 Ruthin event 24 -25th May 2008 (NOTE – changed dates)
The formally final round of the Merida Bikes MTB Marathon Series has moved onto the earlier date of the 24-25th May 2008 and will be held once again in Ruthin in North Wales with the event being based at the Rugby Club. The Rugby Club will be signposted from Friday afternoon onwards.
As in 2007 we will be working again with the LPFRA (Llanferres Playing Field and Recreation Association) who did a fantastic job by providing 65 marshals and making all the tweaks to the Ruthin course work. For 2008 the LPFRA are intending to improve the courses still further with new loops and sections in the pipeline. They are all well experienced mountain bikers with extensive local knowledge who work in partnership with North Wales Mountain Bike Association (http://www.nwmba.org.uk/ ), so it will be once more a great day in Ruthin.
GORE BIKEWEAR Road Sportives
New for 2008 we are offering something for the road riders out there by adding a sportive to most of the rounds of the Merida Bikes MTB Marathon Series. Amongst the events in Penrith, Selkirk, Builth Wells the Ruthin round will also feature two different road sportive courses to choose from. The road sportives are run on the Saturday of the event weekend with an open start from early in the morning onwards. Following the huge trend of non-competitive road events the GORE BIKEWEAR Road Sportives are trying to set themselves apart from the rest by offering a high quality event package with outstanding courses and first class support around the course plus all inclusive camping, parking, facilities, event meal and finisher present…pretty much the same deal the riders of the marathon series have been enjoying since the very beginning.
 The road sportives will have two courses on offer – an approx. 80- 100mile and approx. 40-50mile loop. The GORE BIKEWEAR Sportives are run very similarly to the Merida marathons by being one loop events with the start and finish being in the same location as the event village, registration and event camping. Due to legal reasons the Sportives will be started in small waves of riders at set intervals. The start will open at a certain time and will stay open for approximately 2 hours to give everybody the chance to have a relaxing start at the time of their choosing.
The courses are fully marked but every rider will get a small ‘backup map’ given in case that marking is not 100% clear or gets damaged or removed. Around the course our energy food sponsor High5 will be present with energy drinks, bars, and gels as well as with bananas and water. Alongside the energy backup, mechanics will be out there to help everybody with any technical problems. The feeding stations are normally between 25-35miles apart but should not be relied upon as the sole source of your food and drink.
Camping, registration and start time:
Camping will be available (included in the entry fee) from Friday night through to Monday morning at the Rugby Club in Ruthin. This location is only a few hundred yards away from the town centre in Ruthin which has lots of restaurants, pubs and shops and is generally a nice place to go for a stroll. So maybe make a proper weekend break out of it and if you have the time you could go to the trails in Coed Llandegla Forest (www.coedllandegla.com) for a spin before you dive into the marathon bustle.
Start times:
- The Merida Bikes MTB Marathon ride will start at 10am on Sunday the 25th May '08 at the Ruthin Rugby Club in Ruthin.
- The GORE BIKEWEAR Road Sportive will start 8am onwards on Saturday the 24th May ‘08 at the Ruthin Rugby Club in Ruthin.
Registration opening times:
Friday from 6 – 9pm
Saturday from 6am - 8pm (Please note: from 6 - 9am only road sportive riders can register)
Sunday from 7 - 9am
Entry fees:
- The entry fee for the approx. 50, 75 and 100km Merida Bikes MTB Marathon ride is £30 per rider and £25 per rider for the approx. 25km Mini Marathon. If you are between 12-15 years old and are taking part in the Mini Marathon then your entry fee is only £20 rather than £25.
- The entry fee for the approx. 50 and 100mile GORE BIKEWEAR Road sportive is £25 per rider.
- Discount: If you enter the road sportive on Saturday and the mountain bike event on Sunday (at the same weekend) then we will give you a £10 discount on your over all entry fee.
Your entry fee for the Merida Bikes MTB Marathon includes:
- Ride entry
- Free pasta party
- Free usage of service stations
- Free usage of facilities
- Free skills and riding tuitions
- Finishing T-shirt
- Free camping and parking
- Spot prizes
Your entry fee for the GORE BIKEWEAR Road Sportive includes:
- Ride entry
- Free post event food
- Free usage of service stations
- Free usage of facilities
- Finishing present
- Free camping and parking
- Spot prizes
CycleActive Skills Training:
CycleActive, the UK’s leading mountain bike instruction and holiday company, will be working their magic at the MTB marathons again in 2008.
Saturday will be a day of skills coaching rides, all free, headed by some of the most experienced and highly qualified tutors around. There are two levels of ride – one focussing on core biking skills while the other looks at more advanced techniques for the experienced rider. Each ride will last for about 1.5 hours and will get you warmed up and skilled up for the following day.
On Sunday their guides will provide active support during the 25km Marathon, while their much loved and appreciated kids skills course, now sponsored by Buff Headwear, will be running in the main arena throughout the day. Besides that they will also be on site answering all sorts of questions about their broad range of UK and international holidays and nation-wide skills weekends.
If you want to improve your skills before the event then check out the new range of trail centre courses run by CycleActive all over Britain, as well as their weekend courses in The Lake District.
To find out more about CycleActive visit them at www.cycleactive.co.uk
To book a space on a skills ride email them at admin@cycleactive.co.uk
New for 08 – CycleActive TT for young bikers:
With so many young riders now riding the 25km Marathon we’ve brought in the experts from CycleActive to run a Total Training, or TT, programme. Before each event you can sign up any young rider to the TT course and know they’ll benefit from the best tuition on Saturday, then join the instructor for the 25km marathon on Sunday.
The 2-hour training session on Saturday is all about total event preparation. There’ll be plenty of skills coaching, a bike setup clinic, informal talks about nutrition and hydration as well as plenty of practical advice on surviving and enjoying a marathon ride.
On Sunday the small group of riders who were trained on Saturday will ride the 25km marathon with their instructor. This will be a group ride so parents can feel confident that their aspiring young bikers are in safe, qualified hands.
The cost for the TT course is £30, plus £20 marathon entry fee. We expect demand to be high and spaces are strictly limited to 8 per instructor, so book your TT course by emailing admin@cycleactive.co.uk as soon as you know which events you’ll be attending.
RUTHIN
Ruthin lies at the end of the Vale of Clwyd in Denbighshire, North Wales. Ruthin is an attractive market town with a population of about five thousand. It has good examples of Elizabethan, Georgian and Queen Anne styles of architecture, typical of North Wales. There are also Celtic and Roman remains to be found.
Since 1993 Ruthin has been twinned with Canton of Briec in Brittany. The Welsh spelling of Ruthin is Rhuthun, 'Rhudd' means red and 'din' means a city. This reflects the large amount of red sandstone that Ruthin is built upon.
From wherever you park in Ruthin, if you head uphill you find yourself in St. Peter's Square. This hilltop town centre is unique in its rich architectural mix and lofty views of the surrounding countryside.
See http://www.walesdirectory.co.uk/Towns_in_Wales/Ruthin_Town.htm for more details on Ruthin, its history and what you can do while you are there.
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.
RUTHIN
Tel: 01824 703992
Fax: 01824 703992
Email: ruthin@nwtic.com
Address:
Ruthin Craft Centre
Park Road
Ruthin
Denbighshire
LL15 1BB
Web: www.ruthin-wales.co.uk
For information regarding accommodation, cycle facilities and the area for the Ruthin round of the Merida Bikes MTB Marathon Series, visit www.ridetheclwyds.com. This website was launched at our first Ruthin event and now offers a wealth of information on mountain biking in the Clwydian Range area, some of the 3D flythroughs on the routes pages will also provide you with an insight into the kind of terrain you will be letting yourself in for.
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