With the aim of encouraging more women into mountain biking, Stilettos on Wheels has formed and will offer girls only cross country races, with two dates in May and September.

Taking place in Sheffield on 19 May and Brighton on 8 September, the race is aimed at both  beginners and experienced riders and aims to get more female riders into the sport.

“At the last race I entered there were only 14 women in a field of almost 300 racers,” says easland, organiser of the Sheffield round.

“This means racing is not as exciting as it could be, you can often ride for the entire race and not see anyone who you are competing against.  Stilettos on Wheels aims to turn that around and get more female riders into the sport, so women are better able to compete with and against each other. Riders will be able to pick their challenge from a 2 hour or 4 hour race either as a solo rider or as a pair in a relay format.”

To help break down intimidating barriers to women getting involved, the event website will be packed with helpful advice answering any questions you might have, such as how to prepare for the race, set your bike up and what to eat during the race. There will also be opportunities to pre ride the courses with experienced racers in the run up to the events, so you can dial the racing line outside of the actual race.

The races are inspired by the Danish MTB series heelsonwheels.dk which is now running in it’s four year and famous for it’s unique atmosphere. The event has become a fixed date in many ladies race calendars and races have an average of 130 competitors of all skill levels taking part.

Details and further information about the races can be found on the website www.stilettosonwheels.com where registration for both rounds is also open.