The Alps Epic, has forged a place in the world of mountain bike stage races, with the 5 day event in the Hautes-Alpes in France delivering not just a physical challenge, but a technical test for riders as well. For the event’s 10th year in 2025, the Alps Epic joins the official UCI Marathon calendar, […]
Michelin-Beard and Bloor triumphant at inaugural Shimano Gravel Muster around Alice Springs
Australia’s first gravel stage race, the Shimano Gravel Muster Stage Race, took place in the Red Centre from Thursday 22nd to Sunday 25th August 2024. The unique event mixed the experience that Rapid Ascent has of running stage races in the area, the boom in gravel riding, and a fun mix of racing and social stages – […]
Shimano launch Trail Born trail initiative
Shimano have just announced their Trail Born initiative, which aims to increase and susatin a range of mountain bike trails around the world. This includes donating $USD1 million per year for the next decade, but it also covers working closely on trail projects and advocacy groups both locally and globally. Given trails typically cost $USD15-80k […]
Australian team selected for 2024 UCI Mountain Bike Marathon World Championships
Today, AusCycling announced that six riders have been selected for the 2024 Cross Country Marathon (XCM) Mountain Bike World Championship in Snowshoe, USA. The AusCycling National Selection Panel today confirmed the riders who will compete at the championships in September. The team consists of 3 men and 3 women, one of the larger teams fielded […]
Taking on the Shimano Gravel Muster in Alice Springs
Earlier this year Australian event promoters Rapid Ascent announced a new race in an ancient place; the Shimano Gravel Muster. As long-time hosts of the popular mountain bike stage race in Alice Springs known as The Redback, the event crew decided to bring their expertise in events to something new for Australia – a multi-day […]
Henderson and Lane-Welsh snare 2024 Otway Odyssey victories
On a day for the history books, the Otway Odyssey delivered another epic race of high quality, hard racing on Saturday 24 February, 2024 at the 18th edition of the event in Forrest, Victoria. The early starts saw the elite women onto the 100km course first, with a truly formidable line up. With World Cup star […]
Top Australian talent ready for Otway Odyssey
If you want a proving ground in the Australian endurance mountain biking scene, there’s no higher bar than a win, or even a podium, at the Otway Odyssey. The 18th edition of the Otway Odyssey MTB Marathon will take place on February 24, with the Great Otway Gravel Grind running on February 25. Event organisers […]
2024 Cape Epic route
The ABSA Cape Epic is the brute of the marathon stage race game. Plenty of events will claim to be the hardest, some claim the best trails, some claim the best event services – but there is no escaping the fact that the Cape Epic is the biggest of the bunch. As we have published […]
Otway Odyssey returns for 18th edition in 2024
If you think of mountain bike marathons in Australia, only a few come to mind as long-running events that still offer unique experiences for Australian mountain bikers or those visiting from further afield – and the Otway Odyssey is one of them. Event promoter Rapid Ascent have just announced that entries for the 2024 Otway […]
Malevil Cup returns for 2023
The Malevil Cup is one of the most traditional and prestigious mountain bike marathons in the Czech Republic. In recent years, the bike marathon in northern Bohemia has hosted the European marathonchampionships, the national championships and the prestigious UCI MTB marathon series. In 2023 the Malevil Cup has a UCI C1 classification, which should attract […]