Gordon and Tazreiter win the Croc!

The 2019 Crocodile Trophy was raced on a revamped course in Tropical North Queensland this October. Local mountain biker and Crocodile Trophy racer Brendan Skerke took command of the course design that saw fresh trails, stage finishes and a whole new final stage for the iconic mountain bike stage race. While the start in Cairns and finish in Port Douglas remained the same, the adventure between the two points was vastly different to previous editions, and won praise from local and international riders alike. Between the tape, Australian Michael England took the overall lead early in the race but it was South African Alan Gordon who would arrive in Port Douglas in the leader’s jersey, as England won the title of Best Australian.

“I am very happy and it was a really nice race,” said Gordon. “We didn’t know what to expect, in the beginning, but I am so happy we did it. Next year we’ll be back to do it again, hopefully!”

“I came here to finish the Croc Trophy, I’ve been racing for a long time now and the Croc Trophy is one of my last big events that I wanted to go well at,” said England at the finish.

The winning woman was Angelika Tazreiter from Austria, who finished 11th overall. She raced hard but also enjoyed the locations that the Crocodile Trophy visited, including the final stage from Hartley’s Crocodile Farm to Port Douglas.

“The panoramic views after this eighth stage are really incredible. I must admit I really enjoyed the peace and quiet this morning in my tent and when it was still calm in the camp, I rode out to the ocean and watched the sunrise.”

The Crocodile Trophy will be back next year, landing in the tropics for 17-24 October. If you’re after the ultimate mountain bike adventure in our northern backyard – this is it.