One last mountain to climb

By Gordon Milne, Year 12, Trinity Anglican School

SCHOOL was out and the holidays lay ahead, but before we could throw up our feet, one more challenge marked the end of the school year.

The inter-school mountain bike competition was held in the last week of school of 2016 at Smithfield Mountain Bike Park.

For four hours, teams of up to three riders battled it out in a relay-style cross country mountain biking event.

The race was a great success, with at least 35 riders entering from several schools.

From the instant the horn sounded, it was on.

The field of riders, in three age categories, were off in a sprint to the first corner and for the next four hours the intensity didn’t drop.

Riders within their teams had a 3.3km loop of mountain bike trails to give it everything they had.

At the end of the lap they would metaphorically pass the baton to the next rider, allowing them their small, yet precious break.

Among the fun and social nature of the event, tight battles were being fought throughout the whole field.

The addition of punctures and crashes made for an exciting day of racing.

The Trinity Anglican School teams came first and second overall, winning the senior and intermediate categories.

As a member of the TAS senior pair, I rode a total of 17 laps, translating to more than 50km of racing.

A massive thanks to the staff of Redlynch State College for the smooth organisation and running of such a great competition.

Thank you also to the teachers from TAS for accompanying us, especially as our school was already on holidays.

I am looking forward to more inter-school mountain biking in 2017, giving students an opportunity to experience the joy and excitement of this ever-growing sport.