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New enduro event - Capital Punishment
Just received this media release from some mates. Sounds fun!
Craving Capital Punishment?
5 January 2009
By now, all mountain bikers in the country would have heard of - or ridden for the lucky ones - Mt Stromlo, host of the 2008 UCI World Cup and the 2009 UCI World Championships! Chances are Majura Pines also rings a bell as the headquarters for the Mont 24Hour MTB event. Finally, Canberrean riders at least would know of these other local gems that are Sparrow Hill and Bruce Ridge...
Up to now though, riders pretty much had to choose which one of these awesome tracks they were going to ride whether when visiting Canberra or heading out of their front door. Well, Mountain Bikers all over Australia rejoice, because this excruciatingly painful choice has just been resolved! Just in time for the New Year, AROC Sport announces the launch of a killer of an event: Capital Punishment on Saturday 30 May 2009.Taking in the best tracks that the Capital City has to offer, course-setter Tom Landon-Smith has combined them to design a great 100km enduro course that is sure to satisfy any mountain biker in their right mind!
Starting at Sparrow Hill where single tracks meander through the pine forest, the course will then go to Kowen Forest, through Majura, take in the myriads of single tracks from Bruce Ridge, over Black Mountain and finish with a bang at Mt Stromlo.
For those with an appetite for sweet tracks but dreading the reaction of their legs on a 100km ride, a 50km option is available which will still give a good taste of the variety of terrain in the Canberra area.Race entry opens online on 15 February 2009.
Event details available on: www.arocsport.com.au
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What more could you ask for!
Great organising team (they bring you the Angry Doctor and a host of AR, aka Adventure Racing, trail running events... Tom, Alina & Co and are just plain legends) and possibly the 3 best open/managed tracks in NSW (if not Aus), this has got to be race worth doing!
I'm in!
on a stick! Thats a beauty!
Sounds awesome. I may skip the Angry Doctor and do this one instead this year!
Do them both!
But I promised in Rob's poll to do the same number of events this year
i am thinking the 50 looks like FUN for this one - stuart want to try it with me ?????
you 2 r in the 100 club, now!!!!
Bernd
we didn't even get an entry in that... besides.. I HATE stromlo (nooooo waayyy I hear you all say) but it's true, so I am hoping the 50 misses out that part....
and besides all of that the only 100 I am planning is Dirtworks!
How do you get from Stromlo back to the start after you finish!?
And Christine...too bad....finish for both is at Stromlo
http://www.arocsport.com.au/MTB_Capital/mtb_capi...
that took the shine off my happy plan didn't it. Bugger!
hmmm... never ridden at Canberra before, maybe this would be a good one to start with
Sam, this sounds like a ride you were telling me about. Is it the same one?
I'll definitely be in for this one.
After doing Rob's poll, I was just thinking how good it would be to have a 100k race at one of the Canberra courses. Didn't think we'd get to do all of them !
CB
It was called the Brindabella Challenge...point to point ride starting at Sparrow and going through Cowen, Majura, Black Mountain and finishing at Stromlo park although it was not ready for riding ...we'd done a 100km when we arrived there...CORC boys put on a great days riding!
My first and last hunnerd !
Highly recommended 
Unfortunately for me I will not be there for this one!
Going under the knife for knee ACL replacement early Feb.
Shano
I'm in. Just have to sell it to the better half, could be expensive in browie point backing up so close to Dirtworks. mmmm we have friends in Canberra we hven't seen for a very long time May 30 is looking Good for a visit.
cheers
dk
Shano is correct, this is a killer ride. Heaps of fun, bare in mind that there is heaps of fire trail and road linking it all up.
Worth doing at least once!
for some strange reason Stuart has been overcome with some illness and as we didn't get 100k entries for Dirtworks he thinks we should do the 100 here instead - tell me, what is wrong with having a fun time and doing the 50?!!!
Go on, you know you wanna...
But 100 is double the fun then so why wouldnt you do it.
It strikes me that all of the really fun stuff in the enduro races are in the 100k options.
Hi Christine.
I think if you only do the 50k versions you would miss the defining moments of most of the courses.
Imagine....
Dirtworks without technical sections at half way, Shepherds Gully, the canoe bridge or the descent down Jacks track.
The Angry Doctor without the sensational downhill singletracks in the second half.
The Fling without the Wingello forest single track.
Although I'm always one of the last over the line, I've always been glad to have gone for a slow hundred than a fast fifty.
Looking forward to a slow hundred round Canberra !
CB
ps. Outside possibility I could be at the Cascades ride on Sunday for my first official mob ride. With luck I might see you there.
After missing out on the Dirtworks I'm 100% in for this.
With missing the Dirtworks. If you are keen I would still train because like all events, there normally is a flood of tickets for sale leading up to it.
I definitely will be trying to get a last minute enrty into the Dirtworks. Let me know if you here of anything. Preferbaly the 100 but I'll take anything.
I notice in the AROC newsletter this seems to be back on for 29 May 2010.
It's now listed as 60 or 120km options so assume they are just going to send us round the land that access cannot be granted for.
AROC completely bungled this event up this year by advertising before permission was granted to access defence land.
then consider the way the Angry Doctor was run this year. Ordinary water stops, an apparent lack of marshall's and a death on course.
Do I really want to for over my hard earned to do an enduro with 20km of road chucked in that could possibly ruin my happy memories linked to riding in Canberra?
AROC will have to come upm with something very special for me to enter this one.
What if one shows Defence ID? Do they get a 20km shortcut
Wrt. the AD - I only did the 50km so can't comment on the 2nd half of the AD course, but I thought the first & second (which was the halfway mark) water stop was well stocked with food and drinks and the course had markers on every alternate route.
Regarding marshals, I was surprised to see so many in the first half, it seemed there were more in the first half than some other 100km races. I suppose the fact that the AD course is not on a main trail/track so it may appear sparse.
The death on the course was not related to the course or race organisation itself i.e. dangerous/technical track or road crossing etc. or lack of medical personnel.
Wrt CP - I agree that 20km's of bitumen in a MTB race is not fun, but the route has not been confirmed yet. I have mailed them asking to clarify the bitumen part...
to enter anything organized by them... I felt that there were less marshals on course than other races (sorry Junkie!) and I know for a fact they didn't have communication between themselves and base, as the guy who hurt his leg had to get his mate to ride to get his car... there was no phone reception for the marshall or a walkie talkie.
But most concerning I felt was that when I went to ask about Grifter as he was still out there, the organizers had no record what so ever of who was or wasn't on course - I really do think that it would go without saying for whatever marshals are there to write down numbers so each person can be traced to 'last seen at...'
nb: junkie, I heard some of the marshals had to leave to attend a bush fire, since I was hours after you maybe that would account for the difference... also, in my wonderful stack, i bent Mildreds front wheel - had i done a better job I would have had to walk a very very long way carrying my bike before I would have found a friendly marshal to help me out...like more than 10ks... lucky even my stacks aren't 100% hey!
personally i dont care who runs this event. But whoever does it first and links up all the fine Canberra trails will get my entry.
I have done lots of 24hr events in canberra over the years, Stromlo, Sparrow, Majura, Kowen. And to be able to ride them all back to back is an event i cant miss. I hope this event gets off the ground.
Personally i think the Angry Doctor was run just as well as other 100km events i have entered, Marshalls seemed to be in the right spots, ie road crossings, plenty of arrows and stuff. Sure another couple of marshals to wave to would have been nice but there are only so many volunteers they can get for these events. Maybe an extra $5 an entry could pay the wages of some extra people for the day?
The only problem with the Ad for me was that between 50km and 100km there was only one drink stop, another one was really needed in this section. at the 80km mark dudes and chicks everywhere where out of water and riders where sharing what precious little water they had left. This would not have been a problem though if it wasnt plus 30degrees. 3litres went pretty fast in the heat there, so even an unmanned water only refil would have been nice. Apart from that i think it was a well run event. I didnt have any problems where i needed a marshal or help though. They really need to have marshalls equiped with some device that can communicate back to the head location (start/finish area). If this was not done than this is a problem that they need to rectify.
Don