The second round of the Outdoor H&J Smith XC Winter Series is taking place this Sunday, and excitement is building after the successful first round held early in May.
The first round of the series saw 113 riders take to the starting line in spite of some rather wintery conditions on the day, and organisers are hoping that this weekend will see conditions being slightly more favourable for the riders.
“Every winter series race we see competitors coming from as far afield as Dunedin and Wanaka despite the weather in Invercargill,” said club president Donald Heslip.
The event has a strong participation focus, with distances from one lap for more recreational riders to three laps for riders in the Expert class, and age groups from 12 and under all the way up to masters, as well as a category for e-bikes.
“Over the last 12 months we’ve noticed a significant increase in the number of young kids and women across all ages participating in Club events both recreational and competitive,” said Heslip.
The event is also a great opportunity for younger riders to build their skill and fitness with an eye to the Secondary Schools Mountain Bike National Championships, which will be hosted by the Southland Mountain Bike Club in Bluff during the October school holidays. The event will also serve to officially launch the upgraded trails that the club has been constructing in Bluff, with the hopes that this will help firm up Bluff’s reputation as a must visit location for avid mountain bikers.
“Club membership has doubled to over 480 over the last couple of years and this proves that the club is building, maintaining great trails, and running great events for all mountain bikers,” Heslip added.
On the day registration for the Winter Series takes place from 9:30am on Sunday at the Sandy Point Mountain Bike Tracks, with the race starting at 10:30am.
The next major event on the local mountain bike calendar is the 2 Tyre Tracks & Wensley’s Cycles Winter Solstice 8-hour event taking place on 25 June.