2014 UNE 12 Hours in the Piney - 22/3/2014
Post date: Mar 23, 2014 5:42:03 AM
UNE 12 Hours in the Piney has been run and won for another year. This great race is the premier mountain bike event in northern NSW. This year nearly 300 riders from all over NSW and beyond came to the 15 km track at the Armidale State Forest to test their skills and endurance. The race transition area was at Charleston Willows for the second year in a row with the area covered in marques, tents, bikes, bunting and signs. Competitors were tasked with completing as many laps of the course as possible in the 12-hour period. Most competed in teams of 4, taking turns to ride laps. Others were in pairs. Finally there were a select number of competitors who did the race solo. It’s to these dedicated athletes that the rest of us really look up to.
The race started at 10 am and finished at 10 pm. This meant that there was only around 3 hours where riders needed lights. There is little experiences as rewarding as a night light on The Piney track in Armidale.
The track was in brilliant condition. The volunteers from the local NEMTB club have worked tirelessly to prepare the track. A period of rain on Friday afternoon settled the dust down and the track was sweet by Saturday morning.
The racing was awesome! World 24-hour mountain bike champion Jason English, from Port Macquarie, came back for the 4th year in a row to win again. He was the Men’s Solo winner, and was also the Overall Winner. Jason completed 17 laps of the 15 km course in the 12 hours. Only one team completed the same number of laps, and they did it in a slower time. Andrew Lloyd from Canberra was second in the men’s solo with 16 laps.
The Women’s Solo winner was local rider Kirby Knowles who completed 11 laps, just ahead of Jemma Bartonwood.
The team who completed 17 laps were the Men’s Pair of Joel Harrigan and Ryley Shultz from Coffs harbour.
The fastest laps for males and females respectively were by local brother and sister Michael Harris (37 mins) and Holly Harris (42 mins).
Summary of Results
Men's Solo
1. Jason English (from Port Macquarie) 17 laps and overall winner
2. Andrew Lloyd (Canberra) 16 laps
Women's Solo
1. Kirby Knowles (Armidale) 11 laps
2. Jemma Bartonwood (Nambucca Heads) 11 laps
Men's Solo 40+
1. Peter Selkrig (Sawyers Gully) 15 laps
2. Jamie Vogele (Port Macquarie) 14 laps
Women's Solo 40+
1. Dianne Perry (Paterson) 11 laps
2. Pauline Raffaele (Tamworth) 10 laps
Male Pairs
1. Joel Harrigan and Ryley Shultz (Coffs harbour) 17 laps
Team of 4 male
1. Geoff Barnes, Ben Hughes, Phill Kilmurray and Dave Marshall (Port Macquarie) 16 laps
Team of 4 mixed
1. Ben Harris, Holly Harris, Bruce Pain and Murray Scown (Armidale) 16 laps
Team of 4 Male 40+
1. Brian Cobain, Phil Fogarty, Will McDonald and Clay Tulk (Nambucca Heads) 16 laps
A Note from the Timers
Another successful year in the Piney with plenty of hero dirt after some rain on friday. Thank you to all the riders and volunteers who make this such a friendly and epic event. Also thank you for your patience with the timers. Keep on giving us feedback and we'll think it over and try to do things even better next year.
Results are posted as PDFs below which you should be able to click on to open or download.