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CRC Marathon Series a Selkirk success

Four down, only one to go. The Chain Reaction Cycles MTB Marathon Series powered by Mercedes-Benz Vito Sport 2011 is slowly coming to an end but the events are still going from strength to strength. A huge crowd of cycling enthusiasts made their way to the Selkirk event. After mixed conditions over the last couple of years the superb Selkirk road sportive enjoyed perfect conditions with the 4 MTB-Marathon courses following close behind – there were a couple of damp patches out there. The weather leading up to the event was mixed but luckily the fairly weather resistant courses put together once more by Pete Laing and John Lloyd weren’t really affected giving the riders the chance to really enjoy the challenging sections the designers had added to the already much loved Selkirk courses. Luckily the CycleOps sportive was properly sun spoiled with perfect temperatures, only a slight breeze and sheer perfect visibility at the top of the climbs.

CycleOps Power Road Sportive

As at the May event in Llandovery (Wales) and the Marshbrook (Shropshire) event earlier this month – Saturday was all about riding on skinny tires. Almost 300 road enthusiasts turned up to enjoy the fantastic roads around the greater Selkirk area. The route took the riders through the Yarrow and Ettrick valleys starting with a long yet gentle climb following the Tweed River upstream. But it wasn’t all easy going. Our course designer Pete Laing had some ‘proper’ climbs up his sleeve to turn what appeared to be a gentle stroll into a real challenge.

Each route made the most of the network of narrow hill roads linking the river valleys that the Scottish Borders is so famous for. The climb tot-up for each distance was: 47 mile: 4 climbs, 95 mile: 8 climbs. None of the climbs were Alpine in scale but only one is less than 100m vertical and if you check the course profiles, there isn’t a flat road in between, so the ascent total soon builds up. After 2 hour and 28 minutes the first 47 mile rider came into the event village while the last 95 mile rider made the most of the day and took 7 hour and 48 minutes to complete the course. The Selkirk round was the final CycleOps Power Road Sportive in 2011. But we will return with a selection of sportives in 2011. To find out more and stay in touch about next year’s events please visit the Road Sportives website.

Chain Reaction Cycles MTB Marathon Series powered by Mercedes-Benz Vito Sport


After the road event came to an end on Saturday afternoon the mountain bikers started to descend onto the event village in Selkirk. Greeted buy near perfect riding weather the expectations of the crowds to have another day in the sun on Sunday was high. Luckily the weather forecast was true and after a cold clear night the blue skies and July sun woke the riders up and set the tone of the rest of the day. Following feedback from the last couple of years course designer Pete Laing changed a few of the key sections as well as adding some more fantastic singletrack to the menu.

The T-shirt crew at the Rugby Club were greeted with a sheer endless line of big smiles and grins on people’s faces telling us that Pete had once more done a great job. The sunshine and the perfect finish line setup encouraged lots of people to stay for a while and to enjoy a cold drink while watching the riders come over the line. The first rider on the Mini Marathon made it over the line in just over an hour and a half while the last rider on the 88km long full marathon took 8hours and 23min to complete the challenging course. The final round of the Chain Reaction Cycles MTB Marathon Series powered by Mercedes-Benz Vito Sport will head to Ruthin on September 17 and 18. For further details of the last marathon of the 2011 series please visit the course website. Registrations are open now and can be completed online here. Our event photographer Jon Brooke and his colleagues were again on site as well as on course taking pictures of pretty much everybody. So just go onto Jon’s websiteto find your photos there to view or buy.

After the Selkirk round there is only one round left in the 2011 Chain Reaction Cycles MTB Marathon Series powered by Mercedes-Benz Vito Sport. The last round will take us to Ruthin in North Wales for another double event. The last round features the 2nd Exposure Lights Big Night Out Night Marathon on Saturday followed by the CRC MTB Marathon on Sunday. Make sure you get your entries to the final 2011 round in now!

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