic Fringe this year. Lunatic Fringe was fun - awesome track, but there weren't nearly enough riders out there. It's a shame, as it was great fun.

Chris

[sruge]

Still nothing - now more than mildly unimpressed - not that I'm a world-beater or even seriously competitive, but it's helpful to compare how others fared.

So, Krizbike - how were the tracks for the Lunatic Fringe? This race is not all that far from home - if you rate the tracks and the organisation, I'd be willing to support it.

[krizbike]

Still nothing - now more than mildly unimpressed - not that I'm a world-beater or even seriously competitive, but it's helpful to compare how others fared.

So, Krizbike - how were the tracks for the Lunatic Fringe? This race is not all that far from home - if you rate the tracks and the organisation, I'd be willing to support it.

Results are up:
http://www.twowheelpromotions.com.au/home/images/stories/results_coffs_mountain_marathon_2008.pdf
I'm pretty happy with 9th. :)

Tracks were fun. Quite a lot of nicely flowing single track, some sections that were motocross track (complete with 2m high jumps which were a struggle to get up late in the day), and a bit of firetrail. The turnout was low, which reduced the number of prizes and general vibe, but it was still good fun. I'll give it a shot next year again.

Chris

[DaGonz]

I think Craig finished after 4:40 and the top mortals finished closer to 5hrs.

You didn't mention anything about coming 2nd though!

Cheers
Gonz

[RED_RACER]

not too bad for a slow 24hr rider...

[Cruz]

We rode the Lunatic Fringe last year and the tracks are good and we are happy to travel from Brisbane for it and the Marathon coming up shortly. A lot better organisation and vibe from the events than those run up here. Could do with more riders though.

Did Coffs the first year TWP ran it and it was enough to cause a lot of negative feedback and also to stop going to their events. Mates still do them here and there and the same old stories come out whether it be d/h or x/c or whatever.

[mtbike]

What did people think of the Coffs marathon yesterday?
Does anyone know who won the 100k?
I got to race in the 50... or 60 km. There were quite a few flaws. Firstly the marking of the track. I was sent the wrong way twice and left talking to a marshal for 3 minutes. This doesnt really help when your trying to actually race the event. A bit more bunting should have been used instead of small signs used in obscure places. Other letdowns included (as others have stated), the lack of water, lack of marshal's knowledge on distance, and not being told it was 60km instead of 50 was a shame. Alot of people suffered because of that. Some good tracks though! :)

[jaaber]

does anyone know the exact distance of the soft?

[krizbike]

does anyone know the exact distance of the soft?

Not really :) My computer said 59.7km from memory. My friends GPS says 56.5km (http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/invitation/dashboard.mb?episodePk.pkValue=6810683).
I'm not sure if GPS takes the flat distance, or the distance including ups and downs in the track (which would be more).

Chris

[jaaber]

I'm just gonna tell my friends it was 60km.

[jmcavoy]

not too bad for a slow 24hr rider...

Says the guy that beat all the solo riders so badly at the Stromlo 8hr that he had to take on all the teams to get a challenge, and came 3rd overall (winning the solo cat by a lap)... and let's not even mention your pretty green and gold stripey shirt... yeah, real slow :D

[spudatm]

does anyone know the exact distance of the soft?

My Cpu said 58.7 i think the general feeling is about 59

[cevo]

i haven't done a lot of events so won't go too nuts on the track (which was fun and tough due to mud) etc but will comment on the organization of parts of the event.

i did the flight centre epic which, on track, was really well organized. plenty of water, food, help, everything bar a new set of legs. so compared to that coffs was very ordinary. limited water where you couldnt even fill up your water bottle at one checkpoint!!!!

but, my gripe was the fact that after i stacked it less than 2km from the main checkpoint (52kms), and ended up in a barbed wire fence with a massive tear in my shin as a result of some hungry candy c's, i had to wait over 2 hours to get picked up! it was not life threatening but when you are looking at your bone through a 4 inch gash and are covered in mud from a farm next door, you are pretty keen to get out of there and get it cleaned up.

while we waited it appeared to be comedy of errors where at one point one official told us he was told I was picked up, and a girl!?!?! apparently the result of bad comms and mixed/no phone/radio reception blah blah. then driving out we got lost as all the guys had was dodgy photocopied trail maps?!?!

anyway, you get the point. I'm not having a crack at anyone personally, but as an experience i'm glad it wasn't a more serious injury.

Full credit and a big thanks to everyone who stopped to assist me, esp Dr Dan form Nimbin for hanging around until the 4WD arrived, they fella who was carrying saline, and the hottie in pink.

Apparently the young bloke leading the 50km was misguided down a wrong track!

cheers,

[krizbike]

i haven't done a lot of events so won't go too nuts on the track (which was fun and tough due to mud) etc but will comment on the organization of parts of the event.

i did the flight centre epic which, on track, was really well organized. plenty of water, food, help, everything bar a new set of legs. so compared to that coffs was very ordinary. limited water where you couldnt even fill up your water bottle at one checkpoint!!!!

but, my gripe was the fact that after i stacked it less than 2km from the main checkpoint (52kms), and ended up in a barbed wire fence with a massive tear in my shin as a result of some hungry candy c's, i had to wait over 2 hours to get picked up! it was not life threatening but when you are looking at your bone through a 4 inch gash and are covered in mud from a farm next door, you are pretty keen to get out of there and get it cleaned up.

while we waited it appeared to be comedy of errors where at one point one official told us he was told I was picked up, and a girl!?!?! apparently the result of bad comms and mixed/no phone/radio reception blah blah. then driving out we got lost as all the guys had was dodgy photocopied trail maps?!?!

anyway, you get the point. I'm not having a crack at anyone personally, but as an experience i'm glad it wasn't a more serious injury.

Full credit and a big thanks to everyone who stopped to assist me, esp Dr Dan form Nimbin for hanging around until the 4WD arrived, they fella who was carrying saline, and the hottie in pink.

Apparently the young bloke leading the 50km was misguided down a wrong track!

cheers,

Mate, that sucks. I heard about this from some friends who were doing the 100km and saw you. I hope you email TWP and let them know. They need to hear this shit so that they can fix things up for future races.

cya,
Chris

[Sumgy]

Mate, that sucks. I heard about this from some friends who were doing the 100km and saw you. I hope you email TWP and let them know. They need to hear this shit so that they can fix things up for future races.

cya,
Chris

Hate to say it but TWP has beeen told this shit again and again and again with no change to their poor organisation.
I have never done a TWP event where it started on time or where the helpers had much clue about what was going on.
On top of this the prize cupboard is generally bare to the point where I have seen the winners given wire bead tyres.
The original Coffs marathon saw nearly half the field knocked out becayuse they did not make it to a designated halfway checkpoint by 10.20am with the reason given being that they could not be sure that we would do the remaining 50km before dark. WTF??? 50km in 6 hours when we had just done the prior 50km in about 3hrs.
Myself and a number of others will not do TWP events anymore and like Cruz will stick to Anthony's and GAR's events in future.

[sfd]

but, my gripe was the fact that after i stacked it less than 2km from the main checkpoint (52kms), and ended up in a barbed wire fence with a massive tear in my shin as a result of some hungry candy c's, i had to wait over 2 hours to get picked up! it was not life threatening but when you are looking at your bone through a 4 inch gash and are covered in mud from a farm next door, you are pretty keen to get out of there and get it cleaned up.


Yeah, I went past you. I thought you and your mate were just sitting in the sun having a rest and chat till you tried to charge me $2 for a photo :)

When we got to the next checkpoint we made sure the marshals were aware of you, and they were, but

1. they didn't have working two way radio comms
2. the didn't have working phone comms
3. my nextG phone worked, so i offered it to them, but they didn't have any phone numbers to call the organisers
4. the map didn't have the emergency phone number on it (it was supposed to)
5. the marshal said they only had one first aid officer and only one serious 4WD for retrieval of injured riders - he had been around but had disappeared and they had no way of contacting him (the marshals were more than a little frustrated with TWP)
6. the map was so bad it was almost impossible to pinpoint your location on it.
7. the marshal who did go looking for you (in a basic, old 4WD with road tyres, and no chance of getting through) got lost and returned empty handed - probably a testament to the thin course marking.

I was thinking at the time how glad I was that I wasn't injured and waiting. The way they were going I thought they would probably take about 4 hours to get you out.

Other points.
*Riding for 20km of half a cup of water isn't good for your health
* this is my 3rd TWP event, and they have all had water problems - you don't have to be a mathematical genius to work out how much ( 500riders * 2 litres per rider * 4 checkpoints, and double it to be sure)
* putting tracks with difficult sections next to barb wire fences isn't smart, and there were at least 2 spots like that that I can think of.
*The map was pathetic.

I did the Noosa Enduro this year, my first non TWP event, and it was an eye opener about how much more fun and satisfying a well run event is. I won't be doing another TWP event(the epic and merida enduros plus noosa look good from here) . I will do Coffs again as soon as someone else runs it.

SD

Oh, one more thing. Hi Dr Dan - I live less than 10km from Nimbin, so we're almost neighbors, but have never encountered you out here...

[cevo]

Yeah, i will be letting them know alright, thanks for the update on what happened at the checkpoint and cheers for helping me out.

i'm glad you jumped on to support the rumours mate, the radio issue should be a massive concern moving forward along with the lack of suitable phone numbers! anyway, maybe some organiser from some event will take note.

We had a group of 7 riders and they have mentioned avoiding TW events after doing 2 of them.

I'm not sure what Dr dan's last name is but he works in Nimbin and rides a bit with his son (the young bloke who led the 50km) so i'm sure they'd be up for a ride.

I don't want to be too precious about the whole thing but if they want people to turn up to these rides they have to appreciate people don;t want to be let down on the basics like water and safety.

i'm just hoping chicks dig scars!

[mumbleman]

I live in the Coffs Harbour area and am still a newbie to mountain biking.
I was thinking of doing the 50km but from some of the comments Im glad i didnt. I know someone in the Coffs club and know they work hard individually. I am disappointed on their behalf at the organisers disregards for basic things like WATER. If this happened at my work the OH&S people would be freaking out.

Well done to everyone that competed and toughed it out.

[krizbike]

I live in the Coffs Harbour area and am still a newbie to mountain biking.
I was thinking of doing the 50km but from some of the comments Im glad i didnt. I know someone in the Coffs club and know they work hard individually. I am disappointed on their behalf at the organisers disregards for basic things like WATER. If this happened at my work the OH&S people would be freaking out.

Well done to everyone that competed and toughed it out.

Hey mate, please pass on thanks to your friend and other members of the Coffs club. The volunteers, and local support were great (especially the girls near the finish line who were planning to flash one of their mates as he finished) :)
Also, a big thankyou to the guy on the motorbike who was riding along picking up wrappers and crap dropped by stupid riders who haven't worked out how to use pockets yet.

I have just sent TWP a long letter explaining the problems. Maybe it will fall on deaf ears, but worth a shot anyway. :p

[casper99]

Yeah, I went past you. I thought you and your mate were just sitting in the sun having a rest and chat till you tried to charge me $2 for a photo :)

When we got to the next checkpoint we made sure the marshals were aware of you, and they were, but

1. they didn't have working two way radio comms
2. the didn't have working phone comms
3. my nextG phone worked, so i offered it to them, but they didn't have any phone numbers to call the organisers
4. the map didn't have the emergency phone number on it (it was supposed to)
5. the marshal said they only had one first aid officer and only one serious 4WD for retrieval of injured riders - he had been around but had disappeared and they had no way of contacting him (the marshals were more than a little frustrated with TWP)
6. the map was so bad it was almost impossible to pinpoint your location on it.
7. the marshal who did go looking for you (in a basic, old 4WD with road tyres, and no chance of getting through) got lost and returned empty handed - probably a testament to the thin course marking.

I was thinking at the time how glad I was that I wasn't injured and waiting. The way they were going I thought they would probably take about 4 hours to get you out.

Other points.
*Riding for 20km of half a cup of water isn't good for your health
* this is my 3rd TWP event, and they have all had water problems - you don't have to be a mathematical genius to work out how much ( 500riders * 2 litres per rider * 4 checkpoints, and double it to be sure)
* putting tracks with difficult sections next to barb wire fences isn't smart, and there were at least 2 spots like that that I can think of.
*The map was pathetic.

I did the Noosa Enduro this year, my first non TWP event, and it was an eye opener about how much more fun and satisfying a well run event is. I won't be doing another TWP event(the epic and merida enduros plus noosa look good from here) . I will do Coffs again as soon as someone else runs it.

SD

Oh, one more thing. Hi Dr Dan - I live less than 10km from Nimbin, so we're almost neighbors, but have never encountered you out here...

Hey SD im Dans son, he doesnt go on the mtb forums very much, i havnt met that many other people living in the nimbin area that ride? anyway just wondering were you ussaly go riding as the lack of single track in our area is a real pain.

casper

[krizbike]

Hey SD im Dans son, he doesnt go on the mtb forums very much, i havnt met that many other people living in the nimbin area that ride? anyway just wondering were you ussaly go riding as the lack of single track in our area is a real pain.

casper

Heya Casper,

I only know of 4 decent places to ride in the Northern NSW area.

1. Uralba (Alstonville/Ballina area) - not a lot of track, but good quality with some fun and fast tracks to test skills.
2. Bungabee (between Lismore and Kyogle) Lots of tracks, but the majority is firetrails and double track. Some single track, and some really technical stuff. Oh - lots of orb weavers across the tracks at some times of year.
3. Goonengerry (kinda Rosebank to Mullumbimby?) Some fun tracks, but can be a bit overgrown. Some fairly extreme downhill bits too. A beautiful waterfall view. :)
4. Rummery Park/Minyon Falls/Rocky Creek Dam. lots of really nice tracks - but pretty well all firetrail. Still fun, and great if you want to get good at hilly terrain.

cya,
Chris

[casper99]

hey Krizbike me and some friends went out to goonengery a couple of months ago but were unable to find any single track. were the best place to park and wondering were the single tracks roughly start from?

cheers

Heya Casper,

I only know of 4 decent places to ride in the Northern NSW area.

1. Uralba (Alstonville/Ballina area) - not a lot of track, but good quality with some fun and fast tracks to test skills.
2. Bungabee (between Lismore and Kyogle) Lots of tracks, but the majority is firetrails and double track. Some single track, and some really technical stuff. Oh - lots of orb weavers across the tracks at some times of year.
3. Goonengerry (kinda Rosebank to Mullumbimby?) Some fun tracks, but can be a bit overgrown. Some fairly extreme downhill bits too. A beautiful waterfall view. :)
4. Rummery Park/Minyon Falls/Rocky Creek Dam. lots of really nice tracks - but pretty well all firetrail. Still fun, and great if you want to get good at hilly terrain.

cya,
Chris

[krizbike]

hey Krizbike me and some friends went out to goonengery a couple of months ago but were unable to find any single track. were the best place to park and wondering were the single tracks roughly start from?

cheers

Goonengerry doesn't have a lot of single track (maybe a small section?).
It's mainly firetrail and walking paths. There are bits where some work has been done by riders (jumps and stuff). I have only ridden those bits once, so I can't exactly remember where they are.
I park in the middle here:
http://maps.google.com.au/?ie=UTF8&ll=-28.589185,153.41639&spn=0.006679,0.009656&t=h&z=17
As you drive in to the forest, you'll get to road heading off to the right, and there's a kinda clearing on that corner. Park there. :)
Then just ride in along the road you were on (NW direction). After a little bit I usually head off to the right. There are a few tracks that way and the whole thing does a big loop back around.
If you want more info, chat to the guys in the bike shop in Byron (near Woolies). They ride there occasionally I think. They also do good bike work if you need something fixed. (no, I'm not sponsored). :)

Freedom Marathon this weekend up at Minyon Falls.
http://tr.nelson.co.nz/freedommarathon.htm
Let's hope the weather clears...

Good luck.