Daily Race Updates

Our man on the ground Mike Blewitt from the Subaru MarathonMTB.com team is taking part in the 2011 Crocodile Trophy from 18 October to 26 October. He'll be posting daily updates live from the race.

Read more about the Crocodile Trophy race and the Subaru MarathonMTB.com team

View the latest results from each stage.

Starke – Cooktown: 128km: Stage 10

by MarathonMTB.com (October 27, 2011)

The last day, and we were all ready for it. Last night was later than expected, as dinner was delayed, and therefore the race presentation to celebrate Graeme´s fabulous 2nd place was skipped.

Talk abounded of a Gentlemans Agreement for the last stage. We had heard this was customary, and that sometimes the last rider on GC was allowed to win. But seeing as we had a 45km neutral ride into Cooktown following the official finish in Hope Vale, that probably wouldn´t happen. Brad Davies spread the word. He had spoken to race leader Jeroen Boelen (Milka-Trek), who was happy for a publicity break to go up the road, but come back around the water Depot – and then it would be race on.

And so it played out. There was groaning and swearing on the rough sections leaving Starke. No saddle, no chamois cream, no chamois can leave you comfortable after 10 days of racing and camping in the Far North Queensland outback. Martin Wisata and Roeland Suys were up the road, and were soon joined by Elite rider Chris Hellman. Their gap was impressive.

Photo: Crocodile Trophy 2011

The headwind was biting, and after the bunch had been rolling along pretty comfortably, it was time to start winding it up as the Depot came into sight. The pace was upped after the Depot, but significant inroads into the breaks 3 minute gap came when Subaru-MarathonMTB.com´s Graeme Arnott took to the front, pinning it close to 40km/h through the farmlands and forest.

The break was then caught.

The pace stayed steady, but it was still a larger bunch than normal at the front of the race. Accelerations on the small hills did little to thin the bunch. Haselbacher launched up the road, and there was impetus to keep him in check. He was later joined by Kevin '11' Hulsmans. Mike Mulkens came around the bunch with a gap and set about inreasing it. Boelen lit it up with Josef Beneseder, and I did the best job I could with a welders mask to keep it in check, pulling off when I was pedaling in squares. My day was done.

The group ended up splitting up and coming together, then having counter attacks. In the end Jeroen took the win.

After a BBQ at Hope Vale, the bunch had a demoralising neutral roll into Cooktown. With managed speeds this took forever, and we finally arrived at Grassy Hill, above Cooktown, at 3:25pm.

Presentations were made. Graeme took the overall Masters Title. Justin was 5th on Elite General Classification, and Subaru-MarathonMTB.com took the Teams Classification.

Photo: Crocodile Trophy 2011

Photo: Crocodile Trophy 2011

Kalpowar - Munburra  l  148 km: Stage 9

by Juliane Wisata (October 26, 2011)

Jeroen Boelen King of Sandy Queen Stage

Not the longest but without any doubt the technically hardest stage had race leader Jeroen Boelen’s name written all over it. The Dutch Milka-Trek rider arrived in Starke some ten minutes earlier than the others. Riding through sand is a specialty on its own. Boelen mastered this perfectly. If there aren’t any serious incidents, Boelen will be crowned as the overall winner tomorrow in Cooktown. Boelen’s challenger number one, Swiss Urs Huber, did not start any more due to illness. The Crocodile Trophy nearly also lost its Laura stage winner Christoph Sokoll who crashed early in the stage.

With a start at 7 AM the tent camp woke up at 5 AM to the bad news that the number two in the GC, Urs Huber, would not start. The two-time overall winner got sick on the eve of the 9th stage with a fever. During stage eight he already suffered from a bleeding nose for most of the second half of the race and got some fever overnight. “My tent was next to Urs’ tent”, said Belgian Mike Mulkens. “I heard him coughing the whole night. No, there is no question about his illness, there is nothing funny about it, let alone that he is frightened of the stage of today. Urs is sick.”

‘Cancellara’ Huber, 2nd overall at 7 minutes from Boelen, was the only one left to endanger Boelen’s position and the stage from Kalpowar to Starke had all potential to mix up the classification. Sand, more sand and tons of sand. As an extra add-on the terrain today was a constant up and down. No big climbs but not a meter flat at all either and all that on rough surface. If there was no sand on the roads, then there were deep and tricky wheel ruts.

It was in such a wheel rut, already early in the stage, that Australian Mark Griffin crashed. Korean Ki Joon Kim, Belgian Jan Verboven and the last two stage winners Huub Duyn and Christoph Sokoll fell over him. The other 17 riders in the group waited for them, but Sokoll preferred to let the others ride. After 30 K, the race doctor diagnosed a rib contusion. Sokoll went further, at his own pace, not bothering about his lost 6th place at the GC. “Maybe I also broke a right finger, but I want to finish this race. Last year I suffered more. I will arrive in Cooktown. That GC is not important any more. I won a stage. My Crocodile Trophy is already a success.”

Photo: Crocodile Trophy 2011

Photo: Crocodile Trophy 2011

The group of 17 was initially not the front group. Almost immediately after the start - the official start was situated in the middle of Normanby River crossing – René Haselbacher attacked. ‘Hasi’ had attacked every day, but with his lack of basic condition, he never endured till the end. Eternal attacker Kevin Hulsmans went with him as well as the home riders Brad Davies and Ashley Hayat.

The four got seven minutes. Boelen pulled towards the front of the chasing group, which then lost Huub Duyn with a broken derailleur. When the real sand misery started, the front group was no front group any more, but four individuals. One by one they were ‘eaten’ by Jeroen Boelen. “I did not really attack”, explained the later stage winner. “I just wanted to ride in the front on those difficult sections and apparently I am better than the others in this special kind of terrain. Where I live, there is a lot of sand, so I am used to this.”

Photo: Crocodile Trophy 2011

Photo: Crocodile Trophy 2011

The last rider to resist Boelen was Kevin Hulsmans. But not for long. “At the second of four feed zones I only found one drink bottle”, said Hulsmans. “In this heat, I was completely lost. I started sitting on the ground and just waited for Huub Duyn. Honestly I would have been good, but probably not good enough to beat Boelen.”

Hulsmans had to wait a long time for his team-mate Duyn as the Dutch rider struggled with his shoe cleats and crashed some five times and broke his chain too. Probably none of the riders did not crash on the hard sections through Melville National Park. Doris Ermens, crashed hard onto her tail bone but finished the race. The Belgian woman and her husband Lieven Straetmans are still leading in the tandem category.

Behind Boelen there was no organization among riders, but that would have been impossible anyway. One rider went through the sand, another failed to do so, a third one went through the bush on the left side of the course, another one on the right side. The complete Crocodile Trophy peloton was just a group of individuals. Everyone was struggling for his own position, but most of all struggling to stay upright. Some riders had no experience with that rough surface and suffered. Others neither had experience nor managed to do it very well as Sydney rider Graeme Arnott explained. “I soon found out that when you pedal easily through the sand, you let your bike do the work instead of the legs and it gets easy. I was surprised I did it so well. I appeared to be the best rider behind Boelen.”

Arnott, the leader in the Masters 1 category (the +30-year-old riders) would indeed finish the race in second position. “I think I was helped by the absence of Urs Huber. Had there been a fight between Huber and Boelen from the beginning, we would have seen a completely different and much harder race. But I don’t complain. Second in the queen stage, not bad for just a weekend rider.”

On the course, that hadn’t been ridden in the Crocodile Trophy for ten years, there was only one climb and thus one descent. The steepest descent seemed to be made for Korean kamikaze Geeni Yong Choi. He went twice as hard as the others and came that way closer and closer to the front. In the end Arnott had to hurry to preserve his second place.

“This was un unbelievable stage”, exclaimed Choi. “I know that a lot of Koreans are following me on the internet. They will be proud of my podium place today, just as I am.”

Austrians Wolfgang Krenn and Josef Benedseder finished 4th and 5th and secured their overall podium places as the number four, Belgian Mike Mulkens, lost about an hour today.

“Already early in the stage I had mechanical problems. First I thought it was an unwilling chain, but then I saw that there was something wrong with the hub of my rear wheel. As I am no technician at all I had to wait at a feed zone for help. Fortunately some guys from the Netherlands, from the Silvis en Vos Team could help me with a screwdriver and a stone, used as a hammer. Afterwards I could catch a lot of riders. Sand is my playground. This is easy for me. My podium is gone, but I have a nice Crocodile Trophy and I still don’t give up on winning a stage. Tomorrow is my last chance. I will go for it for my girlfriend who is in hospital right now.”

Behind the Austrians, the surprising Gert Maes was beaten in a sprint of two by the even more surprising Swiss rider Marc Baechli. Baechli is 41, has lived in Brisbane for two years and had attracted riders’ attention by his strange upright position on the bike. “As I suffer from a discus hernia, I started to mountain bike three years ago. Since then I have no pain any more in back and right leg. Mountain biking is my way of dealing with my disease. I may not complain. In the three hardest stages of this stage race, I was the first Master 2 (+40) rider.”

Tomorrow’s last and shortest stage goes from Starke to Cooktown. The town, which was Captain Cook’s first landing place in 1777, will welcome all riders after a week of suffering and adventure and with Jeroen Boelen as the 17th overall winner.

“It is a pity that there was no battle any more with Urs Huber today. It is the way it is. Urs will come back, motivated as ever, I am sure about that”, concluded the Milka-Trek rider.

Photo: Crocodile Trophy 2011

Photo: Crocodile Trophy 2011

Laura - Kalpowar l 89 km: Stage 8

by MarathonMTB.com (October 25, 2011)

With his third place Australian Justin Morris (Subaru/MarathonMTB.com) was as happy as if he had won. “We had a good team performance today. Graeme Arnott worked for his position as best Master in the GC, I would race for the stage win. I did not win, but this is really my best ever performance in a mountain bike race. I hope this can give other diabetics more hope; just because you have diabetes doesn’t mean that you can’t do sports at a high level.”

Next season Justin Morris will race on the road for Team Type 1 on the development program, as he already did in 2010. “I am the first diabetic to do this race. I hope some others will follow my example”, concluded Justin Morris

Former Slipstream/Garmin rider Huub Duyn stage winner in the midst of bush fires and crocodiles

Good that the Normanby River, in which the infamous Queensland’s saltwater crocodiles where sighted just a few days ago, separated the raging bush fires from the finish area or the stage would have had to be neutralized today. After a short but extremely hot stage Huub Duyn (Darrell Lee – Donckers Koffie) from the Netherlands won the stage in Kalpowar Camp, beating Austrian Josef Benedseder in a sprint of two. After three years of being a helper on the road for Garmin riders Bradley Wiggins, Tylar Farrar, Christian Vande Velde and Martijn Maaskant, Duyn returned to the continental level. His excursion to the Crocodile Trophy was supposed to be for fun, but once a rider is on the bike, he wants to win…

“This morning Huub was complaining again and he didn’t want to start any more”, said his team-mate Kevin Hulsmans from Belgium. “We told him that it was a short stage and that it would be easier on the bike than in the back of a wobbling car.” Wobbling, that indeed describes today’s stage. Corrugations from the start in Laura till the end in Kalpowar. ‘Fortunately’, it was a flat stage. The heat and the rough surface made it already hard enough.

The best 17 riders immediately broke away but soon lost René Haselbacher (puncture), Mark Griffin (hit a reflective pole with his left knee) and Mike Blewitt (material problem). Nobody in the front was able to attack as Swiss champion Urs Huber kept the pace so high that nobody ever thought of taking the initiative. For more than 70 km the two-time Crocodile Trophy winner was pulling the front group. Impressive, but not immediately comprehensible to riders and spectators alike.

“I didn’t want a scenario like yesterday when a small group of riders broke away and caused my and race leader Boelen’s group falling asleep behind them”, said Huber. “I wanted to make the race hard. It is my only chance to beat Jeroen Boelen, still 7 minutes ahead of me in the GC. Okay, in the end nobody cracked but I had to give it a try.” Huber showed a strong performance and after the second feeding station kept powering on, despite a nose bleed that wouldn’t stop until he was in the finish, being looked after by medical staff and partner Simone Jung, whom he had met at last year’s Crocodile Trophy.

“A lot of times in my career I raced with and against Fabian Cancellara”, commented Kevin Hulsmans. “But what Huber did was as impressive, just what ‘Spartacus’ would do. Amazing how he, by himself, kept the speed that high on those terrible corrugations. We were all dying on his wheel.”

Really just one rider had tried to do something against Urs Huber’s hegemony and that was Kevin Hulsmans. He attacked, like he’s done every day so far, but this time not once, not two or three times, Hulsmans attacked ten times on the roads through the Lakefield National Park, with its countless termite colonies. The first 8 times it was Huber himself who went after him. The last two times, at 5 and 3 K from the end it was the Australian Graeme Arnott, the leader in the Masters category, who spoiled the plans of Hulsmans.

The first counter attack of someone else was immediately the one that worked. Huub Duyn gave it a try at 2 K from the finish. Josef Benedseder and Justin Morris were the only ones able or willing to follow. For Morris it all went too fast. A too nervous Benedseder started the sprint between the two of them from too far behind and the experienced Duyn overtook him and claimed his first ever mountain bike victory.

“At the 500 meter mark I tried to push it really hard but apparently not hard enough as Duyn managed to pass me”, said the disappointed Austrian rider. “This is already my second placing as second in this Crocodile Trophy. There are still two chances left for me. I came here for a stage win. I won’t give it up.”

With his third place Australian Justin Morris (Subaru/MarathonMTB.com) was as happy as if he had won. “We had a good team performance today. Graeme Arnott worked for his position as best Master in the GC, I would race for the stage win. I did not win, but this is really my best ever performance in a mountain bike race. I hope this can give other diabetics more hope; just because you have diabetes doesn’t mean that you can’t do sports at a high level.”

Next season Justin Morris will race on the road for Team Type 1 on the development program, as he already did in 2010. “I am the first diabetic to do this race. I hope some others will follow my example”, concluded Justin Morris.

Happiest rider in Kalpowar was of course Dutch rider Duyn. “It is true, I thought ‘what am I doing here?’ a lot and that I should really be somewhere nice with my wife in October, but now my perseverance delivered. I had no mountain bike experience at all. This race is technically not so hard, but there is the heat, today all those corrugations – I have blisters on my hands – and then after the stage you need to put up your tents, wash your clothes yourself etc. It makes it hard, but an unforgettable adventure.”

After winning Paris-Tours U23 for Rabobank Continental in 2006, Jonathan Vaughters brought Huub Duyn to his Slipstream-Chipotle team in 2007. He stayed there for three years. “That was a perfect team for me. Vaughters had patience with me after my mononucleosis in my first and an iliac outlet syndrome in my second year. They used me for all work. I started in all classic races for them. I can climb, I can ride the whole day in the front. I know my job in cycling.”

For Duyn, 2010 (Team NetApp) was a year to forget after being hit by a car, which left him with 5 fractures in his face. For continental Team Donckers Koffie Duyn got four podium places in 2011, but he had to come to Australia for his first victory.

Best Master 1 finisher in Kalpowar was Belgian Jan Verboven. “I have a full time job, two little kids, this Crocodile Trophy results are a surprise for me. On the other hand, I really trained for it a whole year. My father was a multi-winner in road races. I prefer mountain biking. That’s more fun, more nature, more honest.”

Tomorrow’s stage over 148 kilometres goes from Kalpowar to Starke. It will be a very hard and sandy stage with deep bull dust sections. Having suffered from a sore knee for the past few days, Australian John Boswell will not be at the start line any more.

Mount Mulgrave to Laura. 151k: Stage 7

by MarathonMTB.com (October 24, 2011)

Graeme Arnott hangs on the Masters leaders jersey

Todays 151km stage had many unenthused faces upon the startline, the 189km previous days stage had put many into a pretty serious hurt locker. The stage today promised less climbing but poorer road conditions than the previous day. With a new race leader in Jeroen Boelen from Milka-Trek, the race was still very much on. The GC contenders were happy to let a break of 5 slip away early on including very strong ex profis Haselbacher and Hulsmans as well as current road profi from Austria Christoph Sokoll, Crocodile Trophy podium man Mike Mulkens and Aussie Mark Griffin.

The quintet established a lead of up to 5minutes. This initiated some action from team Subaru-MarathonMTB.com Team who were concerned about Graeme´s lead in the Masters competition with Griffin being a threat in this classification. Mike Blewitt committed to some super turns on the front which helped narrow down the gap, Graeme himself also putting in solid strong man turns. Whilst Justin sat at the back trying to stuff his face with food and stay hydrated.

The last feed zone had the chase group gain sight of the leaders. Mike had succumbed to his super work early on, and needed to take 5 as he was getting goosebumps despite the blaring heat. Justin now came to the front to help Graeme eat away at Griffins advantage. With 20km to go the road conditions turned absolutely horrendous, with derriers on fire the chase group continued at a solid pace catching all but 2 of the escapees.  A creek crossing and quick rise about 2km from the finish would dictate the result with an amazing ride from Sokoll to take the stage. Unfortunate for Mulkens a flat tire 1km from the finish would ruin his stage chances. Arnott drove the pace astonishingly in the final proceedings. Netting himself 7th on the stage and 1st master. Justin followed in 8th place.

The lovely little roadhouse town of Laura greeted the dust caked finishers  as a welcome reprive as it included a pub aswell as local store with an ice cream freezer! The racing here is without a doubt the hardest I have ever experienced (Justin). The heat, corrugations and hills that this race is renowned for are taking its toll. Unfortunately we had sad news last night that the hand cyclists were unable to continue today due to the extreme conditions of yesterday. Truly the hardest MTB race in the world, I cannot imagine any other race being more demanding.

   
Graeme Arnott, resplendant in white and blue. The Masters leader jersey
Justin and Mike - pretty grubby after their time in the FNQ dirt

Christoph Sokoll one year after terrible billabong crash / Bernhard Eisel's training mate wins in Laura

Christoph Sokoll had made a name for himself in cycling already by riding 190 K in the front as a first year elite in the 2009 Mendrisio World Championship, which was won by Cadel Evans. Now the mountain bikers know him too after his stage win at the Crocodile Trophy. Belgian Mike Mulkens arrived in hell. Having tried for three years already to claim a stage win, he punctured at 1 K from the finish in Laura, while in the lead with the in the sprint slower estimated Sokoll. Dutch Jeroen Boelen keeps his red leader's jersey but loses some precious seconds to challenger Urs Huber.

"This is a very special victory for me", said Sokoll. "Exactly at this stage last year, I crashed and broke three ribs and a collarbone. Despite that I managed to finish the stage at the time, but it was the hardest the day in my life. When we passed that infamous billabong where I crashed today, I felt already better having survived that creek crossing. In the mean time I was also riding in the front. The whole day I felt really strong."

Christoph Sokoll made indeed part of an early break consisting of his compatriot René Haselbacher, Australian Mark Griffin and the Belgians Mike Mulkens and Kevin Hulsmans. Those five would stay in the front for the entire stage. The road from Mt Mulgrave to Laura was long but not too demanding. The road riders had an advantage. And it would indeed become a tactical road race with riders pretending, riders faking and riders seeking for allies. Not necessarily the best rider seemed to win today, especially as the peloton didn't seem to be worried about the breakaway group who got a maximum advantage of 5 minutes.

Even Wolfgang Krenn, who saw his third overall place in jeopardy, did not panic. "I had confidence that they would never get more of an advantage. We kept the pace in the peloton (of 22 riders) at a good level but not too high. They would have never surprised us."

"That's correct", added race leader Jeroen Boelen. "We kept everything under control. It was like in a road race were the leader of the race gives a breakaway a go. If some others in my group wanted a stage victory, they needed to cooperate with me. They didn't, so the break managed to stay in the front."

The only problem was that there was no real harmony in the front group. The presence of two Austrians and two Belgians lead to rivalry and discussions. "There were a lot of discussions", explained the ideal witness Mark Griffin. The Australian was a bit of a surprise in the break. "The other riders were not so happy with the behaviour of Mike Mulkens. Mulkens was complaining the whole time that he was not strong enough to cooperate and that he had some problems with the valve of his tube."

Griffin was happy just to be in the front. The Sydney rider, already the whole week hanging around the tenth, eleventh place in the stages, arrived by coincidence at the Crocodile Trophy. He was the best rider in a series of Australian events by Rocky Trail Entertainment, which are supported by Bernard Beer, one of the Crocodile Trophy sponsors and he won an entry ticket for the 1200 kilometer adventure through North Queensland. "I won't complain. I really didn't want to finish the Crocodile Trophy without having given it a go. Today I did. I also had in mind to eventually take that leader's jersey in the Masters category. Unfortunately the stage was 20 K too long for me. The corrugations and the headwind were too much for me. On the other hand I really trained for this race. My Ashfield Cycles Team and I completed a 7 months training program. I also watched all Tour de France stages on my home trainer. That delivered."

Not only the distance made it too hard for Griffin. The Sydney rider was not used to the road riders' behaviour in the front. "Mulkens said he had a flat tyre", told Kevin Hulsmans. "For 20 K he did not work with us, I was really irritated, also as I expected him to have made an agreement with the Austrians. That's why I attacked."

With less than 30 K to go Hulsmans indeed attacked. Griffin dropped and Hulsmans was able to take one minute. Now Mulkens had to chase. Together with Sokoll and Haselbacher he did. They came closer and closer. After twelve K chasing they caught the Belgian rider. "Kevin went too early", said Haselbacher. "And indeed there was no cohesion in the front. I always said to the others to keep on going. Today was really like a Paris-Roubaix stage. Relatively flat but hard, you just needed to keep on going."

"Too hard on those corrugated, Bois de Wallers roads indeed", said Hulsmans afterwords. "But it was nice. Dust, mud, sand, this is heroic cycling. I played the game but I lost. This is no UCI race but everybody starts here to win. It is hard, but I will try again. Maybe already tomorrow."

Still left in the game at the 10 K mark: only Mulkens and Sokoll, as Haselbacher paid his efforts. Sokoll and Mulkens went to the last kilometer and a small climb. And then Mulkens just stept off his bike. Flat rear tyre. Instead of continuing on his punctured wheel, he stopped, put some air in the tube, but Sokoll was of course gone in the mean time.

"Honestly, I think I had also more power in my legs than Mulkens at that moment", said Sokoll. And that could be right as Mulkens, with only 500 meter to go, and sure of a second place in the stage, stopped again. He ripped off his shirt and went off the road. Just sitting, just deeply breathing or was it crying? The two-time third overall in the Crocodile Trophy would again not be able to claim a stage at the Crocodile Trophy.

"I was ‘done'. I could not handle my handlebars anymore. I was empty. I don't know how a heart attack feels, but I was really scared', explained Mulkens who finally went over the finsh line 11.36 minutes later than Christoph Sokoll. Drama for the Belgian rider. "Of course I could have won here in Laura".

In the end the peloton with Huber and Boelen had come close and Huber even managed to take 16 seconds to Boelen. "I knew that last sharp corner from last year", said Huber. "Many riders crashed there in the gravel. I took care to take that corner as first rider, which was good as Jeroen Boelen crashed behind me. I don't give up the overall. Every second counts."

For Boelen there were no major injuries, just some bruises and road rash on his left leg.

The happiest man in Laura today anyway was stage winner Christop Sokoll, third year elite as a road rider. After his Mendrisio raid, Bernard Eisel's training mate got an offer from Footon-Servetto but preferred the Austrian Corratec-Vorarlberg Team. For 2012 he has an agreement with Tyrol Team, a continental team as well. "Mountain biking is really no priority for me. Before this race I was on the mountain bike only three times. Maybe I should do this more often, but then, like most of the favourites here, also with 29 inch wheels."

Tommorrow's stage will bring 89 km and 200 m from Laura to Kalpowar. It will be without the two heroic handbikers who arrived at the Crocodile Trophy camp after 18 hours on their bikes yesterday. This morning were not able to start in today's stage, due to a heat stroke and fever cramps suffered by Patrik Doak and an open skin wound of Carlos Moleda, who was sitting on a stone while cycling for hours during yesterday's stage. Their team mate and supporter Andrew Chafer on a mountain bike will continue and finish the Crocodile Trophy and be welcomed by Patrik and Carlos at Cooktown's Grassy Hill.

Photo: Crocodile Trophy 2011

Mt. Mulligan - Mt. Mulgrave l 189 km: Stage 6

by MarathonMTB.com (October 23, 2011)

The Subaru-MarathonMTB Team of Justin Morris, Mike Blewitt and Graeme Arnott increase their lead in the Teams Category.

Unbeatable Huber beaten by heat, distance and puncture

Urs Huber was ready to win his third consecutive Crocodile Trophy. He only needed to follow his biggest competitor Jeroen Boelen, but in the marathon stage over 189 km Huber broke. Like most of the riders today, also Huber punctured, but he also ran out of energy in the hot outback of Queensland. Some of the vehicles with drinks and energy gels had gotten stuck in the Mitchell river and needed to be pulled across by others. It was a stage full of unexpected challenges and turns of events for all. In the end, Jeroen Boelen (Milka-Trek-Bart Brentjens Mountain Bike Team) won the stage to Mt Mulgrave and took the leader’s jersey from the Swiss champion.

“This is cycling. This kind of riding makes my day”, said Austrian René Haselbacher after his 189 km ride through the desert. “This here is like the feeling you have when you finish Paris-Roubaix. If you asked me now, I would just consider to start racing again.” The retired road professional said all that even after having flatted when he was riding in the lead. Not all riders shared Hasi’s opinion in the finish. Australian Brad Davies flatted 5 times and lost his leader’s jersey in the Masters category. “What am I doing here? Where were the cars with our drinks and food?”, exclaimed a furious Kevin Hulsmans. Surprisingly strong Korean rider Geeni Yong Choi didn’t stop repeating “never did something like this in my life”. But his eyes brightened up soon again.

Some support vehicles had become stuck with a flooded engine at the deep Mitchell river, halfway through the race. The river was too deep to cross for most of them. After breakneck manoeuvres including getting them towed across the river that also carried a strong current and swapping drinks and food among them, it took them a long time to catch up to the fast lead groups. However, for some riders the misery had started earlier already, after 15 km. At the front, a group of 22 riders formed after a speedy start, among them Belgian Bruno Naessens who straight after crashed in a sandy section. Another Belgian, Jan Verboven couldn’t escape the crash anymore. With an injured left knee, Verboven started to chase and managed to come back in the front. He would later finish the stage in 11th position. Naessens’ front wheel was completely buckled and he wobbled for 175 km further, all alone.

As the race progressed in the hot midday heat, the front group became smaller and smaller. What contributed to this was a crash (Michal Lanik), a broken chain (Steve Petre), punctures (Brad Davies champion with 5), a sun stroke (Chang Min Park), but mainly it was because of a strong attack at the 30 km mark by Austrians René Haselbacher and Josef Benedseder, as well as Belgian Kevin Hulsmans. In the back, Jeroen Boelen - Huber’s challenger for the GC and 4 minutes behind the Swiss rider - saw his chance at the first crossing of the Mitchell river (km 50). All riders had to walk through the river that carried a high current, but Boelen was the only one who managed to stay on the bike. And he was gone, chasing the front trio ahead of him. Boelen succeeded to bridge the one-minute gap. The cohesion in the front was perfect. A chasing Huber didn’t come closer. On the contrary.

“But then we had to stop at a closed cattle gate”, explains Boelen. “Instead of climbing over it, we decided to open it, but that didn’t go as expected. We lost some time and Huber was there again. This could have been my chance to take back minutes to Huber as he was alone, and I was with three others for the remaining 150 kilometers.”

With Huber back, riders looking at each other and the pace slowing down, other riders returned to the front. It felt, like the race had started all over again. And it did till again Haselbacher, Hulsmans and Benedseder went away. This time with Christoph Sokoll. Hulsmans, as well as Haselbacher punctured. With only the two Austrian teammates Sokoll-Benedseder in the front, Huber and Boelen made the race harder in the background. “I had already given up on gaining back time on Huber”, said Boelen, “But I just hoped for a third stage win and Huber looked like he wanted the same.”

Boelen and Huber went harder and harder. Together with Mike Mulkens they arrived at the front, dropped Sokoll and then, suddenly… Huber had to stop, some 60 km from the finish.

“I had already had a flat tyre after 15 minutes in the race”, commented Huber. “The whole season I had no puncture at all and I did a lot of races. I put some air in it and the tube held and looked to hold up with the sealing liquid in my tube. After two hours, however, it lost air again. I inflated the tire again as I didn’t dare to change the tube. Otherwise I would have lost the group with Boelen. In the end, however, I really had to change my tube and Jeroen was gone.”

“Immediately, I thought that this was again my chance to take back some time. Of course Urs Huber would have been able to come back, but in that case he would have lost a lot of energy in the chasing job. And is it unfair? I also had two punctures earlier in the race, but I was apparently luckier.”

Huber didn’t come back any more. Boelen in the front was strong, didn’t seem to struggle with the heat – “where is that rain?” begged so many riders after the finish – dropped Mulkens and at 10 km from the finish also Benedseder.

“I tried to follow and help Jeroen Boelen as much as I could as I thought I could take the stage win, while he would be happy with the time bonus, but Jeroen was too strong. In the end I was more like a fifth wheel on the car for him”, said a disappointed Benedseder. “Huber followed at a 5-minute distance; I understood very well that Boelen could not wait for me.”

Those last ten km Boelen was indeed flying (31 km/h the whole day over 189 km). Both Benedseder and Huber lost five minutes extra.

“With my flat tyre I only lost two minutes, I guess”, explained Huber, the big loser of the day. “But the last two (of five) feed zones were not in place and that was a big problem for me as I had no bottles or sugars with me. I had not enough energy for the last two hours of the race. It was a long way to the finish for me, but that’s racing. I hope I can still get out of this situation over the next four days.”

After chilling out at the creek of Mt Mulgrave Station this afternoon and the bush camping overnight, tomorrow’s 7th stage goes from Mt Mulgrave to Laura. Laura is a small settlement with 80 residents, mainly aboriginals. After two days in the middle of nowhere, the race finishes again in a town and everyone is looking forward to a small piece of civilisation.

Irvinebank - Mt. Mulligan: 105 km : Stage 5

by MarathonMTB.com (October 22, 2011)

The Subaru-MarathonMTB Team of Justin Morris, Mike Blewitt and Graeme Arnott hold on to a narrow lead the Teams Category.

Photo: Crocodile Trophy 2011 

Steep uphills and frightening downhills - that was on the menu for the first 40 km of the 5th stage at this year’s Crocodile Trophy. It was those 40 km that made the difference as on the one hand a lot of riders didn’t dare to take risks and on the other hand, a lot of riders suffered punctured tires. As always the good riders didn’t have any bad luck. Urs Huber and Jeroen Boelen were in a whole different league today and sprinted towards the victory right from the beginning. Boelen took his second consecutive stage win in Mt Mulligan.

“Woaw’, exclaimed Boelen at the finish line. “This is real mountain biking! This is like the South African Cape Epic where I was 7th earlier this year.” Boelen is participating for the first time in Queensland and every day is in awe of the spectacular scenery (while he rides through the hole of Pluto – or “Woop Woop”, as the Aussies would say).

The stage was very rough and undulating in the beginning, with large and loose rocks sticking out and lots of ruts. About 5 km from the start, there was a breakaway when the road started to incline with Austrian Christoph Sokoll, Belgian Kevin Hulsmans and the two Aussies Justin Morris and Brad Davies. They gained one minute maximum. “We all suffered”, said Davies, the leader in the Master 2 category. “I told Kevin, this is the real Crocodile Trophy. This is a fantastic course. He didn’t seem to agree with me, but hey, no worries!”

On the first technical climb, race leader Urs Huber then accelerated. Boelen followed. Those two caught the four and swiftly left them behind. Later, Wolfgang Krenn and Mike Mulkens did the same and joined the two leaders. The Top 4 of the GC were in front again, but not for long as Mulkens and Krenn were dropped on a second steep rough climb. “We tried to hang on for dear life, Mike and me, but the two were just too strong”, said Krenn at the finish. There was a section over particularly rough terrain, which almost everyone needed to walk. Some did it for 500 meters of it, others for only 50. And then there was the downhill. Big gaps opened up as a lot of guys struggled and found it too difficult. There were punctures too, left, right and centre. One of the big victims was Geeni Yong Choi from Korea. Choi, the King of the Downhill, they call him by now.

Photo: Crocodile Trophy 2011

The downhill sections made all the difference in the field behind the first four in the race. The Koreans and Australians, who ride lots of single trails, had the upper hand and could take advantage of their experience. They rode away from the seasoned road riders. Kevin Hulsmans formulated it this way: “I had the impression that they flew over the rocks while I was riding under the ground.” Team-mate Huub Duijn was just too scared to follow the others. “It is more or less the first time in my life that I do a mountain bike race. Honestly, I was frightened to descent. I still have a road season to do and cannot risk my life or my career.”

The verdict after the ‘bad’ zone: Huber and Boelen in the lead, followed by Mulkens and Krenn at only 20 seconds. The two Koreans Park and Choi followed at 5 minutes, the quartet Davies, Hulsmans, Graeme and Hayat at 6.30. Surprisingly, the numbers 5 and 6 of the GC, Josef Benedseder and Christoff Sokoll from Team Eybl, were nowhere in sight at the front. They followed with a gap of 18 minutes.

“Bene had a puncture when we were riding in 6th and 7th position’, tells Sokoll. “As I am a teammate, I waited for him. We lost a lot of time. On top of it all, in his spare tube there appeared to be a small leak too. So we had to change twice. The most important thing was to reach the finish line. Tomorrow is a long stage. It will not be so technical, so we will have a chance then to win the stage.”

In the front there was a nice battle between the duo’s Huber-Boelen and Mulkens-Krenn. For about 15 km the latter duo hang around the 20 second mark. “They didn’t let us come closer”, told Mulkens. “Krenn and I slowed down a bit then, more or less pretending that we were unable to come closer and hoping that they would slow down in the front too, but they didn’t. They took one minute immediately. But at the end it is simple: the best two riders were in front.”

“Of course we didn’t want to let them join us”, said Jeroen Boelen.”I remember day two of this race, when we were also with more riders in the front, it was always Urs and I who had to do the work. I prefer not to have people sitting on my backwheel, leeching off me. At the feed zone they almost caught us as we stopped there to take food and to clean our cassettes that had been full of grass. When we saw them arriving, we jumped on our bikes again.”

“We were surprised too”, said Mulkens. “The difference was only 200 meters. As I still had one full bottle, I told Krenn not to stop at the feed zone in order to catch Huber and Boelen. I just wanted to throw away my empty bottle, but by mistake I threw away my full bottle… So we both stopped for some seconds. We chased at a speed of 45 km/h, but didn’t come any closer. Those two in the front were of course not stupid either.”

Huber and Boelen understood each other perfectly. “It was an advantage to stay there with only two in the front”, commented red jersey Urs Huber. “It is all less tactical and with one against one you still have 50 percent chance to win. The second part of the race was very fast with a lot of tail wind. The course was very undulating, but unfortunately there was no little climb anymore where I could have dropped Jeroen.”

The lack of a steep climb at the final section was indeed the luck of Boelen who is a better sprinter compared to Huber. Boelen took his second consecutive stage win and leads now in the points classification. More than seven minutes later, Mulkens finshed third ahead of Krenn.

“At 20 km from the finish I told Mike that I would not sprint for the stage win”, said the Austrian Bike Team Kaiser rider, “Yesterday Mike was so strong and alone in the front for such a long time, but got nothing at the finish. He deserved the podium today.”

So where are the riders recovering from today’s stage? At a cool billabong with green grass to lie in the shade of huge gum trees, an outdoor camp kitchen with a couple of lounges… and all of this at the foothills of Mount Mulligan. The massive rock formation is an 18 kilometre sandstone ridge that dominates the surrounding savannah landscape. The ochre coloured mountain cliffs are about 10 times the size of Uluru. Tomorrow a long stage is waiting for the riders. 189 km between the cattle stations of Mt Mulligan and Mt Mulgrave. Five feeding stations will be operating to keep the riders fuelled. “Slightly hilly all day”, says the guide book…

Photo: Crocodile Trophy 2011 

Photo: Crocodile Trophy 2011

Irvinebank - Irvinebank: 84km : Stage 4

by MarathonMTB.com (October 21, 2011)

Good news - no rain today! We had evacuated ourselves to a motel again last night, allowing for plenty of good food and some clothes washing in Atherton.

We had heard it would be 84km today, and when we arrived back in Irvinebank we heard it would be a 9am start, and a 3 lap course. So it would be on then. The sun was out on the start line, and even our support crew, Pete Figg, would have a slightly easier day, not having to be on the move between different depots.

From the gun, it was steady enough, with a variety of riders having a dig, even Subaru-MarathonMTB.com’s own Justin Morris. Being a shorter than usual stage the pace was on. By the end of the first lap, the main group had splintered and 2 riders had established a handy lead off the front. These 2 were ex road pros Hasselbacher and Hulsmanns. All 3 Subaru-MarathonMTB.com riders were still comfortable in the chasing bunch. By the end of the 2nd lap the bunch had been blown to pieces due to the strong surges over the difficult climbs in the lap. A selection was made by the last lap as the lead 2 were caught. Justin was included in this final 10 man group, with Mike and Graeme not far off the pace in the next group. On the final 2 climbs, the lead group was further splintered with a 3 up sprint finishing the days stage won by Dutch pro and team mate of Bart Brentjens, Jerone Boelen. With Justin rolling in around 10th with fellow Aussie Brad Davies and the breakaway companions Hulsmanns and Hasselbacher.

Strong man Brad Davies seems to have the Masters category sewn up if his form continues. Subaru MarathonMTB riders Graeme and Mike are still battling with two other Aussies for the M1 title. Graeme had a reasonable finish after being let go from the main group on lap 2. He was in a group of 5 which formed after the split and continued to work well together on the 3rd lap to consolidate track position. On the final climb, M1 nemesis, Mark Griffin got a small gap and carried it to the line. Another hard and fast day in cross winds. Even on the modified course, this race is proving be as advertised - hard.

All in all, still a very difficult stage for all riders. Crazily fast paced on the flat, harsh climbing and the Europeans just chopping all concerned. An easier day in terms of logistics and transfers. Subaru-MarathonMTB.com riders can hold their heads high after putting in a superb combined effort. Tomorrow looks manageable, however, this is the Croc Trophy…where anything goes!

Wet, Wet,Wet : Stage 3

by MarathonMTB.com (October 20, 2011)

This mornings start was again wet wet wet. Rumours of a polite neutral first 35km were quashed by race organisers on the start line. Hence, it was flag drop and race on from the mud fest that was Koomboolooba campsite. Soon into this stage the flag was not the only thing that was getting dropped as I found myself getting pumped from the first group containing Huber and 5or 6 others on the early undulations. A solid 2nd group convened soon after including team mates Blewitt and Arnott and fellow Aussies Griffin and Ashley from Fitzroy revolutions. A long road section separated two rough dirt sections today. This allowed for a strong session of swap offio to consolidate the gap to those behind and limit our losses on the strong group ahead.

On the long final dirt road section the aptly named “Mt Misery” claimed a few victims. With its steep and seemingly never ending gradient. The final descent with its many creek crossings allowed for a brief return of a smile to the dial. With blue sky in sight and much drier footings, morale amongst the croc crew 2011 had taken a rise. The pleasant ´Telstra´ Terry and his friendly crew were a happy camp after surviving last night’s quagmire. In the race Huber victorious again today consolidating his lead over Milka trek rider Boelen who came in 2nd again. Our group coming in approximately 10th with myself, Arnott, Kiwi Sean and a Belgian rider emerging over the final climb after Griffin collided with a number of riders on the uphill.

The forecast west of the range where we are now based is much more optimistic. The heat and sun this race is renowned for may soon arrive after competitors have been battling wet and cold conditions since the race start in Cairns on Tuesday. A big heads up to the American hand cyclists who made it into camp in the dark and pouring rain with their support crew and their now much respected and renown optimism!

Tomorrow’s stage will take riders on an 84 km race with start and finish at Irvinebank. Huber again will start in the red Crocodile Trophy leader’s jersey with Jeroen Boelen following in the white jersey of the points classification.

7-Krenn 1-Huber 20-Boelen Crocodile Trophy

Martin Wisata Crocodile Trophy

Torrential rain hit the Crocodile Trophy for a second day: Stage 2

by MarathonMTB.com (October 19, 2011)

Torrential rain hit the Crocodile Trophy for a second day in a row on Wednesday, creating havoc for race organisers who were able to re-route the course in order to allow racing to begin after Tuesday’s neutralised stage.

The downpour meant that communication of stage results is likely to be delayed until tomorrow, however we spoke to members of the Subaru-MarathonMTB.com team who were able to report that racing had indeed got underway.

After 17km of neutral riding to Atherton, the race reconvened to allow hand-bike riders and back markers to catch up for the race start. Unfortunately for competitors the weather again closed in. However a re-routed course, which included significant stretches of bitumen, meant the flag could be dropped.

The field was immediately presented with a climb to start the stage, which fractured the race into groups.

Subaru-MarathonMTB.com’s Justin Morris and Graeme Arnott were able to work their way into a group of five riders, the third group on the road. The quintet were able to chase down the second group of the road, rejoining them just before the stage’s third feed station. The final 37km were run at a frantic pace, with Arnott losing touch with the front of the race with 15km to go. However, Morris dug deep to finish the stage in fifth place and the first Australian across the line.

“The course towards the end was really undulating, uphill on the tar,” said Arnott after the truncated stage. “Justin had a really good race. It was a great result. There’s a lot of really strong guys here, some name’s you’ve heard, but other guys you’ve never heard of who are just so strong; Euro strong.”

Morris was modest in his summation of the days events, and expressed his sympathy for race organisers, who have been presented with challenging circumstances.

“We haven’t really had a real stage yet. One was neutralised and today was modified somewhat,” said Morris. “But we’re supposed be riding away from the rain tomorrow so hopefully things will improve.

“I feel sorry for [the organisers]. I just don’t think they’ve had to deal with rain at the Crocodile Trophy before.”

“Everyone we spoke to about this race says ‘scorchingly hot, bone dry’,” added Arnott. “All the locals we spoke to today have been saying

‘oh, we’ve never seen it so wet’.”

With the weather system causing the heavy rain expected to continue for another 24 hours, the outlook for Friday’s third stage is yet to be confirmed.

After a week of anti-biotics Mike Blewitt had a tough day, but praised the performance of his Subaru-MarathonMTB.com teammates.

Photo: R. Stanger/Crocodile Trophy

Justin Morris (Subaru-MarathonMTB.com) on his way to fifth on stage two.

Photo: R. Stanger/Crocodile Trophy

Apocalypse in Cairns: Stage 1 neutralized

by MarathonMTB.com (October 18, 2011)

Dramatic day in North Queensland. For two months it hadn’t rain in Cairns. And then today, on day 1 of the 17th Crocodile Trophy, not only did it start to rain, but torrential downpours lashed across the Cairns and Tablelands Regions. With riders battling nature’s forces, Olympic Champion and last year’s runner up Bart Brentjens had to give his race start a miss due to illness.

The heavy rain had set in around midnight and got stronger in the morning. Whilst riders dealt with the wet weather well after the race start at 9.30am, the roads in the rain forest of Dinden National Park quickly became a tough challenge for the supporting crew and their 4WD vehicles. Lead car, first depot vehicle with food and water, as well as two media cars got stuck in the thick mud right after passing Copperlode Dam, the freshwater reservoir for Cairns. With the safety of the riders in mind, the organizers decided to neutralize the stage at the dam lookout where hot tea and coffee was served.

The peloton of 90 riders did a detour of 20 km extra on asphalt roads and finished the stage at Lake Tinaroo, arriving in big bunches.

Tomorrow, Stage 2 from Lake Tinaroo to Koombooloomba Dam. The weather forecasts predict wet weather again. The riders will make their way to Atherton in a neutralized ride (arrival around 8.30am) and organisers have briefed riders on the rough terrain and spectacular river crossings into Herberton. After passing Ravenhoe, the camp will be set up in the rainforest setting near Koombooloomba Dam.

Crocodile Trophy 2011

Crocodile Trophy 2011

Calm before the storm

by MarathonMTB.com (October 17, 2011)

It's barely 12 hours, and the Subaru-MarathonMTB.com Team will be off and racing. The 2011 Crocodile Trophy rolls out of the Esplanade, neutral until a lookout above town. The real gun goes off from here, and it goes up. We even go over Northern Queenslands highest point.

We are all keen to get started, here's a word from the team members:

Graeme Arnott: Bit worried about tomorrow's stage. Everyone will be itching to boost on the first climb and day. It takes me a while to get going, so looking forward to getting a fewa; name="form_token" kB8fn17-g (Team Support): Nervous for the boys ahead of a difficult stage tomorrow. Final packing and preparations being completed tonight. After a beautiful few days in Cairns, tomorrow the Croc proper begins. Lets ease in with the first few days and then - all being well - there will be some great stories to share.

Justin Morris: It has been great fun hanging out here in beautiful Cairns, hence I am a bit sad to be rushing off so soon. Quick prep of tomorrow's stage this morning was eye opening to say the least. It is going to be a tough 10days in the saddle, but the scenery here really is spectacular, hopefully that eases the leg pain.

Mike Blewitt: Coming this far north in Australia is a first for me. And like any traveling/racing trip, my mind has wandered a little and I have been thinking of what else I could be doing besides bike racing. But this close, you start to get the whiff of racing and it's pretty hard not to be excited about racing hard for 10 days with mates.

Sunday started early for the Subaru-MarathonMTB.com Team. Riders Justin Morris, Graeme Arnott and Mike Blewitt were accompanied by Team Support guru Pete Figg to the airport, for an early flight north to Cairns. Packing for racing adventures is always a balancing act. Having to make our way north with bikes, race food, spares and camping gear for 10 days of hard racing at the Crocodile Trophy would be pushing the 25kg baggage friendship. Gratefully, Virgin Blue were more lenient than they could have been early on a Sunday morning, and our excess was rounded down to 35kg over the groups allocated total. The build up to the Crocodile Trophy has been pretty long. Although most people know that they want to compete and plan accordingly, our plan was hatched in July - not an overly long time out from the race. Being equipped to race hard for 10 days in an isolated region takes a bit of forward thinking, and a whole lot of support. Justin Morris put it best over breakfast this morning, "It's not a like a road tour, where you rock up, race, and then everything you need is at the hotel. Your biggest decision is whether to have Thai or Italian for dinner." There is an endless list of items we would love to be taking with us, but even though the flight is over and we have unpacked, we still need to fit all our stuff within duffle bags for the daily truck transport. Having a support vehicle would be a huge advantage, but beyond the teams timing and resources. Most rental companies won't let you go much further north than Cairns!

Central Cairns - even after a short flight, it's worth getting the travel fatigue out of the legs.

So now it's a case of asking what do we really need? What is going to help us get through each day, what will keep us healthy, and are some items there more for want than need? They are tough decisions, but it runs deeper than what to pack physically. There is also an element of escapism as we plan to head bush for almost two weeks. There is little need to worry about work, or any other issues that have been bothering you. Save for when there is an internet connection or a phone signal, the people we will be in contact with will be around us each night. Some mental baggage is certainly ripe to be left behind in Cairns. With a start list sprinkled with some of the worlds best endurance mountain bikers and Tour de France pro's, we also need to be realistic about our own goals. Struan Lamont, our host in Cairns, and a Croc veteran, is pretty open with how he approaches the race, "Basically it's 10 days camping in the bush with mates, you just have to ride your bike to the next campsite each day." Having ridden for previous winners over the years, perhaps Struan is understating the requirements a little - but it's a fresh mental approach for the event.

The presentation is on this afternoon, and last minute supplies are being gathered. We headed out for a spin up the opening climb this morning. Graeme and Justin were both able to put in some good race efforts - I merely aimed for survival as my body is still waking up from a week off the bike and a course of antibiotics. Getting used to riding in no-mans land is another thing to get used to anyway! It's a challenge getting used to the heat and humidity up here. Even when the temperature drops at night, it's like sleeping in a chapter of the Jungle Book, with a cacophony of sounds around you. It's fair to say we're all looking looking to get started, and see how the first day (known as the hardest and fastest) treats us.

"It's going to get less humid, right??"

"It's going to get less humid, right??"

Prepping for the heat in Queensland

by MarathonMTB.com (October 10, 2011)

In this video Subaru-MarathonMTB.com’s Mike Blewitt takes a look at the Camelbak Octane XTC hydration pack which he and teammates Graeme Arnott and Justin Morris will be using at the 2011 Crocodile Trophy. Today the temperature in Cooktown was 28˚C, it looks like the boys are going to need every drop from the Octane’s reservoir.

Croc Cramming - Physical and logistically

by Mike Blewitt (October 2, 2011)

Coming home to the real world, real life, and a real job after almost four months of avoiding such responsibilities is a little bit tough to handle. Having enjoyed the whole Northern ‘summer’, traveling from one Mountain Bike Marathon or Stage Race to another one, or finding somewhere awesome (or occasionally somewhere sub-optimal) to train – the shift back home is a tough transition. Sleeping in your own bed is good. Having a slightly broader wardrobe is great. Finally tearing your bike down and rebuilding it offers a special cleansing process.