5 Passes peeps on the C2C Coast to Coast weekend and hopefully your training has gone well on the back of the Five Passes tour. The weather is looking pretty good at this stage. As always, Five Passes riders are set to do some damage. In the men’s one day race- well more of the same please ! What a great scrap we saw last year with Sam Manson and Ryan Kiesanowski beating each other up all day. Sam prevailed and deservedly goes in as top seed, but has anyone else been spying on Ryan’s Strava ? It’s going to be a great battle.
Paul Gow will be out here living his best life, while Gareth Holebrook who has ridden Passes a few times has come down from Northland to battle the elements. Matt Mustchin raced well in the Two Day last year so he’s decided to make life even harder for himself by stepping up.
Also in the mix in the men’s Longest Day: both from the “A Dog Show” team in Five Passes, Carl Forrester and Ben O’Carroll- a right pair of hard Hombres.
The women’s one day race was a belter last year too. Simone Maier is absolutely at the top of her game, but our own Fiona Dowling and Rebecca Kingsford put in performances that in many other years could have put them at the top of the podium, finishing second and third respectively. Can they topple the queen this year ? Their trajectories of improvement would indicate that it’s on !
Also look out for our own Alice Mullins and Tessa Aukje Dekker who rode 5 Passes two years ago. We can be confident that the Pure employee will be well fuelled !
In the two day race, good luck to the evergreen Trish Jones who is looking to add to her tally of Coast to Coast and Ironman finishes. The flying Finn McKenzie took the yellow jersey on the 2022 tour, and he’s coming in hot, having just won the national under 19 Criterium title in Palmerston North. Last year he was a rookie in the boat and still did the damage. He’ll be hard to beat !
Big Roger Wilson has trained the house down all summer and is looking ready for a big weekend !
Is that our regular crew member Sarah Shanks in the One Day three person Surfing for Farmers team ? Good luck Sarah.
James McCone is teamed up with Belinda McCone in the two persons team event…. I’m sure that’ll be a less stroppy combo than his Bayleys mob in Passes !
In the Three Persons teams race, regular Five Passes riders Simon Yarrell, Joseph Petelo and Scott Thomson look a bit slick, while Glenn Quantock is also racing in the same category.
Spotted recently in Zeroes Cafe was what appeared to be a clone of cycling ace Paul Odlin. This chap looked a lot like Paul, but was displaying a pair of hairy legs like a sort of urbanised Grizzly Adams ! It wasn’t a clone. It was the real thing, and Paul has hung the bike up for the weekend and will be on the start line for the Mountain Run. Quite why his nationality is listed as being from Afghanistan is anybody’s guess (I spose the hill work would be good), but it’ll be great to see him out there.
Last but not least, our mighty Race Director Sheree Stevens is having a weekend away from showjumping to tackle the mountain run ! All those hours running around the hills on the farm will be put to the test over Goats Pass. Good luck everyone. I am bound to have missed someone and I do apologise, so please feel free to add more names in the thread !
BA.
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