Union Wood bike race

FOLLOWING the successful return in 2016 of a national mountain biking event to Sligo in over 15 years, the Northwest Mountain Bike Club will once again host a round of the Irish Cross Country National Points Series, on 09th July 2017, in Union Wood. It gives the general public, and cycling fans, a chance to witness what is a very competitive championship, with the country’s best riders up close. Cross Country mountain bike racing is a mass start, lap based racing format, with riders of different categories competing against each other across a set number of laps, which vary depending on category. It is the only form of mountain biking practiced in the Olympics. Gerry Mooney, from Northwest MTB explains, “In the lead up to our event last year, a lot of work was done in the background to get a round to Sligo. We held the first round of the series, attracting hundreds or riders to Sligo for the event. “Mountain biking in Ireland is in a really good place right now, and the country as a whole is seeing a large growth in the popularity of the sport over the last number of years, resulting in the ability to attract international mountain biking sporting events to the country. “With that, it’s not every day we can say in Sligo that we will be holding a major national championship.” The course itself has been designed with a mix of tough climbs, challenging technical sections, and fast descents, and Union Wood in particular is known for it’s ability to push even the best riders to the limit of their skill and endurance. “We have held a couple of Connacht league races here in the past also, and it always surprises us.” A lot of effort has been put into designing and building a course that is both challenging and fun. The competition begins with the children’s races at 11am, the main races start from 12.