Whenever I chat to bike racers who are ready to step away from competition there’s always one aspect of racing that has particularly turned them off the lifestyle. It’s not the sacrifices, the diet, or the training. It’s not the nerves, the uncertainty, or the agony of racing… Nope, it’s the waiting. Days spent in […]
Who can win the 2016 XCM World Championships?
Entry lists for the 2016 XCM World Championships have been published, and as the race falls just one week ahead of the XCO World Championships in Nove Mesto, Czech Republic, you might expect the start lists to take a different shape. And in a way, they have. While some XCO racers are steering clear, others […]
Champions confirmed for Laissac
The 2016 Cross-Country Marathon (XCM) Mountain Bike World Championships are barely a fortnight away. This is the 3rd time the event has landed on French soil, and the town of Laissac is exceptionally proud to host the event after the Massif de l’Oisans hosted the Championships in 2006, and Ornans hosted the race in 2012. The […]
Chris Hellman’s trail to XCM World Championships
You know those cyclists you read about, blessed with an abundance of natural talent, who recount their entry into the sport of cycling by winning their very first bike race? Or they just know from a very early age that they’re somehow ‘different’ from the rest of their competitors? Well, that’s not me. I can […]
Australian XCM Championship team announced
Today, Mountain Bike Australia (MTBA) announced the selection of seven Australian riders to compete at the 2016 UCI Mountain Bike Marathon World Champions to be held in Laissac, France on 25-26th June. The team has qualified via results in the National XCM Series, National XCM Championships, and via the UCI XCM Series. Elite Women Peta […]
How to plan a race season
Related Event: XCM World Champioships: Sellaronda Hero
You might think that it’s a bit late (or early) to be thinking about planning a race season in Europe. You might be right. In fact most people have been racing for months now and are fully immersed in the 2015 MTB season. But I took the decision this year not to race early, or […]
The countdown to XCM Worlds in the Val Gardena
Related Event: XCM World Champioships: Sellaronda Hero
In Europe, the snow is slowly melting on the high passes, and some of the big guns of international marathon racing have been able to flex their muscles on home soil. Summer is coming! While Australia has a strong marathon racing scene, America has an impressive array of 100 miler races, and South Africa has […]
XCM Worlds course launched
The buzz ahead of the 2014 UCI MTB Marathon World Championships continues to build in KwaZulu-Natal’s capital as course designer Nick Floros and his team make the final tweaks to the widely anticipated route for of the global showcase. Floros and his team are hard at work as they look to wrap things up ahead […]
Nicholas Smith, youngest Aussie at CX World Championship
Nicholas Smith: The youngest Australian rider ever to compete at the Cyclo Cross World Championships looks back on his time in Belgium and the Netherlands. After finishing fourth at the inaugural Australian National Championship Cyclo cross held in Melbourne, Nicholas Smith qualified for the World Championships for U19 riders in Hoogerheide, the Netherlands. After extensive […]
2013 Marathon World Championships Preview: Part 1
Part One: Who? It is now just a week away from the 2013 UCI Marathon Mountain Bike World Championships (XCM Worlds to be more succinct). The XCM Worlds differ a little from any other Marathon, as this is when racers are representing their nation. Their colours are that of their country, not of their trade […]