It’s 2018 and I have realised it is now more than 10 years since my first mountain bike stage race – BIKE Transalp in 2008, where I raced with Scott Cornish. Interestingly enough Scott was also racing at the Snow Bike Festival in January earlier this year, an altogether different race to the 8 days […]
Preparing for Easter in the Alice
Lasseters Easter in the Alice starts tomorrow, with the first stage sending elite racers on a 75km singletrack-heavy loop of some of the best and some of the roughest trails in Alice Springs. Racing in Alice Springs at this event, or The Redback in August, combines a number of unique demands. The trails in Alice […]
Gran Canaria – Training Haven
Back in February Ben Thomas CoachingĀ hosted coaching clients and guests in the training haven of Gran Canaria. These weeks were a key part of preparation for the 2018 season. Here’s my view on this ‘Training Haven’. Whilst I’ve worked for guiding companies in the past this was my first attempt at hosting a training […]
24hr tips from Ed McDonald
Here at MarathonMTB.com we have a bit of 24 hour pedigree amongst our team. Not only was Ed McDonald 2016 Australian 24hr Solo champion, our XCO/XCM/Stage racer Imogen Smith has raced a 24hr solo, and many team events. And Mike Blewitt has also done plenty of 24hr team events with podium finishes. Did you catch […]
Tackle the Convict 100 with these #protips
Marathon races have come and gone in Australia. The list of racers which won’t run again can be depressingly long. The Angry Doctor, Wombat 100, Highland Fling, Capital Punishment, 3 Ring Circus – all gone. But the Convict 100 has stayed true, and stayed strong. It’s a point-to-point race that runs in one big loop […]
National Championships Course Preview – Armidale
The Australian XCO season reaches its climax this weekend with National Championship racing at Armidale’s fast and rocky University of New England course. MarathonMTB.com got between the tape early to bring you a preview of what’s in store for riders vying for the green and gold. The course begins with a fairly standard, flat, out […]
What are you looking forward to in 2018?
Here at MarathonMTB.com we know there are so many things to get excited about each year. From new events, trips planned to some of the world’s iconic races, mountain biking holidays, a new coach or new gear – there’s always something on the horizon to keep you motivated. All of our team riders are just […]
2018 XCO Oceania Championships course preview, Dunedin
Oceania Champs, the Continental Championship for riders from New Zealand, Australia, and much of the South Pacific will take place this Saturday, February 10, at Signal Hill in Dunedin, which sits halfway down the east coast of the South Island. Huge UCI points are on offer so the event, in this beautiful harbour town, is […]
Everything you need to know about Alice Springs
Alice Springs is easy to spot on the map of Australia – it’s smack bang in the middle! So while it’s equidistant to every beach in Australia as some locals like to say, the mountain biking in Alice Springs is completely different to what you normally find on the east coast, where most of us […]
Preparing for the Snow Bike Festival
The Snow Bike Festival has grown since inception a few short years ago, filling a gap in the UCI mountain bike calendar as a UCI S1 stage race, and also catering for the need for many of us to ride our bikes more often, in more places. Mountain bikes are a tool for travel, adventure, […]