MacLeod (30), a qualifications assessor for Work and Income in Dunedin, is the top-ranked New Zealand downhill rider and is confident of qualifying for the world championships in Canberra next year.
The race was held near Melbourne at the You Yangs Mountain Bike Park.
It was an interesting course that included a super fun track that alternated from flowing berms to rock gardens and included a large amount of pedalling.
"I was excited to ride my brand new Giant Glory bike," she said in an email to the Otago Daily Times from Geelong.
MacLeod was seeded first and then went 8sec faster in her race.
But Australian Claire Whiteman cut off even more time to take the win.
"Second is never ideal but I still felt I raced well and was pleased that a recent injury is finally improving," she said. MacLeod travelled to Australia with Dunedin's Tim Mackersy, who finished 23rd in a field of 52 professional men.
It has been a successful few months for MacLeod, who also made a significant bid for selection to the world championships when she finished sixth in a World Cup event at Canberra in September.
On that occasion she was the first competitor from Australia and New Zealand to finish on the 2.2km Canberra course, the venue for next year's world championships. She was timed at 3min 24.85sec, 8sec ahead of Queenstown's Scarlett Hagen, who finished 11th.
MacLeod spent five weeks training and racing at the Whistler skifield in North America last winter and finished second in the Giant Slalom to Anneke Beerten (Netherlands) at the annual Crankworx free ride festival.
She came back into serious mountain biking in time for the world championships in 2006, and last February regained the New Zealand downhill title that she last won in 2001.
