Mountain Bike magic set for the beautiful Cathkin Braes
Hot on the wheels of some sensational racing at the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome, the action is set to get decidedly off-track on Tuesday at Cathkin Braes for the Glasgow 2018 UEC Mountain Bike European Championships.
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Two titles are up for grabs as 140 cyclists (80 male and 60 female) contest men’s and women’s cross country events on a single day of competition (7 August). The man-made course on the 5.5km long Cathkin Braes Mountain Bike Trails is the perfect stage with the City of Glasgow providing a stunning backdrop to the high-octane action.
Like the Road Races, spectators can watch all the action for free, as athletes from across Europe negotiate steep climbs, trees, roots, branches, rocks and burns, as well as their fellow competitors in the quest for European gold.
The trail, which was first used for the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games, has been extensively upgraded to include some new features:
Nae Bother – the first ascent, which is steep and narrow
The Jouk – a rock garden with step-up jump
Air Space and Highland Jig – a fast, undulating section with jumps leading fast into the finish.
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Local favourite and GB representative, Grant Ferguson knows the trail well. The Peebles cyclist finished fifth when he competed for Scotland at the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games. Grant said: “I’ll have plenty of family and friends coming to watch me compete, which is always good. You do appreciate that support. Mountain biking has really taken off in Britain over the last few years, but it is huge in Europe.
“I’ve had some mixed results in the World Cup this season, but I’ve not done a European for a few years, so I’ll be going out there to do my absolute best.”
In numbers - mountain bike
A snapshot of the mountain bike competition at the Glasgow 2018 European Championships in facts and figures.
140 - Athletes who are scheduled to compete.
90 - The minimum expected time in minutes riders will take to complete the race.
80 - The '80 per cent rule' will be in place, which means any rider falling more than 80 per cent behind the leader's lap time will be disqualified.
17.5 - The average speed in World Cups is 17.5km/h for women and 20 km/h for men. The Cathkin Braes course is expected to ride slightly faster than that.
11-13 - The average lap time of the course in minutes, using previous trials as a guide.
6-7 - The number of laps the men complete will be dependent on the condition of the course due to weather etc. Women will ride five or six laps.
5.5 - The length of a single lap of the course in kilometres. During the first lap, riders have to complete an additional full lap of the start loop before they head on to the remainder of the course.
2 - Medal events: men's cross-country and women's cross-country.
1 - Competition Day – Tuesday, 7 August 2018.
