Grassington 3-4th July 2010

The third event of the season offers an exciting new location and course addition to the 2010 series at Grassington in North Yorkshire, England. After our excursions to Penrith and the Lake District in recent years and the running of the events in Builth Wells since the very beginning, we figured it is time to look at another of the beautiful areas the UK has to offer – Yorkshire.

The new edition to the series will take us to Yorkshire, an area famous for its quality riding but up to now never visited by the MTB Marathon series. Only a stone’s throw from Skipton and Harrogate, the Grassington round will welcome the riders with fast open moreland tracks mixed in with the finest forest single tracks and topped off with some amazing views over Yorkshire.  Sitting in the very middle of the country the Grassington round will be the perfect destination for everyone who can’t make it to the Welsh or Scottish rounds.

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The Grassington round will offer 4 different courses:

• Mini marathon, approx. 25-30km - aimed at the younger and less experienced rider

• Half marathon, approx. 40-50km Half Marathon -  more demanding from a technical riding point of view as well as from a physical point of view

• Middle marathon, approx. 60-75km

• Full marathon with an approx. distance of 80-100km.

The Chain Reaction Cycles MTB Marathon (powered by Mercedes-Benz Vito Sport) will take place on the Sunday (4th July 2010). You can find details on registration and start times below.

The third round of the Chain Reaction Cycles MTB Marathon (powered by Mercedes-Benz Vito Sport) will be based at the Wharfedale Rugby Union and Football Club, Thresfield, a short distance from Grassington, which will be signposted from Friday afternoon onwards.

Camping, registration and start time:
Camping will be available (included in the entry fee) from Friday night through to Monday morning at the Wharfedale Rugby Union and Football Club, Thresfield. This location is only a short distance away from the village centre in Grassington, which has lots of restaurants, pubs and shops and is generally a nice place to go for a stroll.

Start times:
The Chain Reaction Cycles MTB Marathon (powered by Mercedes-Benz Vito Sport) ride will start at 10am on Sunday the 4th July 2010 at the Wharfedale Rugby Union and Football Club in Thresfield.

Registration opening times:

• Saturday from 12pm (noon) - 8pm (Please note that the registration is not open on a Friday or Saturday morning due to having no Road Sportive or ELBNO* at the Grassington location)
• Sunday from 7 - 9am

Entry fees:

• The entry fee for the approx. 50, 75 and 100km Chain Reaction Cycles MTB Marathon (powered by Mercedes-Benz Vito Sport) ride is £30 per rider and £25 per rider for the approx. 25km Mini Marathon.

• If you are in between 12-15 years old and are taking part in the Mini Marathon then your entry fee is only £20 rather than £25.

Your entry fee for the Sunday round of Chain Reaction Cycles MTB Marathon (powered by Mercedes-Benz Vito Sport) includes:
• Ride entry
• Free pasta party (held on the Saturday night before the ride on Sunday)
• Free usage of service stations
• Free usage of facilities
• Free skills and riding tuitions (run on Saturday)
• Finishing T-shirt
• Free camping and parking

CycleActive Skills Arena
Due to popular demand in 2009, the Skills Arena brought to you by the UK’s leading mountain bike instructors at CycleActive will continue to be a big part of the event village in 2010.  This will be the place to come to on Saturday to learn to hop, drop, manual, corner faster, brake harder and control your bike in testing situations. 
As in 2009, instead of taking groups off-site we’ll be running focused, intensive one-hour sessions in a custom-built skills arena.  We’re building the woodwork this winter, so be prepared for some timber trails and exciting riding,” said CycleActive boss Chris Ford. 
Skills sessions will have restricted numbers but you’ll be able to sign up online closer to each event. All the sessions are free as well, so take advantage of this chance to learn from the best in the business, and push your skills up a level before the Sunday event.

Skills on Sundays
The Sunday sessions provided by CycleActive have been incredibly popular with younger riders, but also many adults who are not riding the event.  This year there will be a split of sessions on Sunday, with those for youngsters alternating with adult sessions.  “We’ll use the same course as Saturday, with a few modifications, so youngsters and adults of all abilities can come along and learn something, and have a lot of fun too,” explained Chris.
Teaching great technique to young riders makes a huge difference.  This programme of CycleActive junior training is something we’ve seen at these events for 4 years now, and many of the youngsters who started with CycleActive back then are now blasting round the 25km or even 50km courses with real confidence.  Again, it’s completely free and you don’t need to sign up for the Sunday sessions – just check times on the board when you arrive.

Location and our man on the ground:
The Wharfedale Rugby Union and Football Club, Thresfield, a short distance from Grassington is the location for the third round of the Chain Reaction Cycles MTB Marathon (4th July 2010). To find out more about the venue and for directions please go to: www.wharfedalerufc.co.uk/
Our man on the ground in Grassington is John Lloyd – I don’t think we have to introduce him at all. John is the main man behind the series and an expert when it comes to putting some of the best enduro courses in the UK together.
Give him a ring on 01982 552923 if you have any more specific questions

GRASSINGTON

Grassington (population about 1100) is situated in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales and is the largest village in the Yorkshire Dales - its busy cobbled square and Main Street reflect a traditional working centre. It is one of the best loved of the many delightful small towns and honey pot villages in the Yorkshire Dales. Grassington is surrounded by the beautiful limestone countryside of Wharfedale in the Yorkshire Dales.

Grassington has a variety of shops and restaurants, hotels and B&Bs. Nearby towns include the old market towns of Skipton and Settle and the spa town of Harrogate. Although in the heart of beautiful countryside, travel to and from Grassington is easy.
Travelling to the Yorkshire Dales by car, you will find that the area is bordered by major trunk roads with the M6 skirting the west, the A66 to the north, the A1 to east and the A65, A65, A59, A629, M62 and M65 to the south. The closest train station to Grassington is Skipton and the Pride of the Dales bus services all call at Grassington. The nearest airport is Leeds/Bradford (25 miles).

Local Information
For information about local services and accommodation please get in touch with the local Tourist Information Centres and check out the local web sites.
Grassington

Tourist Information Centre –
Telephone: 01756 752774
Address: National Park Centre, Colvend, Hebden Road, Grassington, North Yorkshire BD23 5LB
Web: www.ukinformationcentre.com/yorkshire/grassington-tourist-information-centre.htm.