Hogarth the hero on Anzac hill sprint
Holmes holds court
Day one of the Ingkerreke Commercial Mountain Bike Enduro wrapped up with an Alice Springs town centre hill sprint that drew crowds armed with ringing cowbells, all cheering on riders as they powered to the top of Anzac Hill, a 300-metre dash that burned legs and lungs to the core.
Following the morning's 42km cross country in which last year's champion Andy Blair took line honours, it was, by the yellow jersey wearer's own admission, always going to be a tough ask to back up when faced with the pure speed of the younger crowd on his heels.
Blair nominated Team Torq's young gun threesome in Robbie Hucker (second place in stage 1), Jack Haig (third), and Billie Sewell as the guys to watch on Anzac Hill, but it was a blistering 45-second sprint by Ben Hogarth, 10th after stage 1, that won out.
Hogarth had to sit back on the hot seat - literally a chair at the top of the mountain reserved for the fastest time of the moment - and sweat out a further nine challengers, including Hucker and Blair.
None could match up in the end, with Blair only just making the start line after forgetting his timing chip and having to race back to his hotel to retrieve it. He returned with only a minute and a half to spare before his allotted start time slot.
Team Torq's Billy Sewell forgot his time chip altogether, riding the hill without, resulting in organisers offering him a one-minute result, having witnessed his sprint up, which they judged most certainly quicker than 60 seconds; but he was penalised for the slip of mind.
Blair remained on podium and retained the yellow leaders' jersey with a 46-second run while third went to Robbie Hucker in 49 seconds.
Hogarth and Blair, whose efforts earn them a 20-second and 10-second time bonus respectively, were the only riders to tackle the hill with road slicks fitted to their mountain bikes - a legal choice that seems to have paid dividends.
In the women's race, Sarah Holmes showed anything the boys can do, the girls can do pretty much just as well, smashing home a blistering 46-second ride to easily take the female Queen of Anzac title. Holmes was fifth over the line in the day's earlier stage.
In her wake, stage 1 winner Melissa Anset took second place to maintain her overall lead with a 57-second ride up the hill with Naomi Hansen taking another third place, making it two for the day.
The average time on the 300m climb was 00:01:10. The fastest was 00:00:45 while the most relaxed was 00:02:14.
Brief Results
# | Rider Name (Country) Team |
---|---|
1 | Ben Hogarth |
2 | Andy Blair |
3 | Robbie Hucker |
# | Rider Name (Country) Team |
---|---|
1 | Sarah Holmes |
2 | Melissa Anset |
3 | Naomi Hansen |
# | Rider Name (Country) Team |
---|---|
1 | Andy Blair |
# | Rider Name (Country) Team |
---|---|
1 | Melissa Anset |

Thank you for reading 5 articles in the past 30 days*
Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read any 5 articles for free in each 30-day period, this automatically resets
After your trial you will be billed £4.99 $7.99 €5.99 per month, cancel anytime. Or sign up for one year for just £49 $79 €59

Join now for unlimited access
Try your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Cyclingnews Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Thank you for signing up to The Pick. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
Latest on Cyclingnews
-
Peter Sagan retiring from WorldTour at end of season, targets MTB at Paris Olympics
'It was never my dream to race or to be a professional rider until 40 or 50' says three-time road world champion in San Juan -
A turn 50 metres from the line in Mallorca Challenge angers riders
Vernon says Trofeo Alcúdia finale was 'not a proper sprint' -
Evenepoel and Bernal set for Vuelta a San Juan summit meeting on Alto Colorado - Preview
World Champion the favourite, but Colombian strikes warning with stage 4 cameo -
How indoor cycling can complement your outdoor cycling training
Indoor cycling can be an important tool in building toward your outdoor cycling goals