Local Matt Walker, pictured in action during the Giant Toa Enduro, not part of the World Series in Rotorua, last year. Photo/Chester Boyes
Local Matt Walker, pictured in action during the Giant Toa Enduro, not part of the World Series in Rotorua, last year. Photo/Chester Boyes
The first round of the 2017 Enduro World Series is nearly upon us and the course for the Giant Toa Enduro leg in Rotorua has been revealed.
A star-studded international field and top local riders including Keegan Wright, Matt Walker and Ronja Hill-Wright will compete on Sunday in one of the premier events at this year's Crankworx festival. Walker took home the Giant Toa Enduro last year, although it was not part of the World Series then.
The new season will certainly get off to a steep start featuring off-camber sections, lots of roots, and big drops as stage one commences from Te Rua - described as a no-nonsense grade 5 course.
The trail begins adjacent to Eagle vs Shark, and slices between Frontal Lobotomy (Uphill trail) and Eagle vs Shark, before the going gets busy, as the trail plunges down towards Tarawera Rd. A combination of flowing high-speed sections higher up, before the gnarliness takes over with steeper lines and a couple of big drops.
The stage finishes near to the intersection of Windy and Hill Rds.
Stage two will begin at the high point of the forest, Tihi O Tawa is a classic "native" trail.
Riders will then merge on to Billy T - a classic Rotorua trail, which includes quick successions of corners and occasional tricky root sections. Towards the end of the trail riders will be faced with a steep roll-in to gap jump combination which has claimed many a rider over the years. This will be a popular spectator point.
In 2015, Hatu Patu provided some of the best crashes, carnage, footage, and heckling of the entire event. As such it is only natural it returns this year as stage three, this time with the inclusion of Dammit Janet to finish the stage.
Rooty, lots of serious off-camber points and sections where riders will need to carry momentum to clear.
Dammit Janet will provide brief respite until racers get to the last feature of the trail.
Opened in 2014, stage four - Kung Fu, became an instant Rotorua classic, from its scenic start point off of Bush Rd, Kung Fu features large stretches of off-camber single track through pine forest - the hallmark of this descending trail.
The stage has increased in length with the inclusion of an extra 800m of trail similar in character and challenge to the original Kung Fu, dropping riders down to the shores of Lake Rotokahi (Green Lake).
Descending through a series of swooping turns and straights with potential for high speed, Frankenfurter, stage five, is littered with many natural terrain features. The trail ducks into mature plantation forest which adds a few rooty sections to the mix, warming racers up for what's to come in the next section - Riff Raff trail. This section of trail is gnarly with steep dropping corners, big rooty sections and some challenging drop offs.
The crowning glory is Rocky Horror. A highly technical trail with extremely steep sections, this stage brings great appeal.
This will be followed by stage six - after dropping in the course the track takes a hard right through the super-fast technical descent, crossing Hill Rd into the river trail before being sent across another road and into Whaki, one of the new trails.
And finally stage seven, a physical stage, easily accessed by spectators that provides a fitting finale and a real grandstand finish to the Giant Toa Enduro.
