Whanganui mountain biker Katie Ramage back home after six-month international racing excursion

Junior mountain biker Katie Ramage tackling a downhill in Whistler, Canada. Photo / Cody Shimizu

Whanganui mountain biker Katie Ramage has returned home after competing internationally and scoring podiums on a six-month racing trip.

Ramage, 17, competed in the Junior Women’s Cross Country (XC) division all around Europe, including Croatia, Slovenia, Austria, The Czech Republic and Scotland as well as in the United States and Canada.

She said racing in Europe was very different to racing in New Zealand as the sizes of the fields were much bigger and the courses more technical and challenging.

“It was just a whole different experience,” Ramage said.

She took part in the trip as part of the Kiwi MTB Collective, a privately funded race team focused on developing local young talent.

Last year she raced for the team around New Zealand but got the call-up to represent the team internationally this year.

She also represented New Zealand at the UCI Cycling World Championships in Glasgow, Scotland, finishing 49th in her division.

The World Championships had a different vibe to it from the other races, she said.

“The atmosphere was just totally different from a world cup where you’re racing for your team, to a world champs where you’re racing for your country.

“It was an amazing experience and I hope one day I can go again.”

In general, she was happy with her performance during the trip.

“I wasn’t sure how I’d stack up against everyone overseas but I was happy to get a few podiums at the smaller races and get some good experience racing in big fields,” she said.

Katie Ramage competing at the UCI Cycling World Championships in Scotland. Photo / Cam Mackenzie

Of the races she took part in, her favourite was an American race in Missoula, Montana, due to the unique layout of the course.

“It was a really different course, it was not your usual XC lap and I really enjoyed it, it was fun to race.”

Most of the XC courses in Europe had an undulating design, with short climbs followed by short downhill sections, but the Missoula course had riders tackle a 20-minute-long climb followed by a five-minute descent.

Because of this, she said it was a gruelling race but one which suited her well, finishing in third place.

The trip also put her away from family for longer than she had ever been before.

“I’ve never been away from home for more than a week so it was a big step, but it was kind of overshadowed at the start by how excited I was, which was awesome.

“As it got closer to me coming home I started missing them more, so it was nice to be home once I did get home,” she said.

Now she’s back home she’ll be focusing on the domestic circuit for the next year at least.

She said she wouldn’t be ready to go back to Europe next year but planned to go back in the next few years.

Finn Williams is a multimedia journalist for the Whanganui Chronicle. He joined the Chronicle in early 2022 and regularly covers stories about business, events and emergencies. He also enjoys writing opinion columns on whatever interests him.