Redemption for Keegan Wright with 3 Peaks Enduro win

Rotorua's Keegan Wright held on to his overnight lead for the overall win at the Emerson's 3 Peaks Enduro in Dunedin. Photo / Adventure Media Group/Derek Morrison

Before the Emerson's 3 Peaks Enduro at the weekend, Rotorua enduro rider Keegan Wright had ridden in Dunedin once, hitting a rock and injuring his face.

It was a tale of redemption this time around as he dominated on Saturday and held on to the lead on Sunday to claim the men's title for 2017.

Meanwhile, Katy Winton of Peebles, Scotland, managed to fend off Nelson's Rae Morrison to take the women's title.

Wright was dominant in the men's event on Saturday, winning the first three stages and finishing within two seconds of stage winner Joseph Nation, of Christchurch, in the fourth – his consistency paying dividends in the form of a 13-second overall lead over Nation.

But, hot on their heels were Jubal Davis, of Colorado, USA, 22 seconds adrift and Dunedin rider Jake Paddon, who needed to recover a 28-second deficit.

At the end of the first day 21-year-old Wright said he was surprised at how it had panned out.

"This is my first time racing this event on these trails. I just went out and tried to set a good pace," he said.

Day 2 - Race leaders Katy Winton & Keegan Wright on the way up to Stage 2 on Signal Hill after a dry and wild first stage!

Posted by 3 Peaks Enduro on Saturday, 2 December 2017

Going into day two he said anything could happen.

"It doesn't take much in this game to close the gap – a flat tyre, broken chain, anything could happen yet and that's why we love this sport so much."

Wright was not as dominant on day two, sharing the stage wins with Nation and Davis, but his lead from day one proved unassailable as the three front-runners jostled through the stages.

"We all won a stage each today. It was good to do some blind racing with some good fast guys here and I'm stoked to come away with the win.

"I have only done one downhill race here before and I crashed on my third run and broke my face. So I came here to get redemption on that rock that broke my face. But this was just an allround good weekend of riding with awesome people and I'd like to spend a bit more time here. I can't wait to come back."

Keegan Wright, of Rotorua, emerges victorious at the sixth edition of the Emerson's 3 Peaks Enduro mountain bike race. Photo / Adventure Media Group/Derek Morrison

Wright has raced in the Enduro World Series (EWS), UCI World Cup Downhill and Crankworx events this year – a packed schedule by anyone's reckoning. Next year he will do the same as one of the lead riders for the Devinci Global Racing Team.

The 2015 and 2016 3 Peaks Enduro champion, 28-year-old Nation was unable to get the hat-trick of titles in 2017.

"I lost a bit of time on that second run yesterday and was a little bit off the pace, but I felt good today, although I just didn't have the legs on the couple of vicious climbs in the course – I was definitely feeling it," Nation said.

Nation, who also races in the EWS circuit, finishing 22nd this season riding for the Bergamont team had been advised by his coach to rest.

"I've had a rest since the end of the EWS season and perhaps wasn't peaking for this race, but I still had a lot of fun riding here today."

He said the close racing made the event more enjoyable.

"It was tight racing and I think that is good for everyone – just behind me was Jubal [Davis] and he was only a couple of seconds back. We were all just consistently doing well."