As the days have grown shorter in the Southern Hemisphere, they have grown longer in the Northern Hemisphere – a sure sign that the Mountain Bike Stage Racing Season is upon us. Mountain Bike racing around the world never seems to stop – you can’t actually follow a season, you need to create your own from what is available.
But if you look to Europe, the Stage Racing Season (and Marathons too, more on that next time) are kicking off as you read this. Although week long (and more) Stage Races are popular, some exciting Stage Races are three or four days long. You can race fresher for the whole event, and may not eat into your holiday time as much.
We will profile what is coming up every month, here is a selection of great events coming up in June.
Running from the 31st May for four days, this is a big hitting Stage Race. Far from consecutive 100km+ days, moving from point to point, you get to base yourself in the picturesque Schladming Region in Austria. June should signal the start of summer if you go by calendar seasons. That isn’t really the case though, and you can still be caught out by reasonably foul weather if a front comes in. The Alpentour is the place to suffer on climbs. With 8800m of climbing in a brief 214km, it is not a race to attend if you’re out of shape. Trust me. Stage 3 is a Hill Climb TT – keep an eye out for the rigid forks fitted overnight!
Jacob Nimpf drills it in the last 200m. Dude loves to climb. Photo credit: Regina Stanger,Alpentour / Sportograf
Previously a week long jaunt from West to East (geographically, no longer politically), waning entries and interest caused a change to the event. It moved towards the alps, dropped three days, and has turned into a mini TransAlp – but for solo riders. It seems to be Christophe Sauser’s pet event – he does like to clock up a win here. So another four days, with 8648m of climbing, spread out over 288.5km. You are racing point to point, so people racing better have a friendly van driver.
Race leader Sauser, and stage winner Lakata © CRAFT BIKE TRANS GERMANY powered by NISSAN/Peter Musch.
This one may not be on the radar for a lot of readers, but it is an event which draws a lot of riders back. Another ‘short’ but vertically assaulting race in the Mountains of Poland. As the race promoter declares, it’s a new world in this part of Europe. With open borders, they take advantage. You will end up in Poland, The Czech Republic and Slovakia over the four days of racing. You are likely to race close to 300km, and with perhaps 10 000m of climbing. This is rural eastern Europe, and the distances and heights can change a little by the end of the day. MarathonMTB.com – Repack Team member Werner van der Merwe will be racing and reporting, so stay tuned for his reports from June 7th.
A quick wash before the bike wash at the finish. ©Beskidy Trophy
Not strictly a Stage Race, this is more of a festival with a Marathon focus. There are a range of events on, but they stand alone and you only enter what you want. With a Hill Climb, City Cross, Marathon and Cross Country (plus a Trials and Fashion show!) there is a great range of racing, and on some steep Austrian terrain. Racing starts on the 27th June with the Hill Climb. The City Cross is worth watching if you’re not racing. Imagine the World Cup Eliminator, but run in the middle of the village – like on the recent Nove Mesto course. It’s great to watch!
This is a reasonably new event – but it has been welcomed enthusiastically by the UK’s sometimes picky Mountain Bike crowd. “Too much forest road”, “Not enough single track”, “People can’t ride downhill proper”, “it’s too fast, just for the racer types”, “I couldn’t find out what tyres were best to use on the forum before coming”. Somehow, event promoter Bearded Man has navigated the glum crowd and pleased everyone. The Black Mountain 3 Day is a full service race starting on the 29th June. The tent village has mechanics, great food, massage – just about all you need. With a Time Trial and two Enduro style events, it should make for a great three days.
Great weather, great trails, at the 2011 Black Mountains 3 Day. Photo: BeardedMan
That is just a glimpse of June. Things start to get a bit crazy in July and August, stay tuned and we will provide coverage of the races that count.