It took a little over three hours, but the Labour Party has notched up a win – albeit on two wheels.



Whaleoil blogger Cameron Slater and Labour MP Trevor Mallard this afternoon donned their lycra, clicked into their pedals, and set-off on a 60km bike race around Auckland’s eastern suburbs.



Mallard won by "five or six kilometres" according to Slater who admitted his nemesis got "a real good jump on me" on a big hill.



Dubbed "Whale vs Duck" by Slater, the race was sparked by a war of words that started with the blogger calling Mallard “a cripple”.



Mallard, an experienced cyclist who is recovering from a fractured femur and broken shoulder blade, retaliated in writing on the Labour Party's blog in May:



"Whaleoil has been less than complimentary on my rate of recovery. In fact he now refers to me as a cripple. Well let’s get the challenge out there.



"Trevor v blubber boy 50 – 60k bike race, no motorbikes."



Slater didn’t live up to his post-race post that boasted "yep, I am going to kick his arse tomorrow.”



"Remember this was all Trevor’s clever idea. He challenged me. I simply accepted."



Pre-race comments posted on his blog ranged from the supportive “just don’t let him sit on your wheel for 59.5km…good luck” to the empathetic.



“[Mallard] is now biologically-old, and had a fractured femur. I can tell you, the average recovery time from a fractured femur to be walking with out crutches or significant pain is six months minimum for an adult...So have a little mercy and be humble in your victory. After all, the old duck has had a broken wing and a broken leg.”



Today's 60km pedal-off started and finished in the Musick Point carpark, east Auckland.



A small crowd gathered in the carpark and waited for the duo to cross the finish line.



Slater, who said he had sore feet but was otherwise fine, indicated his competitive cycling days were over.



He said he’d been cycling only since the challenge was issued and he was by no means an expert.



"I won’t be cycling any more."