Riding NZ’s benchmark cycling event kicks off with a single turn of the pedal!
“Whether you’re a weekend warrior, a mountain bike enthusiast, an elite or enduro, cycle the café circuit with your mates, looking for some family fun or a weekend away with the girls, there’s a ride for you” says Event Director Kay Brake. The Contact Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge is the country’s largest cycling event, but it has retained its unique community appeal, and among its many participants are several teams of Rotarian riders.
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| Fun and camaraderie are the order of the day at the Contact Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge – Photo credit: Photo Supplied by NZ Road Cyclist, Photographer Mead Norton |
Now into its 20th year of Rotary stewardship owned and organised by the Rotary Club of Taupo Moana, this cycling challenge is refreshing its next event on November 29 by adding three new categories to its already exciting stable of cycling options. This event has come a long way since its first 26 participants 38 years ago! More than 8000 riders from NZ and 20 countries across the globe now take part each year.
Best known is the one lap 160-km Bike Barn Solo ride around Lake Taupo, the one lap circumnavigation of Lake Taupo, and this year’s new categories will add a new dimension and further options for even more cyclists to participate. The first newbie is the 73-km Half the Lake road relay for solo riders not quite up to the full round-the-lake who can hand-off to a team mate at the half way mark. Their bikes will be transported for them t ride the second half of the 160km circuit. The second of the new categories is the Urban Jungle MTB Challenge where riders can display their mountain bike skills on ramps and jumps. Third of the newbies for those wanting speed there is the novelty Time Trial event at a special, exciting track which will be held on the Friday afternoon before Cycle Challenge day which will be the perfect warm-up for the big ride on the Saturday.
Held on the last Saturday of every November, the Contact Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge event proceeds are returned to a range of community projects, with Heart Kids NZ (www.heartnz.org.nz) as the official charity.
