(Posted - 18 Jun 2012)
West Australian endurance athletes will come under attack on 9 September with the announcement that a trio of elite Victorian athletes are headed to Perth to attempt to steal the Mainpeak Multisport crowns.
Winners of this year’s Marysville to Melbourne Multisport Challenge - Victoria’s equivalent of the Mainpeak Multisport – James Pretto (pictured right) and Peri Gray will be racing hard at the pointy end, as will adventure racing star, Jarad Kohlar, known for his achievements in multiday adventure racing, including wins in the Anaconda Series and Australian Multisport Championships.
Kohlar will be fresh from an adventure outing in Mongolia coming into the Mainpeak and believes it will be ideal conditioning for a crack at a win.
“I’m looking forward to the event and should be pretty fit as I will be arriving fresh from a big 5-day stage race in Inner Mongolia," says Kohlar, who despite his in-form conditioning remains wary of local challengers.
“Local athletes like Sean O'Neill and Kris Plain will be the ones to watch, especially if they have put in the hard yards in training and made this event a focus of their racing calendar."
“Win or not, I love racing in WA as the vibe is always super friendly, and it will be my first Mainpeak so I’m keen to make an impression. I’m looking forward to the pain and hopefully and a nice cold WA beer at the finish line."
James Pretto, who has raced in Kohlar’s shadow for a few years now, grabbed his own spotlight in April with a come from behind win in the Marysville to Melbourne Multisport. Long considered a young gun of the endurance sport realm, he is coming into his own as an established contender and will be looking to make it a two-up multisport win on the back of Marysville.
So, too, will Torquay-based Peri Gray who won this year’s M2M and was second there last year.
"I’m really looking forward to heading west and seeing a different place and doing an event I haven't done before as it makes the challenge all that more exciting," says Peri.
"Some new competition will be great and I look forward to seeing if I can match the WA-based athletes on their home turf. After winning M2M it will be great to see if I can take home both titles."
MAINPEAK MULTISPORT EVENT DETAILS
What: Mainpeak Multisport, 132km multisport endurance event
Where: Toodyay to the popular Houghtons Winery in the Swan Valley
When: Sunday, 9 September, 2012
Who: Individuals and teams
Legs:
7.5km Toodyay Trail Run
63km Julimar Road Ride
22km Meadowbrook Road Ride
19km Icebreaker Trail Run
6km Bells White Water Paddle
16km Swan Valley Vineyard River Paddle
700m Houghtons Team Run
THE COURSE CAN BE ACCESSED ON GOOGLE MAPS HERE
ENTRIES ARE OPEN FOR THE MAINPEAK MULTISPORT HERE
REMEMBER to 'Like' the Mainpeak Multisport FB page HERE