Who is Caleb Bottcher?

Caleb is relatively young for racing marathon at the age of 19 he is set to shake up the elite race.

In 2019, Caleb finished in 6th place behind what could only be described at the best top five marathon riders in the Southern Hemisphere at the time.  In 2020 he is targeting a place on the podium.

Why did you choose to enter the Whaka100 again this year?
I really enjoy the challenge of racing the Whaka100 and the quality field that it attracts. I like marathon races because of the extra preparation and pacing that is required to succeed when compared to a XCO race. Plus, there's no better place to race 100km than the Redwoods!

What bike are you riding?
I ride and race a Santa Cruz Blur CC. It's perfect for these longer race days.

What are your Whaka100 goals this year? 
Firstly, deliver my race plan to the best of my ability and test out my big winter of training.
After placing 6th overall last year, I definitely have my sights set on a podium finish.

How are you preparing for the event? 
This year I've been able to make significant progression in training during the winter which has been really satisfying. This is mostly made up of road cycling and complemented with both mountain bike rides and some gym sessions. Gear preparation is also very important to me leading up to the event to ensure that race day goes smoothly.

Has the COVID pandemic affected your training? If so, how?
Last year the focus was on World Champs, followed by one month of rest and then one month back riding prior to Whaka100. This year has obviously been a lot different, including in training. With travel being totally out of the question for this year, it has provided an opportunity to have a successful winter of training with a longer term focus. Monitoring fatigue is important over a longer build so I've really appreciated Matt's (MTB PhD) guidance here. It is exciting to be able to race again with a condensed period of events in October and November.

What are your recent results?
They're not exactly recent anymore, it's been a long time since some racing! During the summer XCO season, I placed 8th in U23 at Oceanias and 4th in U23 at Nationals. I was 1st Junior and 6th Overall last year at the Whaka100.

Do you have any sponsors you would like to mention?

• ​Central Bicycle Studio
• MTB PhD
• Wide Open - (Goodyear, POC, AbsoluteBLACK)
• Hyperformance Hardware - (Santa Cruz Bicycles)
• Streetwise Coffee Palmerston North
• Event Ready Bodies

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