14/01/2023
The 140 km international elite men’s cycling race with six gravel sectors returns on the 21st January 2023.
📢 MEDIA RELEASE 📢
After a two-year hiatus, the Professionals Gravel and Tar is back in the Manawatū! 💚 Now in its seventh year, the Professionals Gravel and Tar has attracted fourteen teams from places such as 🇩🇪Germany, 🇯🇵 Japan, 🇬🇺 Guam and 🇦🇺 Australia. As Race Director Steve Stannard commented, “This is the most teams we’ve had and topping it off are the NZ National Team and the highly ranked professional outfit Black Spoke Cycling. It’s the only one-day UCI accredited race in New Zealand. It will be a big event!”. For the first time, the Professionals Gravel and Tar will start and finish in Ashhurst and will cover almost 140kms through the beautiful Pohangina valley and the Watershed gravel roads, enabling the event to live up to its hard-earned reputation as one of the toughest events on the Oceanic circuit.The route also provides great opportunity for public viewing as the peloton will do three loops around the Pohangina – Highland Home circuit before heading into the gravel roads of the Watershed, thence back towards Ashhurst and the finish in Wyndham Street. Chair of the Greasy Chain Charitable Trust, organisers of the event, Bob Selden said, “This is huge for the Manawatū. Not only will teams be here on race-day, but many teams will be in and around the district in the week leading up to the event with some being based in Feilding others in Palmerston North, so they’ll be checking out the route and the beautiful Manawatū. A chance for locals to see professional international cyclists and for us to shine on the international stage through their social media posts”. Lee Vertongen from Professionals Realty who are naming rights sponsor commented, “As one of the first UCI one day races on the international calendar for 2023, the cycling world will be watching. We are excited to watch a line-up of international teams, national champions, plus Olympic and Commonwealth games medalists, compete here in the Manawatū”.And one of the founders of Professionals Realty, Max Vertongen, himself a Commonwealth Games rep added, “On behalf of Professionals we are extremely proud and honoured to be associated with the Gravel and Tar cycling classic. Our family name has been associated with cycling in the Manawatū for almost 80 years of which we are immensely proud and with the success of the Gravel and Tar, we’re sure this will continue.”
The Professionals Gravel and Tar starts at 10am Saturday 21st January 2023 in Ashhurst. Estimated finish time is 1-2pm on Wyndham Street Ashhurst.
Professionals - Unique Realty Ltd Greasy Chain Charitable Trust Palmy & Manawatū Palmfeild Subaru Palmerston North City Council
