John O'Malley Photo Gallery

John O'Malley has put together an amazing photo gallery of The Tour. For those who didn't make it to the race I think it tells the story well.

Below is my favorite photo from the weekend-

Day 1 Photos

The following photos were taken on day 1 of The Tour by one of the marshalls-Remy Driehuis.

Gena and Alexis were pretty dominating on Day 1. They put 10mins on their closes rivels and looked strong

Gary and Tim chased the leaders hard, being a lot closer to Gena and Alexis than they were 2 weeks earlier at the CraigieBurner. They traveled very well together as a team which was key to there success.

I love this shot of Steve and his "speed stance"! All thats missing is a cape.....

The Tour- Overall Results

Day 1 results Day 2 results Overall

Team # Name Place Time Place Time Place time

10 Sibaev/Poilvert 1 1:37 1 1:45 1 3:22

9 Ensor/MacPherson 2 1:47 2 1:50 2 3:37

8 Sherrat/Conlan 3 1:55 4 1:54 3 3:49

2 Lang/Finnigan 4 2:03 5 2:06 4 4:09

11 Tynan/Poulsen 5 2:13 6 2:08 5 4:21

1 Henson/Piper 7 2:27 7 2:24 6 4:51

4 Marsh/Bruerton 6 2:23 8 2:31 7 4:54

3 Scrimgeour/Sinicali DNS 3 1:52 8 1:52

Gena Sibaev and Alexis Poilvert, The Tour 2009 Winners

Photo: Gillian Ensor

Day 1!

Finaly Day 1 of The Tour!

Amazing day with great weather, sun shine, great spring snow and a entertaining course of around 1250 vertical meters.

The start at Cheeseman Ski Area

Ensor & MacPherson, final climb, Tarn Basin

Marsh & Bruerton bottom final climb, Tarn Basin

Day 1 course

Results from day 1-

Team # Name Place Time

10 Sibaev/Poilvert 1 1:37

9 Ensor/MacPherson 2 1:47

8 Sherrat/Conlan 3 1:55

2 Lang/Finnigan 4 2:03

11 Tynan/Poulsen 5 2:13

4 Marsh/Bruerton 6 2:23

1 Henson/Piper 7 2:27

The Final Tip!

The final tip for The Tour! Yeah.

Have Fun!

That after all is the goal of such events, to have a good time. I am sure all the racers will be turn up with there "game face on", but I think it will be hard not to enjoy ones self this weekend.

The weather forecast is looking good, the cafe at Cheeseman will be open and 7am for racers and you'll be skiing around with some like minded folks in the backcountry.

A few things you could do to increase the fun factor-

-Bring a Camel Back or similar hydration system and sun screen. Spring is here! Remember the race is self supported, that means no water stations out on the course.

-Dress light- more than likely its will be hot and over heating is the last thing you want to do. Check HERE for a old tip for dressing right and don't forget the BUFF.

-Wax up your skis and skins. The Swiss kids up at Cheeseman will wax (and tune) your skis and some glob stop type wax on your skins won't hurt neither.

DOC Concession

For those who don't know a pretty large chunk of land is managed by the Department of Conservation, including the area that The Tour will take place.

For us to be able to use the area around Cheeseman Ski Area for this event a concession application had to be filed. The concession application process was an interesting and very beneficial one. Heaps of questions that make you think about what kind of impact your event and actions might have on our environment an dhow we can minimise them. Together with Kirsty from DOC I was able to identify a few things-

-No weeds or animals- Except for an avalanche rescue dog (which we have no plan on using) no animals at The Tour. Other no no is weeds. We ask that you make sure that all your gear is clean before getting up to Cheeseman. While Didymo is a big player in the snow, you can never be to safe- visit HERE to see how you can help stop the spreed of this weed.

-Toileting/ Rubbish- While the "Pack it in, pack it out" method is a good one, I am a big fan of the "Don't pack it in in the first place" practice. Use the rubbish and toilet facilities at Cheeseman before the race, or do take a bag with you for your waste.

Go to www.doc.govt.nz for more information on conservation and ways you can do your bit.

Race Program

The Tour Backcountry Ski Touring Race Program

(as of 14th September 2009)

17^th September- course setting

18^th September- course setting

- 7pm-7.30pm racers check in/pick up race number/gear check – Forrest Lodge (Cheeseman)

- 8pm - pre race meeting at Forrest Lodge

- race marshals gear check and meeting

19^th September- 7am- race marshals meet at Cheeseman day lodge

- 7.30am transceiver checks

- 8am – race start

- 10am-1pm racers finishing

- course setting

- 4.30pm- pre race meeting (for Sundays race)

20^th September- 7am- race marshals meet at Cheeseman day lodge

- 7.30am transceiver checks

- 8am – race start

- 10am-1pm racers finishing

-2.30- BYO BBQ lunch!

- 3.30pm- prize giving starts (Cheeseman day lodge)

NOTE - Race will start and finish both days at Cheeseman Ski Area base area

- Race start times will depend greatly on weather and snow conditions. Early start is to allow for course setting and expected spring warming of snow pack (increased avalanche risk).

-IF the warm weather continues expect a earlier start!