Singletrack/MTB
Gravel/All-road
Dirt-road Touring
Fat-bike
The fourth edition of New Zealand’s Tour Te Waipounamu started over the weekend, with nearly 80 riders out tackling the 1,300-kilometer route down the length of the South Island. Find an introduction to the 2026 event from Eileen Schwab here, paired with photos from the first three days courtesy of Gavin Kaps…
Words by Eileen Schwab, photos by Gavin Kaps
The biennial Tour Te Waipounamu kicked off its fourth edition Sunday morning in New Zealand’s South Island (Te Waipounamu). Featuring a stacked start list of local and international talent, it’s making for some intriguing dotwatching this week.
Having quickly captured the attention of New Zealand’s bikepacking community, the country’s toughest bikepacking race runs the length of the South Island for 1,300 kilometres. It features significant backcountry travel, bike-wrangling, and technical terrain, with rare access to private land, making the event particularly special and enticing. The route’s nature has garnered increasing interest from a range of endurance athletes and outdoor enthusiasts, including adventure racers, enduro mountain bike racers, ultra-runners, and the occasional road racer. The diverse backgrounds of entrants have previously served them well, with relative newcomers to ultra racing performing well against seasoned cyclists more used to being on their bike than under it.
Born in the COVID years, the start lists of the first two editions were almost entirely local and capped at 50 riders. The 2024 edition saw a handful of Australians turn their gaze over the ditch, and a few from further afield, but 2026 brings the biggest and most international field yet, with 79 riders leaving Cape Farewell yesterday morning. Entry is by application, and those far exceeded the available spaces. Race organizer Brian Alder said the calibre of entrants is exceptionally high this year; there are at least a dozen riders who’ll be contesting the podium spots, and there could be a handful of sub-five-day finishers if the conditions allow, something only one person has achieved so far.
Joe Nation, 2024 champion and FKT holder (4 days, 19 hours, and 1 minute), Silk Road Mountain Race 2024 winner and Tour Divide 2023 third-place finisher, returns to defend his title. Rufus Wenlock, second to Joe in the Silk Road Mountain Race 2024, Tour Te Waipounamu 2024, and their recent head-to-head duel dubbed the Double Shake, will be keeping their friendly rivalry alive on his custom-built 32-inch wheeled bike. The two have been sticking close together in the early part of the race.
Justinas Leveika, Tour Divide 2024 winner (among many others), is putting the pressure on, taking the lead early on day two after a shorter rest than the others in the top five. Joe noted Justinas had a 24-hour gap on him in the Tour Divide, so he has his work cut out for him. Angus Young, Mateo Paez, Jacob Hora, Simon Eglinton, and Maarten Vanhaverbeke have all made the long journey to the race, too. In this fast field, they’re spread through the front third of the race. The small but mighty women’s field, unfortunately, saw two-time women’s champion Emma Bateup bow out on day one, with symptoms from a recent concussion from a surfing accident flaring up. Spanish rider Sami Sauri, with a second place at Silk Road Mountain Race 2025 and a win at Across Andes 2025, will be one to watch and took the lead early on day two, pulling ahead of local favourite, Peg Leyland. Megan Young from the UK and Zoe Painter from Canada are also accomplished riders in the women’s race.
Local events in New Zealand, which have typically been more social brevets, have seen a surge of interest as people vie for coveted spots in Tour Te Waipounamu and get the necessary experience under their belts. Last year’s Great Southern Brevet and Renegades Muster brought some new contenders into the mix, adding to an impressive list of locals to watch, including relative newcomers to ultra racing Luke Hoetjes and Jim Ashley, who were in the top five through the first two days, along with Justinas, Joe, and Rufus. Local riders have been looking forward to a chance to see how they stack up against some of the best in the world, and they are putting on a nail-biting show.
New Zealand’s changeable weather typically plays a role, and despite being mid-summer, temperatures below freezing, snow in the mountains, and rapidly approaching storm fronts are not uncommon. Most of the field were into the Hope Kiwi track on day two, a technical, slippery hiking trail, and the front of the field also tackled the hike-a-bike crossing of the infamous Dampier Range, encountering some wet conditions there.
Follow the race live here, and keep up on Instagram for more updates.
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