Celebrate Cycling with the Inaugural Counties Cycle Challenge

Graham Russell is a man on a mission. Ever since his children gave him a bicycle for his 65th birthday he’s been crazy about cycling and taken part in numerous cycling events including the classic Taupo Cycle Challenge twice.

Now he’s the driving force behind the annual Counties Cycle Classic which will run its inaugural event on Sunday 19th November.

Organised by the Rotary Club of Pukekohe as a major fund raiser, the Cycle Classic will offer three courses of 32km, 42km or 88km. And for the first time at a serious cycling event there will be a special 32 km course for electric bikes.

“Electric bikes are growing in popularity, and we thought it made sense to give their riders the chance to be involved in a fun day out” says Russell. “But they do need to be the type of bike you can pedal….it’s not a race for electric motorcycles! And of course the harder they pedal, the faster they’ll get to the finish line.”

There are lots of prizes and heaps of spot prizes too featuring the region’s famous produce.

“The routes we’ve chosen are really scenic” says Russell “That is if the riders get time to look around! And for the most part they are quiet country roads with little traffic.”

All rides start and finish at Pukekohe Intermediate School with plenty of parking available. The original plan was to use the iconic Pukekohe V8 Raceway as the start-finish so cyclists could take a spin round a track usually reserved for petrol heads, but sadly the track is fully booked on weekends over summer.

For thirsty riders there will be a drinks station in Waiuku with public toilets nearby.

It’s taken over a year to get the event off the ground, and Russell admits that if he’d known all the red tape he’d have to go through to get official approval, he might have thought twice about it! “But Health and Safety does have to be paramount, and Traffic Management is always an issue” he says. He’s busy now tying up sponsors for the event and passing on details to cycling clubs and other interested organisations.

Russell reckons the Counties Cycle Classic routes are safer than many he’s ridden, and even the sections on the main road between Pukekohe and Waiuku are good because the road is wide.

There’s already strong interest in the race as it’s close to Auckland for city cyclists who won’t have to travel too far to take part, and it comes close enough to the Taupo Cycle Challenge to be a great warm-up for that event.

But of course it’s not just for elite cyclists, riders of all abilities are welcome to register through the official website: www.countiescycleclassic.co.nz

For the Rotary Club it will be all hands on deck with just about every member having a part to play in managing the event. “Rotarians are great organisers, and willing to roll up their sleeves and do the donkey work when needed.” says Russell.

The Cycle Classic will become the club’s third major annual fundraiser joining an annual Golf Tournament in spring, and Book Sale scheduled for October 12-14. Proceeds from all the club’s fund raising efforts go to local community projects and International campaigns like Rotary’s big push to eradicate polio. Over the last 50 years, Pukekohe Rotary has raised more than half a million dollars for these causes.

The major beneficiary from this year’s Cycle Classic will be the Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre which has a special resonance for Russell who lost his wife to cancer five years ago.