A Tauranga mountain biker is competing in a New Zealand-first event to Rotorua this week, which is pitting him against more than 400 riders from around the world.

Mount Maunganui's Hayden Lee began competing in Crankworx Rotorua in the Whakarewarewa Forest on Wednesday – mountain biking with the world's best until this Sunday, with one stage at the Skyline Rotorua Gravity Park.

Tauranga mountain biker Hayden Lee is performing in the Crankworx Rotorua event. Photo by Alick Saunders photography.

The event is first stage of the Enduro World Series, which includes competing in the Giant Toa Enduro today.

There, the 28-year-old will take on the Whakarewarewa Forest in a one-day race touted as ‘a long day in the saddle'.

'It's extremely physically demanding with a lot of adrenalin; pretty gnarly,” says Hayden.

'It's like downhill mountain biking, where you race against the clock, but we have seven stages through the day to complete in a certain amount of time.

'In downhill you get a chairlift or transport to the top of the hill, but we have to ride to the top, so it's going to be a big day on the bike.”

With a daytime job as a plumber at JT Plumbing, it's pretty hard to compete against the best, but Hayden's aiming for a top-15 placing. 'I think there will be a couple of hundred riders.”

Mountain biking for about 15 years, Hayden says his uncle and cousin ‘got me into it'.

'I went along with them and got hooked.”

Hayden says the aim of getting into an international team has kept him dedicated to the sport. 'I'm just trying to make the most of it and make it a job one day.”

Competing for a decade, Hayden is now part of The New Zealand Giant Fox Gravity team in the Enduro series.

'I went over and did a lot of racing in Europe last year and got a few podiums which I was happy with. I struggled with neck issues the last few years; it's held me back a lot in terms of training 100 per cent.”

But he does know today's track, having ridden it a couple of times. 'I know what we're in for”, says Hayden, who thanks all of his sponsors for their support.