First Stop: Cape Town for SA XCO and DHI Series

[Matt]

South African mountain bikers participating in the cross-country (XCO) and downhill (DHI) disciplines will be making their way to Cape Town in February for the first round of the national series.

 

The SA XCO and DHI Series gives riders around the country the opportunity to compete against one another in these disciplines, and provides SA Mountain Biking the chance to see the best of the best in action, and how they handle the competition on the different courses in varying conditions. This process assists SA MTB in selecting the best possible team to represent SA at the MTB World Championships.

 

This year sees a brand new XCO venue in Durbanville, at the Willowbridge Mall (opp Tyger Valley Shopping Centre). Saturday’s racing takes place on a course that measures 4.2km and roughly 160m of climbing per lap. This new venue will appeal to the supporters, who will be able to view approximately 95% of the course from the restaurant decks at the mall.

 

Riders can expect a fairly technical course that features tight corners and lots of singletrack with several drop-offs, and might not afford the riders a chance to settle into a rhythm. Even though there are places that allow overtaking, these sections are limited. It is anticipated that the top riders will complete a lap in 12 to 13 minutes.

 

Western Province MTB announced this week that they will be including the new and exciting format of the XCO Team Relay, which will take place after registration on the Friday afternoon at 16:00. This will be run in the same manner as at the World Championships:

• Team of 4 riders
  
• 1 x Elite Women / 1 x Elite Men / 1 x U23 Men / 1 x Junior
  
• This will be based on a Provincial team as opposed to a sponsored team
  
• Each rider does one sprint lap, then hands over in a designated zone to the next rider
  
• Each team may decide their own strategy in terms of which riders does what lap
  
• Racing is quick and can be completed in one hour
  
• Entry to race the Team Relay is FREE!
  

 

The Cape Town downhill venue remains unchanged, and these fearless competitors will once again descend on the popular Contermanskloof trail – on the same course that was used for the 2011 National Championships.

 

The recent hot and dry conditions will more than likely mean that course conditions on the day will be very dusty and powdery.

 

Spectators planning on watching and supporting the downhill riders are encouraged to bring some form of shade and sunblock, as well as extra water as the temperatures can get rather hot in the valley.

 

Entry Info:

• Dates: 10th to 12th February 2012
  
• Province: Western Cape
  
• Location: XCO will be at Willowbridge Mall // DHI will be at Contermanskloof
  
• Pre-entries Close: 8 February 2012 (midnight)
  
• Entry Fee: XCO - R250 per rider // DHI - R350 per rider (incl transport) // XCO Team Relay – free entry
  
• Late Entry Fee: R50 additional
  
• Seeding: According to final 2011 XCO/DHI logs
  
• Registration and Late Entry: Friday 10 Feb – 09:00 to 16:00 XCO & DHI // Saturday 11 Feb – 09:00 to 14:00 DHI only
  

Click this link to enter: http://csams.cyclingsa.com/enter-an-event.aspx.

 

For any further info, contact Chris Nixon on 084 777 7802, chris@chrisnixon.co.za (for DHI) or Arno Lubbe on 072 300 3660, debt@vodamail.co.za (for XCO).

 

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[Cassie]

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