My love affair with the Trans Provence & why YOU should sign up for a multi day adventure race at least once in your life.

I’ve just finished up the Trans Provence adventure about a week ago. This was my sixth time going on this journey, so as you can see, it is obviously my all time favourite event and the highlight of my season every year for sure. People often ask me why on earth would you keep going back every year? My answer to them is that first of all, I love the challenge, I love the adventure and I love riding sick new tracks. The Trans Provence is a hard race, it is no walk in the park and that is why I am so attracted to this event and other similar multi day races like the Andes Pacifico in Chile and other “like minded” events.

The challenge is to keep your bike & body intact for a week of pretty insane, technical and very exposed trail riding. You have to be so focused and really on it for 6 - 7 days, so you can’t just race like a crazy lady from the start, as you’ll never make it through the week. It’s not just about going as fast as you can whenever you can, there is so much more to it, so many variables that will affect your week, and you cannot go to one of these events with the mindset of, o yeah, I’m going to win this race. O no, this race is not over until the last stage of the last day, as there are just so many things that can go wrong. There are different elements that can affect you than at a normal race, for example things like dogs on the tracks, possible hikers, getting lost, signs that may be down, tummy issues, fatigue, crashes and massive mechanicals far from anything, so you really need to be wearing your sensible cap at all times and have fun with it. These are adventure weeks, not race weeks. You give your everything of course, but you just have to wait and see how it all ends up after 6 days. This was my first race back after breaking my hand, so I was pretty happy to be able to hang on and get on to the 5th step with these fast ladies.

When people ask me why I love these multi day stage races so much & why they should try one, I usually start babbling on about the points I jotted down below:

• A multi day event is completely different to the usual one or two day bike races that we attend. They are WAY more relaxed, way more fun, people actually drink a beer or two (or more) and you have so much more time to enjoy and appreciate everything around you, including WAY more bike time.

• You get to know the people so much better, as you spend A LOT of time riding together, eating, camping, laughing and competing together, usually leaving as good old friends after a week on the bike. You get to meet & ride with people from all walks of life, not just the usual bike racers like at the majority of other events. I love this part, where you meet so many interesting, different people. After a few days of riding with someone, you may find out that he or she is a rocket scientist, or a multi millionaire or a rally car driver - whatever it may be, it is usually pretty interesting and refreshing to meet all sorts of people. Jeff Calam in the photo below has done 5 Trans Provence adventures with me, we’ve become great friends over the years, always having a mini battle amongst ourselves - it’s always been pretty close, but this year he beat me - think it was his new 29er wheels ;) He’s also waited for me on the low days, fixed my bike, talked my ears off, forced me to eat and we’ve high five-d way more than what you’re allowed to due to very high stoked factors!

• You have to learn to rough it. Camping during these events are the best, but I love to camp, and that is not the case for a lot of people. Sometimes it can be some people's first time ever camping! Even a small thing like camping can make a significant impact on your whole week and affect your results, as people can’t sleep as well as they are used to, the snoring keeps them awake, it might be pouring it down, everything is always damp and the roughing it part can get them down after a week of tent life. This is what I love and what usually makes me feel a wee bit stronger towards the end of every week compared to most others.

• You have to keep your bike & body in one piece. You’re only allowed one big bag at most of these events, and that includes your spares, so you only bring the basics, whatever you can fit into your bag. That is the whole point of these adventures. If you get to wash your bike and lube the chain after every big day, you should be stoked. These events are not meant to be all professional, where bikes get stripped down after every day and rebuilt, the bikes should be roughing it like we are. Why? This is where we learn to help each other. Share parts, figure out a plan to fix a broken frame, camaraderie and basic tools is what gets your bike (and yourself) through these weeks and trust me, your bike will never ever get as thrashed and beat up as during a week like the TP. Your riding will also improve like crazy as you just get thrown into the deep end and you learn to react, race blind, navigate and pretty much just hang on to survive the week! My trusty Roubion survived the week, a little battered and bruised just like the owner, but man, what a bike ;)

• You get to see the most amazing places and ride the most amazing, varied singletrack. The scenery, the trails and the culture we get to explore during these weeks are one of the big draws for me. You go to a new area or country, you don’t have to rent a guide and you’re not having to stop at every intersection to double check the map and the route. All you have to do, is sign up to one of these events, and follow the route and the maps that you’re given - genius. What a way to explore an entire region or area. Take the time to look around, take photo’s, stop in the little villages to eat an ice cream or drink a coffee or beer or both. Soak up the atmosphere, the local food, the language and embrace the culture. That is what I love about these adventures.

• You learn a lot about yourself during events like these. They are not easy and you’re not always going to feel great and have amazing race runs. It just doesn’t work like that, so you adapt, you learn and you accept it for what it is. Suffering makes you stronger to handle everything in your life in a better manner and suffering with other people really creates a bond between you that will in turn develop into great friendships. Below was Day 1 of this years race. A completely unexpected storm hit us the night before the start of the race, it poured the entire evening and this is what we woke up to. It was a tough, long, hard day, but one I will never ever forget. These hard days are the one’s that become the most memorable one’s - and the blue butt cheek I still have from a massive crash on stage zero!

• You can eat, eat, eat and then eat some more, and us girls like to do that. Everything tastes better after a big day on the bike, you get to have dessert every night, you stop for ice cream, beer, pizza, chips, pastries and the occasional coke along the way, mmmmm, that’s why we ride bikes after all? Right ladies? Just remember to reign in the “bad habits” after the week ends and you stop pedaling for 8 hours a day ;)

• You get to disconnect from the real world for a whole week. Usually these events are pretty remote, with very minimal WIFI and cell phone signals. Most of us are pretty antsy at first, but after a few days, you feel so liberated and free to not have to check your phone. Only pulling out the phone to take a picture of something beautiful or of a friend that is actually with you - real life, imagine that! Who cares what the rest of the Facebook or Instagram world is getting up to when you’re busy having the time of your life - or hanging on for dear life like I am in the photo below. Red earth day was WILD.

DO IT NOW. Find an event that may suit you near your home or that is in some foreign country that you’ve always wanted to visit, convince some of your friends to do the same and signup! It will be the best experience of your life and you will never regret it. 

My apologies if you get hooked on signing up for these adventures and become a total multi day event addict like I have become & it will leave you grinning like I am above ;)

Will I be back for my 7th Trans Provence next year? Gosh, I’m not sure just yet, but never say never...

Cheers Ash & Melissa for another wicked event! Huge shoutout to Sven Martin & Duncan Philpott for all the hard work out there getting all these bangers :)

Peace out, 

Anka

# do you even do bike yoga bro?

Don’t let me scare you away with the word YOGA in the subject line my fellow mountain bikers! Yes, the word yoga seems to have popped up everywhere lately, it almost seems as overused as the word “enduro” or “adventure” these days, or as trendy as coconut yogurt and paleo bread rolls (almost just as expensive too), but there is good reason why more & more people have become aware of this thing called Yoga, and that is the simple reason that people have started to realise that you need to do more of it to keep doing the things that you’re most passionate about. Yes. To improve your riding or racing you need to invest the time into doing these additional things to help with your main focus, or main sport - whatever that may be. In this case, I’ll be focusing on mountain bikers and trying to help them understand just how beneficial a few simple “asanas” poses can be.

I’m not going to try and impress you with crazy sounding Sanskrit words like Urdhva Mukha Paschimottanasana when I can just say up dog yo! I want to keep this simple and straight forward, no airy fairy business, just a plain and simple aid to help your body to cope with all the stresses related to biking, racing, traveling and of course those darned things we all know far too well called injuries. This is not to say that I dislike all the other yogic elements, but I’ll leave that up to you to explore & discover for yourself.

I’ve started with a few super basic warm up, stretching poses for pre and post rides. You can do these anywhere, even in your bike gear with your knee pads & helmet still in place. No need to go out and buy a new tight fitting, crazy patterned, neon coloured yoga outfit that will most likely break the bank for these moves (although it is pretty awesome that you can wear bold, crazy printed tights in a yoga class; but beware when you step outside the studio, you might get a few funny looks). 

Please do read the instructions and don’t just follow my drawings - I tried, but they’re far from perfect ;)

1) Childs pose (Balasana):

How to: Bring the knees to your mat & sit on top of your heels. Either have your knees wide open or touching. Let the torso drop down, and your forehead touch the mat.

Either extend your arms forward or take your hands back and grab your ankles.

Benefits: Gently relaxes the hips, the thighs & ankles. Relieves back & neck pain.

For how long: As long as you like & whenever you like.

2) Thread the Needle - shoulders:

Thread the Needle opens up the shoulders and chest, and relieves tension that builds up in the upper back and neck.

How to: Begin on your hands and knees, and bring your right arm across your body under your chest. Rest your hand on the floor with the palm facing up. Lower your upper body, resting your head and neck on the floor, keeping your left arm outstretched in line with your body. Keep your head facing to the left (towards the hand that is stretched beneath your torso). You can now either hold this pose as is, or lift your left arm off the ground and reach towards the sky, finding the position that offers the deepest stretch without being painful. Release and switch arms.

3) Downward facing dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana):

How to: Press your hands flat on your mat, especially the space between the index & thumb.

Bring your feet hip width apart.

Rotate your shoulder blades away from each other - hollow your armpits, lift your sits bone up & lengthen the spine, especially the lower back.

Benefits: Strengthens upper body

Relieves stiffness in the shoulder blade area.

Strengthens the ankles & opens the back of the legs - hamstrings & calves.

Energizes the body.

Rejuvenates the brain & heart with fresh flow of blood due to the lowered trunk.

For how long: Really feel into this one, walk your feet out, bend your knees, stretch those shoulders, move around, but then find stillness in the pose for at least 10 solid breaths. No point rushing any of these.

4) Pigeon (Kapotasana):

How to: From down dog, inhale & lift your right leg up, exhale & bring your right shin & knee down to the front of your mat.

If you can, move your shin to make it as parallel as possible to the top of your mat.

Extend your left leg back. If your right hip is very far away from the mat, you can place a block or a towel under it to help keep your hips in line/square to the floor.

Place your hands either side of your hips.

Inhale, look up, open your heart.

Exhale as you slowly lower your torso towards the mat on top of your front shin.

Extend your arms forward & rest your forehead on the mat, on your arms or on top of a block.

Benefits: Deep hip stretch.

Stretches the thighs, groin, psoas & the buttock muscles.

Relaxes the shoulders.

For how long: To really receive & feel the benefits of this pose, hold between 3 - 5 minutes, so do make sure that you’re in a comfortable position & use props, they’re your friends!

5) Squat:

This yoga pose opens up the hips and stretches the groin, ankles, thighs, and torso. It also helps with balance, concentration, and focus, which is always useful on the bike.

How to: To begin, squat with your feet as close together as possible, then spread your thighs and lean forward, fitting your body between your legs with your elbows forward. Press your elbows against your inner knees, pushing outward as you bring your palms together. Hold as long as you can.

6) Rag doll - forward fold (Uttanasana):

Another pose that I’ve found is excellent for easing back pain is the Forward fold. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, and bend forward, letting your head, neck, and arms dangle. Relax and allow gravity to do the work. You can then ease into a forward bend and grab your feet with your hands for an even deeper stretch of the back and legs.

Forward bends stretches & strengthens the back, especially the lumbar spine, it stretches the front of the hips & hamstrings. It tends to slow the body down, and helps one to move inward. They are calming, soothing & unwinding.

7) Tree Pose (Vrksasana):  

How to: Find your balance, shift your weight into left leg, slowly bend your right knee, turn it out away from you (but keep those hips squared to the front) and place your foot either above or below your knee - never push into your knee. Find your balance, focus on one spot in front of you, and then lift your arms up to the sky. If you want more of a challenge, close your eyes or sway your arms in the breeze.

Benefits: Increases balance, focus,concentrations and strengthens the knees & ankles. Be mindful not to push onto your knee - place your foot either above or below your knee.

8) Reverse Pigeon - hamstring stretch:

This one is currently my favourite. Lying down on the floor and stretching out the hamstrings and opening up the hips after a hard ride feels so good!

How to: Lie flat on your back, legs outstretched towards the sky. Place your right ankle just above your left knee and grab the back of your left leg, pulling it towards your chest. You can keep your left leg straight, or you can bend it at the knee, letting your lower leg dangle. Allow your right hip to open up more and more as you draw the left leg towards you. Hold this pose for a minute or two, gradually deepening the stretch. Release and switch legs.

9) Seated Twist:

There are many variations of this pose, but regardless of how you choose to execute it, the benefits remain the same–stretching and strengthening the hips, spine, and shoulders. It reduces neck and back pain and helps build flexibility through the spine.

Twists increase flexibility to the spine & hips, helps to release tension around the spine, tone abdominal organs, aids in digestion, detoxifies & helps to quiet the mind. Helps to move every inward. They are integrating, balancing & uplifting

10) Corpse pose (Savasana):

How to: Lie on your mat & extend your legs forward. Open the legs as wide or wider than your mat. (You can place a bolster or rolled up blanket under the knees when in a studio). 

Rest your arms by your side & turn your palms to face up.

Relax your shoulders, arms, abdomen, hips & legs.

Slightly tuck your chin to lengthen your spine.

Relax & slow down your breathing.

Benefits: Calms the brain & releases stress.

Relaxes the body.

Relieves mild depression.

Reduces fatigue, headaches & insomnia.

Savasana lengthens & strengthens the spine, creating maximum space between the vertebrae. It integrates spinal curves and allows for deep rest & relaxation. It helps integration of the benefits produced during the yoga practice. Grounding, stabilising & expanding. It teaches us to surrender & trust, and is also a great place to practice visualisation of what you need to be doing, whether it is going through the race course in your head, motivational messages or just focusing on the task ahead.

For how long: In a class situation we allocate 5 mins of Savasana for a 60min class and a 10min Savasana after a 90min class. Really do make time for this. It is one of the most vital poses in yoga & gives your body the time to absorb everything you’ve done for it.

Next time I’ll give you a few strengthening poses that will help with your mountain biking antics.

Peace out,

Anka x

My complete Tour Aotearoa packing & gear list.

Ok, you guys, here it is, my complete packing list of what I took with me on the Tour Aotearoa. As a bike packing newbie, or rookie, whatever you want to call it, I really looked for these sorts of posts to see what people took with them, what worked and what didn’t work, as I had no idea where to begin, so I thought I’d post about my experience and hopefully I can help or assist with the packing dilemma of such a massive undertaking and adventure when you decide to go on your trip of a lifetime.

My life essentials for 18 days.

Bike Setup: Juliana Nevis carbon hardtail, 27.5 size wheels. This was my first time riding a hardtail - ever! I would have like to take a 29er with some suspension, but my final decision came down to the fact that I needed as much space as possible for my frame bags, so hardtail it was with a Rockshox RS-1 suspension fork (to give my broken hand a bit of relief). A lot of people had rigid forks, but I would highly recommend a bit of suspension if you plan to go off-road a lot like we did. I also added two things that I’ve never used before, the first one was Cane Creek bar ends, which I grew to LOVE. Except that you hook onto things that you never would have hooked onto before, so beware of getting high sided off cliffs. After I broke my hand, I also decided to add some Aero bars onto my already strange cockpit. A wee bit wobbly at first, but after 90 mile beach, I seemed ok. I used these a lot and it was great to be able to change up positions, although I did get quite sleepy leaning onto these at times. I would highly recommend these. Also great to dry out towels, clothing and as my helmet hanger. I went with SRAM 1X11 setup with a 30T chainring and it worked flawlessly. Crankbrothers Candy pedals, SRAM ROAM wheels (I’m not a carbon fan), Maxxis ICON tyres, SDG saddle.

Bike Bags: AlpKit bike bags from the UK. My initial decision to go with them, were the colours that they offered, not too many companies offer bright flouro orange bags, and I wanted to be very visible on the roads (I’m pretty nervous on the road). They were also quite a bit lighter than most other bags out there, and I just loved their whole vibe - all the bags worked like a charm. Highly recommended :)

1 x Custom Stingray frame bag.

1 x Koala saddle bag that I left on my bike the whole time and just re-packed every morning.

1 x Front 20L Airlock Xtra Drybag for my tent & sleeping that I just strapped straight onto my handlebars. To keep the roll nice and small, I wrapped my sleeping bag around my tent, wrapped my thermarest around my sleeping bag and synched them all tightly together to fit in the drybag. AlpKit do offer a stiff Kanga harness for the front, but I didn’t have the need for it, and I preferred the simplicity of just having the dry bag tie straight onto the bars.

1 x Roo pouch on the front of my drybag where I kept my headlamp, chain lube, bike tool and rag. 

1 x Big Stemcell on the front of my top tube where I kept my phone, snacks, little bike lock, spork, trail directions & more snacks. With my frame being a size small, I found this bag to be too big and floppy when filled to the brim and it would touch my knee’s when pedaling, so I mounted it on top of my stem, fitting perfectly between my aero bars. I glued some velcro to the top of this pouch for my Garmin, as the mount didn’t quite make it to me in time before the Tour. 

1 x Fuel pod pouch where I kept my water bottle, sunblock & it fitted a nice medium sized banana too. 

The bags were all really waterproof, except for the time that I slipped crossing a massive river and completely submerged my bike and myself under water. I also just ended up wrapping all my things in good old plastic bags before packing up as we had some crazy wet weather and rain storms on the South Island. I kept all my soft goods, like clothing in my saddle bag and then all my heavier things and food in my frame bag. 

Clothing & other gear:

2 x different brands of chamois shorts to change up the “tread” every day. I loved my Juliana Capo shorts and my Ground Effect Siren shorts. Make sure to wash my chamois everyday, I was riding with both of them everyday :)

1 x long sleeved hiking type shirt with mesh and ventilation. I loved this shirt and wore it pretty much every day. It dried quickly, didn’t really smell that bad and I didn’t have to worry about sunblock on my arms. It’s crazy how this shirt faded to the shape of my hydration pack. This ended up being my only shirt as I lost my other riding shirt somewhere along the way.

1 x short sleeved Mons Royal wool riding T shirt. You HAVE to take wool, it does not smell, trust me. Although I ended up losing this one, and I had to worry about sunburn with the short sleeves, this ended up being my chill shirt after riding.

2 x sports bra’s. One Lululemon and one woollen Mons Royal bra. In hindsight one would have been enough, as the days were so long, that once you were done, you never really bothered to wear a bra. Again, wool is the way to go. Never mind this section guys!

1 x pair of woollen Icebreaker underpants. They were great, but again, not really needed as you just end up going commando.

1 x comfy, loose Lululemon casual pants. These were my best. I dreamed of slipping into these during the day and when I finally did at night, they were just fabulous. I suggest loose, baggy pants to give your bum a bit of a breather. The last thing you feel like doing is putting on some super tight compression tights.

2 x pairs of woollen socks. One pair to ride in and one pair to put on at night. I could wear these for days without washing them, because they were wool.

1 x medium weight woollen long sleeved thermal. This was great for after rides, but could also be worn when riding in the cold.

1 x small, lightweight puffy with no hood. To keep it smaller & more compact.

1 x wool buff for those chilly days and also my beanie at night.

1 x orange hi-vis vest - Castelli- which I wore when riding on the road, but it also worked really well as a small windbreaker either over my shirt or under my rain jacket.

1 x proper rain jacket - no cutting corners here. I used an Acre jacket which was super lightweight and simple, but very waterproof, with pit zips to breathe. I also took the hood off this jacket as I was wearing my helmet, but took it with me just in case.

1 x pair of Endura rain shorts. I used these A LOT. In the end, your lycra would get wet, but it did give you a good few hours before you were soaked through.

1 x glove - I was wearing a cast on my right hand, so just took one of my Giro long fingered gloves, chopped off the fingers and had a short fingered glove for my left hand. I only wore this for sun protection.

1 x set of Leg Warmers which I bought on the South Island as I was freezing in the chilly mornings & evenings. I even wore them during the day at times (not shown in photo).

1 x Giro Montaro MTB helmet. Love this lid. Probably the only one on the Tour with a MTB helmet. Sven modified my helmet a bit to add a very dorky touch, but it was probably the thing that I LOVED most about my gear and so many people asked me where I got it from. He put three bits of velcro on the back of the helmet to attach a neck and ear fabric cover attachment thingy that I could take on and off, but left on for the most part of the ride.

1 x Oakley Radar sunglasses.

1 x Evoc CC Race 3L hydration pack for my water. Most people went with no pack to keep the weight off your bum, but I didn’t have room for bottles and I don’t mind carrying a pack. This one was great, it had a 2 litre bladder and enough room for a jacket and some snacks. It also had two small zip pockets on the waist band where I kept my lip block, chamois cream and snacks. I also attached my Spot tracker onto the back of the pack.

1 x pair of riding shoes. I started off with sneaker type, comfortable shoes, which I usually ride & race in, but due to them being too soft for the distances I was riding, and me almost having to withdraw from the ride due to strained achilles and those in turn causing major knee issues, I had to go to the nearest bike shop and invest in a super duper expensive pair of carbon soled xc shoes. They saved my ride. No shit. Lesson learnt. They were not so great on the off road bits where we had to hike a bike, but hey. I do however still have tingling numb toes from spending such long days in these hard shoes, so I would suggest an insert of some sort. I do still highly recommend my comfy sneaker type shoes for riding - just not when you're riding 12 - 15 hours a day!

1 x XS travel towel. 

2 x super lightweight dry bags. A small one for my toiletries and a bigger one for my soft goods I wasn’t wearing.

1 x Big Agnes Pitchpine UL45 sleeping bag - AMAZING bag.

1 x Big Agnes Fly Creek 1 Platinum super duper lightweight tent.

1 x Therm-A-rest NeoAir Xlight Small with a repair kit.

1 x Inflatable Pillow - probably could have left this behind, but it was so small.

1 x SnowPeak LiteMax stove with a Trek 700 Ti cooker & a Snowpeak TI spork - the long one, as the short one would leave your entire hand covered in food when you’re trying to eat out of your dehydrated packet. I carried this on the North Island, and ditched it for the South Island. Should have done it the other way around, but I found buying food was easier than cooking when I was knackered and finding dehydrated meals.

1 x Water bottle 

2 x Electrolyte tablet tubes. Restocking these whenever I could.

1 x Black Diamond ReVolt headlamp - I used this with normal batteries as it was one less thing to try and charge at night.

1 x Lezyne rechargeable front light - amazing. I ended up using all my lights A LOT and really fell in love with my sunrise and sunset riding hours. 

1 x Lezyne Zecto drive rechargeable rear LED light. Sadly lost this guy on the last day, but I used this ALL the time.

1 x Anker PowerCore 20100 battery pack. It is quite a weighty charger, but it lasts for days and could charge my phone and both lights at the same time.

1 x iphone & charging cable.

1 x Spot Tracker - which was great for people to find you & it made me feel a bit more at ease when I was riding by myself at night, as it had an emergency button if you needed to use it for some or other reason.

1 x Garmin Etrex 20 - once I figured it out, it was amazing. Long battery life and I’d just replace batteries along the way. Helped me from getting lost many a times and staying on our designated route. It also held up in the pouring rain.

1 x Kiwi bungee/strap thingy for anything and everything.

Tools: 1 x set of brake pads, multi tool with long enough tool bits, stand alone chain breaker, electric tape, pump, duct tape, spare valve, valve remover, 2 x lightweight tubes, spare cable, tire boot, puncture kit, plug kit, chain link, derailleur hanger, zip ties, chain lube, rag, small Leatherman Squirt tool, small PacSafe bike lock (used a lot on grocery runs) and spare batteries for headlamp & spot tracker. 

First Aid kit: Small packet of wet wipes for those days you don’t get to shower, plasters of all shapes and sizes, alcohol wipes, Compeed blister plasters - loads of these, as they are the only plasters that work on your bum. Yep, bleeding saddle sores, no problem with these guys. Just don’t try to peel them off, it is very painful! Strapping tape, Charcoal tablets & Immodium for upset tummies, lots of pain killers and Blistex for burnt lips.

Toiletries: small chopped off toothbrush, small toothpaste, talcum powder in small container, Paw Paw cream, small wash all soap for laundry and a small Dr Bronners peppermint body wash, lip sunblock and normal sunblock and sandfly repellant - a MUST have in NZ.

Food: I always had a can or packet of Tuna in my bag, a few nutty bars of some sort, a chocolate bar, a cookie, an apple or banana or two and then I would buy food and stock up whenever I had the opportunity to. Stores and towns were few and far between, so when I got to a cafe I would just buy whatever, chocolate milk, double thick milkshakes, iced coffee’s, chips, pies, avocado’s, nuts, chocolate, triangle sandwiches - which fits nicely into frame bags by the way. When I got to a place that made toasted sandwiches, I’d stock up, one to eat right away, and two to go please. I had cold toasties with a tuna packet many evenings for dinner. Lucky for me it was near Easter, so I ate A LOT of hot cross buns. When I got to a gourmet cafe, I’d really stock up on little quiches, pies, samosas and banana loaf. Yumm. I ate A LOT, but we needed it, riding between 12-15 hours a day. My fear was running out of food & my favourite was finding a cafe who served iced coffee’s with the ice cream and whipped cream - the works - those would give me an extra boost.

Things I started off with, but ditched along the way:

• Casual shoes. I just rocked bare feet or walked around like a penguin in my bike shoes.
• Short sleeved shirt - well I lost that one.
• My cooker - I would just end up buying food instead whenever I could and stash it for later. It was easier and quicker.
• Baggy shorts. I started off with these on day one, and even though they were super light, it was just not necessary to have with me.

I think I just about covered everything. It may bore most to death, but it was so helpful for me when I came across people’s packing lists when I was preparing for this trip. Remember, Less is BEST.

Get out there, go on an adventure & try something new!

peace out, Anka

Races don't always go quite like planned - Andes Pacifico, Chile 2016.

I was so excited to be back for the 2016 Andes Pacifico race, as these are the events that I truly LOVE. It is more about the whole adventure, the exotic location, the people you get to spend a whole week with and all the crazy things that tend to happen over a whole week of this kind of “blind” racing format. It’s a pretty nutty format that I really enjoy and seem to thrive at, but it does come with a hell of a lot more risks and dangers than your usual practised racing format. We have a little “dark cloud crew” of friends that usually reunite at these sorts of events, and usually one of them or us gets hurt, and this time it was my turn. I took one for the team you guys. Nonetheless, I still loved being in Chile, I loved hanging with all the staff and organisers, drivers, doctors & nurses who looked after me, all the wives and kiddies that kept me entertained and fed, thank you guys for making an injury such an “enjoyable” experience ;)

My little house. Everything you really need under one roof. Getting settled in, full of excitement & anxiety for the week of adventures ahead. Never thought I wouldn't finish out the week off the bike. My little "sunshine" house wasn't quite as cosy after surgery though.

My hood for the week. I was so stoked to be back in Chile for this event. I was there only ten days before for the Rally of Aysen in Patagonia, so this part of the world was becoming like my second home. The place is pretty special, but it's the people are just amazing.

The reason I love these multi day adventures so much are the people you get to share these experiences with. It's also a great way to catch up with everyone after the couple months of off-season shenanigans. The liaison stages are where all the girls chit chat, have a laugh and eat yummy snacks of course. This was Day one, all smiles and loving it out in the hot, dry Andes Mountains just outside of Santiago, Chile.

On top of the world. Andes Pacifico 2016. Been so looking forward to get back to this start line, so it was great to get up here & take in the spectacular scenery & enjoy the thin air. What a place. Ready to start the week.

Day one was full on from the start. Gnarly, rowdy, downhill tracks that were hard work, but o, so much fun. The "anti-grip" dirt was rough as and it took a while to get used to riding on this surface again - or as close to used to as you're going to get.

Day two started off really well & I was loving the tracks. Racing is full on though and you switch into this outer body mode, so when I went to make a pass while I couldn't see a thing, somehow I thought that that would be ok - alas, I clipped a rock and flew over the bars which resulted in a broken hand. I knew right away as I heard it go "click". The silver lining was that it wasn't my wrist - phew! The hardest part was making my way to the bottom of the track - I thought riding on this Anti-grip was tough, try walking on it - even worse. 

I was right, I broke my 4th Metacarpal, and I had to get surgery & three pins inserted right away. Long story short, THE BEST HOSPITAL experience of my life, the best, most AMAZING doctors, surgeons & nurses that I have ever had to deal with (and it's been a lot with all Sven's crashes all over the world), all of this with pretty much zero communication between my non existent Spanish and very broken English from the Chileans. I will never, ever forget this experience, and how much everyone looked after me and cared for me. Phenomenal. 

Once back at home, the Hand Therapy clinic made me a really cool little custom cast so I could continue with the Tour Aotearoa that started only 10 days after I had surgery. Yep, mmmm, not ideal, but I was adamant that I was going to do this ride from the top of the North Island to the very bottom of the South Island - 3046km later - with or without a working hand. 

Thank you to everyone for your support during this time and for all the non stop encouragement once I started this crazy Tour. Hats off to Sven, who had to put up with me during this time of not knowing if I'd even be able to ride a bike, never mind do the biggest ride of my life. There were lots of tears, fears and many uncertainties, but he never once stopped supporting & encouraging me. Thank you babes!

Yeah, so racing doesn't always go as planned, but I have been very lucky so far and feel fortunate that it was a pretty minor injury as far as injuries go. It teaches you to roll with it, look ahead, focus on other things and to just be in the moment. Take it day by day and take the time to get to know the people you've known for a long time, but never really got to know - if that makes any sense. O and next time you break your hand, just go on a bike packing adventure that stretches the length of New Zealand - it'll be sweet as bro.

Rally of Aysen Patagonia.

A week of coaching a new generation of Chilean women when they got thrown in the deep end.

The majority of women, I’ve noticed, usually start riding mountain bikes much later in life. For the most part we didn't grow up rallying around on bikes, or hanging out at the local BMX track pulling wheelies, skids and manuals. Of course there is the small percentage of lucky one’s who do start early, but most of the women that I have met through riding bikes all seem to have started later. Not late as in too late, but much later than most of the guys.

It’s usually picked up after university or collage, or even after spending a few years dedicated to a career.  It’s usually after the party phase, the boy chasing phases, the very awkward “is it cool” phase or often after a break up; with all of those silly things out of the way, women reach a stage in their lives where they actually start doing what they want to do and not what they think society wants them to do. We stop caring about what the guys might be thinking, or what’s cool or ladylike enough. This means we have some catching up to do with the boys, but that’s ok, because we’re not trying to compete with the boys, we just want to ride bikes and have fun and explore this new form of independence and freedom and the challenges that go along with it. 

Maria conquering the first big climb and timed stage of the week that ended high above the tree line with breathtaking views. 

I have been thinking about the above since returning from an amazing trip to Patagonia, Chile for the Rally Aysen Patagonia. A group of us were literally thrown in the deep end to test out a new race concept and route. One part endurance another part enduro mixed with full time adventure. The group or guinea pigs assembled was large and diverse, from all corners of the globe with varying degrees of experience and skill levels. From bike-a-holic lifers to the freshly converted. This is where Bernie and Maria enter the picture. Two very capable girls from Santiago, who were to be be my riding companions for the week. 

Feeling right at home in this Beech Forest.

I’ve been fortunate enough to do this sort of thing for many years now, yet I still get those jitters; all the unknowns of a new destination, new tracks, new challenges, unknown food, weather, itineraries, challenges and risks. Part nerves and part wonder and excitement. The only difference between myself & these girls, was that I knew this feeling, I’ve been through it many times over the past few years, but Bernie & Maria have only been riding mountain bikes for the past four months. This week was going to be a challenge for them in every way. It would entail their biggest climbs, longest days, most miles and hardest downhills they had ever attempted all in four back to back hot and intensive days riding with a bigger group but also at times soldiering on alone against the clock a couple of times each day. I was there to help them along, offer some tips, a bit of skills and technique advice, encouragement & of course lots of laughs. 

We wanted to show that even if you’re new to the sport, a good attitude, willingness to learn, to push yourself, to be outside of your comfort zone & to have fun with something new is something very attainable for all women out there if you set your mind to it. You don't need years of riding or coaching under your belt, you can bravely dive right into the deep end and the results may surprise you. I personally believe that getting thrown into the deep end is a good thing at some point and that there is no better way to improve your skills than during an event like this one where you just have to simply get on with it. This rally covered all the elements that really teaches you how to get out there and ride your bike under every condition in both a social and solo environment.

Chile doesn’t have a huge women’s cycling population, it’s just not really in their culture to go out and do these sort of macho things, that is why this was so important for Maria & Bernie, to show the women and young girls in Chile, that yes, they can do this sort of thing and that it’s RAD. They are the next generation of women that will inspire & encourage other girls to ride bikes and explore the nature & diverse beauty and varied landscapes that Chile is famous for. 

Here’s a few things i have learnt from starting in the deep end like Bernie and Maria did that week. 

• Ignorance is bliss. I learnt on the steep near vertical trails of Laguna Beach, steep up and even steeper down, there was no trail grading system to tell me what i could or should and should not ride. Same for the girls here. New trails and blind riding in sometimes virgin native beech forest littered with natural obstacles. There is nothing wrong with walking short sections and i don't encourage foolishly riding over your head but by completing the entire route with us their preconceived ideas of their skill ceiling was raised significantly and they left better riders because of this.

• Hike a bike opens new doors and destinations. The riding scene in Patagonia is still in its early days, so without a big network of climbing tracks to reach the best descents meant slogging with your bike on the back of your shoulders through forests and up scree slopes. The payoffs descending nearly always outweigh the effort, not to mention its a great excuse for some snacks and refreshments when you summit. 

Bernie launching logs and feeling very comfortable after being taken outside of her comfort zone the past four days. 

• Timed riding is not only for experts. While we were in Chile for the experience rather than just racing it did allow Bernie and Maria to be on their own, to focus on the task at hand and put all the advice given and tips to use. They learnt to read and interpret the terrain by looking ahead and making quick decisions, maybe try something new and slightly scary.  Whether you’re railing it, getting off, running, tipping over, nailing a section, unclipping, spazzing out or whatever you’re doing, you’re learning something every single time. At the end of the stage you get to share all the adrenaline and excitement with your fellow riders and there is a buzz in that too.

• Nerves are good. They are a powerful tool that you learn to both control and take note of. You learn to cope with situations under pressure and that translates back to every day life at work and at home and school. It will make you stronger and more confident. 

• Theres nothing wrong with being at the back in a big group ride. This is how i learnt to ride - trying not to get lost or left behind. You push yourself that little bit harder and you get to mimic the boys or other stronger riders in front of you, see their lines, emulate their body position, style and technique. So never fret when you are the slower rider at the back of a group, as that will turn you into a better rider in time.

• Overcoming and persevering when it gets tough is hugely rewarding. Maria and Bernie killed it. Their biggest days on a bike yet and back to back for four days without giving up ever. Their positive attitudes and big smiles were contagious and rubbed off on a lot of people. It will make or brake you. A trip like this will either make you fall head over heels in love with riding, or it can make you absolutely hate it either way you will find out pretty quickly if this sport is for you. If you embrace all the elements of such an adventure, you will without a doubt as proved in the girls case become better riders for it and leave the week with a whole new big group of friends and friendships. 

That adrenaline buzz you only get after a race. Story time.

I sure do hope that this experience will be the start of their passion for bike adventures and exploring and that they can pass this new found love on to other women in Chile & abroad. 

Cheers Chile, muchas gracias. Nos vemos mas tarde! 

Anka

Home for the holidays & happy 2016 yo!

After quite a big break off the bike, it was time to pack away the gardening & DIY tools, and throw my leg back over my steed and get back to riding. I couldn't think of a better way to kickstart my summer riding than by jumping into the deep end and heading out on a big heli ride mission up Starveall mountain. An all time favorite of mine, in our backyard, which also just happens to be the very first heli drop we ever did when we looked at moving out to New Zealand, so it's quite special to me & always reminds me of why we moved out here in the first place.

The Starveall heli ride starts off on beautiful open tussock fields, with spectacular never ending views, and as you start dropping down, you ride through scree fields, massive rocky sections and eventually get to the tree line where you enter into the most beautiful, ancient, root cladded Beech forest that keeps you on your toes for the next few hours until you reach the river far, far below. To me, nothing quite compares to riding through a cornflakes cladded native beech forest with it's musty almost apple cider like smell.

Now that I was back on the bike, it was time to head to Nydia Track, one of my all time favorite places & tracks to ride for an overnighter with some visiting family who tramped in, while we biked. Nothing beats riding this track on a beautiful summer's day, catching glimpses of the turquoise water and the bobbing boats peeping through the podocarp forests, along the route. The best part of course is reaching On The Track Lodge, having a cold beer, amazing home cooked meals & settling into your cabin or yurt for the evening - not to mention the hot tub under the stars...

This photo above from Nydia Track, is what made me fall in love with New Zealand. The lush native forests & bush fascinates me & I'm in utter awe of it every time I set foot amongst these old, magical giants and to be able to ride my bike through these forests never gets old. They make me feel alive.

Not that Sven & I ever need an excuse to head out on a road trip, but with my sister & her husband visiting us, we loaded up the trusty van and headed out on a roadie starting off on the beautiful East Coast to show them our new home country. We had a little evil plan to show them all our favorites, hoping to entice them to move out here. It's not hard to convince anyone of anything when the beauty of all these magical places, speaks for itself. The joy of having visitors, is that you become a tourist again and end up doing loads of things that we'd never do or have always wanted to do. It makes you see & appreciate so many other things and it forces you to slow down, something that we don't do often enough.

Our next stop was Craigieburn, for some more riding, hiking & cave exploring. The scenery out there is just breathtaking, and completely different to the East Coast. We hiked around and up and over some beautiful rock formations at Castle Hill, watched the sun setting and waded waist deep up and through a cave system with head lights. The riding is always phenomenal, the weather was great & we got to do a few bonus shuttles down cocaine Alley - the upside of having family who don't ride bikes, they can shuttle!

Early summers in New Zealand is not quite as warm as it's other Southern Hemisphere friends, but we got pretty lucky and kept dodging the rain. If anything, the low clouds adds to the mood & the beautiful lush rainforest really come to life in these conditions. I don't mind carrying gear with me to cater to the four seasons that we can experience in one day. It's exciting & ever changing. Theres no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing :-)

A highlight for me this summer has been the completion of the 85km long Old Ghost Road track. After 9 long, hard years of work and red tape, they connected the track for everyone to play on. We jumped at the opportunity to do our first ride through and immediately booked our bunks at the Ghost Lake Hut to go and experience this longest single track trail in New Zealand. We opted to do this over two days and one night which makes the riding a bit more enjoyable as you don't need to take quite as much gear and food along with you. What they have created up there in those mountains is just mind blowing, and I salute and thank each and every person that was part of this massive project. Bloody well done!

Of course riding with photographers, Sven & Duncan on such a perfect day, meant that it took us a wee while. They were like two kids in a candy store and just couldn't get enough of the spectacular vista's. I would recommend putting this one on your bucket list of absolute must do trails to experience. In my opinion, the West Coast is the best coast. It is just stunning, the riding is amazing, hardly any people live out there (it may be due to the huge sandfly population), but every single time we head out West, we are in awe of this place & what it has to offer, I literally have to pinch myself.

We've just decided to head further south, this time to Queenstown. Catch up with some friends, ride some new trails & to ring in the new year. Summer has finally decided to kick in on Christmas day, so it's time to pull out the vests, slap on the sunblock and head out (and drink some beers of course)! 

It's been great to be back at home, to have a bit of a break from the bike but it's been just as amazing to get back on the bike. I'm super excited about the new year and I've got some mega adventures waiting for me (I mean MASSIVE). It all kicks off around mid January, which is a bit bittersweet for me, as it feels like we've just got home, but time waits for no one and you need to just get on with it, make the most of every single day & be grateful for this wonderful life we get to live.

Peace out & happy new year to everyone!

Anka

x

Scuffers, Burners & good folk, it's not just about the shorts. NZO Active.

It’s funny how things work out sometimes, but then again it was probably meant to be…

On my very first visit to New Zealand in 2006 for the DH World Champs in Rotorua, I bought a bike T-shirt from a very “home grown” type vendor/stall. This doesn’t happen often, as I’ve never been a real fan of most of the bike apparel out there. This was different, the designs were clever, it was fresh and fun and funnily enough, I still own this T-shirt.

Fast forward a few years on and we find ourselves living in New Zealand (a dream come true) and on a road trip to the North Island to the bike mecca of Rotorua. Ever since I had bought one of Nzo’s T-shirts back in 2006, this company has intrigued me and I wanted to learn more about the people behind this brand. To me, it’s about the people, their products, how they run their business and what they give back to the community. When you’re new to a country, you feel this immense sense of pride and this loyalty to promote it and everything that it has to offer and I was on a mission to live & breathe everything kiwi, but I digress… Once in Rotorua, I stopped off at the bike shop to buy my first pair of Nzo shorts. It was love at first fit and I’ve never looked back since. I wanted to represent this kiwi company and have them along for all my adventures, journeys and races. A quick call to introduce myself & say hello to Gary Sullivan or Gaz as he is so well known and Glen, and they insisted I head over to Mount Ngongotaha for a cup of tea and a tour of their home workshop where they have been selling their shorts straight to the customers from their barn. Perfect.

I’m not too sure how many of you in the bike industry knows this, but in my previous life, I submerged myself in the fashion industry. I studied in Los Angeles, sewed, screen printed, bought, merchandised, designed, the whole lot, so clothing is in my blood and a passion of mine that has been put aside for many years to make room for bikes. To be able to visit a company like Nzo, who runs everything from their house, was a dream come true & something that I aspire to one day. After meeting the dynamic duo of Gary & Glen, I was even more excited about these shorts and everything else. They were the coolest couple, making the coolest shorts and they just got on board as one of my new sponsors.

Heading into the 2014 season, the Scuffers were my shorts of choice, combined with one of their many funky T-shirts and raglans, Gary also printed up some custom Kowai designs (along with other sponsors logos) for me onto merino raglans, so I had sweet “race” kits too. With this combo, I suffered through all the Enduro World Series races, survived the grueling Andes Pacifico race in Chile, the Trans Provence multiday stage race, loads of filming & photo trips, product and bike launches, clinics, adventures, missions, wet as a dog conditions, slipping, sliding, snow, crashing & burning and of course lazy days just lounging. I was covered, literally, for anything.

It was a no brainer that I wasn’t going to let go of these guys (or my shorts) with the formation of the Juliana SRAM pro team going into the 2015 season. I was pretty adamant that my kiwi Scuffers, my new kiwi identity was coming along for the ride, and of course my team mates; Sarah Leishman, Kelli Emmet & Juliana brand manager Katie Zaffke was just as excited to get a pair fitted to their derrieres to find out what my raving has been all about.

I don’t think there are too many companies, never mind “smaller” companies out there that will do what these guys have done for our team. The timing was impeccable, as they were just getting ready to launch their new ultra lightweight Burner trail shorts and Gary & Glen offered to match our shorts with our three different colored race jerseys. We now had red, purple and green to choose from, to match our jerseys. We could pick whatever color we were in the mood to wear on that given day and we could all rock a different color on different days to mix it all up and keep our new women’s team looking fresh and funky out on the tracks. Something different & unique to what everyone else is doing & wearing.

Besides their amazing shorts, they write up a fabulous blog, support endless events, are heavily involved in the biking community, participate in races, festivals and all the fun stuff that goes along with bikes. Every few months they release a funny new T-shirt that pops up on their site and they have also collaborated with the good people over at Ride Central in Rotorua for those of you who are more visually inclined. It is one freaking cool bikers destination store.

I don’t plan to change my shorts anytime soon, they’re stuck with me for many more adventures & races to come, and they’re made so darn well, that they will last for many more years to come. Trust me ladies, these shorts are keepers!

I’m getting ready to put my Scuffers to their biggest test yet, spending the Month of March 2016 in these shorts, pedaling 3000km from the tiptop of NZ to the very bottom along with the main man Gaz himself in the Tour Aotearoa.

Cheers to Nzo Active, Gaz & Glen for all your support.

www.nzoactive.co.nz

Italian tornado's, cappuccino's & siesta days - welcome to Italy & the final EWS round.

Back to back EWS races have always been taxing, as you wrap up racing late Sunday afternoon, there is no time to just kick back, it’s usually a mad scramble to clean up and pack up – especially after the Spanish round; I had more mud & grit in my kit than you’ll find in an Egyptian backpackers. Double laundry sessions is what I busied myself with post race to get ready for a 10-hour drive to get to the final round of the series in Finale Ligure, Italy. The final race of the season! Whooohoooo!

This was the third time that we’ve wrapped up our season in Finale, but this year was to be a bit different. The weather gods had other plans for this usually calm little seaside village. Of course upon arrival on Tuesday, the sun was out, it was warm, it was what we had come to expect from this laid-back beach town, which usually gives us our last little taste of “summer”. The forecast for the week had loads of weather warnings, including rain, thunder, high winds, flashfloods and even a tornado warning! It was hard to believe as we sat lazing in the sun sipping cappuccino after cappuccino. With an event of this scale, the organizers need to make decisions ahead of time, to ensure safety, so at registration we were informed that our two-day practice was now going to be one day due to this front that was approaching us. This meant one hell of a big day on the bike to get through all of the six racetracks, with not much time to do any repeats.

We were all in the same boat (literally) with no stage riding on Friday, so it was straight into the race weekend and I felt pretty poorly prepared for some reason. I felt like I was just going through the motions, checking off the stages one by one, and wanting to get through the weekend. It was a combination of just being knackered from the previous weekend where we had a hell of a week – 8 hours of liaison & race time over the weekend and my race fire was flailing. Sadly, stage 1, my favorite stage ended up being cancelled due to possible flashfloods in the canyon & we were going to start the day with probably the most physical, pedaly, uphill stage that I’ve ever raced in any enduro race. Not ideal, but it ended up being my best stage after all. I had a very steady, average day on the bike, never really finding my flow, motivation, power or my speed, but it seemed like I wasn’t the only one. The general feeling amongst riders was very, what is the word, blah. I think we were all tired and ready for a break. In the end Finale got away quite lucky, with this tornado just barely affecting us, but lashing out on nearby Monaco and surrounding Cote d’Azur towns leaving a trail of devastation and a death toll of 17 people. A bike race becomes pretty insignificant after such sad news.

I always look for the positive in most situations, but I feel that the trails chosen for this round was not a great representation of what Finale has to offer and what it has become so famous for. The stoke level just wasn’t there and I wasn't alone in this feeling. I hope that for next year we can return to some of the classic Finale trails and that a little bit more effort can go into doing some trail maintenance before the race with a little less busy road riding during the liaisons. Sunday we pedaled for almost fifty kilometers, climbing almost 1500m, which I'm ok with and ready for but it would be nice to be rewarded with a bit more timed DH racing compared to the amount of in-stage pedaling we had on just two stages.  Other than that, Finale is just a magical place and the perfect host town to give everyone a great send off. I’ve stocked up on my gluten for the next 6 months and eaten my body weight in Gelato’s. I love Italy; it’s food, people, culture and passion and always look forward to getting back here for some sunshine and a re-charge between races.

Of course I would have loved to crack the top 10 again this season, but nonetheless, I’m very happy to have kept my 12th place overall amongst a boatload full of very fast, very talented ladies. The future of women’s enduro racing looks bright, and that makes me a very happy girl.

“This season we had eight rounds in eight countries, two continents, three islands in two hemisphere’s – the World Enduro Series really does take us around the world, which is why I keep finding myself in the start gate each year. We’ve raced on roots, mud, dust, loam, wood, snow, ice and in rivers, so it was very fitting to end on the beach in Finale, to wash it all away in the Med while eating gelato’s. Phew, I’m exhausted!”

Thank you to everyone (you all know who you are), for all your support this summer and for all the laughs, suffering, sweating, scary, fun, sad, tired, exciting and wonderful moments & memories. You guys are the reason that I keep racing & coming back for more year after year. It was a great first year of being part of the Juliana SRAM Pro team, and I’m looking forward to many more adventures with Sarah, Kelli & the rest of the crazy crew that lives this crazy, but amazing life.

Time to pack up everything here in France and make my way back home to New Zealand for a very jam-packed, exciting, adventure filled "off-season" on my bike.

Ciao bella,

Anka x

doyouevenrideinsnowbro? EWS round #4 La Thuile, Italy

[embed]https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10152541518117445&set=vb.47659052444&type=3&video_source=pages_video_set[/embed]

PS: cheers to Sven Martin for all the stunning shots & thanks to all the other hard working media dudes out there during the races - they are working and riding twice as hard as us lot and not getting any sleep while delivering the goods!

peace out,

Anka x

10 days of Palta’s, ceviche, fruit cups, friendly people, heat, more fruit cups & the Andes Pacifico enduro stage race.

It’s pretty early on in the season for a big race, but this was one event that I wasn’t going to miss. I’ve never been to South America and I love being involved with new events, so off to Chile it was. Upon arrival it was anything but chilly, it was bloody hot. Heat like what we’re used to in South Africa, and I knew right then, that this stage race was not going to be a breeze. The heat is what was going to make this event a tough one, and the “anti-grip” dirt that everyone has been going on about.

Santiago was big, 6million people big, surrounded by massive Andes mountain peaks all around. It was dry, barren, polluted & dusty almost like Las Vegas, a city that just popped up in the middle of nowhere, but it was alive, colourful & bustling. It reminded me a lot of South Africa, the constant contrast between wealth & poverty. The shanties you drive past in your fancy car, the electric fences and gates in the neighborhoods. The maids. Only difference were the dogs, strays were everywhere, but they were all so friendly and non aggressive, unlike most South African dogs. Anyhow, those were my first impressions driving into Santiago. The greatest thing to me, were the friendly, warm people. Everyone, wherever you went were such amazing people. My lack of Spanish left me frustrated at times, wanting to communicate and chat, but our charade games would make do most of the time. We were welcomed into strangers homes like we were family, and that was to be the precedent of the entire trip. That and fruit cups. Delicious fruit cups.

The race was amazing. It was incredibly tough. We started high up in La Parva and finished up on the beach in Maitencillo. The 38 – 40degree Celsius heat turned it up a notch and the hike a bikes in the midday heat, made for some very long days out in the desert. The race stages were hard, technical, steep and strange. Strange in a good way, just weird to ride. Dirt like most of us have never experienced. You’d pick your line, go for your line and not even ever get anywhere near your line. This was to be the battle of the week, trying to pick and stay on line or on track. As soon as we’d feel a little more confident, we’d move to a new area with slightly different, anti-grip dirt and the learning curve would start from scratch. It was fun to try and figure this out, but also frustrating at times when the track looked straight forward, and usually you’d be able to let it go, but you just couldn’t out here. Not to mention the size of the cacti & its thorns that loomed around every corner. Besides the giant sized cacti, the rest of the vegetation scattered along the tracks were also thorny and they didn’t move. Our hands and forearms were cut up & battered to smithereens, and our legs looked like we fought with some samurai masters. This is what I love about these sorts of adventures. Everything was new, everything was exciting, and everything was scary. This is what riding bikes is all about to me. The adventure of all of this, thrown into a race with all the variables and the unknown factors is what excites me and why I love to do these sorts of events. It is a race, yes, but it is an adventure. It is an adventure with a group of awesome likeminded people and you have to embrace anything and everything that gets thrown at you.

It was like a reunion of sorts with all our friends meeting up from all over the world for another suffer fest. The dark cloud crew’s early reunion with loads of other familiar faces from previous adventures. Sven had a really bad first day, riddled with mechanicals, flats and of course crashes, that made him decide to focus on photographing the rest of the race. Everyone struggled with the stages, they were hard. Everyone crashed, got lost, got stuck and such, but everyone finished off the long days with a big smile and a sparkle in the eye. The food & the Chilean red wine helped ease the aches & pains after each long day, with loads of speculation of what the following day was going to be like. During the day, when you’re struggling, you keep thinking of the end of the race, but when it comes around, there is that sad, flat feeling of the adventure being over. The Dark Cloud crew had their fare share of mishaps – as usual, but nothing too serious. We all made it. We survived the crazy Chilean backcountry and crazy tracks. I ended up taking the win, with Pauline Dieffenthaler in second and Julia Hobson (fellow Juliana ambassador) in third place. In the men’s, Jerome Clementz took the win, with local Chilean Nico Prudencio in second and Francois Bailly-Maitre in third. Chris Ball also killed it as usual and Will beat me this time around. Damnit!

No rest for the weary as we managed to do some laundry and head South for about 5 hours to the mountains of Chillan to check out the area where the first round of the EWS will take place in a few weeks from now. Feeling pretty tired and beat up, all I wanted to do was sleep on the beach and eat more avocado everything, but it was time to do some more riding and exploring. I was loving this area. It was green and lush with beech forests – it felt like home! I loved seeing the smaller villages and towns and the quaint houses and gardens, this was the Chile that I had pictured in my head. We rode & explored for two days, did bits and pieces of one track; hike a biked to some steaming hot fumaroles to catch the most stellar sunset and to cook an egg. It smelt like Rotorua. It was breathtakingly beautiful. I wanted to keep going further south, to see more lush forests and lakes, but this will have to do for now as our time has run out.

We bee lined it back to Santiago, got home around 3am, woke up at 7am to wash & pack our bikes and to get to the Aquitaine Winery by 10am for a wine tasting tour with Eduardo at his family vineyard. This was a first for me, drinking wine at 10am, blending my toothpaste with tannins. Bloody hell, was it tasty. I could get used to drinking these delicious wines on the terrace at 10am. It was time to head home, back to NZ.

It was a whirlwind trip, with a wonderful race, in a magical country. It has been a little teaser of a big country that I cannot wait to return to and explore properly. Thank you Chile & its amazing people & scenery for a wonderful adventure. Thank you also to Mountain Works & Santa Cruz Bicycles Chile for all your help & late nights helping me with my bike, and to all the organizers for putting on such an amazing event. Eduardo, Nacho & Matias, Maria Eugenia & her family, Montenbaik, Sarita & all the chicas who ran everything. Cheers to all the drivers and everyone involved, it was magical and unforgettable & I’ll be back!

Next up: Trail riding trip with the SRAM family in Craigieburn forest & Nelson.

Peace out x

Dodzy Memorial weekend of stoke.

As soon as we wrapped up our 8-day Juliana video & photo shoot, we barely had time to do laundry & wash bikes before we headed out to Wairoa gorge for the DME. A weekend filled with good friends, great memories and amazing bike tracks in the middle of nowhere surrounded by beautiful native forest. I wasn’t feeling tired at all, after filming non stop for the past 8 days, and leaving for Chile for a big race on the Monday following the DME, but I wasn’t going to miss this for anything – knackered or not, we’re going to the gorge to ride or race or hang out – whatever you like to call it – enduro-ing these days. The skies opened up for an entire day & night only to leave all the really techy tracks even more techy & slippery, but the sun was out and it felt like the perfect summer weekend. The tracks that we raced on this year were some of the hardest ones built out there and the slippery conditions made it really fun and also really unpredictable and bloody scary. Saturday was super fun, catching up with everyone, and riding some new tracks. I thought that by Sunday things would have dried up a bit more, but in fact it ended up being even more slippery. My goal was to get down the mountain, have fun, try not to crash too many times and to get to Chile on Monday for the Andes Pacifico stage race.

Well it started off well, and it ended off well, but the end of my 2^nd run was pretty great until right near the end where I lost all my biking skills and crashed myself silly for a wee while and even getting jammed up in-between some trees. Not ideal, but no damage done, except for some major bruising. I knew right then that there was no chance of getting on the box that day. The girls that ride out here are absolutely amazing bike racers & riders, especially on the gnarly shit. One small mistake with this lot and you’re off the back. Of course you feel that little bit of disappointment – that is normal, otherwise you wouldn’t race, but that was washed away quickly when you think about the actual reasons for being out here in the first place. This is not about you or I or us, or racing this is about the great memories of an amazing friend & person, and celebrating everything that he was so passionate about. Cheers Dodzy for creating such an amazing playground. In the end Rosara smashed us to take the win, with Harriet in second place and Gabby in third. Super happy to see Gabby up on the podium – it made my day & I knew that this was a special weekend for her. Justin Leov took the Elite men's win & Sven got a pretty sweet looking first place trophy for the mantelpiece that we don't own - well done everyone!

Thanks to everyone for another amazing weekend of playing on bikes!

Next it was time to do laundry and pack up to head out to Chile. Andes Pacifico, here we come!

Fire, Salad, Dog. Juliana does Nelson.

Fire Salad Dog. Juliana does Nelson.

It’s been a while since I’ve had the time or the energy to actually sit down and type down some thoughts. It’s been hectic to say the least. My off-season has not been “off” or slow by any means. I’m finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel as February is nearing its end, which means I’ll get a few weeks of actual off-season downtime, I mean training. It sounds like I’m winging – don’t get me wrong, I’m most definitely not. I wouldn’t want to change anything about my life. I’ve loved, absolutely loved every minute of every day – well the 6am wake up’s got a bit old, but that is so ingrained in my body clock right now, that I find myself enjoying all the early mornings and waking up with the birds and the beautiful morning light.

Let’s start at the beginning; it will be short and sweet, I promise.

The Juliana Bicycles product launch happened over here in Nelson – very exciting stuff. Gary Perkin flew out here a few days earlier to shoot the entire Juliana bike line up. We took each bike to a well suited, different looking location to best portray each bikes characters and chose a different theme/story line & outfit for each bike. That was full on to say the least, as there were 6 bikes and myself which meant early mornings & late nights, but we got it done in 3 days and we had a blast. There were 2 firsts in that weekend for me; first time on a 29er (which I surprisingly loved, shhhh) and a first time on a hard tail (which I also enjoyed). Never too old to try something new – like they say; do something that scares you everyday (that would include hard tails & 29ers in my books). Even though I tried & enjoyed them, I won’t be trading in my trusty suspension bikes any time soon though, but I can appreciate and see the need and the right place for all the different models that I rode.

Katie Zaffke – the new Juliana Brand manager joined us later along with the Anthill film crew to capture our women’s backcountry adventure that we were heading out on for the next 4 days. We had an awesome crew of girls, all of them from such amazing, varied backgrounds and all of them Santa Cruz riders/racers & adventurers for many years, so it was just fitting to have them all join me on our new Juliana Bicycles adventure – promoting strong, interesting, badass women who can ride bikes properly. I mean were talking ER doctors, bird researchers & hydrologists that also smashes any sort of bike ride and race for fun on their weekends – how awesome is that.

So this is heading for a longer piece than I anticipated, so summing up the amazing 8 days of the Juliana video & photoshoot, here goes:

Awesome bikes, amazing friends, a lot of riding, pushing, repeating and waiting. Many early mornings, lots of driving, late fish n chips dinners, too many flat whites, camp fires, bird watching, tree deciphering, learning, watching, laughing & vajazzling – don’t ask! Banter, shredding, Go-Pro’ing, crashing, laughing, bonding and showing the boys how to ride little bikes – Juliana Bikes. I no longer feel sad to not ride a Santa Cruz branded bike – I love my Juliana Bicycle and feel really proud and special to be able to represent the finer side of the best bike brand in the world.

Thank you to everyone that made this happen, to all the boys that had to put up with us and to all the girls that gave up their time to make this video shoot a reality. Hoping we all look really fast & that all the women go forth & buy Juliana bicycles!

Cheers Harriet, Anja, Katie & Bob & also CJ, Matty, Mike, Boyd, Sven, Gary & everyone else who made this happen.

diary of my Trans Provence week

The Trans Provence is always the highlight of my season. It is a week filled with amazing, unknown, wild & crazy trails, where we trek up and over many big, vast mountain ranges, starting near Sisteron, making our way all the way to the beach in Menton. I love this point to point style adventure, where you are actually moving, pedaling & pushing yourself across mountain ranges and valley's and that sense of satisfaction that you feel when you get your first glimpse of the sea shimmering in the distance. It's pretty exciting stuff & that is what keeps me coming back every year for more adventures. Last year we had some bad luck with Sven getting heli vacced off on the last day and then Jon Cancellier getting carried out 200 meters from the finish line with torn ankle ligaments - not ideal. Mix in there some crazy rain, thunder, flash floods & hail storms on exposed mountain tops with not a tree in sight, then you start understanding how a small group of riders started calling ourselves Team Dark Cloud. Not satisfied with unfinished business, Team Dark Cloud had to come back this year to make sure that everyone finishes up, get's to plonk into the med, look at Smail's speedo du jour & to give a puff on the old cigar.

Base camp Day 0: Clamensane

So here we are, Trans Provence 2013 Day 1: Clamensane - Digne

The day started off sunny & cheery, only to turn to shit as soon as we got to the top of the mountain of stage 1. This was dejavu - exactly like last year and how we came up with Team Dark Cloud to begin with. We had to laugh & just get on with it - was this to set the precedent of the week to follow? I set of on my first special stage on day 1 in a hail storm - this was going to be a long, tough week, and Team Dark Cloud already lived up to it's name. This day was the biggest day yet - we fought, slogged & dragged our bikes through clay & mud the entire day. I was knackered.

Day 2: Digne - Colmars

The sun was shining as we set off under blue skies on day 2. We had a big old hike a bike to tackle first thing in the morning - just what we needed to loosen up our sore, aching bodies & awaken blisters from the day before. It was going to be a good day as the sunny skies lifted everyone's spirits and filled it with banter, laughter and lots of war stories.

Day 3: Col de Champs - Guillaumes

This is a morning of big views & big mountains, as we get dropped off on top of the Col De Champs - it is a sight that will take your breath away and the gateway to the Maritime Alps - a sign that we're heading in the right direction. The first special stage of the morning was a write off for myself and many others too - starting off with getting lost, falling into a hole & then slipping & getting stuck in my bike on the wooden bridge right at the finish while the clock ticks away. To end it off I gave the bridge a good punch with my knuckles as I slammed into it - ouch. All of this before a proper coffee.

Day 4: Guillaumes - St Sauveur sur Tinee

Once day 3 rolls around, your body has sort of got used to the shock of everything and you actually start to feel good and get into the swing of things. We had surprise today, we got to ride a chair lift for two of the stages in the Roubion bike park. It was fun to change it up, but these were my worst two stages of the day - way too groomed and perfect I reckon, I didn't know how to ride normal stuff! It was a good way to mix it up with all the other riders and hang out a bit. At this stage, we had no idea what Ash had in mind for us for the last stage of the day. I have no words to describe this last stage. It was wild, very sparsely marked, super exposed, almost 30minutes long and at the end of the day when you're mentally & physically already a write off. Most of us got lost somewhere along the way, crashed a few times, almost died a few times, but we all lived to share the stories at a local pub on the side of the road. It was awesome. Thanks Ash for keeping it real.

Day 5:   Valdeblore - Sospel

So day 4 was supposed to be our easy day, to rest up for the biggest day of the week, but it sure didn't feel easy to any of us and day 5 was looming ahead of us. It was a long slog heading out in the moon glow from the camp site and silently pedaling on through the morning fog. The fog never lifted and just got thicker as we made our way up into the mountains, creating quite a sullen atmosphere, as you didn't hear much laughter or chatter this morning. It took us about 3 hours before we reached the start of the first special stage that morning and we still had a long way to go. My goal was to hold back and get through these next 2 days without doing anything silly - I was in the lead and I wanted to keep it that way. All I had to do, was not crash, flat or have a mechanical - easy huh? Holding back is not easy when you're loving the tracks and you just want to pinn it, but this is what had to be done. After the first 2 special stages, we had a bitch of a road climb to get to the 3rd stage - 20km on the road with super tacky tires & 6" trail bikes are not that enjoyable. We got on with it, as that's what you do in this race, but we all cheered up when we were welcomed by local hero Nico Vouilloz at the start of the 3rd stage. How sick is that. I think we all tried to pinn it even harder after seeing Nico, but unfortunately Olly our South African friend was a bit too inspired and pinned it into some rocks, smashing his face and dislocating his shoulder pretty badly. Our day was about to get a whole lot longer & Olly just inducted himself into the Team Dark Cloud crew. He got heli vacced out of there, but Team Dark Cloud had another stage to finish up for the day. Not the nicest thing to have to do after seeing your friend off in a heli, but we grabbed a headlamp from one of the shuttle vehicles, turned up the volume to some Irie reggae tunes, mellowed out and smashed out the final run of the day - which happened to be my fastest run of the day after we all decided to go steady - oops. Having too much fun.

Day 6: Sospel - Menton - The final countdown!

Yes, the last day has arrived and we're all jonesing to get our tired assess into the Med, but we have to get there first. It was an amazing day exploring a whole new Sospel valley, even making a quick jaunt into Italy for a quick cappuccino after one special stage. The stages were very physical today, with uphill running, boulder clambering, challenging navigation and some long ass sprints, or maybe we're all just tired from the whole week, but it was no rest day today, we had to work hard to dive into that sea in Menton. On my last stage, I kept messing up, doubting myself that I was lost and that I was throwing the whole week away - even turning back at one point to double check a sign - amazing how my mind was playing tricks on me. Anyhow, I got down, I made it, I kept my lead and I took the win. I was very, very happy, as this event is a very special event to me. This is what riding mountain bikes is all about. It is the adventure, the camaraderie and all the experiences that makes this event so special. It is wild, raw, dangerous & everything that I love about racing little bikes as fast as you can down crazy technical blind tracks. Ash, thank you - you nailed it man. This is and will always be what everyone keeps harping on about these days - "the spirit of enduro", or as I prefer to refer to it, riding our bikes in sick places.

Cheers to Team Dark Cloud and every single person that completed the week - you guys & girls are awesome (especially the girls, as this is not an easy week). Heal up to all the injured riders too.

Our crew grew stronger this year, we were planning on being a bit more cautious this year, to make sure we all got to the damn beach, but when you clock into that balise, it is not in any of our gene's to hold back. We all freaking pinned it and we all lived to tell the tales. We took care of Ollie, we encouraged Todd, we rode for Michael Bonney. This week was way more than a bloody bike race, it was filled with many emotions, reasons, passions, decisions and friendships and that is what makes this week a standout week. Times are forgotten (well maybe not the 1sec that separated Nico & Jerome after a week of racing!), but these memories we create on our bikes will be shared & remembered for many more years to come.

One more TDC shout out - we didn't do too shabby either taking the win in a few classes & the fastest TDC awards goes to Jerome Clementz, who had to go and loose by 1 sec, but killed all of us!

Anka Martin 1st Pro Women's (32nd overall)

Sven Martin 1st Masters (also 2nd Am & 15th overall)

Chris Ball 1st Amateur (9th overall)

Cheers Team Dark Cloud - until we meet again in February to explore Chile!

Peace out,

Anka x

time to reflect.

Where have the weeks gone to? They have been flying by in my world with so many things happening all the time, that you just keep moving on from one thing to the next, with no time to stop and think about the amazing thing that you did yesterday, or the day before yesterday, or last week, you just pack your bags, catch the next shuttle, drop off the next rental car and fly to the next destination, unpack, deal with jet lag and carry on. To me this is my way of trying to live a normal life, to just pick up and carry on, looking ahead at the next event, venue, country, language and or food and putting the past whatever it was behind and moving right along to the next thing.

So, I'm going to keep this update short & sweet, because it's way past due and it's time for me to look ahead and move on.

I'll start back in Canada at the crankworx festival in Whistler.

1) Enduro World Series round #5 - enduro race of epic proportions. One solid, big day of adventuring on our bikes, mostly outside of the bike park on some sick, scary, pretty awkward, tecky new trails - it was incredibly awesome & I ended up 9th overall. The organizers definitely stepped up their game and put on one hell of an enduro race.

2) All day Sombrio photo shoot the day after the all day enduro race - I wasn't tired at all! It was such a fun day though & I got to see some new bits of Whistler. Any day spent with Lindsey Voreis & Aaron is bound to be a fun, entertaining day!

3) Escape the madness that is Whistler village - YOGA, YOGA, YOGA! yessss please.

4) An all day filming day on top of the world in the rain for the new SRAM Pike ad - and no, I was not going downhill all day, I was actually climbing uphill a hell of a lot - I was AIR. Pretty exciting stuff and a first for me to do some filming work. Quite excited & nervous to see the final product.

5) Free ladies XC & DH riding clinics offered by SRAM and a part of Rebecca Rusch's Gold Rusch tour. Unbelievable turnout from all the ladies and we loved helping them get more confident on their bikes. Although a pump track session in the rain was a bit sketchy.

6) Headed up to 100 mile house in the middle of Canada somewhere for Rob & Shanna Parkin's wedding by the lake. It was such an awesome wedding, but we were zooming back to Vancouver at first light as we had a 6 hour drive to tackle to catch our next plane back to Europe for the next race.

Arrive in Lyon, France - bonjour good coffee & croissants  - and cheap food!

1) Met up with Jon Cancellier in Lyon, loaded up our trusty old van who waited in parking lot 5 patiently for the past 5 weeks & headed straight to La Thuile, Italy to meet with Enrico and his crew for some filming.

2) Up early for an all day filming affair with Sven & myself featured as the couple who like to adventure on our bikes. They are making this to promote & showcase this relatively unknown riding area & also because it will be the Enduro Des Nations venue for 2014.

3) Up even earlier and heading over to Val D'Isere, France for the 6th round of the Enduro World Series.

4) Pretty knackered from jet lag - I opt to nap whenever I could.

5) Up even earlier than before - like 7 am early and on the lift for Saturday race day. Massive over the bars to wake up to. Sunshine & dust to begin with. Massive hike-a-bikes to the top of the start, then turning into massive storms, fog and no visibility with most of the girls getting lost somewhere on course, it made for a vary exciting, very varied day of racing.

6) Yep, you guessed it, on the lift at 7am again, this time the surrounding mountains were covered in snow. Yes, snow. No practice, straight into racing, holy shit, locked out shock - dammit, sick mud, long tracks, freezing cold, awesome. Super physical stages, so much pedaling, so much concentration, so cold, so happy to survive & end up in 7th overall.

7) Another early morning rise, this time to eat amazing French pastries and copious amounts of cafe creme's at the most amazing bakery in the morning sun. Bliss, but not for long. Rush, rush, rush, pack, pack, squeeze and Sven, Jon & myself are on the road again, back to Lyon airport so they can catch the next plane to South Africa and the World Championships.

8) Thank F#@K I'm not going anywhere. After dropping them off, I had a leisurely 2 hour drive into the "a la campagne" - the quiet French countryside back to the little village with 60 people where my parents & my sister lives. Where the pace is a tad slower, the streets are quiet, the food is fresh & where I can go to find some peace & quiet and just sit down to reflect and think about all the amazing happenings of the last few weeks. I can think about all the high's and all the low's that go hand in hand with racing & traveling. All the should have's, could have's and would have's. All the fun times, the nervous times, the scary times and the o my God I almost died times. I can think about all the money I spent on coffee, pastries & food in Whistler - but I choose to eliminate those thoughts & marvel in all the good memories with good old friends & bikes.

Time for some mellow country road rides, yoga, yard chores, drinking red wine with dad and cooking with mum. Happy girl.

Thank you Sven for the AMAZING shots!

Peace out, Anka

Burrito's, burgers, bike parks & wooden hucks - Mmerica - f*#k yeah!

yep, you've guessed it, I've been stateside at the colorado freeride festival for the 4th round of the enduro world series. We just wrapped up this race yesterday, after 3 days of racing in some very high altitude mountains where the air is so thin, you struggle to tie your shoe laces without getting short of breath, never mind racing some super pedaly bike park tracks. A lot of people came out here pretty early on to acclimatize, but I thought I'd leave it to the last minute & frankly, I don't really like the thought of having to get to races 10 days before it starts, so I'd have to make do and deal with the nice, crisp, thin colorado air. Strange, because the mountains around here look more like rolling hills compared to the Alps, but you just can't breathe. We had daily thunderstorms rolling through, which made for some nice hero dirt tracks, but also made our days pretty long due to waiting out the storms to go and practice the next days stages.

Some of the tracks were awesome, most of them were fun tracks to go and ride with your mates and have a laugh, but for the most part I thought there were way too many flat pedaly stages for a balanced enduro race, and way too many wooden bike park obstacles. There were some great technical tracks, but I just couldn't make up enough time on those bits to compete with the local xc girls on the pedaly bits. The race being held in a bike park, also meant that there was a huge local knowledge advantage, and for a lot of the tracks, if you knew them, you could really gain loads of time on them, knowing exactly where your braking points, gear changes and such would occur, and not having to tire yourself out having to practice them everyday. Anyhow, the race went down well, lots of fun bike riding was had, the Frenchies held their ground (as usual), some of the racers were mad that the one super xc stage got cancelled (definitely not me, as it was a lame uphill stage anyways). I ended up in 10th place overall, which I'm happy with, but it was a tad frustrating as I had Anne Caro seeded to start behind me (due to an injury she gained earlier in the season), so I had to pull over for her to get by on every run, which cost me a few seconds every time I pulled over and that added up over the course of the weekend. My fault for not being fast enough, but man, she is a hard one to stay in front of. She must have moved up a few places now in the overall ranking, so that will become someone else's problem at the next round, phew! I did have a ton of fun jumping & hucking myself again, but I do look forward to getting back to Europe for some steep, raw, exposed natural mountain tracks without slippery, wet wooden stunts, and without loads of pre-riding.

One of the highlights of my CO trip was catching up with some good old friends Linda & Stu from way back when & meeting their 5 year old son (he was just a wee baby the last time). Pretty special people, it brought back so many great memories and funny bike stories. Super thankful that bikes have been  able to create such great experiences, friendships and strong bonds between people that will last forever.

Bloody well done to Jerome & Tracy for total stage domination - you guys are amazing! I'm pretty sure  it was all the delicious meals we created & all the red wine and good laughs we had that helped Tracy to take the win ;) What a great few days rooming, riding & racing with Tracy & James.

I'm really looking forward to the next round in Whistler in a few days time - hoping I can find all the stages this year and not get myself lost again, that would be a good start and I'm just excited to catch up with some old friends, to go riding new trails, swimming in the lake, reading a book & having a few beers.

For now, the rental is completely overloaded with bikes and it's off to Colorado Springs to check out the SRAM offices and to go adventuring in the mountains with Jon Cancellier, Pang & Chris Ball - pretty excited about this!

Peace out, Anka xxx