Saturday 1st May saw over 1,200 mountain bikers hit the trails around the normally sleepy hamlet of St Albans for the long awaited 2021 edition of the iconic Convict 100. New tales of triumph and achievement were carved into the history of the event as riders enjoyed the slightly altered 103km, 74km and 44km courses.
Sandstone ridge lines, the infamous kayak bridge and the remnants of tracks originally carved out of the Australian bush by convicts many years ago were all conquered by the riders. All were bathed in glorious autumn sunshine as the normal quiet valley came alive for the event.
Congratulations to all the riders across all 3 distances, while the podium place getters enjoyed the benefit of some great prizes from event sponsors Thule, Ground Effect, Fisiocrem and TwoUp Bike Co cracking times were set across all categories. While the fastest riders were finished the rest of the field were up in the hills chasing their own goals, fuelled by the Tailwind Nutrition Australia available on course.
If the goal was to set a PB, beating their riding buddies or simply too finish, all were challenged by the course and enjoyed the journey that is the Convict 100. The course is a trip into the unknown where the pain in the legs is dulled by the spectacular views and exciting riding.
As the morning passed and turned into the afternoon more and more happy riders streamed across the finish line, most heading straight to Settlers Arms Inn to claim their free ice cold finishers beer. Tales were told and new friends made as everyone you met shared the same passion, mountain biking!
We still have some of our sweet event t-shirts and jerseys available for sale, if you would like to grab one please email us HERE. Don’t hesitate, these won’t last long.
The Convict will be back in 2022 so note down Saturday 7th May 2022 in your diary and start planning your next assault on this classic and challenging course.
Full race results and all the great images from Outer Image Collective can be found via the links below.
