Record-breaking week at ILT Velodrome

Somehow, in a few paragraphs in this column, I need to justice to one of the most spectacular sporting spectacles I have had the priviledge of witnessing.

Building up to last week’s WHK Oceania Track Cycling Championships, there was a feeling we could see some great action but we could never have predicted the world class performances that were laid down on the boards of the ILT Velodrome over four incredible days and nights. We watched New Zealand’s elite dish it out to their Australian counterparts all week and lower record after record with apparant ease.

The questions on who will go to London have not fully been answered. BikeNZ now has the unenviable task of sorting through the swag of personal best and NZ record times to work out which combination of riders gives it the best chance of reaching its publicly-stated target of four Olympic medals.

To have seen the Men and Women Team Pursuit combinations go as quick as they did, this early in the season is a wonderful sign. Alison Shanks, Lauren Ellis and Jaime Nielsen went within 0.2 seconds of the world record while Jesse Sergent, Marc Ryan, Sam Bewley and Aaron Gate blew their previous best to pieces and were only 2 seconds shy of the fastest time ever recorded in the world.

The international cycling community has quickly sat up and taken notice. These were the fastest times recorded in these events this year. It’s fair to say, if it wasn’t already, Invercargill has arrived on the world track cycling stage.

Times of this standard are without doubt the best form of advertising we could hope for and it adds yet another selling point to bring riders down under for next year’s Junior World Track Championships. We know Southland will put on a great competition, we know that riders, their families and supporters will be welcomed and looked after like nowhere else in the world. And now we know that world class times will also be registered during competition. We could promote the virtues of bringing the family halfway around the world for the ultimate southern New Zealand experience until the cows came home, but if the perception was we would have a dog of a track which riders would crawl around in sub-zero temperatures then we’d be pushing it up hill. This week we’ll be directly contacting every national federation around the world – and the times from last week’s champs, will be front and centre.

In all the record-breaking feats of last week, one of my finest memories was the performance of Cycling Southland’s Tom Scully. He came within half a lap of the Scratch race title and then powered his way to wins in the Madison and Points races. The finish to the Points race was particularly special – Scully and Aaron Gate going at it pedal stroke for pedal stroke all the way to the line. Tom is one of the good guys and he is back to his very best.

PowerNet Tour a Southland Showcase

Southland was once again thrust into the national spotlight thanks to the tireless efforts of a sporting club delivering New Zealand’s premier cycle race. Last week Cycling Southland hosted the 56th PowerNet Tour of Southland and captured significant exposure for the region in the process.

The event space is challenging right now and it’s hard work in the current economic environment. Considering the amount of prime time television coverage, newspaper inches, internet and radio, the Tour of Southland is a phenomenal promotional opportunity for Southland and one which we try and maximise for the benefit of the region. Sure, it’s about putting a bike race on, but it’s also about doing something for the province.

Again though, it’s the huge logistical challenge the PowerNet Tour presents which strikes me the most. Remember, it is actually an amateur not-for-profit sporting club that delivers this event. Fortunately, we’ve got a great servant in the form of Bruce Ross and his family, together with the huge amount of support we get from volunteers which just can’t be overstated. But it is a massive undertaking. I would understand if volunteers were there for the glory, high profile jobs but the reality is quite different. Scores of people take a week off work or away from families and personal commitments to do the hard yards, away from the spotlight. Their work is invaluable and they are the fabric which holds Cycling Southland and events like the PowerNet Tour all together

The level of support from officials and volunteers continues to grow and hopefully that’s an endorsement on the type of event we run. But it’s nothing you can take for granted and we need to take every opportunity to say an overwhelming thank you.

No rest though, as our attention has switched straight away to the ILT Velodrome for next week’s WHK-sponsored Oceania Track Cycling Championships.

This is going to be some week of racing. As continental championships riders and nations earn vital qualification points for the London Olympics so for New Zealand, Australia and New Caledonia, there could not be more motivation. How many and who it is that goes to London could well be decided by what unfolds before us in Invercargill next week.

BikeNZ’s full elite squad will be in action and combined with a strong contingent of Australians these championships represent the best international field the ILT Velodrome has hosted in its five year history. Commonwealth Games champions, Olympic medallists, world champion and world record-holders will all be on the start line. Any wonder we are fizzing at the prospect?

The event also features the first ever Para-Cycling P1 Regional Cup event to be held in this country with riders from New Zealand, Australia, Japan, Poland and South Africa all competing with four current world champions among them.

Sessions start next Monday and are held daily through until Thursday from 10:00am and 6:30pm.

So if there was any thought of taking it easy after the biggest week of the year on Tour, think again.