The ever popular Deans Bank MTB endurance race returns to Albert Town this Sunday (October 27) for the eighth consecutive year with 300 entries already confirmed and ten teams signed up for the new schools’ team race.

Described as a full day of fun for both riders and spectators, this is a competition that forms friendships, tests skills and challenges riders to push themselves to achieve as many circuits of the race track, complete with banks, berms, humps and hollows, within ten hours. 

Event organiser Bike Wanaka’s Ewan Mackie said many contestants were returning to the fray once again, including defending champion John Metzger for the ten hour solo event. John rode an extraordinary 16 laps of the 11km loop track in just over nine hours, 20 minutes last year.

The Dunlop Builders Bike Wanaka event is synonymous with the purpose built mountain bike loop track at Dean’s Bank, beside the Clutha River. It will also feature the Dunlop Builders’ Tradies Challenge once again. 

“Local companies have started to use this challenge as an impetus to get fit and are out on their bikes after work rather than at the pub,” Ewan said.

There are three major races during the day: the ten hour solo; the ten hour teams; and the five hour solo. In response to feedback, Ewan said this year’s event has streamlined the categories into Junior (U18), school teams, and a combined Open/Veteran (50+).

In an effort to encourage the increasing number of teenage MTB riders, this year’s Deans Bank event will feature a schools mixed teams competition for the first time. 

“There are a lot of keen and really talented young riders there are out there,” Ewan said, “and the schools’ team category will have them competing against their peers.”

He said this year’s kids’ event is set to be bigger and better than ever as they focus on family entertainment and child friendly activities. 

“We’ve ramped things up for the kids,” he said. “We have a dedicated kids bike track, complete with fun obstacles to ride over, which will be available to ride all day but the emphasis will be for the kids to come down and ride with their mates, rack up some laps and have a whole heap of fun.”

There will still be a kids’ race, with different age group categories, alongside the games, activities, face painting, arts and crafts, bungee bounce, and plenty more to keep the wee ones amused for hours, Ewan said.

There will be food trucks present but all vendors have agreed to reduce waste so so there will be no single-use food or drinks packaging, he said.

The event is also a fund-raising opportunity for Bike Wanaka to be able to reinvest in the many kilometres of local bike tracks and trails. Ewan said this year Bike Wanaka has been working on tracks through Hikuwai as well as the Deans Banks track improving its drainage to withstand heavy rain.

“We’ve had a lot of rain this week but the track has held up really well and we’ve got almost perfect track conditions for the race,” he said. 

The event starts at the Albert Town camping grounds entrance to Deans Bank, off SH6, from 9:00am on Sunday.