There’s still time to book up for this year’s Big Wight Festival, a full on MTB fest on the Isle of Wight, featuring two full days of rides, with Enduro, Navigator and fun and family options, two nights of live music, beer tent, catering and big event centre marquee and top class camping facilities all on one site. Read on for what’s happening at the event, plus how to get your Red Funnel ferry discount for the event and news of an exclusive Memory Map and Garmin special offer!

The Rides

The Festival features a choice of epic and family friendly rides on the cream of the Islands excellent trails. For the hardcore, there’s the epic Big Wight 100km Enduro, or the massive two day Wight Diamond Navigator. Or for a more chilled weekend’s riding, go for the 60 or 40km Enduro routes or the less competitive single day Navigators. You can mix and match both, on different days, just ride a single day… it’s up to you. Tailor the weekend to what you want!

The Island

The Isle of Wight is one of the best kept secrets in UK mountain biking. At just 13 miles from southern to northern tip and 23 miles east to west, the amount of great trails on offer is just staggering. The Island boasts over 250 miles of legally rideable trails and takes great care to signpost and maintain them. The southern and eastern downs of the Island are the best playgrounds, a relentless series of muscular hills criss-crossed with an enviable variety of trails; rooty woodland singletrack, scorching descents, gasping climbs and skyline ridge rides.

Entertainment

We’re delighted to present our best ever band line this year! It all starts on Saturday with the Bikini Beach Band, an incredible surf guitar four-piece who will set the marquee swinging. And a ‘Surf Noir’ theme for has been set for Saturday night; interpret that how you like, but think Hawaiian shirts, retro shades, Blues Brothers meets the Beach Boys…

Regular favourites The Hanging Baskets are back for Sunday to rock the Prize Giving party. The ‘Baskets have been act at the Festival for ten years now. Their distinctive treatment of an eclectic range of tracks is the perfect high to finish the weekend on!

The Site

The Festival is hosted at Ninham Country Holidays, one of the biggest and best featured camp sites in the south. Ninham is a low lying site less than a mile inland from Shanklin and just a short ride from from the Islands biggest and best hills. The camping pitches are spacious and the site big enough to accommodate a full Festival without ever feeling cramped. Facilities include hot showers and wash facilities (with extra capacity laid on for the Wight Diamond) and even an outdoor heated pool.

The 140ft event centre marquee is located just off the main camping field and hosts a full bar and on-site catering throughout the weekend, as well as event registration and the music stage. A great place to chill out and socialise after your day’s riding!

More stuff

Thanks go to Red Funnel for backing the event again and for providing a price beating ferry discount for Festival goers. Book your event places now to get your discount code!

Memory Map will be on site to show you how to get the best from digital mapping – and they’ve got some amazing Festival only discount deals on Memory Map and Garmin Edge packages.

Need some last minute bike essentials? Wight Offroad will have a shop on site and you can call them with any last minute essentials and they can bring them to the event for you.

takeyourpics.co.uk will be in attendance to take rider photos out on the course once more and you’ll be able to order top quality prints from their website.

Sports masseurs Jane Moore and Georgina McKenzie from the Harrison Clinic will be on hand to keep you in top riding condition; book early though, this is always popular!

And there’ll be extra fun and games around the marquee and on site, plus a Monday morning leisure ride map available for you to spin out those tired limbs.

Full event details and booking can be found at
www.trailbreak.co.uk/bigwight/.