The Hell of a Series officially kicks off this Saturday (May 14) with the Orecrusher.
The multi-lap cross country mountain bike race will see riders do three laps of the approximately 20-kilometre loop through the Cheekeye Fan single track trails of Brackendale. According to local riding guru Kelly Servinski, the race is a lot more challenging than people may assume.
"It's a pretty hard race," he said. "A lot harder than people think. There aren't really any tough climbs but the course is unrelenting. There's nowhere to rest and it's the beginning of the season so a lot of riders might be trying to find their legs."
Servinski, who competed at last year's Orecrusher, said it's key for racers to start strong.
"My advice would be don't underestimate the course and get a good start," he said. "You need to save something for the last lap but I do think it's a lot more technical a course than people think."
He also said the changes to this year's race, which include everyone doing three laps and getting rid of the Le Mans start, will make the race better.
"Mountain bikers don't like to get off our bike, so the marathon-style start is better," he said. "It was time for a change and kudos to Armand [Hurford, race director] for taking this on. He's done a really good job getting this race ready and it's a testament to his growth. He's a born and bred Brackendale boy and he's really stepped up and taken his place in the biking community with this race."
As for the race itself, Servinski said local racer Neal Kindree is someone to watch.
"Neal has really come back strong from his injury and he's fitter than he was before he got hurt," he said. "He's on his way to getting back to where he was at before."
Kindree finished first at the Sunshine Coaster on May 6 and said he's feeling pretty good heading into the Orecrusher. Kindree agreed with Servinski that the tweaks to the Orecrusher will make for a better race.
"I personally think it's great," he said of the changes. "It makes the race much more spectator friendly."
He also discussed his strategy for the race.
"You don't want to get caught too far behind in this race early on," he said. "I'm going to try and follow whoever's leading, finding out their weakness on the course and then pass them. There's no point trying to attack and pass someone during a part of the race they're strong at."
Kindree said his goal is to win the race but said he's been training with Team Squamish's Quinn Moberg and has been impressed with the youngster.
"I'm a little nervous he's going to beat me," he said. "He's really flying out there but my goal is definitely to win."
Servinski also pointed to the 2009 and 2010 defending champions Marty Lazarski and Ricky Federau as two others to watch. But, he added, don't forget about Moberg.
"Quinn is a younger guy and this is the first race for him against guys like Neal and Marty," he said. "It'll be interesting to see how he does. It's a real test for him. You don't really know what you're up against until you race those guys for real."
As for Servinski, he's a taking a break from the local racing scene after securing a job in the Scott Bicycles demo program. He added that he will be helping out at the Orecrusher during race day and cheering on the local riders.
For more information on the Orecrusher race, visit www.riderepublic.com or www.testofmetal.com/pages/orecrusher.php.
