FOX Racing have teamed up with Te Puia/New Zealand Maori Arts and Crafts Institute to create a custom helmet that's up for grabs at Crankworx Rotorua.

Designed by Te Puia tohunga whakairo (master carver) Clive Fugill, the design motif is distinctly Maori and Te Arawa, and represents everything unique and special about Crankworx Rotorua.

It is inspired by two concepts – the puhoro design representing speed and acceleration, and the kowhaiwhai design representing the natural outdoor environment.

Clive explains the puhoro design is reflective of the ripple effect produced by a river's water current, symbolising power, strength, stamina and speed.

'Traditionally, the design was placed on the thighs of ‘Toa' or ‘Maori warriors' to harness the power of flowing water and to capture it within the thighs of a fighter during warfare.

'The kowhaiwhai design is a representation of the natural world. Whereas whakairo rakau (wood carving) was used to capture the tangible and what can clearly be seen (usually an ancestor), kowhaiwhai were used to capture the intangible and the unseen.”

Clive says the colours red, white and black are also time-honoured colours, used in pre-European times. , with red representing papatuanuku (mother earth), white symbolising the domain of lo (the penultimate being) who resides among the heavens, and black a reference to Te Kore (the void).

'It was within Te Kore where the seeds of creation were sown by lo and life began. From Te Kore came Te Po, and from Te Po came Te Ao Marama (world of light). It was in Te Ao Marama that life could thrive and prosper.”

FOX New Zealand general manager/owner, Marcus Allen, wears the custom helmet that will be up for grabs.

Te Puia general manager sales and marketing Kiri Atkinson-Crean says Crankworx has quickly become one of the key highlights on Rotorua and New Zealand's events calendar, attracting thousands of national and international guests each year.

'Te Arawa people have been welcoming visitors to Rotorua since the late 1800s, and more than a century later, Maori arts, crafts and culture are incorporated in everything that we do today – it is our identity and it is what defines us.

'Applying our uniquely Maori concepts to this fresh, contemporary medium is an innovative way to profile Maori culture, values and traditions in today's world.”

Only two helmets have been made and only one lucky mountain biker will walk away with one, while the other helmet will remain at Te Puia and be displayed alongside other works of art created at their wananga (schools).

FOX International marketing manager Maria Pando says they worked closely with Te Puia to create a Maori motif truly representative of Rotorua, New Zealand, the people and the culture.

'This custom painted helmet will be one of the main attractions at our FOX booth at Crankworx and is the first in a series of custom painted Proframes we will be giving away throughout the Crankworx World Tour; anyone who tests out our brand new Proframe helmet is eligible for a chance to win.”

The custom Proframe mountain bike helmet is up for grabs to anyone who demos a Proframe on site at Crankworx Rotorua.