Bad news for fans of the Salisbury Plain Challenge New Year Rough Ride – there’s not going to be on in 2005. The event has been organised for many years by SPC Promotions and more recently in association with local group SPAMBiking, but this year SPC has handed the reigns solely to SPAMBiking. Unfortunately by the time all that was sorted out it was a little late in the year to organise the New Year event to the standard that we’ve come to expect.

It’s a pity, but it’s not unprecedented – the Rough Ride’s had a couple of years off in the past. And we’d rather it didn’t happen than went off half-cocked – getting over thousand riders around the empty vastness of Salisbury Plain’s Imber Ranges (borrowed from the MoD specially) is no mean feat and takes a hell of a lot of manpower.

But fear not, for SPAMBiking plan to bring the Challenge back for January 2006. SPAMBiking’s Clare Oatley says, “SPAMBiking would like to take this opportunity to thank all riders that have attended this event in the past and reassure you that they will do their very best to make sure the Salisbury Plain Challenge remains a highlight of the British MTB calendar.”

Anyone who was planning to do the event should make sure they get out for a big old ride on that day anyway. You’ll just have to organise it yourself…