Getting Set For The Silly Season

Cycling Southland’s silly season is about to hit. Our club will deliver four major national and international events in the space of just six short weeks, starting with the Yunca Junior Tour of Southland.

The entry closing date has been brought forward with over 170 riders from both sides of the Tasman set to contest the eight age categories across three days of racing. It starts at Teretonga Raceway on Friday October 14 with a morning time trial and afternoon Kermise stage. It’s a wonderful spot for racing and although the smell of petroleum may be missing the action is sure to be as thrilling as when the V8s are roaring around the same venue.

You’ll find plenty more in this column over coming weeks about the other events on our calendar – ILT Track Carnival (including the Trans-Tasman Junior Challenge and NZ Elite Omnium Champs) from October 18 to 20, PowerNet Tour of Southland from October 30 to November 5 and WHK Oceania Track Championships from November 21 to 24.

But if you can’t wait for that, pick up our special edition magazine which we’ve titled “Come Along For the Ride.” Copies are available from the Cycling Southland office at the ILT Velodrome for just $5 with funds going to Cycling Southland’s Junior and Development programmes. It does show you just how busy our little club is going to be over the next couple of months.

In all of the excitement of this week’s spectacular All Blacks and Warriors victories it would be easy to miss the fact that one southern cycling family achieved a rare feat on Friday night. Martyn and Liz Williamson from Alexandra stood on the side of a surburban road in Copenhagen and watch not one, but two of their children line up at the World Road Cycling Championships.

First up was Sophie, fresh from her medal-winning deeds in Moscow and the Junior Track World Championships, in the Under 19 Women’s road race. She was prominent throughout the 70 kilometre race and was positioned close to the front of the bunch as the peloton descended on the finish line for an uphill sprint finish. Her effort in finishing 18th in her first tilt at an international road race was commendable. It was made even more meritorious by the fact that she was forced to ride without her team-mate after New Zealand’s only other representative withdrew following a nasty crash on the first lap.

Then just hours later, older brother James rolled off the start line in the Under 23 Men’s race. He too did everything right, positioning himself expertly over 165 kilometres before getting caught behind a crash on the second to last corner. He watched the bunch disappear as a Russian tried to remove his handlebars from James’ back wheel. To quote the man himself, “that’s good old bike racing.”  

I’m sure, like many, both Williamsons will have more bike racing tales to tell from our events over the next couple of months.

Behind The Scenes at Winter Games

On Friday I was very fortunate to be invited to take part in an Observer Tour to take a behind-the-scenes look at an outstanding international event being staged in our own back yard, the 2011 Winter Games.

The tour was coordinated by SPARC and was attended by representatives of organizations hosting major events in New Zealand, the likes of the World Triathlon Championships, Volvo Ocean Race, Coast to Coast and of course Cycling Southland’s Junior World Track Cycling Championships next year.

It was a rare opportunity to “go behind the curtain” and witness an international event in action. The fact that Event Director Arthur Klap gave so freely of his own and his team’s time, speaks volumes for the efficient way the Games run. The calm atmosphere which prevailed over our day up the mountain was one of the day’s most striking features.

As always, there was real value in sharing ideas and challenges with some of the top people in the sports event space in the country. We all share the same challenges and these are all made slightly easier by days like Friday when relationships are built and concepts are shared. The insights into the Winter Games’ international promotion, mainstream and social media liaison, volunteer management, financial management, planning and review processes was hugely beneficial and you can’t help but be impressed by Arthur Klap’s willingness to share his learnings, warts and all.

We utilized Arthur’s services last year to assist with setting up the framework and initial event planning for the Junior Worlds and we’ve been benefiting from his input every day since. To hear him speak so passionately about the event and the sacrifices (personal and financial) he has made to see the Winter Games develop was inspiring.

He was very up-front about one of the major challenges snow sports faces, the ability to generate mainstream interest both in terms of national media and genuine awareness from the general public. Never before have so many Olympic and World Champions been in New Zealand for a sporting event. Did you know? Until Friday, I have to admit to having absolutely no idea.

I draw parallels with what we will be hosting at the ILT Velodrome over October. The best of the best in the sport of track cycling will be in town, training for most of the month in what will be a crucial determinant of who goes to London to ride for gold next year. Those decisions will be played out in front of us in Invercargill. Imagine if the All Blacks were basing their pre-World Cup training at Rugby Park. Think we’d all know about it?

Nationally, non-mainstream sports can often struggle to be heard over the white noise created by rugby, netball, cricket and league. The stories I heard at Winter Games and those that I am sure will play out at the ILT Velodrome in October need to be told as widely as possible. That’s our job, so expect to hear from us.

One Year To Go for Junior Worlds

The curtain has dropped on the 2011 UCI Juniors World Track Championships in Moscow and the New Zealand squad ended the five days of competition on Sunday night with 10 medals and 3 fourth-places from 16 events entered, arguably the best result by any group of cyclists at a World Championship.

Add that level of achievement to the fact that yesterday (Monday) marked the one year anniversary until the start of the 2012 Junior Worlds in Invercargill and the excitement levels at the ILT Velodrome are rising rapidly.

True to form, Cycling Southland’s two representatives, Steph McKenzie and Sophie Williamson delivered on the world stage in Russia and return with a little excess baggage. McKenzie was a stand-out winning two silvers and a bronze along with a fourth placing in her sprint events while Williamson, Alexandra’s favourite sporting daughter, claimed bronze in last Friday morning’s Points race in her first trip to the World Juniors.

Sophie rode herself to near breaking point and only found out she had held on to claim a medal when she was warming down after the event. However, in the process, she emptied the tanks and paid something of a price over the next two days in the Women’s Omnium (six separate events over two of the longest days in track cycling). Reading her updates from the event, in true Sophie-style, she has already learned lessons which I have little doubt she will put to good use in 12 months time.

She won’t have much of a chance to reflect on her first campaign though, lining up again in the Black skin-suit for the Junior Women Road World Championships in Copenhagen from September 19-23.
Steph would no doubt have loved to change the colour of one or two of her medals into gold but she can be justifiably proud of her efforts. She went within 0.011 seconds of the world record in the Women’s Sprint qualifying before losing out to one of the power-houses in the home-town Russian squad. In the process, she became the first New Zealander to make a Sprint Gold Medal ride-off. She added a Team Sprint bronze with Auckland first-year Paige Paterson and followed it up with a powerful performance to take silver in the Keirin.

Six of this year’s squad are eligible for next year’s World Championships in Invercargill with Williamson and Canterbury’s Dylan Kennett, another bronze medal winner this year, likely to be central to the kiwis drive for medals on home soil.

Preparations will now heat up – from both an event organiser’s and rider’s perspective. BikeNZ has named strong squads ahead of the ILT Trans-Tasman Junior Track event in October and Oceania Championships in November. With Olympic spots up for grabs for the Elite riders and selection for a home Junior World Championship campaign for the Under-19 and second year Under-17 riders, the racing at these two events is sure to be some of the most-hotly contested in recent memory. The ILT Velodrome will be the place to be.

Steph and Soph Show The Way

Two of Cycling Southland’s young stars are in Russia for the 2011 UCI World Junior Track Championships which started overnight in Moscow.

Alexandra’s Sophie Williamson and Stephanie McKenzie of Invercargill are part of an 11-strong squad who will compete for world titles and the coveted rainbow jersey over the next five days. There is a further Southland connection in the coaching team with former Cycling Southland Regional Coach Ross Machejefski overseeing the campaign and mechanic Chris O’Connor completing the quartet.

For Williamson it is her first taste of World Championship racing while McKenzie, who has followed the cycling phenomenon known as the “drift south” - relocating at the start of this year to Invercargill from Auckland, is back for her second tilt.

She represents New Zealand’s best medal prospect having won silver in the Team Sprint twelve months ago in Italy along with top ten finishes in the Women’s Sprint (4th), 500m Time Trial (7th) and Keirin (9th). Last year’s experience will serve her well and she enters the competition safe in the knowledge her times are faster – she was in blistering form earlier this year at the Track Nationals at the ILT Velodrome in March.

Williamson is unquestionably one of the sport’s brightest prospects. She swept the floor at the Track Nationals in the Under 19 Omnium event earlier this year, winning five of the six events, and there is little doubt she will be in the thick of every race she starts.

She will be available for selection next year also and the prospect of seeing Soph riding for her country at World Championships in Invercargill in 2012 is one all southern sporting fans shouldn’t miss.

Racing begins early Thursday morning with McKenzie opening her campaign alongside Aucklander Paige Paterson in the Women’s Team Sprint along with the Men’s Team Pursuit, Team Sprint and Scratch Race.

It also reminds us that the 2012 Championships are now 53 weeks away. Our own Graham Sycamore doesn’t miss many bun-fights and true to form he is sweltering in the heat in Moscow pressing the flesh with the 35 countries involved, extolling the virtues of Southland and the ILT Velodrome. He informs us the Russians, Swiss and Spanish are already making plans for their trips to Invercargill.

Not only will the 2012 World Junior Championships be a wonderful showcase for the sport and facility, but it is also an incredible marketing opportunity for the region. Forecasts are for around 250 competitors from up to 40 countries with something like 13,000 bed nights and $3.2 million dollar cash injection around the event alone. This doesn’t account for the extension of stays in and around the south, which obviously is a focus of our international marketing.

And while we are on the subject of juniors, entries opened publicly this week for the 2011 Yunca Junior Tour of Southland. Demand is high and we can’t wait to host the best young talent in the country for the annual event from October 14th to 16th.

Nick Jeffrey is Chief Executive of Cycling Southland.

Corporate Pursuit Another Huge Success

Nearly 200 Southlanders took on the ILT Velodrome last Sunday in Cycling Southland’s 2011 Harrex Group Corporate Pursuit and lived to tell the tale. Again, it proved to be one of the most-enjoyable events on the jam-packed Cycling Southland calendar. It really is one big party on wheels.

As with any Cycling Southland event, there is a long list of thank yous to hand out. There are two main reasons why this event is the runaway success. One is Sier Vermunt. The other is Julian Ineson. These two do an incredible job and I struggle to recognize their incredible contribution with words on a page. Their passion and organization is the primary reason the event has grown to what it is today. I cannot thank them enough. We are incredibly fortunate to also have a sponsor who literally gets its hands dirty with the event. To Brendon, Nicki and the Harrex Group team go our thanks for all that they contribute.

Already plans are underway for 2012. We asked the teams and riders for feedback on the event. The response has been immediate and overwhelming. 100% of respondents to our feedback survey have rated the event 4 or 5 out of 5 in terms of overall experience, (a 4.67 out of 5 average). 100% have said they want to be a part of it again next year and an incredible 95% are keen to continue riding on the track and road. It’s an incredible endorsement.

Next year represents a massive opportunity for Cycling Southland and the region with our hosting of the 2012 UCI World Junior Track Championships at the ILT Velodrome in August. This year’s Corporate Pursuit intake has found out first hand just how addictive the sport is and it proves once again what an outstanding community facility the ILT Velodrome is. We’re going to make sure as many Southlanders get in here to start the cycling addiction between now and next August.

It’s become my signature saying since coming in to the role at Cycling Southland but it’s never been more true … we are just getting started! It’s incredibly exciting.

Cycling Southland coaches Matt Archibald and Dale Tye have launched follow-up coaching programmes for the entrants and a revised weekly track schedule will commence this month to handle the increased in-take of new riders at both junior and adult levels.

When you combine the incredible feedback from the Corporate Pursuit with the massive increase in numbers we are seeing at beginner level into Matt and Dale’s junior Wheelers track programmes, we are pretty happy that the craze is taking hold.

We are about to launch a new marketing campaign entitled “Come Along for the Ride” so you can expect to hear plenty more about how easy we are going to make it to get started and hooked on the sport on the road and on the ILT Velodrome. Cycling Southland is gearing up for some ride over the next few months.

Nick Jeffrey is Cycling Southland's Chief Execuitve

AGM Provides Excuse to Reflect

Cycling Southland held its Annual General Meeting this week. It provided a rare opportunity to pause and reflect on the last 15 months’ work. Each and every week I am continually blown away by the support this organization receives from such a passionate group of people and each week I am captivated by the opportunity which exists for the sport and for Cycling Southland. For the purposes of an annual report we calculate the number of volunteer hours which go into the sport – we just stopped counting when the number got above 50,000. The past year has been a transitional one with my arrival and the on-going implementation of this new structure. To trade our way to a small cash operating surplus was satisfying in a year of such great change and it points to the great things we have ahead of us.

The sheer volume of work delivered by this organization is staggering. In the last 15 month period we have hosted New Zealand’s premier elite and junior road tours, two National Track Championships, three track carnivals, an incredible corporate event and a full programme of junior and senior road and track racing. And it’s not going to stop anytime soon. Over the next 13 months we will host National, Oceania and World Track Championships along with the Yunca and PowerNet Tours as well as assisting the Wakatipu Club with the Oceania Road Championships in March. I can’t think of another club, anywhere in the world, that would have all of that on its plate. Can you?

Significant progress has been made at a development level which is something I’m most proud of. We now have a Learn to Ride fundamentals programme which has been successfully piloted in seven Southland schools with outstanding results. We have cycling accredited with NZQA for NCEA performance standards and we have increased the number the children entering our Wheelers introductory programmes four-fold. The exciting part is that we are just getting started.

The AGM also saw the end of Steve Canny’s seven and a half year stint as President. His contribution cannot be over-stated. It was Steve’s voice on my answer-phone a couple of Christmas Eves ago which changed my life and got me into this game. I have had the treat of working alongside him closely over the last few weeks as we presented to the Ministry of Economic Development in Wellington and worked with SPARC on our hosting of the 2012 Junior Worlds. Watching him at work is a sight to behold and I have now seen first-hand the skills he and his mates employed to get the ILT Velodrome built. I’ll be making sure his many skills are not lost to our organization. I am also absolutely delighted Tony Ineson will fill the shoes of another legend, Sonny Broad, as our new Patron. But ultimately it is the Cycling Southland member, to whom I offer most thanks. 

And together we’ve all got some ride ahead of us.

Corporate Pursuit Life-Changing Experience

Cycling Southland’s Harrex Group Corporate Pursuit is to be held over the next two weekends with the Grading Time Trial on Sunday and the Finals Day on Sunday 31st July. Over 200 riders in 34 corporate teams will line up to take on the clock and the competition. Last year’s winning team was YMCA Education. They were anchored to their victory by Karl Watson who today tells us why competing in the event last year was truly life-changing.

I fell in love with track cycling after participating in the Harrex Group Corporate Pursuit for the past two years and riding for the YMCA.

Initially, our team entered in the competition as something fun for our staff to do as we had heard how much fun other businesses had been having. Also, I thought the concept of going as fast as you can over a short distance on an oval track was really exciting.

As Invercargill is a relatively close-knit city I knew people from the other businesses which really brought out the competitive edge and a lot of friendly banter amongst the competitors.

As the weeks progressed, we all improved and we got faster and smoother and the times kept coming down. Then on the race day, it was amazing how the crowd and the excitement of the day took more seconds off our time.

The amazing thing about the Harrex Group Corporate Pursuit is that it is not just a corporate event, as it is an event that brings what would normally only be experienced by our elite athletes to normal people, with potentially a far more raucous and involved crowd.

I have since ridden at the track nationals and a number of cycling carnivals, and I believe that the corporate pursuit provided a great platform for me to do well at these events. The experience of participating in the Harrex Group Corporate Pursuit has been life changing for me. I have no doubt that if I had not taken part in the Harrex Group Corporate Pursuit I would not have represented Southland at our national track champs.

Come see why there is such a buzz about the town and experience this unique opportunity on the 31st July from 9:30am.
_____

Our 34 teams line up on Sunday from 12.30pm at the ILT Velodrome. Each will ride solo against the clock to confirm seedings for the Corporate Pursuit finals which will be held one week later on Sunday 31st. It is not only a great event to compete in, the crowd has created an atmosphere all of its own with fancy dress costumes, banners and a heck of a lot of noise. Entry fee is only $2 for adults and children are free and we’ve got a heap of activity off the track planned, including the chance to win a Specialized Mountain Bike from Wensley’s Cycles. Good luck to each of our teams as they put the finishing touches on their build-ups. To find out more visit www.cyclingsouth.org.nz/corporatepursuit.

Corporate Pursuit Rookie Report

Cycling Southland’s Harrex Group Corporate Pursuit is approaching fast. 2010 rookie Diane Lindsay offers a newcomer’s perspective on the event.

Well that time has come around again the Harrex Group Corporate Pursuit, I undertook this daunting sport a year ago (one tick on my personal bucket list).

Our very first training session was very daunting and blooming scary as we thought about the height of the cycling track, but nothing prepared us for arriving at the ILT Velodrome and seeing the track. Oh it was so damned high. But wait, at the end of the session all of us were riding to the top of the track.

Off we went into our weekly routine of training sessions and our own personal training as well, (my legs have never looked so good). We learnt so much and really understood the word ‘pursuit’ - we really did get close to each others wheels and we looked great. That is what the coach wanted - nice and neat and he got it.

Time trial night came and as you would imagine our nerves were rather fraught, as we were all under the spot light with our co-workers and family members all present in support of us all. We had followed the instructions to the book, even eating the correct pasta!

We lined up and had our last minute advice from the coach, wow when we had finished we were all so elated, our family and co-workers were all so impressed, and so they should have been. What a great feeling – Friday night drinks comes second to that feel good feeling.

Then a week later came race day and what a festival - competitive atmosphere, and run so professionally with warm-up bikes, designated team areas and, if required, a physiotherapist.

Our team was first up and had a great race. I completed my second leg of the pursuit feeling very good with myself, went up high and promptly feel down from the top taking out another rider with me. After being picked up and looked after by officials and team members, off I went and introduced myself to the physio.

Our team had another race, which I did not race due to feeling quite sore in the shoulder. Having the opportunity to stand down and yell at the team from the side line made me very proud.

Our final race of the day, and what the hell, I had nothing to lose so I asked if I could ride again. That race we all flew and we did a new personal best time.

Coming to work the following day I asked a doctor’s opinion on my sore shoulder and the diagnosis? One broken shoulder. We do breed them tough down south. Go Waihopia Health Services!
__________

The Harrex Group Corporate Pursuit Grading Time Trial is on July 24th with the Finals on July 31st. Entry is only $2 for adults and children free. Get along to the ILT Velodrome to see business at speed.

Sports Funding - The Future

On Friday I was fortunate to act as MC for the ILT Southland Sports Awards,as we recognised the outstanding efforts of our sporting achievers.

When you bundle together the premier individual and team performances from throughout the year, it shows what this province of ours achieves year after year, often against better resourced and more highly fancied opponents.

We relived some of last year's most special moments, watching footage of Nathan Cohen powering home to win World Championship gold, Aaron Barclay holding the finishing tape aloft at the Youth Olympics, the Stags defending the Ranfurly Shield so proudly and born and bred southerners having Commonwealth medals draped around their necks.

The burning question is can we keep that up?

Around the world right now, the on-going funding of sport is in the headlines. In the United States the NFL and NBA are in simultaneous player lock-outs as team owners and player representatives negotiate terms in an attempt to fix a flawed system.

The NBA has just completed one of its most successful seasons ever. Attendance numbers, television audiences, merchandise sales and general interest are all up, yet 22 of the 30 teams will lose money - a combined total of $300 million dollars. The good news is that's an improvement on the last two seasons' deficit.

Now like most things in the US, the scale of the issue is on another planet to ours, but the principle appears the same. Those sports are trying to sustain a broken model. That's hard enough in good times let alone in the challenging revenue environment we now operate in. The major difference is that in the US billionaire owners fund these deficits. In New Zealand the red ink falls to the sport and ultimately back to those who fund the sport - in most Southland cases, our community funders.

There are two issues. One is franchise sport, vital as our shop window to the sporting nation. The other is regional sport which, as Friday showed, also does an outstanding job of generating huge success. While they are two very different scenarios with two very different challenges, they are inextricably linked.

In round numbers $10 million dollars is invested in sport in Southland each year and the pot is getting no deeper. Yet for some reason sports' only strategy (and we're all guilty of this) is to go knocking on the same doors for more money. We have been incredibly fortunate to have funders who have in the past generally answered the call positively. But that simply can't continue.

Is sport using the current investment as efficiently as it can? If we started with a blank sheet would it look like how we operate today?

The sport sector must take ownership of this issue, otherwise, quite rightly, an end result will be imposed on us and we'll be told to make it work somehow. That will bring winners and losers and we will only have ourselves to blame.

Now is a time for real leadership, otherwise it's my belief the performances we celebrated on Friday night may become fewer and farther between. I think we all agree that would be a massive tragedy.

Miles Covered During Winter Break

As Cycling Southland sits in the middle of our Winter break between racing seasons it was good to deliver the Southland Secondary Schools Road Championships yesterday at Teretonga. After the record numbers which turned up at our Mountain-bike cousin’s Mid-Winter Enduro on Saturday, Sandy Point was the place to be this weekend.

Even though the weather gods weren’t kind it was good to see the best talent from Dunedin south on the bike and giving it heaps. There were a few tired legs backing up from Enduro, but after it all Southland Girls High School prized the Schools Trophy away from James Hargest College who have had a mortgage on it in recent years. It was a great team effort by Dave Beadle’s charges, especially given they can only enter half the races.

Even though the locals dominated, Otago’s Lachie McGregor and Dunstan’s Tom Vessey both starred and showed they will be strong contenders when the South Island championships are held at Ruapuna in a couple of weeks time.

It wasn’t only the bike riders who covered some miles this week. Cycling Southland President Steve Canny and I travelled to Wellington mid-week to visit the team from SPARC ahead of our hosting of the 2012 World Junior Track Cycling Championships. It brought home the magnitude of what hosting a World Championship means. It is an incredible opportunity for the sport, the ILT Velodrome and our region and we are committed to ensuring we make the most of this opportunity. Next month we will again be promoting Southland on the world stage at the 2011 Champs in Moscow, ensuring that the best in the world will descend on our fine province next year.

Track cycling is one of our highest profile Olympic medal chances next year. The ILT Velodrome will play a key part in New Zealand’s build-up with the Oceania and New Zealand Championships to be held in Invercargill over the next nine months. From there a full squad wearing the black skin-suit will battle for gold around London’s new £93M velodrome and then, just a few short weeks after what we hope will be a significant medal haul, little old Invercargill hosts the Junior Worlds. It makes our rare opportunity even more mouth-watering.

New Zealand is fast-becoming a world championship venue of note. Following this year’s Rugby World Cup, comes our Junior Worlds, the World Triathlon Champs later next year and the World BMX Championships indoors in Vector Arena in 2013. SPARC’s expertise in event planning combined with the experience Cycling Southland has built up over recent years in event delivery give us a huge amount of confidence that the 2012 Junior Worlds will be one of the best ever.

Our trip to Wellington also provided a great chance to do some unplanned inter-sport networking. After the ash-cloud turned our plane around to Christchurch, Steve and I shared a rental car home with Southland Cricket’s Kevin Cooper and his wife, proving every cloud has a silver lining - even ash clouds.