Mud, Grit & Grins | Maydena Hosts 2nd Round Of EWS Asia Pacific Series


Maydena, the newest and boldest mountain bike park in Australia, played host to the 2nd round of the Enduro World Series Asia Pacific over the weekend, with some of the country’s fastest enduro pinners flocking to Tassie to go full gas on the steepest and most technical singletrack on offer in the expanding trail network.

Maydena has been going strength to strength since it opened just two years ago. For those of you who aren’t too familiar with the park and you want to get an idea of what it’s all about, our Maydena feature & video is a great place to start. As well as hosting the Enduro National Championships back in November, Maydena has also continued to expand its trail network and included provisions for e-MTB riders, which Josh Carlson went to experience for himself – have a squiz at the story and video of Josh pinning it with the crew here.

maydena ews enduro racing
Maydena played host to the 2nd round of the EWS Asia Pacific Series over the weekend.

Over the weekend, the EWS Asia Pacific Series arrived at Maydena for Round Two, and from all reports it was a wild weekend of racing – in more ways than one! Canadian freeride legend, Brett Tippie was on hand for some classic Good Times on the microphone throughout the weekend. Tippie has been visiting Tasmania to check out both Maydena and some of the developments on the West Coast, which you’ll be hearing about very soon – keep your eyes peeled on the Flow MTB website, as we’ll have a thoroughly entertaining video and feature coming your way in the near future!

In the meantime, read on for the race report from the Maydena crew;

brett tippie maydena ews enduro racing
The Director Of Good Times as he should be – with microphone in hand and a smile on the dial!
maydena ews enduro racing
Yiew! Some muddy conditions for competitors after a heavy dump of rain last week in Tassie.

Stage 2 of the Enduro World Series Asia Pacific Series saw racers head to Tasmania’s Maydena Bike Park. As Australia’s biggest enduro-focused trail network, the event took in the absolute best of the park’s 60 descending trails. With an elevation drop of over 820m, racers were treated to some massive race and liaison stages, showing off the stunning rainforest in the area.

Day 1 of the event went off with a bang! Heavy rain the day before the event, and gloomy conditions on race day made for some interesting racing conditions as riders contended with a full top-to-bottom race through over 820 vertical metres. For many riders, the aim of the game on stage 1 was staying upright, though the elites still set blistering times with local favourite, Dan Booker stopping the clock under 12 minutes.

On day 2 the sun made a very welcome appearance, warming up spectators and drying out the race courses. The drying conditions made for highly-variable race conditions, with racers battling through a huge day of racing. Stage 2 saw Dan Booker take the win in the elite men, and Shelly Flood continue her dominance in the elite women. The second stage greeted riders with a wild ride down the infamous King Brown, where seemingly endless steep turns kept everyone on their toes.

maydena ews enduro racing
Maydena’s gravity-fed trail network is the ideal location for a full-throttle enduro race.

In Stage 3 riders contended with arguably the most technical race course of the event, through some of the park’s steepest, most technical trails. Wet conditions made for some interesting racing, with Dan Booker and Shelly Flood again taking out the elite men and women’s stages respectively.

Stage 4 headed out to the park’s lower Wilderness Trail, Outer Limits. A longer format stage, the race took in some epic rainforest scenery (not that most of the racers would have noticed!). While this stage lacks in technicality, some slick sections kept racers on their toes. Thomas Booth and Shelley Flood took out the elite men and women’s stages respectively.

The 5th and final stage was a fun, fast and technical end to the day. Still a mammoth 400m vertical descent, the stage was one of the shortest in the event. The stage wins for elite men and women went to Rhys Ellis and Rachel Hore respectively.

Following a massive two days of racing and liaison stages, with nearly 3,000m of vertical descending, Dan Booker and Shelly Flood were unbeatable in the elite men and women categories respectively. While the weather made for an interesting race, with many stages slick race stages, racers were treated to some amazing race stages.

Full event results can be found via the link; https://www.sportident.co.uk/results/KingMillerEvents/2020/EWS_Qualifier_Mayden
a_2020/

maydena ews enduro racing
Dan Booker punching his way to victory across the five stages and two days of racing.
maydena ews enduro racing
Shelley Flood stormed to victory in the Elite Women’s category.
maydena ews enduro racing
Maydena humming away with excitement, nerves, and lots of grins. We love this place!

Mo’ Flow Please!

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