Geared Up
(Cityweekend.com.cn)
Updated: 2004-10-19 09:51

Mountain bikers and road racers take note: it's time to get in gear, saddle up, and get racing. China's first all-comers cycle race is about to kick off, in the Laoshan suburb of Beijing.

The event is being run by Nordic Ways (the people behind last winter's cross-country ski course in Chaoyang Park), and will include a mountain bike and road race, both taking place on Saturday, October 23. The courses are set for the Laoshan area, in the west of Beijing, between the Fourth and Fifth Ring Roads. The Trek mountain bike race is a cross-country short course races (XCSC, if you know what that means), mostly on a single track, with a loop height difference of 50 meters over the 4km course. The start of the race trawls uphill, on a 500-meter paved road in order to split the group from the start.

Mountain bike races are divided into women's (16km), men's (24km), and fun (20km); top prizes for the competitive mountain bike classes include sponsorship to compete in the world's largest mountain bike race, the Birkebeiner, in Norway in August 2005.

Road racers will ride a 5km loop around Laoshan, along paved tracks with hills and sharp turns. Like the mountain bike race, there are three categories of competition - men's (30km), women's (15km), and an all-comers fun race (20km). The best six participants will receive sponsorships to join the world's biggest road biking event, the Vatternrundan - held every June in Sweden.

Additional events will include a corporate relay, designed for teams of four colleagues (min. one female) who must complete one 5km loop each.

Racers must be over 18 years of age, although special dispensation can be applied for. The course will be available for training from 7-8.30am on race day. In addition to the top prizes of sponsored cycling trips, other prizes include bicycle coupons valued at between Y3000-4000, and cycle clothing.

Races cost Y50 to enter, and competitors can register online at the Nordic Ways website (www.nordicways.com). Payment and pick-up of start packages will take place in the Nordic Ways office between October 17-19. Places are limited, so there is to be a first come, first served policy. Competitors will need to bring a copy of their passport or ID card.

The Great Wall Bicycle Festival

Laoshan

October 23