Like the cross country racers, downhillers faced greasy conditions during Saturday's practice runs at Kaka hill. All were hoping for finer and warmer weather for Sunday's race day, and Nelson delivered, presenting a drying course that came right in time for the afternoon race on Sunday.
The race run gave 2007 World Championship bronze medalist Matt Scoles his first big win in the elites, over France's Fabian Pedemanaud. It was Scoles' best result this New Zealand summer.
2009 Junior World Champion Brook MacDonald completed the podium just ahead of George Brannigan, who continues to impress as a second-year junior riding against his older peers. Last man on the hill and top seed Nathan Rankin couldn't improve on his seeding time and faded to fifth, but will be happy to get his 2010 season off to a solid start. Kieran Bennett showed how hard Kaka can be even for someone who knows the course so well. He punctured and peeled his rear tire off the rim towards the bottom of the course, which ruined any home track advantage he may have had.
The senior men's downhill title was one to watch however. PC Cooper and Richard Leacock were frantically calculating exactly what they needed to do in both seeding and race runs to take the overall title. When the dust had settled, Leacock won by the narrowest of margins - one-half of a point, with Cooper and his heavily strapped shoulder knowing he had done all he could to take this one out.
The New Zealand Mountain Bike Cup takes a week's break and will return on February 6-7 for round four with the downhill in Rotorua and the cross country in Tokoroa.
Full Results
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Elite men
#
Rider Name (Country) Team
Result
1
Matt Scoles
0:03:03
2
Fabien Pedemanaud
0:00:02
3
Brook Macdonald
0:00:02
4
George Brannigan
0:00:02
5
Nathan Rankin
0:00:02
6
Cameron Cole
0:00:03
7
Justin Leov
0:00:05
8
Wyn Masters
0:00:08
9
Des Curry
0:00:09
10
Matt Walker
0:00:14
11
Reuben Miller
0:00:14
12
Joseph Nation
0:00:17
13
David Reinhardt
0:00:23
14
James Dodds
0:00:23
15
Sean McCarroll
0:00:23
16
Tim Eaton
0:00:28
17
Hayden Lee
0:00:50
18
Kieran Bennett
0:01:47
19
Mike Davis
0:02:00
20
Hayden McGregor
0:02:02
DNF
Jamie Rennie
Row 20 - Cell 2
DNS
Edo Franco
Row 21 - Cell 2
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Elite women
#
Rider Name (Country) Team
Result
1
Sabrina Jonnier
0:03:45
2
Hariet Harper
0:00:04
3
Sophie Borderes
0:00:25
4
Gabrielle Molloy
0:00:29
5
Rita Langley
0:01:09
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Junior men
#
Rider Name (Country) Team
Result
1
Rupert Chapman
0:03:10
2
Jed Rooney
0:00:07
3
Daniel Franks
0:00:08
4
Jimmy Wilson
0:00:09
5
Reuben Olorenshaw
0:00:11
6
Sam Baker
0:00:12
7
Nick Bygate
0:00:17
8
Brandon Ransfield
0:00:22
9
Kirk Fisher
0:00:23
10
Jackson Carter-Smith
0:00:23
11
William Parata
0:00:32
12
Nathan Sheppard
0:00:32
13
Marcus Allen
0:00:33
14
Tobias Handcock
0:00:33
15
Brandon Dunn
0:00:40
16
Cory Prutton
0:00:41
17
Tyler Kirk
0:00:45
18
Jamie Hubbard
0:00:48
19
Oscar Tatom
0:00:48
20
Ryan Lewis
0:00:54
21
Dan Trewern
0:00:57
22
Zac Chandler
0:02:16
23
Jared Marriner
0:02:18
DNF
Leighton Kirk
Row 23 - Cell 2
DNF
Jamie Chapman
Row 24 - Cell 2
DNS
Nick Taylor
Row 25 - Cell 2
DNS
Warrick Trompetter
Row 26 - Cell 2
DNS
Unknown Francis
Row 27 - Cell 2
DNS
Kieran Thompson
Row 28 - Cell 2
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Under 17 men
#
Rider Name (Country) Team
Result
1
Jay Barrett
0:03:21
2
Jake Robinson
0:00:00
3
Troy Stewart
0:00:09
4
Kurt Summerfield
0:00:12
5
Zach Baker
0:00:13
6
Tom Burns
0:00:13
7
Dan Mccombie
0:00:22
8
Reece Potter
0:00:23
9
Daniel McNab
0:00:24
10
Hunter JenkInson
0:00:34
11
Devan Eden
0:00:37
12
Campbell Mercer
0:00:39
13
Andy Wilson
0:00:44
14
Connor Smith
0:00:48
15
Caelab Drummond
0:00:50
16
Richard Scott
0:00:51
17
Dion Ward
0:00:53
18
Morgan Taylor
0:00:56
19
Daniel Lawton
0:00:57
20
Alex Faulkner
0:01:01
21
Mitch Thomas
0:01:02
22
Zach Rowe
0:01:09
23
Jack Arnopp
0:01:14
24
Harry Ness
0:05:37
25
Harry Chapman
0:15:31
DNF
Michael Franks
Row 25 - Cell 2
DNS
Bradley Dent
Row 26 - Cell 2
DNS
Michael Gunter
Row 27 - Cell 2
DNS
Logan Ness
Row 28 - Cell 2
DNS
Jamie Rosier
Row 29 - Cell 2
DNS
Leo Sandler
Row 30 - Cell 2
DNS
Mitchell Scammell
Row 31 - Cell 2
DNS
Tim Adams
Row 32 - Cell 2
DNS
Thomas Gornall
Row 33 - Cell 2
DNS
Bradley Marshall
Row 34 - Cell 2
DNS
Nick Elliott
Row 35 - Cell 2
South Island Cup final standings & New Zealand Cup standings after 3 rounds
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Elite men
#
Rider Name (Country) Team
Result
Header Cell - Column 3
1
Justin Leov
230
pts
2
Brook Macdonald
212
Row 1 - Cell 3
3
Cameron Cole
207
Row 2 - Cell 3
4
Matt Scoles
206
Row 3 - Cell 3
5
Fabien Pedemanaud
192
Row 4 - Cell 3
6
George Brannigan
181
Row 5 - Cell 3
7
Wyn Masters
179
Row 6 - Cell 3
8
Matt Walker
165
Row 7 - Cell 3
9
Kieran Bennett
164
Row 8 - Cell 3
10
James Dodds
160
Row 9 - Cell 3
11
Hayden McGregor
145
Row 10 - Cell 3
12
Joseph Nation
132
Row 11 - Cell 3
13
James Rennie
110
Row 12 - Cell 3
14
Des Curry
108
Row 13 - Cell 3
15
Tim Eaton
76
Row 14 - Cell 3
16
Mike Davis
92
Row 15 - Cell 3
17
David Reinhardt
91
Row 16 - Cell 3
18
Sam Blenkinsop
87
Row 17 - Cell 3
19
Edo Franco
86
Row 18 - Cell 3
20
Nathan Rankin
72
Row 19 - Cell 3
21
Joel Gebbie
61
Row 20 - Cell 3
22
Reuben Miller
51
Row 21 - Cell 3
23
Daniel Sims
58
Row 22 - Cell 3
24
Hayden Lee
47
Row 23 - Cell 3
25
Sean McCarroll
46
Row 24 - Cell 3
26
Reon Boe
44
Row 25 - Cell 3
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Elite women
#
Rider Name (Country) Team
Result
Header Cell - Column 3
1
Sabrina Jonnier
267
pts
2
Sophie Borderes
226
Row 1 - Cell 3
3
Rita Langley
159
Row 2 - Cell 3
4
Gabrielle Molloy
151
Row 3 - Cell 3
5
Hariet Harper
84
Row 4 - Cell 3
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Junior Under 19 men
#
Rider Name (Country) Team
Result
Header Cell - Column 3
1
Rupert Chapman
248
pts
2
Jed Rooney
236
Row 1 - Cell 3
3
Sam Baker
198
Row 2 - Cell 3
4
Daniel Franks
196
Row 3 - Cell 3
5
Jimmy Wilson
195
Row 4 - Cell 3
6
Nick Bygate
177
Row 5 - Cell 3
7
Nathan Sheppard
143
Row 6 - Cell 3
7
Kirk Fisher
143
Row 7 - Cell 3
9
William Parata
142
Row 8 - Cell 3
10
Tobias Handcock
141
Row 9 - Cell 3
11
Jackson Carter-Smith
129
Row 10 - Cell 3
12
Warrick Trompetter
125
Row 11 - Cell 3
13
Oscar Tatom
118
Row 12 - Cell 3
14
Reuben Olorenshaw
111
Row 13 - Cell 3
15
Leighton Kirk
109
Row 14 - Cell 3
15
Brandon Ransfield
109
Row 15 - Cell 3
17
Ryan Lewis
107
Row 16 - Cell 3
18
Corey Penney
94
Row 17 - Cell 3
19
Tyler Kirk
87
Row 18 - Cell 3
20
Cory Prutton
83
Row 19 - Cell 3
21
George Diver
81
Row 20 - Cell 3
22
Brandon Dunn
76
Row 21 - Cell 3
23
Dan Trewern
73
Row 22 - Cell 3
24
Rogan Young
70
Row 23 - Cell 3
25
Dan Whearty
67
Row 24 - Cell 3
26
James Hoggan
66
Row 25 - Cell 3
27
Josh Barnard
66
Row 26 - Cell 3
28
Will Kemp
63
Row 27 - Cell 3
29
Mat Prior
69
Row 28 - Cell 3
30
Zac Chandler
57
Row 29 - Cell 3
31
Jono Francis
57
Row 30 - Cell 3
32
Blake Robinson
51
Row 31 - Cell 3
33
Jamie Chapman
50
Row 32 - Cell 3
34
Lachlan Cruickshank
46
Row 33 - Cell 3
34
Marcus Allen
46
Row 34 - Cell 3
36
Cody Rees
42
Row 35 - Cell 3
37
Jamie Hubbard
41
Row 36 - Cell 3
38
Taylor Hamilton
40
Row 37 - Cell 3
39
Michael Wells
37
Row 38 - Cell 3
40
Tom Blakeway
33
Row 39 - Cell 3
40
Jared Marriner
33
Row 40 - Cell 3
42
Nick Taylor
32
Row 41 - Cell 3
43
Liam Malone
29
Row 42 - Cell 3
44
Hayden Ryan
27
Row 43 - Cell 3
45
Barry Gilbertson
17
Row 44 - Cell 3
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Junior Under 17 men
#
Rider Name (Country) Team
Result
Header Cell - Column 3
1
Troy Stewart
253
pts
2
Jake Robinson
247
Row 1 - Cell 3
3
Reece Potter
206
Row 2 - Cell 3
4
Kurt Summerfield
175
Row 3 - Cell 3
5
Tom Burns
172
Row 4 - Cell 3
6
Dan Mccombie
164
Row 5 - Cell 3
7
Harry Chapman
162
Row 6 - Cell 3
8
Daniel McNab
151
Row 7 - Cell 3
9
Harry Ness
148
Row 8 - Cell 3
10
Hunter Jenkinson
146
Row 9 - Cell 3
11
Andy Wilson
143
Row 10 - Cell 3
12
Connor Smith
131
Row 11 - Cell 3
13
Morgan Taylor
126
Row 12 - Cell 3
14
Daniel Lawton
123
Row 13 - Cell 3
15
Jacques Vosloo
123
Row 14 - Cell 3
16
Zach Baker
122
Row 15 - Cell 3
17
Richard Scott
115
Row 16 - Cell 3
18
Mitchell Scammell
113
Row 17 - Cell 3
19
Alex Faulkner
111
Row 18 - Cell 3
20
Campbell Mercer
105
Row 19 - Cell 3
21
Devan Eden
91
Row 20 - Cell 3
22
Mitch Thomas
90
Row 21 - Cell 3
23
Logan Ness
85
Row 22 - Cell 3
23
Caelab Drummond
85
Row 23 - Cell 3
25
Dion Ward
85
Row 24 - Cell 3
26
Jay Barrett
81
Row 25 - Cell 3
27
Bradley Dent
77
Row 26 - Cell 3
28
Michael Franks
72
Row 27 - Cell 3
29
Michael Gunter
54
Row 28 - Cell 3
30
Cameron Flick
48
Row 29 - Cell 3
31
Tim Adams
45
Row 30 - Cell 3
32
Zach Rowe
35
Row 31 - Cell 3
33
Jack Arnopp
33
Row 32 - Cell 3
34
Thomas Gornall
33
Row 33 - Cell 3
35
Jamie Rosier
32
Row 34 - Cell 3
36
Jake Paddon
30
Row 35 - Cell 3
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Senior men
#
Rider Name (Country) Team
Result
Header Cell - Column 3
1
Richard Leacock
242
pts
2
Peter Cooper
241
Row 1 - Cell 3
3
Nick Mcconachie
192
Row 2 - Cell 3
4
Jake Boylett
187
Row 3 - Cell 3
5
Hayden McKay
171
Row 4 - Cell 3
6
Sam Perry
157
Row 5 - Cell 3
7
Cam Johnson
155
Row 6 - Cell 3
8
Daniel Meilink
154
Row 7 - Cell 3
9
Ethan Helliwell
146
Row 8 - Cell 3
10
Ben Tyas
136
Row 9 - Cell 3
11
Joe Flanagan
135
Row 10 - Cell 3
12
Tom Mathews
133
Row 11 - Cell 3
13
Daniel Heads
123
Row 12 - Cell 3
14
Freddie King
119
Row 13 - Cell 3
15
Matt Burns
117
Row 14 - Cell 3
15
Jamie Lyall
117
Row 15 - Cell 3
17
Ollie Knight
110
Row 16 - Cell 3
18
James Mcconachie
107
Row 17 - Cell 3
19
Cameron Kay
106
Row 18 - Cell 3
20
David Balderstone
99
Row 19 - Cell 3
21
Matt King
89
Row 20 - Cell 3
22
Scott McGregor
85
Row 21 - Cell 3
23
Heraud Aurelien
78
Row 22 - Cell 3
24
Dylan Shanchez-Pinsent
73
Row 23 - Cell 3
25
Chris Mancey
70
Row 24 - Cell 3
26
Sean Kennedy
64
Row 25 - Cell 3
27
Sam Shucksmith
59
Row 26 - Cell 3
28
Rufus Wenlock
57
Row 27 - Cell 3
29
Kevin Fife
55
Row 28 - Cell 3
30
Tom Winwood
54
Row 29 - Cell 3
31
Steven Pattle
51
Row 30 - Cell 3
32
Eliot Jackson
49
Row 31 - Cell 3
32
Asher Ellery
49
Row 32 - Cell 3
34
Kyle Wilson
48
Row 33 - Cell 3
35
Matt Ineson
45
Row 34 - Cell 3
36
Kelly McGarry
42
Row 35 - Cell 3
37
Ant Jackson
38
Row 36 - Cell 3
37
Jeandin Thomas
38
Row 37 - Cell 3
39
Graeme Adriaens
38
Row 38 - Cell 3
40
Alastair Parkin
37
Row 39 - Cell 3
41
Jamie Eagle
33
Row 40 - Cell 3
42
Aurelien Heraud
33
Row 41 - Cell 3
43
Zac Williams
32
Row 42 - Cell 3
44
Nick Gasson
32
Row 43 - Cell 3
44
Andrew Peek
32
Row 44 - Cell 3
46
Tom Kennedy
30
Row 45 - Cell 3
47
Nick Middleton
30
Row 46 - Cell 3
48
Ramon Hunziker
29
Row 47 - Cell 3
49
Mike Hickman
28
Row 48 - Cell 3
50
Orion Daley-Coers
26
Row 49 - Cell 3
51
Mark Johns
25
Row 50 - Cell 3
52
Oliver Morris
35
Row 51 - Cell 3
53
Callum Hunter
24
Row 52 - Cell 3
53
Dave Anderson
24
Row 53 - Cell 3
55
Pete Miller
23
Row 54 - Cell 3
55
Trevor Scott
23
Row 55 - Cell 3
55
Erik Wardrop
23
Row 56 - Cell 3
58
Jacob Leach
22
Row 57 - Cell 3
59
James Pauly
21
Row 58 - Cell 3
59
Nick Hotchin
21
Row 59 - Cell 3
61
James Allan
19
Row 60 - Cell 3
62
Chris Draper
16
Row 61 - Cell 3
63
Andre Jaworski
15
Row 62 - Cell 3
64
Gary Mattson
11
Row 63 - Cell 3
65
Anthony Gunter
8
Row 64 - Cell 3
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Open women
#
Rider Name (Country) Team
Result
Header Cell - Column 3
1
Charlotte Clouston
252
pts
2
Georgia Wight
227
Row 1 - Cell 3
3
Veronique Sandler
198
Row 2 - Cell 3
4
Sophiemarie Bethell
133
Row 3 - Cell 3
5
Baylee Jackson
123
Row 4 - Cell 3
6
Amanda Pearce
121
Row 5 - Cell 3
7
Madeline Taylor
90
Row 6 - Cell 3
8
Sarah Atkin
84
Row 7 - Cell 3
9
Sophie Tyas
79
Row 8 - Cell 3
10
Naomi Wilson
67
Row 9 - Cell 3
11
Megan Muretta
63
Row 10 - Cell 3
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Master 30+ men
#
Rider Name (Country) Team
Result
Header Cell - Column 3
1
Neil White
218
pts
2
Cameron Bisset
206
Row 1 - Cell 3
3
Derek Winwood
174
Row 2 - Cell 3
4
Bevan Adlam
144
Row 3 - Cell 3
5
Boyd Grinstead
132
Row 4 - Cell 3
6
Shaun Hodges
119
Row 5 - Cell 3
7
Kevin English
117
Row 6 - Cell 3
8
Cameron Laird
81
Row 7 - Cell 3
9
Scott Couzins
76
Row 8 - Cell 3
10
Nigel Reeve
66
Row 9 - Cell 3
11
Nick Sutcliffe
63
Row 10 - Cell 3
12
Andy Chapman
58
Row 11 - Cell 3
13
Mike Inwood
53
Row 12 - Cell 3
14
Chris Paassens
52
Row 13 - Cell 3
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Master 40+ men
#
Rider Name (Country) Team
Result
Header Cell - Column 3
1
John Boylett
254
pts
2
Murray Stark
171
Row 1 - Cell 3
3
David Smith
81
Row 2 - Cell 3
4
Mike Kirkwood
79
Row 3 - Cell 3
5
Mike Stylinou
76
Row 4 - Cell 3
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Hardtail men
#
Rider Name (Country) Team
Result
Header Cell - Column 3
1
Nathan Petrie
90
pts
2
Ollie Radford
30
Row 1 - Cell 3
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Junior Under 15 men
#
Rider Name (Country) Team
Result
Header Cell - Column 3
1
Josh Mccombie
270
pts
2
Richard Scandrett
243
Row 1 - Cell 3
3
Liam Taylor
211
Row 2 - Cell 3
4
Matt Lawton
195
Row 3 - Cell 3
5
Tom Brian
74
Row 4 - Cell 3
6
Mitchell Barnard
70
Row 5 - Cell 3
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Sue George is an editor at Cyclingnews. She coordinates all of the site's mountain bike race coverage and assists with the road, 'cross and track coverage.