Competitors battle it out at Dinner Plain

The 2nd annual DP Festival of Cycling, based out of Dinner Plain over the Labour Day long weekend, has come to a successful conclusion with more than 50 taking part in a range of road cycling legs, skill sessions and mechanical workshops.

The event attracted twice as many participants than last year, with the format extended to include a casual ride to the Blue Duck Pub on the public holiday Monday.

On Saturday morning 30 gathered at Rundells in Dinner Plain for a three hour skills session that included the finer points of descending and ascending as well as some team time trial techniques. Ably led by former Olympian Rob Crowe and his Ridewiser team, the class were taken through a series of helpful drills at Horsehair Bend and Hotham Airport. The afternoon included a mechanical workshop and a briefing on the Hotham Challenge Ride.

Ascending the Great Alpine Road up to Hotham and over to Dinner Plain is one of the toughest yet picturesque cycle legs in the country. It has a collective ascent of more than 2000m within a 30km stretch that includes gradients of up to 18%, and is both revered and feared within the cycling community.

The Hotham Challenge Ride allows participants to select their own distance and thereby set their own goals on this hallowed route. Perfect weather greeted more than 50 riders on Sunday as they tackled the warmer climes and lower altitudes of Buckland Gate (45km return), Harrietville (80km return) and Bright (128km return). 

"What I like about this event is that it is a personal challenge, not a race against other cyclists" said Colin Organ, a first time participant in the event. "The camaraderie between everybody is just great, and Rob Crowe and his team were also very inspiring and supportive." 

A much deserved BBQ lunch awaited all participants back at Rundells, with sore backs and legs matched only by smiles of achievement and a desire to return for next years event. The last group of cyclists rolled (rather than pedalled!) into Dinner Plain just after 3pm.

The weekend was finished with a casual (mostly downhill!) spin to the Blue Duck Pub on Monday for another great lunch; taking in the picturesque villages of Cobungra and Omeo.

The event was organised by Mount Hotham Skiing Company and General Manager Belinda Trembath said “It is fantastic to see so many people taking part in an event that is only two years old. The weekend has a great future and we plan to make every effort in building it further next year.”

The event caps off a busy month for Hotham Alpine Resort, with the previous weekend playing host to the inaugural Cool Summer Festival and Easter Weekend festivities set to take place from March 21 – 24. 

The DP Festival of Cycling was made possible with the assistance of Ridewiser, North East Victoria Tourism, Scody, Gatorade, Rundells, Onsen Retreat and Spa and the Amy Gillett Foundation.