Tiger Tracks Gravel 2025
Words by Vanessa Johnson. Pictures by Neil McLagan, Nancy Tang & Vanessa Johnson
After the rough bushfire-impacted course of TTG2024, it was a relief and a joy to roll out a new route in 2025 - and it was a stunner!
Rain was forecast for the Friday leading into TTG, but the 83mm of rain that fell had Race Director Vanessa Johnson nervously sloshing through some very large puddles in her gumboots. Rain continued through until 9am Saturday, and finally stopped as Junior riders set off on their 15km Time Trial, The drains carefully placed by Course Manager Nilss Johnstone worked a charm, and by the time riders finished on Saturday there was very little water left standing.
2025 saw a return to the original TT course used in 2023. It’s a spicy track with plenty of undulations and varied terrain: lots of pea gravel, but also some sandy sections which ran firm thanks to the rain. With a hill to start and finish, senior riders need to pace their 18km effort to do well. It was great to see a relatively large field of 70 riders lining up to take on the Race of Truth - everyone from first-time gravel racers to gravel royalty. Ricky Andrews, resplendent in his Australian Champion’s kit (those socks!) was the fastest rider on course with a time of 32:18. Cassia Boglio, now riding for PAS Racing, was the fastest femme on the day with a time of 35:30. Winning riders across all categories were rewarded with Fig Jam from Nannup Lavender Farm - yum!
Time Trial Winners (4F Members):
U17 - Hamish McGillivray
J19 - Alicia Reynolds, Ryan Death
MTB Open - Megan Brown, Craig Raynes
M30-39 - Irina Baimatova, Dean Barton
M40-49 - Rebecca Kelly, Simon Tucci
M50-59 - Allie Cormack, Adam Ralph
M60-69 - Alison Dyson, Colin Rose
Elite - Cassia Boglio, Ricky Andrews
The Gravel Road Race & Rides avoided the notorious corrugations of Jalbarragup Road, this year using Crouch Road to take riders north to Junction Road and the Hidden Dragon. The rain had settled the pea gravel and the course was running fast and grippy. Mangee Road provided an opportunity for the sprinters to light up on the Dope Kilo Sprint, and a gentle (if occasionally muddy) climb along the length of Gemini 2 brought riders to the QOM/KOM.
The Big Tiger Men were the first wave to depart, followed 10 minutes later by the Big Tiger Women to complete two laps of the northern loop. J19 rider Alicia Reynolds rolled out with the Big Tiger Women, holding her own with the bunch of elite women to complete the one lap Little Tiger. The women’s race was dominated by Cassia Boglio. Aletea Brown rode an attacking race to finish second, her first gravel outing in the senior ranks, and defending Tiger Queen Anny Kidd finished a strong third. Ricky Andrews attacked the men’s race making a break, which was bridged by Sam Davis. As the two riders approached the final Crouch Kick, Davis had a 10m lead on Andrews, and it was only on the final rise that Andrews was able to sprint past Davis for the win. The sprint for 3rd Big Tiger across the line between Elite Joe Winfield and MAS12 Adrian Petersen was just as exciting, with Petersen just sneaking past Winfield on the line.
Gravel Race Winners
U17 - Danny Barton
J19 - Alicia Reynolds, Ryan Death,
MTB Open - Kathryn Noble, Sam Welch
M30-39 - Irina Baimatova, Adrian Peterson
M40-49 - Rebecca Kelly, Mark Matear
M50-59 - Fiona Whelan, Simon Coates
M60-69 - Alison Dyson, Paul Miller
M70+ - Murray Hall
Elite - Cassia Boglio, Ricky Andrews
Those who raced both days had the chance to take out Uber Tiger Glory. The average speed of the TT & RR were used to calculate the podiums, ensuring equal weight for both events.
Uber Tiger Podiums:
U17M: 1 Danny Barton, 2 Hamish McGillivray
J19M: 1 Ryan Death, 2 Alex Buswell, 3 Ben Patterson
J19F: 1 Alicia Reynolds
MTB Open M: 1 Craig Raynes
30-39 M: 1 Dean Barton, 2 Daniel Peters
30-39 F: 1 Irina Baimatova, 2 Michelle Carranza
40-49 M: 1 Simon Tucci, 2 (tied!) Sean Reynolds & Chris Martin
40-49 F: 1 Rebecca Kelly, 2 Claire Sibbel, 3 Rebecca Spiers
50-59 M: 1 Adam Ralph, 2 Simon Coates, 3 Vanoo Jayasekeran
50-59 F: 1 Allie Cormack, 2 Jo Starlight, 3 Michelle Hoffman
60-69 M: 1 Colin Rose, 2 David Menarry, 3 Phillip Diesel
60-69 F: 1 Alison Dyson, 2 Giselle Hosgood
Elite M: 1 Ricky Andrews, 2 Joe Winfield, 3 Bruno Rebello
Elite F: 1 Cassia Boglio, 2 Aletea Brown, 3 Anny Kidd
Full results can be found on Webscorer: Day 1, Day 2
Other awards:
KOM, QOM, Sprint Strava segment winners: Ricky Andrews & Cassia Boglio
Spirit of Gravel: Andrew & Jenny Duncan, Alison Dyson - for offering assistance to riders on course
Local Legends: Zoe Stolton & Irene Schmutz
Tiger Tracks Gravel isn’t just about racing, it’s also about learning and enjoying the great gravel roads of Southwest WA. TTG is a great warm-up for those planning to undertake one of the events at SeVen. The small field size (we had 85 riders on Saturday and 153 on Sunday) helps to create a friendly, low-stress atmosphere, perfect for novice riders and those seeking a fun weekend away.
The Gravel Skills and ride session on Saturday was fully booked, and novice riders enjoyed instruction from AusCycling MTB Instructors Nilss Johnstone & Jodi Earnshaw. The Little Tiger Challenge on Sunday took in one loop of the course, providing riders with the full Tiger experience and an opportunity to enjoy the scenery. Sunday’s Social Tiny Tiger was led by Julian Johnson, and took riders on a less technical 31km route. Although it wasn’t a race, some of the junior riders certainly attacked the finishing climb with gusto!
A very big bunch of thank yous
4Five+ AC is grateful to the Jalbarragup Community and many volunteers who make this event possible. The Darradup Volunteer Bushfire Brigade, the Friends of Darradup, and the CWA all contributed to the running of the event, and the funds they raised are used to support the local community.
We are very fortunate to have experienced crew in key roles, and it is great to see so many of these leadership roles filled by women and 4F fellas. Race Director & Event Organiser Vanessa Johnson; President of the Commissaires Panel Sam Bolton; Incident Manager Toni Burbidge; Traffic Management Richard Barville; Senior Marshal Andrew Williams; Registration & Presentations Arletta Ralph & Fiona Williams; Volunteer Wrangler Kate Boulton; Course Manager & Skills Instructor Nilss Johnstone; Instructor & Ride Leader Jodi Earnshaw; Hub Coordinator, Ride Leader & Everything Else He Was Asked To Do Julian Johnson; Morning Tea Organiser Nancy Tang; Photographer Neil McLagan.
And then there was the small army who stepped in to help with marshalling, registration, equipment shift, catering, accommodation, vehicle support etc: Locals Steve Boak, Evelyn Patman, Catrina Main, Judy Kemp, Lindesay Blackburne-Kane, Ewan Brown, Mike Piper, Di Piper, John Patman, Pete Sim, Kim Heitman, Ian Gibb. And the WA cycling community - Bridget Boultwood, Bridget Rhodes-Moore, Jacqui Richards, Mark Pellowe, Greg Murray, Steve Dodd, Mike Thorman, Rob Harvey, Martin Eichner, Kelby Lakelin. And a shout out to the Firies for the bike wash and running out some last-minute food drops :-)
Community
Tiger Tracks is all about community support. Although the event is relatively modest in size, it makes a big impact on the tiny Jalbarragup community. We are grateful to be welcomed and in turn be able to support the community through fundraising by local groups such as the Friends of Darradup, the Darradup Volunteer Bush Fire Brigade, and the Lions Club.
Huge thanks to the community and businesses who support Tiger Tracks with sponsorship, gifts of vouchers, discounts, and loan of equipment: without you our small club would not be able to host this event.
Platinum sponsor: Talison Lithium
Gold sponsor: Nannup Brewing Company
Silver sponsors: Escape.cc, Melody Wheels, Fat Duck Cycles & Espresso
Bronze sponsors: Tiger Valley Gallery & Giftware, Nannup Community Resource Centre, Loose Goose Shuttles, Nannup Lavender Farm, Foragers Honey
Supporters: Ride WA, Peel District Cycle Club, WA Cyclocross
