Ziptrak Tour Down Under 2019 | Event Highlights & Involvement

The Ziptrak® team were thrilled to be a major sponsor of the Santos Tour Down Under in 2019.

Hundreds of thousands of people from around Australia and the world came together to cheer on famous riders from every corner of the globe.

South Australia is the perfect backdrop for Australia’s biggest cycling race. It offers:

charming regional towns
beautiful wineries
stunning coastlines
busy city streets

We’ve gathered a collection of the best moments and stories from the event.
It was a pleasure to see the world’s best cyclists ride through our backyard, surrounded by thousands of cheering spectators – including a couple of joeys!

Check out our Highlights Film of the event:

The Ziptrak® Sprint Jersey Torso vehicle raced along the track about 20 minutes ahead of the professional riders.
It travelled in a convoy of 20 Subaru vehicles, known as the Tour Parade.
Spectators lined the route, eagerly waiting for the riders to arrive.

The Tour Parade flew past at a fast pace, with plenty of honking and cheering from the vehicles.
Some vehicles were louder than others.
Ziptrak® was lucky to be in front of the young and enthusiastic UniSA vehicle, which honked its horn every few seconds for about five hours each day. Thanks! 🤯

Spectators jumped up to cheer on the Tour Parade and then quickly took their places for the professional riders who followed close behind.
From the Parade Vehicle, the Ziptrak® team saw South Australian creativity at its best, with spectators beating the heat by setting up small swimming pools right at the road’s edge.

Ziptrak- tour down under 2019 parade car

Watching the event in the heat of January can be tough, let alone riding in it.
Ziptrak® helped by providing shade zones:

along the sidelines
in the Victoria Square / Tarntanyangga Tour Village

We installed over 100 sqm of shade in the Tour Village.
This created a cool and comfortable space where people could enjoy food and drinks every afternoon and evening during the event.

The women’s races began on Thursday 10 January.
All the teams rode together, testing the strength of their rivals.

Letizia Paternoster, a young Italian rider from Trek-Segafredo, surprised everyone with her fearless attitude.
She won Ziptrak® Stage 1 and pulled on the Ochre Jersey.
Congratulations again Letizia – you were brilliant!

On Sunday 13 January, kids of all ages had the chance to feel like UCI WorldTour riders.
They rode a loop on the official track in front of the grandstand.

The Mini Tour for Kids launched a full day of family activities, which later flowed into the Down Under Classic in the afternoon.
By mid-morning, Ziptrak® staff had attached about 1,000 bike horns to children’s bicycles.
The squeaks could be heard all afternoon, giving kids the chance to make just as much noise as the adults as their favourite professional riders sped past.

Perhaps not every parent loved the constant squeaking – sorry!

From the beginning, Sarah Roy from the Mitchelton–Scott team led the sprint points.
It was not easy.
Strong competitors such as Chloe Hosking from Ale Cipollini and Alison Jackson from Tibco–Silicon Valley Bank pushed hard for the Ziptrak® Sprints.
Sarah held the Blue Jersey throughout the event and was crowned the overall Ziptrak® Sprint Jersey winner.

Amanda Spratt from Mitchelton–Scott was outstanding.
Despite 37-degree heat on Novatech Stage 2, she finished first, claimed the Ochre Jersey and kept it until the end.

Amanda’s strength inspired many young girls, especially her smallest (but biggest) fan, Molly.
This bright eight-year-old has followed her hero across the country, doing interviews and practising on the road.
Our team was lucky to see Amanda’s kindness when she gave Molly the winner’s bouquet of flowers.

Thanks to Molly’s mum and dad for sharing your story – and all the best to your budding journalist!

Ziptrak® will continue to support these amazing women through this event in the years ahead.

Ziptrak® will continue supporting these amazing women through this event in the following years.

There are always dramatic and unfortunate moments in any race, and this year was no different.
Patrick Bevin from the CCC team crashed with only minutes left on SouthAustralia.com Stage 5.

He showed true determination.
He immediately asked for another bike so he could keep going, caught up with his teammates and finished the race.
Falling off a bike at 60 km/h is no joke.
Despite the bruises, Bevin completed the final race and took the blue Ziptrak® Sprint Jersey home.

As the Stage 1 naming rights sponsor for the women’s and men’s races, and the daily Sprint Jersey sponsor, Ziptrak® is proud to support this famous event.

Behind the scenes, many people, groups and companies worked together to make it a success.
Everyone involved was focused on helping riders and teams reach their best and on showcasing the beauty of South Australia.