November 19, 2025
Hills, heat and wind bore down on Kyle Gray as he traded the red bands for lycra.
The Rakaia farmer came second in the male 40 - 44 category at the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) Gran Fondo World Championships Time Trial, a 23 kilometre sprint to the finish.
“Sounds short, but it does hurt,” Gray said.
Gray was up against 39 other racers, including fellow Kiwi Blair Taylor, as he tackled the bike which ran in part along Victoria’s Great Ocean Road.
“It was on a very challenging course; hilly, technical, probably not my favourite terrain.
“It was hot and windy too, but that probably suited me.”
He’d been training for the time trial since April, when he qualified to compete by winning the New Zealand age grade nationals.
The terrain almost got the better of him in the home stretch.
“I was pushing things pretty hard.
“Had a bit of a mishap on the way home, skidded out, had a crash and ran off the road.”
Despite losing some momentum, Gray was able to stay ahead of the masses and earn himself a spot on the podium.
“I managed to recover it and keep it to second, there’s a positive there I suppose.”
He was beaten out by US cyclist Matthew Clark.
While silver wasn’t what Gray was aiming for, he was “pushing things pretty hard,” by race’s end.
“It wasn’t a traditional time trial course, especially for a masters.”
He’s determined to give it another crack next year.
“It's a bit of a process; you’ve got to win your age grade nationals, which I did in April, or you have to travel overseas and compete in a qualifying event.”
For the next few weeks, Gray’s sights are set on the Tour of Southland.
“Thanks for all of the kind messages,” he said to readers.
“I’ve had a bit of attention on social media, which is very very humbling, but not really my thing, I just like to keep my head down.”
Gray thanked Stoked Cycles for their support, coach Marc Prutten for his tutorage, and his colleagues for “holding down the fort” while he was away.
By Anisha Satya
Hills, heat and wind bore down on Kyle Gray as he traded the red bands for lycra.
The Rakaia farmer came second in the male 40 - 44 category at the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) Gran Fondo World Championships Time Trial, a 23 kilometre sprint to the finish.
“Sounds short, but it does hurt,” Gray said.
Gray was up against 39 other racers, including fellow Kiwi Blair Taylor, as he tackled the bike which ran in part along Victoria’s Great Ocean Road.
“It was on a very challenging course; hilly, technical, probably not my favourite terrain.
“It was hot and windy too, but that probably suited me.”
He’d been training for the time trial since April, when he qualified to compete by winning the New Zealand age grade nationals.
The terrain almost got the better of him in the home stretch.
“I was pushing things pretty hard.
“Had a bit of a mishap on the way home, skidded out, had a crash and ran off the road.”
Despite losing some momentum, Gray was able to stay ahead of the masses and earn himself a spot on the podium.
“I managed to recover it and keep it to second, there’s a positive there I suppose.”
He was beaten out by US cyclist Matthew Clark.
While silver wasn’t what Gray was aiming for, he was “pushing things pretty hard,” by race’s end.
“It wasn’t a traditional time trial course, especially for a masters.”
He’s determined to give it another crack next year.
“It's a bit of a process; you’ve got to win your age grade nationals, which I did in April, or you have to travel overseas and compete in a qualifying event.”
For the next few weeks, Gray’s sights are set on the Tour of Southland.
“Thanks for all of the kind messages,” he said to readers.
“I’ve had a bit of attention on social media, which is very very humbling, but not really my thing, I just like to keep my head down.”
Gray thanked Stoked Cycles for their support, coach Marc Prutten for his tutorage, and his colleagues for “holding down the fort” while he was away.
By Anisha Satya
